Butterfly Gloss

by Sleepy_koko

Summary:

Haru Okumura didn't have a choice to go back. Yet, when faced with the opportunity to save those she cared about, she couldn't pass up on the chance. She refused to let herself be puppeted by this grand game beyond her for any longer, cutting her strings and moving forward to prevent the tragedies that plagued her life.

Her first order of business was to stop her father's killer from gaining the resources needed to rise to power. To complete that, a certain puppet's strings need to be cut as well, leaving one Goro Akechi falling tightly into the hands of those willing to give him an opportunity he was never granted before—a chance for a family.

Chapter 1: Prolouge

 

Haru Okumura couldn’t remember her last moments before she died. For Haru, the more terrifying aspect was that she didn’t recall the exact moment. In fact, she couldn’t recall if she even died at all. She could only recall going to bed on February second and waking up almost three years in the past on the third.  

Waking up would be the wrong term to describe it. Instead, Haru went to bed on February second and then snapped back into consciousness in her room. A room that reverted back to how it was before she redecorated. Three years ago. 

The first thing she noticed was a lamp on the table broke two years ago. Then, a desk she knew she replaced a couple months ago. The stars that lined the bed that Ren just gave her were missing. The calendar had pictures of Persian cats instead of hummingbirds. 

She thought it was a dream, it had to be a dream. Yet everything made sense, too much sense, a dream was odd, it flowed from place to place while the explanations from those places remained ludicrous. Haru rushed across her room, grabbing her phone. Directly in front of her had the date. 

February third, 2014. 

After the initial shock of the moment and confirming that she wasn’t dreaming, she managed to piece together her first order of business, to see her father. She wanted to see him for her own eyes, or better yet, what type of person he was. 

Instead, she decided to check her phone instead, staring down at that familiar black and red eye that resided on her phone. That part wasn’t much of a surprise, she could still feel the presence of Astarte, her Persona, inside her. The more stressful part was heading inside the app. 

There was no history listed, though everything seemed to work the same as before. She quickly went into the search feature, staring at the screen asking for her to input a name. 

There was no use in hesitating. She had dealt with her father’s palace already, so if she catches it now, she might be able to deal with it far before it becomes a real problem. If whatever just happened actually happened, and she wasn’t in some sick dream created by the world, she could get a second chance to help fix her father. Better yet, perhaps she can do more than that, she could find her friends again and stop Shid- 

“Haru?” 

Haru’s eyes shot up from the screen, staring at her father standing in the doorframe. He was in one of his nicer suits, which she had last seen him wear years ago before it got stained, and he replaced it. Her heart began racing and her thoughts grew all jumbled when she laid eyes on him, somehow alive again. She didn’t know exactly the man he was at the moment. Three years ago… was he already demanding her to be the perfect heir, or was he the father she chose to remember? Was he still the man she chooses to remember over the man he became at the end?

Nonetheless, her father, against all odds, was alive. She didn’t know if she should feel excited or terrified. 

“Yes father?” she managed to mutter out, noticing that the prolonged silence was making things awkward for him. 

“Aren’t you getting ready? The banquet is starting in an hour,” Kunikazu Okumura asked in a neutral tone. Haru must have stared at him like a deer in the headlights before he signed. “Aren’t you planning to wear that dress you just bought?” 

Something about hearing him speak again was surreal to her, to the point where she had to catch herself before she started screaming about how he was supposed to be dead… That would be crazy. All of this was crazy. She felt like she was going crazy. She turned away from her father and pinched herself just to confirm she wasn’t hallucinating.

Haru looked over at the closet, noticing the dress in question hanging there. It was nothing special, just a lavender silk dress with a black sheer over the skirt. She recalled all her middle school friends going crazy about the new collection by some famous designer she couldn’t recall at the moment. While it wasn’t anything impressive to Haru now, back then, it had been so exciting to get it.

“Oh! That banquet!” Haru clapped her hands together, her face lighting up in recognition. Three years ago, she and her father went to a banquet hosted by one of her father’s colleagues. The exact specifics about it were completely lost to her. Though, to be fair to her, it wasn’t like the exact specifics of the event ever mattered. It was a night where a lot of politicians were looking for investors to build their reputations for the next election in three years. At least, that’s how her father and Mari-san described them. If this night was the one she was remembering…Shido should be there. 

“Yeah… I know you aren’t a massive fan of these types of events but…” 

“No no, it’s fine!” Haru cut him off. “I was just looking at something…on my phone.” Haru began to stand up, rushing towards her dress. Her father gave her a nod and took that as a cue to walk back downstairs. 

Haru looked down at the dress, gripping the soft fabric in her hands. Should she have run up to hug him? Ask him questions? No, neither would have been a good idea if she was the only one who went back in time. She should just act natural, figure out what was going on…and pinch herself again, just to be sure this wasn’t all a dream. 

Haru shook the thoughts out of her head and rushed to dress herself. She grabbed her phone, wallet, and an extra lip gloss to pack in her clutch purse before coming down to meet her father. She took little time to style her hair and settled on a look with minimal makeup. She couldn’t recall if she ever wore much makeup when she was younger. She certainly owned a lot, with many gifts from her father’s colleagues and those who thought she needed to be more “presentable” for big events. It resulted in her being quite skilled with it, even if she still didn’t like to wear too much.

“When I said for you to hurry up, I didn’t mean in three minutes,” her father chuckled, surprising Haru with his calm and jovial attitude. His eyes softened when he laid eyes on her. “You look beautiful, just like your mother.”

Haru’s breath hitched for a moment. She couldn’t help but feel warm upon hearing that. Her father never mentioned her mother in the last couple years leading to his death. She had almost completely forgotten what it was like to receive a compliment like that from him or any compliment that didn’t sound manufactured or like a concealed insult. In only three years, somehow, her father had been completely corrupted, A transformation that ultimately led to his death. Or perhaps he may have hidden it better back then, but Haru quickly shook off the thought. She didn’t like thinking about her father’s death, but every time she glanced up and saw him, just standing there, she was taken back to when black blood ran from his eyes. His screams before falling to the ground still haunted her. 

“Thank you,” Haru blushed. The two finished getting ready before heading to the banquet. The drive was rather quiet. She attempted to make some small talk with her father, but the words never escaped her mouth. What was fifteen-year-old Haru Okumura thinking about? Was she scared of her father, more open? Three years shouldn’t have been so long ago, yet somehow she can’t see her as the same person as before.

Haru looked over at her father again. If three years was enough to completely transform him, then perhaps it’s not a shock that she’s changed as well. Would he catch on to her change? Would he disapprove of her? The girl who awoke to a new power by betraying him. The girl who failed to save his life. 

No, she shouldn’t blame herself for her father’s death. That wasn’t her fault… that belonged to… 

Haru lost her train of thought, watching the car pull into the mansion. Her father’s friend was much more old money than her family, living in a mansion on the outskirts of the city. Haru quickly tried to flood her mind with the areas around her; despite the darkness of the night, the whole estate was illuminated by warm yellow lights, and Haru couldn’t help but feel jealous of the mansion, studying the older architecture as it first came into view through the car’s window. 

A massive marble staircase acted as the centerpiece of the front of the mansion, dividing the area where the car dropped them off from the home of their host. Stepping out of the car, Haru watched her father offer his arm to Haru. When she was a child, she still could remember trying to reject him, stating that she was too old for such things. Right now, even if this was a dream, she wanted to take time and enjoy the moment. She locked arms with him, heading up the stairs, greeting old friends and smiling to the strangers. 

It was only after thirty minutes of the banquet passed that Haru realized how little she missed days like this. The kind of people she encountered were some of her least favorites: rich folk bragging about their lavish vacations, opportunists trying to suck up to wealthy people like her father, and other braggarts who believed their wealth made them superior to those around them. As much as she didn’t want to admit it, all those years tailoring her to be perfect allowed her to be quite popular at the party. Her father was flooded with compliments about her behavior, with the other parents wishing their own children acted as mature as her. 

Hearing this gave Haru a frightening sense of uneasiness as she imagined the kinds of demands these parents could eventually place on their children. If her memory served right, most of her peers who came from money acted like small adults, similar to herself. 

Her father was much less pushy about her behavior, though he, too, was appreciative of how well she got along. So much so she must have been brought up in his other conversations, as another guest soon waved her over to chat.

Her father gestured to a mature-looking bald man that Haru recognized from a mile away. “This is Masayoshi Shido,” he introduced. “He’s an up-and-coming politician hoping to run for Prime Minister in the next election. He wished to speak to you as he’s trying to focus his efforts on the younger generation.” Haru rushed over and nodded politely, using all of her willpower to maintain a look of meek sincerity rather than the ire and disgust the man deserved. Shido narrowed his eyes at her before looking back up to talk to her father. 

Haru recalled Sojiro mentioning that before his massive rise to power, Shido was nothing but a cocky minor politician that no one took seriously. Although listening to him talk to her father, she could see that he might have had at least some charismatic skills in these early stages of his career.

Haru listened intently as Shido talked about his future plans, sprinkling in positive policy ideas and “making a better future for the youth.” Things that, if she hadn’t known any better, would lead her to think he was endearing. 

“You know, I’ve been debating getting into politics recently,” her father revealed. 

“Really? Don’t you want to focus more on your company?” Shido narrowed his eyes. Watching her father’s next moves. 

“Yes, that’s of course the priority. I want to secure a good future for my daughter and everyone else at Okumura Foods,” her father rephrased. “It’s mostly just an idea I’m throwing around for the future.” 

“Well if you want, I would love to talk more about that. Perhaps I can give you some pointers as a seasonal veteran,” Shido suggested.

“You are?” Haru interjected, locking eyes with Shido. Shido looked down at her with mild surprise before smiling at her. 

“Of course! I’m a current diet member, and I used to be an assemblyman,” Shido explained, taking the opportunity to toot his own horn just a little bit more. Haru was tempted to inform him that his all-to-average resume was supposed to be targeted at her father and not her. Instead, she settled this as an opportunity to make an attempt to shoot down his ever-growing ego. 

“Oh, I never heard of you,” Haru commented. She blinked twice to add extra innocence to the statement, slowly watching as the man lost his cool and tried his best to keep it to himself. She could take solace in knowing that at least Shido was the same no matter what time or world she was placed in. It was almost endearing, knowing he was nothing but a puppet: someone who only got what he wanted because someone else was pulling strings. He was a man quick to anger, cocky, rude, and cruel. The only way he got anywhere is by a literal god manipulating the scenes to get him in the right spot. While it was far from the nicest aspect of the world, it was something she was used to. She needed all of the familiarity she could get in this situation. 

She couldn’t be sure what level he was at, though she had to assume he wasn’t too far, with him begging her father for money and all. Haru put on the most innocent face she could as she continued to ask questions about Shido’s credibility and his history in politics. It was a petty taunt at best. It wasn’t like Shido could afford to lose his cool in front of her father, after all. If he did, it would help get him as far away from Shido as possible, so either situation would be a win for her. 

“Now now, I’m sure Shido-san is a very busy man, it’s best to let him go for now,” her father finally put an end to her questioning. Shido looked four seconds away from risking it all to yell at a child, and Haru was hoping to push those final buttons, but oh well, perhaps next time. Haru watched Shido spin his heels and walk as far away from her as possible while her father began asking, “I never expected you to be so interested in politics, Haru.”

“I wouldn’t say I’m interested in getting into it, but you said you wanted to go into it yourself, so I wanted to learn,” Haru explained.

“I guess I did, though like I told Shido, it’s just some passing thoughts,” her father laughed. Haru mirrored his laugh, a slight shiver coming down her spine as she felt an odd feeling of someone watching her. She brushed it off, choosing to explain it away by her nerves. 

The two continued through the night, Haru enjoying her father’s company as he admits that he, too, is getting really annoyed at listening to other people’s vacations. Haru suggested that they could come up with a fake vacation to astonish everyone, a scheme her father seemed quite excited to create with her. She recalled her father telling her stories about how he slowly grew his company and got acquainted with all the rich folk. The memories of her father truly began to flood in, of her father coming home to jokingly complain about the people he had to deal with. Telling Haru some of the insane things his colleagues did as bedtime stories. 

The two began to weave a story of how one of her father’s British friends invited them to test out a new attraction in Europe, but omitting just enough details to send the other guests into a frenzy about how they had no knowledge of this fantastic spot that they were describing. They did have the advantage, her father reminding her that Okumura Foods recently opened up its first overseas location, creating the perfect setup. 

It was starting to become an enjoyable night, in spite of how it started out. The little scheme she and her father were pulling added a nice bit of levity to her situation. It helped that, from the small bits of laughter she heard around the banquet hall, some of the more intelligent guests also found it amusing. It made Haru realize that even if the majority of the elite were nothing more than power-hungry showoffs, many others were still human and enjoyed breaks from the standard routine. 

It became night where, even if this was a dream, she was happy to have it. Even if she had to wake up back three years later, she would cherish the memories of this night, for she had been given an opportunity to spend time with her father again. Her actual father. 

Her only fear at the moment was if she woke up, once she woke up, she would forget it all. 

She had almost completely forgotten about Shido until the end of the night when she spotted him head down the marble stairs.

Her father excused himself a few minutes prior, stating he wanted to say goodbye to a friend before they left, leaving her alone and waving goodnight to those whom she had met, the majority of their faces blurring together as she muttered repeated pleasantries she was trained to do. Shido didn’t pay her any mind aside from giving her a minor side eye that Haru matched with a light smile. She could feel Astarte laugh for her, enjoying any minor suffering she might have caused him. 

Unfortunately, any semblance of enjoyment disappeared when she saw a familiar figure slip out of the shadows, standing right at the edge of the landing. 

He was in a standard black suit, which she could assume was either a rental or stolen, with a small briefcase with a painted letter “A” circled around it in his hand.

Goro Akechi, another person that she could never forget, even if she wanted to.

While she was initially surprised to see him there, the more she thought about it, the more his appearance made sense. He could’ve easily slipped in by matching the behaviors of those around him or simply blending in with the shadows. His presence even explained the laughter in response to her scheme, as he was obviously smart enough to pick apart the truth from the lies and see her and her father’s intent with that story. It even helped justify the unsettling feelings of being watched she felt throughout the night. It all linked back to Akechi. 

Haru narrowed her eyes at him after it all fell into place. For whatever reason, he wasn’t following Shido, instead opting to watch him as he left. Shido stopped in the middle of the stairs to take a call, and Akechi’s grip tightened around the suitcase.

The sight instantly had Haru’s mind kicking into overdrive. Akechi was obviously up to no good and planning something, but what? What could she do to stop him? She was perhaps five meters away from him, too far to approach him naturally, especially as she had no reason to talk to him. Shido was getting increasingly more frustrated by his phone call, muttering curses and losing semblance of his former persona, enough so that both she and Akechi were groaning at how he blew his nice guy act so easily. 

Haru had to give props to Yaldabaoh where it’s due by somehow turning this man into one of Japan’s most respected. He was probably working overtime even at this moment. 

As much as she wanted to indulge in Shido’s failures as a human being, she couldn’t afford to focus on that right now. This night. Why did she go back in time to this night? Why did Shido seem so powerless when she spoke to him? A man who can kill his enemies with a mental shutdown shouldn’t be begging for money and friendship from someone like her father. Akechi was watching Shido this whole time. He appeared stressed about something; he looked so young, lacking the confidence that he undeniably gained later on. It was quite easy to put together. 

This could be the night that Goro Akechi first approached Shido. 

Akechi was probably waiting for Shido to finish his phone call before he was to walk down the stairs and set himself on a path that would cause his death. An action that would set the course for her own father’s death. 

Her father returned, his voice muffled as it attempted to pierce the haze of Haru’s overactive mind. After a wave to her face, Haru turned to him, temporarily snapping her attention away from Akechi. 

She didn’t know what to do, and she could tell her father sensed her unease.

“Haru, are you alright? We’re heading home soon if you’re tired,” he said as he tried to comfort her. Haru tried to mutter something, her eyes going back to Akechi, Shido was saying his goodbyes on the phone call. She could swear his voice was deafening despite how far he was. She could hear Astarte whisper to her. A reminder.

Don’t you forget who you ar e… 

Haru snapped back to reality, turning to her father while still keeping an eye on Akechi. “Oh, I’m sorry!” Haru tried to laugh. “I’ve been spacing out, I should have slept longer last night.” She reached into her bag, pulled out her lip gloss, and quickly reapplied it in front of him. “I’m so sorry for zoning out like that…” 

A quick flick of her wrist was all she needed to do. It was a simple plan, one formulated in the spur of the moment as she recklessly tried to change the future. By all accounts, it shouldn’t have worked, but it did.

“Oh!” she exclaimed as she watched the small tube roll across the marble floor. Her father perked up in surprise as he watched the initially unassuming lip gloss slip from his daughter’s fingers. Haru watched as it rolled unassumingly toward its target, with her father only realizing what it was about to do when it was too late.

Akechi didn’t seem to notice the incoming projectile, too interested in trying to gather Shido’s attention as he headed down the stairs

Haru put a hand to her mouth as they both watched in almost slow motion. Akechi’s eyes widened as he felt his foot catch on something small and round, causing him to lose his balance and fall face-first down the stairs.

The rest of the world froze as everyone’s attention was drawn to the young boy tumbling down the steps before landing in a heap. Nobody moved for the next few seconds, staring at Akechi and hoping he would pick himself up. Guilt ran through Haru’s mind as she hoped against hope that he would get back up, simply being too embarrassed to try talking to Shido. The alternative was too scary.

A few more seconds went by.

A couple, whom Haru recalled directed the TV station, ran over to check. The man shouted to clear the way that his wife was a doctor. 

Shido was muttering something. Her father was giving him a dirty look. 

Haru just continued to watch in fear as her father called out that there was an accident.

The woman exclaimed that he was unconscious.

Everyone started shouting things.

Her father asked where the kid’s parents were and for them to step forward. 

Haru knew no one ever would.

Chapter 2: The Prince's Vindication: Part I

Sumire Yoshizawa 

 

March 1st, 2014

 

She swung her legs over the bench, watching as Kasumi Yoshizawa took a knee, gently placing the ball to the ground and stretching her leg out, signaling to coach Hiraguchi that she was ready for her to turn on the music and begin her routine. She shut her eyes and took deep breaths in a steady rhythm. Eventually, when her cue came, she began her routine. 

The music she went with this time was strong, almost tribal. It was the perfect thing to reflect Kasumi’s personality, as each movement was executed with absolute precision. Each step landed in the right place with the right emotions behind them. To anyone with knowledge of what Kasumi was doing, her performance was essentially perfect. It was almost as if Kasumi was completely overtaken by some outside force guiding her body with each skill she performed. It was a level that was basically unobtainable for everyone else watching. 

At least it was for Sumire Yoshizawa, who was watching her sister in awe from the sidelines along with the few other members of their club who had stayed behind to watch Kasumi’s performance. It wasn’t an uncommon occurrence for people to stick around once they heard Kasumi wanted to run through her routine. 

She continued to stare as Kasumi threw the ball high into the air, catching it directly on the beat and using the momentum to move into a twirl. Approaching a part she infamously did not practice, Kasumi tripped up and stumbled for a moment before catching herself and returning to match the choreography perfectly, tossing the ball back into the sky in time with the music. As her routine came to an end, Kasumi dropped to the ground in a manner that any outsider would be concerned about if she tripped before snapping her head up at the small crowd, the ball safely tucked behind her as the music faded away. 

A few seconds of silence passed as the observers took in what they saw, eventually breaking through it with a round of applause. Sumire was the most prominent, jumping up to her feet and giving her sister a standing ovation. The two locked eyes and smiled at one another before Kasumi addressed the entire crowd and gave them a dramatic bow. 

Soon enough, the rest of the club had left for home, either heading out on their own or having a parent pick them up. This just left the Yoshizawas and coach Hiraguchi, who was busy speaking to Kasumi. “Fantastic work once again, Kasumi-san,” Hiraguchi told her. “You lost your footing a bit near the end, but you made a quick recovery. Next time, be sure to practice that part and ensure you maintain your balance.” The whole time, when the coach spoke, Kasumi nodded along politely. When she finally got a chance to talk, she begged to be excused and bolted over to Sumire as soon as the coach gave her reply.

“I messed up again,” Kasumi pouted to no one in particular, kicking the ground in frustration, “I swear I get it right when I practice!” 

“Yeah, only when coach Hiraguchi is conveniently not looking,” Sumire pointed out as she playfully rolled her eyes. Kasumi laughed at the rib before throwing herself on the bench next to her sister. 

The two sat together in silence for a moment as Kasumi caught her breath before she admitted, “Man… I really hate my ball routine.”

“You do?” Sumire asked, confused. While she couldn’t speak for Kasumi, Sumire always preferred doing ball routines compared to the other ones she did. It felt far more satisfying to focus on grace than when she’s on clubs, Kasumi’s favorite routine. 

“I don’t know. It just doesn’t seem to fit my style, you know?” Kasumi frowned. She stewed in the sentiment for a moment before lighting up and exclaiming, “You should try doing my routine! Maybe coach Hiraguchi can switch ours!” 

“Me?” Sumire yelped in surprise at the suggestion. “You can’t be serious. There’s no way I’d be able to do it as well as you do… you know I’ll just mess up,” her voice lowered at that last comment, sparing Kasumi from her darker thoughts. There was no way she could do Kasumi’s routine; her music had a far faster tempo, and the whole routine was filled with technical moves that Sumire had nightmares even thinking about attempting in the same quick succession Kasumi did them. 

“Nah, it’s fine,” Kasumi dismissed her concerns with a nonchalant shrug. “You don’t give yourself enough credit. I’m sure if you just go out there and be yourself, everything will go great!” 

“You have way too much confidence Kasumi…” Sumire sighed as she picked up her bags. “Anyway, we should get going. Dad’s gonna be worried sick if we stay here any longer.” 

“Isn’t he picking us up today?” Kasumi asked. Sumire stared at her for a moment before letting out a light gasp.

“Oh right! He got off work early so we could head out to lunch with Akechi-san,” Sumire recalled. 

A month ago their Dad, Shinichi Yoshizawa, sat both sisters down and told them he was taking in a new kid. From the little Sumire got about the situation, it was a last minute arrangement between her father and his current guardians after a major accident.

For the past month, Sumire watched her dad slowly lose his own mind filling out paperwork and trying to repurpose their attic as an extra room for the kid. 

The kid in question, Goro Akechi, was three years older than Sumire and had apparently been hopping from home to home for almost ten years. 

With how her dad was, Sumire was shocked that he even allowed a boy into their house to begin with, let alone fostering one. It reminded Sumire of the time their old tutor had to bring her ten year old son with her after she couldn’t afford a babysitter. Her father nearly lost his mind at that.

When she finally met him, he was extremely quiet and polite, far from what she had expected, considering his history and the reputation associated with it. Kasumi had taken a liking to him immediately, always trying to include him in their activities, but it became increasingly clear he wasn’t ready for all of the energy she had. He took to his new lodgings shockingly well, considering he was staying in their attic, and it wasn’t designed to house a person. This may have had to do with the isolation it offered, as he very rarely spoke to the sisters unless he needed to know where something was or they talked to him first. 

“You think he’ll be more talkative with Dad around?” Kasumi asked as she grabbed her bags and started heading outside. 

“I doubt it.” Sumire surmised, following alongside her sister. “Dad’s been trying to get through to him all month.” Even though she didn’t know all that much about Akechi, she couldn’t help but feel bad for him. She couldn’t imagine a world without her parents, grandma, or Kasumi, no matter how overbearing she might be at times. Sumire has always had issues with making friends. The ones she did have were either from Kasumi or quickly drifted away. Her family was the only people who always stuck with her, or to be more specific, they were the only ones who saw her and cared for her as Sumire Yoshizawa and Sumire Yoshizawa only. 

Thinking about it, how would Sumire even fair without Kasumi next to her? She shook off the thought before she thought any deeper. 

“Do you think Dad’s gonna let us get changed? I would prefer we went someplace more casual, but if we do go somewhere fancy, I’d rather not go there in a leotard.” Kasumi joked. Before going through the doors, the sisters said their goodbyes to Coach Hiraguchi and went to wait for their father. Kasumi was quick to start talking about the latest episode of a magical girl show the two watched, and Sumrie didn’t have the heart to tell her that she preferred the darker tone the show was taking. 

After a few minutes of waiting, their father pulled up in his car, eagerly waving over at the two while the boy stayed in the passenger seat. He cast a glance over at the girls, his expression unreadable, before he looked away, his bangs falling over his face and further hiding his expression. They threw their bags in the trunk before jumping in the car, eagerly describing the day’s events. 

As they drove, Kasumi continued to ramble, “So I was thinking about bringing it up to coach Hiraguchi to swap routines with Sumire, I don’t exactly think she would let me, but it’s worth a shot anyway because I swear if I screw up that twist one more time I’m going to lose my mind!” Sumire tilted her head as she half-listened to her sister’s story, glancing over at Akechi. He was staring out the window, his eyes out of focus. 

“Akechi-san, how was your day?” Sumire asked, deciding to interrupt her sister, which Kasumi responded to with an elbow. Whether it was a playful jab at her interruption or an ask for her to drop the formality was Sumire’s guess. She watched his eyes snap back to reality, darting around to take in all the information, turning his head back to properly analyze the two before responding.

“It was very good. Thank you Sumire-san,” Akechi stated, his voice quiet yet polite and practiced, watching the two with uncertain eyes before giving a polite smile. 

“God, why are you both so formal?!” Kasumi groaned as she threw her head back. The sudden spike in intensity caused Akechi to flinch back and Sumire to look away out of embarrassment. 

“Volume,” Dad scolded. Kasumi stiffened, completely forgetting he was in the car. It made Sumire laugh a little, knowing that no matter how many times she gets told off, Kasumi will never figure out how to control her volume when she gets excited. 

“I apologize, Kasumi-san,” he said politely. Upon realizing her point was completely ignored, all Kasumi could do was pout. 

“I saw you were reading a book recently. What’s it about?” Sumire quickly tried to deflect to try and make the conversation a bit more comfortable for him. At least she hoped so; she only managed to catch him reading once, and she suspects the only reason why was that he was so entranced with the novel that he didn’t process Sumire entering the room. Akechi turned his head to look back at her, his eyes slightly wide. He looked to the side a little before lowering his eyes. 

“It was a detective novel. I found it in the house and decided to give it a try,” he muttered, his tone lowering after every word. 

“It’s probably one of grandma’s. She loves detective novels,” Sumire guessed as she tried to get the conversation going somewhere less awkward. She tried to keep her tone light and inoffensive, hoping that he wouldn’t take any type of offense. 

“Oh, I didn’t know…” Akechi frowned slightly before letting the conversation fade back into silence. Sumire watched her dad cast a side glance over at him, not necessarily judging him but taking note of his attitude. No matter how many times they attempted to get to know him, it would always end with the same formal dismissal of the subject and the same formal apology. Kasumi had complained more than once that Akechi seemed to think they take offense at everything. 

Meanwhile, Sumire couldn’t help but wonder how she would do in his situation. If, for whatever reason, she lost everyone, even Kasumi, and was thrown into new families over and over again until she ended up here, how would she react? Probably not with a huge smile and open arms. Maybe Kasumi would. She seemed like the type to easily pick herself up from tragedy. Just another of the things she is better than Sumire at. That, along with nailing her routines, better grades, or just being able to dress herself in a way that’s easy on the eyes. 

Strangely enough, Akechi was the one thing in her life that Kasumi couldn’t understand at first glance. Sumire thought to herself that maybe the only reason Kasumi couldn’t reach Akechi was she was too loud for him. That perhaps someone like her but with a far more mediocre personality like Sumire could help him feel less intimidated. 

That was a problem for later, though. For now, Akechi just had to endure Kasumi for a little bit. Then, she could try to speak to him on her own. Fortunately, her dad started to get into the conversion, actually filling them in on his day. 

“I was mostly trying to get things sorted at Shujin. He’s going to be a few days late due to how unexpected this was, though it should be fine. Goro is certainly bright enough to catch up,” he described confidently. Akechi looked over at him for a brief moment, his hair blocking his expression, before quickly turning away to look back at the window. 

“Do you plan to put us in Shujin as well?” Kasumi asked. 

“If you want to, of course. I’m sure with your skills in gymnastics that you could get into the honors program like Goro did,” he replied. 

Sumire frowned as she thought over his words. Kasumi wouldn’t have much trouble getting in. Anyone looking at the two and asked to choose one would undoubtedly pick her. Sumire’s grades were pretty average, by contrast, and she didn’t have many other skills besides cooking (which Sumire personally believes if Kasumi actually followed the recipes and not “her heart,” then she’d easily surpass Sumire). She knew she would probably get into Shujin if she applied, but the honors program? She mulled it over for the rest of the car ride, with the remainder of the conversation being filled by Kasumi talking to their dad.

It turned out the restaurant Dad picked was a small Italian place hidden to the side of the city. He explained that the place was somewhere his friends often go when they want to get out of the public eye. 

“Oh, so do celebrities come here often?” Kasumi asked cheekily. 

“Sometimes, though I doubt any of them are the singers or actors you like, Kasumi,” he informed her. Kasumi pouted and huffed in frustration, which actually got a small smile out of Akechi. 

It was surprisingly empty for lunch time so the group were all seated and handed their menus fairly quickly when they parked and went inside. Kasumi was quick with ordering whatever she wanted, having no care for their dad’s wallet. Sumire mentally promised him to buy something cheap to make up for it. 

Strangely enough, Akechi barely looked at the menu, only silently nodding when their dad asked him if he knew what he was going to order. 

To their surprise, when the waiter came over to take their orders, Akechi asked “What would you say are the most popular dishes around here?” Sumire narrowed her eyes, analyzing his behavior. It didn’t seem he cared at all for what the waiter suggested, yet he took it anyway. Even when the group got their dishes, Akechi’s expression didn’t indicate he enjoyed what he was eating in the slightest, though perhaps it was because he was sitting next to the overly emotive Kasumi. 

“It’s like we’re in heaven! We should visit Italy one day!” Kasumi cheered as she gobbled up her food. 

“Perhaps we could have a competition there someday, or maybe a training camp?” Sumire suggested, taking a more mellow approach in her response to Kasumi’s enthusiasm. 

“Italy does have multiple training camps in Pomigliano D’arco and Tirrenia,” Akechi mentioned, surprising the sisters with his knowledge of gymnastics. It piqued Sumire’s interest especially, but she pushed those questions to the side for the moment. 

“Oh! We should do a worldwide tour!” Kasumi smiled. 

“I really don’t need you to encourage them,” Dad gave Akechi a tired frown. Akechi’s eyes widened a little, quickly turning away. 

“I apologize,” Akechi muttered, giving a remorseful look. 

“Come on, Dad, you never let us out for too long,” Kasumi scolded. 

“You’re too young to be traveling abroad alone,” Dad said. Sumire went back to her food as she tuned out the conversation. They had this argument too many times to count. She knew her dad was overprotective, but Kasumi just didn’t seem content with that. Akechi kept watch of the two, tracking each speaker with attentive eyes. By the time the conversation started to go into circles, Akechi finally began to chime in, directing the conversation about Dad’s work instead. 

Sumire found the meal enjoyable, at least, despite the mission of trying to get Akechi to open up being a complete failure. On Dad’s end, at least, it gave Sumire her own idea of how to get Akechi to break out of his shell. 

Akechi didn’t seem all too interested in the food, picking whatever was popular then taking it in like it was just an everyday meal. If Sumire knew anything about people, it is that food brings out the best in them or the worst. Nevertheless, it brings out emotions, which Akechi seemed to be thoroughly lacking at the moment. 

They soon finished their meals and got back in the car, their dad taking all three of them home and dropping them off in front of their house. 

“Are you not heading home with us?” Kasumi asked. 

“I actually have a meeting right now,” he said with a mischievous chuckle. Sumire watched Akechi narrow his eyes in confusion and astonishment. 

“Are you currently missing a meeting to take us all out today?” Akechi asked. 

“Haha… If anyone asks, I got into a crash,” Dad laughed before shutting the car window and zooming off. The two sisters only laughed while Akechi looked as if he just witnessed a unicorn appear in front of him.

“How could he skip work like that?” he muttered in confusion. 

“Oh, he doesn’t do it too often. I guess it’s the perks of being a director of high status,” Kasumi explained as she continued to chuckle. “Let’s go inside, I’m sure grandma’s waiting.” 

Akechi reluctantly nodded and followed the two inside. Their home was nothing special despite their father’s status. Walking inside, they could immediately see the living room that led to the kitchen at the back. On the right side of the house was a hallway that led to each of the girl’s rooms across from each other, their parent’s room across from grandma’s room, and the stairs to the attic, Akechi’s room. They were greeted by Grandma, who was sitting on the couch watching TV. 

“Hey Grandma!” Kasumi ran over, reaching down to give her a hug. Sumire followed and gave her own hug while Akechi gave a polite bow. 

“Good afternoon Ryo-san,” he said before turning around and heading almost directly towards the attic. Kasumi pouted as he turned around. 

“I take it no luck today,” Their Grandma asked as she paused the TV. 

“Nope,” Kasumi grumbled as she hopped down onto the couch. 

“Poor Shinichi has been trying all week to reach out to him. I think it’s tiring them both out,” Grandma sighed as she rubbed her temples. “I still don’t know why he was so insistent on bringing that kid in.” 

That was a sentiment the sisters could agree with. No one knew exactly why the decision had been made. One day, their parents sent out a text that they would have to stay out overnight after attending a banquet, and a couple of days later, they were sat down and told their house would have another occupant. It was odd, to say the least. Even with the minuscule level of research Sumire put, no child would be transferred to a new home so quickly. It made her question what her father did behind closed doors, even if she still believed in him and felt he wasn’t the type to keep secrets. 

“Well, I was thinking of making dinner tonight,” Sumire brought up, changing the subject to something a bit lighter. “I haven’t been able to find the time with everything that’s happened. Do you guys have any suggestions?” 

“Oh, how about tonkatsu!” Kasumi threw her hand up. “You haven’t made that in ages!” 

Sumire put her hand to her chin, thinking about it. They should have all the ingredients. If she’s doing this to appease Akechi, she should ask him for his opinion. Grandma was nodding along with Kasumi, so it was almost a unanimous vote. 

Sumire ran over to the stairs leading to the attic, calling out for Akechi. He responded pretty quickly, nodding along with no notable reaction. The recipe only took a maximum of thirty minutes to complete, so she didn’t have any worries. It was the perfect opportunity to tell Kasumi her plan. 

“That’s perfect! If anyone can get Goro out of his shell, it’s definitely-” Kasumi announced far too loudly about what was supposed to be a secret.

“Shh! You’re too loud!” Sumire seethed as she put her hands to Kasumi’s mouth. 

“Sorry… I’m just excited,” Kasumi apologized. “We should make dessert as well!” 

“I think you mean I should make dessert…” Sumire sighed. Kasumi crossed her arms and nodded. 

“Yup! And I’m your personal cheerleader,” Kasumi insisted with a cocky grin.

“You make it sound like it’s something special…” Sumire looked away from her before walking to the kitchen, inspecting all the cabinets for an excuse not to make cheesecake. “Besides, we’re out of sugar,” 

Kasumi pushed her way to inspect the cabinets, letting out a gasp. “Well then that can’t stand! We must get some immediately!” She grabbed Sumire’s arm before dragging her over to the attic entrance and knocking, or rather, banging, on the door. “Goro!”

Akechi opened the door slightly, peeking his head out. Looking behind him, Sumire could see he still hadn’t unpacked any of his stuff or done anything with his room. Kasumi was always the one to decorate her room, making her wonder if she would eventually be spending all her extra cash on decorations. Perhaps the only reason she hasn’t yet is the lack of knowing anything about him, but knowing enough to at least not barge into his room at random times. 

“We are going to the grocery store to get sugar so Sumire can make cheesecake tonight!” Kasumi declared. 

“I haven’t actually decided on making cheesecake…” 

“Oh, good luck then,” Akechi said as he shut the door. 

In spite of the obvious signs that he wasn’t interested, Kasumi remained undeterred, slamming her fists into his door as soon as it was closed.

“ All of us are going to the grocery store today,” Kasumi declared again, her tone holding the slightest bite to it as she stared down Akechi. 

Akechi opened the door wider and chuckled, “Are you sure you need three people for that? I don’t know this area that well so I won’t be much help.”

“Then it’s the perfect excuse to tour the place! It’s not even that far, just across from your old middle school if you know where that is!” 

“Kowareta?” Akechi perked up, giving off far more emotion with that one word than he had in any other sentence all day. “Very well, I shall accompany you,” he quickly agreed. 

Kasumi smiled like she had won the lottery, moving with so much energy that Sumire and Akechi barely had any time to react before they were dragged out the door. Akechi was barely able to snag his briefcase, and Sumire thought it was a miracle she could even put her shoes on. Akechi had agreed to go along almost too easily, especially compared to how resistant he had been to every attempt to go out before that point. It was fairly obvious something was up, but Kasumi didn’t notice, saying goodbye to Grandma quickly before scurrying off to the train station.

The trip there was uneventful; at least once, Kasumi finally let go of their wrists and let them move at their own pace. Akechi didn’t do anything notable as they moved, following the sisters blindly and checking his phone every so often. Sumire did the same, checking her social media feed every so often to pass the time. However, she made sure to look up and watch Akechi every so often in a desperate attempt to sate her curiosity about the boy. The grocery store Kasumi picked wasn’t the one they usually went to, which confused Sumire at first. Then, when she realized that the mentioning of Kowareta was likely deliberate, she figured out that this was almost certainly a planned operation by Kasumi.

Kasumi opted to come and shop with Sumire this time, commenting on the different things she wanted Sumire to make for the week. She didn’t mind. Sumire loved to cook for her family, and with how indecisive she was, it was nice to have someone like Kasumi around to make those decisions for her.  Akechi, on the other hand, asked to wait outside. Neither girl questioned the decision, letting him stand awkwardly to the side of the doors as he fiddled with his briefcase. Sumire was curious about that thing; it made him look like a young businessman of sorts, which does fit his overly corporate personality in a way. 

Sumire picked up the sugar along with some other ingredients she planned to use throughout the week, hoping her dad wouldn’t mind using his credit card. Kasumi also picked up some chocolate for all three of them on the way back. 

“Are you sure he likes chocolate?” Sumire asked.

“Obviously! Who doesn’t like chocolate? What would we have to give him vegetables for Valentine’s Day?” Kasumi answered with blind confidence. 

“We don’t even know if he’s staying until Valentine’s Day,” Sumire reminded her with a sigh, scanning the area for Akechi. “Wasn’t he waiting here for us?” she asked. Kasumi looked around, shrugging. 

“That’s what he told me,” she said. The two walked around the area a bit to look for him, eventually sending him a quick text. 

No response.

Kasumi sent over her own text, desperately hoping he was just distracted. 

Still no response.

The two looked at each other for a moment, and the realization that they had lost him became apparent. 

“What if he’s in danger?” Bad thoughts began to pour into Sumire’s mind. Dad always said that no matter how safe a place seemed, there were always people who could harm them. 

“How could he be in danger!? He probably just ran off somewhere,” Kasumi shrugged, eyeing an employee nearby. “Hey, have you seen our friend anywhere?” 

“What do they look like?” the employee looked up from their phone and asked. 

“Brown hair, tan coat… holding a briefcase… attractive,”  

“Kasumi!” 

“What? I’m not wrong,” 

“Yeah, he was here a minute ago. I think he went off that way,” The employee pointed in the direction of the school, giving a slight smirk implying they agreed with Kasumi’s assessment.

“Thank you sir!” Kasumi gave him a quick wave before dragging Sumire with her. The streets weren’t necessarily busy, though it was enough for Kasumi to keep her grip on Sumire’s hand. 

“Dad will kill me if I got both of you lost,” Kasumi laughed, still not taking the situation seriously. Sumire nodded, scanning the area. “I wonder why he wanted to go to the school so badly…” 

“Maybe he wanted to talk to someone there?” Sumire suggested. Kasumi agreed, quickly checking the area before finding the school’s silhouette in the corner. 

When Akechi first moved into their attic, one of the few pieces of clothing Akechi hung up was his old uniform, which was as standard and boring as a uniform could get. Completely gray: gray tie, gray pants, and gray jacket. Even someone with Akechi’s looks wouldn’t have been able to make that work. Sumire thought perhaps that Kowareta would make up for it with a nice building, though it was fairly obvious that Kowareta Junior High was on its last leg when they finally laid eyes upon it. 

Kowareta was a completely gray building with a fence that gave a barbed wire pattern surrounding the school. The top of the entrance held a stone plaque engraved with the school’s name. It wasn’t founded too long ago, making Sumire question further why it looked so terrible. 

Akechi was standing to the side of the school. He was pretty easy to see with his tan jacket acting like a signal flare with how it stood out from everything around him. He was on his phone for something, checking the area around himself.

Sumire put a hand in front of Kasumi before she got any closer. There was no way someone like her could sneak around close enough without him noticing. She also wanted to study him a bit more. Sumire tried to imagine him in that gray uniform, realizing just how much he fit into the atmosphere. That’s just the thing about Akechi, Sumire realized. From his expressions to his tastes to his emotions, he was completely lifeless. 

That was why Kasumi couldn’t get along with him. Kasumi was a ray of sunshine, always acting with so much life and energy. Akechi, either by choice or by nature, was empty. It made Sumire wonder even more about his deal. 

Sumire led Kasumi slowly around the street, getting a closer look at what Akechi was doing. The two sisters managed to creep up to the wall, a couple of meters away from Akechi. 

“Why are we creeping around like this?” Kasumi asked before smiling. “It makes me feel like a spy!” She proceeded to make finger guns and sound out little “pew” sounds.

“I want to know what he’s doing, and I don’t think he will continue it if we interrupt him,” Sumire declared. Right as she said this, Akechi began to check the area again, forcing the sisters to pull back a bit so he couldn’t spot them. He narrowed his eyes for a short moment, his usual indifferent or meek expression replaced with one of more annoyance. Once Akechi was confident the coast was clear, he smiled to himself, typed something into his phone, and whispered something into the microphone, just loud enough for Sumire to barely make it out.

“Aiko Sako, Kowareta Junior High, torture chamber,” 

Neither sister was able to react before the area around them began to morph with blacks and reds, transforming the scenery around them from the cloudy gray sky and lifeless excuse for a school to a scene that Sumire could question was a peek inside hell itself. 

Notes:

Quick notes for this fic
1. This fic has been completely outlined and rewritten about 200K words ahead at the time of writing this, it's expected to be pretty long (my current guesses are 500-700K but that depends on a lot of factors)
2. This fic is betaread by the lovely Accord, the link to her profile should be at the end notes

Chapter 3: The Prince's Vindication: Part II

Goro Akechi 

 

March 1st, 2014

 

Aiko Sako was a teacher in Kowareta Junior High. She was in her mid-thirties, though she looked far older. It was pretty easy to figure out she had a palace, as well as her keywords.  To any adult around her, they might describe her as a strict but reasonable teacher. To any student unfortunate enough to be around her, she was a cruel, lustful freak of a woman. 

Goro Akechi had been working through different Palaces for the past couple of months, heading through test facilities, mountains, castles, and other strange locales no human would willingly enter. He dove through the Metaverse and explored the worst of humanity, hunting down criminals and monsters to see what they kept hidden from the rest of the world. Each time, he risked his life, throwing everything at the wall for the sake of taking down these beasts. 

And he loved it. 

It was the single aspect of his life he had full and complete control over. Outside, Goro Akechi was nothing more than an actor playing a part, a prime example of an upstanding citizen. Either that or the harsher reality, a puppet being thrown around by fate whenever it needed a quick laugh. 

However, inside the Metaverse, he was the star. In his uniform and mask, someone who was once known as Goro Akechi could let out all his frustrations with life in the Shadows that inhabited those Palaces. 

Even when he didn't need to blow off steam, when he simply entered Palaces for the sake of the job, it was no less of a thrill. A thrill to explore new places, to test his knowledge as rulers would constantly try to throw everything they got at him. A thrill that bordered on being addicting. 

He had picked Sako as his most recent target for a couple of reasons: she was a shameless pedophile who deserved to be torn to shreds, her Palace was small enough Goro could probably conquer it within a couple of days, and it would be easy to prove he was responsible once Shido asked for a demonstration of his abilities. 

Shido… Goro really needed something to stab at the moment. The fact that everything he had built up, all his plans, disappeared because of a stupid, clumsy mistake was more than enough to ruin his year. Whatever gods existed up there were probably laughing so hard at his misfortune. It didn't help further that he woke up with a concussion and a young couple talking with his caregivers about handing him over as if he was some kind of pet. 

It wasn't like he was a fan of the Koyanagis. They barely paid attention to him, which allowed him to easily slip away for hours on end to play around in the Metaverse. If he had to guess, the family saw him as a burden the second they started to believe that he spent all his free time going to parties and tripping down the stairs. It still hurt a little to see how easily they got rid of him. Only a little, though. He's plenty used to the experience by now. 

He rarely kept precise track, but if he had to guess, he was about a third of the way in Sako's Palace. Given the unwilling month-long break, she's had the chance to regenerate the Shadows he took out before. It wasn't all bad. In fact, it did give him an opportunity to warm up before getting to the more difficult Shadows further in the Palace. 

Goro hid with his back to the wall as he watched his latest target finish his route, taking a turn and passing right by Goro. He was left wide open, and Goro was easily able to jump on his back and rip off his mask. 

"Reveal yourself!" he shouted, jumping back as the shadow showcased its true form, which was that of an Archangel. If he recalled his notes correctly, they were weak to curse attacks while null to any bless ones. Goro really didn't want to start the day by using his Personas, though. The archangel was quick to attack him, but it was almost comical how easily he could dodge it. 

Goro pulled out his ray gun, quick to get a few shots off before switching to his sword. The archangel parried his attack, sending him back. Goro rushed back in, swapping weapons again and drawing the archangel's attention before grabbing his sword with his other hand and slicing through his Achilles tendon. The Shadow yelped before swinging his blade recklessly towards Goro. He swapped the sword to his dominant hand before parrying the strike and disarming his adversary. With the Shadow stunned, he was quick to finish it off with a slice through the stomach. He smiled at a job well done as he watched the shadow dissolve and snatched up the pocket money it dropped.

Though his full expression was covered by his mask, his glee was visible in his eyes through the slits. 

Goro jumped back to the wall, listening for any reinforcements before continuing onwards. It wasn't practical to waste energy on every worthless goon he came across when he had already beaten them before, no matter how much he wanted to beat every Shadow he came across into sludge. As much as he didn't want to admit it, he couldn't help but imagine he was one of those heroes in the shows he used to watch. 

He brushed off his sleeves before heading forward through the Palace. 

Every hallway was lined with rooms he had learned to stop looking in after the first day. They were Sako's torture chambers, so to speak, each holding some student she didn't like. Goro recognized a couple from his classes. Some Palaces had cognitions that were barely human-like; the fact Sako saw them as human made Goro despise her all the more. He was not excited to see his own cognition when he finally came across it. 

A few more minutes went by, and a couple more shadows got in the way. Some of the treasure chests were refilled in the time he was on involuntary leave, but his joy faded as quickly as it came, thanks to the contained weapons being rapiers and antique rifles, of all things. He kept hold of them, at least so he would have something to use if he lost his current weapons, even if these weren't his specialty. A sword is a sword, and a gun is a gun, no matter how different they might look. 

Goro thought about bringing the rifle to the house. While a model rifle might be enough to freak the Yoshizawa's out enough to kick him out and hand him over to a less…enthusiastic family, he really didn't want to risk them getting him arrested or sent to a mental facility. He tested the weapon on a nearby Pixie, proving the Metaverse regenerated bullets just like how it regenerated cartridges for his ray gun. 

He didn't really know what to think of the Yoshizawas if he had to be honest with himself. Shinichi, the father, was undoubtedly strange in his attempts to get close to him. The man was acting on complete impulse and emotion, making Goro question how a man like him managed to get such a job as director of Good Morning Japan. His wife, Himari, was quite kind. She was apparently the doctor who found him after his absolutely embarrassing display at the party; she would come in often to make sure he was ok physically, which was easier to deal with than the mental health exams he got from one of his older foster homes before he learned how to fake out of them. 

Besides the couple themselves, they had Shinichi's mother, Ryo. She mostly kept to herself, undoubtedly just as confused as Goro was when he showed up one day to live in their attic. The couple also had two daughters, both in the same grade and gymnastics prodigies. 

Kasumi was the extroverted one, always taking charge and getting all up in Goro's life. She desperately wanted to be his friend, and she was so sincere about it it was difficult for Goro to simply brush her away. She also had a natural talent for most things, gymnastics being one of them. It made Goro believe that if she couldn't master something immediately, she didn't bother to try going off the time she banned herself from the kitchen after one failed attempt. 

Goro couldn't judge. He had to ban himself from kitchens after he was kicked out of a home for burning theirs. It wasn't his fault. They clearly only wanted him as their personal chef and cleaner, so they deserved it. 

Kasumi's biggest flaw was that she couldn't read people's emotions to save her life, evident by her sister's clear inferiority complex that she had yet to even acknowledge. 

Speaking of her sister, Sumire was quite shy compared to Kasumi. She usually would stay by Kasumi's side and follow whatever she did. Kasumi controlled almost every aspect of her life, from what she wore to who she hung out with. Goro didn't understand how she could live like that, though she seemed pretty happy, so Goro had no place to intrude. 

Sumire was undoubtedly talented in gymnastics. Her style was more suited for elegance and beauty while Kasumi was far more bold and technical in her moves. Shinichi took him to watch them practice a few times, enough to make Goro interested in incorporating some of their moves in his own ventures in the Metaverse. 

He hated them.

He hated how he couldn't find a logical reason to hate them either. He hated how they were all so genuine. It made him sick. He hated Kasumi, a girl too innocent and oblivious to others where it was obvious she would be burned because of it later in life. He hated Sumire for just accepting herself as Kasumi's personal cheerleader. Goro knows that Sumire has already seen how cruel people can be and how they see two sisters and immediately expects both to be mirror images of perfection. It was something that her parents had definitely noticed, yet she kept putting on a smile and saying it was fine. She reminded him of himself. He hated that as well. 

Though none of that mattered right now, he was in the Palace, so Sako should have been the priority. After all, she seemed to crave nothing more than her underage student's attention. He might as well give her what she wants. Goro watched as another Shadow passed by, jumping it and ripping off its mask. It was almost comical for how easy they were, even with Goro being a bit rusty. 

Dancing around the Shadows and taking them down came so naturally to him. Goro could swear there was nothing out there that beat the feeling. He really pitied those who weren't given this power: the power he needed to be able to take down Shido. 

Shido… He didn't want to think about him right now. He would find a way to deal with the Yoshizawas and get close to Shido... Eventually. Right now, he just needs to continue on with Sako's Palace, and everything will be… 

There was a scream. 

Goro snapped immediately to attention, trying to process where it came from and what it could be. All the screams he'd heard before were muffled behind their respective chambers. Did a cognition manage to get out? Goro slid into the shadows, following the noise before stopping in his tracks. 

Both of the Yoshizawa sisters were there, being chased by two Shadows. At least, they sounded like the Yoshizawa sisters, wearing the same clothes, having the same hairstyle… 

They were cognitions… They had to be cognitions… 

People don't just wander into the Metaverse. Well, Goro did, but that was different…

Maybe his being heremade, Sako's cognitions of the Yoshizawas appear… 

Both sisters continued to run from the Shadows, with Kasumi taking the lead before another Shadow appeared to surround them. Goro narrowed his eyes, noticing how perfect these cognitions were, even to Kasumi's beauty mark. 

Aiko Sako has never seen the Yoshizawa sisters before. 

Before he could realize what he was doing, Goro leaped from his hiding spot, yanking the mask off the Shadow behind the two. Two Angels and a Bicorn. Goro wasted no time shooting both angels down to the ground and slicing the bicorn with his sword. Both girls backed away from him, completely forgetting about the Shadow behind them. 

Goro just turned around to hear Sumire scream, desperately trying to get out of the Shadow's grip. Goro barely had time to point his gun, shooting the mask off to reveal three Agathions. It didn't help either that more reinforcements were approaching their direction. He didn't have the time for this. 

"Get behind me!" Goro shouted at the two, almost pushing them back with his arm before reaching for his mask. "Come, Loki!" 

With the tear in his mask, the being by the name of Loki sprouted from the ground, his body an illusion of black and white stripes, leaned his hand out as he sat on his sword. Loki gave a subtle smirk, pleased to be back in action, before grabbing hold of his sword and, in one slash, whipped out the enemy in front of him. Even despite his attack, Loki lingered; his red glow illuminated the once cold and dark hallways. 

Even with Loki behind him, there was no way he could deal with them all and focus on protecting the Yoshizawa sisters at the same time. It would undoubtedly take a lot of energy out of him, and he wasn't sure if he was strong enough to take out every Shadow before reinforcements arrived. Looking through his options, he knew had no choice. He needed to get out of there and figure out how the hell those two got into the Metaverse. 

Goro sprinted straight to the middle of the growing crowd of Shadows, yanking off the mask of one he saw. A Silky: completely useless. He yanked another one. An Eligor: not amazing, but better than anything else he was gonna get. 

With a point and shout, Loki was quick to work, wrapping the Eligor in that familiar red aura before Goro had to duck from his spear. He went behind him, hopping on top of another Shadow to avoid the carnage Eligor was creating in front of him. When he pointed his spear at Goro again, he leaped down, watching it pierce through the Shadow that had just lunged at him and giving him enough of a distraction to run to the Yoshisawa sisters, grab their arms, and book it as far as he could get. 

"What is going on!?"

"What are those things?" Both sisters began to cry. Goro didn't have time to explain; he needed to get somewhere safe, any place. He began to feel his head hurt. There was no way he was this rusty after all this time. It had been a month, and he did have a concussion, but he was able to at least make it to a safe room after using Loki's psychotic spell. 

The second he could sense it, Goro yanked open the door to the nearest safe room, pushing the girls in and stumbling in after them. He almost threw off his mask in the process but kept it on. It would be better if it stayed. Loki was speaking to him, but Goro couldn't pay attention. 

Everything was fine. He was just going insane. 

He could figure out what was going on in a moment. 

He just needed to close his eyes for a second. 

Notes:

I wanna apologize in advance that Haru doesn't get as much spotlight in part one, but a good portion of this fic is already prewritten and she gets center focus later on so please stick with me

Chapter 4: The Prince's Vindication: Part III

Notes:

updates will be weekly, but the dates might be shuffled around a bit as I test things out

Sumire Yoshizawa 

 

March 1st, 2014

 

Sumire gently laid Akechi on the ground after he passed out, putting him in a slightly more comfortable position so he also didn't block the door. Kasumi sat on the table at the center of the room, observing the strange space they found themselves in. Every few seconds, it would flicker in and out of something resembling a classroom, run down and dull, just like the school. Sumire took a chair and sat down at the desk, trying to process everything that had happened. 

At this point, Sumire had no idea why she would even bother. 

"So…what do we do now?" Kasumi asked, breaking the silence. 

"I guess we have to wait; we can't do anything with those things out there without Akechi-san awake," Sumire replied. There weren't any visible injuries on him, and from the looks of it, he was just exhausted. 

"Yeah…" Kasumi muttered, looking at his sleeping form. If Sumire had to be perfectly honest with herself, she thought Akechi would look stiff as a plank of wood while sleeping. He gave off that impression, but he actually looks quite peaceful. "Well, before he wakes up we have a bigger question to answer." 

"You want to know if we should trust him?" Sumire asked. It wasn't a shock that she would bring that up. One second, they were outside, and the next, they were in front of some ominous dungeon with a blood-red sky hanging above them.  Then there was Akechi, standing in front of them with a completely different and remarkably ostentatious outfit, acting like everything was business as usual. It had all started when Akechi said those strange words into his phone, so it was possible he had brought them into this strange place. At least, that was Sumire's running theory. 

Kasumi was the first to follow him, realizing that neither of them had any clue how to get out of this place. She dragged Sumire along, though, at the moment, Sumire was still half convinced she had fallen unconscious and was just dreaming everything up.

"Well, I don't know how to put it… and I don't want to not trust Goro but…" Kasumi sank her head to her knees. "It's weird. This is all very weird."

Sumire understood how she felt, and Kasumi's response was probably the more reasonable one compared to hers. "Well, he did save us, and judging by his reaction, I don't think he brought us here intentionally," Sumire replied. She didn't know how else to feel. On one hand, he did save them, but on the other, he fought all those shadows via ripping their faces off and eventually summoning what Sumire could have only guessed was an optical illusion of a figure, turning one of the shadow's crazy to murder the rest. Not exactly the signs of the heroes and magical girls Kasumi adores watching. 

"I hope so, because if he's a good guy…then this is really cool!" Kasumi managed to give an almost giddy smile. Sumire gave a weak smile in return. She just hoped dad wasn't worrying about them right now. Her phone had stopped working as soon as they arrived. She couldn't even tell what time it was.

"Cool?" Sumire responded, making it clear she was still kind of confused by the sentiment. 

Kasumi leaned back and waved her arms in the air, starting to get genuinely invested in the best-case scenario she was concocting, long forgetting her prior worries. "Yeah! Imagine all the possibilities! Goro might just be a secret superhero!"

"I think what's more important right now is figuring out where are we," Sumire reminded her sister. 

"We're in the Metaverse. Specifically, Aiko Sako's Palace," a familiar voice rang out, still raspy and weak, and both of the Yoshizawas turned to the source in shock. Akechi was awake and slowly picking himself up from the floor.

"When did you wake up?" Kasumi yelped in shock, running over to help him to his feet. 

"The Metaverse?" Sumire questioned. She watched as Akechi sighed, pushing Kasumi away and remaining seated, merely shuffling a bit so he had his back leaning against the wall and his arms resting on his knees.

Akechi gave an obvious frown, a shocking bit of honest emotion, and told them, "I don't know how to explain it. A world between worlds. The realm inside someone's heart. Something like that." He was obviously frustrated at how he was giving an explanation in the first place, and quickly pivoted after sharing the bare minimum. "You shouldn't be here." 

"Well that answers my first question!" Kasumi put her hands on her hips, missing the point by being satisfied with Akechi's explanation. "Now what are you?" 

Now, that got a reaction out of him of what Sumire could assume was surprise and offense. "What do you think I am?" Sumire was left speechless by the fact that Akechi was emoting at all. She simply watched the back and forth between the two of them, noting how Kasumi was finally able to indulge in the shenanigans she always wanted to with the boy.

"How am I supposed to know!?! You said some garbage into a phone and now you're all dressed up like a magical girl and killing those evil monster things." 

"Shadows," Akechi corrected. "And this isn't a magical girl outfit. It's…" In stark contrast to the confidence he held when giving more concrete details, his words fizzled away, and he limply finished, "Not that." 

"And suddenly you summon your own 'shadow' to make the others go evil!" Kasumi finished, deliberately ignoring Akechi's attempts to interject.

"My 'shadow'?" Akechi questioned again. "You mean Loki?" 

"Loki? Like the god?" Sumire perked up, finally finding a part of the conversation she could understand.

Akechi sighed once again and began, "How about I explain things from the top? can't really escape it now can I…" He muttered the last part under his breath, with Sumire straining her ears to hear it. "The Metaverse is accessed through the phone, and this is called a Palace: a section of the Metaverse that's created when a person's heart becomes distorted. A Palace reflects how someone sees a real world location internally, rather than how it actually is." 

"So Aiko Sako sees the school as this place?" Sumire asked quizzically. 

"Exactly," Akechi nodded, clearly appreciating Sumire's ability to follow along with what he was saying. "She's my former homeroom teacher, and she sees the school as a torture chamber." 

"That's horrible!" Kasumi cried. 

"Hm, it's not the worst I've seen," Akechi shrugged. His tone was far more casual now, a complete far cry from the almost robotic person Sumire had been seeing for the past few weeks. 

"Have you been to a lot of these?" Sumire inquired. 

"Yes, I've been to a couple Palaces. Some of them I never finished. Some I just have to find the ruler and use Loki on them before I make a run for it," Akechi explained nonchalantly. 

"And what is Loki?" Kasumi said. "He looked like some sort of…I dunno but it was scary," 

Akechi recoiled at the word "scary". He rubbed his temples and elaborated, "Loki is a Persona. Don't ask me how I know that. I just kinda knew someday. A Persona is basically the reflection of someone's inner self. It's complicated, but I like to think of Loki as my other half. But using him to fight takes a lot out of me, if you can't tell." 

"A Persona…" Sumire repeated, silently repeating the word over and over again as she got a feel for it. 

"I actually have two of them. If Loki scares you too much I'll be just fine using Robin Hood who might be more to your tastes," Akechi's voice dripped with sarcasm. Kasumi immediately felt bad, looking away from him. 

"Sorry," she mumbled.

"No, it's fine. I should use him more often to be honest," Akechi said a little too quickly to be natural. 

"And where are we now?" Sumire decided to ask. 

"This is a safe room. If I had to summarize it quickly, it's a part of the Palace where the signals are weak. It results in these safe rooms being…well…safe, keeping the Shadows from getting in. It's one of the few things all Palaces seem to have, besides some room with a glowing orb. I haven't figured out what it means, but the ruler likes to reside there." 

"So, Aiko Sako would be the ruler of this place," Sumrie figured, putting together the pieces of the Metaverse puzzle rather quickly. 

"Correct, though the version of her in here isn't the real one. The Aiko Sako in reality doesn't know anything that happens in her Palace. Frankly, no one should know what goes on here but…" Akechi gave sarcastic jazz hands alongside an obviously fake smile. "Welcome to the Metaverse. It doesn't get better…" 

"So you go around digging through the Palaces of these people and take them down," Kasumi beamed, her voice growing with jubilation with every passing second. "So you're really like a magical girl, going into this secret world and taking down bad guys!" 

"Please don't call me a magical girl," Akechi groaned. "I don't get a 'transformation.' This outfit is just… I dunno, magic armor…"

As his words teetered out more, Kasumi's smile became more smug. "Sounds more and more like a magical girl to me."  

"Well I think it looks cool. It's very prince-like," Sumrie complimented with a smile. Akechi looked at her in surprise before regrouping himself. He stood up, taking his gun from his belt and drawing out another rifle from his mask, which was still on the ground. He handed the ray gun to Kasumi before giving the rifle to Sumire. 

"I'm getting you two out of here, but before we leave, I want to make sure you two can defend yourselves. I can't protect you at all times, so it's important that you be able to take down a Shadow or two if worst comes to worst." 

"Is this real?" Sumire inquired as inspected the rifle, pointing at the wall as she fiddled around with it, careful not to point it at anyone. 

"Hey, why do I get a toy?" Kasumi pouted. 

"This world runs on cognition. So long as you believe it's real, it'll act like it's real," Akechi explained, pulling out his beam sword and flashing a grin. "It's quite fun, if I'm being honest." 

"You're enjoying this?" Sumire questioned, steadying her aim before firing her rifle at a spot on the far wall. She didn't have any trouble firing the gun, but none of her shots hit the exact target she wanted. Akechi walked over, pointing directly at a poster. 

"Like I said, it's all about belief. Point the gun at what you want to shoot, then as long as you're keeping your focus and believe that it will hit the target, it should," Akechi explained. Sumire took a deep breath and nodded. She lined up her rifle and aimed down the sights, taking a deep breath after a deep breath. Then, in a quick burst, she fired, scattering bullets around her target for a moment before finally hitting it dead on.

"I did it?" Sumire said, still taking in what just happened. 

"Only once at the end, but it's good progress," Akechi clarified before adding, "Don't worry about ammo. Try a couple more times until you get it consistently." Sumire nodded and pointed the gun again. Taking a deep breath, she shot a couple more times, eventually getting her target three times in a row. 

"Way to go, Sumire!" Kasumi cheered. She pointed the ray gun at the same spot and fired all in one smooth motion. While flashy, it ultimately sacrificed accuracy, as somehow the laser projectile bounced off the wall and ricocheted all across the room. It nearly hit Akechi in the head before he deflected it with his sword. 

"Aim!" Akechi shouted, his voice a mixture of both terror and anger.

"Haha…maybe we can leave the shooting to you and Sumire," Kasumi handed the ray gun back to Akechi, silently announcing her intentions to give up. Both her sister and her attempted mentor picked up on that and relented with a combined sigh.

Sumire decided to change the subject, turning to Akechi and asking, "Are you sure you can go out? You only just woke up a minute ago." 

With a frown, Akechi insisted, "Right now I want to get you two out of here as fast as possible. I can't progress any further with two people who can do nothing to fight. You're ultimately dead weight to me without a Persona on your side." 

Sumire paused for a moment. While she understood his situation and kind of agreed with the underlying point, he didn't have to phrase it in such a hurtful way. However, she couldn't do anything to argue and just watched Akechi turn to the door.

"Stay behind me, and don't say my name," Akechi instructed before exiting. Sumire and Kasumi locked eyes, reluctantly following him. He at least seemed like he had their best interests at heart, though she had no idea what this world was or why Akechi was connected to it. 

It was obvious that something about him was different. She and Kasumi didn't get magic outfits or big shadow Personas behind them to fight. She started to question if he was even human. In the outside world, he acted more like a background character than anything, yet here, he was large and in charge, commanding the situation with grace, pose, and personality. 

She wondered what was so special about the Metaverse that caused this massive change. One theory that came to mind was the solitude of the Metaverse, where Akechi was the only real person. He could live in his own way without fear of judgment. Sumire couldn't help but imagine herself in his situation. It was a place where she didn't have to worry about dragging anyone down, where she could live in her own way without being compared to Kasumi. 

It made her head hurt. 

Akechi gave them a quick crash course on navigating through the Palace, blending into the shadows and how to sense Shadows approaching. He didn't battle any of them, explaining that they were too big of a risk and a waste of energy. If things got out of hand he wasn't sure if he would have it in him to turn them against one another again.

Akechi also advised them not to listen to the screams coming through the halls. Kasumi tried to argue, but she eventually gave up after failing to break through the stone wall that was Akechi's will.

"So this is your school?" Sumire eventually decided to ask. Akechi frowned, watching the area for Shadows before dubbing it safe to walk through.

"It's how Sako sees it," Akechi responded succinctly. 

"So how does it actually look?" Kasumi inquired. 

"It's nothing special; Mostly run down. I suspect someone is taking the school's money for their own projects," Akechi described, keeping all his attention to the scene in front of him. "I don't have anything to prove it, but the principal does make a lot of appearances in high society parties." 

"How do you know about that? Do you go to those parties?" Sumire questioned, her interest piqued. 

Kasumi quickly made some assumptions and added, "Why do you sneak into those parties? Is it to find new targets?" Kasumi's eyes gleamed with excitement, but a quick glare from Akechi told them both that whatever reason he went, he didn't want to share. It made Sumire wonder even more just who he was. 

She had a couple theories brewing at the moment. The first was that he was some special being in this world. His soul lived inside the Metaverse, while the body in the real world was a puppet designed to find targets. The second was that this world had given him, and presumably other people, this ability to enter and explore these Palaces. However, that opened up a new can of worms, which is what exactly made Akechi so special that the universe gave him the ability to mess around in the collective unconscious. The third was Kasumi's theory that he was some sort of magic superhero born here who went around taking down corrupt adults. It was certainly the most fun, but it didn't actually answer what Akechi was behind the mask. In addition, none of these theories explained how he wound up living in their attic, seemingly against his will.  

Her train of thought was interrupted when Akechi threw the two of them against the wall, forcing them into the safety of the darkness as a group of shadows stalked past them, trailing behind an unusual figure. 

"Why the hell is she here?" Akechi muttered to no one in particular. 

The figure held the appearance of a middle aged woman, with her hair in a messy bun and sharp features. She wore a bunny suit with a large black cape sliding along the stone floor behind her. She absolutely towered over the shadows, standing at approximately three meters tall. The most striking aspect of her, though, were her eyes, shining with the color of gold. 

"How long are we going to walk? I have better things to do," the woman sneered. 

"We suspect that the intruders came this way," one of the Shadows described in a raspy, spectral tone. "It was two young girls and that one attacker, madame." 

"My beloved thief? I haven't seen him in quite a while. I was starting to get worried I'd never get my hands on him," the woman chuckled, moving toward the wall and sliding her long, sharp nails against the brick. She moved in smooth, elegant motions, with each step feeling deliberate and calculated. She had a smile on her face, but it did nothing to hide the sinister machinations hidden behind her shining eyes. It was like she was some anime supervillain, adding some further credence to Kasumi's theory. Akechi tensed up upon seeing her, and Sumire put together some of the pieces in her mind. If she had to put money on it, this woman would probably be Sako or at least the mental version of her. 

"Search the area," Sako demanded. "If any of you so much as blink before those three are groveling beneath my heels I'll dispose of you like the trash you are." The Shadows nodded and quickly dispersed, surrounding the exits and trapping them inside.

"This just got a lot harder," Akechi cursed to himself. Sumire tightened her grip on the rifle, racking her brain for some kind of plan of action. The trio remained where they stood, wallowing in complete silence and lamenting Sako's decision to make this random hall her new home base.

After a few minutes of nothing, Akechi turned to the sisters and whispered, "Damn it… I'll head to the left to cause a distraction. I'll meet up with you two later, but if I don't…" Akechi pulled out his phone and handed it to them. "Find the entrance and press this button. It should send you back to the real world." 

"But how would you get out?" Sumire asked quietly. 

"I'll figure out a way," Akechi insisted. He did his best to hide his true feelings, but Sumire saw past the mask on his face: he didn't know. Was he really going to sacrifice himself for them? Two people he didn't even seem to like?

"You can't! All those guards around here-" Kasumi began to protest, shooting to her feet and doing nothing to regulate her volume.

"I can fight. You can't. I don't need you weighing me-" Akechi cut himself off as realization dawned on him. Kasumi had just broken their cover.

"There," one of the Shadows declared, pointing a pitch-black finger at the older Yoshizawa sister and snatching her up before she could react.

"Shit!" Akechi cursed, leaping into the air from his hiding place and knocking the Shadow down with a well-placed kick, forcing it to drop Kasumi. He reached down and tore the Shadow's face away, watching it crumple into nothingness and release two fairies into its place. Akechi brought out his gun, quickly shooting down one before Sumire sprang into action, gunning down the second fairy. 

"What the hell are you doing?" Akechi shouted.

"Don't give me a gun and expect me to not use it!" Sumire finally cried, stopping next to a surprised Akechi. Recollecting himself, he grinned over at her. 

Regaining his composure, Akechi smiled, "You're doing quite well for someone who just learned how to use a gun a few minutes ago… You seem to have quite a bit of talent." Sumire paused, taken aback by having a bit of praise usually held exclusively for Kasumi finally being given to her. They took a couple of steps back to guard Kasumi's flanks as she picked herself up.

"There's no way we can just sneak around now. How much energy do you have Akechi-san," Sumire asked. 

"First, no names. Second, I might be able to take down a couple Shadows. Leave the revealing to me, and don't worry about conserving bullets. All shadows assume you're fully loaded," Akechi instructed before rushing to an approaching Shadow, ripping off its mask.

Sumire grabbed Kasumi's hand. "Wow, you're really starting to sound like a superhero!" Kasumi grinned and motioned for Sumire to take the lead. Sumire smiled and gave her a nod, running toward Akechi and trusting her sister to follow. She was quick to assist him in taking down the next few Shadows he revealed. He remained focused on the targets he chose, largely ignoring the Shadows, who were not in their direct path.  He eventually pulled out what Sumire could assume to be Robin Hood: something that undoubtedly looked more and more like a superhero than the genuinely menacing Loki.

With a single shot from his bow, Robin Hood was quick to take down most of the Shadows Sumire hadn't already seen, while any that were left behind Sumrie gunned down with her rifle. She was so focused on performing clean-up that she didn't notice that one of the Shadows managed to creep up behind her, hands outstretched and ready to grab her.

Akechi took notice of the attacker before it could take out his support, jumping up and slicing the Shadow in two as he descended. When he got back to his feet he reprimanded her, "Don't just stand there you idiot! You're a gymnast! Dodging these should be like second nature!

"Sorry!" Sumire cried before going back to taking down targets. She ran up to take position next to Akechi, steadying her aim as she prepared for the next wave of Shadows.

"We're running out of time," Akechi growled. "We have to get out of here before I run out of stamina to hold them off! So if either of you magically have a plan, now would be the time to say it!" 

Sumire was about to respond but was left speechless when she heard a familiar scream from behind her. Sumire whipped her head around, seeing Kasumi in the arms of Sako. 

"Well that was quick," the Palace master grinned, staring down at Kasumi with a wicked smile. "Looks like my beloved thief got himself some girlfriends. If that's the case, then it's clear he has no taste!" Her expression soured as she spoke, and her smile faded into a ferocious growl.

"Kasumi!" Sumire cried out, pointing her gun at Sako. 

Akechi groaned, "Gross," as he joined Sumire in aiming at the woman. Sako didn't pay either of them any mind, snapping her fingers to have more Shadows rise up from the floor. One particularly large one appeared right behind Akechi, grabbing him and pinning him to the floor before he could react.

"God damnit…" Akechi cried in pain as the angel-like figure held a sword to his neck. Sako smiled upon seeing this, dropping Kasumi to the ground without a second thought. 

"Don't worry, I won't damage my beloved," Sako commented as she walked over to him, reaching her hand out to his face. Akechi pushed back, trying in vain to pull out his gun.

Sumire ran over to her sister and helped her to her feet, crying, "Kasumi! Are you ok!?" Kasumi slowly picked herself up, rubbing her head. 

"I'm fine, but what about Goro!" Both sisters looked forward to seeing him struggling to get out of the Shadow's grip. Sako was right in front of him and looked at him with the opposite of good intentions. She didn't know much about this Sako woman, but Sumire could tell she despised her. Leaving Akechi alone with this woman would be the worst possible outcome, whether what he said about her was right or not. For some reason, she thought about what she would say to her dad if things didn't turn around soon. She didn't think he would believe her if she told him that they left Akechi in another dimension with his old, evil, pedophilic teacher.

She knew she had to act. Sumire planted her feet and took aim, firing right at Sako's head and nailing her right in the ear.

Sako's head recoiled from the blow, but she barely moved aside from that. There wasn't even any visible damage. She turned over to look at Sumire. 

The woman sneered down at Sumire, "Oh you really want to play you little brat…"

Sumire gripped her rifle tighter, demanding, "Let him go!" She could only hope that none of the fear flooding her mind reflected in her voice. 

"And what exactly do you think you're going to do to me?" Sako walked over to her, the room falling silent aside from the repetitive clicking of her heels. Akechi fought to free himself from the Shadows, shouting out Sumire's name, but his voice fell against deaf ears.

Sako stopped in front of Sumire, looking down on her from her towering height. Her eyes bounced between the two sisters, watching as they both trembled and failed to take any action. With a sly grin, she strutted past Sumire, reaching down to grab Kasumi by the ponytail and hoist her into the air.

"What a pain. You're not even worth dealing with," Sako frowned. She pulled Kasumi up to eye level and inspected her for a moment, watching the girl squirm in pain and fear. After a bit of thinking, she threw her over at one of the Shadows. "Whoever is holding my beloved, hold him tight and follow me. Take the girl you have to one of the chambers. As for this insolent whelp that dared try and harm me…feel free to rip her to pieces…"

The whole cognitive world fell silent. Sumire froze up, trapped between the cries of her biological and foster siblings. She couldn't tell if Kasumi was ok. Akechi was shouting something, desperately trying to get out to help them, but it was no use. Sumire couldn't fight them. She didn't have a Persona, and a gun she barely knew how to use just wouldn't be enough. Was this really how she was going to die, ripped to shreds by demons in some hell dimension?

No…  

She couldn't let it end like this. She was Sumire Yoshizawa,  sister of great Kasumi Yoshizawa. Even if she wasn't as good at Kasumi, so long as she had half her level of talent and skill, she still could do something. Anything. Akechi said she had talent, even.

The next thing she knew, a new bullet found its way into Sako's head.

She couldn't be a burden to them, not now. 

Now isn't this an interesting stage.  

With a cry, Sumire collapsed to the ground, unsure if it was from the gun's recoil or from exhaustion. She watched Sako approach her as her vision started to fade. Everything fell out of focus, with her thoughts being overwhelmed by a screaming pain in her head.

Perhaps not everyone is meant to take the spotlight, but rather to dance in the darkness. But even in that darkness, that dancer holds power to the few who could hear her steps. The steps of the glass slipper on the ground. 

Sumire screamed in pain, ripping through the silence of the world. Her head felt like it was about to explode. The noise distracted the Shadows long enough for Akechi to break free and kill the nearby Shadows, but he didn't dare approach her.

Now let's make a contract. Continue to dance in the darkness until it strikes midnight, and once they catch a glimpse of your face, we'll show them your true power! 

I am thou, thou art I… 

The pain stopped all at once, replaced by a burning sensation on Sumire's face. Her vision returned in an instant, and she could see Sako staring down at her, her face a mix of fear and confusion. There was something wrong. Whatever was on her face, she needed to get it off. It didn't matter what was going on, she hated it. She hated the feeling. She hated the pain. He hated it all. Slowly picking herself up, she began to grab onto the flames wrapping around her face, pulling on it as it solidified into a mask, doing whatever she could to get the thing off.

Then, in an instant, she tore off her very skin itself.

"Holy…" Kasumi muttered from behind.

Akechi ran forward, calling out to her and tossing her something: a rapier. She caught it with the grace of a perfect gymnast, pointing it up to Sako's throat. Sumire couldn't place it, but she felt something different, something liberating. Her clothes burned away, revealing something new that had previously been hiding underneath.

"I'm not out of this fight yet, now I demand a rematch… with Cendrillon!" 

Notes:

"Dad, we may or may not have left Akechi-san in a magical other world trapped with his pedophilic middle school teacher..."

Chapter 5: The Prince's Vindication: Part IV

Sumire Yoshizawa 

 

March 2nd, 2014

 

The pain had finally faded, leaving Sumire with a new feeling: excitement. Adrenaline pumped through her veins and made her feel better than she ever had in the past. Akechi took advantage of the distraction of Sumire's awakening and took position next to her, raising his sword to match hers. 

"We probably won't be able to take them all down, but perhaps you would like to get some hits on Sako?" Akechi asked with a smirk. Sumire nodded, rushing forward and rapidly slashing at the Palace master with her rapier, executing her swipes with the technique of a practiced fencer. Sako managed to dodge the first few, but Sumire's natural speed as a gymnast was too much for her. When a slash finally landed, it hit hard, cutting through the opulent suit and drawing blood from the cognitive skin beneath. As Sako was left reeling, Sumire stepped back, grabbing her gun and shooting at the Shadow carrying Kasumi. Unlike before, the bullet tore through the creature, leaving a massive hole and forcing it to drop Kasumi. 

Sumire rushed over to her, helping her sister to her feet and checking for any injuries. When Sako recovered, she screeched in fury and dove toward Sumire, flames coalescing in her hands to form a black leather whip.

As Sako swung her newly forged weapon out, Sumire leapt into the air with a flipping motion, jumping far higher than she ever had before. She dodged the attack with ease and, upon landing, thrust her open palm forward. Logically, she had no clue what that did, but her intuition was directing her to the motion. A blue spark flared around her palm once it reached its furthest, and Cendrillon faded into place, prepared to attack. A blinding light covered the area, sending Sako flying back. As much as she would prefer to stay on this high, Sumire instead grabbed Kasumi's hand, regrouping with Akechi and making a dash for the exit now that the Shadows were disoriented.

Sako didn't let up, rushing towards the trio with a scream. Akechi spun around her, throwing off his mask and summoning Robin Hood. Sumire rushed forward with him, calling for Cendrillon to replicate Robin Hood's attack. Both Personas formed balls of blinding light in their hands and fired them forward, once again forcing the woman back.

"Give it all you've got! Let's attack her with all we have!" Akechi shouted, jumping forward with his sword unsheathed, Sumire following close behind. The pair descended on the woman like vultures on a carcass, attacking her with all they had until she was completely out of it. Both Sumire and Akechi looked at each other, deciding it best to leave finishing her off to another day instead of prioritizing getting Kasumi out of there. 

With little more than a thought, Cendrillon retreated, Sumire's mask forming on her face as the crystal dancer behind her disappeared, and Akechi grabbed hold of Kasumi's other arm. The three sprinted through all the halls (it was more like just two of them sprinted as they dragged the third along like a ragdoll). They were met with little resistance, the Shadows little more than stationery roadblocks with their Ruler down for the count, and were able to reach the front of the dungeon safely. 

After finally leaving the hellhole that was Sako's Palace, Akechi slammed the door shut and leaned against the wall. "We should be safe here," Akechi wheezed between heavy breaths, sliding down the wooden door until he was seated.

"Thank goodness," Sumire huffed, nearly collapsing herself. 

Now that they weren't at constant risk of death, Sumire finally took the chance to look at herself and see what exactly had changed. Her hair was pulled up in a ponytail, similar to Kasumi's, and her outfit was replaced with a black leotard and crop jacket that flowed behind her like a cape. She reached up to her face and felt her mask. It was pretty sharp, feeling fairly triangular. The top two points curled into hooks at the end, with their points being fairly sharp. She looked down at her legs, inspecting the thin black hose that stretched up to her thighs and the stilettos that covered her feet.

"How did I run so well in these?" Sumire questioned as she felt her new footwear.

"Cognition?" Kasumi suggested, still in complete shock, before everyone went silent, catching their breaths. 

"I didn't know other people could awaken," Akechi muttered in awe after a while. 

"So that's what that's called… Did that happen to you? An awakening, I mean," Kasumi asked, sitting on her knees. 

Akechi nodded and confirmed, "Splitting headache, voices in your head, ripping off the mask. Pretty much all the details match."

"Voices? I only heard one," Sumire said. 

"You only have one Persona?" Akechi asked, obviously just as clueless about the situation as the sisters.

Sumire shrugged, "How would I know if I have more?" 

Shaking his head, Akechi stumbled over his words while he tried to figure out how to describe his thoughts. Eventually, he just gave up and insisted, "You just know, okay? It's not like there's some trick to it. Besides, a Persona is a part of you. You should be able to know where a part of you is, think of it like where your arm is or whatever." 

Sumire closed her eyes and tried her hardest to find another Persona inside her soul or whatever, but she didn't have any luck. After a few earnest attempts, she opened her eyes and declared, "I still don't think I have a second one…

"Strange…" Akechi muttered.

When the conversation died down, they finally registered that they could just relax. They each leaned back and waited while their bodies recovered from the massive energy expenditure from their escape. Everything had happened so fast, so they also needed time to fully process what had just happened. Despite how exhausted she was, Sumire felt incredible. Her head was flooded with emotions that she hadn't felt in so long, running through the previous scenes in her head over and over again as she chased the high that came from her miraculous performance there. Akechi and Kasumi could only watch as she effortlessly beat the Shadows and shined like the brightest star in the sky. She started to imagine if that could be how things always were, with her finally out in the spotlight instead of her sister. Perhaps the Metaverse could be that perfect world…

They remained in silence for about a minute before someone spoke, with said speech being, "Oh my god, dad's probably looking for us!" Kasumi suddenly shouted into the air, scrambling to her feet, pacing back and forth in a panic, and turning toward Akechi. "Please tell me that time works differently in fairyland!" 

"This is not-" Akechi cut himself off before letting out a sigh. "No, time does not work differently here." 

"How do we get out of here, exactly?" Sumire asked. 

Akechi was quick to pull out his phone, flashing the screen in front of the girls and pointing at a mysterious app with a stark red icon. "Get your phones out. Does it show this when you open it?" Both girls nodded, neither of them being surprised by some demonic looking app mysteriously downloading itself. Akechi showed them what to press before demonstrating it himself, his body taking on a red and black tint before he faded away, exiting the Metaverse.

When the sisters realized they were alone, they looked at one another in silence. They hadn't been able to just talk to one another since Akechi woke up. Sumire opened her mouth to say something but stopped herself, just watching as Kasumi stared at her blankly. They both knew what they wanted to say, but how exactly could they say it? Realizing they would have to wait for another time, both of them followed Akechi's example and faded back into the real world.

The first thing they noticed when returning to reality was that Akechi was back to normal, wearing his jacket, holding his briefcase, and kneeling on the ground. Sumire quickly checked to see she was back to normal as well, though feeling the presence of Cendrillon still inside her. 

"Oh, so I wasn't hallucinating," Akechi joked, sounding a lot more tired than he had just a few moments earlier. Sumire was about to ask if he was okay when she suddenly had a massive wave of exhaustion pass over her. Her knees started to buckle and she put her hands out to catch her fall, but Kasumi ran over to catch her.

"You thought you were hallucinating this whole time!?" Kasumi yelled. "Then why did you save us?" 

Akechi didn't answer the question, pulling out his phone again. Changing subjects completely, he commented, "Hmm, it's been three hours… We should get back to the house." He smiled as he got back to his feet, wobbling a bit as he struggled to find his balance. His expression was the same as before the Metaverse, but Sumire sensed a bit more sincerity behind it.

"Oh no… Oh no oh no oh no…" Kasumi stammered, staring at her phone with a look of terror on her face. Sumire followed her lead and checked her own.  She had eight missed calls from dad, three from mom, and one from grandma, followed by a barrage of messages. Akechi also checked his phone, gaining a look of horror even greater than Kasumi's. It was probably a reasonable response to seeing the Yoshizawa's father's excessive worrying for the first time. Knowing that if they didn't get home soon there was a pretty big chance they would never be allowed to leave the house again, they ran off to the train station as fast as they could.

 

As they arrived back at the house, they could only watch as their dad paced back and forth across their front porch, anticipating the grilling they were about to get. Kasumi had called him as soon as they got to the train station, saying they were coming back and that they had everything they needed to make something for dinner. 

The two sisters both looked at each other, facing their father's disapproving glare when he saw them approach. It wasn't like Sumire had a good cover story. "Sorry, Dad, we went to get sugar and followed Akechi-san into a mysterious world in the heart of his homeroom teacher and I awakened to some new power to fight and protect my sister from crazy shadow monsters. "  

"Hello, kids," their dad calmly greeted them, opening the door and allowing them inside. Sumire rushed to the kitchen to put all the ingredients away, desperate for any delay to the punishment she would receive. She bought a couple frozen items, yet despite three hours passing since they were purchased, they were still cool. Not that Sumire was going to complain. Kasumi was already sitting on the couch in shame while Akechi stood nearby, all waiting for Sumire to explain. She had been designated the sacrificial lamb for this endeavor, and it was time for her to meet her fate.

"Hey, Dad…" Kasumi muttered in defeat. Sumire rushed to sit next to her, still trying to figure out a cover story despite racking her brain on the entire way home. 

Their father stared at them in disappointment for a few long moments before sighing and beginning, "You told your Grandma that you were going to the store to buy some sugar, you brought Goro along, and you took three hours."

Mom walked over next to him, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Shinichi, they were probably just hanging out, cut them some slack." 

"I just want to know what you three were doing not answering your phones. That's what I'm worried about," he grumbled. Sumire opened her mouth to speak, still desperately searching for any kind of excuse that wouldn't get her sent to an insane asylum. 

"It was me, Yoshizawa-san." Akechi was the first to speak, resuming his quick and emotionless timbre that their dad was used to. "I wanted to show them where I went to school since it was nearby, but we got lost looking around the area." 

Sumire paused, looking up at him. His face was back to how he was this morning, completely lifeless. The Akechi in reality and the Akechi in the Metaverse seemed like two completely different people. While they hoped the excuse was enough on its own, Dad didn't seem completely satisfied. 

"That still doesn't explain why none of you answered your phones," Dad added, raising an eyebrow in suspicion. 

"I turned mine off, and while we were walking we accidentally put both Kasumi-san and Sumire-san's phones in one bag, then it got lost," Akechi explained so naturally it felt like what he was saying actually happened. Sumire looked over at Kasumi, trying her best to hide her surprise. She quickly realized that he must have been coming up with this story the whole train ride. Why he didn't tell them was a mystery. 

"Right!" Sumire jumped in, adding some detail to the story. "Kasumi wanted to check out a new app I downloaded, and I accidentally put my phone in her bag. At some point, she dropped it, so we had to spend quite a while looking for it."

"Did anything get stolen?" Mom asked, holding her hand close to her chest. 

"No, nothing was stolen, thankfully," Kasumi put her hands up to defend herself. "It's my mistake! I promise it won't happen again!" 

"Yeah, I hope not." Their father finally calmed down, seeming satisfied with the narrative they had spun. "Goro, I hope that you will keep your phone on the next time you go out," Dad instructed as he turned to him. 

"I apologize," Akechi gave a polite bow. "Frankly, I didn't expect you to come calling for me. It's not something I'm used to. I promise it won't happen again." 

Dad softened his gaze before pinching his nose. "You are a child under my roof. I want to be able to reach you in case something happens. We don't want a repeat of what happened last month." 

Akechi's expression soured a little before giving another nod and excusing himself to the attic. Kasumi and Sumire took this as an opportunity to sneak out as well, catching a little of their parents' conversation that started after they left. 

"Shinichi, it might be best to give him some time," their mother requested. "You don't know what he's been through." 

"I know," Dad sighed. "I just wish he was open to extending any trust to us. From the way he's been, I'll be damned if he trusts any adults that come near him." 

Sumire paused, listening to the two, not even paying attention to Kasumi dragging her inside her room and sitting her down on one of the chairs. 

"Okay… Crisis averted," Kasumi sighed in relief as she collapsed onto her bed. "Goro is a pretty good liar isn't he?" 

"Yeah… Too good," Sumire agreed. She knew that it wasn't a good idea to press him on his history, but she couldn't help but be curious about him, especially after what they had just learned about him. 

"But can you believe it!? The Metaverse! And you awakened to that cool power! It's like we're superheroes!" Kasumi gleamed before looking at Sumire with a hungry anticipation. "What was it like?"

Sumire pondered for a moment before describing, "I guess when I got really angry I heard a voice calling to me, and next thing I knew Cendrillon was behind me." If she had to be honest with herself, she didn't exactly know what happened. All she knew was she was upset at Sako and she wanted to save Kasumi. Akechi's terrible explanations of how the Metaverse worked did little to help her understand the exact process behind her awakening.

"Cool! You think if I go in again I can get cool powers too?" Kasumi beamed. 

"Seriously? You want to go back in?" Sumire questioned.

"What, you don't?" Kasumi smirked.

"I mean, I want to help Akechi-san take Sako down, but what if you get hurt again?" 

"Hey, I wasn't completely useless," Kasumi pouted, looking genuinely hurt by what Sumire said despite hiding it behind a veil of comedy.

"You gave up using the gun the second you failed at it," Sumire frowned, trying her best to genuinely explain her concerns. 

"I just need to find something I'm good at," Kasumi insisted. "I'm just not a gun user, that's all."

"You could just practice more," Sumire muttered in frustration. It was no use getting through to Kasumi. She was always like this. Sumire knew why. Her whole life, Kasumi had been good at everything immediately. Right from the start of every endeavor she made, she was good. Any practice after that was basically just for fun. Anything she couldn't immediately master was abandoned. Everyone knew about this habit of hers. Some of their friends took to calling Kasumi a genetically modified clone of Sumire with how she did everything Sumire did but better.

Using her patented tactic of abruptly changing the subject, Kasumi stood up and declared, "Hey, I have a plan for when mom and dad head to bed. Let's go meet up with Goro in the attic and discuss what to do next." Sumire wanted to debate with her, to try to reason that she shouldn't be heading into the Metaverse with no means to defend herself. At the same time, though, she was undoubtedly going to head back in herself. Even if Akechi tried, he wouldn't be able to dissuade her, especially since she had her own powers that he even acknowledged. Sumire let Kasumi talk more, figuring she could slip away from her sister and talk to Akechi about things later.

After a while, Sumire went back to the kitchen to prepare dinner. Kasumi asked for tonkatsu and cheesecake, which wouldn't prove much trouble. She'd done it many times before. While preparing the dish, the fatigue truly began to set in, not just physically but mentally as well. She didn't know what the effects of awakening to a Persona were, but she could assume she was being hit with all the after-effects now that the dust had settled. 

It didn't matter in the end since she was able to successfully get everything done and call everyone down. It was her first time making dinner for the whole family in a while. With the all-nighters, Mom had been pulling and Dad constantly trying to take Akechi out to different places, it felt nice to get back to something familiar. Besides, she hadn't forgotten her plan to appease Akechi. In fact, she believed this was her best work yet, finishing up the tonkatsu and putting the cheesecake in the oven while they ate. Mom came in first to help her set the table before calling everyone else over: dad, grandma, Kasumi, and her secret guest of honor. 

Sumire sat down, watching the rest of her family get ready to eat. Of course Kasumi praised it. Mom and dad were also impressed, complimenting her for her skill. Grandma applauded her as well. She was the main cook in the family before Sumire took over, so her approval felt particularly special. 

"You truly have a talent for cooking, Sumire-san. The last time I tried cooking I nearly burned down one of my foster family's houses," Akechi joked with a smile. It wasn't like his usual smiles, though. If Sumire narrowed her eyes just a bit, she could tell it was just a bit more genuine. 

"I tried to play around with the recipe a bit, but for a beginner I would recommend sticking to the recipes exactly," Sumrie described. 

"Well…I thought I was doing quite well before I realized I didn't do any prep work," Akechi laughed a little as he recounted the story. "I don't know if it was more embarrassing for me or for the foster parents." 

Sumire chuckled, "I can see how that happens. The first few times I cooked it was far from anything servable to a human being." 

"That's not true! You were always good!" Kasumi countered. She was clearly misremembering things if she couldn't recall how she served her burnt yaki udon that was so bad that Kasumi threw it up later that night and ran to the store to buy actually edible noodles. Speaking of not burning things, Sumire excused herself from the table to check on the cheesecake, pulling it out of the oven and preparing a couple slices for everyone. By the time she came back, the whole table was deep in conversation. Grandma was telling a story of a detective she met in her youth, with Akechi asking question after question in an excited fervor she hadn't seen outside of the Metaverse. Sumire set down the plates, letting the group converge while she listened. She could see a small glint in Akechi's eyes while talking about detective work, and dad gave Sumrie a wink upon realizing she saw it too. 

The rest of the night went off without a hitch, and Sumire retreated to her room, giving herself some time to think. She pulled up her phone again, staring at the strange app with the eye on it. Opening the app, she could see a screen similar to how her phone was while in the Metaverse. There was also a history tab that listed Aiko Sako Palace along with its details. Out of curiosity, she clicked on it, getting a message that she was too far from the destination to enter. She was just about to experiment with this so-called "Meta Nav" a bit more when she got a text from Akechi.

 

Akechi : Could you meet me upstairs?

Akechi : I believe there are some matters we should discuss relating to what happened today.

 

Not seeing why not, she took him up on his offer and snuck up to his room. Akechi's attic was still the same as before: containing the bare minimum amount of furniture and having literally no decorations. He sat on the edge of his bed with his arms crossed on his knees. He had his briefcase next to him, and when he noticed Sumire entered, he motioned to the only chair in his room. 

"You messaged?" Sumire asked. 

"I overheard your sister today, I didn't want Kasumi-san to get involved. She will only get herself killed," Akechi declared. He looked up on her, softening his gaze a little. "The food was wonderful, by the way. Thank you for preparing it for us." 

"I'm happy to hear that. Cooking is one of my specialties afterall," Sumire smiled before locking eyes with him, dead serious. "I want to join you in Sako's Palace, though I'm guessing you already knew that." 

"I had my suspicions," Akechi replied nonchalantly. "Sadly, your father will prove to be an…inconvenience to say the least when it comes to making time for it. Today was the first time since I moved here that I had the time to go back in." 

"Right…" Sumire muttered before suggesting, "Maybe we just need to give him a heads up that we're going to be gone and for how long. He did say he was mostly mad that we didn't talk to him about it. How exactly do we take down a Palace?" 

"The Palace is controlled by its Ruler. There are a couple ways to get rid of them, but one is getting the Palace Ruler to lose their distortion of the area in question," Akechi described, actually managing to get the information across effectively. 

"How would you do that?" Sumire asked.

Akechi leaned back a little and elaborated, "As you saw, Loki has the ability to make Shadows go psychotic. That ability isn't limited to Shadows, though. It can also work on Rulers and Cognitions." 

"So you want to make Sako go crazy?" Sumire exclaimed with a hand to her mouth. "Would that hurt her?" 

"It's mostly temporary," Akechi described nonchalantly. "The main purpose would be to  time it just right so she acts out where she shouldn't and gets fired from her teaching position." 

"Ah, I see," Sumire noted, taking note of how he added 'mostly' to that description. She would have to ask him about that later. Nodding along, she summarized, "If she doesn't go to the school, then she wouldn't be able to see it as her own torture chamber. That should get the Palace to fade away." 

"Correct. The main problem is getting to the Ruler. Most of them stay within the furthest depths of the Palace, guarding some kind of glowing light that I don't quite know the purpose of. Sako coming out to find us this time was just bad luck." 

"Hmm… Is there any other way to get rid of them?" Sumire asked. The method Akechi described certainly worked, but it felt like there was a more elegant solution they were missing. Even if they got the Palace to disappear, that didn't mean the Sako in reality paid for her crimes. She hoped there was something they could do to attain real justice for her victims, but she didn't hold out hope. It wasn't like there was some big red button that made the Palace Ruler confess to all their crimes if Sumire pressed it. 

Since there wasn't anything  Sumire could do about it, maybe it was just best to listen to Akechi and what he wanted to do. After all, he was undoubtedly one of Sako's victims. He had the primary say on her punishment.

Akechi shrugged, answering, "Not that I'm aware of. That's why I'm making sure you're confident about this. Palaces are extremely dangerous, and the ways to get rid of them don't always go perfectly." Akechi looked to the side, taking a deep breath. "There's also the psychological toll on you. Palaces contain the worst parts of a person's heart, and they're very rarely things meant for human eyes. Even if you don't get physically hurt, mentally this will change you." 

Sumire tilted her head to the side. "Change me?" 

Akechi shook his head, reluctant to answer. "I'm warning you in advance if you truly want to do something like this." 

If he were to ask her a week ago, she would have hesitated far more. Instead, she clenched her fist and held it out in front of her, picturing the red gloves that accented her Metaverse outfit. "I feel.. I feel that I can do it. So long as I have Cendrillon." 

Akechi gave a small smile. "It's foolish for me to ask, that is exactly how I felt when I awoke to Loki and Robin Hood." 

Sumire returned the expression then curled away a bit. She knew what she would say next was embarrassing, but she felt comfortable letting it flow out into the open. "And, to be honest, I'm kinda happy to have something I'm actually good at. In there I really felt alive, like I was finally stepping out onto stage to play the main role. Kasumi is usually the one everyone focuses on, but in there, in the Metaverse, I can exceed as Sumire," Sumire declared, perhaps a little too loud, before she lowered her voice. "Sorry." 

"It's alright, but don't get the power get to your head," he warned her. "The last thing I need is you rushing into danger thinking you're invincible. In the Metaverse, anything can kill you." Akechi's tone darkened. 

"Right," she mumbled before deciding to pull a Kasumi and pivot to a different topic. "Actually, I've been meaning to ask, what exactly happens when you ripped off those Shadows' faces?" 

Akechi gestured to his eyes, where his mask was back in the Metaverse, and clarified, "Hmm… The best way to describe it is their masks lock away a Shadow's true form. It's similar to how we reveal our other selves by ripping off our masks." It made sense. During her fight with Sako, Cendrillon was out the whole time, while Akechi had to take off his mask to summon his own Persona. 

The two continued to talk for a while, Akechi filling her in on the different types of Shadows he had come across along with all the special rules of the Metaverse he figured out. Sumire was quite happy to learn that, despite her outfit having heels, it would not affect her ability to move around under the caveat that she didn't think she couldn't move around in heels. She also suggested cooking some food to bring to the Metaverse once Akechi mentioned that the energy drinks he buys from the vending machine have a much stronger effect in the Metaverse. The conversation soon transitioned into something more casual, with the two just talking. It was the first time that Sumire could recall that she and Akechi just sat down and had a normal conversation. When he wasn't trying to hide anything, he was actually quite amicable. 

Akechi described some of the weirdest occurrences in Palaces he had visited previously. "A lot of them were terrifying at the moment, but in hindsight it's actually quite endearing," he said as he finished off the last story. Sumire would've liked to hear more, but she decided to bid him goodnight. She was still incredibly tired and wanted to get some rest if they were going to head back into the Palace. As she left for her own room, she could've sworn she heard some scurrying, but she dismissed it and fell face-first onto her bed, drifting off into a night of action-packed dreams.

Chapter 6: The Prince's Vindication: Part V

Sumire Yoshizawa 

 

March 2nd, 2014

 

Sumire took a deep breath, raising her arms up and turning her gaze to coach Hiraguchi and nodding for her to start the music. She recalled asking for something calmer for her ball routine. She chose this one since it was the closest she got to having something she was naturally good at, putting her in her comfort zone while putting her practice on her more difficult routines. 

As the music began playing, she put on her show smile, focusing on counting her steps as she gently weaved the ball around her. With nothing but the blackness of her mind, she envisioned where her footfalls would be, highlighted in a familiar blue glow. With each step she took, flames rose up and Cendrillon guided her forward, gently holding her as she joined a duet on the platform, blocking out everyone else from her mind. 

It was a peaceful kind of loneliness that carried her right through the most difficult part of her routine. Right around the middle, she tossed the ball up into the air. Her mind flashed back to when she first conceptualized the routine with her coach. She reached to grab it, similar to how she usually did, but her body began to move on its own. Catching the ball, she followed its momentum but made sure to apply her own force to it. She guided the ball while keeping the illusion that it guided her, following its grace and movement all the way to the finishing pose. By the time the routine was over and she opened her eyes, she could see her teammates all staring at her in shock, taking a few moments before giving her a standing ovation. 

Kasumi almost leaped off the bench to congratulate her, only to be stopped by coach Hiraguchi. "Very good, Sumire. I'm seeing some technical errors in a couple areas, but it's a great showing for a routine this difficult. Did you practice this without me seeing or something?" she asked. 

Taking a moment to regain her breath, Sumire joked, "Things are apparently much easier once you get over the stage fright! No wonder Kasumi can master her's first try!" It was hard to explain how drastically things had changed in just one day. She had volunteered to perform the routine to test how Cendrillon had changed her, and things had gone way better than she expected.

"And you changed your finishing pose, why is that?" the coach continued to inquire.

"I wanted something more original, after all…" Sumire looked over at Kasumi, putting on her best playful smirk, "If I'm going to compete with Kasumi, I need to prove I can do things she can't." If she had to be honest with herself, she barely even realized how much she was altering the routine as she went. It just felt right to do it that way. 

Coach Hiraguchi locked eyes with Kasumi, giving a proud nod. 

"Oh, you're on! I won't lose to you!" Kasumi pumped her fists out, skipping ahead to work on a section on her own routine.

The rest of practice went by without a hitch, and the Yoshizawa sisters left to head back home. Their Dad had another meeting that day, so he wouldn't be back until pretty late. 

"So… when are we heading to the Palace?" Kasumi whispered, bouncing on her toes as they walked home. 

"Huh?" Sumire whispered back, glancing around them in a panic as she checked to see if anyone was listening in, with her fears thankfully being proven false. 

"You, me, and Goro. It's the perfect time to get an hour or two in! I already messaged Dad so he shouldn't be calling us," Kasumi said, as if that clarified anything. Sumire nodded with a bit of confusion. She had already planned to meet with Akechi right after practice, letting Kasumi head home alone. In hindsight, that was a terrible idea. She had been so caught up in the excitement that she forgot to talk to Kasumi about her intentions the previous night.

 

Muffling a sigh, she pulled out the phone to explain the situation to Akechi.

 

Sumire : Kasumi is coming with us 

Akechi : I believed we discussed that she was staying home.

Akechi : Did you forget? 

Sumire : I forgot

Sumire : and besides, she is says she's coming with us 

Sumire : I don't have a good reason to tell her no 

Akechi : …

Akechi : Try to convince her not to come.

 

Sumire packed her phone into her bag, letting Kasumi take the lead. She really didn't want to go to the Palace immediately after practice. However, it was a Sunday, so it was the last day of the week where practice was mid-day instead of going late, so today was the only day she had enough free time to make any actual progress. Sumire frowned. She didn't know exactly what was going through Kasumi's head at the moment. After everything she witnessed, nearly getting captured twice, she still wanted to head inside the Palace. It was confusing but somehow still in character for her sister.

"Kasumi… are you sure you should? Last time-" 

"I'll be careful. Don't you worry about me!" Kasumi turned around with a beaming smile. Sumire didn't know if she was truly obvious or purposefully ignoring Sumire's pleas. Knowing Kasumi, it was the former. 

"Well I guess, but-" 

"Then it's settled!" Kasumi resounded, letting Sumire know that the opportunity to convince her to stop had passed and forcing her to go along with her silently in defeat. 

She knew it had only been a day since she had last seen it, but after going into the Metaverse, Sumire hoped that Kowareta Junior High would look a little less dull. It remained flat, with the only marker of life being the mildly annoyed Akechi, standing to the side of it and scrolling through his phone. The two met up with him, and Sumire slinked off to Akechi's side before he addressed Kasumi. She figured he'd be far better at getting her away. 

"Kasumi-san, I understand that you might want to assist us," he began, keeping his tone as neutral as possible, "but I believe it's for the best that you stay behind." He paused for a moment before adding with a smile, "I mean, we'll need someone to provide us with a cover story, and who better than you?"

"Already got that covered, right Sumire?" Kasumi winked at her. Sumire reluctantly nodded, not having any way to convince her to back down. "And don't worry. I'll trail behind you guys and only provide backup."

"That's not what I'm worried about," Akechi clarified, maintaining his calm demeanor despite some frustration peeking through. "You have no means to defend yourself against a threat." 

"Like I said I'll stay right behind you guys," Kasumi smiled. As Sumire watched her speak with such confidence, she struggled to determine if Kasumi was deliberately ignoring the risks or if she just didn't care. Either way, she was being remarkably stubborn even for her.

"I…" Akechi appeared to be fighting the urge to pinch the bridge of his nose in frustration. "Kasumi-san, you don't have any experience in a Palace. You don't understand the risks," Akechi tried to reason, mirroring Sumire's exasperated confusion.

"Well, neither does Sumire. She just got powers, like what, yesterday? It's better to have more people," Kasumi argued.

"It's actually not depending on the situation," Akechi pointed out, but he shook his head and refocused on the main point. He pointed at her and insisted with a stone-cold expression. "You are not heading inside the Palace. I'm not going to waste time babysitting you and become responsible if you get yourself killed."  

His voice was so serious and authoritative that it managed to make someone as stubborn as Kasumi hesitate, even if it was only for a moment. The next time she spoke, it was to Sumire. "You're gonna let me come right?" she pleaded desperately. 

Sumire paused for a moment, a little afraid to answer. After the eyes of both her sister and Akechi bored into her, Sumire mumbled, "I think… I think we should listen to Akechi-san…"

"It's only reasonable," Akechi agreed before looking over at Kasumi, softening his gaze slightly. "Don't latch onto the misconception that we don't find you of any use. We undeniably need someone on the outside to provide us an alibi. We may only be gone for an hour or two at most, but a lot can change in that time." 

Kasumi stared up at him, ready to make a counterargument, but she stopped herself in a remarkable display of self-control. She looked away from him, nodded, and stepped back, barely managing to hide a glint in her eyes. 

"I'm sorry. I'm being too reckless aren't I," she joked. "I'll be in the area and cover for you two. It might take me a while to come up with a story though." Before either of the others could comment, Kasumi walked off, waving them off and wishing them good luck. 

The two looked at each other and sighed. Akechi was just thankful the conversation was over, and Sumire was shocked that Kasumi had listened to reason for once. When Akechi was sure she had left, he pulled out his phone and showed Sumire how to operate the Meta Nav. With a few clicks of a button, the world around them faded into reds and blacks. 

 

Sumire was already in her Metaverse outfit when they finished materializing. Akechi was in the same position, wearing his outfit despite wearing something completely different less than a few seconds prior. 

"She must remember you," Akechi commented, looking Sumire's clothing up and down. 

"Remember me?" Sumire questioned.

"Usually when I first enter Palaces I'm in my normal clothes. Once I catch the Ruler's attention, I get changed into my Metaverse clothes. Sometimes the Ruler forgets who I am if I don't visit for a while, and the next time I come back, I'm back to my normal clothes," Akechi explained. 

"Ah, that makes sense," Sumire mumbled despite not understanding in the slightest. She just didn't have any follow-up questions that would help her understand. 

"And there is one more thing we can do," Akechi added as he brought up the app, showing his history screen again. There was a menu listing different areas he apparently had been to. After clicking on one, another screen of reds and blacks appeared, and she felt a brief sense of vertigo before appearing in a room that looked like the safe room from the previous day. It would be nice if he gave her a warning. 

"Did we… teleport?" Sumire asked, still trying to confirm if the ground was steady. 

"Precisely," Akechi declared with a pleased smile crossing his face. "It's only between saferooms we've already explored, but it makes things just a tad more convenient, don't you think?"

"Right. So… should we go through a couple of weaker enemies first? I want some time to get used to my abilities before we fight anything dangerous, I don't want to burden you," Sumire asked. 

Akechi crossed his arms, assessing, "That does seem like a logical course of action. I don't want you getting knocked out. Robin Hood does process an ability to revive others, but never had a use for it until now so I don't truly know the extent of its effects." He looked away for a second, adding on. "Not that I could revive myself anyway to check." 

“Revive?” Sumire inquired.

"Well, not necessarily. I can't exactly describe the specific properties. I just know that it's an ability that can bring back fallen allies. You are aware of your own abilities, correct?" Akechi questioned when the topic of powers came up. 

"Yes! I was trying to look into it, look into my heart or whatever, and I think I can use light attacks," she described as best she could. 

"Bless," Akechi corrected. "Those are called bless attacks. Anything else?" 

Sumire rubbed the back of her head, pondering if he had some way to actually know their proper title or had a heavy preference towards his own made-up name. Searching her soul, she could find what almost felt like a list of certain abilities, though he probably only cares about what they do over their names. She continued, "She can attack physically and heal. Also she can make other allies hit harder." She wasn't fully aware of how she knew this; it was just what her heart was telling her. If she were to describe it, she would say that she had a clear picture of everything in her mind, but it wasn't something she could really consciously describe. 

"Hmm… It's nothing new, but undoubtedly useful since I prefer using Loki. Let's see what you can do," Akechi decided before he hopped out of the safe room, blending into the shadows. Sumire followed his movements, watching as a Shadow passed by. Akechi gave her a knowing smirk. "Care to do the honors?" 

Sumire nodded with a smile before turning back to watch the shadow. All she had to do was jump up and rip off the mask. Taking a moment to think over her steps, she pictured her routine from earlier. The guiding flames of Cendrillon showed her the way, and she leapt into the air, gracefully flipping over the Shadow's head and landing on its shoulders. 

"Show yourself!" Sumire cried with a smile before yanking the mask off with her open hand. Flipping backwards, the Shadow collapsed on itself, revealing two horse-like creatures. 

"Perfect! Those are bicorns, and they're weak to bless attacks. Don't disappoint me!" Akechi called out, grabbing his mask and summoning Robin Hood. He sent a bless attack directly at one of the bicorns, bringing it to the ground with a yelp. Sumire followed, yanking off her mask, thankfully not as painfully as last time, and calling out for Cendrillon. Feeling her presence behind her she pointed at the target, watching the bless magic hit the other bicorn. As both of their opponents were left writhing on the floor, Sumire and Akechi moved in for a synchronized attack, finishing them with style. 

"Not bad. I cannot dictate if that's the true extent of your power, but we should conserve our energy," Akechi commented, taking a moment to assess Sumire's performance before leading the way through the Palace. They stopped for a couple more battles, prioritizing their guns and swords over their Personas. While using their Personas made things faster, they used up a surprising amount of energy, and the duo agreed they were best saved for emergencies. Still, they were able to defeat the monsters they came across quickly, and Sumire's confidence in her combat abilities in the Metaverse started to rise.

Akechi, as she learned, was a massive showoff whenever he fought. He would dance around enemies and perform moves that she could swear were less about practicality and more about getting whatever fun he could out of the situation. His way of calling out weaknesses (or navigation as he called it) was teetering from excentric to passive-aggressive like Sumire could undoubtedly feel he's looking out for them and calling everything out, but also… finding an unhealthy glee in killing Shadows. 

It was weird seeing him like this. It was odd how a person could act so robotic, yet in this world, he was almost brimming with emotion. Her mind kept lingering on his smile. Each time they went out to eat or watched a movie, Akechi would always smile and say he enjoyed the experience. It seemed normal enough at first glance, but careful study revealed its falsehood. By contrast, when he managed to kill multiple enemies at once, he gave a different kind of smile. It wasn't polite. It didn't feel perfectly sculpted on a puppet to emulate happiness. It was genuine. The way he moved, it was like he was playing a cocky young superhero and a serious fighter at the same time. He was genuinely having fun, and it was the first time Sumire had ever seen that from him. It was like there was a real person behind those eyes.

 

Sumire was a tad more conservative with her fighting style, though she had taken Akechi's advice on how she had shaped her skill set. Her main natural skill was being a gymnast, which allowed her to get close to enemies and deal some serious damage while still being able to dodge their attacks. 

Perhaps she did eventually get too cocky; during one of the battles, she saw a Shadow build up some sort of dark magic attack; she thought she could handle it just fine, calling out Cendrillon to block the attack for her. However, when the blast connected, she felt a shattering sensation, and everything went black.

The next thing she knew she was lying on the ground next to a disappointed Akechi with Robin Hood floating behind him. He gave the good news that Robin Hood did, in fact, revive allies and the bad news that she was weak to curse-type attacks like he was when he had Robin Hood out. 

"So Loki is weak to bless attacks, Robin Hood weak to curse, and Cendrillon is weak to curse," Sumire summarized when Akechi explained the more precise mechanics of the different spell types. "And they're resistant to the spells they utilize." 

Akechi nodded, "That's correct. So, to capitalize on our strengths and cover for our weaknesses, I should use Loki for the rest of this trip." 

Sumire understood where he was coming from but still wanted to disagree. "Um… How about we keep Robin Hood out? He does use curse attacks and can revive me in case things turn south," Sumire said. 

"Do you think you're going to get knocked out again?" Akechi crossed his arms, giving a slight smirk. Sumire responded with one of her own. 

"Nope! I just like the safety net. That way I can be more reckless," Sumire winked before heading forward, taking a page from Kasumi's book and ending the conversation on her terms. 

"It takes energy out of me you know!" Akechi shouted behind her. Despite the front he put up in the real world, Akechi was quite cocky and prideful, with it being quite easy to get under his skin. Sumire didn't deny that he had all the reason in the world to be proud of his abilities, but teasing him was a decent bit of fun.

"Do you think they're real?" Sumire asked after they had explored for another ten minutes. "The Shadows, I mean. Are they living beings?"

"I don't know. They certainly aren't human," Akechi shrugged, jumping forward to rip the mask off a guard. "They don't feel like I'm killing people," Akechi stated as he pointed his gun, quickly downing a pixie before she faded away. Sumire rushed forward to fight the other Shadow, a ghostly woman Akechi called Silky. 

"Have you tried killing a person before?" Sumire turned to him, quickly finishing off the silky. Akechi paused for a moment, taking a sharp exhale before looking back at her. 

"If you're asking, no, I haven't killed anyone before," Akechi put his hands on his hips, "but with people like this, can you blame someone for wanting to pull the trigger?" Akechi darkened his expression, studying Sumire's reaction. 

"I can't exactly say if I would or wouldn't," Sumire replied honestly. "It's best not to think about that kind of stuff."

"Very well," Akechi shrugged, accepting Sumire's desire for the conversation to end. After what felt like ages traversing halls, they finally reached a doorway accompanied by a small plaque. Sumire walked up to it, staring down at the engraved problem. 

"How many breaths does the average human take in a day?" She read aloud.

Akechi leaned over, his expression morphing to one of disgust. "You've got to be kidding me," he muttered before looking up at the door. "20,000." 

The door slowly turned green before letting them inside. 

"I'm surprised you knew that," Sumire noted. 

"Sako always had a question of the day in her homeroom. I was the only person who got it right that day," Akechi recalled. "I wouldn't be surprised if the rest of these doors follow that pattern." 

"Well, we might need to do some more studying," Sumire joked, failing to stop herself from laughing at her own wisecrack. "I had no idea." 

"Then leave this to me," Akechi grinned, facing three doors in front of them and another plaque. Akechi walked up to it, reading off the question. 

"What is the largest desert in the world, A, Antarctica, B, Sahara, C, Gobi," Akechi read aloud. 

"Wouldn't it be the Sahara?" Sumire suggested. 

"No. It's actually Antarctica. Deserts are defined by how much precipitation they get. Antarctica is, in fact, too cold for any rain to fall there, meaning it technically qualifies as a desert," Akechi explained. He was undeniably cocky about it, though Sumire couldn't deny she found the fact interesting. 

The duo continued to pass through the halls of the Palace, each room they entered holding more question doors than the last. They were also lucky to find another safe room. 

That was until even Akechi met his match.

A question so hard that Akechi was ready to destroy the door with Loki. 

"What temperature does water boil?" Sumire repeated the question. A question so simple, so innocent, a question that shouldn't be causing Akechi to pace back and forth racking his brain to the point where Sumire thought he would give himself another concussion by hitting it so hard. 

All because of one simple roadblock. 

The answers were in Fahrenheit. 

Apparently, Sako spent a couple of years of her childhood in America, and with her hatred for her students, she probably did this to screw with them. Or maybe it was Akechi specifically, judging by his reaction. 

"What if we just try opening a random door?" Sumire propositioned. 

"And risk it leading directly to our deaths?" Akechi sneered, leaning on a wall. "Let's head back to the safe room and look up the answer on another trip… I'd rather leave before I start clawing my hair out," he muttered, barely audible for that last bit.

"Right," Sumire nodded. She was getting quite tired, after all. She'd completely lost track of time and was starting to get worried about Kasumi as well. 

They had a much easier time getting out then getting back in. Using the safe room warp feature, they quickly found themselves back at the front of the Palace where they started. Sumire quickly asked why he didn't do this when he first found her and Sumire, and Akechi explained he didn't think it would work for the two of them since they didn't have access to the Meta Nav at the time. 

The two left the Metaverse, finding Kasumi already waiting for them, a massive grin on her face. 

"How did it go?" she rushed over to pester them for all the details they would spare. 

"It went fine," Akechi told her. He probably didn't want to reveal he had met his greatest rival in the form of the American imperial system of measurement. Perhaps Sumire could tell her later; Get a laugh out of her to compensate for leaving her behind. Kasumi frowned, waiting for more info before eventually giving up. 

"I took care of everything. Dad called a while back and I told him that we're all doing fine. I even did an impression of you to really sell it, and he totally fell for it," Kasumi described in far more detail than was necessary. Sumire looked away from her with a mix of embarrassment and shame. She really wanted to come with them, and Sumire was starting to feel guilty for brushing her off. They always did things together. She looked over at Akechi, who was giving her an indifferent smile while she spoke. Perhaps she could convince him to let her trail along in the safer areas. It was risky, and logically, she really shouldn't be heading in there, but at the same time, she was her sister; they did everything together. 

"Have you come up with fun code names yet?" Kasumi asked, changing the subject on a dime as she was one to do. 

"Code names?" Akechi furrowed his brow in confusion. 

"Yeah, 'no names' remember? Or did you guys seriously forget after making such a big deal of itt?" Kasumi pouted. Sumire and Akechi both looked at each other. They mostly just shouted commands at each other, though they might have snuck their names a couple of times in moments of panic. 

"Jeez! And here I thought you were professionals," Kasumi crossed her arms in disappointment, but she didn't press further. 

The trio headed back on the train, arriving home on time this go around. Dad asked them about their day when they got back, but Kasumi quickly went through the cover story she weaved together while Sumire and Akechi were running about in the Metaverse. 

Sumire went to make dinner for the night while Akechi went back to his room again. She wouldn't be surprised if he went to collapse on his bed. While not to the extent of yesterday, Sumire was undeniably tired from the day's events. She called Akechi down for dinner, and she ate while contently listening to Kasumi's endless stories. Sumire had been by her sister's side long enough to notice when something was up, and the way she forced a smile was clear as day. It just compounded Sumire's guilt.

"You all seem quite tired. Having fun sure can be exhausting," Mom joked, getting a laugh from Kasumi and a nod from Sumire. "I'm just happy you three are getting along." 

"Your daughters make for pleasant company," Akechi commented, prompting looks of surprise from the daughters in question.

"I'm happy to hear that," Dad replied with a big smile. "While I'm not one to boast, I must admit I can't find any better company in the world other than these two girls." He let out a yelp of surprise as Mom lightly jabbed him in the side. He apologetically corrected, "I meant three." That got a laugh out of all of them. 

Sumire wanted to laugh, but the joy didn't last as she saw Kasumi's expression once the eyes were off her. She had never seen her sister looking so alone.

Notes:

next chapter, we will finally see what our floof was up to!

Chapter 7: Eve's Interlude: Part I

Haru Okumura 

 

March 3rd, 2014

 

 

Haru stared at her reflection in the mirror, studying each of her features, doing her best to remind herself that the young girl in front of her was still her. She recalled how many people would tell her she looked youthful, even before she went back in time. What she didn't quite realize was how much of a babyface she had when she was a child. She was slightly shorter, and her hair was slightly longer, two more aspects of her current situation that made her uncomfortable. 

Thankfully her closet was more or less the same; Haru was always fairly consistent in what she wanted her style to be. Some of her favorite pieces, even three years later, were already there and back in mint condition no less. She considered that a minor blessing in a moment that was otherwise entirely tragic. 

Her father must have found her crazy when she jumped for joy to receive her Shujin uniform. At the moment, all she wanted was the familiar: the items and moments from the future that reminded her who she was. It was funny to think that three years ago, she would become so attached to the simple black blazer and plaid skirt. She needed to repurchase her pink sweater that she always wore over it; if she was remembering right, it was part of the upcoming fall collection from a designer she adored. That way, at least one part of her life would be back to normal. 

Shortly after she somehow traveled back in time, Haru started writing in a diary to keep track of what happened each day , as well as any reports on her father's behavior. She'd avoided checking her father's name in the Meta-Nav since the day she returned. As much as she's tried to get that same courage she had when she first got back, she found she'd lost it all when the reality of heading back in time settled in. If he didn't have a Palace, that would have meant that in three years, he managed to become completely corrupted, while if he did have one, then all that she's done with him in the past few days was nothing but a lie. 

Besides her diary she also created what she called a "timeline comparison book." It was a book that contained info that she could recall about the future she came from, relating to certain events and memories that might become important later. She would also note things that might have changed between now and then, things that she had a direct hand in shifting, or things that might have happened last time that she never noticed until now. The most recent entry related to a company friend of her father's discussions about his distaste for Shido. 

Forgive her that it wasn't at the forefront of her mind, but Haru realized a tad too late that she might have come across as odd, suddenly waking up one day and acting three years more mature and proper than she did the day prior. The worst part was that Haru had little recollection of how she acted three years ago. She had no other way to explain the change besides time travel, which she definitely couldn't explain. She wasn't too keen to see a situation where her father still died because she was too busy in a mental hospital to protect him. 

She began to study her own text history on her phone, finding any video that was recent for the time so she could study it and replicate her behavior. Her plan was to try to naturally progress back to her current personality within a month or two so she didn't have the limitation of having to act younger than she really was.

Her age was a weird thing to think about. In three years, would she be back at eighteen, or would she actually be twenty-one? Her body was undoubtedly of a fifteen-year-old, yet her mind remained that of her eighteen-year-old self. It was way too confusing. Haru was just thankful she wasn't sent back any further or else she would declare her love life in shambles with her options being limited to a small demographic of adult-minded teenagers (which she has very much learned was an oxymoron) to maintain her sanity and keep any potential suitors out of prison. 

One of her first priorities after she managed to put herself together, as well as one of the few that she would even be able to work on, was to deepen her relationship with her father. Each time he would get home she would try to talk to him, just to spark some sort of conversion. 

She learned he didn't talk much about work, killing a lot of conversations and leading Haru to look for alternatives. As much as she wanted to suggest some places they could hang out together, she didn't want her father to question why she suddenly wanted to become so close to him all of a sudden without a good explanation. 

She did come up with something after a while of thinking. "After seeing that poor child fall, I was scared I would die with so many regrets!" she would say.

It was useful enough, as it carried a similar weight to the real explanation. The main reason to not use it was Haru's refusal to bring Akechi back into her life under any circumstances. If she told him, her father might try to reach out to Akechi to speak with her for one reason or another. Her father already told her that, thankfully, Akechi managed to get out of that with only a concussion and asked if she would like to accompany him when he visited him in the hospital to wish him well. While well-meaning, it had too much risk for Haru to risk. After all, she got him to not interact with Shido. At least from all her research, Shido was still just an egotistical joke in the political world. 

Her other key priority at the time was looking for any signs of psychotic breakdowns or mental shutdowns. There were a couple breakdowns (thankfully no shutdowns) here and there in the last couple months, but nothing resembling one as of late. Akechi would have no reason to keep trying to prove himself to Shido after falling right in front of him, so she wouldn't be surprised if he had given up or even forgotten completely after the concussion. 

That meant that Akechi had likely gone back to his life, going from foster home to foster home. It was a sad fate, but it was better than letting her father or even Akechi himself die to Shido's selfishness and Yaldabaoth's game. 

Akechi would be fine. That's what Haru told herself. He would be fine and stay out of her life. She wouldn't have to think about him anymore. 

"Haru? Have you seen that necklace I handed you a few days ago?" her father asked, standing at the door frame and snapping Haru out of her thoughts. So far Haru has been attempting to get closer with him, but each time either stumbling with her words or making him slowly question her and her motives. He recently handed her a necklace for the banquet, she never wore it, completely forgetting about it as she was still processing going back in time, but he didn't seem too upset about it.  

"Oh, the Tanzanite one?" Haru asked. "No, I thought I gave it back to you," 

"Strange… It wasn't where I last put it," Haru's father puzzled as he put a hand to his chin. "If you see it anywhere could you tell me? Your aunt is asking to borrow it, and you know how she is, " he smiled, giving a nervous chuckle. Her maternal aunt was only the type to call them when she wanted something. She was never close with her mother, often accusing her of only marrying her father for his money, which was ironic now that she only wishes to be part of her niece's life when it benefits her financially. The claim made little sense given the timeline of when they got married compared to when Okumura Foods truly began to skyrocket. Haru could even recall her trashing him and her mother during her father's funeral. Safe to say, Haru had little care for the woman, but if she wanted the necklace, she could take it; the color didn't suit Haru too much anyway.

"I'll make sure to keep an eye out, " Haru called back to him, leaving the mirror and heading back to her computer. She didn't have anything fancy, barely possessing basic computer skills in both timelines. Once she meets back up with Futaba, she needs to thank her for at least teaching her to do research without ending up on shady websites. In this timeline she wouldn't have to deal with nearly as many viruses, which is one bonus of getting this do-over.

She did a quick double-check of her research on Akechi's activities, opening a small document in which she stored all the links to the news articles. She had narrowed things down to ten possible instances of psychotic breaks within the past two months. If Akechi gained his abilities sometime in January, then she had to assume all these cases could be linked to him. Before reaching this number, she needed to remove any cases that would have been difficult for him to access. Goro Akechi, the random foster kid, probably didn't have any connection to the mob boss who randomly attacked strangers in a bank. Haru also eliminated any cases that could have been done by drunks or those who went crazy after losing something or someone; while still fully possible that they were connected, it was not worth the risk if she ever needed to use the evidence to actually accuse someone, which brought her to the ten cases before her. 

The first was Hidetaka Yamashida, a businessman who was reported to have randomly started to strip naked before screaming for the hills that he hated his boss. He was a hit in the Nav, implying either he wasn't a target, or Haru's theory was true: that the breaks don't remove people's shadows from Mementos. She marked his name along with some others to explore on a later date. 

The second was Wakako Nishikiri. The name was so similar to Wakaba Isshiki that it almost gave Haru a heart attack seeing it online. Despite this, Haru had full confidence that she was a psychotic breakdown target due to her online profile revealing that she fosters children. She couldn't find the names anywhere, appearing that she was forced to remove all names and photos of the children she fostered after she was arrested, but she was going to assume that Akechi must have disliked her and called that investigation a day. 

The third was Shuichi Ogami, an apparent teenage detective who ran into traffic screaming about an animal trying to kill him. He wasn't killed , thankfully. The only reports about him and his situation that Haru found were that he was, overall, a nice person with no real massive cases behind him; he was just an apprentice to his uncle. He did have a hit on the Nav but Haru chalked this case up purely to jealousy on Akechi's part. 

The next on her list was Heisuke Asakura, a literal assassin who was discovered ripping detective novels apart before paying for them. He wasn't even discovered to be an assassin until after he was arrested for destroying public property. Haru marked that one down as a break due to the sheer insanity of the situation. It also wasn't completely impossible that Akechi uncovered him as an assassin. He was also a hit for the Nav. 

After that was Anri Wakui, a cyclist who was rumored to take illegal steroids and also ran into traffic. There were a lot of rumors online that Anri was a massive jerk as well. There was a video of the incident, easily proving that she had a psychotic breakdown. Once again, she was a hit. Haru was beginning to notice a pattern, noting the possibility that these shadows might even remember Akechi. 

The final instance she was certain of was Seibei Hasimoto, a businessman who Haru remembered from the last timeline. He was vocal against the Phantom Thieves, believing they were behind his psychotic breakdown years ago. Akechi also complained about him constantly demanding answers when he temporarily joined their team. It gave Haru a small chuckle that Akechi was basically complaining about the consequences of his actions .

Besides them, she also had Byakuya Ouma, some rich prick heir; Yuro Taketa, a barista; Kei Ike, a fisher; and Tadayuki Mikami, an actor. She didn't have much to prove their situations were psychotic breakdowns, but they were all hits on the Nav. 

Haru finished writing all of her notes, making a clear list of who she needed to look into, anyone she could possibly find in the real world, and who she was going to interrogate in the Metaverse. 

Haru was snapped out of her thoughts, overhearing her father talking to someone on the phone. Quietly leaving her desk, she followed the noise, finding him getting increasingly more irritated than who she undoubtedly knew was her aunt. She had plenty of time to deal with the psychotic breakdowns, so it might do her some good to get her mind off things and solve the mystery of the necklace first.

Notes:

Heavy apologizes for the lack of floof these early chapters

Chapter 8: The Prince's Vindication: Part VI

Kasumi Yoshizawa 

 

March 12th, 2014

 

Sumire and Goro decided to hold off on trips to the Metaverse for a few days, with Goro instead taking the sisters to the locales where he had gathered his supplies thanks to some pestering from Kasumi. They were all extremely shady places and Kasumi got some very…interesting looks from the bystanders they passed by. Goro took the initiative in preventing them from doing anything they would regret, countering their looks with a glare of his own that was somehow scary enough to ward them off. Kasumi was astounded by Goro’s ability to change personalities at will, shifting between a friendly acquaintance when at home and a hardened Yakuza when out on the town.

Kasumi was thankful that there was at least one place they visited that didn’t give her the creeps. A small used toy store that was mostly crowded by poorer families hoping to score something of somewhat decent quality for their children. Goro proceeded to explain that this is where he got his weapons, and they ended up lingering around a lot longer than they expected as he shifted through the uneven shelves in hopes of finding an upgrade for himself. Kasumi got distracted by the variety of cute toys, some appearing similar to the ones she had when she was young, and ran off to have some fun.

Of course both he and Sumire began to give her passing looks as she filled a small shopping bag with various old stuffed animals, waiting for them to deem it as nothing important before she slipped something special among several toys she purchased for herself. 

She didn’t want Goro to be suspicious of her just yet. Of course this also meant she now has a lot of extra stuffed animals that dad would be less than pleased about, it would also be dumb to donate them back, problems for another time. 

She still desperately wanted to plead her case to Goro and convince him to let her enter the Metaverse with them; she knew he had drawn his line in the sand. If she figured out anything within the short time she’s known him, she could tell that he was incredibly stubborn. If Kasumi had any hopes of joining the other two on their escapades, she also wanted to stay on his good side (or at least avoid his bad side).

Goro was an interesting man in general. While there were some consistent personality traits, he had so many different modes that it made it difficult to get a proper read on him. None of the personalities he presented felt entirely genuine, like each one was a mask to obscure the truth. Kasumi didn’t know if she envied the ability or pitied him for the possible circumstances that could have happened for him to gain such a skill.

Kasumi was going through a lot of things as of late. It had been less than a week, yet her whole world had been turned upside down. She had been drawn into some new universe of mystery and superpowers, and her sister had awakened the coolest ability in the world. Sumire had really started to come into her own since the two of them had been dragged into the Metaverse, with her skills and confidence when performing taking massive leaps. That smile Sumire gave her after her performance the other day said it all. She was starting to follow her own path.

Goro had also started to change. Kasumi suspected that the secret of his double life coming out and Sumire proving to be a helpful companion helped him feel more comfortable around them. At least she hoped that was the case, it was just as likely that he’s simply given up on the mask after they saw him in the Metaverse the first time. Either way, she was really happy for both of them.

She was really happy they managed to get so close to each other. 

She is really proud of them…

A couple friends called Kasumi up to hang out with her. She asked Sumire to join and they spent the day at the shopping center. She thought of eventually introducing Goro to her friends, but she doubted he would have any interest in going clothes shopping with some junior highschool girls. 

There was nothing special about that night’s practice, though Kasumi did want to perform her clubs routine for Coach Hiraguchi. She always enjoyed her clubs routine the most, and it always gave her the best scores whenever she competed. 

Coach Hiraguchi made a seemingly innocuous comment after she finished performing—something about her being a little off her game that day, that she usually does a bit better. Kasumi brushed her concerns off, saying she was just in a bit of a slump. 

Kasumi took a seat, watching Sumire as she did some stretches before her performance. She grabbed her ribbon and shut her eyes for a moment before practicing a particular movement that was causing her issues for a while. She watched her repeat it over and over again, cleaning up her mistakes with each run through before eventually getting it down perfectly. Coach Hiraguchi gave her due praise, cheering her on for finally getting it down.

Shaking her head, Sumire insisted, “No. I haven’t gotten it until I’m unable to do it wrong.” Coach Hiraguchi gave a big smile when she heard her declaration, prompting a similar look of pleasure from Sumire. 

“You’ve really grown these past few days,” She told her. 

Sumire nodded, a bright smile on her face. “I no longer want to be the weak Sumire I used to be, always looking at myself as the lesser of my sister and not as myself.” 

Kasumi bit her lip as she watched the exchange. She loved Sumire so much. Whatever the Metaverse did to her, it brought out all the best parts of her she had been hiding away for some reason. 

At the same time, in spite of this pride and love, Kasumi pouted. She refused to lose to her. Sumire might be her beloved younger sister, but she was still Kasumi Yoshizawa: bold, bright, and undeniably the best. Sumire would have to settle to being graceful, sweet, and, in a perfect world, her equal. 

Kasumi didn’t even realize she was practicing a twirl before she tripped herself up and fell to the ground, drawing the attention of everyone around her. There was an awkward silence for a moment before she brushed it off with a smile, apologizing and declaring that she’d get that move next time. If not she would just ask to change the routine like she usually does. Coach Hiraguch gave her a pointed look, but elected not to say anything. 

“I haven’t taken you two to get ice cream in a while,” Coach Hirguchi approached the two at the end of practice. Kasumi looked up at her and nearly burst with childish excitement, she was starting to think that her Coach thought she was too old for it. 

“What’s the occasion?” Sumire inquired, responding a lot more calmly than her sister who was hopping on her heels.  

“Well, it’s a lot to do with you, Sumire. I’m noticing a lot more confidence in your performances as of late, and a massive change in attitude,” Coach Hirguchi explained with a smile. 

“Right,” Sumire nodded. Kasumi looked to her in anticipation before her face fell. “I’m sorry, but I have to decline.” 

“Oh?” 

“I already had something scheduled for today,” Sumire admitted before looking back up at the coach. “Don’t let me being busy stop you from taking Kasumi, though. She’s still as good as ever, which deserves some praise.” 

“Oh, right. I completely forgot about that,” Kasumi muttered, letting out an awkward laugh. She wasn’t wrong, Sumire did tell her that she and Akechi were going to head into the Metaverse again after practice. She just…forgot.

Sumire turned away from the two of them, her expression holding a mix of indifference and shame, and left to gather her things. Kasumi stayed behind, her gaze shifting between her and Coach Hirguchi. 

“Well, Kasumi, are you going to take up my offer? I know how much you enjoy spending my money,” the Coach chuckled. She has never gone without Sumire before. 

Kasumi looked back up at her, giving a soft smile and agreeing. There was nothing she could do at the moment so having some ice cream wasn’t the worst idea. The ice cream place wasn’t too far from the gym, so the trip there went by quickly. Kasumi ordered her usual: the unicorn extravaganza. It’s just dyed vanilla mixed with white chocolate chips and sprinkles on top. If she recalled correctly, Sumire always preferred simpler flavors, like vanilla or matcha, it did make Kasumi wonder what Goro would like. He seems like the type of person who would have coffee or say he’s too good for ice cream. 

Her mind swarmed with thoughts as she sat down with her order, barely processing it slowly melting down the cone and dripping to the ground. 

When Coach Hirguchi noticed that Kasumi had barely touched her ice cream in the time she got halfway through hers, she commented, “I assume that something happened outside of practice that’s affecting you two. Don’t take this the wrong way, but you really wear your feelings on your sleeve.” 

Snapping back into attention, Kasumi quickly ate a little of it and explained, “Nothing’s wrong. I mean…I told you about Goro, didn’t I? Sumire is getting along better with him.” She found it difficult to give context without bringing up the Metaverse, but she managed, creating a scenario that she hoped wasn’t too far off from the truth but normal enough that Hiraguchi wouldn’t question it. “I guess he’s a good influence on her. They’re pretty similar, all things considered, and they just found out so I guess they’re excited.” 

“Ah,” Coach Hiraguchi leaned back on the bench and took another bite out of her ice cream. “Are you missing her?” 

“I guess… I mean, I can handle her doing her own thing, I promise! Just… I guess she’s getting along with him better than I ever could…” 

“Why can’t you get along with him?” 

Kasumi was taken aback from the bluntness of the question and quickly guessed “I don’t really know. The two of them do things together that I can’t do.” 

“And why can’t you?” Coach Hiraguchi frowned. 

Giving a nervous chuckle, Kasumi described, “Well, Sumire’s just really good at it, and I’m pretty bad.” She thought back to Goro freaking out after she shot the gun for the first time. It didn’t help that she was the reason the group got caught, and that she couldn’t do anything in a fight, it was best for her not to be there at all. Sumire was a natural, Kasumi clearly wasn’t suit for that kinda stuff. 

Coach Hiraguchi didn’t seem to like the reply as her response was immediately sighing in defeat. “Dear lord, what am I going to do with you two?”

“Huh?” Kasumi said, flustered. 

Coach Hiraguchi’s muscles tensed up a bit as she leaned forward in her seat. Her expression turned serious as she lectured, “Kasumi, you can’t just give up on something if you don’t master it on the first try. Don’t get me wrong that you're incredible, but you’ve been lucky in gymnastics. You’re a real prodigy and have a lot of talent. However, talent can only get you so far. Soon enough, when we go into more complex routines that attitude will only end up holding you back.” 

“I don’t! When things get hard I practice harder!” Kasumi pouted. 

Her defiance died almost immediately when Coach Hiraguchi reminded her, “How many times have you asked me to change your routine because you made a couple of mistakes? And how many times did I basically force you to go through with it?”

Kasumi didn’t need to remember, Coach Hiraguchi was amazing, but when she wanted to be, she could be the harshest judge in the world. 

Coach Hiraguchi continued. “Besides, Sumire definitely doesn’t get things on the first try, and what do you think she does?” 

“Well…” Kasumi paused for a moment, at a loss for words. 

Coach Hiraguchi put her hand on Kasumi’s head, pushing it back a little. “You really are hopeless sometimes. Sumire works really hard to be able to keep up with you. You’re her idol,” 

“I’m her idol?” Kasumi repeated. She always saw Sumire as more of her rival than anything. Did Sumire really see her as someone above her? She shook her head, denying, “No, we’re supposed to be equals. We’re going to internationals as a sister duo!” 

“Sadly, that’s not what a lot of your peers say,” Coach Hiraguchi sighed. “Kasumi, I don’t like bringing this up because it isn’t your fault, but most of your peers see you as her better. They don’t see it, but Sumire puts in so much effort so she can keep up with you. She’s one of the most hardworking people I’ve ever met, but you know, kids can be cruel.” 

“I… I didn’t know,” Kasumi stuttered, looking away in shame. She berated herself for not seeing the writing on the wall. Looking back on it, everything Coach Hiraguchi was saying was right. What kind of sister was she to ignore how much Sumire tried just to stay on her level? She looked up again, her voice breaking a little. “Are they really saying things like that? How could they be so cruel to her!” 

“Don’t blame yourself too much,” Coach Hiraguchi told her when she noticed how dejected Kasumi looked. “Most people try to hide it from you to spare your feelings. I know how much you two love each other, so I’m not surprised that Sumire was keeping it a secret too. You’ve never thought of her as lesser than you, have you?” 

“Sumire’s amazing,” Kasumi agreed almost immediately. “She’s so elegant and graceful. The way she handles the ball and ribbon is so mesmerizing to watch. Anyone who thinks she’s just my lesser is clearly blind!” 

“Like I said earlier, it’s the difference between talent and hard work. When you get things right on the first try it stands out more than Sumire getting it right after making a lot of gradual improvements. Again, you know how people are,” Coach Hiraguchi said, lowering her face. She let her words sink in for a moment before pivoting, “It sounds like Sumire really hit it off with this Goro kid.” 

Kasumi chuckled and explained, “Goro’s weird. He doesn’t show his emotions a lot, not even around me, but he seems to get along with Sumire just fine. I guess I don’t really know how I can fit in with them.” 

“Are you just jealous of them? Is that why you’re giving up so quickly?” Coach Hiraguchi suggested. Kasumi vehemently shook her head in denial, but the idea had still wormed its way into her head. Was she actually jealous of Sumire? Kasumi’s been trying to reach through to Goro for the past month and she undoubtedly finds it awesome that Sumire got cool powers that she doesn’t. She’s proud of her sister and of Goro. That should be it.

She tried to distract herself by looking at things from a different perspective. If what Coach Hirguchi said was right, was Sumire jealous of her? If she was, why didn’t just talk to Kasumi about it? The thought of Sumire being so uncomfortable around her that she was afraid to share her feelings made Kasumi shudder. It was just another point of failure on her sister report card.

Before she knew what she was doing, Kasumi shot up from her seat, grabbing her bag. 

“I need to go. Thank you so much coach!” Kasumi said, barely registering what she was doing until she was already scrambling to collect her stuff. She could hear Coach Hiraguchi chuckle to herself. Kasumi headed to the train station, quickly texting her Dad and attempting to send a message to Sumire. 

She doubted Sumire would (or even could) respond. She had likely already entered the Palace with Goro, and she doubted they got cell reception in other dimensions. Kasumi swiped through her phone until she landed on what she was looking for. The blood red icon for the Meta-Nav was still sitting there ominously on her home page. She couldn’t go into the Palace immediately; There was no way she was going to get herself captured. Forcing Sumire to save her before Kasumi could properly apologize to her would only make things worse. She felt inside her bag, making sure her secret weapon was still there. She had bought it in the hopes she could use it to prove her capabilities, but she had nearly forgotten about it in the emotional chaos that had erupted since she bought it back in the toy store.

Kasumi rushed to Kowareta Junior High, slipping to the side of the building in as sneaky a fashion as she could considering how her sense of style clashed so heavily with the dull and drab building. She checked the area for any potential uninvited guests before opening up the app. It took a while for her to figure out how to work the Meta-Nav, but she finally found the history section and selected Sako’s Palace.

She got an intense feeling of vertigo upon arriving at the front door of the torture chamber. She had to take a moment to regain her bearings, which also gave her some time to try and figure out how she would make her way through the Palace. Recalling Goro’s tutorials, she could easily hide in the shadows to keep the Shadow guards from noticing her. 

Kasumi followed the path Goro took them through the dungeon, trying as hard as she could to recall the details. The halls were nearly empty, with only a few scary encounters she managed to get through unscathed. 

One particularly scary moment had a Shadow looking directly at her. Kasumi knew a little about Metaverse logic from Goro’s terribly explained lectures, but she didn’t think he meant it as literally as he described it. Simply shutting her eyes and repeating in her head that it couldn’t see her was somehow enough to get the Shadow to walk away. This was also the time where the adrenaline she had built up ran out and it finally registered for her that rushing into a Palace with no solid way to defend herself was a terrible idea. Still, she was in too deep now to turn back so she just decided to roll with it.

Besides that, the halls were quite easy to get through, and she found traces of Sumire and Goro in the form of empty chests and opened doors. Kasumi checked the area for hiding spots, but she couldn’t find any. Thankfully, she also couldn’t find any enemy Shadows either. 

Kasumi ran through each of the doors and inspected the rooms hidden beyond. When she found one with a large dent in the back wall, a chill shot through Kasumi’s spine. Had the Shadows attacked them here? Had they gotten hurt? Unfortunately, there was no way for her to know for certain, so she was forced to just continue onward.

The final door led to a staircase. There weren't any light sources, causing the passage to appear as if it were leading into a black void. Kasumi grabbed a small pencil from her bag and tossed it down, listening carefully as it rolled down the steps right up until she heard it clatter to a stop. Steeling her nerves, Kasumi started walking down into the darkness, keeping her hands pressed up against the walls at all times for balance.  She told herself that if Sumire and Goro were able to get through this, she could too, she was the great Kasumi Yoshizawa afterall. 

She was able to take a sigh of relief at the end because, through what Kasumi could only assume was a ridiculous display of Metaverse logic, once she touched the bottom step, light returned to the world and the rest of the room surged into focus: A beautiful throne room with red carpets sprawled across the floor. Kasumi admired the architecture for a moment before squealing in fear, noticing a shadow staring almost directly at her. She quickly scrambled into the safety of the shade, praying that she got out of its line of sight fast enough for it to leave her be.

Instead, the Shadow was drawn off by the sounds of fighting in the distance. Hopes surging, Kasumi carefully tailed the Shadow, following it to an open chamber at the end of a long hallway.

Sumire was standing to the back of the battle, aiming her gun at another of those fairy type creatures. Meanwhile, Goro rushed forward to finish a horse figure with his sword. He was quick to notice the next wave of Shadows coming through the hall Kasumi was hidden in and hopping on top of one to rip off its mask. The Shadow dissolved into two scantily clad women which Kasumi was sure her Dad would’ve found far too inappropriate to be around kids their age. Goro retreated backwards, allowing Sumire to rush forward and rip off her mask, summoning her Persona.

The figure that faded into focus behind her sister was nothing less than beautiful. Kasumi never got the opportunity to look at the Persona in detail before, and she took full advantage here. Cendrillon took the form of a young girl with black skin, but she was obviously non-human. Her skin was pure black, and her short blonde hair had the texture of metal. On top of that, from the chest down the body turned into sparkling blue crystal. It was bizarre, but Kasumi was still transfixed. This was the truth hidden within Sumire’s heart. In a way, she was exactly how she imagined it, a being so beautiful and elegant, named after the graceful princess who managed to crawl out of rags to riches. 

With a call from Sumire, the Persona sent out a wave of light at the women, sending them tumbling to the ground and allowing for a synchronized attack with Goro. 

The two were obviously tired; Sumire wiped sweat from her brow after the attack and breathed heavily. Because of this exhaustion, neither of them noticed the Shadow creeping up behind Sumire, raising their arms for another attack. 

The next thing Kasumi knew, she had jumped out of her hiding spot and shouted, “Sumire, look out!” She managed to grab the Shadow’s attention, preventing it from hurting Sumire. To seal the deal, she pulled out her secret weapon, and sent a barrage of pink and blue bullets flying toward the Shadow. While not all of her shots were accurate, she managed to knock the Shadow’s mask off, revealing a single fairy that was immediately sent to the ground with another bullet.  

“Kasumi!? When did you get here?” Sumire cried. 

“How the fuc-” Goro stuttered before quickly regaining his cool, grabbing Sumire’s arm and pointing to a nearby room. 

“Not out here! There’s a safe room over there,” he said before rushing over to Kasumi, grabbing her arm as well, and dragging the both of them inside. The room was similar to the one Goro led them in before, the scenery constantly flickering between the real world and the Palace.

After a couple seconds used to calm down after the chaotic fight, Sumire turned to her sister and sputtered, “How did you get here!? You scared the life out of me!”  

Goro joined in with the questions, rubbing his temples and demanding, “Tell me why you’re here right now! And what the hell is that?” 

Ah, her secret weapon. Kasum smirked, gladly taking the opportunity to take the heat off of her and to provide some levity to the situation. She flipped her purchase into the air before gracefully catching it and presenting it to the two Persona users, giving the two a clear view of her the white and gold toy wand, a clear blue plastic shaped as a gemstone in the middle surrounded by two wings and a button that makes it shine pink. 

“Hey, if a toy gun works,” Kasumi shrugged before grinning, “Now I can defend myself!” Admittedly it would’ve been safer to just buy a gun like Sumire and Goro had, but a magic wand was way more her style. She was super lucky when she tested it out upon arrival and found that it worked. If she had to fight that Shadow with what amounted to a stick she would’ve been screwed.

“The ray gun…” Goro corrected, trying to find a comeback before throwing his arms to the side. “That’s besides the point!” 

“I dunno, it seems pretty relevant to the point,” Kasumi taunted and put her hands on her hips, watching Goro slowly get more riled up.

“The point is about you being here when I explicitly told you not to come!” 

“Because it’s too dangerous! I know! But hey, I dunno about you, but I just saved both your lives. You should be thanking me.” 

“It was a single Pixie! I could kill one in my sleep!” 

“Oh really now?” Kasumi mocked. “Then go to sleep and I’ll lure one over here!” 

“You are such a child!” 

“You’re two years older than me!” 

“Guys!” Sumire’s cry snapped them both out of their argument, drawing their attention to the younger Yoshizawa. “Let’s not fight…please?” she quietly pleaded.

“Right… I apologize,” Goro stepped away from Kasumi before glancing at Sumire. “I believe it’s best for you to handle this.” It was obvious that he was just shifting responsibility for dealing with Kasumi’s shenanigans, but neither of the sisters would complain. 

Sumire nodded, turning to face her sister. “Kasumi… are you ok?” she asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Kasumi replied before remembering why she even followed them into this hellhole in the first place. Kasumi lowered into a bow, clasping her hands together and shouting, “I’m so sorry Sumire!” 

“Huh?” Sumire was taken aback, not really understanding what prompted this. 

“I completely disregarded your feelings this whole time and didn’t realize how you felt! I didn’t know those girls were saying those things about you.” Kasumi’s words were so quick she barely had time to think of what to say next. She looked back up at Sumire with tears forming in the corners of her eyes. “I don’t see you as inferior to me, and I don’t want you seeing yourself that way either!” she declared.

“Kasumi? Where is this coming from?” Sumire asked, still incredibly confused. 

“She really just had a massive epiphany in two hours?” Goro muttered in disbelief before receiving a glare from Sumire. 

“I had a talk with Coach after you two left… I…” Kasumi cried, struggling to speak between sobs.

“Um…don’t be sorry,” Sumire interrupted, doing her best to comfort Kasumi. “You didn’t know…” 

“But I should have!” Kasumi insisted, “I’ve been so caught up in what I want and what I think that I haven’t stopped to think about what you want…both of you. I should be the kind of person you two feel comfortable around, not some selfish diva.” Kasumi looked over at Goro and put on her best fake smile. “I probably came across as very oblivious, haven’t I?” she joked, trying and failing to suppress her crying. 

“Do you want me to be honest?” Goro smirked, fully taking advantage of Kasumi’s vulnerability. His more malicious ambitions were put to rest with a quick jab in the side from Sumire. He grumbled silently and said, “I appreciate the self-reflection, but did you really have to run all the way through the Palace to say that? Couldn’t you have waited outside? It’s not like this was urgent…” 

Sumire nodded and grabbed Kasumi’s hands, staring deeply at her and asserting, “Kasumi, I love you so much, but you seriously gave me a heart attack when you showed up here. What were you thinking!? What if you got hurt?”

Turning away in embarrassment, Kasumi admitted, “Well, that’s the other thing Coach and I talked about. That… that I gave up learning how to defend myself and getting both you and Goro hurt....” Her expression shifted to one of shame as she described,  “I never noticed just how hard you worked at everything, and meanwhile I’ve just been lazing through life and not bothering to be better, I’ve been so lazy, never really trying to better myself while you’ve always been pushing your limits. If people really look up to me, if you look up to me, then I’ve been terrible, I’m… I’m such a bad older sister but I want to change, because I know how much this Metaverse stuff means to you, and I want to be here to support you!” 

Sumire was left in a stunned silence for a few moments, trying to comprehend this unprecedented level of insight and self-reflection from Kasumi. Once it all settled into place, though, she shook her head and insisted, “Kasumi, you’re the opposite of lazy. Everything you do, you do it with this…joy and zest for life that I could never hope to match. I’ve always admired your confidence and tried my best to live up to your example.” 

“But what kind of example even am I?,” Kasumi sniffled. “I don’t want you looking up to me, especially for such a lazy snob I am…” 

Sumire smiled at her, leaning forward and brushing the tears out of Kasumi’s face. “You don’t need to fix anything about yourself. I think… I think we both need to strive to be the best versions of ourselves! We can grow together, both as a duo and as ourselves, including taking down this Palace together.” Kasumi nodded at her with a big dumb grin, and both of them turned to Goro with the most pathetic pleading eyes imaginable.

“I promise I won’t be a burden to you. Just let me trail behind and I’ll show you what I can do,” Kasumi promised. 

Goro frowned, looking between the two of them. With a sigh, he realized he had lost the popular vote, and instructed, “Stay in the shadows and run away at the slightest hint of danger. You can provide covering fire and support us from the back.”

Kasumi looked back at Sumire and nodded. If she wanted to be a worthwhile part of the team, then she would have to use what she had and learn to master it, even if all she had to her name was being a good gymnast and a toy magical girl wand. 

 

Notes:

Thank you for all the kind comments, I love getting the notifications and reading them, it really helps motivate me to keep writing!

Chapter 9: The Prince's Vindication: Part VII

Kasumi Yoshizawa 

 

March 12th, 2014

 

 

The formation the trio decided on was that Goro would be in front, Sumire would be in the back, and Kasumi was in the middle. Goro's reasoning was that it was best to have the strongest fighter deal with upcoming enemies while the second strongest stayed in the back in case of a sudden ambush. Kasumi's job was to snipe down any enemies that were weak to guns and to provide general covering fire when needed. Goro didn't have a good explanation as to why his ray gun and her magical girl wand did the same type of damage as Sumire's rifle, which started to seem like a common trend nowadays. Metaverse logic at its finest.

The deeper inside they went, the more enemies seemed to appear. Goro and Sumire took quick care of them, while Kasumi hid in the shadows shooting them down. Turns out her wand did a lot more damage than any of them expected, able to down an angel-like figure in basically one shot. 

The group kept a steady pace, finding new safe rooms for them to rest in every once in a while. Goro gave Kasumi a crash course on different Shadow types and Metaverse logic whenever they took breaks. He declared that there were eleven different types of attacks an enemy can do. Some that he'd seen a lot in his experience, like physical and electric, compared to some that he'd only seen in other Palaces very rarely. He wasn't exactly sure how the elements worked as a whole aside from physical, gun, bless, curse, and almighty. What they were weak or strong against was largely unknown, with the little information he had only gained through his own tests. Unfortunately, he only had access to so many elements with Robin Hood and Loki, so he had no hope of learning everything in a timely manner. 

Goro took them to a stop in an odd chamber that was remarkably empty. The room was massive but lacked any real decorations. The usual sights of shackles and torches were missing, replaced by blank walls and floors. Goro walked forward, placing his hand on a spot on the wall that seemed to ripple. The wall reacted to his touch, fading away and opening up a door with rose vines blocking it. Goro grabbed hold of his sword, quickly slicing them through and opening the door to reveal another, stranger, room.

"I don't know what to call these. They're far stranger than anything else in these Palaces. From what I've seen before, they basically show the memories of the Palace Ruler," he explained before gesturing for the group to enter. Kasumi locked eyes with her sister, both deciding to follow him inside if only to sate their curiosity.

As soon as Kasumi crossed the boundary into the memory room, her vision started spiraling. She gripped her head and shut her eyes, but the pain was only there for a moment. When she opened her eyes, she found herself in the memory of a young woman in an interview. Kasumi watched as the woman eagerly explained her credentials and how she truly wanted to guide the students to a better world. The memory faded to black before Kasumi could begin to make sense of what she saw, and the world returned to normal, with her facing a small chamber with a skull in the middle. Goro stepped forward and swiped it off its pedestal. 

"Have you come across any more of these?" Sumire asked, clearly confused by the memory but still trying to be logical. 

"Yes, I found one more before you two showed up. I'm not the best at discerning the truth from these flashes, but the last one seemingly showed Sako's youth in school and why she wanted to become a teacher," Goro described, taking the skull and sliding it into his pocket, where it disappeared into thin air on contact with the fabric. Another flawless display of Metaverse logic. "These skulls might have some connection to what corrupts the ruler, so I try to take them when I find them." 

"So she had good intentions when she started teaching," Sumire frowned, muttering to herself. "What changed?"

"Power?" Kasumi suggested, thinking back to the stereotypical villains in her favorite magical girl shows. They were either given power and let it corrupt them into monsters, or simply born to irredeemable villains that needed to be taken down. 

Goro nodded, but offered his own theory. "That probably played a part, but I wouldn't be so generous with people like Sako. Rather, I believe that she was always this way. The power she gained as a teacher merely gave her the opportunity to show her true colors." Goro crossed his arms, his last words barely audible. "People are always born monsters…"

"Well… I don't think there is much that could justify her actions against her students," Sumire reasons, not bothering to hide a grimace. Kasumi wanted to throw her own opinions into the ring, but the topic had turned too uncomfortable for any of them to want to continue the conversation. Besides, saying anything that even remotely sounded like defending Sako would be a bad look.

A few more hallways and chambers later they reached another safe room and decided to call it for the day. Kasumi had to admit she was tired, but from how Goro and Sumire were acting, she probably got off easy. Personas use up a lot of energy according to Sumire and they likely have been using them far more than usual to protect Kasumi. 

Goro and Sumire pulled out their phones, showing Kasumi the system as well to help her find the right buttons to push. Unexpectedly, when she pressed the button to warp back to the safe room at the entrance, Kasumi's phone displayed an error message. She tried it again, but got the same result again and again. 

She heard Goro grumble, "Dammit," 

"It doesn't work for non Persona users?" Kasumi asked. Goro shook his head. 

"We didn't get a chance to try last time, mostly due to scrambling to cover for your carelessness," He responded as Kasumi shrunk away in embarrassment. 

She had tried so hard to make herself of use to them, but this wasn't something she could argue her way out of. Her not being able to teleport would slow them down too much. Would they bother to bring her along next time, now? 

Kasumi looked over at Sumire who was laying down on the table and taking a drink from a water bottle she brought with her. When she saw Kasumi's distress she gave her a tired smile. Sumire wouldn't say the truth, and neither would Goro, but in the Metaverse his ability to hide his emotions disappeared. She could tell he was annoyed, and felt his frustrated glares whenever she looked away.

Kasumi thought back to what Coach Hiraguchi said. Was this how Sumire felt all this time? That she was just some burden to Kasumi? And Kasumi didn't notice at all? It made her head hurt thinking about it. 

Kasumi brushed her thoughts aside and apologized to Goro for the inconvenience. Despite his clear annoyance, he did accept it, stating that it wasn't her fault the warp feature didn't work for her and they really should have checked that prior to this. He asked her if she really wanted to continue joining them on trips, though. Kasumi didn't want to answer. 

The trio made their way through the hallways, making it up the stairs and coming back to one of the question doors they passed through earlier. Unexpectedly, the door had shut between the present and when they last passed through it. It was so dark that Goro pulled out Robin Hood to use his natural glow so Sumire could read the plaque. 

"What is the powerhouse of the cell called?" she read. 

"Do we really have to answer more questions?" Goro complained, crossing his arms and tapping his foot. 

"The mitochondria!" Kasumi cheered, a little too proud for knowing such a simple piece of trivia. 

"Wait a second, Kasumi, when you were heading down here, did you answer all the questions yourself?" Sumire asked. 

"No. The doors were all open," Kasumi said, not really understanding why it was that big of a deal. "Maybe they were on a timer?" 

"No, that can't be," Sumire insisted. "The doors remained open even when we left for home," She turned to Goro. "Would they shut automatically once all of them are opened?" She started to look worried, glancing around the room 

"Hopefully that's the case. The alternative is that someone else came and shut them. Whether it be another person like us or one of Sako's minions, either way it'll cause a lot more problems. Let's continue forward and hope that I'm incorrect," Goro deduced as he put a hand on his chin. Kasumi was surprised he would put his hand anywhere near his face with his mask looking like a piercing weapon on its own merit.

The first door they found was, unfortunately, not an exception, and there were a few more question doors as they went along. Goro answered most with ease, and Sumire handled any that she remembered. Kasumi barely paid attention in school, but currently she was using the excuse that these were not her grade level yet. 

Things were going well until Goro had a reunion with what Sumire stated to be his worst enemy. 

"Why is the unit of measurement feet!?" Goro cried in frustration. The trio faced four doors. If the use of the imperial system for the answers wasn't bad enough, the question simply asked for the size of a 'football field' with absolutely no clarification. 

"International football fields are about 100 meters long, right?" Sumire pondered aloud. "Though I'm not really not much of a football fan…" 

"But isn't the question asking about American football? Feet are used in America, so I assume that's what it's asking. How big is one of those?" Kasumi inquired. Judging by Goro's look of someone about to explode, both sisters agreed to give him some time to let out some steam before chipping away at the problem. 

Once discussions started in earnest, Sumire soon admitted, "I think we're just going to have to guess. There are only three doors anyway."

"No! There has to be a way to figure it out. There's an equation, right? An equation between feet to meters," Goro began muttering to himself. Out of all things in the world, neither sister expected the imperial system to be the thing that breaks Goro Akechi. 

"I mean, at worst, if we pick a random door you can let your anger out on some Shadows," Kasumi weakly suggested as a joke. Goro seemed almost too gleeful at the idea, throwing open one of the doors with reckless abandon, gun in hand. 

It was clear that was a bad idea when the whole Palace began to flash red and Shadows started appearing all around them. The trio gathered up and huddled together, back to back.

Realizing his mistake, Goro snapped back to his senses and cursed, "Shit! Kasumi-san, stay behind me!” 

As the Shadows continued to take form, a familiar, sinister voice rang out all around them. "Oh! I see my little intruders have failed my quiz, you should have paid more attention in school." Sako's voice echoed throughout the room, leaving the three invaders unable to pinpoint her location. "It seems the brunette hasn't given up, but has my beloved thief made a friend?" 

"Does she not recognize me?" Sumire whispered. 

"Something to do with our masks hiding it to anyone besides us, Metaverse logic," Goro whispered back, clenching his fists around his gun and sword. Sako made her grand entrance almost immediately, whip already in hand. 

A blinding light shot up from the back of the room, Sako stepping out while she cracked her whip. "I'm quite sick of you running around without a leash, my little thief," Sako sneered. Her gaze soon shifted to Sumire and she threatened, "And harlots have no place beside my possessions!" 

"You can't own anyone!" Kasumi shouted. 

"Shut up! I have to deal with you little brats all day. Don't I deserve a reward!? I'm owed so much for what I do in life! It's only right that I take what's mine!" 

"Yeah. Making your students fail and forcing them to sleep with you to make up for it. Acts totally deserving of a reward," Goro taunted, his voice dripping with sarcasm. Kasumi and Sumire both snapped their heads at him. They knew that she was a creep, but Goro had never explained it in detail before. Hearing the specifics for the first time sent a shock through their systems.

"What? How would you know that?" Sako gasped, genuinely confused at how someone knew the truth. Goro actually smiled. 

Goro actually smiled after seeing this, though it was one of cocky confidence rather than joy. "Perhaps it's 'the one who got away?'," he smirked. Sako gripped the whip in her hand and sprinted towards him with no hesitation, her composure crumbling by the second as she rushed toward the thief that hurt her pride. The trio broke formation when she got closer, ducking and diving out of the way of her attack. 

Sumire pushed Kasumi to the shadows, begging her to stay behind while she and Goro tried to get them out of this. 

"Oh, you two aren't getting away this time," Sako declared. She marched over to the two, a smile creeping up her face as she snapped her fingers. "Don't you remember whose domain this is?" 

Before any of them could move, they felt something cold and scratchy reach up from the floor, grabbing onto them and locking them in place. The Shadows stayed back, waiting for Sako to command them to come forward and tear them apart.

Kasumi looked down to see that she was being restrained by some kind of black rope. It was stretching out of swirling portals of inky blackness on the ground. She tried yanking on it to try and free herself, but the rope tightened with each tug. Sako walked over to Goro, who was similarly struggling with his restraints. Looking at her companions caused Kasumi to realize just how much more thorough Sumire and Goro's bonds were compared to hers. Those two were locked down from every angle, while she only had her limbs restricted. Her mind kicked up into overdrive, trying to find a weak spot in the bindings to escape but finding no luck. She just wasn't strong enough…

"Aren't you brave, my beloved thief," Sako swooned as she leaned down to his level. Kasumi hadn't really noticed in their last encounter, but this Palace Sako was unnaturally tall. She towered over all of them by a wide margin. While she looked fine at first glance, her proportions looked ever so slightly off, giving her an almost uncanny feel. "Well, I can't keep letting my little thief get away from me, can I?" 

"Go to hell," Goro sneered, mustering up the courage to spit in her face. Sako barely even gave him a reaction, maintaining a gross, lustful smile. 

"Disobedient as ever. How cute… maybe I should teach you to fear your superiors," Sako grinned. Kasumi watched as a small glow began to envelop the Palace Ruler. Then, the light began to flow out of Sako's hand, which was caressing Goro's cheek and engulfed him. Kasumi saw the Shadows make a similar move, though their hands touched the floor, the glow flowing across it before eventually coalescing into a ring around where Goro was pinned. Goro's eyes widened, his defiant expression slowly fading into one of pure terror. 

"G-get away from me…" he muttered out, slowly pushing away from Sako as best he could. 

"Oh my little thief," Sako brought her other hand to his face, cupping both cheeks now. Sumire screamed out to him, trying to tear her way out of the ropes to grab her mask. It was enough to grab Sako's attention. The woman got back to her feet and strutted toward her, leaving the Shadows to take care of Goro.

"Sumire!" Kasumi cried. The response was instinctual, but she decided to roll it into her plan as she slowly moved her arms around the puzzle that was her restraints. 

"Silence," Sako snarled at Kasumi, once again changing targets and heading toward the older sister. "You kids don't know when to quit do you? I know your type all too well: The gifted child, constantly praised and buttered up, never learning anything valuable. Then, when it's time for you to face the real world, you fall apart," Sako taunted her as she slowly moved closer and closer. Kasumi hesitated, not knowing how to respond. "I'm not wrong am I, afterall, I was just like you," Sako smirked, finally arriving at her destination. Unlike with Goro, she remained at her full height, peering down at Kasumi like a giant with the intention to squish her beneath her foot. Kasumi shuttered, attempting to muster a response to her.

"Shut up!" Sumire screamed, almost unnaturally loud. Kasumi could see Goro flinching at the side of her vision. In sharp contrast to his earlier shaking, he was completely frozen in place. It was so out of character for him it almost made Kasumi lose hope. Sako lazily turned her head around to glance at Sumire, her face showing clear annoyance at the team constantly distracting her from her targets. Clenching her teeth, Sumire growled, "Don't you… Don't you dare say those things to Kasumi!" 

Sako held her hand over her mouth, laughter bouncing across the hall. "What? You're scared that she won't be able to handle the truth? You want to let her live in her fantasy forever? I thought scaring you like my little thief would be enough, but perhaps you might want something else…" 

Sumire didn't have a response to that. Instead, she finally managed to loosen the ropes wrapped around her and jumped up into action, yanking off her mask.

"Cendrillon!" she cried, her Persona appearing out of an explosion of blue flames. It attacked Sako with her bless magic, sending out a wave of light that forced her back. Taking a moment while she was distracted, Sumire rushed over and helped Kasumi out of her restraints. 

"You help Akechi-san get out of here. I'll distract her and join you guys later," Sumire instructed, constantly glancing between Kasumi and Sako.

"You can't face her alone!" Kasumi insisted, rubbing her wrists and scrambling to her feet, still processing what Sako said.

"I don't know what she's done to Akechi-san, but it's obviously bad. I don't think he'll be able to help us," Sumire described, already turning away and preparing to burst into action. "I'm the only one who can do this…" 

Kasumi wasn't given any time to argue before Sumire rushed back in and ripped the masks off as many Shadows as she could. Kasumi thought about shouting to her for a moment but decided at the last minute to listen and help Goro instead. 

Like she expected, he was terrified, muttering something incomprehensible. Kasumi quickly worked her way through the ropes, watching them fall to the ground in a heap. She didn't really know what he was going to do once he was free, so she opted to keep hold of his arms and walk him to the exit while whispering as many reassuring things into his ear as she could. Kasumi wasn't a stranger to comforting people with stage fright, though whatever was hitting Goro was supernaturally paralyzing. Kasumi desperately tried to convince him that Sako wouldn't hurt him, but she didn't have any luck. 

Sumire's distraction allowed Sumire and Goro to reach the door with little issue, aside from the fact it was locked tight. Goro slammed his hands over his ears and squealed, "We're gonna die, we're gonna die, I don't want to do this scary shit anymore!" Kasumi wasn't far off herself, turning around to see Sako holding Sumire up by the collar of her jacket, doing the very thing she did to Goro just a few minutes before. 

Instead of shaking, Sumire just dropped to the ground, her eyes going blank like she was staring off into space. Sako taunted, saying something that Kasumi didn't bother to listen to. She had practically dropped Goro to the ground and made a mad dash for her sister.

"It's useless… Nothing can beat my despair," was the only thing Sako said that Kasumi actually registered. Still, she did her best to ignore the woman, crouching in front of Kasumi and grabbing her shoulders, trying to bring Sumire back to reality.

"I really am useless…" Sumire whispered, unaware of the world around her. Kasumi cried out to her, trying to get her attention, trying hard to stay determined and keep pushing forward.

In spite of that desire to do good, her hope was falling fast. She had seen Sumire act like this before. While she spent all this time doing things perfectly, Sumrie was working her hardest and still being treated like an afterthought. That Sumire was being called inferior by their own teammates.

"So you finally figured it out, stupid girl?" Sako cackled with malicious pleasure, not making it clear which sister she was talking to. Kasumi hardened her expression and met her gaze. 

She wasn't going to just let her keep talking. 

Sumire wasn't useless. Sumire was the strongest person she knew, and this woman had the audacity to say that she wasn't. 

Kasumi got back to her feet, her fists balled up so tight her nails almost drew blood from her palms. She was so sick of this, these adults, her peers, having the audacity to tell them who was gifted or useless. 

They were going to nationals as a sister duo, not as a real star with a backup dancer. Sumire was the hard worker, the one everyone should have their eyes on. If anyone deserved to play support in the background, it should be Kasumi. 

"Don't you dare say anything like that again," Kasumi demanded, spitting venom. "Don't expect me to sit around and do nothing while you mess with my family!" 

"Oh, and what are you going to do about it?" Sako scoffed, leaning down to get a closer look at the worm who dared to challenge her. "You clearly don't have that same spark as my little thief and this harlot, but I can play your game for a moment. Let me see you defend these children with your little st-" 

Kasumi shot Sako in the face. 

She screamed in pain, holding her hand over her eye as Kasumi seethed. "For once in your life, can you please shut up!" 

Aren't you an interesting figure? 

Kasumi stumbled backwards, feeling a stabbing pain in her head. Sako stared at her in confusion before her eyes widened with recognition. She charged towards Kasumi before a shockwave sent her tumbling to the ground. 

A girl who's lived in the spotlight all her life, pushing forward for your little sister, willing to do anything to save her, even step away from what you desire. 

“What…are you…?” Kasumi grunted, struggling to think through the pain in her head; she looked back at Sumire, still in her own trace. She needed to get to her… to help her and Goro…

Well I shall ask you a question… Would you prick the spinning wheel, stepping backwards to stand hand in hand with the sun and moon, or do you wish to step forward and shine above all? 

This voice in her head... It was annoying. Kasumi didn't even need to think about her answer (not that she could). Her head hurt so much she could barely stand, but she forced herself to stay on her feet. She wouldn't let something like this stop her! 

"I want to protect my family, and do whatever it takes!" Kasumi shouted, the ribbon in her ponytail losing as her hair fell over her shoulders. 

Perfect… You are truly special , a girl who could have chosen one of two paths, settling on the one known to be less craved, 

It truly makes me wonder if it's what you would have chosen if it weren't for the dire circumstances , But , I digress… Let's make a contract, and allow me to show my true power…

I am thou, thou art I…

"Someone stop her!" Sako howled, the army of Shadows charging forward at her command. Kasumi locked eyes with her, hands already on her face, yanking off the mask that had appeared.

"Shut your mouth! Now help me, Briar!" Kasumi screamed as blood splattered the ground from where her mask had once been. Her outfit burned away, the ashes coming together to form a leotard and mini jacket like Sumire's, but also adding a sheer tutu. Kasumi barely processed what was happening as she put her hand up to the sky.

A flash of lightning came down, slowly coalescing in Kasumi's hand and creating a golden trident similar to the color of her gloves. 

"Another one? How does this keep happening?" Sako whined, trying to pick herself up off the ground. Kasumi's senses came back to her in an instant, and she nimbly jumped away from the nearby Shadows preparing to attack her, deftly carrying Sumire along with her. 

"Briar!" Kasumi commanded, watching as the newly revealed beautiful figure behind her spun her wheel, spawning threads that wrapped around Sumire. The strings disappeared almost as soon as they appeared, but the effect they had was instantaneous. A cyan glow briefly flashed around Sumire and her eyes widened in shock as she returned to the present moment.

"Kasumi!" Sumire yelped as air flooded her lungs. She looked around in a panic, not even getting time to process what just happened. "What did you…" 

"I don't know!" Kasumi almost laughed, adrenaline pumping through her veins and giving her an extreme runner's high. Turning her attention to Goro, she pointed Briar at him and sent a similar thread to wrap around him, snapping him back into attention. He was only confused for a few seconds, first figuring out why he was so far from combat, and second examining Kasumi before he jumped into battle.

Sumire and Kasumi both joined him, Sumire taking the front stage while Kasumi stayed behind her, sending Briar to fling a shower of rose-like needles down at the enemies, knocking all the pixies and angels down similar to her gun attacks. 

"I never saw a Persona that could heal status effects," Goro stated in awe for a moment, quickly summoning Loki to attack Sako. The Palace Ruler was barely able to counter the three with just her whip before Goro shouted to Kasumi, "Is there anything else that Persona can do?" 

Kasumi paused, trying to process all the information that was swimming in her head. She pointed her trident directly at Sako, following her heart and the newfound instructions of the Persona within her. Briar began to fly up, summoning a flash of lightning and striking true on Sako, causing her to convulse as electricity flowed through her. Sumire took the opportunity to follow up, calling for Cendrillon to come out and send her down with a kick, knocking Sako down to her knees.

Kasumi rushed forward, the trio all attacking Sako at the same time, sending her flying across the room and knocking down a row of shadows like bowling pins.

"Think this is a good time to hit the safe room?" Kasumi joked, admiring the carnage she was able to unleash. The fallen forms of the Shadows they defeated were being replaced by fresh soldiers, though, as new Shadows rose up to protect Sako and attack them.

"That seems smart. Still, if we are leaving, then I might as well do this," Goro cackled as he put both arms up, summoning Loki and hitting the strongest-looking Shadow with a psychic spell, making the Shadow go berserk and creating a distraction for the group to rush back into a safe room.

Notes:

https://www.instagram.com/p/DFslagQRqWq/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
visual reference of Kasumi and Briar

Chapter 10: The Prince's Vindication: Part VIII

Goro Akechi 

 

March 15th, 2014

 

Things were not going great for Goro Akechi at the moment. 

First, he was careless in approaching Shido, failing to make contact with him. Then the Yoshizawa sisters managed to follow him into a Palace and Sumire awakened a Persona. Goro didn’t even know other people could get them, and apparently it’s pretty damn easy to do because only two trips later, Kasumi awakened one as well.

Cendrillon was a bless user which unlike Robin Hood, she specialized in just bless and physical, sending enemies to the ground more often than Robin Hood as well. Robin Hood added curse and almighty on top of the bless and physical that Cendrillon had, increasing the range of weaknesses that he could hit in exchange for lacking area of effect. What Cendrillon lost in versatility, she made up for in pure damage. Sumrie herself was a fast fighter, able to down enemies before they had time to react and was able to dodge attacks easily. He always thought himself a quick learner, but Sumire was something else. 

Briar, Kasumi’s Persona on the other hand, was like nothing Goro had ever seen. She used electric attacks, though none were particularly strong. Her real strength came from her ability to heal, revive, put enemies to sleep, and remove status effects from those fighting alongside her. Her only real strong attacking abilities were gun-type attacks, and Kasumi’s physical attacks were laughably weak, but she more than made up for it through her utility. 

Sako hitting him with a fear spell was more embarrassing than not for him. The fact that it only hit him because he got cocky and didn’t think about the danger was more than enough to make him want to slam his head into the wall repeatedly. He opted not to, though, since he was unsure how the two girls would react and knew their skills were too valuable to lose due to his recklessness. 

He had no idea how all the sudden he gains one teammate and suddenly doesn’t know to be cautious. He’s always been cautious, find the Ruler, stick Loki on them, leave before anything else could be attacked. It was like the single idea of having a support behind him made him more comfortable to act reckless. 

Sumire was similarly embarrassed to learn she was hit by a despair spell. Goro tried to assure her that it wasn’t her fault and it was more on him due to the fact he never told them about status effects, though it didn't put her at ease. 

“It was like I couldn’t think of anything else… just how much of a failure I was…” Sumire frowned, hugging her knees inside the safe room. 

“Which is complete BS!” Kasumi complained as she passed the room. “Sako was playing dirty!” 

“Get used to it,” Goro grumbled. “Palace Rulers tend to play that way. I’m surprised that she was withholding that ability for so long to begin with.” 

“If she’s as cruel of a teacher as you say, I’m not surprised,” Sumire shrugged before turning to Kasumi. “Can you warp between the saferooms now?” 

Kasumi pulled up her phone, navigating the menus before stopping dead in her tracks. “I can!” Her eyes widened and a big smile popped up on her face.

“I guess that ability is limited to Persona users,” Goro noted as he walked over to the table, sitting down at one of the empty seats. “Forgive me for not exactly being all there when you awakened. Might I assume it was similar to Sumire-san’s?” 

“You mean the whole mysterious voice thing and splitting headache? Yeah. I still feel it echoing in my head a bit,” Kasumi described, putting her hand on her head and rubbing her temples. “But I feel so much better now! Did you guys like Briar?” 

“She’s beautiful!” Sumire gleamed with childlike wonder. “So that’s the reflection of your heart?” 

“Yeah. I’m not exactly sure why Goro’s consists of a scary eyesore and a bodybuilder,” Kasumi taunted. She really knew how to get on his nerves, didn’t she? 

“Perhaps you cannot see the finer intricacies of someone’s heart unless they fit your ideal of beauty,” Goro shot back. Kasumi faked a shot to the heart, lurching back and leaning against the back wall. 

“You know, you're the worst sometimes,” Kasumi pouted.

“You started it,” Goro stated, crossing his arms.

Leaning forward and pointing at the boy, Kasumi insisted, “I was joking!” 

“Guys…” Sumire pleaded, snapping the two out of their argument. Goro suddenly felt very childish, even if Sumire’s response was very polite. 

“Right…” Goro stumbled before describing, “We should get back before Shinichi-san realizes how long we’ve been gone.” No one had any objections, and they quickly left the Palace. When they were safe and sound back in the real world, Goro pulled out his phone and checked the time. It had only been a couple hours, leaving them just enough time to get home and for Sumire to start cooking dinner before anyone could tell they had been galavanting around in a teacher’s unconscious. 

When they finally reached the house, Goro was quick to retreat to his room. He would’ve been more than content to scream into his pillow if he didn’t know how thin the walls in this house were. Even muffled, that sound would be enough to draw unwanted attention. 

Of course it wasn’t like he didn’t already have a shit ton of that already, the last thing he needed at the moment was two children dragging him down and following him around in the Metaverse when he could be busy doing… 

Goro grabbed hold of a nearby pillow, holding it close to his chest as his head began to throb. Loki has been getting antsy again, slowly creeping up from the depths of his mind, gently tapping his fingers on his shoulders like needles slowly stabbing into him. He tried his best to ignore the shiver down his spine as he began to speak to him. 

You have completely forgotten what you wanted to do. 

You are getting sloppy, letting mere children throw themselves into your domain to try and become yet more idiotic heroes. 

No, you were always sloppy… You were sloppy then, and you’re sloppy now. From what it seems, you were even thinking of staying. 

Goro gripped the pillow tighter. Loki hasn’t scolded him like this since he woke up in the hospital bed, screaming at him that he ruined their plans, his head hurting so much it felt like another Persona awakening in and of itself. 

He could almost feel Loki floating behind him, his voice creeping down into his ear. Perhaps he really was there, breaking through the boundaries between the Metaverse and the real world. Or maybe Goro has truly lost it… 

Need I remind you why you were even at that party to begin with? Are you too much of a dim witted child to remember? 

“I know, I know,” Goro muttered into his pillow. He didn’t need to be reminded that he failed to speak to Shido. He had just been…distracting himself from that case. 

That’s the reason. 

Goro rolled over, staring at his luggage, most of which was still packed up in the bags he first brought them in. He never intended to stay here for long, so he hadn’t bothered to unpack it, figuring it would be more efficient to keep it this way so he could quickly leave. He could just do something insane and get himself thrown out, though he doubted that would work this time around. The Yoshizawas, for some reason, seemed to actually want him to stick around. Shinichi just saw him as a pity case: a poor child he could uplift and connect with like he was the protagonist of some sappy family movie. His wife and mother thought the same. 

No. He didn’t want them to start thinking that he was comfortable here. As much as Goro felt they were owed a compliment or two for actually trying to make him feel like a human being, he couldn’t let them think he was staying around. It would be cruel to make them get attached to him. This would never last. Nothing ever did.

Goro squeezed his eyes shut, still feeling Loki’s malicious gaze on him. 

Get rid of them. 

Don’t fool yourself to believe that there’s anyone out there who isn’t lying to you.

Loki probably wanted him to just run away at that moment, to strike out on his own where the risk the girls brought was nonexistent. Food and sleep worked differently in the Metaverse, so it was possible for him to live out his whole life there if things got really bad… 

Yet the thought scared him. To live out his life in the Shadows would be the same as death, would it not? As much as he didn’t wish to acknowledge it, every time they spoke to him, every time Kasumi went out of her way to drag him along, or Sumire cooked for him, or the kind way Himari and Shinichi spoke to him in the hospital, he just felt…warm inside. 

A feeling that lay deep in his chest that he never thought he would feel again and desperately tried to shove down again but kept bubbling up. Loki hated it. Goro knew he did because could feel all of his rage slowly stabbing into him. 

Remember how this world treated you… Do you think any of them are any different? 

How many times do you have to be taught this damn lesson!? 

Do you think anyone will ever care for you? After what happened? After what you’ve done? 

No of course not… You were born to be alone. At least you should stay alone after h-

“Shut up!” 

“Akechi-san?” Sumire’s voice broke Goro out of the dark depths of his mind, and he could only stare over at her like a deer caught in headlights. He quickly shook off the feeling, his headache subsiding as Loki slowly began to retreat back into his heart. 

“Y-yes?” Goro slowly released his iron grip on the pillow, putting it to the side and praying that she just would…forget seeing him cling onto the thing like a scared child. 

“Um… Dinner’s ready,” she told him, looking to the side as she awkwardly played around with her hands. 

Goro quickly managed to muster up a smile. “Ah, I’ll be down shortly!” He said as she left. He quickly fixed his hair and jacket before heading down. He didn’t know exactly what it was with Sumire’s cooking, but it had a certain warm feeling to it that most of the food he ate lacked. He didn’t want to admit to himself that he might even be excited to try out whatever she made. 

Don’t believe you can hide anything from me. 

“And you, quiet,” Goro grumbled, figuring he’ll have to deal with actually quieting Loki down later. 

Foolish boy

Kasumi was talkative as ever. At times it made Goro believe that she might accidentally reveal that she entered the Metaverse and awakened to a Persona. He did figure she was smart enough to know that there was no logical way to explain to her parents she can go into another world and summon a woman with a spinning wheel and rose needles to save her sister from feeling worthless. 

Shinichi and Himari both asked about Goro’s day. He said it was fine. Ryo Yoshizawa didn’t seem particularly interested in asking him questions, mostly focusing on her granddaughters. 

“I know how abrupt things have been for all three of you, so I’m happy you are all getting along,” Shinichi smiled. He said things like that pretty often, to the point where Goro started to believe that he actually felt apologetic for burdening his children with him. 

“We get along great!” Kasumi declared. “He’s shown us some really cool places!” 

“Really? Where are you guys going?” Shinichi questioned.

Goro silently cursed Kasumi’s carelessness and interjected, “I tend to cycle around Tokyo, and when I’m trying to avoid the heavy traffic I stumble into a lot of hidden gems when it comes to cafes or hangout spots.” Kasumi looked towards him, giving him a nod before speaking again.

“Yeah! He’s shown us this super cool place that sells crepes! I can’t get enough of them!” Kasumi supplied. Great… Now he had to think of an actual crepe shop on the top of his head before Shinichi asked about it. He would have to talk to Kasumi about this the next time they were alone.

“I’m just happy you are all having fun,” Ryo said, not looking up from her plate. The rest of dinner went off pretty quietly, Goro complimenting Sumire again before heading to bed.

This set their routine for the next couple days. The group dove into the Metaverse and traversed the Palace. Goro took the lead thanks to his experience, while Kasumi and Sumire followed his lead. They fell into a pretty good system of exploring the Palace, stopping once they had discovered a new safe room or two.

Goro quickly realized that Kasumi was an incredible healer, and with her ability to dodge the majority of attacks thrown her way, she was always there to keep Goro or Sumire standing to either finish the enemy off or make a tactical retreat. 

The group didn’t have much more difficulty getting through the question doors, too, meaning Goro wasted a whole night memorizing metric to imperial conversion rates, as well as any other weird trivia questions that only an American would know. 

Shinichi also laid off the family events and bonding sessions as the days went by. Perhaps it was because he saw Goro was getting along with the Yoshizawa sisters, or because they told him to lay off so they would get more Metaverse time. 

 

The deeper the group got into the Palace, the more unsettled they began to feel. Sako wasn’t egoistical, unlike many of the former Rulers Goro had faced. Instead of statues of the Ruler, large paintings of her students shown in ways that would get anyone arrested were scattered about the halls. 

Goro still recalled how his first couple Palaces went, seeing the horrific things people thought of others, including their perceptions of him, sometimes. He didn’t blame the sisters at all when they would ask for a mental health break inside a safe room, or take the day off early if the sights proved particularly nasty. 

It didn’t help when they found Sako’s cognitive servants: male classmates, female classmates, and slaves of all stripes. He even found some slaves similar in appearance to Sumire and Kasumi. He made sure to dispose of those ones before the girls could see. 

Unfortunately, he didn’t get the opportunity to take care of his own cognitive version before they found it. It was far stranger than the other mental constructs, standing alone in the corner of a hall. It didn’t seem too odd at first, resembling Goro wearing his old Kowareta uniform with the jacket opened, the shirt underneath a far lower cut then anything Goro had ever worn. 

It made Goro really uncomfortable, but Sumire got a little curious, walking forwards to the figure while it was distracted. Goro had encountered enough mental idols like this to know the signs, and paid close attention to how it moved. When he saw it twitch a bit, he quickly jumped forward, grabbing Sumire’s arm and pulling her away before the cognition twisted around and lashed out at them, a single chain holding its leg down being the only thing stopping it from pouncing on the girl. 

The three watched as the figure fell to the ground, crumbling into a miserable heap, the energy it displayed prior vanishing in an instant. Goro locked eyes with the cognition, quickly putting it out of its misery with his sword before he had to see any more of how Sako saw him. 

“At least he wasn’t in his underwear…” Kasumi weakly joked. 

“‘Unreachable’ my ass,” Goro growled, recalling one of the more vivid conversations he’s had with the teacher. “She still thinks she has a chance…” 

“You mentioned something about that with Sako, didn’t you?” Sumire inquired innocently. “When you were talking about what she…was doing.” 

Goro frowned and decided to repeat the bare minimum explanation he had given previously. “Just like what I said before, she would fail students and then ask favors from them to get their grades up.” 

Kasumi began, fiddling with her gloves, “Did you ever… like…”

It took a moment for him to process what she was implyin before he nearly shouted “No!” 

He saw the other two sigh in relief before he continued. “It’s the reason I was taking down this Palace to begin with: to save my own grades.” There were obviously other reasons for his interest in Sako’s Palace specifically, especially now. Sako learned quickly from that first encounter that Goro was not someone she could get into her sheets, and now that Shinichi was talking of transferring Goro, he had no personal incentive to be here anymore. It was strange… Even with Sako working against him at every turn, he did well enough to get into a pretty decent high school. However, now it was pointless. Shinichi seemed quite passionate about getting him into Shujin.

Perhaps there was a small part of him that wanted to get rid of her to help his peers. Another believed that she was a perfect target to show Shido what he could do; One who he could easily connect to himself but not easily enough that the police would see him as a suspect. 

“Right… Thank goodness,” Sumire managed to mutter after a few moments of painful silence. After that, the group decided to drop the topic and call it a day. 

Kasumi learned that they could restore energy and heal themselves with food they brought inside the Metaverse, with whatever they brought remaining just as fresh as when they started thanks to a helpful bit of Metaverse logic. Sumire started to cook more to take advantage of this discovery, which proved dividends the longer they worked together. They found that Sumire’s cooking healed more than the store bought stuff. Goro had no idea how that worked, yet Kasumi declared it had to do with taste and Sumire’s superior cooking. 

If Goro had the ability to, he would’ve snuck out of the house and tried to traverse the Palace without them. Sadly, the stairs creaked a little too much, putting those ambitions to rest almost as soon as he gained them.

To make it easier for the sisters, he inspected areas before letting them through to deal with the Shadows. He also made sure to keep them out of the memory chambers. Their first encounter with the plant-filled skulls thankfully didn’t show anything graphic, but he wouldn’t take the risk with any future ones. 

There was only one more of those that they found, showing a scene from her first days as a teacher. Sako must have gotten massively unlucky with her first group, with all the students being horribly abusive to her, and only one young student being kind to her. Goro grabbed the skull before walking out, not bothering to see the memory to completion.

 

The group took a break on the twenty-fifth for Sumire’s thirteenth birthday. Shinichi took Goro and the rest of the family to a nearby theme park to spend the day. Goro was never big on theme parks, never having the time nor money for them, but it was a decently enjoyable time trying the different food stands and riding the rides. At the end of the day, the poor girl was flooded with gifts from her parents, friends, and distant family members. It made Goro feel a tad guilty for only scrapping enough money to get her a small cactus plant. She seemed to enjoy it, at least. 

 

March 29th, 2014

It was March twenty-eighth when they finally found the room with the glowing light. Sumire decided to dub the rooms “Light Prisons” with no real explanation besides that it sounded cool. Admittedly, it was at least cooler than Goro’s term: “the room with the glowing light orb.” 

The group only peeked inside, finding Sako resting on her throne. The three of them decided to regroup, leaving with their intel and making a plan. They soon decided to make Sunday their attack day, leaving Saturday as a day to prepare. 

By then, everyone was more than happy to take down Sako, by any means necessary if needed. The specifics of how they would go about handling Sako went through a lot of revision, however.

As they discussed fighting the Palace Ruler, Sumire suggested, “What if we got the Palace version of Sako to confess to her crimes? Maybe that would ripple out to the real world and she would get arrested.” 

“You think that would work?” Kasumi asked, obviously interested in the idea but not knowing if it was possible. 

“Well, if Akechi-san made her go psychotic, then she would just get fired. She could still hurt people again given enough time,” Sumire said, elaborating on her original thought. 

“And they would never catch her for her crimes,” Goro finished. “It’s definitely something we could try, but if something goes wrong…” 

“Right. We’ll go back to your plan,” Sumire agreed. 

Sumire decided she wanted to cook something specifically for the Metaverse: something easy to eat during battles. Meanwhile, Kasumi took Goro to the gym. She showed him a few stretching exercises she did before gymnastics and suggested that they could do them together to help him replicate some of the sisters’ slick movement in the Metaverse. Goro also showed Kasumi the bouldering section. It was a hobby he had been partaking in off and on whenever he was given the chance. He always felt a tinge of jealousy whenever he saw everyone else work with partners, so he was almost relieved that Kasumi offered to be his buddy almost immediately after he brought it up in passing. 

 

March 30th, 2014

 

When the day came, the girls took an hour's rest after practice, promising Goro that they took it easy that day and had plenty of energy for the big fight. He couldn’t say he was completely confident in that, but he didn’t want to wait for another time and brought some extra supplies just in case. When they met back up, they went over the plan one last time and headed into the belly of the beast, warping to the safe room closest to Sako’s lair.

They carefully snuck through the shadows, going through the steps of their plan from after their first recon visit. Once Goro gave them the signal, all three shot at the surrounding Shadows. With a high enough angle, they could quickly shoot their masks off, revealing the monsters within and allowing them to rip them to shreds before they had any time to react.

Sako shot out of her seat, rushing forward and grabbing her whip. All three leaped off their perches, landing back to back atop the throne. 

“Aiko Sako! You lustful disgrace!” Kasumi shouted, dramatically placing her hand on her mask. “We are here to steal your heart!” 

“Huh?” Goro frowned. 

“Shut up and go with it! It sounds cool,” Kasumi urged under her breath as she pointed her trident at Sako, Sumire mirroring her movements with her rapier. Goro wanted to facepalm, but the time for silly interjections had long passed. They were in the thick of it now, so he had to just go with this stupidity and hoped Sako was intimidated by it.

With enough confidence, you can do anything, my prince. 

Goro took a deep breath, listening to Robin Hood and following their lead. 

“Surrender now and confess your crimes to the police or else we will take you down!” he declared, joining the girls in pointing the tip of his sword at the Palace Ruler.

“What the hell are you blabbering about!?” Sako sneered, obviously surprised by their sudden entrance, but not as intimidated as they would’ve hoped. “Get off my fucking throne and go in the chambers where you belong!” 

“I see, there is no space for negotiation,” Goro tilted his head down, a grin forming on his face before snapping back up. “Roll out!” 

All three leaped into action, surrounding her and opening fire with their guns. Sako quickly spun around to retaliate, choosing Sumire as her first target. 

A quick whip strike was easily dodged as Sumire ripped off her mask, calling for Cendrillon. The Persona appeared in a burst of blue light, unleashing a blast of bless energy that sent Sako reeling. Goro followed up with an attack from Robin Hood, which was then followed by a gun attack from Kasumi. 

Sako picked herself back from the ground, obviously damaged from the rapid-fire barrage, but still far from going down for good. She took in the situation and readied up a status effect, figuring that it worked so well last time that she might as well try it again. She picked her target carefully, locking in on Kasumi.

Cursing that Sako actually learned from their last interaction, Goro quickly jumped in front of Kasumi, knowing she would quickly cure him of the affliction. His assumption proved correct as the next thing he saw was Briar healing his ailment. Meanwhile, Sumire took the opportunity to follow up with a physical attack from Cendrillon, sending Sako tumbling to the ground. While she was incapacitated, the three of them went in for a synchronized attack, kicking her while she was down and doing some serious damage. 

As they fell back to a safe position, Sumire asked, “Did we do it?” Goro shook his head and stood in front of them, preparing for her to get up. Palace Rulers were nothing like normal Shadows. They always had more tricks up their sleeves. 

As if on cue, Sako started getting back to her feet. As she stood, she spat, “Damn brats! All my life, you shits keep pulling me down! All my life… You really think you can take me down here? The one place I’m allowed to have power?” 

“You’re abusing your students! You're a creep and a terrible person!” Sumire denounced. 

Putting her hands to her head, Sako towered over the trio as she stumbled closer. “Shut up, shut up, shut up! I deserve this! After what these students put me through, why don’t I get a little in return!?” Sako fell down to the ground, her body beginning to convulse. “You don’t get it… None of you ever do!” 

“I don’t think I want to get it,” Kasumi muttered as she stepped forward. 

“It’s just pointless excuses,” Goro said as he watched Sako as her twitching got more violent. He grabbed Kasumi’s arm, quickly pulling her back as the woman morphed into what he could only describe as a caricature of herself. She sported a massive head and horns, her skin changing to a sickly purple color, and her clothes being replaced by some strategic straps surrounding her…womanly parts.  

“Well I guess we’re in phase two…” Sumire muttered in a disgusted kind of awe, all three spreading out as Sako’s palm slammed on the floor. 

“Die! Fall to the ground and die for me!” Sako began to laugh, her voice taking on a monstrous bass. Goro bit his tongue, trying to figure a way to find a weakness in Sako’s new form before she started attacking. At best, they could go at her with all they had, though the chains surrounding her head gave Goro a bad feeling. 

“Everyone, stay back!” he commanded, swapping to Loki and sending a dart of curse energy at her. It was a direct hit, but the monster barely flinched. Knowing their window to attack without consequence was short, he signaled for all of them to open fire. The bullets (and magical spells) bounced off the mutated Sako’s skin, leaving small welts, the only real sign of damage.

Sako finally took control of her new form and swung at them with her arm, forcing them to stop shooting and forcing them to scatter. With her other arm, she began to yank on the chain. The metal links clattered together, creating a discordant rattling. They braced for a debuff of some kind, but were instead met by a wave of servant cognitions crawling out of the halls to support their master, kneeling in front of Sako in a defensive line.

“These are my students! My property to do as I wish!” Sako called as she leaned her head down, grabbing one of the cognitions with her mouth and eating it with one bite. They watched as the marks their shots made faded away, leaving Sako as good as new. 

“Gross…” Sumire complained. This new development erased their progress up to that point, but it did help with gaining information: Sako could heal off the damage they dealt if they let her. It was obvious that, unless they were willing to wait for her to eat every cognition in the Palace, they would have to cut her food off at the source... 

The sounds the chains made summoned the servants, so if they got rid of those, she may be left unable to call for more. Of course, there were also the ones already present, blocking their approach and leaving Sako a reserve to heal from. They would need to split up and cover every avenue.

Goro rushed over to Sumire while Sako was savoring her meal, quietly explaining the plan to her and assigning her a role. He watched as she made a grand exit, making for the flanks. He then moved to Kasumi, repeating the same information to her. The two of them nodded and rushed forward together, charging at the wall before Goro peeled off. Kasumi ran straight into the wall, tearing through the weak cognitions like a hot knife through butter.

“My slaves! How dare you!” Sako yelped. She made a swipe at Kasumi, but Goro drew her attention, jumping into the air and dragging his sword across her palm. Sako drew back in pain, focusing on him and screaming with rage.

Laying the taunting on thick, he smirked, “Are you really so weak that you have to rely on mere cognitions to do all the work for you? I thought Aiko Sako would be stronger…”

Another roar accompanied Sako’s next barrage of attacks. She lashed out, slashing at him with her elongated nails and swinging her head around, flinging the chains his way. While he managed to parry the nail strikes, the chains struck him hard, sending him flying and knocking the wind out of him. 

Laughing at Goro as he attempted to get back to his feet, gritting his teeth through the pain, Sako spat, “Look at you! You could have stood by my side, little thief. Instead you let yourself be led astray by harlots and false desires. Your place is by me, because I say so! The world is how I say it is, so you must kneel!” She lifted up her foot and moved to crush him underneath it, but was met with empty space as Kasumi moved in, carrying Goro out of the line of fire.

She had finished destroying the remaining cognitions and healed Goro’s injuries. “Thank you,” he sighed, where the chains hit him. Even with healing magic, he felt like it would still bruise.

“Hey, don’t mention it!” Kasumi winked before turning to Sako with a theatrical glare. She raised her wand, and Briar sent out a bolt of lightning toward the beast, paralyzing her for a moment. “The world may be cruel, but that’s only because there are people like you in it to make it so! You bind those around you with your chains of lust, dragging them down to your level of shame and depravity! We will not let you profit from the suffering of others any longer!”

The speech was corny, but it had the desired effect. Sumire finished sneaking behind Sako and leapt onto her head. Lacking the theatrical wit of her sister, she simply tore off her mask and summoned Cendrillon, who sliced away the chains on her head with a cutting beam of light. 

“No! No! My servants!” Sako whined, reaching up to grasp at the severed chains. The sheer weight of her form soon took its toll without the chains to hold her in place. She collapsed in on herself, Sumire jumping off before she went down with the ship. 

Sumire took up position beside Goro and Kasumi, instructing, “Come on! Let’s give her everything we’ve got!”

With a nod and a sly grin, Kasumi affirmed, “You got it!” Goro smiled along as they charged. All of their Personas came out at once, with spells hitting Sako in sets of three. Lightning, curse, bless, almighty, and all manner of attacks came out rapid-fire, tearing through their opponent’s health.

 

“Everyone, with me!” Goro called out, once they reached the downed Sako. The trio dove onto Sako, tearing through her with rapid-fire melee strikes. By the time they were done, they had practically cut her into ribbons. They landed in front of Sako, with Goro in the front and the sisters at either side, both of them striking dramatic poses. Goro followed suit, allowing himself to get a little too invested in their tomfoolery. Robin Hood was pleased, at least. From there, all they had to do was watch as the skin of her new form faded away, leaving behind a crying Shadow. 

“Why…” Sako cried, staring down at her normal-sized hands. “Why did this happen to me?” 

All three kept their guns pointed at her. Goro stepped forward. 

They never gave her any room to breathe, with all of their guns trained on her head. Goro stepped forward and scoffed, “Confess your crimes. Return to the real world. I want to hear you confess all of it, from all the way to Ken Arima.” 

“H-how do you know about—I…” she sputtered, her despair replaced by fear. “And what if I don’t,” Sako asked as she looked up, meeting him in the eyes. For the first time since he had entered this Palace, Goro saw a small bit of humanity in her eyes. Behind the dying amber flames in her irises, was someone capable of repentance. While her words were colored by bravado, he could tell it was merely a fleeting spark.

Maintaining his harsh gaze, he coldly stated, “Then we will come back, each time, until you do…”

It was only then that Sako looked away, closing her eyes as childish tears welled up. She made to speak, but ultimately remained silent. Her form began to fade, but instead of the black dust of a defeated shadow, she curled in on herself, disappearing into a white mote of light.

After a few seconds of silence where they processed what had happened, Sumire, between deep breaths, asked, “Did… Did we do it?” 

“What happens after this?” Kasumi questioned, turning to Goro.

“I… I don’t know,” Goro admitted, leaning back as the tension left his body. “I’ve never seen the ruler leave before and I honestly had no faith this would work.” 

“So I guess we go?” Kasumi shrugged, looking around at the Palace. Without Sako, it felt remarkably empty and still. “Will this place just destroy itself?” 

“I think it’s best for us to leave this place before we find the answer to that question,” Sumire suggested, staring directly at glowing light. Goro had to admit that it was captivating. The light twisted and warped with every passing second, looking like a cell that was just about to split, but never doing it. While, if they had more time, he would’ve loved to study it, Sumire was right. They hurried to the nearest safe room, warping to the exit and rushing back to the real world.

Sumire and Kasumi cheered for their victory, chatting about every little part of the fight, the whole way home. Goro remained quiet, merely passively listening and providing light comments whenever they addressed him directly. He did find their enthusiasm a bit infectious, but ultimately, he was tired. This Palace had dragged on far too long, and he was just glad for it to be over with.

It was another night when Himari worked late, so everyone just had leftovers before Goro excused himself to his attic bed and passed out on the bed. He hadn’t even bothered to get ready, just allowing the buildup of drowsiness to hit him as he drifted off into sleep. The one noise that interrupted the pleasant silence was an echo from Robin Hood: one that was far more comfortable than usual…

You have found yourself in an unusual situation…

Perhaps you should get accustomed to entering Palaces with a greater party…

As even outlaws had their bands of merry men…

Notes:

like I said before, I have a good lot of this fic prewritten (which is helpful since I'm under writer's block at the moment) going back to this chapter I'm just like, why did I make each chapter in this part so dang long?

Chapter 11: Eve's Interlude: Part II

Haru Okumura 

 

March 17th, 2014

 

 

Turns out Haru's mystery was quite simple to solve once she narrowed down her suspects. In the few days between when Haru had received the necklace and when it went missing, there had been a total of three other people in the house, excluding herself and her father. 

The suspects were one of her father's friends, Osamu Miyagawa, one of her own friends, Misaki Mino, and the live-in maid, Wako Nomi. 

Out of all of her father's friends, Haru was, in fact, able to recall Miyagawa. Specifically, his funeral after dying to a mental shutdown she thinks around early 2016. It gave Haru a good enough idea that he both had a shadow in Mementos and was someone who opposed Shido. She couldn't discern if he was a good person from this information. She only knew him as a dead man, and Haru knew better than anyone that it was difficult to speak ill of the dead. 

The second suspect was Haru's friend Misaki. Haru mainly knew Misaki from ballet and only recently she reached out to reconnect. The thread with her could go anywhere, with Haru having little recollection of Misaki in her later memories. She was undoubtedly wealthy, and Haru had a small recollection that Misaki's family moved out of the country out of fear of the mental shutdowns, either making her family opposition to Shido or just paranoid. Haru knew even before checking the Nav she was undoubtedly not the culprit. Her social media pages were active, where she showcased almost everything she's ever owned , a majority of those items having a much higher value than the necklace. 

Just to be sure, a quick search in the Nav also showed that she was in the clear.  

The third suspect was her live-in maid, Wako Nomi. Wako had worked with them for a little over five years as of 2014, later quitting late in 2015. Haru didn't know the exact details of why she quit or even much about her at all . Wako was young, in her mid-twenties at most, and she would sometimes have to bring her daughter when she couldn't afford a babysitter. Haru enjoyed playing with her when she did bring her over. Toko was her name if Haru recalled correctly. 

Haru put her name in the Nav and got a hit as well , giving her two Mementos targets to interrogate. She should be able to ask them both about the necklace before taking them down and coming back home before anyone realizes she is gone. Her father wouldn't be home for another couple hours, giving her ample opportunity to jump into Mementos. 

She had to admit that it was actually quite fun to play detective a bit .  

This would be her first time heading into the Metaverse since she went back in time. It would also be the first time she had ever been in the Metaverse alone. It was the first time without Ren, Mona-chan, Makoto, Yusuke, a navigator, or backup support. It was just Haru. 

She didn't realize how much she took advantage of her teammates or quite how late she joined up with them. The only person to join after her was Akechi, and he wasn't ever a true member. By the time Haru joined the Phantom Thieves, it was an already completed team that she could add her niche to. It did make Haru question if they would have ever gone any further if the Metaverse hadn't been destroyed after they took down Yaldabaoth. 

Astarte was good at psychokinesis and gun attacks and had no real healing besides status effects that she couldn't exactly use on herself when things started to fall apart. Haru was one of the harder hitters of the group, so she should be able to last a while with just her ax to save energy…ideally. Haru brought some extra snacks just in case , promising to take it slow.  

She found a small corner in the subway, checking the area before activating the Nav and jumping straight into the depths of the Metaverse. 

Her ax and grenade launcher were weaker than what she remembered, but they should be survivable for the earlier levels at least. Haru knew about the places Ren went to to get weapons, so when the time came, she would probably pay it a visit. She should also get a disguise. The last thing she needed was a reporter spotting the heir to Okumura Foods buying model guns and axes. 

Haru took a deep breath, watching the metro transform as she walked down the steps. She never knew that a place with its only light source being blood-red veins would bring her any comfort. It was all coming back to her now. The freedom of this world was one she couldn't ever quite achieve in the real world, and she deeply missed it.  

The Nav showed no signs that she could go back to rest stops from the last timeline, and with no Mona-chan, she really did have to walk through all of Mementos. Haru leaned over the platform, watching as different shadows limped side to side, grumbling about their everyday lives. 

Hopping down to the ground, accepted her fate and began to walk along the tracks, the crackle of the rocks touching her shoes echoing throughout the whole subway. She shouldn't have to worry about any trains coming by. They had never dealt with them before at least. Shadows also leaped out of the way, muttering that they were scared of her. 

It was good she didn't have to have any battles since she was unsure if she could handle fighting every shadow in Mementos on her own, and with weak equipment at that . Instead, all she had to worry about was walking along and finding the portals.  

As time passed, the fact she would need to take this walk every time she wanted to move through Mementos set in more and more. Hopefully, she'll reach a rest stop and slowly regain her ability to warp straight across. She did come across some strange flowers lining the tracks, taking a couple moments to study their effects for later use.

Besides that, she spent most of her time thinking, with most of those thoughts usually ending with her trying to figure out a new means of transportation. The ground didn't seem fit for her to bring a bike or skateboard. Riding on a train was entirely idiotic, and there was no way she could see herself bringing an actual car to the metro. It also didn't help that her last driving lesson was three years in the future, and her instructor had to leave the car to physically throw up when they were done . 

"Hey Misses!" Haru's thoughts were interrupted by a boyish voice. Haru snapped straight to attention, holding her ax out to whoever was there to be unfortunate enough to fight her. 

"C-come out wherever you are! " Haru called out, knowing that she did not sound intimidating at all. The voice didn't sound like Akechi's ; she didn't know about any other Metaverse users, and all the shadows tended to have a reverb that this voice didn't possess. 

She was barely able to process the sounds of what she could only assume to be a child's car slowly approaching her. As she slowly made her way backward, she watched a little blue toy car come into view. The luggage on the back towered before her, each piece having what looked to be a golden star balloon Haru would see at parties tied to them. 

"You look to be in distress. Is everything alright?" the driver said. Perhaps one of the stranger things she's seen as of recent, a small boy with white hair and clothes. His eyes were a familiar gold, reminiscent of the Shadows she'd come across. 

"Um… who are you and where did you come from?! " Haru straightened her posture, pointing the ax at the kid before lowering it, realizing the absurdity of threatening a child who was obviously not trying to attack her. 

"I'm Jose! I'm not exactly sure what you mean by where I came from, but I'm currently studying humans! " the child, Jose, exclaimed. 

"Studying… humans? " Haru repeated. 

"I've been traveling around collecting flowers, have you seen them? " Jose said. Haru's mind went back to the strange flowers lining the track. She pulled one out, showing him.

"One of these? "

" Yes, perfect! " Jose grabbed hold of the flower, studying it. "Then that means I'm on the right track! Though you seem lost? " Jose clocked his head to the side. 

"Not really… " Haru laughed. It was hard to get "lost " in Mementos, how could one get lost in a place that had no defined structure or route. The only set directions were to go up to go back to the real world and down to dive deeper inside Mementos. "You see, my destination is quite far away. "

" Ah… then perhaps we could help each other out! You help me learn about the human world and collect flowers, while I let you ride with me and help you get there faster! " Jose supplied. Haru studied the car a little, a realization forming in her mind. His car might be small, but it was perfect for what she needed, and all she had to do was tell him about the human world. She was human, and had almost too much knowledge about the human world, current, cognitive, and future. The offer also presented an opportunity to learn about Jose, which could prove fruitful for the future. He was a bit of an anomaly, and she wanted to know who he was, not recalling him at all from the past timeline. 

But could she trust him? He looked nice enough, but his eyes were the same color as the shadows she fought. On the same note, they also look similar to Lavenza, and she was a natural being of the cognitive world who was very friendly, similar to Jose. 

"Let's make a deal then," Haru put her hand out for Jose to shake. Ren made deals like this, didn't he? "I'll tell you all about the human world if you could lead me to anywhere that looks kinda like a strange portal." 

"Deal! " Jose jumped out of his car, holding his hand out to Haru before frowning. "But you haven't told me your name yet Misses, "

"I'm Beauty Thief! " Haru said with a little too much glee, taking Jose's hand and shaking it. "But you can call me Noir. "  

That set the deal in motion. Jose showed her in the seat next to him, which was a tad cramped but still serviceable. Jose started talking about random things he'd discovered almost immediately, asking questions every so often. A lot of his studies were apparently on the different emotions humans had.  

Jose showed her something he called stamps, which if she were to collect, he could modify Mementos with by hitting weaker areas with his hammer. There was at least one time when Jose was so interested in a certain flower drink that the Reaper showed up, a monster that still horrified Haru to this day.  

Haru also learned that he can one-shot the Reaper with said hammer. 

Now, Haru was more curious than ever about who this boy was. She tried to ask him a couple times, each time getting diverted away by Jose asking questions about her life.

"So these portals… what do they do? " Jose asked.  

"They should lead them to special shadows, " Haru said, looking down at Jose's little clock. She's been in the Metaverse for about three hours so far.  

"And what causes them to appear? " Jose asked. "I haven't seen any of them in my travels. "  

Haru put a hand to her chin, thinking it over. Now that she thought about it, Ren did something special before reaching his targets in the Metaverse, similar to palace rulers, but not as grand…

Haru gasped.

"I never sent out calling cards!" 

Notes:

two notes
A- taking a break next week due to midterms (in all honestly I shouldn't even be posting this week but thankfully these are prewritten)
B- just to clarify, story wise, the past timeline is a combination of royal and vanilla (so Sumire, Maruki, will seed chamber, grapple hooks, etc all existed but they had no effect on the plot of the timeline)

Chapter 12: The Prince's Vindication: Part IX

Goro Akechi 

 

March 31st, 2014

 

 

The next morning , Goro began to regret his usual habits of getting up early. Despite sleeping for far longer than he usually did , he was still dead tired. Despite these desires, Kasumi and Sumire were banging on his door and yelling for him to get up. The fact they were doing this at his usual wake-up time of four in the morning was simultaneously impressive and terrifying.

"We need a hideout," Kasumi said before he had even fully opened the door. He rubbed his eyes and yawned as she spoke. He had the forethought to get a change of clothes, but not enough to pick something flattering. Instead, he had grabbed a piss-yellow sweatshirt with some children's mascot on the front that he found in the Metaverse a long time ago and had been using as pajamas for the past few weeks. Neither sister commented on it, which he was at least thankful for. 

"Why?" Goro asked. 

"Because talking about super secret Metaverse stuff in our house is boring," Kasumi reasoned, all the while bouncing from foot to foot like a kid on Christmas.

"Also, with Grandma always home we're worried she might overhear," Sumire added, providing a much more valid argument than her sister. Too tired to bother making a counterargument, Goro reluctantly agreed with their idea. Most of his Metaverse work previously was relegated to internal monologues and disagreements with his Personas , but if he had to work with the Yoshizawa sisters, their communication had to be done safely. 

You shouldn't be making any long-term plans if you know what's good for you…  

Goro's head began to ache again, but he quickly shook it off before the girls noticed. He nodded and asked, "Alright, I suppose, but do you have any places in mind?"

"Not yet, we've been thinking about it all night, so we decided to tour all around Tokyo today to find the perfect spot! " Kasumi declared, speaking too loudly to demonstrate any care in not waking up the adults in the house. 

"Not all around Tokyo. Just within an hour train ride, " Sumire quickly corrected and quieted her sister.

Which was exactly what they did. Goro let the others take charge, mostly due to Loki giving him a migraine whenever he spoke up. They went through the back roads, stopping at small stores and cafes they found along the way . More often than not they ate at said cafes because Goro started to believe the sisters had black holes for stomachs. He ate a bit, if only because they offered to pay, but after the fourth stop he couldn't stomach even another small portion.

Eventually, the group did find a quaint little cafe on the outskirts of Kichijoji that Goro had visited a couple of times before. Sumire and Kasumi were already trying their cakes, their wallets as bottomless as their stomachs apparently . 

"This is the perfect place for a hideout! Few customers, indifferent staff, and amazing food! " Kasumi rattled off between bites of her cake. "And the TV playing in the background could give us more targets later on! "  

"More targets? " Goro repeated, raising an eyebrow. 

"There is no possible way we're stopping at Sako now, " Kasumi expanded like it was obvious , taking a sip of her drink. It was some limited edition tea the cafe was serving. 

"It's too dangerous, " Goro frowned, finally expressing his disapproval and hoping his expression didn't reveal the splitting headache he was now dealing with. 

"It's not dangerous for you to stop, " Sumire leaned back, an unhappy frown on her face. "You can't fool us. As soon as we look away you're just gonna run off to take down the next one. "  

"I… " Goro had no defense. "I cannot deny that there are more people out there who possess Palaces. "  

"I say that's enough to declare all three of us an official team! " Kasumi stated as she leaned over the table, stars in her eyes. "If we're a team, then we'll need a name! "  

"Isn't this… " Goro tried to object, but the Yoshizawa sisters were already suggesting ideas.

"We could be the Star-Spangled Gymnasts! "  

"That makes us sound American… Oh, how about the Ruler Killers! "  

"We don't kill! Justice Bringers! "  

"Truth Gatherers! "  

"Heart Finders! "  

"The World Proclaimed Trio of Justice! "  

Goro continued to look between them with exasperation, feeling Loki's breath down his neck. He slowly gripped his briefcase harder, looking away from the two as they continued to bicker with each other. 

Your priority should be getting back towards Shido, not entertaining these wannabe heroes. 

"But what if they died? " Goro thought to himself. 

Then… Then that's their problem. Just hope you don't have to be the one to shoot the bullet this time—

Goro leaned over again, rubbing his temple as the pain doubled. He really wanted to just please him and shut him up, yet, at the same time, he was getting sick of Loki. If it wasn't for his suggestion, then he wouldn't have decided to go to Shido and gotten into this situation to begin with. Even then, he had been hesitant to interact with Shido despite the fact he had been ready and raring for it every day up to that point. 

Now, his Persona decided to change his tune—insulting him, talking nonsense as if Goro had ever shot a person who wasn't a Shadow before, and expecting him to just let two innocent girls die stupidly in the Metaverse. 

He looked back up at the girls, a small smile creeping on his lips. The two clearly had a strong sense of justice. One that still has an air of innocence to it. One that Goro had long since abandoned. 

He didn't want them to lose that. He didn't want them to turn into him. 

"How about… " Goro coughed into his glove, catching the sister's attention as his mind scrambled for something to suggest. "Justice's Truth. "  

Loki began to shout and scream into his ears, yet they were quickly drowned out by Sumire's voice, the one Goro chose to focus on. "Justice's Truth? "  

"It sounds catchy, doesn't indicate anything about the members inside, and gives our enemies a clear indication on our ideals, " Goro explained, taking a hard swig from the tea that Kasumi had bought for him, insisting that he try it despite making the fact he wasn't interested clear. 

"Justice's Truth… I like it! " Kasumi cheered. Sumire nodded along before taking a sip of her milkshake.

"Oh, we should come up with codenames as well, " Kasumi suggested. "Because I totally noticed neither of you were using them last time I asked you… "  

“Oh… right…” Sumire laughed as her face reddened, brushing off the possibility of Sako remembering her in the real world by turning it into a joke.

"Well, we should come up with something that makes sense for us, " Kasumi began, tapping her chin as she came up with ideas. "I think Goro would be called Mosquito. "  

"No, " Goro instantly rejected. 

"What? Your mask looks just like one, and you look like you would love blood, " Kasumi smirked, leaning in and poking his chest playfully.

Crossing his arms in indignation , Goro huffed , "How low do you think of me! "  

"I dunno, Mr. 'The Inner Reflection Of My Heart Is An Evil God'. "  

"Loki is not evil. He is a trister god who's- " 

"Don't Kasumi, you're going to trigger his inner nerd, " Sumire chuckled. 

"I am not… " Goro gave up the moment he realized Sumire had joined Kasumi against him. "Still, we are not going with Mosquito… "  

"Hmm, how about Prince? " Sumire suggested. "Though, your outfit seems to have some knight aspects as well. Hmm, your outfit is monochrome, so… " Prince died almost as quickly as it was conceived as Sumire went off on a quiet tangent only she cared about.

"Oh, we could name ourselves Black, Red, and Gold, after our gloves, " Kasumi put her hands out as if she was showing them her non-present gloves. 

"That's boring, " Sumire frowned. 

Goro looked to the side before declaring, "Crow. "  

"Crow…? Aren't you wearing mostly white? " Kasumi puzzled. 

Goro grinned, a small giddy feeling bubbling up inside him. "Exactly! If an enemy were to hear the callout, they would never assume that it's the one wearing white! "  

He could hear Robin Hood's approval in his head. Even Loki seemed to quiet down a bit. 

"Perfect! I want mine to be kinda linked with Sumire's, since we're a sister act if that's ok, "  

"That's fine, with me, but you have to get Sumire's consent first, " Goro nodded.

Sumire smiled, "Sounds good to me! Do you have any ideas?"

With a look of smug pride, Kasumi revealed, "Yup! Clubs and Ball! "  

Basically simultaneously, Goro and Sumire, with blank expressions, rejected, "No. "  

"Aw… I was thinking about that all night, " Kasumi pouted. 

Sumire then took the lead, musing, "Hmm… Well, both of our outfits are quite similar, so it would be hard to take cues from that… How about something about our names? "

" Yoshi and Zawa? Who'll take what? " Kasumi asked, obviously not treating the suggestion seriously. 

"I will kick you both off the team if you went by your actual name but spit up, " Goro stated. 

"Wait…you said yours in English, so how we have ours in English as well! " Sumire beamed. "A token reminder of Akechi-san's greatest enemy. "  

"Actually I think his greatest enemy is the imperial system, not the English language, " Kasumi chuckled. 

Goro decided he hated these two. 

"Then Violet for Sumire-san and Mist for Kasumi-san, " Goro sneered. "It would throw anyone off looking for someone with purple gloves for sure, " he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. 

"And I have lighting powers so no one would believe I'm called Mist! " Kasumi cheered, willingly obvious to Goro's tone. Before the boy could correct her, she asked, "Oh, by the way, have you checked if the Palace still exists? "  

Goro shrugged and explained, "Usually they linger for a few days after I've dealt with them, though I've never dealt with a Palace like I have this one, so I'll keep a close eye on what the app says. "  

"That's a good idea. We can always go in there again and make true to our promise, " Sumire agreed. She then took her drink and lifted it into the air, cheering, "With that all out of the way, let's toast to the founding of Justice's Truth! "

Kasumi quickly grabbed her glass and repeated, "To Justice's Truth!"

Goro sighed before grabbing his drink (which he reluctantly had to admit was pretty good) and joined in, "To Justice's Truth. " With the clinking of their glasses, the world saw the founding of the Metaverse travelers, Justice's Truth. 

 

 

April 3rd, 2014 

 

"In recent news, schoolteacher Aiko Sako of Kowareta Junior High has admitted to sexual relations with students. The thirty-four year old teacher has admitted that she would target male students and hold back their grades in exchange for sexual favors. She has also admitted that many other teachers and the principal also knew about this and allowed it to continue. "  

"An ongoing investigation in Kowareta Junior High has begun, finding no evidence that anyone knew of Sako's exploits; several students have also been interviewed confirming her confession. "  

"'I don't know why she confessed now of all times… She's been like this for as long as I remember,'" one of the students stated. 'I can't think of many times where students were brave enough to reject her.'" 

Goro shut off the TV, leaning back on the couch. He gently grabbed hold of his briefcase, looking through the contents inside. He only carried the necessities, one of which was a small notebook. He flipped through it, reading the contents of the script he so meticulously practiced for that night. 

He narrowed his eyes, reading the perfect lies he spun in Shido's favor and trust. He felt his head begin to throb again. Goro grabbed hold of the paper again, memories flooding his mind as he almost threw the notepad away. He slowly curled in on himself, just letting Loki continue his business. 

You don't want this justice for him . Not after what he's done. 

You know what you have to do.

You'll never be happy, so don't you let him live another happy day either.

Goro shivered at the words, lowering his head. “Just…go away…” 

You know I'm telling the truth about you. 

Remember, I am thou, thou art I.

If you know what's best, then you will follow my orders.

 

Get

Rid

Of

Them

 

 

The Prince's vindication- end.

Notes:

One more Eve's interlude before the end of part one!

Chapter 13: Eve's Interlude: Part III

Haru Okumura 

 

March 30th, 2014

 

Calling cards… Haru frowned, staring down at the blank piece of paper for what felt like years at this point. She had no clue how to approach the actual text of the card, let alone that signature Phantom Thief style that Yusuke was responsible for. Haru had never been part of the calling card team besides the time she had to deliver it to her father. Yusuke mostly worked on the main cards, while Ren and Mona-chan worked on the Mementos targets. It should've been easy, so Haru had no idea why she wanted to bang her head against the wall. 

She looked over at her phone. She still hadn't looked up her father's name, even almost two months after she got transported back in time. She didn't know why she was so reluctant. The exact keywords and the Palace's appearance remained as fresh as ever in her mind. Too fresh if Haru had to admit to herself. Every time she saw her father, the way he looked at her, she couldn't bring herself to type his name. 

It was denial, but not just that, was it? She remembered when they reached the depths of Mementos, seeing Kamoshida, Kanashiro, and Shido in those prisons. If she were to save her father, he would just go straight into those prisons, wouldn't he? Haru didn't know why she kept thinking of that. Even if he somehow didn't have a Palace, he would still be there. No regular citizen was safe from being trapped down there. What was important was that he wasn't easily accessible to Akechi. Her father could wait in the depths of the prison. He could wait for her to save him and the rest of the public from the clutches of Yaldabaoth. It would be fine so long as she didn't let what happened last time happen again.

Haru sighed, looking back at the blank card. Without the reputation of the Phantom Thieves, no one would take a card from them (or just her in this case) seriously, especially if the only two targets were a random businessman and a live-in maid. There was also the problem of both targets being easily connected to her. 

Her final decision was to give up and leave the first card hidden in the mailbox for Wako Nomi to find and have the other letter appear as an incorrect address. As long as they read a semi-vague message claiming to steal their hearts, they should appear in Mementos. Ren would sometimes send the cards but not hit the targets until they had a list of them to take down in one trip. Hopefully that logic stayed true while she was working alone. 

She chose to write the message from cut-up beauty magazines, each detailing a simple message that they have been misguided and that something will be stolen from them. That should be specific enough to put them on their guard, but vague enough for them not to laugh it off. The actual process of putting the card together was quite tedious, but she got used to it. It reminded her a bit of gardening, with how she carefully cut each piece of paper and set them in their proper spaces before dabbing a little glue in each spot. It was a little therapeutic and helped calm her down a bit. 

While the finished product didn't hold the same iconic look as the bold reds and chaotic appearance of the Phantom Thieves she knew, Haru still felt proud of the more unique look that the soft pinks and purples from her beauty magazines created. 

Haru did also make a trip down to Ren's weapon supply shop, a quaint little place called Untouchables. The manager looked like he was ripped straight from a Yakuza movie, and he was quite intimidating at first glance. She must have hit them at the right time, though, as she ended up meeting his adorable son that same trip. Having his child around probably meant he wouldn't be as aggressive toward her as he might've been otherwise. In fact, he looked more scared of her after seeing the disconnect between her purchases and her appearance. 

That was the final step in her preparations, so she could finally get started. She took a deep breath and headed into Mementos, meeting up with Jose fully prepared to change some hearts.

"Hey Misses! I've come across some of those weird portal things you were talking about. Do you want me to show you them?" Jose called out to her. 

"Yes, thank you very much Jose," Haru greeted him. She decided pretty quickly that she liked Jose. He was fun to talk to, giving her a little escape from reality while having a childlike charm to him that made him endlessly endearing. 

"So what's so special about these portals?" Jose asked. 

"Well…basically there are corrupted people here, and when I do something in the real world, it opens portals down here so I can talk to them," Haru tried to explain. She was interested in the Metaverse and how it operated, but she had never had the time to properly just sit down and talk to Mona-chan about it. 

"Oh I see, what makes someone corrupted?" 

"I don't actually know…" Haru laughed. "Mona-chan would know most of that, but I haven't been able to see him in a while," 

"Mona-chan… Noted," Jose repeated. Haru gasped, completely forgetting to ask him about Mona-chan.  

"Right, have you seen a…cat-like creature around here? He wears a yellow bandana and is a little shorter than you," Haru decided to ask. If Mona-chan was running around the Metaverse, then there was a chance he'd hopped in Mementos once or twice. 

"No… but is he a friend of yours?" 

"Yes! That's Mona-chan, and if you've seen him, would you be able to tell him Noir is looking for him? If he doesn't remember me, just could you let me know so we can meet up?" 

"Remember you? Why would he forget you?" Jose asked. 

"It's a little complicated…" Haru looked away, the portal appearing in front of them, mercifully ending the conversation. 

Hopping inside the portal, she could quickly deduce that it belonged to Osamu Miyagawa, her father's friend and future mental shutdown target. If she could get his soul to return to the real world, that would save him from his fate. At least it would as long as his heart stayed changed. It made Haru wonder if souls could get recorrupted, and what the process was if they did. The precise functions of the Metaverse were still a mystery to her. That was more so Mona-chan's field of expertise, and Haru had heard him mention how complicated and nonsensical it all was.

Jose parked his car to the side, telling Haru he wanted to watch her talk to the human instead of fighting him, which apparently is what he usually did when he saw something he wanted to study. Haru was thankful he didn't take that approach when approaching Haru. His complete indifference when he took down the Reaper was still fresh in her mind.

"Osamu Miyagawa," Haru called out, gaining the shadow's attention. He narrowed his eyes at her, looking away from her to go back to his muttering. 

"That Shido…" Miyagawa muttered. The second the name came out of his mouth, all thoughts about the necklace left her head. 

"What about him?" Haru asked, taking a hesitant step closer. 

"He never shuts up, 'change the world', what a joke…" Miyagawa looked up at her. "The worst part is all these people seem to actually like the man! He’s doing something… blackmail… bribery… I don't know, but I swear… If someone doesn't stop him…" 

Haru watched his movements. While he doesn't fully understand that an outside force was perceptions, he did sense something off with Shido's rise to power. A sense that likely led him to his early grave. 

"You want to go against him, right?" Haru asked. 

"I need to. If I don't…no one would. Kunikazu gets it… He saw how that man really was…" Miyagawa looked over at her. "From that look on that face, you get it too," 

"What do you mean?" Haru asked. "About Okumura," A grin began to form in Miyagawa's face as it warped and twisted into a malicious smile, shifting the mood to one of helpless lamentation to proactive evil.

"At a party, some kid gotten himself hurt, I saw it! Shido's mask shattered just for a moment, right in front of Kunikazu… wouldn't it be funny to do that again… if that was what it took for people to realize…" 

Hearing these true reflections of the heart was always unsettling, no matter how many times she heard them. She could understand Miyagawa's desires to bring Shido to justice, but the desperate desires to ruin him with little regard for those around him were simply unsettling. Haru frowned. "Akechi-san almost died, even if it's to get people to see Shido's true colors, we can't get people hurt!" she stated. "That won't solve anything…" 

"You don't get it… That man is dangerous," Miyagawa said. Haru held her hands close to her chest. She, of all people, didn't need to be told twice how horrible that man was. 

"I know that. He needs to be stopped, but no one should get hurt…" Haru looked away.

She thought back to that night. The night this whole cycle had begun again. Did she really agree with what she was saying? She saved Akechi by hurting him. At least she thought she helped him. That made up for the pain she caused, right? If she had another way at the time, she would have taken it, surely. 

Haru thought back to that night, if Akechi had died then and there, would that have been a better fate for him? At least he could have died with his hands clean, and so many people's lives would be better. 

Would the ends have justified the means? Did that make her any better than Akechi? She would've been sacrificing others for the sake of furthering her own goals. Did she want that to be her legacy in this new life?

Haru shook the thoughts out of her head. She didn't want to think about Akechi any more than she absolutely had to. He didn't die that night. Her father confirmed that a couple weeks ago. There was no use in thinking in hypotheticals. 

"And what do you mean that my f-... Kunikazu Okumurua understood after seeing Shido?" Haru decided to ask. 

"He's a smart man. He knows when someone is masking one aspect of themselves, they are masking a whole lot more," Miyagawa sneered as he looked up at Haru. "I want to work with him to get rid of Shido, and take him down by any means necessary. I want to see him suffer and crumble, what a beautiful sight for fakers like him!" 

Haru tightened her grip on her ax. She didn't want him working with her father; she didn't want her father getting any closer towards Shido. She doesn't want to think about that risk. She got all the information she could get at this time. He was on one of the higher levels, so fighting his shadow should be easy. She could take him down in a few hits and change his heart. 

Yet, he was one of the few people who was actively looking into Shido…

With a deep breath, Haru turned around and spoke to Jose. 

"Would it be alright if I ask one more thing from you?" she called out. "I promise I'll head down here more to help you collect flowers." 

"Yeah?" Jose's eyes began to sparkle hearing the word 'flowers'. 

"If I'm not down here, make sure that no one else can enter the portal here," Haru asked. It felt bad to leave Miyagawa to fester in his corruption, but she told herself it was for the greater good. He would continue to investigate Shido. The information he gathered could be used in her pursuit of preventing his ascent to power. If the worst happened, she could rush back down here and defeat his shadow. It was a win-win situation.

Haru Okumura had no reason to go up to businessmen and ask them about Shido. In the Metaverse, however, she was beauty thief Noir, a Phantom Thief who needed all the resources she could get at the moment. Besides, she wasn't alone here. She had Jose. If Jose can take down the Reaper with a single hit from his hammer, he could certainly give Akechi a humbling if he were to rear his face. 

"Do not speak to Okumura, I want you to watch Shido, and report it all to me," Haru demanded, holding her ax out towards him. There was silence for a moment, Miyagawa giving her a look before a low chuckle escaped his lips. 

"So you see it too… I would love too." 

With that decoration, she nearly walked out of the Metaverse right then and there, only remembering Wako Nomi and the necklace when Jose asked about her. 

"Who was Akechi-san?" Jose asked her while they started en route to Wako's portal. Haru questioned him for a moment, slapping her head when she remembered dropping his name when interrogating Miyagawa. "You mentioned that he got hurt." He sounded so innocent as he asked his questions, and Haru felt awful lying to him. In spite of that, she knew some things were best left unsaid.

"Someone very bad," Haru stated, shuffling at the words, not feeling quite right on her tongue. "No… Not exactly bad. Shido is bad, but not Akechi exactly. Perhaps…misguided is a better word." 

"What do you mean by that?" Jose pressed. "How can someone be bad but not bad?" 

"It's hard to explain. I guess…people can be bad, but you can sympathize with them. You pity them and wish that things could have been…different," that's something Akechi once said. He told Ren that if they met just a few years earlier, things would have been different. Haru sank her head to her knees. It was a few years earlier now, could things really be different? 

"Sympathize… I get it! Some humans might be bad but if they couldn't be bad you feel bad for them," Jose summarized. Haru looked off into the distance, barely processing his new definition. How many people could have been saved if she just went out and talked to them? 

It felt wrong that she could only save people like her father because she knew what awaited them at the end of the line. If she had just noticed what was happening with her father, could she have stopped that last time? 

What if she met Futaba before her mother died and helped her grieve? Or found Ann and Shiho and supported them before Kamoshida got to them? 

"What's wrong?" Jose asked with that same level of childlike innocence and curiosity he seemingly always had. 

"Just thinking about the past. Do you have any regrets, Jose?" 

"I'm not sure. Is that something humans have?" 

"Yeah. If I had to describe it, it's like…when you could have done something but didn't, and you feel a deep desire to go back and change that." 

"Oh so you want to fix things in the past, Interesting," Jose nodded.

"Yeah," she chuckled in embarrassment at what she was saying. "It might be a weird question to ask someone like you, but if given the chance…what would you do?" 

"If I could fix the past? I don't know," Jose shrugged. "Oh there's the portal!" 

Haru stopped the conversion and listened to Wako Nomi confess to stealing from her household. Most of her feelings came out of jealousy for Haru's family, others came from wanting to be able to afford to spoil her child like her father could spoil Haru. 

"Do you still have the necklace?" Haru asked after battling her shadow. 

"I'll… I'll give it back to them… I haven't pawned it yet…" 

"Are you doing bad with money?" 

"Huh?" 

"If you need help with money, please ask. My f- Okumura is a very kind man. He'll understand as long as you confess the truth," Haru said. Wako nodded before disappearing back to her true body, her treasure bud being a photo of her young daughter. 

"Why did she disappear?" Jose asked, hopping over next to her. 

"You know how I said some people aren't truly bad, just misguided," Haru smiled, turning over towards Jose, "That was one of them, and now she's going to be better!" 

"Wow, you truly know a lot about humans! I'll make sure to work extra hard in helping you out," Jose smiled. Haru returned it with sincerity. She had missed this kind of companionship. 

When she left the Metaverse she continued to stare down her phone. If she had been given a choice on whether or not to travel back in time, she would have rejected it. She would've given the role of time-traveling savior to someone like Ren or Makoto. They would know what to do. Haru sighed. Unfortunately, she never got that choice. She didn't know what she was doing, but that just meant she needed to do this without regrets all the more. 

She kept holding this back, even though she knows that it won't help her. She was the one given this chance, and she had to take full advantage of it. 

Haru took a deep breath, readying herself to finally head to her father's Palace…

"Kunikazu Okumura," she shut her eyes while saying the name, readying herself for the response. 

 

 

 

No entries found.

 

 

Eve's interlude- end 

Notes:

and part one comes to an end! Honestly I didn't know how to do the opening the closing since while the first chapter is all Haru, most of the part one is Akechi. They may or may not return for some future covers or closers (ideally in parts where Haru and her story gets more focus)

next chapter won't be right into the next part, it's mostly a break from each part that will include some artwork (namely character designs), and some extra important info

Thank you for sticking through part one!

Chapter 14: author's note

Hello everyone! This is Sleepy, the author of Butterfly Gloss! 

 

Part two is coming soon so don’t worry, but I plan to do one of these for the end of each part, which will mostly be some art and extra stuff. I recommend you read the top part because this is a lot of oversweeping notes I wanted to bring up. The latter half will all be a lot of art notes and some illustrations by yours truly

 

I’ve said in a few author’s notes, but I have a lot of this fic prewritten. This fic is already over 300K words, almost 100 chapters, and 6 parts. That is what is prewritten mind you. I still have quite a bit to get through but one of my goals this year is to finish it up by the end of the year. Basically this is important to know that a lot of stuff is already set, and even if you have the best idea in the world that is better than what I’ve already written, I won’t be able to take account of it until well…250K words later. For what I’ve haven’t written yet, pretty much all of that is planned already. I know the twists, who needs to do what, all of that fun stuff so there shouldn’t be any long pauses on that front. As of now, the fic is expected to be in the 500-700K range from the pace I’m going. 

 

Which might make you ask, “wtf is wrong with you?” and I will say. A lot, next question. 

 

The Phantom Thieves 

This also lets me say around where most of your favorite PTs appear because as they appear I will tag them, I mostly avoided tagging them now since I don’t want a let’s say, hardcore Yusuke fan to make it through 60K words of Akechi then have him never show up. While not every canon character will appear, please enter this with the expectation that they could appear. So I won’t say much cause that kinda spoils the surprise, but I will say the part of every major thief except for Morgana, Yusuke, and Ren for reasons I won’t get into except that they appear after part five. 

Makoto Nijima- part two

Futaba Sakura - Part Three
Ann Takamaki - Part Five

Ryuji Sakamoto - Part Five

Each part is around 50-60K words

 

Spoilers 

Light spoilers for P5 strikers and P5 tactica, when they come I’ll make sure to make a note on them but overall you don’t really need to play either game to understand them, nor do I really believe that it’ll ruin your experience if you read this fic before you play them 

Also spoilers for the Repaint Your Heart Tactica dlc. However, the DLC is 20 dollars for 5 hours of content. Unless you are crazy like me, or like Sumire and Akechi way too much like me, just watch a let’s play online of it, like seriously, it’s 20 dollars for a 5 hours story (and maybe more if you decide to use Akechi and Sumire in your new game plus) 

Will not contain any spoilers to any other Persona game

 

Ships 

Since this is very much a gen fic, aka no things are gonna be canon, though I will say that things like Haru and Sumire’s crushes on Ren, Sojiro and Wakaba will likely exist but never be official. This doesn’t apply to characters like Kasumi who have a bit more free reign on getting to crush on whoever they want

Schedule

Like already seen, this fic updates every Wednesday, usually around 11 AM EST (depends on how last minute I edit chapters for), if the fic is being paused for any reason, I will usually will try to explain it prior (likely gonna be another pause during finals because college is hard guys)

Beta Reader Commentary

Hello! I’m ACoord, the Beta Reader for this fic. Getting to help out on this fic has been a big spot of positivity in my life, and it feels great to help Sleepy bring this story to life. I mainly act as the cleanup crew after Sleepy writes the chapters, going through to add some extra detail and flair when needed and correcting whatever mistakes may pop up. I do also provide suggestions for plot direction, but I see myself more as a support player in this. Getting to help a friend create a passion project on this scale is more than good enough for me.

I’m really glad that you all are enjoying it so far! I also post fanfic (though I haven’t posted anything new in a hot minute and don’t write for Persona) so check me out if you’re interested. Also don’t tell Sleepy I put an ad for my fics in her fic this can be our little secret.

 

And now, me rambling about art and character design for like 9 pages!

 

Goro Akechi

 

I’ve always adored Akech’s prince outfit. Even parts I didn’t like at first like his mask I’ve grown to really like. Especially since it makes him a bird. It’s taken me a lot of time to grow to like his Black Mask outfit, and a lot of it kinda comes to understanding it from the artbook. The more you think about it, the more you realize that this is totally what some 15 year old kid who’s on a revenge plot against his father would design. The stripes have a similar purpose to Loki in showing how he’s never really true to himself. 

So yeah I really like his designs, however I decided to change it. The main reason (and I don’t think I reveal this even in my prewriting and even when I do, it’s not a massive plot twist or anything) is I decided that Akechi never gained the two outfits when he awakened. It’s true he gained both Robin Hood and Loki at the same time, but I always got bugged on “which mask did he pull off” so I figured that at some point in time, likely after he started working for Shido (I have a pretty set time on the details but those will be a spoiler) the outfits split into the false prince sona, and the comically evil Black Mask sona. 

So for my design, I decided to combine the two, to take aspects of both Black Mask and the prince with the intent that those outfits would split into two. In a way, I’m writing Goro Akechi, but a version that’s so detached from the version we end up meeting, that I feel it’s an interesting way to showcase that at the moment, this is who Goro Akechi is. This is before he went off the deep end or fully managed to perfect his persona. This is a version that can still be saved . 

A lot of it was taking parts of each design I liked, so it comes across a lot that I took the prince outfit and added every Black Mask element I liked. So the belts, tattered sleeves and end of the pants, etc. 

I really ended up liking the mask, which does point far more downwards then both his canon masks mostly so he always looks like a bird and his expression is harder to make out. Also, this is my side rant, but I always was bothered by the colors each character is supposed to be. It’s very clear that each character has a “color” and that’s on their text icon, their gloves, etc. Ann is pink, Ren is red, Ryuji is yellow, Haru is purple, Yusuke is light blue, Futaba is yellow. Then you got Makoto, Akechi, Morgana, and Sumire. They bug me. Makoto’s gloves are white so why on earth is her color on her text icon dark blue? Yusuke is blue! Morgana also seems to be represented by that same blue color as Makoto? So I made the executive decision that Makoto’s official color is white, and that dark blue belongs to Morgana. Zenkichi also bothers me because his gloves are the pastel blue his text icon is set to be. Why Atlus why. 

 Akechi is going to be black. He should be black, he is the Black Mask after all. Which is why for my design since this is a “whole” Akechi, his gloves are black. I’m sure he’s happy about that. Which is strange because his text icon is like… tan or something. I guess it can also be gold because the gacha game, before someone’s special attack the loading screen is of that character’s color and Akechi’s is gold. 

 

My initial concept 

finalized concept 

chibi 

 

 

Kasumi Yoshizawa 

When I first started drafting Kasumi’s design, I knew right away to take inspo from Sumire’s beta design. So the heart-shaped titty window makes a return. I also knew right away that she was going to have her hair down. Simple reason is that I wanted her to reflect Sumire. Since she awakens after Sumire, she will get a lot of her inspiration from her sister, and I like the idea that they swap hairstyles because they both look up to each other in different ways really neat. When I first started writing Kasumi’s character, I found pretty quickly that we know little to nothing, and the little we did know, I didn’t exactly like. What I mean was the fake Kasumi we find to be Sumire. That character is meant to be overly perfect, it’s Sumire’s idealized version of Kasumi after all. So I kinda decided to dump that majority of that under “Sumire’s perfect version of Kasumi” and started from scratch aka the very little we actually do get to see of her. Which I can literally list right here. 

She sucks at cooking. 

Her gymnastics style is more bold than Sumire’s. 

She’s popular with others. 

She never realized Sumire’s struggles until Sumire broke. 

She would gladly put herself in harm’s way for Sumire. 

Which is both, nothing at all, but also a fantastic base to build off of. Basically I took all the traits and amped them up as high as I could. The end character that came out of it I ended up adoring a little too much haha. Like I don’t see myself being able to watch her death cutscene anytime soon because she’s no longer a means for a plot twist, she’s my darling. 

Which lemme get back to her design. On aspect I took from Sumire is that her first transformation is a full sailor moon magical girl transformation. Meanwhile her true awakening is much more classic. It made me think “what if she did that transformation at first because she knew that was what Kasumi would have wanted and once she was herself she had a more classic awakening. So that birthed the “Kasumi is the hardcore magical girl fan” thing that based off her wand and tutu. I wanna note that the tutu is two separate parts that come out at the sides that go slightly behind her. There’s no real reason I remember why I did this, most likely to make it easier for her to move. 

The rest of her costume is based off Sumire’s with some differences, of course her leotard now goes up to her neck, the collar is far more extreme, her shoulders are now exposed, instead of leggings and heels, her belt is a bundle of white ribbons over a chain, instead of short heels over stockings it’s just one super high up shoe, and her sleeves are far more simple (mostly because they’ll cutter the tutu). Also she got more bow motifs. 

I’m far more conservative with my colors compared to a lot of the official designs, preferring to use black and the accent color over any other color, which is gonna be the main way my designs differ from the official ones aside from being a bit more simple. Which is just kinda how I design, and while I wanted them to look as close to canon designs as possible (hence using beta art as much as possible for my designs) I still wanted something that appealed to me. 

Kasumi's initial concept 

Kasumi's finalized design 

Kasumi Chibi

Kasumi Nom

Now I think it’s pretty clear that Briar is meant to be a sleeping beauty, so I’ll go a little into her design. I have to shamefully confess that Persona designs are not my strong suit. And a shocking amount will likely hold similar ques to Briar as my attempts to make something Persona like. Similar to Kasumi and Sumire, I inspired Briar off Cendrillon, playing around with possibly the black skin before swapping over to the pale yellow. Things like the bow, the patterns on the skin, the design of the head shape, etc mostly came from Cendrillon. The huge spinning wheel like thing should be pretty clear, and I tried to make look as royal-like as possible. 

I do confess that any future original Personas breaks away from the “rebel” theme mostly because I failed to consider it when I was deciding it since it’s already pretty hard. You need to pick a mythological being that hasn’t been used before (back when I only played p5, I had no clue that Loki was actually used as the ultimate fool persona in p4, finding out that meant I very much could have reused past personas and boy was I pissed), then make sure that it both fit the character and has some form that was the “original” version for third awakening. Which is funny because I don’t think that is what the designers thought when designing the p5 personas because using a real person (Lucy) is very much uncommon and I’m going to confess, Hereward’s bio being what inspired Robin Hood is a theory at absolute best. From my research on just Robin Hood, which feel free to correct me if you find otherwise, there is very little mention of Hereward as a possible influence. However I don’t really get the privilege of making far stretches like that, so I have to take this stuff into account. Thankfully Sleeping Beauty is very much an old tale that it’s pretty easy to find a version that has a different name and can be used as inspo. If you want, you can make a guess on who her third tier could be in the comments. 

Briar initial concept 

Briar finalized concept

 

 

On a third note, Sumire.

 

Sumire Yoshizawa

You know how hard it is to write Sumire with Kasumi alive??? She is my personal best girl, my top second favorite character in the series, and god she relies so much on Joker and Kasumi’s death to work. The amount of drafting, talking with my beta, and redrafting it took me to finally get a version of her and an arc that made me happy was insane. Now I finally managed to figure out her overall role and what I want from her. 

As for her design, like I said, it’s very clearly meant to take inspiration from Joker, both in canon and from a design standpoint. She sees him as her view of rebellion, at least that’s how I see it. Of course that logically means I should redesign her like Akechi right? 

Well…I really like Sumire’s design. 

I was shocked to find so many people actually dislike Sumire’s design, because to me it’s perfect. The silhouette (which is something I’ve come to really value) is much better than some of the other thieves. The ruffles on the sleeves, the crop, the heels, I love all of it. I might also be a little biased, I cosplayed her. She was my first real cosplay, since the one I did before (Reze from Chainsaw Man) was just buying some basic stuff. Sumire, I went to Home Depot to buy a chain, thrifted a jacket that I cut to crop, then sewed on all the buttons and the ruffles at the end, and a lotta other stuff which basically means I have her design memorized.

nothing to do with the design, just proud of this art 

Wanted to complete the chibi set

 

 

Haru Okumura

 

Alright, for the final character who had any screen time in part one. Haru. 

 

Haha… 

So here’s the funny thing. When I started this fic, I drafted the whole plot in one doc, sending it over to my beta as I started writing. It was around halfway through my work that my beta messaged me “Hey, so like… this fic is Haru-centric too right? She doesn’t really do much at the start” which meant I rewrite the whole part two to include her more because dear lord was she right about the lack of Haru. 

I think the issue is that I simply didn’t account too much for her at the start of the fic compared to the latter parts where that draft was going to involve her. Of course I already had around two thirds of part one written by then so that’s where the interludes appear and my perfectly written plot is basically void. Which I’m not complaining about, I’m happy that my beta called that out and I went back to the drafting board on her and this is why I’m so happy I’ve both have a beta and did a lot of preplanning. Basically she went through a ton of changes while writing part one, but it was all sorted out by the time you guys are going to actually see her more. 

Now I can finally, finally promise, Haru will get her screen time. She will get a lot of screen time in part two and onwards and maybe I won’t be flagged for false advertising when I tagged it as Haru centric! 

Also if your wondering, I fully intended for Haru to have straight up pushed Akechi down the stairs at the start, one of the main parts of the concept was that, with the main issue being that I had no idea how she could get away with that, so the lip-gloss of plot has been created. 

the original part one opener 

Haru and Akechi promo 

 

extra gallery stuff 

Original part one closer

 

 

Sisters 

 

One of the first drafts of Kasumi’s. If you are wondering what her magical transformation is, it’s similar to Rena Minami from Madoka Magica record. Actually…yes if you're wondering, Sumire’s is sailor moon’s, and Akechi’s is a combo of all of Madoka Magica rebellion’s transformations. 

 

Just to let you know, there is nothing I can do in this fic to make you hate loki more than I did trying to draw him. So many stripes…

 

The original part two opener :)

 

Drafted these pretty early on, these outfits are non canon 

 

original part two closer, I still really like this one 

Before I went with the style I've went for, I tried this manga style for the closers, shockingly I don't hate it 

 

If you’re wondering, this outfit comes from one of the promo posters from Memento’s mission. At the banquet, he’s only wearing a cheap black rental suit he spent three days in Mementos grinding for. In the magical world of my art, he has a bit better taste

 

Anyways, that’s all for now, thank you all for reading so far (and sorry for not giving Haru screen time, I must abide by canon a little bit, dw will also add exclusive cute red girl and then an old sad man, then another god-like being they got to beat)

 

Feel free to comment any questions you want answered here (to the extent to what I can do), your comments generally make me the happiest so thank you for all the support!

 

Notes:

sorry this is super late, I went down with a code then had to add all of the images...

Chapter 15: Despicable, Cruel Cruel, People: Part I

Haru Okumura 

 

April 14th, 2014 

 

Three years. 

It took only three years for her father to develop a Palace. 

Three years for a person to completely change. Three years and she didn’t notice a thing. 

A three year descent that vanished the second her father witnessed the true nature of Masayoshi Shido. At least, that’s what Haru guessed after talking to Miyagawa. 

Despite the cruel nature of it all, it was quite ironic that Shido unknowingly lost one of his major players simply by showing his true self for a mere second. When the Phantom Thieves discussed him in the last timeline, they all came to the conclusion that he was nothing without Akechi and Yaldabaoth, a sentiment that’s proven even more true by the day.

It was just…three years. For that all to be broken so quickly. It made Haru sick. It made her upset. It made her angry . 

Haru sighed, brushing the thoughts out of her head as she looked over from her seat, watching as the students trickled into class. 

 

As she watched one Makoto Niijima sit across from her. 

 

The events of the past two and a half months had been so stressful that she had forgotten that she went to class with Makoto. The two of them weren’t friends or anything before they became Phantom Thieves, but they were friendly to one another. Throughout the past few days, she played it safe at first, carefully probing Makoto for information, hoping against hope that she would remember and she wouldn’t have to be alone anymore. Unfortunately, she didn’t seem to recall the future they shared together. She should have figured if anyone else remembered, that Futaba would have hacked her phone by now, or Ryuji would have marched up at her house without a care in the world. She had told herself it was a possibility and thought she was prepared for it, but the confirmation that she was completely alone stung so much more.

When Haru first saw Makoto she had to stop herself from rushing up to hug her. She missed her friendship with her and all of the Phantom Thieves so much. Yet it was all gone now, leaving her only with memories they didn’t share with her. So she tried to be friendly with Makoto, at least more so than she did in her original first year, but it didn’t seem to do much. Haru was always bad at making friends, both through her own struggles to relate to others and her father’s wealth making most people fear her. The Phantom Thieves were her first real friends that she made through Mona-chan, and without them, she wouldn’t know what she would do. 

Now she’s back to where she started, alone, and not knowing how to regain them. Well at least, she wasn’t completely clueless. The best hope she had was to try and match Makoto’s intelligence. She figured that maybe if she came across as a genuine and hardworking student, Makoto would feel less intimidated by her and more willing to hear her out. That meant she would have to try as hard as she could and take whatever advantages her leap back into the past offered her.

Alas those advantages seemed to be few and far between because she didn’t recall doing all that well her first year. 

She made a plan, she’ll use her knowledge of past tests and material to breeze through school, impress Makoto then use all her new freetime on her Metaverse activities. However, just as quickly as she made that plan, she realized just how much she overestimated her ability. The most she knew was the general topics of her classes and a few small pieces of trivia she had retained. Most of the material presented in class felt entirely new, which was both embarrassing and terrifying.

Haru stared down at the class’s textbook, trying her best to recall the material as she listened to the announcements from her teacher, Ms. Sugihara. “I’m sure you’ve all already heard through one rumor or another since you lot are a bunch of gossips, but we’re receiving a new student today,” Haru had been hearing rumors about a new student. It didn’t seem like anything big, likely another of the many minute details that had slipped through the cracks in her memory. 

She had the smallest hope that maybe Ren found a way to transfer over, but he was a grade lower than her and a person like Ren would undoubtedly get more attention from Kamoshida. She remembered how he always made a show of hazing new students when they came in, and the fact she hadn’t heard of that happening with this one made Haru wonder if he just didn’t care about this student or he wanted to wait till they made a fool of themselves before he could step in. Maybe the student is a girl, and he wanted her on his team for his own purposes. 

Kamoshida was undoubtedly going to be a problem, the biggest issue being that he was her only reference point to finding Mona-chan. She knew he was a menace and didn’t want him to hurt anyone, but she knew that his Palace was where Ren and the others first met Morgana. If she took down his Palace now, would she and Mona-chan ever reunite? She decided to play it safe for the moment and just keep him in check…for the next three years. Whether or not she could handle it was up in the air, but he doesn’t do anything too drastic until after Ren shows up. 

Or maybe he did and Haru didn’t know. It’s always hard to tell with types like Kamoshida. To those who didn’t know him well, he was loved and respected, even a heartthrob to some of the more obvious students. She could craft up a temporary solution to keep his Palace around while taming his behavior, but she might need to try elsewhere to see if that’s even possible. 

“Now would you please introduce yourself to the class,” Ms. Sugihara said, her words fading away in the background to Haru’s thoughts. 

That was going to be the hardest part. While Shido was still rising to power, Kamoshida was already at the height of his. He even thought he could get away with asking out Haru the second she walked in despite fully knowing her as an Okumura. Haru never flaunted her title, but she knew better than anyone that people saw her as a status symbol. Through both timelines, only men who saw themselves as higher than high would make their moves on her like the way Kamoshida did. 

At least he didn’t seem too interested after she rejected him, jumping over to his next target shortly after. The man was a monster with unchecked power, and finding a balance where he didn’t hurt anyone too severely while still keeping him in the picture seemed basically impossible.

Yet she didn’t want to be another idle witness to him this time. She didn’t want to watch Shiho jump off the building. She didn’t deserve that to happen to her, and Ann didn’t deserve to go through all that again. Perhaps if she took his attention instead… No, that would just cause more problems for her later on. 

“Isn’t he just gorgeous?” 

“I heard he’s here for the honors program.” 

“He’s gotta be pretty smart then.” 

“Heard his family’s loaded.” 

Could she risk not finding Morgana for the sake of taking down Kamoshida? Would Ryuji or Ann be able to awaken without him? That added a whole other set of problems. She didn’t want to put them through that suffering just for that. At the same time, she already accepted that if she were to get Makoto to awaken, it would have to be in a different way than in Kanashiro’s Palace. She already had enough issues of sending calling cards to business owners and live-in maids; She had no way of delivering one to Kaneshiro. 

“My name is Goro Akechi.” 

Haru snapped out of her thoughts, first believing that she just mishead or was hallucinating due to the stress of her situation. 

And yet, in front of the classroom was the new student everyone was fawning about, a young boy in a standard Shuji uniform, a black turtleneck, black gloves, and eyes in color that could only be comparable to dried blood.

Goro Akechi: the would-be murderer of her father and Shido’s bastard child and puppet, was standing in front of her. 

“I hope we can all get along!” He strengthened his posture, flashing a subtle smile that was as practiced as an actor’s smile before giving a polite bow and the teacher directed him to his seat. 

The students' whispers began to flood Haru’s ears, making it impossible to focus on the world around her. She thought she got rid of him. She thought she stopped him from meeting Shido and… 

She was an idiot.

Of course stopping him from meeting Shido would have greater consequences. Why Haru didn’t realize just how much it would have affected until now she didn’t know. Now how on earth did preventing that led to him showing up at Shujin Academy was also beyond her. Was his old foster home just close to Shujin? Did he get moved to another home within a month? 

No, the students said something about the honors program. If she thought this through, Akechi meeting with Shido would cause him to go to whatever school Shido wanted, or whatever program he was in that allowed him to skip school. Without Shido, Akechi would have gone to a different school, and he was always intelligent enough to make an honors program of a respected school.

No, there wasn’t a doubt about it.

Whatever she did led to him joining her school and her class. 

And seated right in front of her. 

Why whatever gods were out there decided to have the single open seat in the class be in front of Haru’s and next to Makotos was beyond her comprehension. Actually, no, she did know. Yaldabaoth is finally seeking revenge—that’s the only explanation. Or maybe it’s payback for causing his injury. She still felt a little bad about that. She just wanted to stop him, not almost kill him. 

Haru didn’t even pay attention to the rest of the lesson, her mind jumping into overdrive. Little piece of… Worst of all, Makoto was talking to him. Haru was almost ready to jump out of her desk and scream out a warning to her: That the person who is acting so friendly towards her is just putting on a mask to cover a massive jerk who is willing to murder people because of his father. 

She didn’t, though. If she started yelling about stuff from a future that hadn’t happened yet, there was no way anyone would take her seriously. Worst case scenario, she gets sent to the psych ward and that would be less than ideal for trying to save the world.

“Since you’re only a few days late there isn’t much to catch up on, but I can lend you my notes for the past few days,” Makoto explained as she gestured to the neatly organized books on her desk.

“Thank you, I’ve already been reading up on some subjects, but it would be useful to see the particular curriculum…” Akechi thanked her as his words slowly lowered, leading her to introduce herself. 

“Makoto Niijima,” she said with a polite smile.

“Right, thank you Nijma-san,” Akechi responded, giving back the same expression he received.

Calm face… She just needed to put on a calm face. In all the years of being her father’s puppet, taking everything that everyone said about her with a smile, and even dealing with her own stupid fiancé, she still had an easier time than she had right here. How was she expected to respond here, when the boy who would one day kill her father was sitting right in front of her? He tried to kill Ren in cold blood and get the rest of them arrested. How was she supposed to deal with him calmly or rationally? 

Akechi wasn’t a problem like Kamoshida. Even if she tried to take him again, spreading rumors about him or messing with him behind the scenes were dishonorable and didn’t feel good. Besides, she didn’t even know what his goal was. While she knew what he was like deep down, she saw that her actions had already changed the trajectory of his life. Maybe there was a one in a million chance she had changed things to where he wouldn’t be as big of a problem or a problem at all. Perhaps he was just an honor’s student who had no ties to Shido whatsoever. 

Still, she didn’t want him talking with Makoto at all. She had plenty of faith in Makoto that she wouldn’t fall for any of his tricks. It was just, Makoto didn’t know his true nature. She didn’t want her fooled. She didn’t want her to fall under his spell.

“Okumura! Just because you already have enough money to laze off and look down at us doesn’t mean you can in this classroom!” Ms. Sugihara called her out, slamming a ruler on her desk. 

Haru shot to attention and quietly apologized, placating her teacher enough for her to walk away. Now she remembered why she didn’t recall Makoto. She swapped homeroom teachers shortly after her father caught wind of Ms. Sugihara’s verbal abuse. Haru winced as both Akechi and Makoto looked behind her, their eyes laced with sympathy. 

Haru tried to pay attention to the rest of the lesson, saving her from the embarrassment of any more of Ms. Sugihara’s comments. She needed to stay in this class, not just to stay close to Makoto, but to keep watch of Akechi. She could even check to see if Ms.Sugihara was in the Metaverse to make things easier, but she was most likely just a Mementos target if anything. 

After class, Haru retreated to the rooftop, already asking permission from the school to begin gardening there like she did in the last timeline. While some teachers resented her for her background, at the very least, it made others more likely to do what she wanted. It was interesting to see principal Kobayakawa again, considering his previous fate. She never felt much for the man, however it still haunted Haru that he welcomed in his former killer with such open arms.

Former killer? Future killer…? Time travel was weird. 

That’s how he got into Shujin, according to the rumors. People stated that his parents must be pretty influential to get him in here at the last minute, sparking another round of rumors relating to who his family must be. Haru grew more interested in those rumors the more of them she heard, regretting her choice to not keep tabs on him personally through the last month. 

“Okumura-san?” Haru heard a voice from behind. She turned around, finding the boy in question at the doorway. He had a different air of confidence than she was used to. While he still stood straight, he didn’t have the aura of pride and superiority that she so vividly knew him for. 

“Yes?” Haru patted the dirt down on one of the seeds she was planting before facing him. By god, of all the people in the world, he was the last person she wanted to see.

Sure, she did sympathize with him. Sure, she knew that he likely hadn’t killed anyone in this timeline yet, but she had the right to not forgive him. Even knowing his situation, he was still the one who killed her father, and even now, he’s still the person that was willing to kill others for his own goals. 

“I wanted to see if you were alright, from today?” Akechi told her. Haru frowned, keeping her questions about his intent to herself. Haru put her hands to her back, hoping he wouldn’t notice her tugging on her rubber gloves. 

“Yes, I’m fine, thank you for worrying,” Haru nodded. She debated on saying more, but decided to wait for his response first.

“Teachers shouldn’t be saying things like that about their students. It’s improper,” Akechi frowned. “I wanted to bring it up to you before we address it to the Principal.” 

“We?” Haru repeated, confused.

Akechi nodded before explaining, “Niijima-san asked me to talk to you before she says anything. She was concerned about the teacher’s behavior and how you felt.” 

“Oh, you don’t have to do anything like that!” Haru gave a nervous chuckle and dismissed his concerns. Was Makoto always like this? Or was this Akechi’s idea? Either way, it could throw a wrench into her plans if they went through with this. Before she could properly think about what to say, she blurted out, “If anyone we should be worrying about, it’s Kamoshida.” 

“Kamoshida?” Akechi repeated. Haru’s eyes widened as she realized her mistake and prepared to take her words back, but he spoke first, commenting, “Is that related to the rumors of him abusing students?” 

He already knew? He literally just got here but he already knew? Well… it did make sense. False cases or not, he was still a Detective, doing some digging around the teachers and the rumors fit him. It just made things even harder for her.

Not getting any response, Akechi frowned. “Has Kamoshida done anything to you?” Akechi stepped forward, false concern lacing his features. 

“No! Everything is fine,” Haru said a tad too quickly. She couldn’t have Akechi trying to deal with Kamoshida’s Palace. She couldn’t have anyone deal with Kamoshida until…the next two years before Ren shows up. If there’s no Kamoshida, then no Mona-chan, and Ann, Ryuji, and Ren can’t awaken. 

But Shiho wouldn’t jump off the school rooftop either. 

Haru was desperate to get out of the situation. A few days in school and she was already failing. Akechi was in her school, and he managed to become closer to Makoto in an hour than she could in a week, and she hadn’t made much progress in taking down Shido. 

She really needed to get away and just be alone. Gardening didn’t work. She still felt the fear and anxiety of the world, despite the plants best efforts. She couldn’t talk about it at home either. Her father would never believe her, even if he hadn’t grown into the bitter and hateful man who she saw killed. Haru rushed away from Akechi, throwing off her gloves and scrambling down the steps before finally leaving the building. She stopped in a lonely alley a ways away from the students coming in and out of the building. 

She just needed something to calm down. She needed a place where she couldn’t be followed. She pulled out her phone and fiddled with the buttons, starting up a familiar process.

“Suguru Kamoshida, Shujin Academy, castle…” she muttered into her phone’s speaker then watched as her vision filled with those familiar blacks and reds, relishing in the comforting vertigo before finding herself right at the entrance of Kamoshida’s castle. 

She took in the sights, surprised at how it differed from what she imagined. Ren, Mona-chan, Ryuji, and Ann had changed Kamoshida’s heart long before she joined the Phantom Thieves, so all she knew about it was what the others told her. If three newly awakened people could traverse the Palace, then surely someone with more experience can at least afford to walk around and smash a couple things. Akechi did it all the time. Sure, he had two Personas, and he was used to working by himself. Meanwhile, Haru was used to relying on a team and hadn’t actually explored a Palace by herself before… 

No, she needed to just stop thinking for the moment. 

Haru stared down at her outfit, confirming her suspicions. She was still in her Shujin uniform, so Kamoshida didn’t see her as a threat yet. Obviously that wouldn’t last for long, but it was nice to take notes on this stuff now that she was working alone. Haru marched towards the entrance with confidence, finding a hidden entrance and sneaking in. She then slinked around through the darkness, stopping upon seeing her first Shadow and leaping out to fight it, tearing off its mask.

The first Shadow barely knew what hit it before it fell. Haru could already feel her worries ease away with the blow, just one wasn’t good enough for her, so she kept at it, tearing through the Palace and taking down every Shadow in her path. She found only one Shadow that repelled her psy attacks, but it went down just as fast to a gunshot from Astarte. She could swear she had taken down at least twenty Shadows before finally stopping to rest in the nearest safe room. 

“You know…this is a much better stress reliever than chopping wood ever was!” Haru stated to no one in particular as she brushed a bead of sweat off her forehead. She continued to head through the Palace, only realizing she processed no healing items in her arsenal when she reached the second safe room. She already knew she couldn’t clear the entire Palace, but she had been hoping she could go ahead and explore it all. Though accomplishing all that in one day had fallen through, she could still register all the safe rooms she could in preparation for the day she finally did take Kamoshida down.

It was good she managed to start up her garden already. Back when she first started working with the Phantom Thieves, Ren would always give requests on what to bring to the Metaverse. Her vegetables having strong effects for the team helped to make up for the less than stellar taste. 

After spending an hour or two tearing the Palace apart, she decided to call it a day and head back to the real world. She made a lot of progress in a relatively short amount of time, and she didn’t have to deal with anyone following her in. She heard all about how most of the original Phantom Thieves ended up wandering into a Palace by accident.. Now that she thought about it, it was possible to leave someone in a Palace. All she had to do was get rid of their phone after dragging them inside... 

Haru brushed those thoughts aside, ignoring the temptation of luring Shido in a Palace and trapping him. She had to be above behavior like that no matter how easy of a solution it seemed. 

Once she got home, Haru sighed, almost throwing her bags to the couch as she started to prepare some coffee on the counter. During one of their talks, Haru learned that her father preferred coffee over tea, so Haru had offered to try out some different types of beans each day. That way, they would have something to talk about each night, and they could both come up with future ideas for the company. She did still recall her training with Sojiro and how he had offered to teach her. She would have to head back to LeBlanc sometime and say hello. 

Haru didn’t want to take over Okumura foods. That hadn’t changed in her trip back to the past. She still dreamt of her little cafe, one that she and all her friends could hang out in. She wanted to bring it up with her father, yet with his future still on the forefront of her mind, she chose to keep those feelings to herself. 

If only Mona-chan or Ren were here. Mona-chan was probably somewhere hopping through Palaces, and Ren was still living in his small town, far away from Tokyo. 

Ren was so easy to talk to... He would listen to all of Haru’s worries and knew exactly what to say to calm her down. 

At some point after first arriving in the past, Haru came up with a game called “What would Ren say?”, which involved Haru talking to herself and putting on a poor Ren impression to answer her questions. 

She missed the Phantom Thieves a lot. Going through Kamoshida’s Palace like a psycho axe murderer was fun, but it just reminded her how lonely she was. If she were to reform the Phantom Thieves, she would likely be taking on the role of Morgana, having far more knowledge of the Metaverse than the rest and acting as a guide. That could possibly lead to her taking on the role of a leader as well, and she wasn’t sure how good at that she would be.

Haru stepped aside for a moment, pulling out a small pen pad while she prepared the coffee. She had been meaning to draft an official game plan for a while now, and she figured now was as good a time as any.

Priority one: her father. 

He didn’t have a Palace right now, but he could develop one soon if she wasn’t careful. Miyagawa had a Shadow in Mementos just because he opposed Shido, and based on his mental shutdown in the future, Shido will find out about it eventually. That reminded Haru that she still had to send a calling card and change his heart. She also wanted to check up on Jose. 

Priority two: Goro Akechi. 

She wanted him out of her life. She wanted to know why he was even in her life. She wanted to know why the universe was so insistent on having him show up at her school.

With a sharp exhale, Haru sank her head down. She had to clear her mind and go back to the basics. What did she know about Akechi in the last timeline?

He was Shido’s bastard son. 

He was the detective prince who caused the majority of the crimes he solved by becoming Black Mask. 

He killed Wakaba Isshiki, who was presumably one of his first targets. 

He killed her father. 

He tried to kill Ren. 

Haru shut her eyes. None of that really helped her since it hasn’t happened, and hopefully will never happen. She didn’t even know if he is Black Mask right now, only that he was likely in the Metaverse causing some psychotic breakdowns. 

Akechi was also a hard worker. 

Akechi was obsessed with appearances. 

Haru frowned. 

Akechi might’ve had self-loathing issues. At the same time he had a massive ego. 

He was goal obsessed. 

He believed the ends justifies the means. 

He was delusional in some aspects but also extremely intelligent.

He had two Personas. 

None of this was helpful in the slightest. She needed to know what Akechi’s deal was in 2014, not 2017. 

Akechi was still Shido’s bastard son. He had (most likely has, she had no way of knowing until she has proof) Metaverse abilities and could create psychotic breakdowns. Akechi had no issues with killing but his hands are most likely clean. Akechi was a hard-worker and intelligent, someone that would clearly attract Makoto’s attention. He was obsessed with appearances, so it was unlikely she was going to get him to break. 

Haru pictured Ren in her head, taking a sip of coffee at the counter with his trademark grin. 

“If we have an opportunity to save him, then we should take it. Even you agreed he was just another victim at the end of the day.” 

She bit her lip and did her best to move on to the next topic. Akechi was just…difficult to think about. She could worry about him some other time. He wasn’t an immediate threat. 

Priority three: Makoto and the other Phantom Thieves. 

She probably wouldn’t be able to make contact with most of her friends until next year unless she could find an excuse to cross their paths. For some, like Futaba, that would be easy. She could just go to LeBlanc semi-frequently. For others, like Ren, it would be next to impossible. For now she should play it safe and try to make contact with Makoto. She was immediately available, and her knowledge and skill would be a big help. Haru took a deep breath. It wasn’t so bad. She became friends with Makoto before, so she can become friends with her here. She knew all the things she liked, anyway. 

“Haru, I’m home,” Haru’s thoughts were interrupted by her father’s call. 

“Yes father!” Haru called back, taking out the coffee and pouring it in a cup. Her father looked more tired than usual, throwing off his jacket before sitting on the couch. 

“You look unwell. Is everything at work going alright?” Haru asked, placing the cup of coffee on the coffee-table before sitting next to him. 

“It’s fine, just busy, how was school?” he replied before asking, turning to her with a smile.

“We got a transfer student,” Haru described. 

“Ah, anyone interesting?” her father inquired.

“Someone in the honors program,” she explained, looking down at the floor with a grave expression. “I… I don’t know what to think about him.” 

“Hmm… Have you had any luck with making friends?” he asked, making a guess about what was troubling her.

“So far not really,” Haru laughed a little. She did make a few friends in her first year last time. Most of them naturally drifted away from her, and by the time of her third year, she was comfortably alone. She didn’t have any real intention of rekindling those friendships. They were just another distraction from all her main priorities. Still, she appreciated her father’s concern for her.

Perhaps she should at least try to gain some other acquaintances and keep things more similar to the last timeline. She didn’t want a situation where her minor changes become a problem when her major ones are already one. 

“I’m sure you’ll find some people, I can’t imagine someone not wanting to be friends with you,” her father teased and ruffled her hair. “Also, before you even think about it, no boys.” 

Haru giggled a little. At least she didn’t have to worry about her father trying to get her closer with Akechi. It was hard to imagine that this was the man who set her up in an arranged marriage. She refused to let her father become that man again. She couldn't let that happen. She gently pushed his hand away and told him, “I promise.” 

There was a brief moment of silence before she decided to bring up something to him. “Though,I am having one problem… There’s someone I really want to talk to…but I just don’t know how to.” 

It was hard to articulate, wanting to become friends with someone because she was friends with her in another timeline, especially someone so different from her. The more Haru thought about it, if it wasn’t for her saving Mona-chan and him bringing her into the Phantom Thieves, she likely never would’ve been friends with any of them. Makoto was seen as stuck up, Ryuji was the school thug, Ann and Ren were swimming in bad rumors, and Futaba and Yusuke didn’t even go to Shujin. 

“Hmm, how about you invite her out somewhere? That’s what we did when I was a child,” her father suggested. “I met most of my friends at a small underground concert. In fact, it was one of my old band-mates that introduced me to your mother.” 

“You were in a band?!” Haru shot up, surprised at the casual reveal of this piece of her father’s past.

“Well…it was more or less just a silly thing we did. But don’t underestimate your old man on the bass,” he chuckled, miming an air guitar to accentuate his ‘radical bass skills.’

Haru could only stare at him in shock. Clearly she still had a lot to learn about the man. 

“You’ll have to play someday!” Haru suggested with a little too much eagerness. 

“Maybe if I can call them up. I haven’t checked on what they’ve been doing in a while. It could be fun to get the band back together,” her father said, looking away as he reminisced. Haru nodded. It was a good idea to invite Makoto out somewhere. She was quite stingy on schoolwork… An underground concert might not be her thing. She could ask her to help her study. That could certainly grab her attention but it might not give her a good first impression. Makoto did like Chinatown. Ren talked about taking her there once. 

An idea sparked in her head. That idea slowly formed into a plan as her father started to take the cup of coffee. It was one of the imported beans she ordered online. They both spent the evening together, enjoying each other’s company. 

Notes:

See! I told you floofy will have her screentime!

Chapter 16: Despicable, Cruel Cruel, People: Part II

Goro Akechi 

 

April 26th, 2014 

 

“There is little information about him—only that he’s known as ‘The Gentleman.’” Goro, described, pushing forward a candid photograph from his suitcase  to the Yoshizawa sisters. “He’s believed to be the owner of a small nightclub called Lady’s First in Shinjuku.” 

“Shinjuku… You mean the red-light district?” Kasumi asked, the surprise managing to get her to stop drinking her tea for a moment (it was actually her third since they arrived, but they were taking it off the menu, so she said she was justified in getting so much). 

It was morning, the trio decided to meet up at the cafe after the Yoshizawa sisters’ practice was unexpectedly canceled. Goro nodded, putting the photograph on the table next to his plate. The cafe in question was certainly a hidden gem, while not as good as Sumire’s cooking, their pastries had its own homemade charm that was semi enjoyable to try. 

Rolling his eyes, Goro tapped his finger on the photo and affirmed, “Exactly, and he’s our next target.” 

The two sisters looked at each other, seemingly having a conversion with their eyes alone. They weren’t twins, Goro had a suspicion that maybe the twin telepathy still worked for any two siblings born within a twelve month period. Of course most logical people wouldn’t assume things like that but Goro’s perceptions of what was and wasn’t possible had been thoroughly shattered by the Metaverse a while ago. 

 Looking back at the photograph, Goro focused back on the mysterious man. He had already planned to take down The Gentleman long before he met the Yoshizawa sisters, the original plan being taking him down after connecting with Shido as a great way to prove his worth. Instead, he had to bump him up the list to present to the Yoshizawa sisters. There were a couple reasons, mostly pertaining to keeping them satisfied while he figured out how to slip away and get back to his original plan. 

There was no way for Goro to tell the two that he wasn’t going to work with them without sounding like an absolute dick. Sure, they already told him he’s rude, and coming across as an asshole might help get Shinichi to kick him out, but he didn’t find it practical to be rude to anyone who truly didn’t deserve it for no reason. He was never keen on unnecessary harm when the people didn’t deserve it. 

It was annoying how they didn’t give him any time to rest, though. He thought he could take the month to relax and figure out where to go from here while the girls rode the high of taking down Sako, but they just wouldn’t leave him alone. Every day it was “what are we doing today?” “Have you found a new target?” “Look at this guy, he’s the perfect target!” He already told them he needed time, but they wouldn’t let up. He let them tag along for Sako’s Palace, and even played into their silly group idea. Couldn’t they let him have some peace and quiet? 

He honestly had no idea why he decided to go along with teaming up with them. Was it really just to get Loki to shut up? All he was doing was building them both up for more disappointment after Shinichi decides he wasn't worth the investment and transfers him to another home. If anything, Goro was mostly disappointed in himself for taking so long to come back to his senses and indulging in their tomfoolery for so long.

So instead, here he was, presenting one of his most dangerous planned targets who happened to be located in the middle of a red-light district. For two sheltered girls like the Yoshizawa sisters, it’s the perfect way to show them the reality of the work he does. As soon as they got a taste of the reality of what they were getting themselves into, they would turn tail and let him get back on track.

Goro knew Shinjuku decently well; His mother worked there for her less than savory jobs she failed to hide him away from. She used to bring him there, letting him wander the streets until he found himself at a bar and the owner scolded his mother for leaving him alone. Goro thought about the bar owner fairly often, he saw how she took pity on his mother after she was done scolding her for leaving him. She was remarkably kind, sometimes coming to their house to talk with his mother and giving small treats to him. He had been to Shinjuku plenty since, but Loki always kept him on track, not letting him take any detours. 

“So how did you find out he’s a target without a name?” Sumire asked, snapping him out of his thoughts. Goro pulled out his phone, showing the Meta-Nav. 

He casually pulled out his phone, opening up the Meta-Nav as he described, “When you want to find a target, you have to put the target into the Nav. Then it would tell you if they process a Shadow and follow up with how many keywords you need to add on.” 

With a sigh, Kasumi repeated, “Yeah, we get it. If it’s three, then it’s a Palace. If it’s two, it’s Mementos. You still haven’t told us how you discovered that…” 

“All will be revealed in due time,” Goro pivoted, trying his best to avoid bringing that discussion up. If they learned the story behind that discovery, they would never let him live it down. He only briefly gave them the details of Mementos, mostly after the girls started spouting name after name and believing they got valuable hits. “However, a little known fact about the Nav is that you can enter keywords in any order. For example, Lady’s First,” Goro grinned, waiting for that familiar voice to punctuate his grand reveal. 

“Candidate found,” the Nav declared with an accompanying ding. 

“Wow! Is this how you usually find targets?” Kasumi beamed, leaning so close to the phone screen that it made it hard to see. 

Shaking his head, he summarized, “Occasionally, but it’s too impractical in most cases. it’s too vague to give any real intonation of who it would belong to when they are more populated. For example, Shujin Academy has, at minimum, three different Palaces.” 

“Three!?” Sumire exclaimed, almost falling out of her chair after recoiling from the shock. “How many bad people could be there?” 

“I can not say,” Goro admitted with a shrug. “It could be students, teachers, janitors—anyone could create a Palace if their desires are twisted enough, but I digress…”  He wanted to make sure they stayed on topic and didn’t go off looking for Palaces at places close to home. He made sure to leave out that Shujin had a relatively small number from what he’d seen. Kowareta had twelve, and he didn’t even bother to count all of the ones in places like the diet building. “I suspect The Gentleman is the owner of this Palace for two reasons: He is undoubtedly the highest power present, a commonality between palace rulers, and…” Goro paused to take a deep breath, praying that they wouldn’t make a scene. 

“After looking into the case, I suspect that Lady’s First is a front for a possible sex trafficking scheme.” Goro narrowed his eyes, watching the two’s reactions. Both girls took a moment to properly process the words, Sumire even quietly repeating the words before reacting. 

“That’s terrible!” Sumire yelled, only quieting down when Goro practically leaped over the table to force her down into her seat. She looked over to her sister before looking back at him, giving an obvious follow-up a little faster than Goro planned. “How did you find out about him?”

Thankfully that Kasumi somehow managed to stay quiet, he recounted, “What originally got me suspicious was the discovery of a body identified as Bunko Seto, a worker at Lady’s First. The case was declared death by suicide with no further details, so I asked around in the area and found that Bunko would often lead young, drunk, women to the back of the bar under the guise of helping them, but none of them would return.” 

Both Kasumi and Sumire were looking away from him now, trying to process things on their own. He couldn’t deny that the case wasn’t horrific, where even the victim seemed guilty of an even bigger conspiracy. That’s what made it perfect to scare off the sisters. If Goro was honest with himself, he would rather be trying to work through those three Shujin Palaces. They would be easy to enter by comparison. He didn’t even have to put Kamoshida’s name in to know he had one. 

“Wait, you went to Shinjuku and just asked people about a possible human trafficking case? Isn’t that super dangerous?” Kasumi crossed her arms. Goro was taken aback, surprised they hadn’t realized. He was almost worried how they would feel once he brought attention that someone had to have taken that photo in front of them. They were so naive that it was almost comical.

“Rest assured, from what I’ve seen, Lady’s First only targets young women. To them, I’m just some street trash barely worth a glance,” Goro laughed before quickly adding on, “If we were to infiltrate the bar, I assure you that you will both stay at a safe distance. I have no intention of either of you getting hurt.” 

He wanted them to be scared of the mission, not of him. Getting kicked out of a home was far different then being sent to prison for being suspected of trying to sell young girls to a sex trafficker. Admittedly this was risky, but it was the fastest way to get what he wanted.

“Still… that’s really dangerous,” Kasumi muttered, the passion and excitement she had exhibited just a few minutes ago completely gone.

“If you want to find the truth of a case, you’re going to have to take risks, Kasumi-san,” Goro maintained. “We already have the first keyword. All that we have to do is get The Gentleman’s name. Then, with a little guessing, we will be able to enter the Palace.” 

“But we’ll still need to go back to Shinjuku every time we want to enter it,” Sumire protested. 

Goro put a hand in front of his mouth, acting as a shield so he wouldn’t break character. This was going perfectly. They were both terrified. 

“And how can we tell it’s The Gentleman that’s the ruler?” She followed up. 

“I’ve tried every other regular and staff member I can find and haven’t gotten any matches. Even if you ignore how he’s on top of the food chain, process of elimination leaves him as the only option,” Goro pinched the bridge of his nose as he tried to explain that this was the only way forward. “And besides, there are other places close to Lady’s First we can hide out at while we explore the Palace. Their whole scheme relies on being inconspicuous, and raiding a neighboring business to get to us would draw too much attention.” 

Kasumi frowned as she looked down at her food, taking a big bite out of a pancake to distract herself. It was her second plate, which Goro did his best to refrain from commenting on. Goro knew that if he tried to tell them he would have rathered her eat anything else, she would ask why, and Goro wouldn’t be able to explain, and on and on until they get too off topic to ever get anything done. 

Kasumi looked up at him, narrowing her eyes before sighing, “Ok, fine. Now how exactly do you, a fifteen-year old boy, plan to find the identity of this super dangerous human trafficker at a bar in the red light district?” 

“Huh?” Goro stuttered. Kasumi grinned, proud of how she managed to catch him off guard. 

Fully taking advantage of the opportunity, she leaned forward and teased, “What, you're gonna crossdress? Hmm… I guess you haven’t hit puberty yet, so maybe you could pass off as a young woman instead of a little boy.” 

Goro felt the heat rise in his face. “I-I don’t plan to make myself a target!” he stuttered, trying his best to prevent any further questioning of his masculinity. 

Instead, Kasumi responded by flicking her hair back, rolling her eyes back to her head and doing her best Goro impression. “Oh, look at me! My name is Goro-chan! Please lead me to my doom, Gentleman-senpai!” Kasumi put on a mocking expression, struggling to hold back laughter as she played the role of this caricature. Sumire wasn’t helping at all, hiding her laughter with her hand. Kasumi continued, “I’ll be ok because I can fight you with my toy gun ,” 

“Y-You’re using a toy too!” 

“And I’m not putting on a hero complex to jump into danger, am I?” 

“Oh I’m the one with the hero complex? That’s laughable coming from you. How many times have I jumped into the Metaverse with no plan or means of fighting?” Goro stood up, slamming his palms on the table. 

“I dunno, care to inform us?” Kasumi leaned forward, resting her hand on her chin and showcasing a massive smirk. “I am a pretty new member of the team after all,” 

“Guys…” Sumire cried, snapping the two out of their argument. Goro quickly sat back down, feeling his face heat up as Sumire cleared her throat. “Personally, I agree with Kasumi. It’s too dangerous to enter the bar.” 

“That’s fine,” Goro insisted as he shut his eyes, still trying to recollect himself. He needed to get back to his usual state of calm. Losing his cool like that would only cause more problems in the long run. “I understand if you two choose to step away from-”

“What are you on about us?” Kasumi sneered, the earlier dread having fully receded by this point. “Didn’t you listen to a thing Sumire just said?” 

“I- I beg your pardon?” Goro stammered. Both girls looked back at each other before looking at him, completely serious. 

“Akechi-san, we’re not worried about ourselves, we’re worried about you,” Sumire calmly told him. 

This was not how the plan was supposed to go. This was not how they were supposed to act. 

“As… As I said before, I do not believe that The Gentleman would consider me a threat, much less a target.”

“Yeah, but they can still do something to you…” Kasumi tried to explain. “Listen, I’m not opposed to the plan. Far from it. But we need a different approach if we want to get The Gentleman’s name.” She leaned back in her seat and took a bite out of one of her many crepes. Goro took a double take, wondering when she had the time to order that much more. 

“I rest assure-” 

“No buts! I don’t want to hear another word from you about this!” Kasumi declared, shaking her head. “We’re going to scout this place out together, and we’re going to come up with a new, safer plan.”

No, this was not how things were supposed to go. Goro looked between the two sisters, recognizing the fire and determination in their eyes. He made a mistake. He should have tried to play up the danger more. He should’ve focused more on how this was dangerous to them specifically. 

Where did he make a mistake? Was he too soft on them? Why did they care so much about what happened to him?

“You’re not…worried?” Goro managed to utter after a few seconds of flustered silence.

“Come on, we’ve dealt with plenty of weird stuff before,” Kasumi reminded him. “Well… I mean, what in Shinjuku can beat out what we’ve seen in Sako’s Palace?”

Goro bit his lip. That was a decent point. 

“And what’s happening to those girls… If that’s true, I want to help them,” Sumire continued. “It’s in our name: Justice’s Truth. You were the one to suggest it, even. If we have the power to change things and help the victims of this man, we have to help.” 

She was really using the stupid name he came up with. He shouldn’t have gone along with them. What was he thinking back then? They shouldn’t be acting like this. Any other of his foster siblings would have gone running for the hills the second they heard about sex trafficking, but instead these two were more committed, their only worries being about him . 

“I suppose…” Goro said, not knowing what he could say to get them to back off. 

“Then it’s decided! Let’s head over now!” Kasumi declared, shoving the rest of the crepe in her mouth. 

“Now?!” Sumire cried. 

“Yeah, there’s plenty of time, and there’s not much to do since practice was canceled,” Kasumi shrugged. Goro was barely able to stutter out a response to her, she was so reckless. 

“Shinjuku is certainly calmer during the day,” Goro reluctantly agreed, figuring it would be best to just go along with what they wanted while he tried to come up with a new plan on the fly. “Perhaps we could at least scout the area, getting a lay of the land and finding a place to hide out…”  

With that decided, they all finished their food before leaving, or at least, Goro did while the sisters went on with a third order. If Goro ever wanted to become a detective, his first case would be trying to solve the case of their bottomless stomachs. 

Arriving at Shinjuku was more nerve-racking than Goro wanted it to be. Normally he would’ve been fine blending into the background, but with the two little princesses behind him, he knew today was going to be a challenge. Sure, it wasn’t uncommon for some highschoolers to wander around, but the Yoshizawa sisters were preteens at best. Combined with their reckless nature, Goro’s anxieties surrounding the situation were reaching dangerous levels. He actually dreamed of retreating to the attic and screaming into his pillow, or having Loki cast an amnesia spell on them and force them to see him as just a strange foster kid that they didn’t want in their house anymore. 

“So this is Shinjuku…” Kasumi commented as she took the place in.

“For a red-light district, there seems to be a lot of regular people here, and a lot of tourists too,” Sumire noted. 

Goro looked around, finding the streets a lot cleaner then he last remembered. “There have been a couple of cleanup operations as of late for the sake of attracting tourists,” Goro explained. “They even added a couple cafes and convenience stories.” He pointed over to a cafe as they passed by, watching a worker leave through the back to throw out garbage. 

As soon as the door shut, the trio saw the dumpster start rattling, some force from inside trying to force the lid open.

“A ghost!” Sumire yelped, jumping behind Goro for protection. 

Goro was not even going to entertain that idea with a response.

Out of curiosity, and a light nudging from Robin Hood of all things, Goro approached the dumpster, slowly lifting the lid.

In front of him were two golden eyes that shined unnaturally compared to the rest of the trash around it. Goro fully flipped the lid over, letting sunlight drape over what turned out to just be a small tanuki. 

“How cute!” Sumire beamed, running over to join Goro in inspecting the creature. The tanuki looked up at the trio, slowly hopping out of the dumpster and stretching its legs like a small dog. Goro felt a little inclined to agree with Sumire’s assessment, watching the animal rush across the lid and closer to Goro, as if it were studying his features. 

“You’re free. Don’t go falling in there again,” Goro scolded, a small grin forming on his face before the tanuki made a chirping noise and jumped away. He didn’t want to admit to having a soft spot for animals like that, especially when they get into bad situations they can’t escape from while everyone else stood by and watched idly. 

He thought it would just be a nice distraction, but it prompted the next topic of discussion that the girls would not let him go a day without hearing. Kasumi slammed her fist into her open palm and declared, “Oh, I know! We should get a mascot!”

“A mascot?” Sumire inquired.

Nodding emphatically, Kasumi waved her arms around wildly and explained, “All the best magical girl teams have a cute mascot! We should have one!”

“We are not a magical girl team,” Goro deadpanned, trying to stamp out the flame. 

Kasumi scoffed. “We are young teenagers who process magical powers to do hero work, basically the textbook definition of a magical girl!” 

Goro could only stutter, his mind racing to try to find out ways to shut her down. It didn’t help that her Metaverse outfit was a textbook frilly magical girl minus her hair changing colors. 

Pouting, Kasumi continued, “Come on! It’ll be fun! Hey, maybe if we believe hard enough, it’ll come alive in the Metaverse!” 

“Are you talking about an animal or a plushie?” Sumire inquired. 

Thankfully they’ve arrived at Lady’s First was enough to get them to drop this idiotic topic for the moment. The bar wasn’t massive by any stretch of the word, but comparing its sense of style to Kowareta was like night and day. All around it were flashing neon signs showcasing the operating hours and menu. Goro walked up in front of it, analyzing the place which despite its vivid exterior, didn't seem any more special than any other bar.

“It looks like it’s still closed,” Kasumi commented, squinting her eyes to try to see one of the signs that was furthest away.

“Yeah, it's not best for us to wait out here…” Sumire said. “Is there anywhere we could sit around and wait?” 

“Hmm… Oh that place is open!” Kasumi looked around, pointing at a seemingly random bar—one that caused Goro’s heart to skip a beat. 

“Isn’t that a bar?” Sumire asked. “It doesn’t really solve our problem.”

“I recognize the name of that place.” Kasumi began, already walking over to the bar and forcing the others to come along. “Don’t you remember Himiko-chan? She said her older sister would hang out here all the time,” she explained, practically forgetting Goro was there with how she didn’t bother explaining the context. 

He had to come up with a way to divert them. He couldn’t go in there. Not with these two. He would rather risk breaking into The Gentleman’s establishment than enter that place with these two. 

“Oh… right! I remember now! Apparently the owner is super nice to kids, letting them hang around so they don’t get in trouble,” Sumire recalled before turning to Goro. “Are you ok with that? We’re kinda jumping the gun on this, aren’t we.” 

He couldn’t say no. He had no escape. Goro quickly plastered on a fake smile and resigned himself, “It’s alright to me.” ‘

You’re a fool for continuing to entertain these fools, this is your own fault. 

Sealing his fate, the sisters led the way towards the all too familiar bar from his past. Why was it that whenever he started thinking of something from his past it forced its way back into his life? He retracted any prayers he had given to whatever gods were out there for their cruel sense of irony.

“Welcome…” the bartender greeted as soon as she heard the bell that signalled the door opening. Her introduction died almost as soon as it started once turned her head over, staring down at all three of them. With a tired expression, she cut them off before they could say anything and asked, “Are any of you old enough to be here?” 

“I… uhhhhhjjjaaaum…” 

“I’m a mom!” 

Throwing himself into the sex trafficking bar seemed better and better by the second. 

The bartender’s eyes stopped once they landed on him. She paused for a moment as she recalled something, then lit up as a spark of recognition flashed in her eyes. “Is that you, Goro-chan? My, you’ve grown so much since I last saw you.” 

The second Lala Escargot finished speaking, both sisters turned their heads to him, letting out a synchronized cry in disbelief. “Goro-chan!?” 

And there is just why he didn’t want to be here with these two. 

“Hello… Escargot-san…” Goro muttered, giving her a polite bow. 

“Oh…is this…some some kid of yours, Lala-chan? I didn’t…know you were a mother!” one of the two drunk women sitting at the bar, shouted, not even able to finish a sentence before hiccupping. Goro took a moment to look them over. They looked to be young, but the fact they were actually drinking was proof enough they were adults. One had a camera… Perhaps they were off shift reporters? Goro took a deep breath, taking a seat at the bar while the Yoshizawa sisters followed, rushing through the process of figuring out how to speak to Lala after so long. 

“And who are these young ladies?” Lala walked over, already pouring some non-alcoholic drinks for the trio. Goro stared into the liquid, still trying to get settled in its glass. It looked just like a peach drink that she served him many years ago, he recalled liking it. 

“We’re his sisters!” Kasumi chimed in, snapping him out of his thoughts.

“This is Kasumi and Sumire Yoshizawa. They are the daughters of the household in which I’m staying,” Goro quickly corrected. 

Lala gave him a look before crossing her arms. “And what brings you three to the middle of Shinjuku? I highly doubt that it was to pay me a visit,” Lala asked, laughing a bit at her own joke at the end. “I sure hope you aren’t getting yourself into trouble again.” 

“Nothing of the sort Escargot-san!” Goro chuckled, falling back into old habits the longer he spoke with her. “It’s actually quite funny. I was talking a little about my childhood with Sumire-san and Kasumi-san and we happen to be in the area,” Goro explained, quickly spinning a lie together. Even with his history with Lala, he was certain she wouldn’t believe him if she told her about their plan to invade the mind of the head of a sex trafficking ring.

“Ah! Well that’s nice. Make yourself at home, then,” Lala nodded, giving them a bright smile before heading over to wash out some glasses. “And don’t mind those two, they don’t hurt,” she nudged over at the two drunken women. They were busy rambling to one another about a “new scoop.”

He just needed to survive until Lady’s First opened. Then he could get The Gentleman’s name. 

He hated this, he really hated this. He shouldn’t have come back here. He liked Lala, but everytime he thought of her, it didn’t take long before more memories came rushing back… 

“Oh you poor child. How long have you been in there?” 

Goro looked down at his drink, taking a small slip of it. He thought back to when he met Lala, how he thought she was so scary. She didn’t appear to have aged at all, now that he saw her again. It was strangely comforting, of the same type as he felt almost ten years ago. He quickly tried to hide that feeling again. 

Notes:

any of you watch the direct? I'm buying switch 2 on launch now

Chapter 17: Despicable, Cruel Cruel, People: Part III

Sumire Yoshizawa 

 

April 26th, 2014 

Akechi wasn’t nearly as clever as he thought he was. 

Kasumi caught on too, deciding to take advantage of that to tease him as much as possible. It’s been bothering her for a while, and the way he was reacting towards entering the Crossroads made it clear that things were not going to his plan. 

What his plan actually was? Sumire couldn’t tell. It was obvious he had this guy on his radar for a while now, so why wait to bring it up until now? He’s obviously aware of other targets, Aiko Sako being a case so personal towards him, so choose with someone like this right after?

It wasn’t until Kasumi mentioned it offhandedly that she believed Akechi was trying to drive them away. Why he thought this was the best way of doing it was also beyond her. 

The thing that truly worried Sumire is if Akechi believed this guy would drive the girls away, then what was he aiming to do about it by himself. 

There was a small part of Sumire that regretted pushing him into an uncomfortable position that would make him want to try something like that. Was she and Kasumi too forceful? Did he not trust them? Did she do something to push him into making such an erratic plan?

It took Cendrillon’s voice to put Sumire at ease, reminding her that Akechi was far less likely to trust them no matter how well meaning they were. If he were, then he would have let their father in a long time ago. 

Taking a deep breath, Sumire decided to move her focus back on getting Akechi to calm down over blaming herself. Right now she was dealing with an idiot talking about diving into the den of a human trafficker with no regard for his own safety. If anything, Sako has far proven that he had a shocking lack of self preservation to begin with so if the Palaces he’s been through were even a fraction of them offered as much real-world danger as this one, she wasn’t sure how he was still alive.

Through a stroke of luck, now that they’ve found themselves somewhere he was familiar with, at a bar with this woman who knew him as a child, she felt like she had a chance to get through to him. Despite his fake smile, it was clear he wanted to run away from here and never come back. 

“So you knew Goro- chan since he was little did you?” Kasumi asked, watching Akechi’s face grow even redder than before while she flashed him a mischievous grin. Lala responding with a laugh only heightened the tension. Akechi looked like he wanted to slam Kasumi’s head into the table, and she looked like she wanted him to try it.

Even though watching the two go at it and Akechi finally get his karma was entertaining, Sumire frowned, she hasn’t fully gotten a full picture of Akechi yet, but she could pretty easily figure he’s holding whatever true feelings he had close to his chest, and she didn’t have a good feeling about the few glimpses she got of it. 

Lala managed to diffuse the tension by distracting the boy, recounting, “You could say that… I was acquainted with his mother. It was, let’s see…maybe ten years back, my how time flies.” 

“His mother?” Kasumi asked, ever obvious to reading the room. “What happened with her?” 

Sumire leaned over, pinching Kasumi’s arm. The fact Akechi hadn’t mentioned his mother a single time since he started living with them was proof enough that it was an emotional topic for Akechi. Though that has to be a conversion saved for another day. It would be even better to ask the boy in question rather than some family friend of his they just met directly in front of him. 

“Now, I don’t believe that’s my place to tell,” Lala stated, shutting the topic down before turning her attention to Akechi. Whatever response he had died as the two locked eyes and she told him, “Do me a favor and tell me why you’re really here, before your friends ask any more uncomfortable questions.” 

Akechi shut his eyes, recollecting himself and putting on another plastic smile. Sumire shuffled in her seat, getting more and more uncomfortable over letting Akechi take over the conversion.  “I assure you that we-” 

“We’re looking into the Gentleman,” Sumire blurted out before she realized what she was saying, garnering surprised looks from her two companions. A sliver of an idea crossed Sumire’s head, one led forth by Cendrillion, Lala seemed nice, and she seemed to actually like and trust Akechi, and unlike him, Sumire was not keen on lying as her default response to things. Besides, she’s so close to the place that there’s no way she doesn’t know something . 

Akechi gave her a look, quickly disguising it with a pleasant smile as Kasumi narrowed her eyes. 

Lala responded fairly well, all things considered, just letting out a hearty laugh before asking, “And why are you doing that?” She gave Akechi a look similar to that of a parent scolding a child, making it clear that she knew he was the mastermind behind this operation. The boy in question seemed to freeze up, attempting to recompose himself. 

“Do you know anything about his name? That’s all we’re looking for, I promise!” Sumire continued, trying to get her attention away from Akechi. She was kind of putting him in a tight spot, and didn’t want to make him any more uncomfortable than necessary, especially since she didn’t have much of a reason to why she was asking that it wouldn't involve the Metaverse. “Since you work so close to his bar I thought you might kno-” 

“Yeah right right I do!” a drunken voice slurred from the other side of the bar. Everyone turned over to see one of the drunk women, face laying down on the counter and hair haphazardly covering her face. It was obvious she was the one who spoke since the woman next to her, whom Sumire assumed was a partner or friend, was leaning back in her chair and staring aimlessly at the ceiling. “I know allllll about him…” the woman grumbled, pushing herself off the counter and back into a seated position.

“Ichiko-san…” Lala warned, shaking her head. Sumire watched as Akechi narrowed his eyes, studying the two women. After a moment he came to a decision and got up to approach them, Sumire and Kasumi following close behind.

“Oh, are you two journalists?” Akechi asked them, gaining their interests. 

The woman, apparently named Ichiko, nodded and gave a thumbs up. “Yup! And you’re the one who’s going allllllllllllllll around asking questions… So what do you want? The scoop?” The woman swayed to the side, trying to take a look at the girls but stopping when she almost fell out of her chair and had to catch herself.

Akechi nodded and set his briefcase down on the counter, opening it and taking out a small photograph. “My name is Akechi. I’ve been investigating Bunko Seto’s murder case.” He made to give the photograph to her before it was snatched from his hand by the other journalist, who was apparently more aware of her surroundings than they had thought. Lala gave a frown as she looked over at Akechi, but decided to remain silent. 

The woman looked the photo over, holding it far closer to her face than any of them would’ve. “Ooooooh! A pretty good photo…for a newbie!” she commented before throwing her arm out with an open palm. “Kayo Murakami, photographer for the Maiasa newspaper! You’ll make a great apprentice,” she introduced herself, her smile so wide it felt creepy. 

“Aye! No names! We talked about this!” Ichiko complained, grabbing a rolled up paper and smacking Murakami on the head.

Murakami yelped in surprise and rubbed her head, muttering, “We did? I don’t remember…”

Her face turning red from either frustration and or with the alcohol, Ichiko sighed, “I guess the cat’s out of the bag now… I’m her partner, Ichiko Ohya, Masiasa newspaper.”

“A pleasure,” Akechi smiled, holding his arm out to shake after he managed to weasel out of Murakami’s grip. As she accepted the gesture, he inquired, “Am I correct in assuming you’re investigating The Gentleman?”

Ohya smirked, “Totally! We’re cracking the case and…other stuff!”

“Would there be any chance you’d be willing to help me with my investigation? Any information you can provide would be greatly appreciated.” The way Akechi spoke reminded Sumire of some of the businessmen her dad had over for dinner some days. He was very formal and seemed polite at first glance, but he didn’t seem to care much about her outside of what she could offer him.

Maintaining a cheshire grin, Ohya hinted, “Oh, I have some juicy leads, but I’m not the kind of girl to give out details like that without getting something in return. What do you have?”

Akechi’s polite exterior barely budged, but Sumire could tell he was annoyed. Pivoting, he offered, “If you are looking for more information on The Gentleman and Bunko Seto’s case, I might be able to provide you some assistance.” 

“Really now? And what’s the catch?” Ohya put her hands on her hips, not falling for Akechi’s fake smile. 

“Oh, it’s not much. I just want you to tell me whatever you know about The Gentleman. If you accept, there will be more photos in it for you.” Akechi explained. 

“Hmm… deal!” Ohya accepted. The moment of hesitation seemed more for show than anything. It was obvious she was going to take the deal long before she said it by the way her eyes sparkled. 

“Ichiko-san!” Lala interjected. “I’m not letting you use this child,” She turned over towardsAkechi. “And I’m not letting you run about taking photos of dangerous criminals!” 

“Rest assured, I don’t plan to make myself used,” Akechi assured her as he put his hand on his chest and ignored the concerns she leveled at him. Turning back to Ohya, he decided to sweeten the pot, giving her an earnest smile. “You know, if I remember correctly, I am familiar with your work. You’re a fairly new addition to the paper if I recall correctly, but your style is undoubtedly fresh compared to some of your colleagues… but I can’t imagine anyone as young as you two could gain as much respect as you deserve… Wouldn’t having an extra source, one that you wouldn’t have to credit, be useful?” 

“You read the newspaper?” Kasumi asked. 

Nodding, Akechi confirmed, “Of course I do. There’s lots of value to be found in the news and those who help produce it, especially those who are willing to tread the dangerous path of investigative journalism.” Akechi grinned as he watched the two women's eyes sparkle. “You two are in the political section. After reading your article relating to the scandal with Kozue Kuroki, I found myself quite the fan.” 

“Damn right we’re amazing! Lala-chan! Get the kid a drink! My tab!” Ohya put an arm around Akechi’s shoulder, not even noticing him flinch. Lala shook her head in disappointment. 

“That kid is underage… Besides, two reporters already tore through my whole supply,” Lala reminded them, pointing at a wall of bottles behind the counter, with a majority clearly far below full.

“I know you’re lying! The night’s just started!” Murakami scolded before leaning closer to Akechi. “You know Seto’s was declared a suicide, so it’s gonna need a mightly lot of evidence for you to prove that there’s a culprit,” she said, eyeing him up and down. “You’re a little detective aren’t ya?” 

“I have my theories, but I still need to look more into The Gentleman’s operations,” Akechi put his hand to his chest, a warm smile tracing his face. Sumire leaned her head over, getting a better look at him. “Perhaps I could get your contact information?” Akechi pulled out his phone, letting the two lazily put in their information, each having to make multiple corrections due to missing the buttons the first time around. 

Sumire watched as Akechi continued to smile, each movement perfectly acted and designed to gain both of the women’s favor. Of course, they were drunk, making Sumire wonder how good he would be with someone sober. 

“So… Do you guys know The Gentleman’s name?” Sumire asked. 

“Ah right,” Murakai mumbled, scratching her chin. “I don’t know his first name, but I managed to find someone who overheard people calling for a guy named Kuroda. He’s the only consistent staff member that people haven’t seen the face of, so that’s ya suspect!”

“Is there a way we can learn his first name?” Akechi asked, narrowing his eyes. 

“Can’t say anything besides that,” Murakami shrugged. “Lala-chan says that all the girls she knows either never learn it, or never come back out, and personally I haven’t gotten it because I’m not trying not to die before my big break!” She accentuated this desire of hers by doing her best impression of an idol, putting up a peace sign next to her face and smiling as wide as she could. 

Akechi put a hand to his chin and described, “How about this for our deal: You keep me updated on whatever progress you make, and I provide you with my findings as I continue to investigate on my end.” 

Both women were already on top of him, probably ready to sell their first borns if Akechi were to ask. Lala let out a low hum, seemingly waiting to voice some sort of objection. Though Akechi already got everything he wanted, so Sumire didn’t know why he kept at it. If she was being honest, Sumire felt a little useless during the whole exchange. Yeah, she got it started, but Akechi picked it up and worked his magic. Even if Ohya and Murakami weren’t drunk, she felt that Akechi likely would've gotten the exact same deal. Even if she could read him, that didn’t mean others could as well.

After everyone exchanged contact information, including Lala’s, the trio left the bar with the bartender leaving the counter for a second to tap Akechi’s shoulders. 

“I believe we should talk in private… to catch up, and I haven’t seen you in a while,” She said. Akechi gave a small nod, leaving to catch up with the sisters. 

It had been about an hour since they entered, and they were just one step closer to reaching the Palace. Sumire was tempted to taunt Akechi about his initial reluctance. The bar he was so terrified to enter ended up getting them the first piece of the puzzle that was The Gentleman, or Kuroda’s, name. She opted not to, knowing he could counter that it still wasn’t good enough. Better to leave the mood positive. 

“We should try putting Kuroda into the Meta-Nav,” Kasumi suggested anyway. 

“There’s no point. We need their full name for it to register,” Akechi explained, staring straight ahead of them with determination. Sumire followed his gaze, staring at the bright neon heel serving as the logo of Lady’s First. 

“So what do we do now?” Sumire asked, already knowing his answer. 

Akechi sighed, adjusting his gloves. “What else? I’ll infiltrate the bar to gain his first name.” 

Kasumi grabbed Akechi’s shoulders and started shaking him. “What!? You saw what Lala-chan said. No one who may have possibly gotten his name was ever seen again!” 

Akechi jumped a little at the sudden contact, but he quickly regained his composure and insisted, “Like I said before, I am not The Gentleman’s desired target, so unless there’s another way you know about, I am going in,” His voice holding a strong bitterness at either Kasumi’s tone or actions. Despite Kasumi literally being right in his face, it felt like he was looking straight through her, keeping his gaze glued to The Gentleman’s base of operations. 

“B-” Kasumi tried to protest, her confidence shaking after seeing his reaction.

“And I don’t want either of you to get any closer. It’s too risky,” Akechi insisted as he moved her aside and started walking toward the bar again.

“But what about you?” Sumire cried out. “You can’t just say it’s too risky for us and not you!” 

Akechi turned around, putting on a smile. It wasn’t the fake kind that he constantly wore in the real world, but the kind that reeked of confidence that he wore whenever he took the role of Crow in the Metaverse. “Don’t worry about me. I’m actually quite good at gathering information without getting caught.” 

Sumire didn’t have the chance to respond before he was already too far away, heading straight to the bouncer. Sumire had no idea what his plan was, but at this point it was too late for them to figure it out. There was no way they could pass off as adults, so they would just have to hope things went well. They moved to the side, watching Akechi talk to the bouncer and pull out a card from his briefcase. 

“Does he have a fake id?” Kasumi asked. Akechi and the bouncer shared a laugh before he walked inside. Kasumi crossed her arms with a pout, “I hope they make fun of him for his babyface.” 

Sumire looked over at her sister, finding her spite towards Akechi endearing. Still, she couldn’t help but get a sense of dread from this whole situation. “I don’t like this…” she muttered. “Why couldn’t we have picked a safer target?” 

“I don’t like it either, but I also don’t think I would be able to sit around doing nothing after hearing what The Gentleman is doing,” Kasumi slid down to the ground, putting her hands behind her head. “Even if this was all a ploy for Goro to get rid of us…” 

“I guess…but we shouldn’t even be in Shinjuku in the first place,” Sumire pointed out, her anxieties beginning to boil over. “What if dad catches wind of this? What if he calls and Akechi-san isn’t with us,” She hadn’t received any messages from him yet, thankfully. Whatever excuse Kasumi gave him was doing them wonders. 

“He won’t, and I’m sure Mr. Sweetalker would be able to figure something out if he does,” Kasumi shrugged, trying to cut out the bitterness from her voice in exchange for a more lighthearted tone. “Speaking of Goro, who knew that he was old friends with that bar owner.” 

“I don’t think he was friends with her, but she did mention knowing his mother,” Sumire noted. 

“Yeah, he’s never talked about her before. I honestly forgot he even had a biological mom.” 

“I don’t know why he’s never talked about his parents, but I’m scared to know what happened to them for him to be so reluctant.”

“I guess, though I never really even thought of his parents before now. You think they both died?” 

“It’s probably better to just have him tell us instead of speculating,” Sumire lowered her head. Kasumi frowned, looking away from her. 

“You know he’s never gonna tell us,” Kasumi complained before grabbing her head. “Agh! I don’t understand what’s his problem!” 

“K-Kasumi?” 

“I mean, what does he even want? He clearly cares enough about us to let us follow him around and protect us, but then he turns around with his little prissy act and pushes us away! And for him to just come out and pull the ‘oh look at this dangerous mission that only I can go on! Don’t you two want to say behind?’” Once Kasumi started ranting, she didn’t stop. Sumire had figured there was some resentment bubbling up under the surface, but she thought about Kasumi and Akechi’s interactions as more light-hearted ribbing than anything. This was…more than she expected.

“I… I don’t think it’s fair to judge Akechi-san like that,” she tried to reason, struggling to figure out how to respond to her sister. She wasn’t used to seeing her angry.

“But what else can I judge him on!? A tragic backstory I don’t even know?” Kasumi rolled her eyes before pausing. “Sorry about that… I shouldn’t be taking it out on you…” 

“No it’s fine… I’ve been frustrated too. It’s been a lot to think about, and with school and all…” Sumire sighed. The two stayed there in silence, the only thing of note being a small shadow crossing the street. 

Chapter 18: Despicable, Cruel Cruel, People: Part IV

Goro Akechi 

 

April 26th, 2014 

 

Lady’s First was far from the most popular bar in Shinjuku, if anything it barely could attract customers nowadays beyond the people they coerced in. However, despite only opening a couple years old, it had gained a considerable consumerbase full of influential people looking to stay outside of the spotlight so they could indulge in their less than savory desires. In short, it was the type of place Shido would have adored. 

Goro had been watching the place off and on, keeping track of the faces and names of those who went inside, and especially those who never came back out. He found that the majority of the regulars were older men, often dressed in suits and accompanied by bodyguards there to greet other men in suits that thinly hid their tattoos. He recognized a couple of the patrons as politicians, both rising and established, those of whom typically being the main ones mingling with the hostesses.

He took a deep breath, still finding the bar that doubled at a sex trafficking ring more comfortable than the Crossroads. He was far from the usual patron of the place, making it far easier to slip into his mask, the persona he wore so slightly it might as well serve a second skin. 

He hated it. Getting wrapped up with some idiotic group of vigilantes. Meeting back up with Lala. He had buried those parts of himself long ago, and having them forced back up to the surface against his will was like having his organs torn out for all to see. The world had rejected that person, yet it kept taunting him, forcing its way towards him and clawing into his flesh and bones as it kept trying to expose him, raw and deformed, for all of those to laugh at like some sort of freakshow. 

He knew he was just the equivalent of a pig, one that families would come to see him on display, cooing at his appearance and behavior, and taking him in until they find the raw and hideous creature he truly is, throwing him out to be strangled and torn apart into pieces to be more enjoyable than the whole would ever be. 

A more rational part of him, most likely belonging to Robin Hood, told him that the Yoshizawas’ concerns were genuine, that they truly cared about him. On the other side, the more logical one, rejected that hope with such vigor it hurt to even think about. 

He didn’t need their help. 

He could do just fine without their false concern. 

He was so sick of it too, sick of these people assuming he was still some child they needed to hold the hand of. So eight year old Goro had to man up and take care of himself, yet fifteen-year-old Goro was just a mere child? The logic was idiotic to anyone who spent even a moment thinking about it, and he wasn’t bothering to entertain the childish whimsies of two girls when his priority should be getting back on track. 

Perhaps if he could deal with The Gentleman, he could submit a tip as a concerned citizen, get himself on the news and for his work to meet with his “idol” Shido. That seems that could work. Right… 

Goro stuck to the shadows, moving between the crowds of people while keeping his distance. He knew he stood out, there was no helping that, but thankfully the majority of people were too drunk or uncaring to notice Goro. Tightening his grip on his briefcase, he walked up to the front of the bar, which was attended by man cleaning a couple glasses. 

Before Goro even stopped moving, the man already asked him, “And what’s a kid like you doing here?” He didn’t even bother to look at him, keeping his full attention on a glass he was wiping down. Before Goro could offer a proper response, the man added, “And before you speak, don’t think you can fool me like you did with Kimoto.” 

Kimoto… That wasn’t what the bouncer said his name was. Goro stored that information away for the moment, reminding himself to give it to those two reporters if he needed to give them some throwaway info. For now, he needed to focus on what was in front of him. “Actually I have business with the Gentleman,” he declared, giving a confident smile.  

“You? Go back to your parents with fantasies like that,” the bartender scoffed and rolled his eyes. 

Goro frowned, his eyes scanning him up and down. The man was young, and his tattoos showed he was someone with a lot of worldly experience (or at least he was someone who wanted others to think he did). He should’ve known that anyone Goro’s age coming to a place like this didn’t have parents they could go back to.  

Of course upon further inspection of his appearance, Goro could pretty surely conclude this was more of the wannabe type than any genuine threat, his sleeve tattoos looked incomplete, and he recognized those patterns from the news longing to a very recent street artist known for depicted everything as rats. Perhaps he was a young rebel living on the streets who turned to a life of crime? Maybe he even met the artist, Gernica, if Goro recalled and wanted to honor her? Either way it looked tacky, too trendy to actually belong to a seasoned gangster. Goro took a deep breath, opting to go straight to the point instead. 

“I apologize. I’m here because I have business with Kuroda-san ,” he calmly announced. Goro kept his eyes fixed to the bartender, matching the man’s derision with stoic defiance. “Tell him it’s related to Bunko Seto.” 

The bartender’s eyes widened, snapping his head to Goro and looking him in the eyes for the first time. “Who the fuck are you?” 

“I’ll withhold that information until I know I will speak with Kuroda-san,” Goro reiterated, shifting his gaze to the table and tracing the grain of the wood with his finger. “I’m more than willing to wait.”

The bartender stared at Goro for a few seconds, struggling to determine what to say. Eventually, his will broke and he reluctantly submitted, “Fine, I’ll tell him. Name, kid?” 

“I’ll provide that once I speak with The Gentleman,” Goro insisted. “Also, might I have a drink while I wait? Non-alcoholic of course. Can’t come to important meetings drunk.” 

“If you can pay for it…” 

Goro placed down a thousand yen on the counter before the bartender scoffed. “What do you want?” The bartender pulled out his phone and quickly sent a text as he spoke, his voice holding all the scorn and annoyance he could muster. 

“Whatever’s popular,” Goro replied with a laugh. “From the way you’re talking, you’re treating it as if these are my last moments, so I want to leave with a good taste in my mouth.” 

That caught the bartender off guard. It was only a momentary freeze, one almost no one would have noticed as he grabbed hold of the empty cup, but it was enough to prove that he was off his game. He turned completely around, preparing what Goro presumed to be the bar’s signature drink, though he was unsure if this place even had those. The way he mixed it felt like second nature, to the point where he barely needed to look down. Goro kept his eyes on the man’s hands, watching each movement and cataloguing each item he placed into the liquid. Once it was done, the bartender slid the drink over towards Goro’s hand. 

“So…how long have you been working with Kuroda-san?” Goro took a straw, gently stirring the beverage as he spoke. 

“Stop asking questions,” the bartender growled under his breath.

“So not very long,” Goro sighed. “I guess that makes sense. I don’t see the boss bringing in someone your age to the back, but you certainly fit the bill of a bartender,” Goro framed him with his hands as he smiled. “ It’s quite a smart move.” 

“Shut the fuck up and drink,” the bartender sneered. Goro paid him no mind, watching how the bubbles fizzed and popped in the swirl he created.

“Seto’s disappearance was quite recent, were you acquainted with her? I heard she was popular here…” 

The bartender leaned on the wall and crossed his arms instead of responding. Goro watched his expression, deciding now better than ever to see how far he could go. 

“She had a bad habit of getting drunk after her shifts. There were rumors she did it to forget where she even was,” Goro continued, speaking as though he were simply making smalltalk. “She would keep drinking, even when she was bringing men home, but a few days before her disappearance, she suddenly stopped. The police didn’t find any traces of alcohol in her body, which you wouldn’t expect from a suicidal alcoholic, but I digress.” 

Goro looked back up, matching the gaze of the bartender staring daggers at him, and supposed, “So it would make sense that if she did drink anything the night of her death, it would’ve been non-alcoholic, right?”

“The fuck you getting at?” The bartender stood up, his rage beginning to boil over. “I’m not here to listen to your little stories.” 

Despite the interruption, Goro continued. “However the police did detect traces of drugs in her system.” 

“Yeah, because she was a goddamn addict. It said that in the report,” the bartender declared, rolling his eyes as he failed to hide the small quiver in his voice. “Don’t go changing the story up to suit your fantasies.” 

“Ah, so you must have read up on the case,” Goro nodded, his hand moving from stirring the drink to picking it up by the top. “After all, you wanted to make sure they reported on the cover story, and not the truth. You testified that she was an addict.” Goro held the drink next to his face, letting the white bubbles reflect into the bartender’s eyes. 

“You drugged Bunko Seto just like this, didn’t you? Ryoma Kida?” Goro grinned, watching his face grow red. “I’m surprised they would let you work with the same nametag, but I guess you had the police’s incompetence on your-” 

The bartender grabbed the drink from Goro's hand and smashed it on the table. “Shut the fuck up!” he shouted, grabbing Goro’s arm and yanking him out of his seat and onto the bar.

Goro was worried that Kida may have hurt his shoulder at first, but the lack of pain gave him the confidence to keep pushing. Maintaining his poise and confidence, he glanced up at the bartender with a quiet smile and whispered, “Careful… People are watching.” The man took the advice and let him go, allowing Goro to get back into his seat. Once he got comfortable he adjusted his jacket, hoping that the drink didn’t stain it. 

The bartender looked around at the customers before turning towards the back door, nearly slamming it open as he screamed out, “Kenshin! Come get this damn brat before I kill him myself!” 

Someone shouted back at him, but Goro couldn’t make out the specifics. The bartender stormed inside, presumably to have a conversion with him, giving Goro the room he needed to work. Goro grabbed his phone, whispering “Kenshin Kuroda” into the Meta-Nav. 

“Candidate found.” 

He got it. He can come up with the last keyword with the Yoshizawa sisters somewhere else. Goro put his phone back in his pocket standing up. As much as he wanted to stay, he knew better than to face someone like the Gentleman head on. The plan to get the employees off guard and wait for them to slip up was risky enough, and he wouldn’t take any more risks than absolutely necessary. He couldn’t let himself get himself killed before he reached Shido. 

“Oh my god Ryoma, the fuck you’ve been doing!” A man reprimanded the bartender as stomped out of the back and into the bar proper. Goro unwillingly froze, taking in the man’s appearance. He looked around at the damage, analyzing the broken glass on the bar and Goro standing next to it. The other customers were all staring, but one glare from the man had them all returning to their business like nothing had happened. Goro sneered, knowing they were all still watching, unwilling to lift a finger, no matter what happened. 

“Really? The fuck did a brat like that do to piss you off so much?” The man shouted at the bartender, heading straight towards Goro before he could recompose himself. 

He missed his chance. 

“Because he fucking knows , the little shit knows. I don’t know how but he figured something out,” the bartender ran over to him, doing his best to explain. He looked absolutely mortified, the rage he had toward Goro tempered by an obvious and undeniable fear of the man in front of him. 

“Knows what?” 

“About Bunko!” 

The man’s head snapped back, eyes jumping between his subordinate, the broken glass on the counter, and the boy that was supposedly the cause of this mess. Goro’s mind began racing as he watched the man stomp over to him, trying to think of some way to get out of this mess. Unfortunately, he was too slow, the man reaching him and grabbing hold of his free arm and yanked him over towards the door. 

He was fucked… 

Goro tightened his grip on his briefcase as he was pulled along, trying to put together some kind of cover story. He needed something, anything that could get him out of this.

“I’ll deal with this, you clean up!” the man scolded the bartender before opening the door and shoving Goro outside. Before he was shoved out of the bar, Goro took the moment to look at the other patrons, hopeful that maybe their expressions would provide some clue. What did they think of him?

Pity.

That’s the world for you. Remember that. 

Goro wasn’t able to process the voice before he was tossed to the ground in a heap. His briefcase slipped out of his grip and slid across the floor, leaving him with nothing as he scrambled to compose himself and assess the situation. He had been thrown into the lion’s den, and the Gentleman’s men surrounded him on all sides. Striped suits, tattoos on all exposed skin, all various levels of drunk. 

“Look what the cat dragged in boys!”  the man taunted after slamming the door shut, and staring down at Goro before he opened his arms out.  “But hey, you caught the Gentleman’s attention, so you can be proud of that.” 

Kenshin Kuroda walked over to Goro, pulling him up by his hair. “Pretty little thing, aren’t ya? Shame you aren’t my usual type of product…”

“Say we dress' em up and sell em!” One of Kuroda’s friends shouted, prompting a couple laughs from some of the other thugs. Goro scowled at the men, not giving them the reaction they wanted. He wasn’t sure if he was more upset about his current situation, or the fact that Kasumi was right. 

“We don’t have to do that. I’m sure he’ll sell just fine,” another thug argued. “I’m sure there’s some clients just dying for someone like him to enter the market.” 

“Both of you, shut the fuck up!” Kuroda shouted, silencing the chatter of his men in one fell swoop, leaving the room in eerie silence. 

He needed to get out of here. He couldn’t let these pigs do…those things to him.. His eyes darted around him. It was a small backroom, maybe five other men, most too drunk to actually do much but run their mouths. Besides the main door there was one other one. Perhaps an exit. Hopefully an exit. 

No… He can’t run yet.

This was the only opportunity to try to get a hint about the final keyword. 

“You’re… You’re talking about the trafficking business…right?” Goro muttered, catching Kuroda’s attention. “Is that why you killed Bunko? Did she find out your secret?” 

That wasn’t right and he knew it. She was undoubtedly aware of what was going on before that. Like it or not, she was an active participant in Kuroda’s plans. Kuroda seemed to agree, laughing at Goro’s claim. 

“Oh you are one hell of an idiot, aren’t you?” Kuroda walked up to Goro, kicking him and sending him back to the ground. “What exactly did you expect to happen here?” He squatted down over Goro, grabbing his hair again and lifting him up a bit, forcing him to look him in the eyes. 

He needed to get out of this. He needed to survive. If he died now then Shido would run free. He would never get his revenge. He would never be able to look Shido in the eye, after finally getting him to see him as someone of value, and tell him who he was, and demand him to say her name.

Then all went silent for a moment, and Goro heard Loki’s voice creeping up from his subconscious. 

Shido.

“T-that you…” Goro stuttered before he flashed a grin. “That your business prospects with Masayoshi Shido would be suspended after he finds out you killed me…” 

Kuroda’s eyes twitched as he loosened his grip, letting Goro fall to the cold stone floor. “Shido? The fuck you got to do with him?” 

Goro once again began getting up, masking his fears with phony confidence. “You’re trying to get into contact with him, sponsor him in hopes he’ll support your business,” he declared. 

“How does he know that!” one of Kuroda’s friends stood up. Goro looked over at him, a smile creeping on his lips. 

“Because I work for Shido of course. If you wish, you can refer to me as Ueno.” 

That’s right… Tomiji Ueno, personal secretary of Shido and Goro’s favorite Mementos target to integrate. Goro hoped the man didn’t mind him using his name. 

“What!? But you are just a dumb brat! Do you expect me to believe you?” Kuroda was surprised at first, but quickly determined his truth and kept up his assault, pushing Goro away once he got back to his feet. Goro shrugged, dusting off his pants and grabbing his briefcase, making sure every action lined up with the role he had picked out. He only had a second to prepare what he was going to say.

“Well first of all, I might not look like it, but I am twenty years old. Shido-san prefers to use me for that reason. Second, I am not obligated to tell you anything. If anything, you should be kneeling down to me after the stunt you just pulled,” Goro ran his hand through his hair, settling it back in place and glared at the men surrounding him like he was one moment away from ending them. “For me to figure out Bunko Seto’s death so quickly, well, I’m unsure if your business is secure enough for us to want to collaborate with..” 

“Really? You’re asking about how secure my business is? You cocky piece of-” Kuroda raised an eyebrow and raised his fist before stopping himself. Calming himself down, he raised his arms up and gestured at the building around him, bragging, “Don’t you see this place? How many stupid women just waltz on in? It’s the perfect market for sex trafficking!” 

“I see…but why did you murder Bunko Seto? Was she not one of your assistants?” Goro fully submerged himself in the part of Ueno, imagining the indifferent annoyance that he needed to make himself convincing.

Kuroda laughed at the assertion, not seeming threatened in the slightest. “Rest assured, she is unrelated to what you’re concerned with. Now, Ueno-san, would you like me to show you the storage facility?” Kuroda leaned in with a smile, the smell of cigarettes flooding Goro’s nose. 

Goro paused. He saw the look in Kuroda’s eyes. He wasn’t buying his act. He was just playing along, only indulging Goro’s game as if he were in charge, a predator toying with its prey. If he broke his part first, then that would give the Gentleman all the more reason to take him out. If he played things straight, he would just be walking into another trap. There was no way out of this. 

He didn’t understand. Why didn’t they fall for it? Everyone else did. The foster parents, the teachers, his peers, even strangers would have gone with it. These people are stupid, scum of the earth who were only getting away with this shit because of the politicians around them. Of all the people that he tricked, why were they the ones who saw through him? The time he needed his trick to work more than ever?

“I believe that’s not necessary,” Goro spoke slowly, his eyes darting to each of the people present before Kuroda’s fist collided with his stomach. 

Goro fell to his knees, gasping for air before looking up to a barrel of a gun with Kurdoa’s sadistic smile behind it. 

“You know kid, I was really thinking of selling you off. Maybe you could’ve found yourself a nice billionaire, but you’re just a tad too clever to be an asset,” he lamented, rubbing his temples to play up the drama. He was eating this situation up, loving every second of it. “It was fun to play with you for a bit. If it was just me, I’d keep you around. I have to give it to you, while I can see through an act like that easily, but most of my clients don’t got much in the brains department.” 

The men around him started laughing, taunting him and cheering their boss on. Their voices all blended together in his mind, battering him down with each passing millisecond as his eyes focused directly towards the gun. 

The barrel stayed right in the center of his vision, fading in and out of his blind spot.

This man was going to shoot him. 

He was going to kill him. 

“What? Finally scared?” Kuroda smirked and shoved the gun closer, poking the tip into the bridge of his nose.

That man was going to shoot him.

That gun was real . 

He was going to die here. 

He was going to die. 

He was going to die a puppet. 

He was going to die again . 

He was going to- 

With a flash, the gun disappeared, replaced by the clanging of metal on stone and scream from Kuroda.

Goro tried to find something to hold onto. His briefcase. He would always hold on to that. Where was it? He always had it. 

Instead he just dug his fingers deeper into his hands. If it weren’t for the gloves he might have drawn blood. 

No, he needed to find the gun. It was in his face. That’s right. 

There were voices, calling his name. They shouldn’t be calling his name. Behind something, what was it again? A wall. They were behind a wall. All his…where were they? It didn’t matter, just that they were behind the wall. He didn’t want them to get hurt. 

It was just him. Him and the killer. Who was the killer? A monster. A monster. He needed to get out of there. He didn’t want to die. There was so much… He still wanted to…there wasn’t anything. He had nothing left after this. 

He was going to die here. 

His eyes scanned the area, desperately trying to find the gun. He needed to know where it was. Instead, he locked eyes with the small shadow he didn’t recall ever being in the room with him. 

It was the tanuki, the one with bright yellow eyes. That wasn’t right. There was nothing else there. 

Kuroda jumped up, there were scratches on his face. Kuroda; he had the gun. He was going to kill him. He was reaching for something. The gun, where was the gun? He needed to know where the gun was.

Instead he felt a small nudging on his leg, the animal was telling him to move. Almost instinctively, he began to comply, lifting himself off the ground. 

Goro was barely able to register the door before sprinting towards it. 

“Get him! Don’t let him leave alive!” Kuroda screamed. Goro fumbled with the lock, nearly falling through when it opened before he continued to sprint through the halls, the tanuki following close to him. 

They were going to kill him. 

He’s going to die. 

Goro nearly tripped over himself, turning a corner. The Nav. He needed to open the Nav. He needed to tell someone to come. Who was that again? 

Yoshizawa. Which one? Sumire. Sumire was the soft one, she’d take it well. He liked her. He typed something in. 

“Kenshin Kuroda, Lady’s First Bar, Market.” 

“Candidate found. Beginning Navigation.” 

Goro watched as those familiar colors began to flood his vision. The vertigo he had long since grown accustomed to sent a chill down his spine, and he was forced to lean against something when the world started making sense again.. Something hurt, he didn’t know what. 

The sky was red. He was in the Metaverse. His gloves were black; Kuroda must not have seen him as a threat. Of course he didn’t see him as a threat. Kuroda had a gun to his face. He was going to kill him. 

He was going to shoot him. 

He was going to die. 

Goro slowly sat up, desperately trying to level his breathing. His chest hurt. That’s not good. Someone was about to kill him and he could barely process it. He clenched his fists tighter. He left his briefcase back at the bar. He needed to get that back. He always had that. 

He felt something come near him, a comforting presence if he could comprehend what it was. He was at the bar. He was losing it.

There was no one behind the wall. 

He needed to stay calm. That’s what they say to do. That’s what they were saying right now. The voices cluttered his mind, barely loud enough for Goro to discern Loki and Robin Hood’s. There was one more voice, one he couldn’t discern what, only that it was a comforting one. 

“Hey! Catch the intruder!” Goro turned around, noticing multiple masked Shadows approaching him. 

He wasn’t transformed.  

He didn’t have his briefcase. 

He could barely breathe. There was something in his arms; he couldn’t tell what. All he knew was to hold on to it tighter and get out. 

But he wouldn’t be fast enough. There was no way he could outrun Shadows like this. If he went back to the real world those men would catch him. He had to choose to die here or die in reality.

Die to the hands of a monster or die alone and forgotten in the Metaverse. 

The end of Goro Akechi, who lived and died as nothing. 

His father wouldn’t even know. 

He must have stopped moving at some point, feeling whatever in his hands jump out. 

He was going to die here. 

He dropped to his knees, letting his hands fall limply open.

The cries of the Shadows. 

The roar of a creature. 

He was going to die here.

The sound of his own, bitter laugh. 

Someone called his name; that voice doubled. 

He was going to die here. 

Notes:

Pigs are actually my favorite animal, so Goro's opinions do not reflect mine here, I love pigs

Chapter 19: Despicable, Cruel Cruel, People: Part V

Kasumi Yoshizawa 

 

April 26th, 2014 

“Do you think something happened to him?” Kasumi cried out, following as Sumire fumbled the keywords in her phone. 

“I don’t know! All I got was a name, a place, and the word ‘come’!” Sumire called back. The two ran over to a nearby building, listening to the nearby shouting. 

“What did he do?” Kasumi fretted, looking over as the multiple gangsters poured out of the building. There likely wasn’t an answer to that question that didn’t involve Goro being an idiot. 

“I don’t know, but they are going to catch us soon if we stay here, let’s go,” Sumire replied. With a nod from Kasumi, both girls were engulfed by a wave of red and teleported straight to the Palace entrance. They had to take a moment to recover from the headaches, quickly noticing that they were still in their normal civilian clothes. 

They barely had time to process what was in front of them, a massive open market lined with neon lights. The sky was red, like before, but instead of the vivid blood-red of Sako’s Palace, this one was a deep maroon, orange sun beating down onto them.  

“Guess he doesn’t see us as a threat,” Kasumi commented, noticing her hair still pulled up. 

“Where’s Akechi-san?” Sumire asked, frantically looking from side to side. 

Kasumi scanned the area, noticing the guards stationed around the market leaving what seemed to be patrol posts and running off in a unified direction. “That way!” Kasumi called out as she pointed to where she was running. Sumire nodded and ran after her, the shadows weren’t too fast, allowing Kasumi to overhear what they were saying. 

“Catch that intruder and bring em to lord Kuroda at once!” One of the Shadows at the head of the pack shouted as the guards stampeded further into the market.

As they attempted to catch up with the wave of Shadows, both sisters were briefly blinded by a flash of light, and finally found themselves now in their Metaverse attire. Kasumi still wasn’t fully used to her outfit, especially how she was able to somehow run in heels. No amount of cognition should’ve allowed someone to have perfect coordination in shoes like this, but how implausible it was was the last of Kasumi’s priorities right now. 

Sumire also had no trouble maneuvering in the less than ideal footwear, pulling out her rifle and gunning down a couple Shadows as they raced through the crowd. Kasumi felt her wand appear in her hand, aiming it forward and shooting at any of the Shadows that were pulled away from their main target as they ran by.

The girls ran through the halls of the market, weaving between Shadows before eventually turning a corner and being forced to stop. The Shadows were all bunched up, surrounding a figure they couldn’t make out. While that was interesting by itself, the more pressing subject was the looming shadow that they faced. 

Its body curled in loops, white crystals floating around its pitch black body as it swirled around and screeched at the Shadows. Kasumi halted her steps at the sight of the thing, only pushing forward by Briar’s words. 

As the Shadows swarmed the figure, the snake took in a deep breath before blowing out a massive ball of energy. The wind around it spiralled unnaturally, forming a vortex around the guards and sending them crashing into one another. Some were just left flailing on the ground, while others had their masks bumped off, revealing their true selves in flashes of black and red.

“Akechi-san!” Sumire shouted, taking off her mask and summoning Cendrillon before Kasumi could even spot him. Whipping her head over, she could see him on the ground, not even looking over at them with something she didn’t recognize in front of him. Nearly freezing in place, Kasumi reached her arm out towards him before she heard Briar’s voice again. 

The best way you can help him is to eliminate the threats, now put them to sleep my dear. 

Giving a nod to her sister, the two rushed forwards, hopping atop of Shadows and yanking off their masks and hopping off as the Shadows crumbled to reveal the black blobs and blue haired fairies as their opponents.

With a call to Briar, Kasumi put them all asleep, grabbing hold of her wand and sniping down the fairies, finding that they took more hits than the pixies on Sako’s Palace. Sumire rushed towards the black blobs, summoning Cendrillon to take them down once her sword proved futile. When all the enemies were down, both sisters jumped in for a synchronized attack, accompanied by a small shadow that just barely caught Kasumi’s eye. 

Sumire called out Goro’s name, rushing over to him while Kasumi looked behind to snipe any oncoming shadows before following her. She should have expected the Shadows to look differently in a new Palace, and she was lucky that they seemed to be weak to their specialties. What Kasumi didn’t know was why Goro wasn’t doing anything beyond staring out into nothing. 

That reason became apparent once she rushed back to both, finding Sumire kneeled next to him, hovering her hands over as if she was too scared to touch him. 

Kasumi rushed over, getting a better look at Goro’s face. His eyes were foggy, staring off to the distance as he breathed. 

“Akechi-san? Akechi-san are you alright?” Sumire repeated a few times. He didn’t respond, only staring out crawling in himself as he held his arms together, the only sounds he made were his heavy breathing. 

“Goro!” Kasumi reached her arm out, getting caught by Sumire’s hand before she could reach him. 

“Wait!” Sumire cried. “Remember what mom said?” 

Kasumi stared at her for a moment, gently retreating her hand. That’s right. Mom taught them how to handle certain situations, including whenever someone was in…how did she put it? “Severe mental distress?”

Kasumi tried her best to recall, deeply regretting all those times she toned out Mom’s unprompted medical lessons as she looked back at Sumire for guidance. Sumire nodded, giving her a trusting look, one Kasumi reciprocated. She would probably be best to just stand guard for now over accidentally making things worse. Goro already took being touched poorly, and she had a feeling that if she tried this time, he might actually retaliate. She looked back down at Goro, not knowing what to feel about the situation. 

Kasumi looked over, finally getting able to identify the strange creature that accompanied Goro this whole time. It was a tanuki, with brown fur covering everything except for his paws, tail, and face, not just any tanuki but the one with bright yellow eyes from before, adorned with the cutest little domino mask on its face. 

“Oh my god,” Kasumi squealed and put both hands to her mouth, watching the little thing trot towards Goro and pat its paws on his leg before plunging itself on his lap. 

“Oh!” Sumire said. Watching as Goro slowly looked down, his hand reaching the animal as the color returned to his eyes. 

“Oh…” He muttered to himself, staring down at the creature. 

“Akechi-san?” Sumire said softly. Goro looked back at her, taking a moment to register her. A spark of recognition hit his eyes, silently nodded. 

“Sumire-san! You received my message?” He said. His voice had an uncomfortable lightness to it, as if he wasn’t on the ground freaking out not a moment earlier. The way he was freaking out… It wasn’t like before, when Sako hit him with that fear spell. This felt…different. 

“Yes, are you ok?” Sumire asked, offering her hand to help him up. 

Goro gave them a plastic smile as he shook his head. “I’m fine.” 

“Are you sure?” Sumire frowned. 

“Yes,” Goro turned his head, his eyes telling her to stand down. The tanuki hopped off his lap as he finally appeared to have taken in what was actually in front of him. The two stared at each other for a while before Goro let out a loud sigh. “Oh you’ve gotta be kidding me,” he groaned. 

Sumire stayed kneeling, her face falling a little as Goro didn’t pay her any mind, brushing the dirt off his sleeves. 

That’s it. Kasumi can’t watch this any longer. He doesn’t get to be reckless, ignore Sumire, and then pretend everything is alright. With a sigh, she marched towards Goro, putting her hands on her hips. “Ok, what on earth just happened?” 

“Kasumi!” Sumire cried. 

“No, I wanna know what you did to get a bunch of shadows chasing you!” Kasumi demanded. “It was reckless and stupid!” 

Goro looked over at her, putting all his attention towards Kasumi. “We needed a name, and I got it.” 

The way he explained it, like it was the most obvious thing in the world, like Kasumi is in the wrong for being concerned for his state, it only pissed her off more. 

“Yeah, and you nearly got yourself killed in the process!” Kasumi stomped her foot on the ground, grabbing hold of her arms. 

Rolling his eyes, Goro sneered, “That’s none of your business,” He stepped forward over her, showcasing his full height over her as if he had any right to try to intimidate her. 

“Excuse me!? Just tell me how you almost dying isn’t my business!” Kasumi demanded, thrusting a finger in his direction.

“And I didn’t. So you can calm yourself,” Goro deadpanned as he pushed her finger away from him. 

“Guys let’s drop this…” Sumire muttered, making her way between the two in some effort to break up the conflict. 

“No!” Kasumi snapped, throwing her arms out. “I’m so sick and tired of all of this! I shouldn’t have let you go in there and be stupid!” Kasumi shouted. 

“I had the situation under control,” Goro said.

“Oh yeah? I didn’t realize that people who have situations under control were the type to run away freaking out about god knows what!” Kasumi scoffed as she crossed her arms and let the words pour out of her mouth. “Do you think I didn’t realize your little ploy? Trying to scare us off with some big scary target? What? Did you think we were five?!” 

Goro stared at her in silence, unable to mask his surprise as he kept his mouth slightly agape.

“That’s the thing about you, you just only see yourself don’t ya? See the world is so narrow and getting yourself into danger, don’t…don’t you realize how your actions would have affected us ? How someone other than you would feel about you going out and killing yourself? What are we supposed to do? Go to Dad and tell him the person he went out of his way to take in decided he wanted to play hero and nearly get himself killed! What would you have done if we weren’t here! You would have died! You would have died and we would have been responsibl-”

“Kasumi!” Sumire shouted, grabbing hold of Kasumi’s arm. She whipped her head over at her, immediately feeling regret as she finally processed the tears falling down her face. She looked over at Goro, still staring at her. 

“I… I’m s-” She attempted to stutter out as Kasumi grabbed hold of her mask, wiping the tears from her face. 

“No, I apologize,” Goro muttered, his voice monotone and his face blank and unreadable. “I shouldn’t have dragged you two here.” 

His words left an uncomfortable silence between the three. She wanted to argue with him, to get it through his skull that her concern was about his safety over anything else, but the words refused to escape her mouth. For a long few seconds they just stood around without saying a word, Sumire holding her hands close to her chest. 

“We should get out of here,” Sumire stated quickly, breaking the silence, rushing towards the tanuki and offering her hands. The tanuki glanced between the three, as if it was considering whether to accept the offer, before rushing up Sumire’s arm and finding a place on her shoulders. Sumire smiled before running and grabbing hold of Kasumi’s hand. “We should… Dad’s gonna be worried.” 

Kasumi didn’t see any reason to argue so she let Sumire lead the way and followed behind, keeping her eyes off Goro as they went back to the entrance and returned to the real world. Right as they were leaving the Metaverse she shot a glance over at Goro, finding him staring off into space.

Why was he acting this way? What happened before they got here?

Once they were safely back in reality, Goro stared at Sumire and questioned, “Pardon me, are you bringing the tanuki with us?”

“I believe it would be rude if we left him here,” Sumire said, giving the tanuki a pat on the head. “Besides, he’s quite cute isn’t he?” 

“Oh, how about we name him!” Kasumi suggested, brushing her thoughts aside, trying her hardest to bring back the mood to something less tense. “Wait…how do we know if he’s a boy,” 

Sumire shrugged. “Only one way to check I guess,” Sumire was about to lift the animal up before the animal shook its head and pointed towards Goro with its tail before doing the same with Sumire while shaking its head. The improbability of a tanuki understanding human speech at all was lost on both girls, nonetheless being able to create a reply they could understand, with Sumire just giggling and relaying, “Oh! I guess that means he’s a boy!” 

“Hm… Well we met him behind a cafe, we can name him after something in that!” Kasumi cheered. “How about Crepe?”

The tanuki shook his head. 

“Hm… maybe Coffee?” Sumire suggested. The tanuki shook his head at that. 

“Oh, how about Pancake!” Kasumi suggested. 

“No!” Goro shook his head. “Definitely not,” 

The tanuki nodded his head at his comments. Kasumi never knew he had such a passion for pancakes. At least it was slightly better than a few minutes ago. 

“Hmm… Maple Syrup!” Sumire added. 

“Isn’t that too girly? Let’s go with Muffin,” Kasumi put her hands on her hips. The tanuki gave a look of disapproval.

“Muffin? That’s just as girly!” Sumire cried. “Napkin?” 

The tanuki gave Sumire a look—definitely not. It was certainly an expressive animal. Kasumi wasn’t shocked. A hyper intelligent tanuki who could summon a Persona? Pretty much par for the course at this point. 

The two continued to shoot out name ideas, each getting turned down by the animal. 

“How about, Waffles?” Goro finally suggested, his voice tired, less so of their bickering, and more like he was just ready to shut himself away from the world and sleep. The tanuki stared him down, finally giving a small chirp. 

“Oh I think he likes it!” Sumire beamed. 

“Then that settles it! Waffles the tanuki!” Kasumi finished, reaching over to rub Waffles’ head, which he seemed to appreciate. Sumire opened up her bag and Waffles crawled inside, letting out a cute little yawn and nodding off before the trio went back home.

The train ride was awkward to say the least. Sure, meeting and naming Waffles lightened the mood a little bit, but Kasumi couldn’t bring herself to look Goro in the eye again. Goro on the other hand just kept staring off at the window, his eyes unfocused. 

Kasumi began to fiddle with her sleeves. The more she reflected, the more she might have overdone it, keeping her feelings to herself and blowing up on him instead of… well handling it in any other way. Should she apologize? That might be a good idea. 

Dad didn’t ask them any questions that weren’t easily weaseled out of by Goro. Sumire went to cook dinner for the night and Kasumi was left in charge of sneaking Waffles inside. She went through her stuff, pulling out an extra set of pillows as a makeshift bed and heading to Goro’s door. She took a deep breath, knocking three times before he answered. 

“Kasumi-san?” He peeked his head out, still a distant look in his eyes. Kasumi locked eyes with him. She should apologize for going too far, she should say she’s sorry, sorry for… 

Sorry for what? Calling out his behavior? Telling him off? 

No, she was still upset with him. She felt bad for yelling at him, but he also pushed her to this point, right? If he didn’t try to push them away, run off on his own, actually open up to them, then all of this would have been avoided right?

Yet the way he looked right now, it made her feel absolutely miserable. He had to hate her right now, going through god knows what, finding him in what looked like a panic attack and she just yelled at him instead…

She shook herself back to her senses and explained in a tone that was a tad too blunt, “Sumire said that it might be a good idea to sneak Waffles to sleep in your room because you don’t let anyone in.” 

“Right, that seems logical. You can bring him when you’re ready,” he nodded before turning away, shutting the door behind him. 

Kasumi was left standing in front of the door for a few moments before she remembered something and shouted with a little too much pep in her voice, “Oh, dinner’s gonna be ready soon!”

Goro cracked the door open just enough to peek his head through, giving a weak smile and apologizing, “My apologies, but I’m going to be heading to bed early tonight,” with that, he shut the door once again. There wasn’t much force behind the gesture, but she could feel all the weight nonetheless. 

Kasumi stared at the door for a while, questioning her sanity before getting a mental reminder from Briar and headed back to her room with Waffles. He was making himself comfortable within the temporary pillow fort she created for him, his tail wrapped around his little body like a blanket. 

Kasumi flopped face-first onto her bed, letting out a loud moan into her pillow. 

“Oh my god!” She whined, punching the bed and kicking her legs out before she let her eyes peek out, watching Waffles staring at her with wide eyes that she couldn’t quite read, but was still quite offended by. 

“Don’t give me that look, I’m moping,” Kasumi pouted, flipping over onto her back and staring at the ceiling. Waffles looked up at her, climbing off his little pillow fort and jumping on her lap. His cuteness overpowering her shock and fatigue, Kasumi sat up and reached her hand out, stroking him. His fur was unbelievably soft, even for what she assumed a tanuki had. She hated how quick she was getting attached to the thing. How an animal could be so cute was beyond her. 

“If only you could talk, then I could ask you for advice,” Kasumi laughed. “You seem like the type who would be good at that.” 

Waffles gave out a chirp in approval, pawing on her chest in almost an attempt to hug her. 

“Hey that tickles!” Kasumi giggled, hugging him tightly as she cooed. Maybe he was trying to tell her something—she just wished she knew what. 

With a knock on the door, Waffles jumped off her shoulder and ran under the bed, only coming out when Sumire peeked her head through. 

“Dinner’s ready,” she said with a faint smile.

Kasumi nodded and got up, promising to bring Waffles some food as an apology for leaving him alone for a bit. The more she thought about it, tanukis are used to only eating trash, or was that raccoons? They did find him in the trash… It didn’t matter, this poor thing would never be able to enjoy trash again after he had Sumire’s cooking. 

Dinner was the same as usual, with simple small talk and discussion of the day’s events as Kasumi’s mind drifted to foods tanukis could and could not eat. She once heard that dogs die if they eat chocolate or grapes, and tanukis are a type of dog right? Are there even any guides online for tanuki diets? Can people even have tanukis as pets? Is that illegal? They decided not to tell Dad about Waffles, but 

She snapped out of her thoughts when Dad asked Kasumi about her day, and she gave the now tired lie she usually gave when going to the Metaverse. It irked Kasumi, trying to ignore the oppressive air between her and the rest, as well as the one missing person causing it. She wanted to talk about Goro—she wanted to express her concerns to her parents. The realization of how much she was lying to them was beginning to irritate Kasumi, like whenever something sharp was placed within the sleeve of her clothes and she couldn't pick it out no matter how much she looked. 

She and Sumire had talked about Goro to each other plenty of times. Her sister theorized that Goro lacked trust for adults in general, not just their family. He wasn’t very friendly towards Sumire or her, but the way he avoided speaking to her parents or really any adults was too apparent not to notice.  

She thought about going to talk to Lala again. She seemed to know Goro decently well, far more than she or Sumire did, so maybe she could provide Kasumi some insight on how to deal with him. 

Awakening to Briar made Kasumi realize many things, one of which was how naive her approach to him was. Goro annoyed her, obviously. If it were up to him, they would have never interacted, letting himself be known better as just the person living in their attic rather than a living, breathing, human and that annoyed Kasumi. She wanted to be friends with him, she was his foster sister, and she wanted to like him, yet he kept pushing and pushing away until he forced himself into a corner and nearly got himself killed in the process. 

It also was apparent to Kasumi her own faults in his situation as well. She was far too pushy, especially compared to her sister, who’s more mellow approach is likely why he’s far more comfortable speaking to her than he ever was with her. 

Kasumi looked over at her sister. Sumire had always been kinder, non-confrontational one of the two of them. She had to envy that about her, and hate herself for how much she hasn’t noticed about her before. 

Ever since her talk with Coach Hiraguchi and her awakening, she started noticing how people would talk about her behind her back, sometimes just within earshot of the two with no care in the world if her younger sister would overhear. Some of the other girls they did gymnastics with would even have the audacity to backtalk her in front of Kasumi, as if she would somehow agree with them. Like she would somehow feel that way about Sumire. 

It was beyond Kasumi how she never noticed it before, only obviously denying them instead of standing up for her sister, telling them off for their comments. 

Yet even after her awakening, Sumire would just keep smiling when they said those things. She said it didn’t bother her, at least not anymore. That it used to get her down, but now she just ignores them instead of standing up and telling them to stop. 

Was it the same with Goro? No… He wasn’t being honest with himself, let alone the sisters. He would just keep pushing everyone aside, hiding behind some stupid fake personality that was far more unlikable than his true self. Did that make him happy, like how Sumire was happy ignoring the bullies? Or was it similar to how Kasumi was happy cutting off friends because they badmouthed Sumire? Was she just obvious to their worldviews? 

Was it really wrong to tell him off like that? Did she push him away again, refusing to see his perspective and screwing things up more and more?

“Kasumi?” Kasumi felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked up to see her grandmother, concern apparent on her face. “Are you alright?” 

With a nervous chuckle, Kasumi brushed her grandmother’s hand away and told her, “Yeah, just thinking.” 

“I guess Goro is rubbing off on you,” Dad laughed. “Shame he isn’t with us, but I’m sure he’s just tired from getting caught up with schoolwork.” 

“Oh before I forget,” Mom piped up after Dad finished speaking, “I managed to get in contact with my friend. She doesn’t have any free slots as of now, but she managed to give me a reference to some new coworker of hers.”

“New?” Dad frowned. 

“Don’t worry, I heard plenty of good things about him, he’s already had a couple patients already and they are seeing results,” Mom responded. 

“Patients?” Sumire asked. 

“Oh it’s nothing you should be concerned with,” Mom said with a smile. “We’re trying to get…a special tutor for Goro.” 

“Oh…” Sumire nodded, not seeing any reason to inquire further, both of them could easily fill in the blanks. 

The rest of dinner was surprisingly quiet, leaving Kasumi to head back to her room to deal with her thoughts. Waffles managed to wrap himself in her blanket in the time she was gone, poking his head just slightly to watch her once she came inside. His eyes shone brightly in the darkness of the blanket. She couldn’t decide if those bright yellow eyes were adorable or unsettling—probably both, which was fitting for a strange creature like Waffles. Did tanukis have that kind of eye color? Was it an illness she should check out? A byproduct of awakening to a Persona? When she saw Sumire awaken, she saw her eyes change to gold for a moment, so maybe due to the fact he’s an animal the color stayed? He slowly crawled out of the blanket, walking towards her leg. 

Kasumi walked over, picking him up again and falling on her bed, holding him close to her chest. The animal didn’t object, letting her gently stroke his head. Kasumi wondered about him a little. He couldn't speak, but was undoubtedly intelligent enough not just to understand human speech, but to react accordingly and communicate messages. Not to add on that he had the ability to summon his own Persona. Did Goro accidentally drag him in and he awakened in that moment? If that’s the case then why did a tanuki feel so strongly about awakening? 

Recalling her own awakening, she asked herself what exactly would speak to a small animal and give him a Persona? Could there be other animals out there with Personas like Waffles? Thinking of little cats and dogs with Personas made Kasumi realize that much cuteness might be too much for her. 

“I’m gonna need to take you to Goro soon…” Kasumi whined. She knew her father was gonna check in on her in the morning, and she wouldn’t hear the end of it if he found out she brought a seemingly wild animal into the house, that is, if he doesn’t try to kill the poor thing assuming he’s rabid and trying to break in. She should learn to wake up earlier by herself. The tanuki chirped, slowly moving out of her bear hug. 

“You can at least pretend to be sad?” Kasumi got up, a little disappointed by his reaction before checking the doorway before heading up to the attic and knocking on the door. 

“Goro?” She called out. Kasumi waited a few seconds before knocking again. He must have really been tired. 

How should she deal with this? Level an apology, explain her motivations and drop off Waffles? He does want the tanuki, who seems quite attached to him. Of course everyone else can gain his favor except for her it seems. 

Kasumi put her hand on the doorknob for just a moment before ripping it away like how a doorknob would be if the room were on fire. 

“What am I doing? I can’t just go into his room!” Kasumi muttered to herself, beating herself up for falling into those same pushy habits she just chastized herself for at dinner. Even then, she can’t just barge into a boy’s room like that! What was she thinking!? Taking a moment to calm herself, she went and knocked one more time. “Goro… You know what we talked about…?” 

What did she talk to him about? Goro could have nearly been killed and was clearly panicking, and yet she went and made this about herself. Maybe if she just gave him space things would be fine. Sumire is good at that. 

“Um… Goro,” Kasumi muttered, leaning her head on the door. “I don’t know if you’re listening so I could just be talking to myself…” She laughed bitterly to herself.

“I’m still mad at you, and I stand by what I said… but I shouldn’t have yelled at you like that… and I’m sorry I was so harsh… and pushy… and um… a lot of things,” Kasumi laughed to herself, knowing this was stupid. She needed to talk to him in person, not whatever this is. 

With a sigh, she leaned down to pick up Waffles, telling him, “Guess you got to hide under my bed when Dad comes in.”

She began to head down the stairs, cradling Waffles in her arms, when she heard a voice from around the corner. “Kasumi? You still awake?” 

Kasumi nearly threw Waffles to the other room when she saw her grandmother walking by. She instead opted to shove him behind her back, slowly creeping towards her room. 

“Nope! I mean…yeah! I’m heading to bed now!” Kasumi slowly shuffled towards her room, gently kicking it open. 

“You should really get to bed. You got school tomorrow,” Grandma frowned, stepping closer towards Kasumi. 

“Right! You have so much wisdom!” Kasumi praised as she gently tossed Waffles inside, prompting a small yelp from the critter. 

“What was that?” Grandma asked, looking around Kasumi to try and see into her room.

Shoot. 

“Well um… Goro actually handed me a…” Kasumi looked back in the room, scanning Waffles crawling to her blankets then to her bed filled with plushies. “One of his old plushies from his childhood! I went up to talk to him and he gave it to me! Yeah, he was totally embarrassed about it, so don’t tell anyone will you?” Kasumi desperately reasoned. Grandma watched her expression, opening her mouth before Kasumi interrupted again. 

“Especially Goro! You know him…anywaysI’llheadtobednowgoodnight!” Kasumi ran inside and slammed the door shut, falling onto her bed next to an offended tanuki and reckoning with one more side effect of her failure to communicate. 

Notes:

No chapter next week due to finals

Chapter 20: Despicable, Cruel Cruel, People: Part VI

Haru Okumura 

 

April 27th, 2014 

Haru felt quite accomplished today. She managed to successfully invite Makoto to hang out with her and she found that whoever was currently housing Akechi had him under a strict curfew. Earlier today, Makoto invited him to study with her after school most likely due to their shared material work ethic, and Haru couldn’t help but to feel bad for both when she witnessed Akechi reluctantly turning her down and rushing away from her. 

While she wasn’t pleased with Akechi getting anywhere near her friends, she had to admit it undoubtedly gave her more benefits the more she thought about it. It was a direct way to get valuable intel about the potential-assassin without Haru having to do anything herself. If the two connected while Akechi was still in a less distrustful state, Haru would be able to directly know his current state without having to speak to him herself. She hated using Makoto for such a task, but the alternate was to try to become friends with the same person who would eventually put a gun to her father’s head and shoot it. 

Even Akechi turning Makoto down had its advantages. Allowing Haru to quickly take advantage of the opportunity to invite Makoto to “study” without sounding odd. Haru did have to come up with a pretty colorful story to explain why she wanted to go to Chinatown so badly, though. 

So far they toured all the shops as they attempted to find a proper place to actually study. The two walked around in silence for the most part, Makoto not talking to her as much as she liked, but Haru kept the conviction that she could break her out of her shell soon enough. 

Haru tried not to beat herself up about it. After all, it took throwing Makoto into the Palace of a mob boss to get her to actually make friends. Haru did recall her mentioning a girl named Eiko as her friend when they hung out with the Phantom Thieves, but when she met the only girl in their grade with that name, she and Makoto couldn’t have been further apart. Haru found herself doubting that a girl who smothered herself in makeup could ever be close to the uptight and tomboyish Makoto, deciding that she had likely been referring to some other Eiko. 

Beyond simply trying to save as many people from Shido and Akechi, this was the perfect opportunity to help her friends in other ways. Makoto nearly drowned herself in her studies, barely making any friends before joining the Phantom Thieves, Haru was the same in a lot of ways. Besides, Haru had hindsight, she knew Makoto, they were best friends, planning to go to the same college and dorm together after school. Who knows how close they would be if they met a bit earlier? 

“Okumura-san, have you chosen a place for us to study?” Makoto eventually asked, noticing Haru getting lost in her own thoughts. Haru had looked up the best cafes in Chinatown, hoping to find some place Makoto might like. Besides Ren, Haru was undeniably the closest to Makoto, which made her keep asking why this was so hard. 

She quickly ran through all the options she could recall from her memories and said a little too quickly, “Oh right… There’s one coming up. I’ve heard they have this speciality egg tart and I’ve been meaning to try it!” Haru quickly said. 

“That seems fine,” Makoto nodded solemnly, seeming a bit disappointed. Right, Makoto’s a health nut. 

Haru smiled and added, “I heard they also have a lot of healthy things too. In fact, my father has been trying to build up a health line for Big Bang Burger. I’ve been wanting to get some ideas to bring to my fathe-” 

“And where is this place?” Makoto said sharply. Haru flinched at her sudden hostility, pointing in the direction of the cafe and entering in silence. Haru wasn’t exactly sure what ticked her off, perhaps it sounded like Haru was boasting about her background, or maybe bringing up her father hit a sore spot for Makoto. 

True to her cover story, Haru ordered the egg tart and a couple of the healthiest looking items on the menu while Makoto just took tea. 

“You can order anything you would like. It’s my treat!” Haru offered as the two grabbed a menu from the counter. 

“I’m good.” 

“Right…”

This left the two girls seated by a window, waiting in an uncomfortable silence. Makoto pulled out her homework after a while, letting out a low hum as she read it over. Right, this was supposed to be a homework session. Makoto liked schoolwork. If Haru showed her that she liked school too, maybe that would help the two of them connect. She already learned that her future memories are not going to help her academics, surely it’ll do much better than 

“Is there anything in particular you want to work on?” Haru asked, fiddling with her fingers. 

“It would be best to start with whatever you’re struggling with,” Makoto deadpanned, arranging her notes on the table and barely paying Haru any mind. 

“Right… um… I guess we can work on math. Algebra, right?” Haru pulled out her math notebook, finding mindless scribbles instead of actual math notes. Some of which including Metaverse plans, causing her to quickly flip away to something else. She was definitely not paying attention during that particular lecture so she was really going to put her memories of the past timeline to the test wasn’t she?

The future… Haru watched as the waiter brought them their dishes. Both girls thanked her before taking their respective teas. She looked down at the drink, feeling that she was missing something. 

She just decided to make some light conversation, swirling her tea around and beaming, “Oh isn’t this delicious! Most of my friends and family are coffee people, but despite everything, only the best brands could even rival tea in my opinion.” 

Makoto gave her a low hum in response, putting another awkward silence between them before quietly saying. “Okumura-san, I’m sorry for lashing out at you.” The change in subject was stark, Haru’s mask of false positivity breaking just as quickly as she put it on, stuttering a little before finally speaking again. 

“It’s alright, I’m not offended at all!” Haru took another sip of her tea, trying to hide her expression. She wasn’t exactly sure what Makoto wanted from her, so it was better to remain neutral. 

“No, I really am sorry. I think I was just disappointed that Akechi-kun had to rain check. It brought up some bad memories,” Makoto insisted. All the while she looked down, staring at her homework. “But that’s not his fault, and it’s not yours either. Being cold toward you because of that isn’t right.” 

Haru took a bite out of her egg tart and mulled over what to say. She really didn’t want this conversation to drive back to Akechi. This was supposed to be her chance to reconnect (or just connect for the first time) with Makoto. Akechi didn’t need to ruin this like he did everything else. Speaking of the future… 

Eventually, Haru muttered, “Is everything alright at home?” She was careful not to say something to set her off, adding on quietly, “You don’t have to say anything specific, but if I can help-” 

“No it’s ok… I’m sure it looks pretty obvious by now,” Makoto let out a bitter laugh,”It’s just…  my father was recently assigned to another case,” Makoto sighed.

 

Haru nearly choked on her tea. 

 

How could she forget? 

 

Makoto’s father died three years ago. When was that? Did she ever give a date? 

 

Makoto said she disliked her father, that she regretted it. 

 

Haru knew that feeling better than everyone. 

 

“Do you know the details o it?” Haru asked, speaking before she really processed what she was saying and what it could imply, her voice a little too high to sound natural. 

“Huh?” Makoto exclaimed in confusion. Reluctantly, she added, “He’s been assigned to find some drug dealer. Can we get back to the homework now?” Makoto dismissed the topic as quickly as she brought it up, and pulled out another sheet, rifling through her papers.

Haru hesitated for a second. What would it look like if she moved things along too fast with Makoto? But did it matter, though? She was going to bring Makoto to the Metaverse anyway. “Maybe I can help get your father some freetime!” Haru offered, taking another bite out of her egg tart before she could see Makoto’s immediate reaction. 

“Huh?” Makoto frowned, not getting what Haru was talking about. 

Haru finished up her egg tart a little too quickly, taking a moment to clear her mouth and adding, “Well… I wasn’t really close with my father until…until he got sick one time, and I realized how much I took advantage of him…” Haru fiddled with her fork, finishing the egg tart far too quickly. “But I actually… Well it’s better to actually show you.” 

There was no point in waiting. She had to do this. If she had a chance to save Makoto’s father, she had to take it. She couldn’t let this opportunity go to waste, how selfish would she be if she only saved her own family? All of Makoto’s problems, her isolation, her recklessness, even Sae, her Palace, her distance from her sister. It all stemmed from them losing their father. 

Maybe she was thinking a little too quickly, latching on to the opportunity but she couldn’t have bene more overjoyed knowing she wasn’t too late. Haru quickly grabbed an extra case from her bag, packing all the extra food and grabbed hold of Makoto’s hand. 

“Hey! What are you doing?” Makoto cried as Haru pulled her out of her seat, trying to finish her tea before heading with her. Haru dropped the bill and a bit of cash on the counter as they ran outside, grabbing a couple thousand to make sure she covered the bill and called out to the barista to keep the change. She knew from experience that there was no good way to explain the Metaverse without just showing her, and since Makoto was a fighter even before awakening, she should do just fine heading inside. Haru didn’t know of any Palaces in Chinatown, so her next best bet was Mementos. She could even introduce Makoto to Jose. She hasn’t seen him since school started, so he would definitely be happy to see her. 

Ignoring Makoto’s confused complaints, Haru led her all the way to the metro entrance. She pulled Makoto out of the public eye and into a nearby alley, making sure nobody was watching them before pulling out her phone. 

“Okumura-san, what exactly are you so desperate to show me?” Makoto challenged, desperately trying to catch her breath, too confused to express disappointment in Haru’s sudden change of attitude. 

“This!” Haru declared, flipping her phone around and showing Makoto the open Meta Nav.

“An app?” Makoto commented and raised an eyebrow. She was likely thinking at the moment that her study partner was either wasting her time or absolutely crazy but Haru knew she would understand soon enough. Haru shook her head, clicking on the app with a gleaming smile. It would be better if she said something to it instead of heading into the history. 

She looked up at Makoto and promised, “Promise me you won’t freak out.” Then, she took a deep breath. 

 

“Osamu Miyagawa, Mementos.” 

 

Haru watched as the familiar flash of reds and blacks flooded her vision. Makoto let out a gasp and looked around frantically, stumbling a bit from the vertigo the Nav brought about for first time travelers. The world slowly came back into focus, all the people in the once crowded subway completely gone, replaced with only an uncomfortable silence. The world began slightly redder, as it became night and the only source of light was a blood moon. 

“Huh… w-where did everyone go?” Makoto shuddered, eyes bouncing around the familiar yet alien landscape. 

“We’re in the Metaverse,” Haru explained in a way she recalled Mona-chan once did as they went deeper underground. “It’s like a…different world than the normal one.” 

“Then… how did we-” 

“Through the app!” She pulled out her phone, showing her the pulsating red of the Meta Nav overtaking the screen.

“The… Metaverse,” Makoto worried, struggling to comprehend what she was hearing. Eventually, she directed all her confusion at Haru, glaring at her accusatorially and demanding,. “What are you?” 

“I’m just like you!” She hesitated a little, further elaborating, “As in…I’m just a normal girl! I’m not anything supernatural, I promise.” 

“But then how?” 

Once again, Haru cut Makoto off and proposed, “How about we head down and I’ll explain everything.” It had become pretty clear that, without the Phantom Thieves around to do the unexplainable and probe the public consciousness, convincing anyone about the Metaverse would be incredibly difficult. If she recalled correctly, she only was truly able to believe Mona-chan that they could change her father’s heart because the Phantom Thieves had already gained a reputation that reached almost every single person Haru’s known. 

To someone like Makoto, this was something completely out of the realm of possibility with no build up or hints toward it. No supernatural questions that could pair with this supernatural world. 

As they ran down the stairs, Haru continued to give Makoto the best crash course on the cognitive world that she could. “Basically, with the power of that app, called the Meta-Nav, we can enter a place called the Metaverse, which is kinda like a world of cognition.” 

“Cognition? Like in our minds?” Makoto asked, still clearly off-put but playing along at least. 

“Exactly!” Haru exclaimed, glad that Makoto was starting to, if not accept this, at least hear her out, maybe the fact that Haru unwillingly transported her to fantasy land might have helped. “This place is Mementos. It’s basically the collective unconscious which looks normal to the outside world, but once you reach inside…” 

As soon as they crossed the boundary into Mementos proper, a blue flash of light overtook Haru. Makoto made another gasp as her civilian clothes burned away and her Metaverse outfit appeared in its place. 

Makoto stopped dead in her tracks as the change happened, briefly blinded by the light. When she opened her eyes she had to stare at Haru for a moment before she could comment on what had happened. “Huh, your clothes!” Makoto cried, eyes shooting around the subway to try and find the source of this occurrence. “When did you change?” 

“The Metaverse did this,” Haru told her as she instinctively adjusted her hat. 

“How?” 

“Because I’m Beauty Thief!” Haru cheered, tipping her hat and twirling about in place to show off a bit. She couldn’t help herself from playing up her part. She found it too much fun. Unfortunately, she found Makoto shivering, her head darted around her as she stayed frozen in place, when she had finished. Right, Makoto was scared of the dark. “Don’t worry, Niijima-san. There’s nothing that can reach us while we’re on the platform,” 

“Does that mean there’s things down there!” Makoto cried, almost stumbling as she stepped back. Okay, that was not the reaction she had hoped for. Still, this was fine. Haru stepped forward, holding her hand out for Makoto to take. 

“Wait, It’s fine! Trust me! Even if we were down there, I won’t let any Shadows get to you.” 

Haru pulled out her ax, showcasing that she was well equip to fight them, instead everything she seemed to do appeared to freak her out more, her knees buckling as she grabbed her arms, shouting, “Shadows!?”  This was not going as planned. Haru debated on showing her Astarte, perhaps even trying her status healing move on her, but figured that due to her current appearance as a lady who’s lower half was a (albeit floral) skull, wasn’t worth the risk of terrifying her any further. 

Haru moved closer to Makoto and crouched down in front of her, placing a hand on her shoulder to try and comfort her. “Hey, it’s okay. Shadows are just aspects of the public. They really are harmless unless you provoke them!” Haru reasoned. “There are also friendly people here, like…” Haru sensed a familiar presence. “Jose!” 

“Jose…?” Makoto finally looked up, noticing Haru waving over a bright blue car. 

“Hey Misses!” Jose called out to Haru. Haru grabbed hold of Makoto’s wrist, waiting for her to give her a nod before heading over to Jose. 

“Jose, Makoto Niijima. Makoto, Jose,” Haru quickly introduced the two, oddly bowing as if that would do anything for them to get along. 

“Ah! Is this another human?” Jose leaned out of his carseat, studying Makoto. Thankfully his overall bubbly appearance put her at ease. Makoto even snickered a bit as she watched Jose in his tiny vehicle.
“I am, little man, and what exactly are you?” Makoto put her hands on her knees, smiling at Jose. Haru let out a sigh of relief upon seeing Makoto relaxing. Maybe this would work out after all.

“I’m studying humans,” Jose described with a smile, completely dodging Makoto’s question. “Noir here has been assisting in teaching me their way of life!” 

Haru stepped up next to Jose and added, “Jose is my friend. I travel in his car though Mementos, so you don’t have to worry about getting hurt.” Turning to Jose, Haru asked, “I’m showing Mako-Niijima-san around. Is there any extra room in here?” 

Jose looked around the car. After scratching his chin for a moment, he let out a small hum and said, “I could…” A small dust cloud formed and, after it faded, the car had been reformed, complete with two more seats. Haru clapped with joy while Makoto stared at it in confusion. 

“Was that…cartoon sound effects?” Makoto asked.
“This world runs off cognition,” Haru explained again. “There’s… A lot that’s going to be explained by that.” 

“Noted…” Makoto muttered, finding a seat in the back of the car while Haru sat next to Jose. She leaned over, asking Jose to head to her usual rounds for the day while also catching him up on what she'd been up to since they last spoke. 

As they drove, Haru tried to explain some of the other mechanics of the Metaverse such as Personas, more of the specifics around Shadows, what goes into awakening a persona, and other helpful details as she attempted to ease her into some of the more scary details. 

“So that outfit is how you see a rebel? I never took you for the muskateer type,” Makoto chuckled, getting more comfortable with the absurdity of the situation as time went by. “I wonder how I would look,” she muttered to herself. 

Hearing that put a massive smile on Haru’s face. This was working! She tried to come up with some way to help Makoto awaken her Persona, but she quickly realized she had no clue how to go about that. This wasn’t helped when they found their first wandering Shadow and Makoto immediately ducked under the seat, shivering. 

“Eep! IwannagohomeIwannagohome!” Makoto began to mutter to herself. Jose tried to coax her out while Haru leapt out of the car, pulling out her grenade launcher and launching a projectile at the enemy. Mementos Shadows were so much easier to break than Palace Shadows. She watched it fall over and fold in on itself, molding into two Bicorns. They were no Jack Frosts, but far from the more terrifying Shadows to spawn. 

“Are those…horses?” Makoto asked, peering out of the car. Haru pulled out her ax as she ran forward, swinging at the neck of the first Bicorn and taking it out in a single hit. She was too high up for any real challenge, so she figured it would be a good opportunity to show off her Persona. She faced the other one, looking back at Makoto before tearing off her mask, revealing Astarte in all her glory. Haru always loved the way her Personas looked, though she had to admit Melady might have been a more comfortable one to start out with. Astarte was beautiful, but in a way that radiated power more. Her upper half was completely black, with only a few golden adornments on her chest, neck, and wrists while her face was completely covered up by a large golden plate. Her lower half was a skull, covered head to toe with various pink and purple flowers, her bright yellow eyes droopy as she focused on her target. 

“Take them down Astaire!” Haru shouted, watching the psychic energy surround the Shadow before exploding and taking it down. When it was dealt with, Haru put away her weapons and dusted off her hands, swinging herself into her seat and facing Makoto. 

“See! As long as I’m here you don’t have to worry!” Haru assured her. Makoto nodded, returning her smile with a nervous one of her own. 

Makoto still fidgeted whenever they passed a Shadow, but at least it was an improvement from before. Haru gave Makoto a brief story of how she gained her abilities—an abridged version that she came up with to explain to Jose. Even with there being a cognitive reality she used to fight evil, time travel was still to out of the ordinary for her to tell the truth.

Her story went that one day she stumbled into the Metaverse after gaining visions of the world and chasing after a cat. After getting lost in the world, she awoke to her Persona and fought her way out and to find that cat again. She vowed to help people from inside the Metaverse and find her cat who she gained the name of from other visions. The visions were mostly just a thinly veiled way of explaining how she knows and will know the future, and judging how other Personas had special abilities beyond the usual, it should hold out as long as Haru kept her story straight. 

“Visions huh? Do you think you’re connected to the Metaverse in some special way?” Makoto asked. 

“I don’t know… My Persona does have abilities related to psychokinesis so it’s possible,” Haru shrugged, never actually thinking if that had any connection to her remembering. 

“Is that why you came to me?” Makoto followed up, starting to put the pieces together. “I won’t be upset if that’s the case… I did find it strange that you seemed so insistent on hanging out, but this does help explain things.” 

“Um… A little?” Haru lied. “I haven’t gotten them since, and it only gave me a couple of names and faces. That’s all.” 

“Oh? I should look into that,” Jose said. Haru wanted to tell him no, but there was no reason for her to shut down the possibility of learning where she got these “mysterious visions.” 

Haru was saved again by the bell, or in this case, the portal to Osamu Miyagawa’s Shadow. 

She hopped out of the car, asking for Makoto and Jose to watch from behind while she asked for a progress update on Shido. 

“Is everything going alright?” Haru called out, gaining the Shadow’s attention. 

“That bastard… He’s gaining more support… Looking into suspicious things,” Miyagawa grumbled. 

“Are they related to the cognitive world?” Haru asked. Miyagawa shook his head. 

“No. Foreign drugs. Kojiro Kuroda,” Miyagawa frowned. He then looked up at Haru and weakly smiled, “You like names, don’t you?” 

“What about him?” Haru managed to say before hearing a shout from the car. Turning around, she saw Makoto nearly falling out of the car as she started running toward Haru and Miyagawa.

“Huh? Who are you!?” Miyagawa sneered, causing Makoto to yelp in shock. Haru put herself between the two. She was not losing Miyagawa after just hearing about a lead. 

“She’s an ally, now, what about Kuroda do you know?” Haru asked, assertively shutting down the question about Makoto. 

Miyagawa swayed from side to side as he explained, “He killed his wife and is on the run, but Shido is trying to get connected to him.” Makoto opened her mouth to reply, shutting it when Haru put a hand in front of her. “He has connections with foreign testing sites. I don’t know what his plans are.” 

“Thank you. Do you know anything else?” 

“Not right now,” Miyagawa shook his head. Haru gave him a bow, taking Makoto back to the car. 

“What was that?” Makoto asked. 

“The Shadow of a man named Osamu Miyagawa. I ask him for information on a conspiracy I’m trying to stop.” Haru quickly explained as they sat back down. “You seemed to know what he’s talking about.” 

“Kuroda is the last name of the man my father’s after!” Makoto revealed, speaking louder as her feelings grew more intense. “Why would he be connected to councilman Masayoshi Shido, though? We are talking about that Shido right?”

Makoto was bright. Haru wasn’t surprised she was already piecing things together. “Most likely, which means there might be a conspiracy against your father,” Haru muttered, tapping her chin. She wasn’t saying this to try and trick Makoto, Makoto didn’t give her enough specifics about her father’s death to make any sure conclusions. However, the information she had learned had set off a chain of dominos in her mind, and she started to pick up on what might have happened to Makoto’s father in the last timeline.

“I…” Makoto muttered. 

Haru turned to Jose and instructed, “Jose, let’s head back for now. I don’t know if Makoto should stay here for very long without a Persona.” 

The mysterious boy nodded and drove them back to the entrance. The girls said their goodbyes and headed back upstairs to enter the real world. Waves of red and black flooded their vision once more, and they were back in the alleyway. Haru saw Makoto confirm that everyone was real, opening her phone to find that the Metav Nav had installed itself. 

“Does this mean I can enter it now?” Makoto asked. Haru shook her head. 

Haru nodded, but the worry on her face was evident. “It’s best not to head in alone without means to defend yourself,” she advised. 

“I can fight! I know the basics of self defense!” Makoto argued. As much as she wanted to argue that she could barely function when they entered Mementos, Haru ignored her for the moment and pulled out the Nav again. “Kojiro Kuroda.” 

“Candidate found,” Three spots. This man had a Palace. 

“What does that mean?” Makoto rushed over to Haru’s phone, looking at the spots. Haru frowned. She had no idea what day Makoto’s father died. If he’s already on the case, then she is operating on an unknown time limit. 

“It means we are going to have to find his Palace, which is going to be more difficult than a Mementos case,” Haru stated, turned to Makoto. “Would you be able to help me?” 

“If this could possibly be a conspiracy…” Makoto muttered. “Dad…” 

Haru put a hand on her shoulder, putting on a warm smile. She had to remember, as much as she wanted her to be, this wasn’t the same Makoto she knew. This wasn’t the Makoto who proudly stood tall as rammed her motorcycle into enemies while calling out weaknesses. This wasn’t the Makoto who was stern, but kind to everyone around her. Right now, she’s a scared sixteen year old girl who just learned her father might be killed. 

 

Killed by Shido… 

 

After a moment of silence, Haru offered, “Let’s make a deal. You try your best to distract your father and get information, and I’ll let you help me take down Kuroda.” 

“Deal!” Makoto said with no hesitation. She pulled out her phone, gaining Haru’s contact information and checking the time. “I should get going. Sis is probably worried sick about me.” 

Right, Sae. The checklist of problems Haru had to solve was growing larger by the day. At the same time, she was fine with letting loose today. Haru looked down at her phone, changing Makoto’s contact info to “Mako-chan.”

 

 She scored a major victory today. 

 

Today was a good day. 

Notes:

Apologizes if the exact time chapters are going to come out differ, now that finals are over, I have went back to gamer hours aka bed at 3 am, wake up at 3 pm

Chapter 21: Despicable, Cruel Cruel, People: Part VII

Notes:

thank you all for 100 kudos!!!

 

Goro Akechi  

 

April 27th, 2014 

 

“Kenshin Kuroda. Lady’s First. Market.” 

“Beginning Navigation.” 

The world shifted, replacing the bright blue sky with a deep maroon. Most of the buildings of Shinjuku remained the same, but there were no people manning the stores. The streets were barren, leaving only the three intruders in the middle of the road, staring in awe at the sight in front of them. 

 The Palace could have definitely been better described as a circus rather than a market, with the formal bar being replaced by an open farmer’s market that was illuminated by colorful lights flashing in front of various stalls. Shadows strolled through the narrow walkways, picking through rolling apples that tumbled across the market. 

A couple of those fruits tumbled all the way to the entrance, rolling in front of Goro’s feet as he picked it up. 

“Fruits… What a despicable man,” Goro muttered, taking an educated guess on what they could mean as he approached the front of Lady’s First. 

“Oh, we’re in our Metaverse attire,” Sumire commented, looking down and noting the disappearance of her casual clothes in place of her Metaverse uniform. Waffles jumped off her shoulder, heading down to the floof and stretching his legs. Goro had no idea how on earth the girls managed to convince him to bring the wild animal with them, yet he couldn’t formulate any arguments against it due to its unnatural intelligence and admittedly strong abilities. 

Yet his eyes were not deceiving him, as he did in fact process a mask and furthermore a Persona. As long as the rodent had the ability to keep up with the team, then Goro couldn’t object. It wasn’t like he was planning to stay there permanently. 

Goro nodded at Sumire, noticing his own attire remained unchanged, something he was actually quite surprised about, with the other girls being seen as threats and all.  It didn’t help either that he was still missing his briefcase, making him currently defenseless. 

“Should we give a codename to Waffles?” Kasumi asked as she reached down to pet the tanuki. “This is his proper mission, so we should come up with something to stay on theme.” 

“If you have any ideas,” Goro shrugged, leaving everything he thought as ridiculous such as giving a code name to a street animal to her.  Kasumi frowned, looking down at the tanuki. “Hmm… How about Beast?” 

“Beast?” Sumire repeated. Waffles looked between the three, finally settling his eyes on Goro. 

“It’s misleading, it feels appropriate, I approve,” Goro crossed his arms, kind of just settling with the first thing that was suggested. “Shall we get going?” 

“But how about you?” Sumire inquired, looking at Goro with concern. “You haven’t changed,” 

Goro shook his head, “I wouldn’t worry about that. As soon as Kuroda sees me as a threat I will be able to access my Personas again, so before that I shall be staying behind, if that’s alright.” 

“Right, we’ll protect you!” Kasumi cheered with an inorganic glee before deflating from Goro’s sour look. He tried to readjust his expression, desperate to not show offense. He already saw how upset she was at him, and so far he’s done nothing but make that worse. 

It was straining him more than usual to keep up the act, but Kasumi didn’t deserve to deal with everything he’s been putting her through. It was already clear that it was taking a lot out of her to try to include him, failing at every step of the way. As much as it annoyed him to see her try, he couldn’t truly be mad at her. It wasn’t her fault that Goro Akechi was an unfixable mess. 

Goro looked down at the tanuki. He had a little black domino mask with a white outline around the rim and eyes. On the sides of the mask were a small reflective material, one Goro could only compare to those that construction workers wore to avoid getting hit by cars. It seemed fitting for a tanuki, an animal that could easily become roadkill. 

 Waffles was undeniably adorable, and Goro hated that he was so endeared by him. Why the hell was a goddamn animal running around in the Metaverse, with a Persona, even? What’s next? A pigeon?

“Um… Crow? You coming?” Sumire called out, snapping Goro out of his thoughts. He apologized and followed the two until they were a few meters away from the entrance. 

“There’s no way we can just walk in,” Kasumi declared. “Security would be on high alert from last time we were here.” 

Goro walked in between them, a grin forming on his lips. He scanned the area, figuring through the possible weak spots before pointing at a dumpster by one of the walls. “There.” 

“We can enter through a trash can?” Sumire clearly seeing the idea of dumpster diving for travel as a joke. 

“When it comes to the Metaverse, logic works differently. You have to think of all the possible ways the ruler would believe to be an entry point,” Goro explained, walking up to the dumpster. 

“Wait! It’s dangerous for you right now!” Sumire cried, rushing behind him. Goro couldn’t help but laugh as the trio (and animal) approached the dumpster, all the while Sumire tried to lecture him about safety. 

Goro approached the dumpster and opened the lid. It was filled to the brim of different fruits—ripe ones. That confirmed at least two of his theories. 

He hopped on top of the dumpster, giving the sisters a cocky smile before vaulting the wall. He landed behind one of the tents, swiftly blending in with the darkness and waiting for the others to join him. Once they were all on the other side, they regrouped behind one of the fruit stands a bit further up, allowing Goro to survey the Palace’s layout and operations from within. 

“This place is crawling with Shadows,” Sumire noted, peeking over the wall and examining the open areas and the creatures crawling through them. There were also masked cognitions, most likely of Kuroda’s clientele walking about. Not as many as Goro expected, must be a slow day. 

“This looks nothing like Sako’s Palace…” Kasumi frowned. 

“Don’t worry, I’ve seen Palaces in this format before,” Goro explained before he grabbed a stick on the ground, creating a small map in the dirt. “In the middle would be the castle, were our ‘light prison’ if I recall the term was,” 

Goro drew a box to signify the light prison followed by two lines of stalls on either side. “Each of these stalls will likely represent something, each leading to a different aspect of Kuroda’s psyche.” 

“Why can’t we just storm the Light Prison right away?” Kasumi asked, tracing her finger over the map 

Goro shook his head and informed her, “It’s likely hidden behind some sort of lock, so rushing straight in will be practically impossible. Luckily for us, Palaces always contain some method to enter every area. Nothing is locked with no key.” 

“I guess when you enter someone’s mind, there’s nothing they can keep hidden,” Sumire agreed.

“Maybe we can get into our teacher’s minds and steal all the answers to our next test!” Kasumi suggested playfully. 

Goro ignored what he hoped to be a joke from Kasumi before continuing, “If things have an order to them, there is usually some signifier to the order, but in this case, I believe we are free to hit them however we wish. There might even be a safe room hidden between them.” 

Clapping her hands, Kasumi cheered, “Alrighty then! Then should we start hitting the booths?” 

Tapping his chin, Goro examined the map one more time. “Well, we have a couple of plays we could make. The first would be to send a scout. It’s a viable option now that we have three members instead of this being a solo trip.” 

“Four! We have Beast,” Kasumi corrected, reaching down to gesture at Waffles, who was looking up at him with watery eyes and pouting like a child. 

Goro rolled his eyes and scoffed internally as he corrected himself, “Right, four members, but back to the point along with that we could attempt to draw away the ruler’s attention. If that goes well we can get through this a lot faster than if we tackled the lines one by one. I’m debating on this one since it could result in Kuroda properly seeing me as a threat and me getting my Personas back. As long as I am not at full power, our options are limited.”  

“Yeah, it would be a major help if we had all hands on deck for this,” Sumire agreed. “Perhaps there’s a way we can show ourselves as threats without gaining Kuroda’s direct attention.” 

Goro put a hand on his chin. That could work. However, it didn’t do anything to address his main concern—he had never encountered a Palace where he hadn’t changed into his Metaverse attire by this point. Additionally, without his briefcase, he had no extra copies of his weapon. It reminded him too much of the time he first awakened, the feeling of powerlessness was sickening. 

“Let’s explore the booths first. That way we can get a feel for what enemies we are dealing with before we make a show.” Goro suggested, gesturing to all of the side paths on his map. 

“That works for me,” Sumire agreed. 

“Yeah, let’s gather as much information as we can! How about you, Beast?” Kasumi turned to the tanuki. With a chirp, it was a unanimous decision. The group were currently on the southwest edge of the market, allowing them to quickly slip into the first booth, one with a giant peach on the front of it. Entering the stall, the hall elongated, forming a colorful corridor with different peaches trapped in cases. 

“So I’m guessing the fruits mean something…” Kasumi shrugged looking at a plaque on the bottom of one of the peaches. “And I’m not liking what they mean.” 

“They represent the people he sells…” Sumire muttered. 

Goro glared at the display of depravity, adding, “Precisely. My theory is that each fruit might mean a different time of ‘product’ he sells. Peaches often symbolize immortality and fertility in different mythologies. In Japan it was believed that the Momotaru was sent to Earth through a peach, and in China there was a garden of immorality-granting peaches in heaven.” 

“You… You know a lot about peaches,” Kasumi observed with a mix of concern and admiration. “But I’m also guessing that Kurdoa doesn’t care about Momotaru.” 

“I liked reading about Momotaru,” Sumire muttered, her voice quiet.
As if he were one of their teachers, Goro lectured, “Things in nature happen to be a recurring theme in mythology, and if you haven’t noticed all the Shadows and our Personas are modeled after mythological and cultural figures.” 

“Right, Violet’s is based on Cinderella!” Kasumi recounted, “And Briar is Sleeping Beauty!” 

“I’ve been wondering about that. Do you sleep quite a bit?” Goro asked before distracting himself with the history of the myth and beginning, “Well, if we are going off the original legend, Talia and the Sun and Moon , it tells of…” 

He paused, deciding to withhold that bit of backstory, at least for the moment. With them exploring a sex trafficker’s Palace, sharing with Kasumi the details of the original, much darker, myth of her Persona would only make things worse. 

The three continued to traverse the Palace, finally reaching a room that held many packed boxes. Sumire walked over to one, opening it. 

“It’s filled to the brim with peaches,” Sumire described. Goro was starting to get that there was a clear theme going on here. What he wanted to know was what the purpose of this place was besides just serving as a representation of a type of person Kuroda would traffic. 

Goro began to rack his brain for the symbolism. There had to be something related to peaches that he would have to do here. 

Peaches… They represented immortality and… 

A flash of realization came upon Goro. He grabbed a box, dumping all the peaches out onto the ground in a heap. He picked one out and stomped on it, crushing it into a yellow-pink slop. He went one by one, crushing each peach under his foot, leaving behind a mush of destroyed peaches. 

 

Peaches also represented fertility. 

 

“How despicable.” Goro was only able to mutter to himself. He wasn’t fully sure what exactly these peaches represented, but he could only pray that it didn’t signify how many victims were taken away. 

“What’s wrong?” Sumire tilted her head, watching his reaction. He shouldn’t be thinking about that right now. His priority should be figuring out what purpose this stall served. He silently collected himself, watching as Waffles ran through all the crates, giving a chirp to the rest. 

Not seeing anything better to do, Goro reluctantly followed. He maneuvered his way through the crates, eventually spotting Waffles laying atop of collection of crates that actually had labels on them, looking up at Goro with a knowing look. 

Kasumi and Sumire jumped through the maze, taking advantage of their increased flexibility to get up higher and pick up one of the boxes that wasn’t load-bearing. 

“This looks like an order list,” Kasumi called out. “A lot of names here.” 

Goro continued to make his way through. He never found his Metaverse outfit perfect for this world, but it was beyond better than the dress shirt and jacket of his school uniform. At least the lack of maneuverability was slightly evened out by not looking like a dove. 

Once he made it over to the others, he got little opportunity to properly analyze the list before hearing the sound of stomping. 

The four of them quickly hid behind some of the crates, watching as a man with brown eyes walked through. Goro shuffled his way through, gaining a better look at the man. Small eyes, black hair, pink shirt. 

There was one of those in the backroom of the bar. One of the louder ones. Goro put his hand up, signaling his allies to stand by. This man was undoubtedly a cognition, and maybe the possible key to figuring out what he needs to get out of this Palace. Palace rulers had yellow eyes, so he knew it wasn’t Kuroda, but the fact this was a detailed cognition proved its importance. 

“God, why did lord Kenshin put me in charge of the peaches… Not like many people even buy them anyways,” the man complained and rolled his eyes. The statement eased a little bit of Goro’s worries. At least he could declare the amount of fruit doesn’t equal the amount of sales. 

After what seemed like years, the man finally appeared to gain the ability to see and noticed the obvious marks left by Goro, spotting the crushed peaches on the ground and letting out an annoyed grunt.

“Damn animals!” he cursed as he kicked the sludge. “Always getting in our shit. Alright, come out wherever you are!” 

Goro held out his hand again, looking towards his companions and slowly moving his way through to the other side, making himself known.

“Are you perhaps here to gather the materials for a special delivery?” Goro inquired nonchalantly, keeping his hands behind his back. 

“The… You’re the little shit that ran away! You know Kenshin is blaming me for you, don’t ya?” The man stepped forward, stepping back as soon as he realized he would ruin his shoes in crushed peach. “Get ya ass over here!” 

Goro smirked. “Make me.” 

Sumire rushed over to Goro, staying just out of sight of the man and readying her rifle. She looked up at him, her expression too hard to read from the mask and angle. 

“I don’t have time with this shit. Imma just get rid of you myself and get out of this damn peach job!” The man screamed, his form twisting in on itself until he took the shape of a Take-Minakata, two thick ropes dangling around him to make up for his loss of hands. Goro would have to use Robin Hood if he recalled this Shadow’s weaknesses correctly. 

The Take-Minakata rushed towards him. Instinctively, Goro reached for his mask, calling out for Robin Hood. 

Instead all he felt was his uncovered face and the Take-Minakata’s punch, launching Goro into the wall. 

“Crow!” Kasumi shouted before turning to the Shadow and reaching for her mask. “Briar! Electrocute him!”

“ The poor girl will have to learn the hard way. That is how things work.” 

“Wait no Take-Minakata repels electricity-!” Goro reached his arm out, only watching as the blast reflected off the Shadow and hit Kasumi square in the chest, launching herinto crates of peaches. 

“Mist!” Sumire cried out, rushing towards her sister. Waffles jumped ahead, reaching for his own little mask and summoning his own Persona. 

Getting a proper look at the thing, Goro was beyond horrified at whatever could be going on in that little brain of the tanuki’s. A pitch black snake, forming multiple loops just to contain its size while its eyes were wide and white. The only form of color was a small shimmer of an iridescent green whenever the light hit its scales right. 

The animal had no ability to call the name of such a Persona, and Goro didn’t have the time to go through his mental history of famous mythological snakes. With a chirp and a point, the small tanuki managed to command the Persona to create a loop of itself, forming a nuclear blast sending the Take-Minakata away. Goro managed to pick himself up, finding the blows of the Shadow hit far harder than what he was used to.

“Violet, pass me your weapon!” Goro called out, holding his hand out. 

“You can’t fight him!” Sumire, having just helped Kasumi regain her footing.

“Just shut up and give me your damn sword!” 

Sumire reluctantly threw over her rapier, Goro catching it and rushing the Take-Minakata, who was recovering from Waffles’ attack far faster than Goro would have expected. He slid to the side, quickly piercing the Shadow’s leg with the blade. 

He listened for a cry but was instead met with multiple ropes grabbing him by his neck, lifting him up into the air. 

Goro gasped for air, balancing trying to breathe with trying to summon either of his Personas. 

Why weren’t they coming? 

“What a pathetic attempt, you can’t hurt me child,” The Shadow sneered, leveling its face uncomfortably close to Goro’s to let out a whisper. “I know your type, the one who feels pity for the nothings of society and tries to help.” 

 

“Don’t you get it my boy? No one is afraid of you.” 

 

“Excuse me?” Goro muttered, attempting to calm himself as he listened to the creature’s words. 

“Don’t you see? Lord Kenshin is doing the world a service, getting rid of shameless sluts and selling them off to settle down. Maybe a child or two would set them straight,” The Shadow whispered. “You seem like the type to understand this kinda of thing, don’t you?” 

“You think…you have the right to…the right to say…any of that!” Goro choked out, struggling to get out of the Shadow’s grip. 

“Crow!” Kasumi screamed after him before three more Shadows appeared next to the Take-Minakata, launching themselves at Goro’s allies. 

 

“ They would never fear you, Goro. In this world you have to fight against them, to show them that you are worth your place.”

 

“What, did I hit a chord? You a bastard? Pissy that you never got a daddy?” The Shadow continued to taunt as if it could read his mind and find everything it could to hurt Goro. 

To say things that he didn’t want the world to know.

To say things to piss him off.  

“Sh- shut…shut your god… Shut your goddamn mouth!” Goro grabbed hold of the ropes, watching gauntlets replace his gloves. 

Yes, remember that the only thing that can beat fear…is one’s own will. 

It was quite annoying, all the steps he had to take right now, but right now all he wanted was to see this creature dead and in the ground. 

“Huh?” The Shadow cried, unable to process the formation of Goro’s mask as he swung his legs over and kicked the Shadow’s stomach, loosening the ropes’ grip and letting him free.

“God you just won’t shut up, won’t you?” Goro taunted, drawing out his sword, his Metaverse outfit fully in place. The two sisters jumped forward into battle, followed by Waffles. 

“Took you long enough,” Kasumi quipped, not noticing Goro rushing the enemy until he was on the other side of the room. The Shadow kept up the fight, though. Nothing anyone had could actually counter this stupid thing. 

The Shadow finally made a move, sending a wave of electricity to the group. Goro and Kasumi managed to dodge, while Sumire and Waffles were left shocked on the ground. 

“Briar!” Kasumi called out, quickly healing the other’s status effects while Goro took the lead. 

 

“ This fight is proving quite a struggle my sweet child.” 

 

Goro dodged a swiping attack by the Shadow, parrying a second with his blade. The Shadow fired another bolt of electricity that he was unable to dodge in time, hitting him in the side and stunning him in place. While helpless, he watched as Sumire and Waffles lept to action while Kasumi rushed over to heal him. 

Both Sumire and Waffles had proven to be agile fighters, but Goro wasn’t surprised that the tanuki worked more as a glass cannon, dealing considerable damage but falling quickly after one hit. Goro jumped back into action as soon as Kasumi cleared the aftershocks, intercepting an attack meant for Waffles as he leapt back into the fray. 

These things were strong against curse, and Sumire’s bless attacks weren’t doing anything. Gun would work just as well as his blade, and the Shadow seriously wouldn’t shut its damn mouth. 

“I personally believe it to be better if the lord took my idea to selling you off, but it’s far more in his style to deal with any unwanted children before they become a greater nuisance,” It began to yap again. 

“ I guess now’s a better time than ever.” 

Goro’s head began to clear up. 

“Men like these, they will never quite understand the world from the perspective of others.” 

“They only see the rest of us as worthless trash.” 

“I believe it’s time for us to show them why we shouldn't be underestimated.” 

“Don’t you think so, my beloved?”

“People like you…” Goro muttered, lowering his sword as his vision narrowed. It was strange, back with Loki and Robin Hood, all he could recall was pure agony. He even saw that same reaction with Kasumi and Sumire’s awakenings. However, right now, it was like all the voices in his head were silenced, allowing him to put all his focus on this one moment. 

“Goro.” 

“Now, call my name.” 

“They are too delusional to say anything about people like us!” Goro shouted, all three of his allies turned around, staring at him with a mix of confusion and shock.

I am thou, thou art I.

Goro didn’t need a second command. He let the voice echo through his mind, remembering her name as if it were his own. 

“So shut your damn mouth! Come, Ixtab!” He grabbed his mask, ripping off with little resistance as he felt the Persona take shape behind him. Ixtab appeared almost completely covered by the blue flames, throwing her arms out to surround the Take-Minakata with psychic energy. Goro thrust his arm out, watching the Shadow fold in on itself until it fell to the ground. 

“Everyone! With me!” Goro called, beginning a synchronized attack that the others ran to join in on. Within only a few seconds, they tore the Shadow to pieces, only leaving a fading black pile of sludge before reverting back to his original form, lying defeated in the rubble of destroyed peach crates. No one relinquished their weapons, keeping them trained directly on him as he stared ahead. 

The cognition did its best to back up to safety but found itself cornered, raising its hands in surrender and pleading, “Please, have mercy! I’ll tell you what you want!” Goro tightened his grip on his gun, his finger hovering over the trigger. 

Don’t let rage consume you. Remember who you are. 

He heard a new voice in his head. They were getting louder and louder, yet he had no luck in being able to tell them apart. Who had his best interests in mind, who only wanted to watch him sink further down his own lies? Who was Ixtab? The name was likely Mayan, but it wasn’t one he was familiar with. Why did he gain another Persona only now? Why did he have three when Kasumi, Sumire, and even the strange tanuki only had one each?

Goro shook his head and brought himself back to the present moment, staring down at the Shadow. “What will it take for us to see Kenshin Kuroda?” 

“Um…” the man hesitated before hearing Sumire ready her own gun, the click of the trigger sending it into a frenzy. “Heonlywantstoseepeoplewhoareloyalcustomersandheneedsaletterfromeachofthestandowners!” 

“Huh?” Kasumi groaned, rubbing her temples as she tried to process the cascade of gibberish. “Did either of you catch that?” 

“Proof of customer loyalty, hmm,” Goro muttered, more to keep the others up to date than for himself. “And you would gladly give us that letter, correct?” 

“Yes! J-j-just g-g-gimmie a p-pe-pen!” The man began to ugly cry. Goro titled his head to Kasumi, the one with the least intimidating gun to run back and grab a pen and paper, handing over to the man. 

“Crow, are we actually going to let him live?” Sumire leaned over to ask, watching the man fumble his letter. “He’s not actually the real person, is he?” 

“No, it’s just a cognition. it seems Kuroda sees him as someone easy to fold under pressure,” Goro shook his head as he theorized. 

“You call that easy?” Kasumi crossed her arms, sitting on one of the few crates that hadn’t been smashed to bits. She reached down to grab a peach, handing it over to an eager Waffles to munch on. 

“No, I suspect that the battles will only get tougher, but we are no longer under the limitation of missing my Personas,” Goro shrugged, grabbing the letter from the man. The handwriting was shaky, but serviceable enough for their trip forward.

“Ixtab… who exactly was that?” Sumire muttered, finally bringing up the elephant in the room that they had been ignoring. 

“I’m not exactly sure, but she certainly came in handy,” Goro said, dismissing the topic for the moment. It wasn’t like he had any answers. Instead he walked over to Kasumi and apologized, “Mist, I deeply apologize for getting us into a battle and causing you to be hit,” 

“Hmm… I’m not sure that’s enough,” appreciating the opportunity to tease him, Kasumi grinned, hopping off her crate and poking her cheek. 

“Would offering you to do the honors be good enough payment?” Goro offered, gesturing to the cognition still shivering in fear behind him.

With a wide grin, Kasumi thanked him, “Why of course Crow!” And with a quick slash with her trident, the Shadow was gone before it could comprehend that Justice’s Truth had no mercy for people like it. 

Goro paused for a moment. He did not just refer to the group as Justice’s Truth in his head. That was just a silly name he made to please the sisters. That didn’t happen. 

“You did give us a scare there,” Sumire frowned. “But you seemed to gain another Persona. You eyes glowed all yellow for a moment there.” 

“Really?” Goro inquired. One thing about allies he did like was they were able to observe things about him he wasn’t able to. He never even knew that a person’s eyes glowed gold during awakenings until he saw Sumire’s and hadn’t thought to consider that the same applied to him. “I honestly… I didn’t even know that I could do that.” 

“Really? Did anything change from usual?” Kasumi asked, feeding another peach to Waffles. 

“I heard a voice—a clearer one than usual—and eventually I got so upset that I guess that was enough for me to finally figure out her name,” Goro described, doing his best to put the abstract experience of awakening a Persona into words. Considering his track record when it came to explaining things, this was a pretty solid attempt. Saying it out loud like that, it made Goro wonder if the voices he heard strictly belonged to Loki or Robin Hood. Could he be able to hear all possible Personas, but only when his feelings align with them he could single out their name? Or perhaps gaining the Persona was related to outside situations like the people around him or the Palace itself. 

He was obviously some kind of exception to the established rules of Personas, so who was to say he was limited to just these three? The thought almost made him giddy, reminding him that he was still special compared to his peers. 

Goro looked back at the other three and took a seat on the ground. “We should rest here for a bit, maybe make it through another stall before heading home for the day.” 

“That seems like a good idea, we gained a lot of information today,” Sumire said, joining Goro on the floor. 

“Maybe even more,” Kasumi added as she returned to the crate she had been sitting on. She reached inside and grabbed a handful of peaches, insisting, “Hey try these peaches.” She took two from the bunch she grabbed and tossed one each to Goro and Sumire. Goro caught it, taking a concerned look at it. Sure it might represent a victim of Kuroda’s, but it didn’t mean it actually was one. After all, he did figure out that the number of peaches wouldn’t match the number of victims. 

Reluctantly, he took a small bite out of it, finding it surprisingly flavorful. He even felt the pain from the battle begin to fade. He was able to relax his breathing and he gently brushed his hand over his side neck, not feeling any possible bruising. 

“These are good! And I don’t feel as much pain anymore!” Sumire beamed as she started chowing down. 

“Yeah, Waffles seemed to like them a lot, so I took a bite and it seems to be working pretty well! I think we can carry them with us!” Kasumi cheered. Goro couldn’t help but agree. The various stands offering items they could use to heal would be a great boon for exploration. Who knows. Maybe some of them could have other helpful effects.

The group all stayed there, laying down to regain their energy. Goro almost seemed ready to admit that he was starting to prefer a multi-person team.

Notes:

Gonna hop a lot between Haru and Goro's story for these next few chapters

Chapter 22: Despicable, Cruel Cruel, People: Part VIII

Haru Okumura 

 

April 28th, 2014

“Tokyo.” 

“No candidates found.” 

“Zoo?” 

“No candidates found.” 

“Fishing pond!” 

“No candidates found.” 

Makoto sighed after yet another round of failed guesses, crossing the last location off her notebook. “We’ve been at this for thirty minutes now… We know this man has a Palace, right?” 

Nodding, Haru flipped her phone around as she reexplained the process. “Yes. When I put his name inside the Nav, it opened up a menu asking for two more keywords,” Haru explained. It was when she really started to realize that there was never really a time where she had to struggle to find out the keywords. Mona-chan already dragged her into her father’s Palace, Makoto and Akechi already knew Sae’s, and Ren managed to figure out Shido due to his connection with him. At this point she had to admit, it was starting to get a little hopeless to find without any proper hints to what possible Palace they were dealing with. “Did you find anything with your father?” 

“No. Whenever he gets home, he’s too tired to talk about his work, and sis doesn’t know anything either,” Makoto sighed, resting her chin on her hands and running down the list one more time.

Haru leaned back in her chair and decided to try and reassess the situation. “Well, perhaps we should go back to the beginning. Go over all the details we know and see if we’ve missed something. Our target’s name is Kojiro Kuroda and he’s a drug dealer,” she repeated, running through the little information they had managed to find on the Palace ruler.

Makoto nodded and confirmed, “That’s correct. When searching him up online it appears he’s one of three children, with both parents having passed away.” Makoto recited. “I couldn’t find any information on the youngest sibling, but his older sister is apparently the owner of a foreign clothing brand.” 

Haru took in all the information, trying to find a possible lead. “Do you know his sister’s name?” 

“Yes, Aisa Banno, she-” 

“Candidate found,” the Nav chimed as it sparked to life. Haru grabbed her phone, noticing an open space next to her name. 

“Yes! She’s a Mementos target!” Haru cheered. “Great work, Mako-chan!” 

“Mako…chan?” Makoto repeated, taken aback by the sudden use of the nickname. 

Haru’s heart dropped as she quickly waved her hand dismissively and lied, “Oh, it’s just something I came up with. I hope you’re ok with it!” Haru put on her best casual smile, but winced a little at the tone. 

Makoto seemed a bit suspicious but ultimately brushed it off, placing her hand on her chin as she replied, “No, it’s fine… I just feel I should have something for you too, though.” Makoto laughed, “But Haru doesn’t seem like a name that’s able to be shortened, does it?” 

“I guess not,” Haru agreed, sharing a laugh with her. It was nice to be with a friend. She couldn’t confide with her or truly talk to her like she used to, but having someone she bounced off so well was a benefit for her own mental health. It’s strange to think about that despite being the last person to join the group, Haru couldn’t imagine a life without them anymore. “I guess the best option would be to head to Mementos to talk to her,” she mused. 

“Right, I should stay here and continue looking into Kuroda,” Makoto said, prompting a small frown from Haru. Right, she didn’t have any means to defend herself. Makoto would need to awaken to her Persona for her assisting in Metaverse activities to be safe, and she doubted that Mementos was the right environment to draw it out. Mementos was very impersonal, and if she wanted to control Makoto’s awakening, she needed a place where Makoto was forced to realize her desires for rebellion that wouldn’t risk seriously hurting her. 

Haru already ran through different ideas in her head: pretending to be injured, hiding away and leaving Makoto alone to deal with Shadows, or even stalling out a fight to trick Makoto into thinking that Haru was about to die and only she could save her. Most of which were quickly scrapped due to the fact that she wanted to find something that didn’t involve fooling her, but Haru was drawing a blank in that department. She couldn’t simply just trick her into awakening because it’s more than likely that all her rage would be directed towards her and ruin all the progress she’s made with her friendship. She could recall something of how Ann was the real trigger towards Makoto’s awakening, but the actual ins and outs of that is so lost to her that Haru didn’t want to risk her friend’s trust for a gamble like that. 

The only comfort she had was that if this Makoto was anything like the girl she knew, that fighting spirit was still there. It just needed the right environment to be drawn out. 

Maybe the best case scenario was that awakening could give Makoto her memories back. Though, if that was how it worked then Akechi would have gained his memories as well, so it would’ve been a blessing and a curse for Haru. 

Now that she thought about it, what would Akechi be doing if he had his memories? Surely he wouldn’t be stupid enough to go back to Shido, knowing just how poorly it ended for him, but perhaps Haru underestimated his obsession with wanting to kill his father. She had only stopped him mere seconds before meeting up with Shido, who knows what sorts of plans could’ve been running through his mind. 

Haru finished her tea, telling Makoto that it should be a quick trip if the Nav is anything to go by. At least, it had to be. Even with Jose, she could only head so deep into Mementos before getting locked out. Last timeline it had to do with how many Palaces they conquered, but they never really learned how that worked. 

Was it connected to their fame? Experience? It couldn’t be the latter due to Haru’s ability to take down high level Shadows with ease. The former wouldn’t make sense either since the Phantom Thieves lost a lot of their popularity after Sae’s Palace, but Mementos remained open to them. 

Haru bid her friend farewell and rushed over to the metro, ready to head in as soon as she figured out the type of calling card to send. Aisa Banno was the head of a foreign clothing line called “Amy’s wish” which specialized in clothing for disabled women, allowing special orders designed just for them. 

It made Haru increasingly curious about what could be troubling her before she sent the calling card. Actually sending the card was a fairly simple process, if incredibly expensive. There were different offers to get specialized orders, the highest of which going directly towards Aisa herself. Haru just hoped her father wasn’t looking too closely at her credit card. Him finding a twenty thousand yen purchase to be able to email a foreign business owner with a specialty order that only contained a mild threat to her heart would not bode well for her future prospects to explore the Metaverse. 

Haru really needed to find a better way to send cards out, but as long as her target sees it, her portal should appear. 

Haru met up with Jose, having a nice, casual conversation with him while they searched for the portal. She found herself lucky that it didn’t take too long, coming across it only a couple floors down. She thanked Jose for his help and stepped through, confronting the Shadow within.

“I have to… I need to be cheaper… If they can’t afford it… then…” Aisa was muttering to herself, chewing her fingernails. Haru sighed as she tried to figure out what was going on. She didn’t quite understand her distortion, but her goals seemed noble enough. 

“I need to speak to you about your brother,” Haru declared as she walked up to her. 

“Who-! I… I don’t have a brother!” Aisa cried, already putting herself on the defensive. 

“I’m not here to accuse you. I’m trying to stop your brother, Kojiro Kuroda,” Haru elaborated, doing her best to keep her calm. 

“Kojiro? Not Ken? What is he doing?” She asked, fiddling with her hands.

Haru steadied her voice and smiled, “He might be doing something really bad, and… and we’re worried about him. Are there any places he frequents?”

“Frequents? Besides the ports?” Aisa chuckled nervously. “No, I don’t know anything… not with him, not with Ken… I swear…” 

Taking note of the ports comment from Aisa, Haru gave a tight nod. She should still see if she could gather some more information from her before defeating her Shadow and changing her heart. 

“He’s dead to me!” she screamed. “I don’t want anything to do with him!” 

Haru narrowed her eyes, wondering what he could have possibly done to warrant a reaction like that. She put that aside, figuring it was a family dispute of some kind before continuing to ask her a few more questions. It took a while for Aisa to start talking, but she was eventually able to glean some information. Aisa and her two brothers were always distant with each other. While their parents put Aisa down, they favored Kojiro to take over their family business. Ken was their youngest son, and while Aisa wanted to be close with him, he favored Kojiro much more until he left both of them.

“What happened to your brother?” Haru continued to prod. 

“It doesn’t matter, he’s dead to me… they’re all dead to me!” Aisa cried out, nearly stumbling to the ground. Haru reached her hand out towards her, Aisa slapping it away and pushing herself off the ground. “You’re just like them all… aren’t you… you only care about them, only see them as worthy, meanwhile I did it all myself! I worked hard, made a name for myself and actually did some good in the world from this damn bloodline!” 

She looked back up, a scornful look through her golden eyes as her Shadow crumbled in on itself. “I will continue to make sure to help them… until my name will outshine all of theirs!” 

It was an easy, yet annoying battle. She was immune to all of Astaire's attacks, restricting Haru to physical damage with her weapons. A few good hits was all it took, but the Shadow was surprisingly nimble, making hitting it with her ax quite troublesome. Still, she was able to beat it after a few minutes of hitting and running, causing the Shadow to melt and fade back into Aisa’s form.

Haru walked towards Aisa as she lay defeated, her head limp. “I just want to show them I can be successful… For people like me, who’s parents won’t even give her a chance…” Her voice was a low whimper, losing all the will to fight back before letting out a bitter chuckle. “Whose parents aren’t even alive to be proven wrong…”

Haru stepped over and placed a hand on Aisa’s shoulder. She smiled at the woman and assured her, “I believe that you can prove them wrong, but you can’t hurt the ones around you to achieve that. Doing that won’t make you any better than your brothers. You have to succeed in the right way.” 

Tears slowly fell down Aisa’s face as she let out a weak yet resolved smile. “Right… Even if they nevered cared for me…I will show my parents who’s the successful one!” Aisa gleamed, slowly fading away as her troubled mind was cleared and leaving behind a treasure bud. Haru grabbed the bud and inspected its contents, finding it to be an old dress. 

“What’s the story behind her?” Jose pestered when Haru walked back through the portal. After a few other trips, it has become somewhat of a routine for Haru to explain to Jose the emotions and whatever experiences that could have drove the target to their current state after she defeated them. 

Haru climbed into the car and explained, “Some people in the world will hate others just for being born a certain way, and it takes a lot in them to fight back, even if it isn’t in the… best of ways, and eventually hurting people in the process,” Haru attempted to explain, she planned to look more into Aisa’s story at a later date. While she wasn’t able to parse many specific details, she could tell there was more going on behind the scenes in her life that couldn’t be explained by her appearance in the Metaverse. Haru should know that better than anyone, her father’s Palace never showed the times he sang lullabies to her as she cried or when he would nearly crash his car into her school when she got sick. 

Hopping out of Mementos and bidding farewell to Jose, Haru sent another text towards Makoto to invite her over so that they could study and discuss Metaverse topics in a more secure area. She also wanted to introduce Makoto to her father. She hoped that he would eventually be able to meet all of her friends once she actually met back up with them, something she wished she would have been able to do last time. Another of the growing reasons why Haru was thankful for this second chance. 

Sadly her father sent her a message that he would be coming home late, giving Haru a bit of disappointment before settling on getting ready for Makoto’s arrival. She brewed some tea for herself as well as a cup of coffee she recalled Makoto was quite fond of in the past. Makoto appreciated the gesture upon arrival, but being the more pragmatic of the two, promptly started asking about what Haru had learned. 

“Ports?” Makoto asked, having gotten settled on the edge of Haru’s bed. “That’s where he spends his time?”

“She really didn’t mention much else besides that, but if he’s a drug trafficker, then it’s very likely when you think about it,” Haru reasoned, pulling up the Nav and saying “port” into it.

“Candidate not found.” 

Haru lowered her head in defeat, annoyed that she didn’t spend more of her time trying to get information about possible locations for Kuroda’s Palace. Makoto on the other hand, kept her eyes trained on the phone before suggesting, “How about the docks?”

“Candidate not found.” 

“Oh! How about the ocean?” Catching her drift, Haru continued, hoping that the narrowed subject matter they were working with would give them the right answer eventually. It turned out that she was right.

“Candidate found.” 

Haru clasped her hands together in glee, ready to celebrate the small victory before Makoto went straight into further questioning. “The ocean? You said you have to be at the keyword location to enter the Palace, so how are we supposed to be at the ocean?” Makoto grabbed hold of the phone, confirming the precise wording to see if maybe they wouldn’t have to go out on a boat just to enter this place.

Haru wasn’t nearly as worried. The Palace probably wouldn’t be much worse than Shido’s ship, and it wasn’t like she had to go inside the company headquarters, courthouse, or diet building when working with the Phantom Thieves. If anything this Palace would be a cakewalk. “I believe we can go near the beach to enter his Palace,” Haru said nonchalantly. 

“But that’s like a ninety minute train ride,” Makoto countered. “How would we get any schoolwork done?” 

Haru paused as she thought the quandary over. They were still students, and Makoto didn’t have the luxury of having already done all of the tests in a previous timeline. Haru’s mind spun desperately to find some sort of solution to Makoto’s problems. “We can study on the way there! As long as we go when it isn’t rush hour it shouldn’t be too crowded, or we could even use my own limousine if needed! Now, let’s get to a possible distortion…” 

“I guess that makes sense…” Makoto grumbled before turning to the next issue. “Also, how do you find a distortion?” 

“We just have to figure out how Kojiro Kuroda sees the ocean. Like, for example, if someone might see a factory as a space station, or a school as a castle.” 

“How does someone see a factory as a space station?” Makoto raised an eyebrow. Haru felt her face heat up, scared to leak any information about the last timeline. She just defaulted to what she remembered, not realizing the specificity could be suspicious. At least with the absence of her father’s Palace, it’s near impossible for Makoto to make anything of it beyond a strange example. 

“It’s just a silly example I came up with! It’s kind of ridiculous in hindsight, isn’t it,” Haru laughed a little too sharply, rubbing the back of her head. Before Makoto could inquire further she pulled out her phone, attempting to use the Nav as a way to change the subject. 

“Museum!” she shouted into the phone.

“Candidate not found.” 

“Lab.” 

“Candidate not found.” 

“... torture room?” Haru was just throwing out random ideas at this point. She probably could’ve been more precise, but she had been thrown off her groove and was just trying to keep Makoto from figuring out about the past timeline.

“Candidate not found,” the Nav replied, continuing to disappoint. Makoto sighed, slowly putting her hand over the phone, forcibly lowering it. 

“We can’t just randomly start shouting things. Here, let’s go over what we know,” she suggested, flipping to an empty page of her notebook. Haru reluctantly nodded, following her lead. 

“So from what you’ve gathered, Kojiro Kuroda is a drug dealer specializing in importing foreign drugs to Japan. He has two siblings, the first being his estranged sister Aisa, and the second being his younger brother Ken. The location of his palace is the ocean.” 

“Right,” Haru eagerly nodded along, pleased to see the strategic mind she had grown so familiar with when working with Makoto in the past timeline.

Makoto nodded and continued to run down the notebook, “I doubt his family has anything to do with this because from what you said, he was a favorite child and didn’t like his siblings. That leaves us with his business. Since the only real use for the ocean for him would be to ship things discreetly… Wouldn’t it make sense that he would see the ocean as some means of transportation?” 

The way Makoto explained it, it in all honestly made Haru feel a little stupid. Usually it was up to Ren or someone who knew the ruler personally to figure out the keyword—she did help with finding her father’s afterall. 

“So perhaps a road?” Haru suggested. 

“Candidate not found,” the Nav rang out. Haru sank her head, watching Makoto putting a hand to her chin.

“Maybe not that, but I still believe we could be on the right track. How about a bridge?” 

“Candidate found,” the Nav rang again. Haru’s head shot up, quickly grabbing her phone to look over the list. 

Kojiro Kuroda, Ocean, Bridge. 

Haru clapped her hands and cheered, “That’s it! I didn’t think we would get it straight away because we’re not at the ocean, but you did it Mako-chan!” In her excitement Haru reached over and wrapped Makoto in a tight hug. Makoto stiffed at the sudden contact, slowly pushing her away while giving a carefree chuckle. 

“Um… You were the one who found all the pieces. I just put them together,” she dismissed, pushing her hair behind her ear as her eyes narrowed. “Let’s get back to business.” 

“Right… I guess I should scout the place as soon as I can,” Haru said, recovering from the rush of excitement. “When do you want to start going in?” Haru asked. She didn’t want to bring Makoto straight in. Not without scouting the place out at least. She recalled her own first awakening—How screwed she would have been wandering the Palace if it wasn’t for Mona-chan. 

She really hoped he was still out there, jumping from Palace to Palace, and would eventually cross paths with her again. He might even have his memories due to his connection with the Metaverse. It was all she could hope for.

Makoto stared down at the phone before declaring, “I’m ready whenever you are. If what you are saying is true, then I don’t want anything to happen to my father. I’ve even been working harder at aikido practice as well.”  

That’s right, Makoto also did aikido. How on earth did she manage schoolwork, student council work, aikido, and eventually all her Metaverse activities was beyond Haru. Her best bet was that her busy schedule was the core reason why she struggled to make friends when she was younger. It made Haru happy that she was able to reach out to her now, to be her friend. 

“Right, I could see if I can find you something to fight with as well,” Haru said. If she recalled correctly, Makoto used a revolver. Iwari definitely sold that along with some gauntlets Makoto could use. She might not recall the exact revolver she started with, but she could certainly pick something that this Makoto would be comfortable with. She didn’t see a situation where the diverging timelines would have changed her weapon preferences. The two continued to finalize their plan, settling on a date for their beach trip, Haru omitting the fact she planned to scout the place beforehand. 

Makoto soon bid her friend farewell and went back home, leaving Haru to lay on her bed, thinking over the day's events. It was productive; She saved another Mementos target, found the keywords to a Palace, and set everything up for a possible awakening for Makoto. For that last part to go over right, she would need to pick the Palace apart and find the best spot and circumstances for Makoto to confront her spirit of rebellion.

Haru never actually witnessed anyone’s awakening other than her own. She recalled the burning pain in her head, the voices, gripping her mask so hard that her own skin began to tear with it. Sure, she also saw Akechi’s true awakening, but that was more akin to a mental breakdown than the triumphant resolution that hers felt like.

Akechi… She hated how it always went back to him. No matter what she did, she would always think back to him. Seeing his stupid fake smile in class, his automated laughter at Makoto’s poor jokes, his masked politeness whenever someone asked him to do anything. 

She wanted to hate him. She wanted to hate him for what he did to her father, for what he did to Ren. Yet every time her mind wandered to him, all she could see were his last moments, his last words and those dreaded sounds of the guns firing. 

While Haru did see her father’s death, that was seen on TV. With Akechi, that was the first time she was truly in the same room as someone who died. The only time she had the chance to save someone, and failed to. Did she fail to save him? Or perhaps she just didn’t bother. 

No, she was scared. She was scared of what he would do. Even when he was on the ground with a broken mask and a gun pointed at his head, she was still scared of him. How pathetic was that? She should have charged forward, shot down the cognition and fought the surrounding Shadows despite Akechi’s protests to leave him behind. 

She should have saved him. She should be saving him now, making sure he didn’t fall down a fate that would lead to such a death. It was the right thing to do. Even if she knew that intellectually, emotionally, she was content with how things were. He wasn’t in contact with Shido, and that’s all she needed to know. Akechi could be living his best or his worst life, and all Haru would care about was that he stayed away from Shido. 

It was horrible, such horrible thinking that was so unlike her. She looked up at her ceiling, wondering again what would Ren have done in this situation. 

He would have fought to become friends with Akechi. He was already close with him, even knowing the risks in doing so. Ren forgave Akechi for what he did to him, something Haru couldn’t even comprehend. 

“I think about it sometimes. Yaldaobtoh designed us both to be his chosen puppets. Why did he choose me to be the hero? Why did he choose either of us for this fate?” Ren put his coffee down, staring down at the brew. “Sorry, I know this is a sensitive subject for you…” 

“No… I’ve been wanting to talk about this anyway… Are you mad at him?” Haru asked, staring down at her own cup of coffee. Everyone else was doing their own things, hanging out with each other or getting ready for some sort of event. That left Ren and Haru, dampening their mood by talking about the dead.

Ren looked startled by her question, looking over at the TV, his mind drifting. “No.” 

“How?” Haru murmured, her voice growing with volume as she followed up. “How could you forgive someone who tried to kill you? Someone who hurt so many people?” 

“I’m not in a position to forgive him for anything except what he did to me,” Ren clarified, looking back at her. “But every time I’m reminded of him, I remember that we were both puppets of a cruel game. I’m just the one who was lucky enough to get a happy ending… the one who wasn’t designed to take the role of the villain.”

Haru grabbed her blanket, pulling it over her head. All of them were created to be puppets, and right now, they were all slowly moving by the strings. Right now, all Haru could do is pretend hers weren’t cut so she could be able to face Yaldabaoth later. 

“Ren… I hope you’re doing alright,” Haru muttered to herself, falling into an early sleep, hoping maybe her dreams could collide with her old friend. 

 

Chapter 23: Despicable, Cruel Cruel, People: IX

Sumire Yoshizawa

 

May 3rd, 2014

 

Sumire jumped from rooftop to rooftop, each step lightly tapping the wooden supports of the stalls before jumping back up again to reach the next. She felt the bottom of her jacket flutter in the wind and the light breeze hitting her face while her sister followed suit. Akechi was in front of them, scouting the area before finding the desired area and waving an arm over. 

While they did find safe rooms inside each branch of the market, the group had found it more convenient to conquer a stall or two per day, finding the inside each one practically being its own mini Palace of annoyances; long halls created mazes of Shadows before reaching the stash inside with some sort of strong Shadow there for them to fight. Today’s target was a stall inspired by pomegranates. 

Each fruit they came by had some sort of symbolism to it, representing the type of victims Kuroda would target. They managed to conquer the plum stall the second day, which forced them to take a break for the rest of the week from the mental distress it caused. Following that, Akechi opted to scout ahead, marking down each of the remaining stalls and what they could mean before the others went into them. 

Today was the pomegranate. Most well known by the Greek myth, where a goddess ate six seeds which dictated six months she had to stay in the underworld. It was one of the first ones with a strictly negative connotation, and Akechi theorized that it could represent those whom Kuroda had issues with. 

“I guess we should head inside…” Kasumi was the first to break the silence. She’d been on edge as of late. It was clear her relationship with Akechi was straining more and more with each day, and Sumire had been drawing a blank on how to fix it. They would act normally in the Metaverse, Kasumi would go back to her more free-spirited self, while Akechi would take on a leader role, still showing off while he fought and taking glee in fighting shadows. Then, when they went back to reality, the two barely spoke, leaving Sumire in the awkward position of the main method of communication between her sister and her foster sibling.

Akechi’s new Persona, Ixtab, was certainly something. She used psychokinesis attacks, which paired well whenever Kasumi forced an enemy asleep. She possessed the ability to make enemies despair or fearful as well. It was all standard attacks Personas and Shadows had, one that Sumire wouldn't care cared for if she seen if it wasn't for Ixtab’s appearance. 

She took the form of a floating woman with pale purple skin and a veil that covered her face, a light gleam of light piercing through where her eye should be. Around her wrists and neck were ropes, tightening down on her skin where the area around it faded in and out different colors. Her fingers and toes were dipped in red and her clothes were tattered. Small particles swarmed around her, ones Sumire could only guess were meant to represent flies. It was nothing short of disturbing, and what truly terrified Sumire was that she was some aspect of Akechi’s true self. 

Despite this, Akechi was quite pleased with his new Persona. He often pulled her out in fights where Loki or Robin Hood would have worked better just to show off and have fun. He would cheer whenever she landed a hit and pose whenever she finished off an enemy. It reminded Sumire of whenever she or her sister gained a new toy to play with, always showing it off and using it until it became as tattered as Ixtab’s dress. If it wasn’t for her appearance, Sumire would have found Akechi’s reactions to Ixtab strangely adorable.  

That was the thing with Akechi, wasn’t it? Despite seeing three literal reflections of his heart, Sumire felt she only scratched the surface of who Goro Akechi really was. At this point she wouldn’t be surprised if he gained a fourth Persona sooner rather than later.

The little she did know about him proved that whatever conflict he was having with Kasumi was nothing short of childish. 

Kasumi was always a kind person, she didn’t think before she spoke nor did she read situations that well, but she never wanted to hurt Akechi. Sumire knew her sister well. She was an extremely likable person, someone who radiates positive energy and made everyone happy by simply being around them. Yet at the same time, it didn’t always do Kasumi well. Her natural charm and cheerfulness allowed everyone to come to her, and all the people who she was surrounded by held the same energy. 

Akechi on the other hand, was the polar opposite of the type of person Kasumi knew and was used to, if anything, he was the type of person she would mope about whether she knew it or not. He was quiet, didn’t want to go along with her, and insanely negative. It wasn’t a wonder to Sumire that she would eventually snap, not knowing how to deal with a person pushing back against her. She was utterly obvious how to deal with those who hide their negative feelings, Sumire herself being a perfect example of that. Of course that also meant she was even worse at dealing with someone who, while he believed himself to be hiding everything, wore his emotions on his sleeve. 

Meanwhile, Akechi didn’t seem to understand what was wrong. He knew he screwed up in some way, but the way she saw his pained plastic smile, Sumire knew he was taking it out on himself instead of searching for the truth like the detective he so clearly wanted to be. 

That didn’t mean that Sumire was going to be entirely easy on him, however. It was still his fault that he was pushing Kasumi away, that he was rude and dismissive of both her and Sumire’s complaints. Kasumi only had good intentions and Sumire knew for a fact that Akechi knew that too. If she were a different girl, maybe she would have yelled at him to actually express his complaints and problems towards Kasumi so she could understand that she was going too far. Instead, she kept quiet and continued to watch him bottle up his feelings.

Akechi gestured down to a hidden area down below and leapt from his spot, slipping into the shadows before waving the rest of them down. Kasumi followed after him, leaving Sumire with Waffles, their newest member. 

Waffles was weird. He was a tanuki, but at the same time, he clearly understood them and interacted with them like a human. He held a Persona of some mythical snake creature that used nuclear attacks, not that any of them were complaining; The type coverage was more than welcome. 

He had been staying with Akechi for the past few days. He created a small bed for the tanuki out of extra blankets and pillows, and always made sure to bring food for him to eat. They tried to find him some pet food, learning the hard way that the Wafflesi very much didn’t want to be treated like a pet. He was very fond of all three of them, but especially Akechi. Sometimes in battle, Waffles would leap up on his shoulders and the two would unleash a joint attack before inviting the other two to help them finish the job. 

Only a few days ago Waffles refused to go with Sumire to school, only for the group to find him back at home, sleeping on top of Akechi’s briefcase, the same one he lost in Lady’s First. Akechi ran over, searching through all the contents inside, breathing a sigh of relief when he found all of his old weapons, even hugging Waffles in response, gaining the happiest chirp in response. While he told the girls that it was nothing more than some backup weapons, the way he reacted that day gave Sumire the impression that it meant something more to him. Waffles nodded to Sumire, jumping down to join the others, leaving Sumirie on the roof. 

Sumire had been doing a lot better since she first stumbled into the Metaverse. She’d been more outspoken in class, taking time at practice to perfect her own style instead of trying to mimic Kasumi’s. She made it her personal goal to break out of her shell and show the world the power of Sumire Yoshizawa, or rather, Sumire of the Yoshizawa duo. She didn’t want to forget she shared her dream with her sister. No matter what she did, she couldn’t forget that, or else awakening to Cendrillon would prove to be the biggest mistake of her life. 

Sumire took a deep breath, skipping off the rooftop and landing next to the rest down below and hiding away in the shadows. Akechi made a hand signal, indicating the group to all start heading inside the stall. 

Like the others they had seen, this one was another winding hallway with different fruits lining the walls. The major difference between this one and the peach and plum stalls were that the pomegranates were instead in paintings rather than in glass cases. There were also more Shadows roaming inside, but it wasn’t anything the group couldn’t handle. 

This stall’s hall was much longer than both the peaches and the plums, including a puzzle relating to having a certain number of seeds in certain places before the door opened. It was an annoying puzzle, but with three people (and one Tanuki) working together, they managed to get through, reaching the containment room on the other side. 

“Strange… It’s just one box,” Sumire commented when they entered, looking at the walls covered head to trim with scratched-out paintings and how they contrasted with the singular box at the center of the room. Akechi walked over, slowly leveling his sword above. 

The team had no time to react before the box tipped over, spilling out a massive wave of pomegranates, far more than could reasonably fit inside the box. While the Yoshizawa sisters were quick to jump out of the way, the other two members of their party weren’t so lucky. 

Akechi, being the one directly in front of it, had the least time to react, being knocked off his feet and almost buried under the wave of fruits, barely getting out a worthless warning of what was coming before covering his head from the onslaught. Both sisters found themselves on opposite sides of the newly created river of fruit, and Kasumi was slightly closer to their fallen leader. She rushed over to the side, thrusting her trident to the middle for Akechi to grab on to. With the added support, he managed to pull himself out and leap out of the cascade, landing on top of the spilling box as he witnessed the absurdity of what he triggered. 

Waffles on the other hand, had it the worst of the group. He had been standing on Akechi’s shoulders when the wave began. However, instead of being buried, his small frame was carried along by the fruits, causing him to drift further and further away with each passing second as he squealed. Sumire called out his codename, rushing towards him while Kasumi assisted Akechi. Her rapier wouldn’t be any help in pulling him out, so instead she opted to rip off her mask and call for Cendrillon to assist. 

Her other self smiled, gently rushing over to pick the confused tanuki up, brushing him off before gently placing him in Sumire’s hands. Right, Cendrillon was known to have many animal companions in the original myth. Sumire held Waffles tight, hopping over the crate to meet up with the others to analyze what they were looking at as she gently soothed the tanuki. 

“What the fuck…” Akechi muttered to himself in disbelief. 

“Does… Does it end?” Kasumi asked as she leaned over, snatching a pomegranate from the newly created river. She took a bite out of it, before calling out to no on in particular. “I feel this one makes our magic stronger!” 

“Strange… Throughout all of this stall, this is the only room with the physical fruit. Everywhere else it’s been nothing but paintings,” Akechi noted as he put a hand to his chin, grabbing one of the fruits as well. “What could they represent?” 

Sumire leaned over the river of fruit, watching as the motion slowed and the volume started to flatten, molding together into what appeared to be one shape. She looked inside the crate, finding a small hole inside. “Maybe they represent…the ones who got away?” she suggested.  

“The ones who… I believe you are correct,” Akechi narrowed his eyes, watching the river form properly now. The pomegranates were replaced by red water, rushing through the stall and likely outside. They confirmed that when they heard the loud stomping of footsteps heading towards them. All four of the group looked at each other, silently coming up with a plan before jumping to the shadows. 

They waited in silence, watching the growing river flow and the guard Shadows begin to fill in. They ran to the crate, Sumire and Kasumi tilting it so it could act as a ramp for Akechi and Waffles, the duo running up and leaping on top of the Shadows, tearing their masks off and revealing their true forms. Sumire had to admit it was impressive to see the little animal take off the mask, but he did it with the ease and style that it really made her wonder how he could have even practiced such a thing. 

Sumire and Kasumi climbed up to and stayed hidden in the upper rafters, sniping down the weaker Shadows with their guns while the two on the ground tore through the enemies like hot knives through butter. It didn’t take much longer before the head of the stall walked in, getting jumped by the sisters landing a synchronized drop kick on it as soon as it stepped through the door. 

There wasn't much talking this time—the man ranted about the fruit before turning into his Shadow form, getting a solid beating from the group. Akechi demanded the letter from the man before Sumire got her opportunity to finish him off for good. 

“That makes three so far!” she cheered after she held out the letter. She then kneeled down to let her hand skim over the river. Feeling an odd sensation, she reached her hand inside, pulling out a fully formed pomegranate. “Huh?” 

“I think it’s about time we stop questioning things,” Kasumi joked, playfully nudging Akechi with her elbow. 

Akechi sighed, but still quipped, “It’s about time you realized that.” He then reached into the lake himself, grabbing his own pomegranate.

"Hey, I heard you cursing when you saw it!" Kasumi joined in, reaching down both arms to grab a handful of the fruits. The three of them looked at each other after that, sharing a laugh at the insanity of the situation. 

Getting back on track, Akechi rotated the fruit in his hand and stated, “So these represent the people who escaped…” 

Sumire did the same, glancing between the pomegranate and the river. “I wonder what the river means?” she asked. 

“Perhaps this will assist us,” Akechi suggested as he moved back to the crate. “These are the people who hate Kuroda the most, and are in a position to do some actual damage to his enterprise if their stories ever get out.” He stared at the crate, still pouring out the red water, before taking a bite out of his pomegranate. “In hindsight I should have eaten this during the battle…” he joked as he sat down and indulged in the sweet fruit. 

Sumire nodded along, taking a seat by the river while the group relaxed. She looked back and forth between Akechi and Kasumi, wondering if maybe it was time to try and mediate the rift that had been growing between them in the real world. She ultimately decided not to, not wanting to ruin the one break she had from those problems. In the Metaverse everyone forgot about their worries and she could live freely.

 

Violet didn’t have to deal with the inferiority complex Sumire Yoshizawa held about herself.  Similar to that, Crow and Mist had no bad blood like Goro Akechi and Kasumi Yoshizawa. 

Sumire paused for a moment, nearly choking on her fruit, the realization dawning on her. 

 

Who was the real person, Crow, or Goro Akechi? 

 

Sumire shook off the thoughts for the moment, realizing that Kasumi was currently complaining about a show they had been watching together as of late to her. 

“I get that the whole point of the story was that relationships are complex, but I’m very much on Juzo’s side right now,” Kasumi shrugged at her sister.

"But he's basically showing that he doesn't care about Tanak's feelings," Sumire countered. 

“And what exactly was the conflict?” Akechi leaned over from his seat, surprisingly taking an interest in the subject.

With a smile, Kasumi summarized, “Basically there was this guy that cheated on a girl in Juzo’s friend group. She was super heartbroken about it but the guy in question was Juzo’s former best friend. Then Tanak, the girl who got cheated on, being way too controlling on who in the friend group is even allowed to talk to Atasuke, that’s the cheater and Juzo's best friend, by the way,” The explanation was rushed and slapdash, but did a decent enough job of getting the major plot beats across. If Kasumi actually summarized all the small dramas in the show, they might be there all day. 

“Crow, what do you think?” Sumire joined in, scooting closer to the two of them. Akechi put his hand on his chin, thinking over the situation. 

“Are you asking if I were Tanak, Juzo, or Atasuke?” Akechi asked. Sumire tilted her head, already interested in his response if it would change depending on the position he was in. 

“Hmm… Let’s say you are their other friend, Juri, she’s my favorite character,” Kasumi clarified. “She is Tanak’s best friend and doesn’t really know Atasuke except that he cheated on Tanak."

“I would probably take Tanak’s side then,” Akechi said. Sumire frowned for a moment, thinking over her response before Kasumi beat her to it. 

Tilting her head a bit, Kasumi questioned, “Why? Tanak is being a massive jerk right now. She yelled at a completely unconnected friend in the group because he hung out with Atasuke.” Crossing her arms, Kasumi declared, “Nobody has the right to control others like that.” 

Lowering his gaze, Akechi let out a low hum before looking back up. With a nod, he eventually elaborated, “If I am the closest with Tanak, I would prioritize keeping my friendship with her. I would tell Juzo that Tanak has every right to handle her despair how she sees fit, and that the rest should understand what she’s going through.” 

“Really? I can’t see that,” Kasumi shook her head with a pout, explaining, “As Tanak’s friend, I would tell her she’s going too far. While I understand her feelings are hard to deal with, we need to think about how Juzo’s feeling too. He was friends with Atasuke far before he began dating Tanak or joined the friend group. What she's doing is hurting everyone and she's only going to drive more people away. How about you Beast? Do you agree with me or Crow?” 

Waffles watched the two for a moment, eventually walking over to Kasumi, allowing her to pet him as reward. She stuck her tongue out at Akechi, lifting the tanuki up. If it were any other animal, Sumire would have added a comment about tanukis likely not understanding the weight of the question, but tanukis holding complex opinions about equally complex relationships from TV dramas was one of the least strange things about the Metaverse. 

“What would you do if you were Atasuke?” Sumire interjected, looking straight at Akechi. He was taken aback, resting his head on his head before responding.

“If I felt guilty? I would leave the group and never tell them where I was headed,” he deadpanned, his eyes laced with certainty. 

“Why?” Kasumi asked again. 

“If I did something that hurt another person, and tried to act like I did nothing wrong, that makes me no worse than those Shadows,” Akechi stated like it was the most obvious thing in the world. 

“But what about Juzo…?” Kasumi lowered her head. “He would be hurt by you leaving.” 

“So? I already hurt one person. He's risking his other friends by sticking towards me. My actions had consequences and I would be willing to accept them, seems quite simple to me,” Akechi continued. “Juzo would be better off if I never entered his life. The least I could do for him is leave quietly; Allow him to be mad at me so he wouldn’t mourn my loss.” 

“That’s pretty harsh for a show about cheating…” Sumire said, snapping Akechi out of his thoughts. 

“It’s a dramatic show, I would have to act dramatically wouldn’t I?” Akechi quipped, forming another fake smile on his face. It didn’t last, going back to something more neutral as the group continued to listen to Kasumi’s story before deciding to get back to work and continue exploring the Palace. 

They made a quick pit stop in the closest safe room to check their supplies before  following the river, finding it weaving around each of the remaining stalls before ending at the castle at the center. The team didn’t have much time to process this change before they heard chattering guards coming up behind them. They dove into the alley and hid, watching as a group of Shadows came up and stared at the river and talked amongst themselves.

“Where did this come from?” 

“We believe it came from the pomegranate stall.” 

“How the hell did a river come from the pomegranate stall? Never mind… Just figure out how to clear it out before Lord Kenshin shows up!” 

The Shadows began to scramble about, trying to come up with ways to block it off before Sumire slowly picked out her gun, aiming it at the head Shadow in the group. 

Bang! 

The Shadow fell to the ground. Sumire only gave an impassive shrug when she felt three faces glaring down at her. The surrounding Shadows all went into high alert, scanning the area for the intruder. They fortunately hadn’t seen them, giving Kasumi and Akechi the time to pull out their weapons, assisting Sumire in shooting the enemies down. The final Shadow managed to avoid their shots, spotting their hiding spot and letting out an enraged shriek, fading into a mass of red and black mist before reforming as a pile of black ooze. It was weak to at least three of the team’s available Personas, so it was taken down quickly and easily.

The team fled to a new bit of cover before more Shadows came in. Kasumi peered out to the river as the next wave arrived.  “Should we call it for the day or wait it out a bit longer?” 

“They all look like weaklings, and I am curious to see if the ruler will come out,” Akechi said, casually lifting his gun and taking aim. Waffles hopped up to peek over the ledge, turning his head at Sumire to hear her opinion. 

“I think we should wait a few more minutes,” she responded. “If the ruler doesn’t show then I don’t think it’ll be a good idea to wait until we get overwhelmed.” Once the others nodded in agreement, they all changed positions to get a better view, with Waffles watching their back to ensure they had their escape route still open. 

More Shadows came up, analyzing the river, asking questions to each other about what created it and what purpose it served. Sumire was curious about the answers to those questions too. Despite being there when it was formed, there were still plenty of unknowns about the abstract creations of Kuroda’s Palace.

Eventually the Palace Ruler did show up. Unlike Sato, his height was far more natural—Sumire guessed he might’ve been ten or so millimeters taller than Akechi. He was dressed in bright red ringleader clothes, almost like a head of a circus, his hair and eyes a bright yellow contrasting his lavender colored skin. 

Sumire glanced at Akechi, watching him staring intently at the scene. He didn’t seem to have any adverse reactions to Kuroda, which was a big relief. She was worried that whatever happened the last time he met with the man would cause him to freeze up or panic like how they found him. 

Kuroda didn’t hesitate to start barking out orders, demanding the Shadows explain to him what was happening to his market. All the standard things Sumire has heard of TV before as he pointed his cane towards each quivering Shadow. One meeker Shadow stepped forward, explaining the little he knew about the river as well as how they were trying to fix it. Kuroda’s face remained in a perpetual scowl as he listened. When the Shadow finished talking, he waited a few seconds before shouting out curses and slashing the Shadow to a set of black mist with his cane, kicking the remnants as he looked around him. 

“These damn intruders! Someone must have helped them escape! Search the perimeter and bring me their heads!” He stomped his foot to the ground, looking up at the others Shadows and pointing at their backs to get them to move out.

The Shadows barreled past the team’s cover in a terrified frenzy, and they watched the cognitive Kuroda stand around menacingly for a bit before returning to where he came from. “Security is about to get real tight. I don’t think we’ll be able to do anything for a while… Let’s stop here for today,” Akechi stated. The sisters both agreed and they all began to make their way out of the Palace before the Shadows made it basically impossible to navigate. Their usual route was already being filled up, forcing them to take a more hidden route, on which they came across Kuroda’s memory chamber. A lucky find to say the least. 

Sumire entered the chamber, her mind flashing to a scene of a small room. There were three children, two boys and one girl. The girl, despite looking like the oldest of the bunch, sat in the back, clutching onto a small bear. The smallest kid was crying on the ground, pointing at the middle kid. 

“Why did you have to burn all my toys!” The smallest kid cried, clearly the younger version of Kenshin Kuroda. 

“Yeah because you’re too old to be playing with them,” The older kid… what was his name? Right, Kojiro, taunted. “You don’t want to end up like Aisa do you? Like a little baby?”

“I’m… I’m not a baby,” The teenage girl replied, tightening her grip on the bear. Kojiro looked as if he were about to respond, instead turning his attention back to the crying boy on the ground. With a smile on his face, he began to kick his brother repeatedly. 

“Get your ass up, you little bitch!” Kojiro taunted. “How the hell could Dad raise two little twats like you two? Thank god mom managed to churn out at least one good heir.” 

Kojiro kept kicking Kenshin until he was crumpled up completely, still crying to himself. With a devious grin, Kojiro crouched down and grabbed his brother’s hair, yanking him up to face him, giving everyone a clear view of his face. 

“Listen, if you want any chance of playing a part in the family business, you’d better man the fuck up and stop crying! Or maybe you want to get worse from papa,” Kojiro sneered before dropping him on the ground. “Honestly I would consider this a favor.”  

Sumire gasped when the scene disappeared and the trio returned to the present. Akechi had already recovered and went to the middle to grab the skull. She looked over to Kasumi and Waffles, both having similar reactions. 

“How horrible!” Kasumi cried, clutching her hands close to her chest. “How could someone treat their sibling like that?” Sumire looked over to Akechi, who was analyzing the skull with a look of indifference. 

“I find it strange all it took was one memory for you to sympathize with such a man,” Akechi deadpanned. 

“It’s just… I,” Kasumi muttered, attempting to defend herself.

“All that memory proves that he didn’t come up with his tactics on his own,” Akechi shrugged. “Guess also that it runs in the family…” 

Kasumi covered her mouth and stumbled, “Well, perhaps there was a situation where he was made into a terrible person-” Before she was able to finish, Akechi snapped his head over at Kasumi. 

“Monsters like Kuroda are born monsters,” Akechi sneered. There was a certain focus in his eyes that caused both sisters to visibly flinch away from him. “End of discussion.”

Waffles jumped up on Kasumi's shoulders, lightly purring to her ear to either comfort her or to keep her quiet. The rest of the trip back was uncomfortably quiet, so quiet that Akechi was able to catch a Shadow that had been sneaking up on them, beating it into a fine red paste before anyone else could react.

Notes:

was this posted at 10 pm? no it wasn't, you saw nothing

Chapter 24: Despicable, Cruel Cruel, People: Part X

Haru Okumura 

 

May 15th, 2014

 

“Kojiro Kuroda, Ocean, Bridge.” 

“Candidate found. Beginning Navigation,” 

Haru watched as the red ripples of the Metaverse flooded her vision and the gentle waves of the beach reformed into a long stretch of shore. This would be her first Palace expedition since going back in time, and her first by herself. Even during her awakening, she always had Mona-chan to protect her before she awakened to her Persona. 

She spent most of yesterday preparing for this trip, packing any healing supplies by raiding all the nearby vending machines and upgrading her weapons at Iwari’s. She shouldn’t be too worried; this was only a recon mission so she could figure out the safe areas to bring Makoto. 

Upon looking up at it, she could see the Palace as a standard suspension bridge. However unlike the ones seen in the real world, where they only contained a couple lanes, this one was beyond massive, spanning perhaps a hundred meters in width. There were blinding lights lining the whole place, but it didn’t seem necessary as the sky was a mix of orange and pink, all the colors of sunrise without the sun itself. 

The whole thing was grand and spacious, giving little cover, and Haru could see Shadows in cars as far as the eye could see. If she had Mona-chan with her, she might have been able to drive through undetected, but instead she was stuck here alone. 

Jose hadn’t said anything about him or any black mask wearing Persona users in Mementos as of recent, so she didn’t seem to have much worries about Akechi running about and disrupting her. 

Haru took to the side of the bridge, staking out the area for a few minutes, taking note of any patrol patterns she noticed as she pulled out her gun. While her grenade launcher was still her preferred weapon, it wasn’t the best for stealthy missions so she took a trip to Iwari’s to buy a model sniper rifle, it wasn’t too difficult from her limited practice prior, so she felt comfortable enough to use it here. Once she was able to survey enough to create a plan, she revealed herself from her hiding spot, pointing her gun, and shot the masks off a couple Shadows to preview what she was going to have to deal with in here. An Oni, a couple High Pixies, and a Yaksini—All things Makoto can easily deal with once she awakens to her Persona. 

It didn’t take much effort for her to defeat them, but the battle did end up alerting the Shadows within earshot. Deciding to save her energy, Haru scanned the area until she spotted an abandoned car parked only a few meters away from her, Haru sprinted over, diving through the open driver side window and kicking out the Shadow inside. She hadn’t had much practice driving in the last timeline, though she should be good enough to at least manage. She was glad there weren’t any driving laws in the Metaverse, allowing her to drive without her teacher’s screaming in her ear. 

Ramming her foot on the gas, Haru sent the car flying forward and swerving, running over the Shadow who was likely the former owner before speeding off to the bridge. 

Quickly scanning the area, Haru passed all the cars, ramming over any unsuspecting Shadows and rubble in her wake. She took a brief moment to stop after a while, ignoring the absolute carnage and terror she left behind her to examine her surroundings more closely. 

There was a sign on the side of the bridge indicating that a cargo check was approaching. With her past experience with Palaces and their need to showcase their importent rooms with bright neon lights, Haru figured that a check like that was either a chamber for the Ruler or at least some sort of area to gain information about the Palace. Haru parked the car, which in the real world equated to crashing it into the wall, and made her way forward, sticking to the edges where the lights didn’t reach until the small building came into view. 

It wasn’t anything special: a gray box with a door to the side. All the nearby cars stopped in front of it as a duo of Shadows spoke with the driver while two more inspected the contents inside each car. 

Haru snuck around and kneeled at the side of the building as she took this all in. While she has already fought a few Shadows, she would much rather not gain the attention of so many at once. Even if she managed to take the majority of them out with ease, the risk of one running off and altering the Ruler who and were was the attacker was too high for her to gamble with. Hence, she needed a distraction. Swapping guns and aiming her grenade launcher at a nearby car, she took a deep breath and fired. Taking a deep breath, she shot at it, ducking and covering her head as the explosion knocked back the two closest Shadows, luring out the rest of the Shadows hidden within the building as they all inspected the damage. 

She crept forward, getting a look inside and just as she watched the rest of the shadows leave the building, she lept forwards, grabbing hold of the Shadow in charge of shutting the door and throwing him back inside with her. 

The Shadow barely had any time to react before Haru was already swinging at it with her ax, knocking off its mask and revealing an Orthrus that didn’t even get the privlage to cry before Haru took care of it. Snatching the keys, Haru scanned the rest of the room for any leftover stragglers she might need to finish off before getting to work. 

The room was pretty bare bones, just having some work stations, a small window for upcoming cars to pull up to for check-in, a few desks with computers, and a safe room that Haru very quickly registere. 

Haru walked towards the desks, scanning each one until finding one still logged in she could search through. Sitting down, she started to scan through the computer’s contents to see if she could find any noteworthy information. 

The computer’s purpose appeared to be some sort of a log of different transports, where they’re from, and where they were going. Iran, USA, Colombia, Great Britain, and others were listed as popular exporters to Japan, while the people they are being sold to include the Yakuza and some more independent sellers. Haru continued to look through the information, finding more and more details that she knew she would fail to remember. 

When looking around the room for other clues, Haru spotted a small map on the far wall marking different check-in points, altering paths, and most importantly, an entrance to the bottom level—a massive complex that Haru could almost equate to the layout of a winding, artistic aquarium, that was located underneath the ocean itself, right under everyone’s noses. 

Things were already difficult enough without Mona-chan and Joker, but even if she had them with her, Mona-chan could only turn into a car. She would have to look further to find a possible route inside. 

Peeking her head out the window, she saw more and more Shadows clustering together at the exploded car, theorizing on what happened. A few of them were in cars, parking them nearby as Haru settled her rifle on the perch of the window, taking aim. 

The shot didn’t kill the Shadow, only removing its mask to reveal a Take-Minakata, which luckily for her happened to be lacking arms to steer. The Shadow failed to regain control of the car (not that Haru knew exactly how he could have), swerving and crashing into the crowd. Haru then pulled out her grenade launcher, shooting at another oncoming car, blowing it up and watching as it added to the carnage of the scene before her. 

If she hasn’t garnered the Ruler’s attention now, then nothing will get him out. Despite this, Haru took this as her sign to take her leave, killing all the Shadows here won’t give Makoto much of an opportunity to train, and it’s better here were she can gauge all the Shadows strenghs over someplace like Mementos. Storing the extra key to the building away, she stepped back into the safe room and warped back to the Palace entrance. 

Word apparently traveled fast in this place, as Haru overheard some Shadows talking about what happened on the bridge. Haru took this as an opportunity to rip off their masks and mark down a few more shadows. A Nekomata, Orobas, and Sui-Ki. That made seven different types of Shadows that Haru and Makoto might come across. She didn’t remember all of their strengths and weaknesses, but it was something she could go off of. 

After making quick work of the Shadows and leaving the Palace, Haru sent a text to Makoto. 

 

Haru : would you like to head into the palace tomorrow? 

Haru : I took a quick look here after my homework

Haru : just to see what it looks like 

Haru : but I don’t want to go too far without you 

Mako-chan : That will be fine. 

Mako-chan : I don’t have much homework tonight. 

Mako-chan : And Akechi-kun is completely caught up. 

 

Haru frowned upon reading Akechi’s name. She couldn’t stop the two from becoming friends, no matter how much she wanted to. She had no valid reason to tell Makoto to stop talking to him. The most she could do was distract her. If anything, Akechi is the type of self sabotage his own friendships before Haru would do anything even if she wanted to. 

 

Haru : alright, just send me a time and place to meet up 

Haru : make sure to bring plenty of drinks from the vending machine! 

Mako-chan : I don’t drink much soda, though.

Haru : trust me they do different things in the Metaverse

Haru : besides, they’re cheap 

Mako-chan : You see with you, I can’t actually tell if that’s the case. 

 

Haru put her phone in her bag, rushing over to the train. As much as she enjoyed the beach’s atmosphere, she didn’t want to still be here come nightfall, and her father might get worried if she stayed out too long. 

As she rode back home, she made a mental checklist of things she needed to do before tomorrow’s trip. She needed to stock up on weapons and armor at Iwari’s, including get Makoto’s supplies, hit every vending machine she could find, and draft out a plan for Makoto to awaken her Persona. Ren told her that whenever there isn’t a living being in the Metaverse, the world would freeze in time, Haru wasn’t exactly sure when or how he’s even tested this, but it hopefully meant that back when they reenter the Palace, all the Shadows will be in nicely cluttered groups together to either sneak by or fight through. 

She needed something else though; something to ignite Makoto’s spirit. Her own abilities manifested mostly to save Mona-chan, but it only properly awakened once she finally confronted the idea of betraying her father. 

 

“ I am thou, thou art I…”

“Let us adorn your departure into freedom with a beautiful betrayal!”

 

It made Haru think, what sparked Makoto’s awakening…? 

 

“Oh I remember! She got suuuper pissed and went ‘shut your damn mouth you money grabbing asshole!’” Ryuji laughed, giving a flustered Makoto a small nudge. “Then pulled out this sick ass bike as a Persona, boy was I jealous at the time.” 

“Really now? How fascinating,” Akechi said, putting his hand to his chin. “But what exactly sparked that will in you, might I ask?” 

“Uh… I guess it was less of a smark or so to say but rather a moment of introspection,” Makoto tried to describe, tucking her hair behind her ear as she struggled to find the words. “ guess after a while I realized…”

“You realized you were just a tool,” Ren finished. The words were harsh, but the way Makoto looked over at him, she seemed to have agreed. 

“Yeah, just a play thing for those rotten adults,” Ann continued. Makoto looked around at the group, gaining more of her confidence and nodding. 

With a sigh and a smile, Makoto agreed. “Right, and I’ll never go back to being that.”

Haru giggled a bit as the others joined in with their agreements, adding their own little stories about Makoto and thier own awakenings, only barely noticing Ren starring in Akechi’s direction. 

 

Haru snapped back to reality as she heard the ringing of the intercom announcing her stop, stepping out and beginning her walk back home. Things were going to be a lot harder than she wanted it to be. She really didn’t want to think about it too much, afterall, while all the tragedy in Makoto’s life is what made her the person she was, Haru didn’t want her to suffer, even for her own goals. In fact, she was overjoyed at the opportunity to help her. Right now, Makoto had her father, a presumably good relationship with her sister, and wasn’t being taken advantage of by anyone, but that also meant she had no reason to be angry at the world, and the more she thought about it, she had no reason to be the Makoto Haru once knew. 

Her life was simply better right now, and with no real signs of going downhill unless Haru counted her future knowledge of her father’s soon-to-be death.

Even Akechi, who’s life goal seemed to be inconveniencing Haru’s life currently, was helping Makoto by being a freind and as a study buddy for Makoto. On paper, he was a good friend for her, he was far more obsessed with grades then Haru anyway, though his reasoning for studying was more a desperate attempt to get people to like him compared to Makoto’s sincere attempts to further her education and future. 

The solution was obvious to Haru. It was just something Haru didn’t know if she was willing to even entertain. 

She needed someone for Makoto to be mad at, and she could only think of two prime candidates whom she could control: Goro Akechi and Haru herself. 

She could possibly try to expose Akechi as a fraud, nothing more than a desperate attention seeker, but she knew too little of his current situation to come up with a plan and she had no way to expose him without making herself out as a bully. If she made Makoto upset with her, then she could risk losing any form of friendship with her. Which of course, as selfish as it was, Haru would far prefer to keep her freindship over Makoto’s awakening. Overall, the whole plan was impractical and too cruel for Haru to engage any further in. 

Haru continued her stroll, thinking of other solutions. She already scratched out any idea of letting Makoto’s family get hurt. Haru would rather fight Yaldabaoth by herself than sit by and let people die just for her desires to keep the timelines the same. 

Haru eventually shook out all those thoughts in her head, heading to her house. The best solution for the time being was just to take Makoto in and see where she could go from there. It might be a different Makoto, but this was still Makoto Niijima .

Her father was already home when she entered the apartment. Fiddling with the coffee machine before seemingly raising his fist in frustration. Haru quickly rushed over, gently grabbing hold of it before showing him the correct way to operate it before he smashed it.

“God… Reminds me of our damn printer…” he muttered to himself as he rubbed his temple. “Sorry, Haru.” 

“No, it’s fine. To be honest, the only technology I really know how to use is my phone and the coffee machine,” Haru gave an awkward chuckle in response as she turned her focus to the machine. 

She must have looked upset, because after a few moments, her father reached down to brush the hair out of her face, asking, “Hey, are you alright?” 

She let out a massive sigh before trying to give him a smile in return. S hated how busy her life had gotten. Despite the tragedy of the last timeline, she learned to overcome it. Her life had been heading in a positive direction, and she had her friends to thank for that. Now, while she had a second chance to be able to save her father, she had lost everything she gained in exchange. She’s stuck trying to figure out how not only to face Shido and Yaldabaoth before their plans come to fruition in a little less than three years, but also to rekindle her only true bonds she’d made. She’s lucky to have been in the same grade as Makoto, but everyone else was scattered around Tokyo, and in Ren and Mona-chan’s cases, perhaps all over Japan itself. 

And she was still struggling with Makoto, how on earth was she going to trigger Ann’s awakening without harming Shiho or Ryuji’s without getting his leg broken? 

“Oh… Yeah I’m alright,” Haru answered honestly. She wasn’t mad about it. Her friends were all still out there. As long as she still remembered, she could still get it all back. 

“Are you doing well at school?” he asked, grabbing the steaming cup of coffee from the machine and blowing gently at it before taking a sip. 

“Yes, actually! I’m working on a small project with a friend of mine!” Haru proclaimed, brewing her own cup of tea as her father approached the couch. 

“Really now? Are they pulling their weight?” 

Haru shuffled a little as she watched the water boil in the kettle. “Well…not yet, but don’t worry! Her part of the project is coming up soon and I’m sure she’ll do great!”  

“I sure hope so. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself, though. I know better than anyone what it’s like to do whole group projects by myself,” he said, before adding on with a chuckle, “For example, my company.” 

The two shared a laugh, Haru finishing her tea before joining him on the couch. Allowing herself the small freedom to relax a little with her father, she reminded herself what she was doing all of this for. 

She decided to spend the rest of the night preparing for the trip back into the Palace the next day, writing down a quick crash course on Metaverse terms and any information Makoto might need that Haru didn’t want to explain. In addition, she began to draft a plan to deal with the Palace Ruler. If the treasure room was located anywhere underneath the bridge, then she would have to find a way in. She didn’t know if this would involve her doing something in the real world to influence Kuroda or if she could find some way down there inside the Palace. It would all depend on his mental state. She would have to at least attempt breaking in, because she was drawing a blank on possible solutions from outside. While being an heiress had its benefits, it didn’t give her any easy access to shady drug kingpins, and even if it did, the last thing she needed was to ruin her father’s perception of her where he would feel he would have to put her on a leash. And of course she didn’t dare think of involving Makoto in something so dangerous either. 

It was stressful to think about, but she couldn’t let Makoto’s father die. If she had to take down the Palace of every target he faced, then she would do it. What kind of Phantom Thief would she be if she let her friends suffer when she could have stopped it? 

She already saved her father, and she will save Makoto’s father, as well as Wakaba, Shiho, and anyone else who was hurt in the previous timeline. She didn’t know if this was something Ren had ever declared as a Phantom Thief rule—it wasn’t like Ren ever went back in time. All Haru knew was that it was the Beauty Thief's code of honor.

Notes:

Notes
A- happy (late) birthday Akechi! I did some cool art for him on my insta (sleepy_koko) but will also likely post it at the end of this part's bonus chapter
B- may nor may not have a chapter next week, a bit behind on editing and I got a new job, and I have a math test coming up and I suck at math...
C- this chapter was fun to write, I like taking Haru and throwing her into an action scene

Chapter 25: Despicable, Cruel Cruel, People: XI

Makoto Niijima 

 

May 16th, 2014

Makoto sat on her bed and looked through her bag one more time as she crossed her legs. She had to remove everything but her homework to accommodate all the random drinks she was told to put in there—a couple of protein shakes, some immunity support shakes, and water that was way more expensive than usual but her father’s specific tastes prevented her from getting anything else in case she had any left over. She really hoped that Sae wouldn’t notice the huge chunk of her favorite coffee missing from the fridge, because if things went the way Okumura told her they would, she wouldn't exactly have a good explanation behind their disappearance. 

She had no idea what to expect. Aside from the single trip to the place Okumura referred to as Mementos, Makoto had no frame of reference to what a Palace would look like. Okumura described it as a bridge of some sort, but it would hopefully not be as dark and scary as Mementos. The owner would be a drug trafficker named Kojiro Kuroda, and, according to Okumura, there was a strong possibility he was linked to Masayoshi Shido in a plot to kill her father. 

It was impossible for her to know for sure how much of that was true or how Okumura even gained that information, but Makoto knew for a fact that Okumura was hiding something from her. She had no reason not to trust the girl; if what she said was true, she was only looking out for Makoto’s best interests and giving her the chance to come along and help. It didn’t mean that Makoto fully trusted her, just that she saw the so-called beauty thief as an ally for the moment. 

It did make her wonder why exactly Okumura was looking after Makoto of all people? Was it because she was connected to a potential victim of Shido? Was Makoto just convenient to her? 

She never really paid much attention towards Okumura, instead spending the majority of her time on her studies. Perhaps she caught Okumura giving her a few extra glances in her direction, but she didn’t pay them much mind. The more she thought about it, the more she recalled the way Okumura seemed to go out of her way to try to speak and interact with her, especially recently. Either way, Makoto knew better to stay on her guard around Okumura until she fully understood what she wanted from her. 

“I’m heading out to see a friend,” Makoto called out to her sister as she exited the room. Their father had already left for work that morning, leaving Sae to make breakfast for the two of them. She knew she shouldn’t miss out on a meal, but she also didn’t want to put her acting to the test at the moment. Sae would undoubtedly believe she was crazy if she tried to explain. 

“A friend?” Sae raised an eyebrow before giving a relaxed smile. “And here I thought your only friend was your books.” 

Makoto rolled her eyes, putting her hands on her hips as she countered, “Oh come on. Dad said you were the exact same as me when you're my age!” Makoto rushed by Sae without looking her way, grabbing something small to eat on the way while heading and shutting the door, not leaving any room for her sister to retort. Who was she to say Makoto couldn’t make friends? She had plenty of friends in the past!

Although, she really wouldn’t describe Okumura as a friend. There just wasn’t any other word that would work at the moment. It wasn’t like Makoto could explain to her sister that she was meeting with some otherworldly being masquerading as a student in her school to enter a secret mental Palace of a drug dealer to save their father. 

None of that made sense… Makoto was going to lose her mind if she kept trying to think about it logically. Okumura didn’t—every time something weird happened while they explored Mementos she would just say it was because of cognition. 

Which added a whole other question on how on earth did Okumura discover it like she so claimed? 

Makoto had spent all of her freetime looking into any real evidence of a so-called Metaverse. She did find some decent research on cognition, marking the names of Wakaba Isshiki, Takuto Maruki, and Ko Sakata as the big names for the field. Though from the looks of it, the field wasn’t really respected or acknowledged by most contemporary psychologists. Despite this, all three continued to publish papers discussing possible evidence of outside forces affecting people’s cognition, how someone’s outlook on life could be seen as a physical space, and how those feelings might project. In fact, it looked that the university Maruki worked for was in talks of increasing the funding for his research. At least that was what Makoto got from his social media posts. The rest were about his money struggles, his poor attempts at cooking, and worries about upping his prices for his personal patients. 

Of course, none of the papers mentioned anything about a magical app that transports people into said worlds, mysterious Shadow creatures, little golden eyed boys, or whatever Okumura might secretly be. 

In her research about Okumura, well…there wasn’t anything special. The daughter of the founder of Okumura foods; she’s been mentioned a couple times in relation to certain events her father attended, but there wasn’t much about her specifically. One exception included a banquet that apparently involved an unidentified child getting injured falling down the stairs that she had to make a statement for. She also was able to trace some articles all the way back showcasing Okumura as a child and even an article about Kunikazu Okumura welcoming a daughter to his family. 

From all accounts, Haru Okumura was a real person, with no evidence that she is some mysterious Metaverse being like Jose who only exists in this world to go to school. It left her with more questions than answers, and analyzing her behavior didn’t help at all. one of which is her almost unnatural distaste for Goro Akechi, giving him a side eye every time he passed her at school. 

Akechi was a nice person, unlike most of her peers, and was incredibly smart and actually invested in his education. He apparently wanted to become a detective, though every time he mentioned it Makoto could swear there was a distant look of defeat in his eyes. They haven’t interacted much besides when Makoto helped him catch up on the week or so he missed, but she hoped that they could become friends. She needed at least one person to keep her sister from pestering her about making friends and who is also not some weird, lying, Metaverse person. 

When planning this trip out, Makoto had suggested the school to be their meeting spot, already finding Okumura waiting for her with a wide smile on her face. She was in a lilac dress with a silver jacket over it. Makoto was by no means big on fashion, but even she could see how Okumura was covered in different designer brands. Okumura was beyond wealthy. She dressed like it, acted like it, and yet at the same time she had a more humble air to her. If Makoto would describe it, Okumura would be like how a modern day Snow White would act: dignified and graceful, yet never looking down on the people around her. 

Okumura lifted up her hand and waved Makoto over, calling out, “You’re right on time!” She had two bags on her, one backpack and another flimsy tote bag that she handed to Makoto. Makoto accepted the bag with confusion and checked its contents. 

Inside was a pair of brass knuckles, a vest, a small notebook, a blue ring, and a… Makoto almost dropped the bag. 

“Is that a gun!?” Makoto’s eyes widened with panic as she shoved the bag back into Okumura’s hands, who looked at her in confusion before realization hit her. 

Shaking her head and doing her best to calm Makoto down, Okumura quickly explained, “Oh, no! It’s not real! It’s just a replica!” She took out the replica revolver and held it out towards Makoto, motioning it towards her. She reluctantly grabbed the gun, looking around her for any bystanders before playing around with it. Her dad showed her his own gun a couple times, telling her the ins and outs in case she ever came across the real thing so she could react accordingly. 

To say the least, if someone actually pulled this gun on her, she would have rushed the person, knocked it out of their hands, and thrown them to the ground before running away and calling the police. 

“It’s a very good replica… Where did you get this?” Makoto put the gun back in the bag, analyzing the brass knuckles as well, which was very much real. 

“I have a special place where I get supplies,” Okumura explained too casually for Makoto’s liking. “Guns don’t need to be real for them to work in the Metaverse, so we can just use models. The shop I got these from sells mainly model guns anyways, along with certain protective materials and self defense weaponry. It’s mostly a place for thugs, and the owner might seem like one, but he’s actually super nice and has this adorable k-,” Okumura abruptly stopped herself before giving a polite smile. “Maybe I’ll take you there if you prove to need to visit.”

Makoto raised an eyebrow. Okumura spoke that last sentence oddly slowly, as if she was thinking over each word. She brushed it aside, instead picturing a little Snow White type like Okumura in a store filled with different thugs and gangsters. The image made Makoto chuckle to herself, quickly remembering that despite her appearance, Okumura wielded an axe and grenade launcher inside the Metaverse, both of which felt real when they were in Mementos together.

“Is that where you got your own weapons?” Makoto asked. 

Okumura nodded, recalling, “I got my first axe and gun when I awoke to my Persona, but I believe the specifics depend on the person. I like to imagine that fate knows if you will eventually acquire your weapons a certain way, and if not it will give them to you when you transform,” Okumura laughed. She sounded like a complete nutjob, but what qualified as crazy was quickly shifting in Makoto’s mind.

“Do you know of other cases?” Makoto inquired. It wouldn’t be insane to believe there are others who can go inside the Metaverse. Okumura certainly spoke as if there were. Jose wielded a hammer if Makoto remembered correctly. If she was a being born from the Metaverse, could she be talking about him? At the same time, their manners of speaking were drastically different. Jose asked questions about humans while Okumura answered, implying some sort of relationship where he is merely learning from an outside source, disproving Makoto’s theory that they came from the same place. 

“... Oh, there’s the train. It’s about an hour’s ride to get to the ocean, so I spent the night writing down some notes about certain Shadows and idiosyncrasies for you to read,” Okumura said instead, alluding to the notebook inside Makoto’s tote bag. 

Okumura was definitely hiding something. Makoto had no idea what level of information she was withholding from Makoto, but she could at least figure out that there were other Metaverse travelers from what she’d said. In all honesty, Makoto would’ve preferred if Okumura either just admitted that or lied. Instead it just made her think that she thought Makoto was stupid. 

Deciding not to dwell on it any further, the girls found seats on the subway and got ready for the hour ride. Okumura pulled out some homework from her backpack, something that Makoto already completed last night. She thought of offering to assist her, but instead opted to read through the notebook Okumura spent last night working on, hoping that by reading it she would understand how this was worth leaving her homework until the last minute. 

 

Mako-chan’s Metaverse guide. 

 

Right, Okumura wanted to give her a nickname. 

 

Terminology: 

Palace - A location in the Metaverse created by a person’s distorted desires. 

Palace Puler - A cognitive version of the person who created the Palace. The real version of the Ruler does not remember any actions that happen in the Metaverse, anything said to their cognition, or anything their cognition says. This is a true reflection of their soul. If the Ruler is killed, the real person will suffer a mental shutdown. We do not kill people. 

 

Nice to know that Okumura at least doesn’t appear interested in roping Makoto into some sort of cognitive assassin business. 

 

Mental Shutdown - If a Ruler is killed in the Metaverse, then, after a period of time, they will undergo a mental shutdown in reality. Common symptoms include eyes rolling to the back of the skull and crying a black liquid. If this happens, the victim will go braindead about a month after their cognitive version is killed. There is no cure. 

 

Makoto frowned, looking over at Okumura. While earlier it stated that she, or rather we, do not kill, it made her question how Okumura knew what the specific consequences of mental shutdowns were. While the cognitive assassin thought was mostly a joke to herself, the implications that one could easily kill someone without any evidence. Even the line about it being up to a month after the initial act makes Makoto unwillingly ponder the possibility of this being the perfect crime. 

It made Makoto unsure whether she liked it or not that it appeared only she and Okumura knew about the Metaverse. 

 

Safe Rooms - An area of a Palace where cogniton is weak, This is a place where we can rest and regroup. They also allow us to warp between any safe rooms we find and enter.

Will Seed Chamber - These hold the will seeds. Inside you will likely experience a flashback to an aspect of the Ruler’s life that led to their distorted desires. Once the memory ends, you will still hear different quotes from the Ruler. 

Will Seeds - Broken aspects of a Ruler’s distortion. I can’t say for sure how it affects the Ruler, however when we combine them and hold them, they can boost our abilities. 

 

It’s strange to know there were some things that Okumura didn’t know. Makoto wasn’t sure if that information helped or hurt any particular theories, but she kept it in mind. 

 

Treasure - This is always hidden in the middle of the Palace. This acts as the source of the Ruler’s distortion, usually appearing as a glowing light until you send a calling card. Then the treasure will manifest into something you can steal. Once you steal the treasure, the Palace will collapse and within a month's period the Ruler will have a change of heart. 

 

Nothing seemed that crazy so far. At least, it didn’t seem crazy as long as Makoto decided to disassociate the fact that nothing about the Metaverse made any sense. It feels more like a fiction novel she read as a kid over anything real. 

 

Calling Card - A signifier sent to the real world Ruler that there is someone after their desires. Depending on the Ruler, they might require a different type of calling card for the threat to be taken seriously. Once the card is sent the treasure transforms into its true form, allowing us 24 hours to steal the treasure before it returns to its previous state and making it impossible to steal again.  

 

Makoto skimmed each rule multiple times, writing notes to the side on things she might need Okumura to elaborate on later. One thing was for certain: this wasn’t Okumura’s first Palace. The way she wrote about things was purely factual and educational. She didn’t speculate on anything and even wrote a step-by-step guide on the standard procedure for stealing treasures. 

After another full read of the terminology, Makoto asked, “So how exactly do we plan to send this calling card?”

“You don’t have to worry about that for now,” Okumura replied, grabbing hold of her skirt. 

“It seems pretty important, and even my father is having trouble getting into contact with this guy,” Makoto frowned. 

Okumura sighed, turning her head to face her. “I already have something planned for that. For now let’s prioritize securing the route to the treasure.” 

“And why are we stealing their treasure?” 

“To change their heart,” Okumura explained, frowning a little. “Did I forget to put that in the terminology section?” 

Makoto flipped through the notebook again. It wasn’t in the terminology… No, it was on the second page. Makoto looked away from her, her face heating up in embarrassment. 

“It’s there… I just…haven’t gone through the whole thing yet,” she tried her best to salvage the situation, almost certain Okumura could tell she just missed it like an idiot. 

“Well… Let’s go through the questions until you’ve read through everything, and I’ll be able to answer the rest!” Okumura smiled at her before going back to her homework.

Makoto went back to the notebook, finding the next few pages listing different types of Shadows. Each Shadow took the form of some sort of figure corresponding to the Ruler’s visage, acting as a guard for the Palace. Every Shadow wore a mask, and removing that mask would have them take their true form. Apparently Shadows and Personas were one in the same, or at least shared a common origin, with both taking the forms of different mythological and literary figures. 

A quick guess is that perhaps they had some sort of connection to cognition, since if the Palaces themselves were created due to the Ruler’s cognition, and Memento’s was the public’s, then Makoto’s theory was possibly that the Shadows are beings connected what they know as unnatural and out of this world. At least, that’s Makoto’s working theory. None of it made sense, nothing makes sense, but in a way where it almost does. Shadows are magical, maybe something like… taking forms of publicly known things like yokai or gods is easier to connect due to them being magical. 

Makoto shook those thoughts out of her head and went back to the notebook, she was going to lose her mind. 

The book also laid out the different elements that different personas would have strengths and weaknesses to. Physical attacks and Gun attacks also were included as types of elements, making things even more confusing. Besides that, they all worked in pairs: Ice and Fire, Electric and Wind, Bless and Curse, and Nuke and Psychokinesis. There was also a final one called Almighty which had no specific strengths or weaknesses, but it was noted as being exceptionally rare. Okumura noted that she specialized in Psychokinesis and Gun attacks. Her Persona was the goddess Astarte, who was weak to Nuke, with a side note from Okumura that with experience she’s been able to use her Persona to sense those attacks better to avoid them. 

The next few pages then detailed certain Shadows Okumura came across in the Palace, along with some sloppy speculative notes on their strengths and weaknesses. They could be strong, weak, repel, null, or absorb to any element. It was the only aspect of the notebook that seemed to have gaps in the information base. 

“Do you take notes on what Shadows are strong or weak against?” Makoto asked, curious to see how she would respond. 

“Since my Persona can only use one element, most of my notes are guesswork,” Okumura responded, not even looking away from her homework, already on the last page. Makoto silently nodded and found the final page. It was some review on what Okumura explained to her earlier, about how people who awaken to Personas gain special Metaverse outfits and can fight the Shadows. That could imply there were others out there that could do that, although the way it was written was almost like a "how to guide" or a “what to expect” guide specifically for Makoto. Was Okumura planning something to do with her? The language was too formal for Makoto to be able to gauge anything. 

It was annoying, everything was explained clearly and perfectly, yet Makoto couldn’t grasp any of it. There was still so many questions, from how Okumura gained this information, to Jose. She was still confused about what that kid was. 

At the end of the page, there was a small note that appeared to be poorly erased, but was still visible enough for Makoto to decipher. 

 

If you are to find a Metaverse user in a black mask, either stay away, or protect the Palace Ruler. He is dangerous and he will kill you. 

 

Makoto looked back over at Okumura, watching as she finished her homework and put it back in her bag. She had a black mask, but it would be ridiculous if that statement was referring to herself. That meant there was someone else out there. Someone defined by that mask and incredibly dangerous. 

Makoto put a hand to her chin, thinking of what this “Black Mask” could imply. Perhaps Haru had a friend who she ended on bad terms with, and the consequences of massive power brought on by the Metaverse took root. Maybe the world created a good Metaverse user and an evil one, with Okumura as the good one. Or maybe she was just lying about this other user. She had already shown reluctance to even mention other Metaverse users, so maybe this man was why. Why did she write a warning then erase it, though? If this person is important enough that Okumura recommends avoiding them at all costs unless a Ruler is nearby, then why isn’t that one of the first things she told her. Stating that he will kill her implies he’s an enemy of her and Okumura, yet why should they stay to protect the Palace Ruler? Was he trying to fight them too? Okumura doesn’t kill, that’s clear, so was their falling out just a dispute between morals? 

“Oh we’re already here!” Okumura interrupted her thoughts, grabbing hold of Makoto’s arm and tugging. Makoto turned her head to the window, finding the station in front of her. She reluctantly picked herself up, following Okumura out of the station and down a short walk to the entrance of the beach. 

The beach was already crowded with people, but Okumura continued to lead Makoto away, ultimately heading to a small rock formation surrounded by different foliage. They were out of sight from essentially every other beachgoer, and hopefully they didn’t appear suspicious in case anyone did see them. Okumura glanced around the corner to check if anyone was watching, then leaned on the rock as she pulled out her phone. 

“This should allow us to enter the Palace,” Okumura said, flipping her phone screen around to show Makoto the Nav again. “Feel free to take as much time as you need before we enter.”

“No, I’m ready,” Makoto nodded. Despite everything, all the insanity around her, she had to remember that she was doing this to help her father. Makoto didn’t trust Okumura, she didn’t like this other world, and there were too many factors that went far over Makoto’s head, but if there was even a tiny chance that her father was in danger, she would do everything she could to help him, no matter how suspicious she was of the circumstances.

Maybe, if all went well, he would get a few more days off to actually spend time with her and Sae. Okumura put the phone up to her face, speaking the words clearly for it to hear. 

“Kojiro Kuroda, Ocean, Bridge,” 

“Candidate found. Beginning Navigation.”

Chapter 26: Despicable, Cruel Cruel, People: Part XII

Makoto Niijima 

 

May 16th, 2014

 

As soon as Okumura said those words, the world morphed around her, her vision cluttered with varying blacks and reds, a strong feeling of vertigo coming over her similar to when she entered Mementos. When her vision cleared up she could immediately see the world had gone slightly darker, though not nearly as dark as Mementos. Makoto looked up at Okumura, whose clothes were already changed, ax in hand. 

Makoto slowly shook her head to clear her head and turned around, taking in the new world in front of her. The beach, once cluttered beyond belief, was now completely empty and served as an entryway to a grand bridge, one that was far wider than what she’d seen in the real world. The sky was now a deep maroon, casting a red haze to everything around them. Okumura lifted herself from the rock she was leaning over, moving away from the cover of the stones as each of her steps had a pink ripple underneath, as if she was breaking the illusion with every step. Makoto followed her, noticing how her own steps created similar ripples before taking the brass knuckles from inside the bag and putting them on. 

“This is…” Makoto muttered, attempting to formulate words about the place. Compared to Mementos, this Palace was on a whole other level. The fact this world even existed was an anomaly in itself.

Okumura simply shrugged, explaining, “It’s not the wildest I’ve seen, though it is the largest in terms of area covered. The average Palace is a bit more condensed, but I have no doubts that it won’t be any bigger than I can handle,” She thought for a moment, adding on. “Its layout is quite odd.” 

“Average…” Makoto repeated, trying to process the fact that there are massive buildings, or in this case, bridges, inside people’s minds. Okumura proceeded to reexplain the warp feature through the Nav, not giving Makoto time to figure out what she was about to do before she teleported the two to a small building. 

“This is a safe room,” she described, gesturing to the room with her hand. “The closest equivalent to safe rooms in Mementos are the rest areas. We haven’t gotten far enough down to reach one yet, but they come in handy once you get deeper.” Okumura walked over to a chair at the table and sat down as soon as they arrived, not even paying attention to Makoto flailing to regain her balance. 

“I… I figured…” Makoto replied upon finding her footing. She wasn’t sure what follow-up questions she could ask, mostly due to trying to process the last several things said, however she wasn’t given the opportunity to decide before Okumura began to head out of the room. 

“Make sure to stay behind me. Jose doesn’t like to leave Mementos so you won’t have as much protection. Stick to the shadows and try to stay out of sight,” Okumura instructed, leaving Makoto even more questions about Jose as they made their way out to the bridge. Makoto stuck close to Okumura with reluctant steps, tightly gripping the revolver she was given. She knew that it was just a model in the real world, but she still felt a weight difference between when she was first handed the weapon to now. 

Makoto was far too trapped within her thoughts, only silently following Okumura and not processing what was around her, so she didn’t quite process the carnage in front of her at first.

It was only what Makoto would describe as the most horrific car crash she’d ever seen, but even that descriptor didn’t feel like it did it justice. Multiple cars were either blown up or on fire, and while there were no bodies on the ground, multiple Shadows were sprinting around, calling out for support.

Okumura didn't appear to care, leaving Makoto’s side as she jumped on top of one of the burning cars and then to the shoulders of one of the Shadows. Makoto wasn’t even going to try explaining how she managed to leap far further than what was physically possible even for olympians, lest she want to watch more of her years and years of academic knowledge crumble in the face of a magical world accessible via phone. So instead she blanked her mind out and watched Okumura pull out her grenade launcher and a sniper rifle from seemingly nowhere and, firing each once in rapid succession. Both hit their targets spot on as the rifle bullet went straight through the head of one Shadow while the grenade hit a group of panicking ones, sending them flying. In one fluid motion, she tossed her guns into the air, yanking off the mask of the Shadow she was standing on with her right while her ax reformed in her left. 

She leapt off the crumbling Shadow with a flip, watching it twist into a twin-headed dog creature. Okumura rushed the Shadow as she landed on the ground, taking massive swings and dodging each of its attacks, sending it to the ground in just a few seconds. Without giving any chance for the Shadows to retaliate, Okumura rushed towards the growing carnage caused by her previous explosion and ripped off her mask once more. 

Here in the brighter lighting of the bridge, Makoto finally got a good look at Okumura’s Persona. It took the form of a woman with pitch black skin, her torso emerging from some sort of flowery skull. Gold hoops surrounded the base of the skull and covered the woman’s face as she opened her arms out. It was nothing less than confusing to look at. 

“Astarte, descend!” Okumura thrusted her hand out, commanding the Persona to create three waves of psychic energy that surrounded the Shadows, which soon rushed in and erupted from within them, making the enemies collapse. Any enemy that wasn’t immediately finished off by the attack was sliced to pieces by Okumura’s ax as she so delicately rampaged through. 

When all the Shadows were well and gone, Okumura stood in the middle of it, seating herself at a fancy white table and grabbing hold of a small teacup that Makoto could swear was not there before. 

“And I bid, adieu,” Okumura grinned, taking a gentle sip as all chaos let out behind her. 

Makoto had officially stopped questioning anything that was happening. If anything, she had to start to admire the sheer competence and style Okumura showcased. She tore through the horde like a true professional. Gracefully eliminated any and all enemies with no room for error. It was clear that she didn’t need to take herself completely seriously, focusing on style rather than efficiency, not that Makoto could blame her, the Shadows really didn’t stand a chance against her. 

Okumura stood up and took a deep breath, the spontaneous table and teacup disappearing before Makoto could blink. She scanned through the area, aiming her gun towards any unlucky Shadows and sending them down with a few well placed bullets before seating herself back on top of that burning car. 

After checking to see if the coast was clear, Makoto rushed over to meet up with her. She wondered if she should even bother asking what just happened, figuring that every question would be answered with something along the lines of Metaverse insanity or a long winded explanation that would only leave Makoto more confused than when she came. 

Instead, Makoto looked at the flaming wreckage Okumura was sitting on and asked, “Are you not worried about getting burned?” 

Okumura looked down with her, swinging her ax over her shoulder and giving her a warm smile. “This world is defined by two cognitions: our own, and the Ruler’s. So as long as you believe the car isn’t going to burn you, then it’s perfectly safe!” 

“So…the key to this world is confidence… Or is that more delusion?” Makoto questioned, deciding not to think about just how anyone would be insane enough to test that out and instead watching as each fallen Shadow slowly disintegrated into dust. 

With a giggle, Okumura answered, lost in her own thoughts for a moment, “I don’t quite know. I guess when you’ve been doing this for a while you just go along with it.” She took a moment to glance out down the bridge, her eyes widening before she turned to Makoto. “Hide.” 

Makoto quickly followed her orders, finding a set of debris that wasn’t currently on fire and provided enough cover as Okumura spirited forward, either to get a better vantage point or to confront whatever was coming straight on. She dared to peek out from behind the debris, watching to see whatever caught Okumura’s eye. 

A car, more specifically a limo, slowly rode down the bridge toward them, accompanied by an escort of multiple cars flanking them on all sides. Makoto watched as the limo got closer and eventually came to stop. The top then opened up and a figure stood up to look out at the destruction before it. He had sickly green skin with several hologram screens appearing around him. His eyes were obscured, covered by a visor as he typed on the screens around him. 

The sheer superiority that radiated off him along with the strangeness to his appearance was enough for Makoto to confidently guess that that was the Palace Ruler, Kojiro Kuroda. While he wore no crown, the man had an aura to him that helped Makoto see he was no normal Shadow, rather their commander. In addition, unlike every other Shadow they had encountered, he didn’t wear any mask. 

Makoto looked over towards Okumura to ask her for their next plan, if they were going to retreat or wait to see if they could gather intel, but it was clear she had other plans in mind. With her expression hidden by the shadow of her hat, Okumura pulled out her grenade launcher again, kneeling down a little before firing three straight shots. All three hitting their targets, the escort cars near Kuroda’s limo, spot on. The reason for the prioritization of these targets became clear as Makoto noticed that each car she shot down appeared to be opening up to reveal a cannon. 

Whatever was inside those cannons, it had to be strong and unstable. Each of Okumura’s shots not only took down the primary target, but set off a chain reaction that blew up any cars nearby. 

The Ruler didn’t appear to be bothered, simply typing something on his screen that created a shield that only Makoto only saw for a few seconds before going invisible, driving through the carnage before it began slowing down as he reached Okumura. Makoto lowered herself further behind the debris, worried to see what exactly Okumura was planning. 

The car stopped a decent distance away from Okumura, the Ruler still looking at his screens. A few seconds passed before he finally tilted his head towards the invader.

“A child?” he stated, his voice almost entirely monotone. “Tch… A reasonable unknown variable, but a disappointing one nonetheless.” 

“Kojiro Kuroda,” Okumura called out, standing tall “For I am Beauty Thief…” She shut her eyes, grabbing hold of her hat as she pointed directly towards him, “I’ve come to steal your heart!”

“Beauty Thief…” Kuroda muttered as he started typing on the screens around him. “I can’t find any records on someone with that name.” 

“All good thieves know to stay hidden until the moment strikes,” Okumura smirked.

“Then why have you made such a ruckus here?” Kuroda sneered, looking more inconvenienced than angry. Okmurua didn’t seem bothered by his attitude as she took her ax, spinning it around her before pointing it at him while holding her hat. 

“Because I am here to steal your heart!” Okumura declared again, not allowing him any time to react at the repeat before jumping forward and summoning Astarte again. 

Makoto hid behind the wreckage as Okumura was faced with Kuroda snapped his fingers and several more Shadows erupted to being. She watched as Okumura sprinted forward, swinging her ax right into the face of a nearby Shadow. Ducking out of the way of another’s attack, she quickly swapped out to her gun, shooting above her and into the attacker’s face. Grabbing hold of her mask, she summoned Astarte again, sending another wave of psychic energy towards the growing army before casting a spell on herself that Makoto wasn’t exactly sure about. 

She continued her way forwards, dodging waves of different blades and elemental attacks until she was faced directly in front of a brute of a Shadow. Pulling out her grenade launcher, she didn’t even hesitate to shoot it point blank, the explosion errupted around her before the spell she’s casted earlier reappeared, reflecting the attack on all nearby Shadows. 

As Okumura continued to take down all the Shadows in stylish ease, Makoto snapped her eyes away from her and watched as Kuroda pulled up another screen, typing something in that caused an aura to surround each of the summoned Shadows. 

Makoto snapped her head back towards Okumura, who delicated danced through the Shadows as she sliced them down. Kuroda lifted his arm, snapping his fingers as three beams of energy erupted at the sky, triggering what Makoto figured to be some sort of force field spell she’s casted on herself prior and reflecting right back at him. 

Kuroda gave a tisk, going back to his screens as he summoned more Shadows, Okumura giving him a tip of her hat before shooting down two more Shadows. 

 At some point Makoto really started to ponder what was the point of even bringing her. She wasn’t struggling by any means, yet she went out of her way to hand Makoto weapons and protection. Was she just using her? Or was she simply being too useless when she could assist. 

Useless. 

The word didn’t feel right in her head. Like it’s something that dug deep into her core yet she had no recollection of it ever being said about her. All she knew is that she hated it, she hated the feeling, being useless, being dragged along by someone she barely knew in a world she barely knew, for what? Makoto didn’t know, and she hated it. 

 Almost on impulse, she sprinted up to a pile of rubble further ahead while Kuroda and his Shadows were distracted, finding a better vantage point as she pointed her gun at one of the Shadows. 

Makoto held still as she peeked out over the top of the debris, hesitating. She’s never actually shot a gun before, and she really didn’t want to hit Okumura. Last thing she needed was to lose her only ally. She kept her eyes trained on her, watching as she slashed down on fairy-like Shadows, knocking them to the ground before moving on to the next. Makoto stared at the enemies for a bit, eventually recognizing them from the guide book. 

 

High Pixies - These Shadows look similar to Pixies, having blue hair and wearing purple outfits. They are weak to Gun and Nuclear attacks. 

 

What surprised Makoto was that despite almost every attack being executed flawlessly, these fairies weren’t down for the count, instead getting back up and approaching Okumura from behind. 

 

Makoto jumped from her cover, keeping her eyes trained on the target and shooting her revolver at the High Pixie square in the face. The fairy fell to the ground with a scream, catching both Okumura and Kuroda’s attention. She had absolutely no idea how she hit that first try, having never used a gun before, but she was not going to complain now. 

“Q- Mako-chan!” Okumura called out, taking down two Shadows with her ax before rushing towards her. She certainly seemed surprised, reaching out towards her as Makoto’s eyes darted between her and Kuroda. Makoto paused, backing away as Kuroda typed something on his screen and, in a single flash, disappeared and teleported directly behind her, grabbing her shoulders. 

Makoto let out a gasp as all the color drained from Okumura’s face. 

“Another unexpected variable,” Kuroda deadpanned, snapping his fingers once more to summon more Shadows in front of Okumura. “A weak one.” 

Makoto felt herself freeze for a moment, but only for a moment. Squeezing her eyes shut, Makoto calmed herself, she’s done so many self defence classes, and she needed to stay calm and figure out what to do. Yet she never realized just how it felt for someone to actually grab her. Someone who actually intended harm. 

Kuroda didn’t seem all too strong, if anything he appeared rather frail, yet his grip continued to dig into her shoulders. Makoto bit her tongue so as not to appear weak. 

Okumura rushed toward them, summoning her Persona to send out a blast of Psychic energy. However, when the pink orb collided with Kuroda, his own force field surrounding him making itself known as it effortlessly bounced back at her, only getting her let out a gasp before sending her tumbling to the ground. 

Makoto struggled within the man’s grip but he barely budged at her efforts, just staring at Okumura with mild amusement. Okumura leveled her gun at him, but with another snap of her fingers, a field energy erupted around her. Okumura shrieked, pushing away from the attack as Makoto’s heart dropped. 

She wasn’t a match for this man. She was fighting everyone else effortlessly, but Makoto was stupid enough to get caught by the one person she couldn’t fight! 

The worst thoughts began to fill her mind. What was he going to do with her? Was he going to hurt her? Was she going to get home to her family? 

Have you really forgotten your will to fight? 

Taking a deep breath grabbed one of his arms, throwing him down over her shoulder with as much strength as she could. “Get off me!” Makoto shouted, sprinting away from Kuroda before he could get back up. Okumura used the opening to get back up and reach Makoto’s side, holding a hand in front of her and pushing her back.

“Stay behind me!” she demanded. Still rattled, Makoto nodded, doing as she was told. She had to admit there was a small bit of pride dwelling in her chest at actually fighting off an opponent by herself, but by the way Kuroda slowly picked himself up, it didn’t appear to be that effective. Kuroda sneered, screens reappearing around him as he readjusted his visor. Makoto managed to catch a glimpse of his golden eyes before he covered them up again, standing tall looking down at the girls. 

“I see I have not accounted for this change in events, but why have two teenage girls presumed that they could take down my operation?” Kuroda began to type on his screens more, his voice slightly shaking. “How could I have not accounted for that?” 

“He’s way too calm for this,” Makoto mentioned. “We should retreat!” 

Okumura was about to nod in agreement, before she muttered quietly to herself. “He is very calm…” a sparke entered her eyes as she turned back towards Kurdoa and smirked. “Accounted for what?” she inquired.

 Kurdoa snapped back to looking at the two, pulling up more screens, some of them scanning the two of them. “Excuse me?” 

“Are you saying you didn’t manage to account for all possible variables?” A dark look appeared in Haru’s eyes as she stood upright. “Is that truly a way to run a business? How could you fail at such a simple thing like that!?” 

“What!?” Kuroda stepped back a little, a slight tremor in his hands as she stared at her down. Makoto looked back towards Okumura, her demeanor calm, almost superior as she walked towards him. 

Now she gets her plan, but would that work? Could that just risk making it worse?
“Am I wrong? Aren’t you trying to be the perfect heir? Such mistakes should not be tolerated for someone carrying your name.”  

The final word appeared to have hit the mark as Kuroda jolted backwards, his glasses moving out of place to show his frantic eyes. 

“No, no, no… Shut up!” Kuroda stuttered, slamming his hands onto his screens and summoning more Shadows in front of them. Okumura remained calm, summoning her grenade launcher and aiming at the group, blowing up a large chunk of the army before grabbing Makoto’s arm and sprinting away. 

It didn’t deter Kuroda, who only summoned more Shadows erratically as he strode to his limo and drove off. 

“How did you know that!?” 

“Know what?” Okumura asked almost innocently as she shot through a wave of Shadows as Makoto was barely able to keep herself from tripping. 

“That he…-” Makoto wasn’t able to articulate what she wanted to say before Okumura threw open the door of one of the few cars that hadn't exploded, pushed Makoto inside, and jumped into the driver's seat. 

Makoto scrambled to sit upright, crying out as Okumura readied her fingers on the wheel, her previous thoughts leaving her head at what was about to happen. “Wait, you aren’t old enough to drive!” 

Okumura shrugged, a wide, cheerful smile appearing on her face as she whipped her head over towards her. “It’s fine! I’ve done a couple practice rounds beforehand, and right now…we’re going to need a special technique to catch up to Kuroda!”  

“T-technique…” Makoto was barely able to stutter out the word before Okumura rammed her foot on the gas pedal, speeding off toward the escaping Ruler.

“O-Okumura-san!” Makoto yelped, gripping on the side of the car as she was flung back, not even given a chance to put on her safety belt.

“Don’t use real names in the Metaverse! Call me Noir!” Okumura stated with an informative tone, ignoring Makoto’s screams of fear as she swerved the car to dodge a rocket the Shadows they escaped had shot toward them, almost ramming into the side of the bridge as it hit only God knows what from behind them. 

Makoto attempted to look for a seatbelt, finding that increasingly difficult when she was being thrown back and forth from her seat like a ragdoll. “Please- Please slow down!” Makoto cried, tears falling from her eyes. Okumura didn’t listen, her foot never even slightly lifting from the gas pedal. All Makoto could even process at the moment was the absolute terror that this was probably the moment she was going to die. That changed when she saw Kuroda’s limo head through a small crossing and the bridge began to lift like a drawbridge. 

“Noir…” Makoto shuddered as they continued to barrel forwards as Makoto really hoped that she was simply obvious to what was in front of her. “Noir!” 

Okumura, in fact, knew that the bridge was rising. She just wasn’t deterred by this change. “Oh! I get it! This should let us in the main base!” Okumura shouted with absolute glee, approaching the edge of the bridge faster than should’ve been reasonable.
“NOIR!” Makoto screamed and shut her eyes, feeling a sudden weightlessness of the car. 

This was how she was going to die. 

 

As the noises in the background faded, and the shock of what was about to happen settled in, Makoto’s mind drifted back towards her family. Sae would be so sad, and Dad…she never got to make it up to him. She’d been upset at him for so long, but he put his life on the line each day to stop people like Kuroda. That was why she was here, right? She wanted to save her father from Kuroda, and people like Shido who had no problem with killing him. At least, that’s what Okumura said. 

 

She really shouldn’t have listened to Okumura. She was already suspicious of her from the start, and yet she blindly followed her, and here she was. She latched on to some reckless idea to be some sort of hero, wanting to be useful and throwing herself into danger. She was stupid. So, so stupid. 

 

They wouldn’t even find her body, would they? They would never even know she died. Just one day she came home talking about a friend she made and the next she was gone without a trace. She didn’t have much in her life but things were going alright for her. She just made a friend at school, and her highschool life was just starting, yet she threw it all away for the chance to stop the bad guy. 

 

Everything could be a lie for all she knew. For some reason, Makoto didn’t have a problem with that, Kuroda was a drug dealer, and besides, they did see him, so he was undoubtedly real. If Makoto died trying to help people, to stop them from hurting innocent people, that would be an honorable death in Makoto’s eyes. 

 

The thing that scared her more was the fear that her father would think of her as merely an angsty teenager running away. If he knew what she really was doing, would he be proud of her? 

At least she would be able to see mom again. 

 

She closed her eyes and prepared for everything to go dark.

 

Things were quiet now. 

 

.

.

.

 

“Um… Mako-chan?” Okumura’s voice rang out. She must have died with her. That made sense. “You can open your eyes now.” 

Makoto slowly lifted her head, cracking her eyes open. Okumura was kneeling in front of her, her ax on her shoulder. She slowly began to scan the area around her, seeing large glass walls blocking off a massive pool of water filled with different sea creatures swimming above her. 

“Huh… What a strange look for the afterlife…” Makoto muttered, slowly picking herself up. She still had her brass knuckles in her hands, and to her side she could see their car, which was essentially a large chunk of scrap metal at this point. Okumura kicked the ground a little, looking away. 

“Um… You aren’t actually dead you know,” Okumura tried to explain before pointing to the area around her. “But while you were crying for Sae I scouted the area and found that we reached the entrance to the innermost control center!” 

Makoto didn’t recall ever telling Okumura her sister’s name, maybe she did when she was screaming for mercy. 

“Wait… but h-” 

Okumura gave her a nod before recounting the past events. “While we were falling I summoned Astarte to grab hold of you while I landed, so we managed to land gently. I didn’t see any injuries on you but I have some supplies just in case, but the good thing is no one got seriously hurt! The car… The car has probably seen better days.” Okumura laughed at her own joke, telling her, “I’m not sure why you were so worried, I thought I was driving normally… but besides that I’m sensing a safe room close by, so we don’t have to worry about taking the bridge here again!” 

Makoto could only stare at her in silence for a while, trying to process what had just happened.

 

She’s alive. 

 

She somehow survived. 

 

She somehow survived all of that. 

 

She somehow survived and everything was starting to make sense to her. 

 

She was randomly told by this girl that this person might be trying to kill her father, entered a strange world of monsters, and was flung from a car all the way down into some sort of aquarium and apparently was carried by some old representation of a goddess that was actually a manifestation of the girl who dragged her here’s soul. 

Strange how a near death experience finally pieced everything together. 

Makoto began to laugh. Okumura frowned, reaching her hand out to her and asking, “M-Mako-chan!” 

She had no idea how she didn’t realize it sooner. This was hilarious. Everything she could ever study at her school wouldn’t come close to what was happening here. There are only about a dozen people even studying something close to this and they hadn’t even touched on the idea of a Metaverse. 

“Mako-chan…” Okumura worried, looking genuinely scared as she watched Makoto laugh. 

Wiping away some tears that were starting to form, Makoto assured her with the widest smile on her face, “No… Don’t worry, I’m fine. I just can’t believe it took me so long to realize…”
“Realize what?” Okumura asked as she reached out towards her, slightly terrified and likely wondering if Makoto was still in the right mind. 

“That there was no point in trying to understand anything!” Makoto continued, flailing her arms out before pointing towards her. “You’re absolutely crazy! I mean, you didn’t even hesitate! You could have easily killed me, but look at you! You didn’t even care and threw me right into it!” She whipped her tears again as Okumura’s hands gently retreated towards her chest. 

“I thought I was going to die! I was thinking about my dad, sis, and how my body was going to just rot somewhere and I was going to wither away as some missing child forever! And look at you… god… I…” Makoto covered her mouth as she tried to stiffen her laughter and walked right past her. 

“You said there is a safe room around here, right?” 

“R- right…” Okumura reluctantly agreed, almost locked in a trance by Makoto’s shift in personality before her eyes widened as she realized how far Makoto managed to walk.  “Um… wait! You should still stay behind me.” 

Pumping her fists, Makoto declared, “Don’t worry! I have these! I’m actually top of my class in aikido! I even managed to fight off Kuroda by myself!” Okumura didn’t end up arguing, hesitantly following her. She hoped she wasn’t freaking Okumura out too much, but Makoto did actually feel better about this whole thing.  Maybe she just has to be the first person to research the Metaverse, bring it to light, or just be whatever Okumura was—a wandering vigilante of justice. Maybe it was too far of a stretch to call her that yet, Makoto still didn’t trust her. 

If anything, Makoto wasn’t sure to trust her more or less after that interaction. All she did learn was that she was absolutely crazy. 

Okmura instructed Makoto to at least stay out of sight, as she didn’t want to have any more unnecessary fights now that she used most of her energy saving Makoto from that fall. Makoto agreed and the two continued forward, stopping occasionally as Okumura went ahead to check for enemies, bringing Makoto behind her in the darkness as they waited for the nearby Shadows to walk past instead of fighting them head on. 

Before hitting the safe room, the girls came across a small area covered in different ropes. Okumura walked over to it, slicing it with her ax before explaining that this was one of the Will Seed Chambers described in the guide book. Makoto decided to follow her, her curiosity winning out, and a massive influx of information hit her head as soon as she stepped past the door frame. 

“Kojiro, as you know, your sister…” An adult woman frowned, looking towards the man next to her. “Not in the best headspace.” 

“And your younger brother is not the brightest in the head either, which leaves you as the sole heir to our business,” the man explained. 

“Business… I thought you were a pharmacist?” a young boy responded. 

“That’s… difficult to explain-” the woman began. 

“It was a lie, a lie so you and your siblings didn’t spill the truth,” the man cut her off. “And we’re telling you this because we know you’re bright, the brightest in our family. Your memory is beyond what any of us are capable of, suiting you to be the greatest dealer the world has ever known.” 

“Dealer?” the child asked. 

“Yes… Your father, he gives things to-” 

“Stop treating him as an idiot,” the man slapped the woman before turning to the kid. “We deal drugs to people, something you’re stupid siblings can’t grasp. But you’re not stupid. As long as you put the effort in, the company will belong to you.”

Makoto gasped in surprise when the memory ended and her perception snapped back to the present. 

“I see…” Okumura muttered, seemingly unaffected by the memory, walking forward to grab a small glowing skull sitting on a pedestal at the center of the room. Based on the positioning and low glow signifying its importance, Makoto figured that it was the Will Seed. Okumura turned around with a smile, holding up the skull before putting it in her pocket to disappear to wherever and stepping back out of the room, Makoto following close behind. They reached the safe room in short order, neither having yet formulated thoughts about what they saw.  

Makoto actually did enjoy those few seconds of clarity, only to get brought back down into confusion.

Chapter 27: Despicable, Cruel Cruel, People: Part XIV

Sumire Yoshizawa

 

May 17th, 2014

 

Sumire bit the bottom of her pencil, running through the problem in her head again. With how rough Akechi and Kasumi’s relationship had gotten, she didn’t object when Akechi asked to take the coming weeks of Metaverse exploration off for midterm exams. Despite this, Sumire felt it hadn’t done a single thing to actually ease tensions between the two. It also didn’t seem to help her productivity at all either. 

Today would be the first day they re-entered the Palace in two weeks. They all restocked on supplies; Akechi upgraded both his weapons as well as Kasumi’s wand. Sumire debated on switching over to a toy instead of a proper replica, as her only source of upgrades were treasure chests in the Palaces, but decided against it. She was finding herself comfortable enough with them that she really didn’t want to change them since the chests do appear to contain upgrades as often as Akechi is buying them. She did have her worries about her rifle, though. Ever since what Sumire could only assume was Akechi’s panic attack, he always had a different air around him whenever she pulled it out. From how things were now, she doubted he would react drastically unless she straight up pointed it at him, but it wasn’t something she was keen on testing. 

Waffles had been her saving grace so far. Whenever she was stressed, she always found him sneaking around the house trying to cheer her up or trying to climb on her neck like a raccoon, which made Sumire increasingly start to question whether or not he actually thinks he is one by how he would try to act like a cat when he has all the grace of a dog seeing its owner for the first time in twenty years. 

Besides that, Waffles had been a godsend to her, pushing her to be productive when she was depressed, curling up with her when she was tired, or just chirping happily when Sumire muttered words of encouragement to herself. 

When she was stressing about one of her homework problems, he grabbed the page and scurried over to Akechi’s room, basically demanding that he tutor her. Akechi was surprisingly enthusiastic about the prospect of helping her through, and Sumire found herself more comfortable approaching him about that. 

“Is the answer crow?” Sumire asked, Akechi leaning over her shoulder to look at the question. 

“Precisely,” he confirmed, explaining, “It looks like the Kanji for bird, but the big reason for it is because you can’t see the eyes on a crow, so the Kanji reflects that.”

“But I can see your eyes through your mask,” Sumire joked, prompting a smile from Akechi. They finished the last of Sumire’s Japanese homework and prepared to head out to Lady’s First. Akechi made note to ask Kasumi if she’s completed her own homework before heading out, in which the girl managed to divert the conversion in a way that must have even impressed him since he didn’t press on any further. 

There was nothing special about the trip there, just making light conversation before they all found themselves standing in front of Lady’s First, watching the influx of suits and fancy dresses heading inside. Heading to the alleyway, Akechi grabbed his phone and began scrolling through the Nav to find Kenshin Kuroda’s keywords, and with one last confirmation from the rest of the group, allowed it to transport them to the market. 

The group wasted no time leaping across the stalls. Sumire was still astonished by how they weren’t at the center yet. Kasumi asked why not just try the main door with the few letters they already had, but Akechi insisted that they had to go through all of the stalls and get the rest. 

As they made their way to the next stall and Kasumi pestered him over the same question again, Akechi rolled his eyes and elaborated, “That’s how these Palaces work. basically a bunch of smaller tasks to get through until they let you into the real one,”

“So what if we just…blow up the door?” Kasumi suggested, shrugging as she looked between the other members of the team. 

“It wouldn’t work.” Akechi flatly dismissed 

“Have you tried that?” Kasumi pestered, leaning forward as Waffles hopped up on her shoulder, agreeing with her sentiment. 

Akechi rolled her eyes, refuting, “Do you really think I haven’t before? If you really want to go towards the door and kick it until your legs break, fine with me. I can handle these stalls by myself, anyway.” 

Kasumi huffed in offense, but Sumire gave her a gentle nudge to tell her to let it go. Even if they didn’t understand his methods, he was far more experienced in this sort of thing then they were. Though Sumire did have a sneaking suspicion that his insistence on tackling the stalls one by one over trying any other option was, in addition to being the option with the least amount or risk, was done out of pride or a thinly veiled attempt to keep control over the group. 

Either way, it wasn’t like it wasn’t worthwhile to tackle each stall. Inside of each was a certain fruit that gave them special effects when used in battle, as well as a list of clients from Kuroda that Akechi seemed particularly interested in the last time they'd come by one. 

 

“What, are you looking for someone?” Kasumi asked as she leaned over his shoulder, causing the boy to jolt back and throw the paper away. 

Akechi crumpled the paper, “Perhaps I am, but it doesn’t matter to you!” He scoffed, quietly muttering under his breath. “Not exactly like it’s out of character for him anyway…” 

There was a small moment of silence before another look from Akechi sparked the end of that trip as they silently shuffled out of the stall. The girls both looked at each other, contemplating whether or not to say anything before looking towards From the way Akechi was glaring at them, they decided asking for context wasn’t worth the trouble. Even Waffles wasn’t getting much luck trying to calm him down, only getting another eye roll from him in response. As much as Sumire wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt, he was still acting like a massive jerk.

 

Sumire prayed that this day of exploration would turn out better as they reached their current destination, the fig stall. 

As they gathered themselves for the inflation and counted their supplies, Akechi began to explain. “The fig has quite a bit of symbolism in different world religions. In fact, it’s first mentioned in the Bible as the leaves that Adam and Eve cover themselves with after they eat the forbidden fruit and feel shame over their nudity. It’s a wonder on what they might represent in relation to Kuroda’s cognition.” 

“So what do you think this represents?” Kasumi asked, looking all around as they entered the stall. It almost grew in size as they walked in, recreating what was once a small stall into a massive building. 

“If I had to guess, it’s a popular theory that the forbidden fruit was on a fig tree, so something related to sinners seems likely,” he let out a low hum. “Perhaps I should relate it more to Eve, since she was the one who committed the first sin.” 

“Who’s Eve?” Kasumi deadpanned. The topic of the conversation had long since flown over her head, and she was now making that fact known. 

Akechi rolled his eyes but explained anyway, “According to the Abrahamic religions, Eve is the first woman, as well as the one to commit the first sin by giving into temptation. This resulted in God kicking her, her husband Adam, and the rest of humanity out of paradise.” 

“And why would she do that?” Kasumi continued to ask, adding on with a joke. “Seems kinda rude to me.” 

Waffles gave a small yip as he trotted along with them, either agreeing with Kasumi, or how Sumire preferred to interpret it as a statement that someone in the party should know all too well about rudeness. 

“She ate the forbidden fruit after the serpent told her that it would bring her fortune, but it was, in reality, the original sin, and they were banished. Now how does that relates to the type of people Kuroda traffics remains unknown.” Akechi concluded, unsheathing his sword as they approached a Shadow. 

After that short lesson about Adam and Eve from Akechi, the group jumped right back into their routine. The stalls were easier to manage now than they were when they first entered, Shadows got stronger, but so were they, making each one faster than the last. Before Sumire even realized it, they reached the end of the stall, free to grab some extra figs for the road and fight the head of the stall. 

That set the rhythm for the next couple hours and next few days—go into the Palace, reach the next stall, do their homework inside the saferooms, and discuss the group’s progress. 

At some point the team also found another Will Seed Chamber. The sisters exchanged glances, debating on if they should follow Akechi inside. Last time any of them showed Kuroda anything close to sympathy, it set Akechi off in a way that still haunts Sumire. 

Akechi didn’t bother to wait for them, calling out as he walked inside with mild indifference as he asked. “Are you coming?” 

There was no reaction whatsoever on any memory he’s received. Only a slight pause before grabbing the seed and inspecting the thing with mild curiosity as he walked back. 

“Um… I thought to take your words to heart and not find any reason to sympathize with the man…” Kasumi reasoned, adjusting her gloves and chuckling nervously.

Akechi just shrugged, pocketing the skull and rejoining the others. “Well, to satisfy any of your curiosity, it wasn’t anything special. Apparently after his parents decided his brother would run the family business, Kenshin Kuroda stumbled upon an aging human trafficker who was looking for a protege.” 

“So he didn't create the business by himself?” Sumire puzzled. 

“Seems so, so we can’t even give him the credit of strong work ethic, though with the way society is structured, I have my doubts he would have gotten anywhere otherwise,” Akechi shrugged, signaling the two to carry on. The only two fruits to go were the pear and strawberry. Both could easily be conquered in a day. 

“By the way, have you been watching the news about Sako?” Sumire asked while distributing the items they’d gotten from the last stall. 

“The investigation is still ongoing, mostly due to the fact that Sako cited her reasoning to confessing as a ‘fear of getting beat again.’” Akechi described, grabbing a couple of the extra fruit before taking a small knife they’ve found in the Palace, and scooping it out. He’s been looking for any possible seeds for the past few trips, each time coming up with nothing. On one hand, the seeds were Kasumi and Sumire’s least favorite part, on the other hand it did mean it was impossible to replant them and to harvest their effects for other trips. 

Kasumi took a fruit and took a bite out of it, throwing another one towards Waffles, who leaped out to catch it, asking, “Do you think they can link it back to us?” 

Shaking his head, Akechi explained, “No, most of the other times I made them go insane. There was a full investigation on one man who started screaming for the hills that Loki was going to kill him. That was the first time I began to get worried.” 

“And what did he do to get that?” Kasumi inquired with mild indifference, throwing another piece to Waffles. 

“It was the older brother of one of my classmates, he was more of a dick if anything.” Akechi said, throwing his own piece towards Waffles who leap into the air with glee. 

“Really? I was hoping it was at least some evil businessman or something.” Kasumi crossed her arms. 

Akechi hid his face with his hand, muttering. “I… I was still getting used to my powers, it’s not like you can find human traffickers every day.” 

“Ah, start small and then you build up to the big prey, just like any good superhero!” Kasumi cheered. Akechi almost thought he was about to get away with the lie before she added on. “If only our hero wasn’t just using everyone who’d mildly bothered him in a mind freak.” 

“I- They all ended up fine! No one has gotten hurt!” Akechi stuttered a little. 

“Making people go insane is more of an anti-hero thing, which doesn’t really go well with your magical boy aesthetic though…” Kasumi continued to tease with a smirk.

“I’m not a- I’m not trying to go for any aesthetic!” Akechi shouted, embarrassed.

“The saber says otherwise…” Kasumi taunted as she rolled the fig around her finger a little before rolling it off the table. With a leap, Waffles caught on to it, rushing towards Akechi’s side to finish it. “I saw that you were eying that one over the rest!” 

“Because I knew it would be stronger you littl-”

“And what came of that? The investigation?” Sumire inquired, diverting the conversation before it became more bickering.

“Nothing,” Akechi shrugged as he instinctively leaned down to pat Waffles. “They determined that he was insane.” He didn’t seem particularly bothered by the subject matter by the way he leaned but Sumire could swear she could hear a slight wavering in his voice at the subject of people getting hurt. 

She nodded but decided to follow up and ask, “So, did you change your routine or anything?”

Standing back up, Akechi shook his head and admitted, “I don’t know. Once I realized I was safe for the moment, I became busy with… other things.” 

The group stood around in silence for a few moments before Kasumi asked, “I’ve been wondering a lot, why do you go out and target these people? I don’t see much benefit for you here.” 

Akechi looked away from her, not responding until she waved her arm in front of his face. He turned back towards her, giving her a pleasant smile. “I guess I wanted to see if I could do some good with this power.” 

It annoyed Sumire how unreadable he could be sometimes. Could his answer just be a masked lie or was he truly doing it out of the good of his heart? It was almost like there were two people that could front at certain times. If they didn’t share a body, Sumire would have never connected this rude and analytical Akechi, the one who cheered in glee once a Shadow was dead on the ground, with the person who used toy weapons, bickered with her sister, and saved a small tanuki from the dumpster.

Sumire rested her chin in her palms, thinking about the subject more thoroughly. Cendrillon was her Persona, a reflection of her heart. If Personas are made to reflect the heart like Cendrillon is for her, then wouldn’t that mean both Robin Hood and Loki are reflections of Akechi’s? Is he so two-faced that instead he managed to create two complete sides to himself: Loki, a god of trickery and deception, and Robin Hood, a hero who protects the poor and weak.

If that was the case, then what on earth was Ixtab? She wasn’t any mythological being that Sumire knew about, and she didn’t really show off any aspects of either of Akechi’s personalities. That’s not even taking into account the fact that she took the form of a woman surrounded by ropes, the most prominent being the noose around her neck. It made Sumire shiver just at the thought of what she could represent. At least he didn’t seem all too bothered, even joyful at the new edition to his arsenal. 

“Totally not trying to be a hero guys!” Kasumi called out with a taunt. 

Akechi turned red, slamming his palms on the table. “I’m not- Don’t you stop!?” 

“Nope! Never had never will!” Kasumi let out a cackle, skipping away with a bounce of her tutu as Waffles let out a chip to get back to work, finishing up their current stall with no real issue. Sumire did notice that the small tanuki had a shockingly clear work ethic, never getting distracted or acting on impulse like any other animal. 

That meant the only thing they had left was the main castle in the middle. 

“So, we have the pomegranate, apple, plum, strawberry, fig, blueberry, cantaloupe, and peach. Is there anything else?” Kasumi counted off on her fingers while Akechi pulled out each of the letters. 

Shaking his head, Akechi sighed, “Not that I’ve seen. We don’t even know if they will take us, but I don’t see any other entrance to the castle.” 

“Right. The letters should at least get someone to face us,” Kasumi walked over, snagging one of the letters between her fingers. “And then we can just fight them, no?” 

Akechi looked her in the eye, watching her grin before matching it with his own smile. “I can say we certainly agree on that.” 

Waffles let out a little chirp on Sumire’s shoulders, dropping off and leading the way towards the castle in a cute trot. Waffles was lucky he was so small. While he went under all the guard’s raydars, Sumire’s group had to jump from corner to shadow before they were safely in front of the gates. 

Akechi approached the massive gate. It had all the looks of a normal castle, replacing all the stunning architecture with obnoxious reds and yellows, making it more reminiscent of a circus tent. It blended nicely with the rest of the setting, small lights that lined it shined brighter amidst the dim lighting of the Palace. Unlike the stalls that grew in size once they entered, this was something Sumire could already see was massive just from looking directly at it. 

Finding a small computer that demanded to take all the letters. He looked towards the three and, after a nod of insurance, he slipped them all in. He jumped away from the screen, watching the word “scanning” flash on the screen before flashing green. 

The group all watched the wide gates slowly open in itself, presenting a single guard Shadow. Its mask was strange, almost outlining features of an actual person. Beyond that there wasn’t anything more noteworthy compared to any of the other Shadows.  

“State your name and business,” it demanded. 

“Why do you need that? We got the letters,” Kasumi huffed with her hands on her hips. Akechi stepped forward, putting his hand on his chest. 

“My name is Crow, and we're looking to seek The Gentleman, Kenshin Kuroda’s, audience,” he declared, his voice dripping with confidence that Sumire could never dream of. 

“And the fuck do you want to do with him?” the guard leaned over, eyeing Sumire and her sister. “Is it perhaps that you have some extra merchandise you want to sell?” 

Sumire tightened her fist, using her other hand to hold on to Kasumi’s arm. Akechi looked behind him, and gave a small nod, one that Sumire returned with quick understanding. 

“Yes, however I demand only to speak with Kuroda himself. No one else.” Akechi said, his voice held a bit more bite to it. “As you see, these two are quite feisty, and I figure they would fetch a good price as well if The Gentleman is willing to indulge a further partnership.” 

Kasumi gawked before being quickly hushed by Sumire. The guard nodded, reaching for something in his back pocket. 

“Ah… Pretty little ones, aren’t they…” the Shadow leaned over, the small slits in its eyes narrowing as it almost reached a hand out towards Kasumi. 

Akechi stood in front of him, and the Shadow quickly scoffed as he handed something to Akechi. “Fine… Take this. It will lead you straight towards his chamber, and it should also serve as your pass,” it said. “I can’t leave. Gotta keep post for those intruders running about.”

Everyone looked between themselves, walking past the guard and towards the room. 

“Y-you!” Kasumi cried out, slapping Akechi’s arm. “You said you were going to sell us you jerk!” 

“It was the easiest way to get him to comply.” Akechi deadpanned. 

“And you went along with it!” Kasumi turned over towards Sumire. 

“He’s right, as long as the lie convinced the Shadow who cares what it was,” Sumire reasoned. Kasumi opened her mouth to argue before Akechi turned around, rolling his eyes. 

“If another Shadow asks him he could describe us, better to simply kill him,” he said, leaping from his spot all the way to the back of the guard, ripping off its mask. The Shadow crumbled, revealing an odd, blue thing covered in swirl designs. 

“It’s a Fuu-ki, which is weak to electricity!” Akechi shouted, stepping back as Kasumi stepped forward. “Take your revenge Mist!” 

“Oh? Then let’s do this Briar!” Kasumi ripped off her mask, pointing in the Fuu-ki’s direction with her trident. Lighting struck from the sky, knocking the Fuu-ki down to its knees and leaving itself open for a synchronized attack. 

The group all slipped inside the building, not waiting for the reinforcements to notice the downed guard as they Navigated the castle. 

“You know a dead Shadow will garner more attention, right?” Sumire muttered, keeping her back to the wall. 

“Perhaps, but I just thought it would be fun,” Akechi shrugged. “I’ve been so annoyed with this place, the disgusting people it represents, trying to make moves on two barely teenage girls…” Akechi grinned. “I’ve been waiting for a good thrill anyway.” 

They group continued to head through the castle, finding the security system a tad harder than any of them expected after Waffles stopped the group and tried to tell them some sort of message through his movements.

“Is there something beyond there that we can’t see?” Kasumi asked, gaining a nod from the tanuki. 

“Beast most likely has some sort of sense beyond our own, so I think it’s best to trust him,” Sumire said, gaining a small pout from the creature. “Hey! I wasn’t doubting you. just giving you…more credibility,” 

Akechi put his hand to his chin, staring off into the distance. “Right, but I don’t know how Beast can communicate the exact danger and how,” he frowned before adding on.  “Everyone, stay back. I’m going to try something.” 

The three looked at each other, slipping back to the shadows before Akechi gave them a nod and ran off. They waited there for what it seemed like a few minutes before they saw the lights around them grow red in color, flashing in alarm. A few seconds later, Akechi came running in, jumping back into the shadows as multiple Shadow guards came chasing after him, stopping just short of the area Waffles warned them against. 

“He has to be here somewhere! Turn on the laser traps! Only we can see where they are unless the traps are triggered!” One of the guards called. 

“Good… Shadows still like to overshare information.” Akechi grinned, jumping back out and kicking the front Shadow with his leg.

“Loki!” Akechi shouted, yanking off his mask. Loki appeared behind him, enveloping the group of guards with a red aura as the first guard triggered the first couple laser lights. He jumped over the first now-visible light and right behind the Shadow he kicked. 

He swung his leg over the Shadow, knocking off its mask. He kept hold of the mask, checking it out as the Shadow formulated to a group of three High Pixies, none who got time to react as the onslaught of rage-filled shadows chanced upon them. Akechi adjusted the mask, forming it to a small cover to his own mask, leaping through each of the invisible lasers as the rest of them got revealed by the shadows trampling them. 

Sumire learned quickly what happened when too many are triggered. with a couple shadows completely getting obliterated by the lights as Akechi practically danced through each of them, pulling out his gun to knock a Pixie to the ground when it began to lag behind. Once all the Pixies were taken care of, Akechi yanked off another Shadow’s mask, creating a still rage filled purple-skinned woman that started to chase after him. 

“Come and get me!” Akechi shouted in sheer glee as he continued to hop through the few remaining invisible lights, finally leading her all the way to where the rest of the party were hiding. 

“Yaksini! I better see a mushroom cloud in here Beast!” Akechi commanded, dodging an attack from the Yaksini’s blade and parrying it with his own beam weapon before hopping away. Waffles took that que, jumping off Sumire’s shoulders and yanking off his mask, summoning his Persona to let out a nuclear attack and letting the Yaksini fall to the ground. Akechi put a hand in front of the girls, signaling for them to stay still as he summoned Loki again and finished her off, leaving no shadows and all the lasers promptly identified. 

“You know, you’re absolutely crazy, right?” Sumire quips, hopping over one of the lasers. “I can only imagine how bored you must have been at the amusement park.” 

“Did you guess?” Akechi says, clearly proud of himself before kneeling down on the ground, whipping a bead of seat from his head. 

“How do you know about the Shadows?” Kasumi asked, following Sumire through the lasers. No one had any issues sneaking through, with two being gymnasts, one a tanuki, and Akechi needing no explanation. “Can your Persona see their names?”

“No, I’ve had to memorize them. Before I usually had to come up with names myself, but recently I’ve been able to sense their weaknesses just by snapping my fingers,” Akechi mimicked the motion, a smile on his face. 

“When did you get that ability?” Kasumi leaned over, watching Akechi’s face turn blank. 

“I don’t exactly know… Just after you awakened,” he muttered in disbelief as he stared directly in Sumire’s direction before quickly regaining his confidence again. “But it finally allows me to see if my bets on what mythological beings they all were, currently five to four on my guesswork.” 

Sumire let out a smile as he spoke. It was endearing how quickly he forgot his grudge on her once he was able to show off a little. 

The group continued to traverse the palace, deciding to lay low for a while to possibly lower security. When Akechi came across a nearby safe room, the group decided it was a good time to call it a day after finding just how tired Akechi was after using Loki’s ability on those Shadows. 

“According to this map we’re currently three floors below the Light Prison,” Akechi laid the map on the ground, pointing to the chamber in question, which was labeled “Kuroda’s room.”  

“How do you know it’s a Light Prison?” Kasumi asked. 

“I can’t find any other area on this map that would fill in as a light chamber. at least in there we’ll find Kuroda,” Akechi responded. 

“Right. How long do you think it will take,” Sumire leaned over, attempting to understand the map for herself. 

“In theory we might be able to power through the three floors in one day, leaving one more to face off with Kuroda. It'll probably be best to set the date after we transverse the Palace and see what all our schedules are. Midterms just finished for me, so I doubt there will be anything special on my end,” Akechi stated. 

Both Sumire and Kasumi looked at each other and attempted to recall their schedules. They had a meet coming up in about a month, but besides that there wasn’t anything major happening. At least, as long as neither of them started to fail their classes. From how Akechi talked about education during their tutoring sessions, Sumire knew he wouldn’t let them slide by. 

The group finished discussing their plans, leaving them to head back to the front, but not stopping by the pomegranate river again to restock on supplies for the next trip. Sumire will surely miss that thing when this Palace disappears… 

Notes:

tried a slightly different editing style that I'm gonna use this chapter forward. Also are any of y'all playing p5X? Because I've been grinding for Ren... still don't have him but I pulled two Rins... yayyyyyy.

Chapter 28: Despicable, Cruel Cruel, People: Part XVII

Makoto Niijima 

 

May 18th, 2014

So according to Okumura, yesterday was just supposed to be a simple scouting trip. A piece of news that has been sending Makoto in a loop because she honestly didn’t know how she could handle anything else if they are even a fraction as bad as Okumura’s driving skills. Despite this, she followed Okumura’s instructions and managed to stock up on more supplies, mentally prepare herself, and brush up on her Aikido skills the night before. 

She stared down at her food, looking up at her sister, the only other person present, across the table. Before she heads out she might as well strike up some conversation with her before heading out to her doom. 

“Have you gotten your response yet?” She asked. Sae has been waiting for the past few weeks for her application to the SIU to be accepted. 

Sae shook her head. “Not yet, it shouldn’t matter. I was top of my class.” She then pointed her fork at Makoto. “Which is why you need to make sure to study hard. In this world people will assume women like us can’t do what men can and will not accept anything other than the best, so keep that in mind whenever you feel like slacking off in your studies.” 

Makoto nodded, looking down at her half-finished plate. She really didn’t want this same lecture again, always giving her the same speech about how all of society is out to get her. While Makoto couldn’t deny there was truth to what she was saying, she hadn’t yet come across this vast injustice that her sister is claiming is going to happen, maybe eventually it will, but for now, it’s just another thing she listens to her ramble about because she’s “older and more experienced.” Sometimes it feels like Sae is trying to take over for her father, which nowadays, feels more apparent due to the lack of the man at the table. 

 Makoto sighed, placing her fork down, lamenting. “But what’s the point when school doesn’t know everything…” 

“Excuse me?” Sae raised her eyebrows, her expression somewhere between shock and irritation. 

“Nothing, sis!” Makoto deflected, not wanting to go into the events that had made her come to such an opinion. 

Sae relaxed in her chair, before explaining, “Do not say things like that! There is always a point to your education… but I see your point, so if school doesn’t teach you it, then you just have to learn it yourself,” Sae said. “Studying at school doesn’t just mean learning all the information. It teaches you work ethic and how to learn more.” 

“Right,” Makoto nodded. If she were to be perfectly honest with herself, she still didn’t have a clue on what she wanted to be. She was supposed to study, get good grades, and get into a good school, but what does that even amount to if she doesn’t know what end goal she wants to achieve? How could she even decide what she wanted to be when there was so much that neither she nor anyone else in the world knows about? 

 “I wish Dad could be here in the mornings,” She eventually muttered to herself, diverting the subject before adding on. “To get his opinion…” 

“It is what it is. I heard the current case is really taking it out of him,” Sae sighed. “That’s why I’m going to be a prosecutor. I want to make sure that the people he catches will stay in jail, make sure that the people of Japan know what happens if they try to commit a crime.” 

“Japan has a ninety-nine percent conviction rate already, sis,” Makoto deadpanned, getting a rare chuckle from her sister. 

“And I guess I’m fighting to keep that. Maybe you can become a defense attorney, so then we can go at it in court,” Sae joked, another rare occurrence. Makoto had to laugh with her, the picture of the two sisters going toe to toe in a court appearing in her head. 

“Maybe I will, as a matter of fact,” Makoto grinned, her tone slowly turning bitter. “I’m sure even Dad will have to take a day off to watch us in court.” 

“Oh don’t be that way,” Sae frowned. “Dad had already promised that he’ll take a break after this case. It’s just… This one has been hard.”

“What about it?” Makoto decided to ask.  Sae sighed, putting her hand to her forehead. 

Sae sighed, putting her hand to her forehead. “No, I just haven’t seen him this stressed,” she said. “I’m just worried for him… and I know you two have been butting heads as of late.. So next time you see him, could you go easy on him?” 

Makoto didn’t have a response for that. Her last few conversations with her father always ended in arguments, and yet she’s possibly trying to save her father from getting murdered. Though, it wasn’t exactly like it was the only reason to do that. Okumura had given her the Ruler's profile. Kojiro Kuroda is a drug dealer who killed his own wife and he’s connected to a conspiracy. Even if he wasn’t trying to kill Makoto’s father, he needed to be stopped. 

Besides, it wasn’t like she could back out now. Who knows what Okumura would do with powers like hers? Sure Makoto can fight, but she holds nothing to a girl with a massive ax, multiple guns, and a magical being that could mess with her mind. 

Makoto picked up her bag, bidding farewell to Sae and heading to the bus stop, Thankfully she didn’t have to wait long to meet with Okumura. She was easy to spot, waving eagerly at her wearing another designer brand jacket over a pink dress Makoto couldn’t even dream of affording. 

They both exchanged some stiff pleasantries before heading straight towards the beach. Makoto knew she wanted to say something more, she wasn’t sure what, about the Metaverse, her powers… her driving skills, but the words would never come out, leaving an awkward silence between them. The train ride still felt long, and Makoto didn’t have much of a conversation topic to bring up, so she kept it quiet. 

Once they reached the rock and entered the Palace, Okumura gave her a tad more warning before they warped to the safe room, allowing Makoto to put on her vest and brass knuckles before heading through. 

She continued to follow Okumura’s lead, staying in the shadows as she headed forward. They took down nearby Shadows and scored a map from one of them. Makoto took hold of it, taking a moment to analyze it when they found the next safe room.

“It doesn’t seem as big as I expected,” Makoto said, tracing a possible route with her finger. 

“We managed to skip the majority of the bridge portion of the Palace, so I’m not too surprised. This is the final stretch.” Okumura stated, taking in the scenery as dim blue lighting overtook both of them. 

Makoto decided to keep her focus on the map instead, but a question popped in her mind. “Say, just how many different Palaces have you been through?” 

Okumura looked off in thought, mouthing a couple names as she counted on her fingers. “Five,” she said. “I’ve been to five different Palaces.” 

Makoto nodded, a little surprised at how low the number was. “Who did they belong to?” 

Okumura thought for a moment longer before rattling off. “Mementos… Is one of them, but the rest were some…more minor Palaces. Like, just some neighbors, you know… Rich people...” Okumura dodged. 

Makoto didn’t even bother calling out her obvious lie, instead opting to focus on the current goal. “From what I’ve analyzed about Kuroda, he’s overanalytical, and according to that one Will Seed memory, he might have a photographic memory.” 

“He does seem the type who’s very studious,” Okumura replied. 

“Yeah…” Makoto’s voice trailed off at hearing the descriptor before settling to try to continue. “I looked at the few logs you gave me in the safe room, and they are in incredible detail.” 

“There are a lot of detailed logs around here,” Okumura said. “Too much for any company owner to normally handle, even my father delegates things to other people.” 

“Right, and if this is based on cognition, it wouldn’t be logical if he had everything be so precise, meaning he could also be a control freak, which makes him an intelligent and dangerous enemy” Makoto stated. Okumura nodded along. 

Okumura agreed, moving forward as she studied the map. “When we steal the treasure we’re most likely going to have to face him, so this is all good to prepare for. And don’t forget there are usually some sort of puzzles and traps nearing the end.” She said, grabbing an extra marker she brought and supplied, and circled two open spots. “In most of the Palaces I know of, they tend to have puzzles when the cognition is more distorted, a sort of last defense of the Ruler’s mind, some more annoying than others.” The way Okumura’s voice lowered, Makoto had a sneaking suspicion that she hadn’t had a good experience with puzzles. 

“If there are, I suspect they would be… here,” Makoto finished, circling another spot at the end of the map. “And here will be the Treasure Room, which will undoubtedly be heavily guarded.” 

“Exactly!” Okumura beamed, clasping her hands together before suggesting. “Then we should make it over there to see what we’re dealing with,”

Makoto nodded, giving a smile as she started to get the hang of things. “Yes. So we should prepare for either lots of Shadows or lots of traps. If it’s the former, then we’ll have to come up with something to lure them out. If it’s the latter, then we’ll go from there. Right now, I want to take care of this spot,” Makoto tapped on the open area closest to them. It was pretty secluded, but just big enough that it warranted an investigation. 

Okumura looked down, taking note of the area. “That seems like a good idea, I’ll leave the strategy to you Mako-chan!” 

Makoto couldn’t help but get a little flustered at the praise. While she always excelled, it was more in silence, with the most being a stern “good job” from her father or sister, yet Okumura was acting almost like her own personal cheerleader. It made Makoto suspicious, but at the same time, she also couldn’t help but hope she was wrong and that the two could be friends. 

After they finished planning, Makoto suggested staying behind Okumura as they explored, not wanting to make things any more difficult for Okumura. Okumura agreed, leading the way out of the safe room before traveling through the Palace. 

It was only as they started to walk that Makoto had time to take in the scenery, she would have to admit it was nothing less than stunning. Whales of all different types swam above them as different aquamarine lights lined the pathway. The halls were open, not leaving much room for shadows for the girls to hide in but making it feel that she was at an aquarium tour rather than a twisted representation of a drug dealer’s mind. 

Okumura appeared to relax a little as they treaded deeper in the Palace, which was ironic as Makoto seemed to be freezing up more and more as they headed closer towards where Kuroda was to be. 

“It seems Kojiro has a soft spot for whales,” Okumura joked as she pointed at the various animals swimming overhead. 

“Is that the thing you’re focused on right now? This guy’s a drug dealer and murderer.” Makoto frowned, sticking to the wall as Okumura wandered out to the open. She frowned, quickly shooting down a nearby Shadow with ease as if to prove that they were no worry to her before heading back to admire the scenery. 

“I’m not denying that, but I can’t deny that these Palaces do a lot to humanize these people,” Okumura says. 

“I think it would be better just to see them for what they are,” Makoto disagreed, still watching for Shadows. Okumura shrugged, a soft smile appearing on her face. 

“Exactly, they are humans with corrupted desires,” Okumura responded, looking ahead of her. Makoto wanted to press on, try to understand why she would sympathize or even humanize someone like Kuroda. How could she have gone through four Palaces, five including Mementos, seen so many corrupted adults, likely risking her life to take them down, and still spent time to notice a Ruler’s soft spot for whales? 

Maybe Makoto shouldn’t question her. If she’s some Metaverse being like Jose, a kid who constantly asks how humans act, she might not understand exactly how evil humans can be or how hard it could be to possibly lose a parent. Since it was already clear to her that once she managed to take down a few Shadows easily, that she didn’t need to worry at all about any upcoming ones posing a threat despite knowing Kuroda managed to beat her in a fight. 

She wasn’t allowed any more time to ponder this before Okumura perked up, pushing her down to the shadows, covering her mouth. They reached the room Okumura was worried about, a massive meeting room with multiple Shadows sitting at a round table, with the Ruler himself at the front of it. 

Kuroda pulled out a screen showcasing a map of the world, he began to trace through a route with his finger. 

“With this plan, we would be able to establish something similar to a new Silk Road, stretching all the way from Europe to Japan,” Kuroda explained, zooming into particular marked locations. “I’ve been in talks with a couple former friends of my father’s, seeing if they are willing to move around to these different points.” 

“Isn’t he currently being chased by the police?” Okumura asked, turning to Makoto. She nodded, equally confused on why Kuroda was still thinking about business despite everything. Either he was that obsessed with his work, or he had no worries about the police. 

She hated how that reminded her of herself in a way, always thinking about her school and future. Though at least she was able to comprehend what was going on right now. 

“What about the Americas?” A Shadow raised its hand. 

“We’re going to have to go through by sea. I want to send through some scouting boats to get a good feel for certain routes, I’ve received news that they are watching the seas more for illegal shipments as of late so it might be more of a risk at the moment,” Kuroda stated, sitting down. “It’s something I’ll have to bring forth later councils, but I want to put focus on other things,” 

“So is this… a meeting?” Makoto asked. 

“This is probably how he thinks,” Okumura replied. 

“You mean the police chasing you? Because of what happened to Kyoko?” One of the shadows said. Kuroda nodded. 

“Yes, Shido has finally contacted me about that. He said he has come up with a solution to deal with the head of the investigation.” 

Shido… that was the man in charge of the conspiracy that Okumura was talking about. She looked over at the girl, who had a disapproving frown knowing Kuroda was already entangled. 

“The head?” 

“Yes, one Officer Niijima.” At the sound of her father’s name out of his mouth, Makoto grabbed hold of her arm with a tight gasp. Okumura gave her a worried look, eventually shuffling over as she came closer as Makoto’s mind raced. Despite this, she willed herself to focus on the rest of the conversation. 

“It was fully experimental, and he only recently gained his resource, but it would be able to stage an accident to take down Niijima and a couple of the other officers on the case,” Kuroda continued, pulling up another screen. “This should give probable reason to take us off their priority as Shido’s allies do their work on the inside. This is purely experimental but I have strong faith that Shido is fighting for our best interests.” 

Okumura put her hand over Makoto’s chest, as if she believed Makoto was going to jump right in front of her and start beating him to the ground. 

 

Which is what you want to do, no? 

 

Makoto continued to clench her fist, listening to Kuroda. It was true, her father was really going to be killed by this man. At least, he was going to kill him unless someone managed to do something. 

Makoto could do something. 

Despite her shaking, an eerie calm washed over her as she listened to Kuroda, his voice was starting to give her a headache. 

“So would that mean you’ll kill them?” A Shadow stirred until and morphed until taking shape, allowing her to notice she wasn’t actually a Shadow, instead a cognition of a woman. Okumura mentioned that somewhere in the notebook. She talked about how they can range from random bystanders, to mindless puppets to fully sentient, fully aware beings. The way Okumura talked about them with a slight shudder in her voice gave Makoto the impression that she didn’t have many fond memories of them. 

“Similar to Kyoko, it’s calculated that this is the best course of action,” Kuroda said, keeping his eyes trained away from the cognition.

“A calculated risk? Are you trying to falsify what happened to her?” she asked, her voice wavering. 

“Kyoko was… Never mind that, we’re talking about the officers, which I strongly believe will be worth taking Shido’s offer on. A good majority of officers are already on Shido’s side, and having a partnership with him will prove beneficial. And taking out the ones currently on my tail will also be a way to eliminate those who are not on our side.” 

That was it. Makoto already knew the majority of the police were corrupt, she knew it, her sister knew it, her father knew it despite telling her to always trust the police, yet this man had the audacity to try to get rid of the few people out there actually trying to uphold the law. Trying to get rid of her father purely because he didn’t submit to their whims?

Everything about this man was starting to piss her off, from his posh attitude, his stupid Palace, the fact that even Okumura seemed to forget about how terrible a person he was by admiring the place. She hated it, she hated him, he made her sick to her stomach. It made her sick and it made her head hurt. 

“Like officers who actually uphold the law?” Makoto growled, stepping out of her hiding spot, gaining a gasp from Okumura and setting the whole table on alert. 

“Mako-chan!” Okumura cried, turning around as with a snap, Kuroda disappeared from the head of the table as his voice echoing from behind Makoto. 

“The girls from before?” He muttered, not getting any more time to react before Okumura swung her ax at him. He dodged with grace, typing something on his screen and sending Okumura flying backwards to the wall, leaving Makoto alone. 

Yet, she wasn’t as afraid as last time. 

She swung her fist directly towards him, taking advantage of his attention to Okumura, punching him in the face and knocking his visor off. 

Kuroda fell to the ground, coughing to himself as he attempted to regain his visor, his golden eyes now on wide display. Eyes the same color as Jose, if Makoto wasn’t so pissed at him she might have to look into that. 

“I’ve listened to you continue to go on and on about how calculations and what’s beneficial and if I learned anything from the past few days it's that you can’t calculate shit!” Makoto mocked, readjusting her brass knuckles.

“What is this girl going on about? Take her down!” Kuroda called out, watching with wide eyes as all the Shadows appeared still, staring directly towards Makoto. Okumura appeared confused about it as well, and kept her ax ready in case they actually attacked. She looked over at Makoto, a little confused about her rant. 

She hated him, she really hated every aspect of him. From his dismissal of his wife’s death, to his willingness to kill her very own father. She hated all his hobbies, those stupid whales, this stupid bridge, his pretentious visor, and… 

She hates that he reminds her of herself.

“So how about you calculate this you asshole!” Just as he tried to stand up and snap again, Makoto ran forward, throwing all her might into a single punch and knocking the twig of a man to the ground. He cried out in pain, and his expression showed pure murderous intent, but Makoto didn’t care as she continued to clench her fists above him. 

So we can finally meet again, are you ready to make a contract? 

“Yes, come to me!” Makoto shouted, and the pain that lingered behind her all throughout the day finally crashed into her all at once. She stumbled, nearly falling to the ground as she still tried to keep her height advantage over Kuroda. 

It is understandable that you’ve taken so long. 

So intelligent, yet so naive, 

So much younger than I remember,

You’ve come so far, yet you still have so much farther to go. 

Makoto struggled to keep herself standing, watching Kuroda slowly try to pick himself up before she finally fell to her knees. Kuroda grinned, feeling he’s gained the advantage in the fight. 

Haru called her name in the background, something she couldn’t discern as her vision and mind muddled. 

Allow me to assist you to finally become your true self, though I ponder how much pain you will be subject to in your rebirth…

I am thou, thou art I.

The pain ceased, along with any confusing memories, and Makoto could only feel the cold steel of a mask forming around her face, and the desire to remove it, once and for all. 

It’s time for your graduation from your false, cowardly self. 

Now again, don’t lose it again. 

Makoto continued to tug, ripping off the mask and what she could only assume was half her face with it. She felt the world transform around her, blue aura covering her vision as she felt her true self emerge from below her. Her clothes were long gone, replaced by some sort of suit that she couldn't discern at the moment.
“I won’t let you hurt my father, nor even come close to Shido, now gun it, Johanna!” Makoto shouted, charging straight forward to Kuroda. He only barely managed to get out of the way, regaining his visor before calling for his shadows. Makoto attempts to reach for him, finding he’s already teleported away. 

That didn’t matter, there were plenty of other subjects she could take out her feelings on. In fact, Kuroda was so kind enough to summon even more Shadows in a vain attempt to stop them. Okumura rushed forward, standing next to her as she pulled off her mask. 

“Astarte! Hypnotize them!” She called out, as if to give Makoto a demo on how she had used her persona. Makoto followed, calling out Johanna’s name as multiple nuclear blasts surrounded the shadows, knocking them to the ground. Makoto jumped off her Persona, it reforming to her mask as it toppled to the ground before she rushed out to Okumura. 

“Right, all-out attack!” Okumura shouted, swiftly taking down all the shadows, leaving nothing in their wake except for Okumura and a very tired Makoto. Despite this, she pointed her gun over at the only surviving being, that cognition who was fighting Kuroda. 

“P- Please don’t hurt me!” She cried, throwing her hands up in a panic. “I… I can help you out… You wanna take down Kojiro, right?” 

Makoto attempted to keep a stern face, but with each second of silence, waiting for her to make a move, the fatigue finally hit. Makoto felt her knees buckle in on itself, being quickly caught by Okumura as she fell to the ground. Okumura faced the figure, the single cognition from before. 

“Who are you?” Okumura asked. 

“I’m… I’m Kyoko! At least, I’m a cognition of her, p-please don’t kill me…” Kyoko fell to the ground, giving a weak smile. “I already experienced that… and it isn’t any fun,” 

“You think you’re funny…” Makoto sneered before being stopped by Okumura. 

“So you serve as his guilty conscience, right?” She asked. The cognition, Kyoko, nodded. 

“She serves as a what?” Makoto exasperated, not impressed by the idea at all. 

“Yes, I formed shortly after the real Kyoko died of an overdose,” She explained, before rushing over, helping Makoto up despite her protests. “Here, let me help you, we’ll go somewhere safer for the time being and I’ll explain,” 

“I’m not…” Makoto muttered, falling further into Okumura’s arms and nearly to the ground. She tried to put up a fight, but failed as the cognition gently grabbed hold of Makoto, letting her head rest on her shoulder as she faced Okumura. 

“I’ll be able to explain everything.” 

Notes:

I'm so sorry for the unexpected week break and the likely next week break... I'm hoping the awakening was still worth the wait

Chapter 29: Despicable, Cruel Cruel, People: Part XVIII

Haru Okumura 

 

May 18th, 2014

Haru didn’t know how to feel at the moment. On one hand, Makoto had finally awakened to her Persona. On the other hand, said Persona was Johanna, her first Persona rather than her final one, and she showed no signs of remembering Haru or the other timeline. There wasn’t any real sign that she would have gained her memories just due to having her Persona beyond simple speculation, if that was the case, then Akechi would have them as well. Haru certainly didn’t expect Makoto to act the same way as Haru did if she suddenly gained memories of the old timeline, but if she did, she would have certainly indicated that to Haru or at least would have displayed a drastic change in behavior to her former or later (time travel is too confusing) self. 

If Haru knew Makoto well enough, she would have immediately started demanding answers from Haru on what was going on. Instead she only just attacked the Shadows around her, stumbling ever slightly on her bike as if she had no familiarity with how to use it. 

Still, Haru wasn’t completely unprepared for Makoto not remembering. It just meant that she was going to have to bring her best friend around the long way. Right now, the main priority at the moment was the fact that there was a cognition willing to assist them. 

Haru was no stranger to fully functional cognitions—she knew of Sugimura and the cognitive version of herself in her father’s Palace, with the former acting just like his real self while the latter was a twisted version that wasn’t even human-like. 

On the other hand, the cognition of Akechi was completely aware of how Shido saw him, taunting the real version of his plan shortly before pointing his gun at his head. Haru had to assume that, like Akechi said, that cognition was made as a defense mechanism rather than as a representation of how Shido thought of him. She speculated if he were simply a representation like that that he would be more on the lines of a literal puppet, tied by strings who sang to Shido’s praises. 

This cognition was also different from those previous ones. Like Akechi, she seemed fully aware of her existence and purpose, but unlike him, she was likely a subconscious creation out of Kojiro’s guilt rather than an active defense against threats. She shouldn’t really even use Shido’s Palace as any frame of reference. Due to stealing Wakaba Isshiki’s research, he had access to researchers who specialized in altering the cognitive world as well as an assassin who could actually enter it, two things she undoubtedly knew Shido, let alone Kuroda didn’t currently process. 

“So… Are you actually Kyoko Kuroda?” Makoto asked, letting out a long side as she leaned against the wall. The three of them found a small supply closet to rest in after the fight. It was large enough to give Kyoko her own side, while the other two stared 

Shaking her head, Kyoko explained, “No, I was created by Kojiro’s mind. I only retain her memories that involve him, and act only as he pictured me.” Kyoko was a younger woman, dressed modestly with a long gray skirt that reached her ankles with a small bow in front of her blouse. Her hair was long and white, flowing in waves around her face.

“So you must remember your death at least,” Makoto leaned in, crossing her arms. Haru could sense where she was getting at. While there wasn’t any proof, if they knew the story behind how she died, then perhaps there was a way to use that information once Kuroda turned himself in. 

Instead, Kyoko shook her head again. “Only a little,, the last memory I have was getting into an argument with him relating to his business. My guess is shortly after he left I overdosed alone in the house,” she looked down and apologized. 

“Wait, so he didn’t directly murder you?” Makoto pressed, looking genuinely shocked. 

“Not that I believe. Like I said, the only memories I have are what Kojiro knows. I don’t remember the specifics of my death, but I do remember something to do with taking substances,” Kyoko looked to the side, a frown on her face. “I don’t know why or with what. All I do know is that it was Kojiro that discovered my body about three weeks later.” 

“How horrible,” Haru muttered. “To die alone, with your last conversation being an argument…” 

“This wouldn’t have happened if he didn’t supply the drugs,” Makoto frowned. 

Kyoko shrugged, “I don’t think it’s my place to share the rest of the story between myself and Kojiro. All I can say is that I’m not blameless, but besides that… I believe that my purpose is to get rid of this place,” Kyoko turned to look at Haru, her gaze sharp and determined. “And you seem to have the same goal, no?”  

Putting a hand on her chest, Haru declared, “Yes, and we’re here to change his heart. Will you be able to help us?” 

“As long as you do not wish to kill him, I will gladly be able to assist in taking down the Shadows around you,” Kyoko told them. 

“Taking down the Shadows? You can fight?” Makoto asked. 

Kyoko nodded and explained, “I can use some magic attacks to take down Shadows,” she said, grabbing hold of her skirt, unclipping a small hidden zipper, opening it to allow more movement. “And I can summon a weapon to assist me, but I’ll keep that a secret for now.” 

“Then why haven’t you done anything before? We saw you take the form of a Shadow before we intervened,” Makoto accused, prompting a sigh from Kyoko. Before she could speak, Haru stepped forward. 

“Is it possible that you just manifested?” Haru asked. 

Kyoko crossed her arms, deep in thought. “I believe it depends on Kojiro’s mental state, but now that you two are here, his cognition is weak enough that I can properly manifest and stay here,” Kyoko attempted to explain after a while. Haru couldn’t blame her for her uncertainty; this was territory she’d barely even touched on. All things considered, she had only been in two normal Palaces. The others were by someone who manipulated it from the real world and Mementos itself. 

“Well… I guess it lightens the burden on Noir’s back… And here I thought I would be more of a help,” Makoto sighed, sliding down on the wall until she was on the floor.

“Don’t stress yourself too much Mako-chan! E- I had the same thing happen to me,” Haru said, briefly slipping up and saying too much before stopping herself. 

Makoto sighed, giving a small smile back to her. “Is it just me, or I feel I should be going by a codename as well.” 

Haru struggled to keep her smile from getting too big, scared she might give too much away her excitement. “Right! Do you have any ideas?” she asked. 

Makoto frowned and looked down at her outfit, giving a small shiver once she properly began to analyze it. “This is…certainly something… How did you come up with yours?” Makoto asked. Haru didn’t have much of a reason behind her codename. She was beauty thief when she was with Morgana, and thought up the name Noir to match her mask and French aesthetic later. It wasn’t deep on any level. 

The more she thought about it, no one in her party really picked something meaningful, Ryuji, Ann, and Yusuke all based it off their masks, Futaba on her role in the party, Mona-chan his name, and she really didn’t know the reason behind Ren’s codename. The only ones she could guess went a bit deeper were Akechi’s and Makoto herself. 

“I guess I picked whatever I thought fit me,” Haru said with a shrug. Makoto eyed her up and down, probably getting a feel for her attire before looking at her own. 

“How exactly did you explain these outfits again? The image of a rebel?” Makoto began to hug herself. 

“You kinda look like a biker,” Kyoko interjected, putting her hands together with glee. 

“I don’t like it… Is there anything else I can go by?” Makoto asked, grabbing hold of her scarf. If Haru was going to suggest something, now would be the time. Queen just felt right to her, and she really didn’t want Makoto using anything else in case she called her by the old one on impulse. 

“How about…Queen?” Haru suggested, trying to make it seem as natural as possible. 

“Queen?” 

“Yeah! Like how you are the queen of…” Haru’s voice trailed off. She wasn’t exactly aware of what reasons they gave for the codename. 

“Maybe something like Rider? Or Witch?” Kyoko suggested. 

“Rider sounds cool!” Makoto grinned. “It kinda feels like I’m part of some biker gang!” 

“I joined a bike gang when I was younger,” Kyoko snickered to herself. “They’re fun. It fits the motorcycle Persona as well.”

“But you’re totally a Queen!” Haru interjected, clasping her hands together as she pouted. “I mean… Do you really want to just base your name off your bike?” 

Makoto frowned a little before she placed her hand on her chin, thinking the name over for a few seconds before she managed to pick herself up again. “I guess…” 

“I mean you’re totally a Queen as well!” Haru continued to pester. 

 Makoto hummed for a moment, leaning back a little as Haru realized she got a little too close. “ You know what… I like it,” Makoto declared before looking at Kyoko. “Should we come up with anything for you?” 

“I don’t think so. I don’t possess any sort of mask, so it will serve no purpose in covering my identity,” Kyoko shook her head. “And besides, while you are foreigners to this place, Kojiro would always be able to sense who I am.” 

“That makes sense, I guess…” Makoto grumbled. Haru had a sneaking suspicion that Makoto was lying. Based on her complete breakdown at the end of the last trip, she was likely beyond lost at the moment. Eventually she needs to make sure to explain everything she can to her. 

As long as she wasn’t visibly distressed it should be alright. After all, Haru had much higher priorities at the moment, including Kyoko. 

She didn’t exactly trust Kyoko. Everything about her was just too suspicious, and by her own logic, Kojiro Kuroda might be able to see things through her eyes. That would depend on how connected he was to the conditions of this world as well as a million other factors that Mona-chan would have explained to them by now. While she never had any issues with him herself, she was aware of his ongoing rivalry with Ryuji, though at this point even he would miss his knowledge of the Metaverse. 

Instead, she was left walking blindly in the dark, but walking blindly at least managed to get Makoto to awaken, traverse at least half the Palace, and gain a sort of ally who could provide more information about Kuroda’s mental state. Given the fact she was likely the least qualified person to have done this, she didn’t think she was doing that bad.

“Queen, do you believe you can make it any further? If not, I believe it would be best to call it a day,” Haru asked. Makoto stood up, shaking her head. 

“No, I’ll be able to make it for a couple hours,” Makoto insisted. 

Haru reluctantly agreed, but still opted to wait a few more minutes for Makoto to rest up before the two and their new ally left the closet to continue to explore the Palace. She’s already been through a lot for the past few days, and Haru still needs to make sure she hasn’t actually lost her mind from last trip. She’s been taking it quite well so far, but who knows what’s running through her mind. 

The meeting room was still barren, beyond wrecked after the fight that took place. Kyoko had to move a couple chairs out of the way to even open the entrance to the rest of the Palace. 

The security was surprisingly light for the current level, with only a few guards walking beyond the halls. While not processing the same third eye ability as Ren, Haru could still sense a little of the Shadow’s power, showing her that they weren’t anything beyond her rage. 

Since she was curious about Kyoko's abilities, as well as wanting to give Makoto some practice with her Persona, Haru leapt from her hiding, ripping off one of the guard's masks. It revealed itself to be a group of Rakshasas, those who were strong against curse, but she couldn’t recall anything else about them. 

“Everyone, get in formation and follow my lead!” Haru called out, stepping aside to see just what Kyoko was capable of. 

Haru pretty quickly figured out that Kyoko was capable of quite a lot. In fact, she was practically everything Haru needed at the moment. She didn’t have a Persona, saying she could only use what she called “the arts” before summoning magic blasts of different randomized affinities. It was also quite surprising that her weapon was a whole motorcycle that she would promptly drive straight into enemies, something both girls could only stare in awe at. 

Haru wasn’t completely sure how things worked during her first awakening, but Makoto currently had no clue whatsoever on how to work a motorcycle. It got to the point where both Haru and what she could only assume was Johanna herself telling Makoto to just let the Persona ride itself and instead focus on attacking. Kyoko attempted a couple of times to give her tips with her own motorcycle, only to get rejected by Makoto each time. 

As for Makoto’s abilities, well, she was without a doubt the best first team member Haru could have obtained. Most of the Phantom Thieves held some sort of niche they specialized in. Ryuji was the best at physical attacks, Ann was best at magic, Yusuke usually the first to strike near impossible to hit, Mona-chan healed, Futaba navigated, and Ren had access to multiple different Personas. If anything, Haru herself varied through different specialties, from pairing with the status dealers with her psychokinesis attacks, to gun attacks, to setting up barriers against powerful enemies. 

Makoto on the other hand was a jack of all trades; she had healing, strong magic and physical attacks, she was the team strategist, and she could hold her own even without her Persona. Out of everyone on the team, Haru believed Makoto had the strongest chance of being able to solo Palaces like Akechi or Ren could. 

While her capabilities were far more limited compared to when Haru joined the team, from what they’d managed to gather, Makoto had at least one healing move, a couple of nuclear moves, and, the one Haru was most excited for, a move that inflicts forgetfulness. She must have opted to get rid of it before Haru joined, which saddened her because of how well it pairs with Astarte’s skills. 

Of course, Makoto was still weak from her awakening, her stubbornness somehow still pushing her through. At some point, Makoto nearly collapsed on Johanna, and, combined with her poor driving skills, nearly crashed through the glass separating them from an ocean’s worth of water and whales.  Kyoko managed to move her out of the way, taking control of the bike and finishing off the enemies, much to Makoto’s dismay. 

They’d managed to pass through a couple more hallways, Haru finding another Will Seed Chamber in the meantime. She took a deep breath before heading inside, the memory in question flashing inside her mind. 

This time it depicted what seemed to be a teenage Kojiro seated at a meeting. His father was next to him at the head of the table. They were seemingly in the middle of some sort of argument about a shipment with some other men. 

“The date of shipment was the thirty-first of July,” Kojiro spoke out, cutting off some of the other men present with near childlike innocence in his tone. 

“H-how do you know that?” one of the men asked. 

“It was on one of the documents father handed to you. I managed to catch a glimpse of it,” Kojiro shrugged, leaning back on his seat. His father looked over at him before putting up a grin. 

“Yes, Kojiro here possesses a photographic memory. He can memorize anything with just a glance,” his father explained. “Which now begs the question, how come you were arguing against me about the shipment date when it seems I did hand you the order information?” 

The man began to stutter, gaining glares from the men around him. Kojiro’s father stood up, putting his hand on his son’s shoulder. 

“Well done Kojiro. You will truly be an irreplaceable asset to this company.” 

The world flashed back to normal, allowing Haru to reach the Will Seed. She had to admit, she was starting to get a little invested there, though she was lacking a lot of the context. 

“His mother must have died at some point,” Makoto commented, grabbing Haru’s attention. “In the first memory, his father had a wedding ring, whereas in this one, it was missing.” 

“But that could also just mean he takes it off at work,” Haru countered. After all, she knew her father still wore his ring every now and again, even back when he was corrupted by power in the last timeline. Despite this, Makoto shook her head. 

“My father does that too when he works. But I don’t know. It just doesn’t feel right to me.”

Kyoko interjected and explained, “Kojiro’s mother died of cancer long before I met him. At least, that’s what everyone claimed. By how Kojiro acted around that topic, we both knew that he knew there was some foul play.”

 “Kyoko-san, how did Kuroda treat you?” Makoto unexpectedly turned to the woman in question.

Kyoko grabbed her wrist and paused for a moment, eventually muttering, “He was demeaning… but he also loved me. I knew that he wanted to see me as his equal… but something stopped him from being able to say it. I also know his father saw me as nothing more than a tool to get connected to my family.” 

“The more and more I learn about this family, the more I’m thankful I wasn’t born into it,” Makoto sighed, a sentiment that Haru had to agree with given her own bad experiences with arranged marriages. 

“At least Aisa managed to break the cycle,” Haru tried to make light of the situation. It was a shame in a way that Kojiro was groomed into this life. Her own father had tried to groom her to be what he wanted, but she had been given a second chance to prevent that from ever happening. What would she have become if she stayed? Would she become more like Kojiro or Kyoko? 

Haru shook any lingering thoughts out of her head. She could sympathize with Kojiro all she wanted, but it didn’t change the mission of changing his heart or the fact that he’s responsible for dozens of deaths, including Makoto's father if he continued on this path he was on. 

They managed to keep going for a few more minutes, coming across the first puzzle area that Makoto marked on the map. It was a memory puzzle involving a pattern flashing on the screen, and the girls would have to move objects to replicate it. They ended up having to solve more than a few puzzles with the same structure. The first couple times were simple, whereas the final parts were so complex it took the girls seventeen tries to get it right, with a Shadow appearing after each failure to fight them. Needless to say, by the time they finally solved the puzzle, Makoto was beyond tired and Haru decided to call it for the night as soon as they found a safe room. 

She knew Makoto would be upset, saying they should have been able to go for at least two more hours, but with her still weak from her awakening and Haru having to pick up a majority of the slack, even with Kyoko helping the girls knew they couldn’t make it any further. 

Upon reaching the safe room, Haru also learned that apparently Kyoko can enter them as long as they allow her inside. Haru felt sorry for leaving her alone in the safe room while the other two returned to the real world, but she told them it was alright so they could focus on resting up. 

“Keep in mind, I’m just a cognition,” Kyoko reminded them. “I’m nothing more than a projection of how Kojiro remembers me.” 

“Well, if it helps, he seems to remember you as quite the powerful fighter,” Makoto managed to quip, leaning down on a chair. Kyoko laughed at the joke, grabbing hold of her hair. 

“He always knew that I could have folded him in a fight.” 

“It’s going to sound weird, speaking as I’m not Kyoko herself, but it seemed to me that they had a better relationship than I expected.” Makoto eventually commented as they returned to the front of the Palace.

“It’s just a shame on how things happened around her. He’s committed so many crimes, and it’ll be so much easier to see things as one note…” Haru started, looking off into the distance. “But sometimes you find out the person who’s hurt you the most was just another victim at the end of the day.” 

Makoto looked over at her, raising her eyebrows before deciding to let it go. Haru was thankful for that, not ready to explain time travel, her father’s death, or Akechi to her. 

The girls managed to collect their things and head back to the real world, finding themselves on that beach again. Makoto nearly collapsed on the ground, barely finding support in the rock behind her. 

“I think I should take you home Mako-chan,” Haru offered her hand out to her, but Makoto rejected it. 

“No, I told sis I would be out all day. If I come home earlier she will start asking questions,” Makoto answered, looking around as she stood up. Haru turned to where she was looking. On the sidewalk of the beach were many small stores, one in particular appeared to be one that sold antique toys, with a Buchimaru-kun plushie on its front window. 

“Then let’s tour around the shops!” Haru suggested, excited to finally spend some casual time with her old friend. 

Notes:

Zzz

Chapter 30: Despicable, Cruel Cruel, People: Part XIX

Goro Akechi 

 

May 25th, 2014

Goro took a deep breath, stepping inside the Palace once again. He was feeling pretty good for once. Midterm grades came out and he was tied at the top of the class. The people around him also treated him more favorably, which was at least a start. Goro knew more than anyone that no matter how smart he was, it wasn’t enough to get people to like him, but it did make students more interested in him, as well as the Niijima girl. 

 From how hard of a worker Niijima was, he wasn’t surprised she managed to tie with him. While he wasn’t exceptionally close to her, he did find her a pleasant study partner when she asked one night. He didn’t particularly need one, if anything he preferred to study alone, but having someone else around him while he did it in public made him out as less of a loner, and Niijima happened to be perfect as a loner herself. 

The only thing about Niijima that Goro didn’t like was her friend, Okumura. Well, to be specific, Nijima said that Okumura wasn’t her friend, but given how often he saw the two girls together with no resistance from Niijima, he doubted that statement. Yet for whatever reason Okumura was giving him the side eye. Was she worried that they were into each other? Goro hopped not, despite never actively trying to pursue a relationship or even indicating that he was even single to Nijima, he knew full well that his declining popularity in his last school was due to breaking up so many friendships between his female classmates. 

Putting Okumura aside, things were actually going pretty decently at this school. People would smile at him and, while there was still unwanted fawning over his appearance, it was far better than theorizing that he held a double life as a serial killer. At least, if they were, it wasn’t done directly in front of him. 

His relationship with Kasumi and Sumire had also not been terrible as of late. Both girls had proven that they wanted to take the Metaverse seriously, spending their extra money on supplies as well as using any of their free time during practices to work on drills for the Metaverse. Both girls were beyond exceptional at gymnastics. Kasumi was strong and technical while Sumire was elegant and quick. It made Goro begin to feel that he was lacking in that department, but he hadn’t yet determined he had the need to ask them for assistance. 

Yet it didn’t mean that he was completely relaxed. Goro already knew his good mood will sour if he had to stay in this Palace any longer then required, so he made it his goal to get it over and done with today. At the latest maybe tomorrow they could take down the ruler if they found themselves tired. 

With all those plans in place, Goro collected the Yoshizawa sisters, along with the tanuki, and brought them inside the Palace. Once the group all recollected themselves, they began tracing out the plan for the day before heading straight into the safe room located in the middle of the castle. They had three floors left to travel through, and they could only guess what could be contained inside. 

The first floor appeared simple enough, a winding array of various corridors that had different locked doors at the end. After a while of trial and error, they managed to figure out how it worked. 

The area had three different keys Waffles was able to find. Each key could unlock different types of doors, but they could only figure out which via testing each combination. Open the wrong door with the wrong key and a Shadow would appear. The main difficulty was that once the key was taken out, the door would lock again, creating a cycle of forgetting what keys worked for what doors, keeping certain keys inside doors to progress, and getting themselves stuck in the middle of the floor because they had long locked themselves away from the entrance. 

“Does anyone know which key works for this door?” Sumire asked, pointing at the one in front of them. 

“I could have sworn we’ve done this one before, but I already forgot it,” Kasumi crossed her arms with a pout. Goro had no idea how she would know that, given all the doors looked identical besides the color of the handles. It had proven more difficult to keep track of, and while Goro was usually good for preparing for these sorts of situations, he has found less Goro sighed, pulling out the map to see if he could get a better feel for the area. Going off the map, there were about twenty-four doors on the floor. So far there hasn’t been any door that hasn’t been opened with one of the keys, so it wouldn’t be a surprise to him if there was a sound reason that the number of doors were a multiple of three over having a clean number like twenty or twenty-five. 

“Um…earth to Crow?” Kasumi leaned her head forward, attempting to snap him out of his thoughts. 

Not even processing her, Goro suggested with a smile, “Perhaps we should mark them with the fruits?” He summoned one of the extra plums he’s held on to, putting it in front of the door. “That way after we figure out which key this door uses, we can signify that with the plums.” 

“But wouldn’t that take up resources?” Kasumi asked, fiddling with the ruffles at the end of her jacket. 

“Yes, but I’m afraid we’re out of options at the moment,” Goro agreed with a sigh. “Since I believe our pace can only be rivaled by sloths, not doing this would just ensure that we cannot fight Kuroda tonight.” 

Not his ideal circumstance, but at least it would get them out of this maze. Once the party all agreed to his plan. They managed to have a far easier time making it through the maze, reaching the end about thirty minutes after marking the doors and fighting way too many Shadows for their own good. 

Finding a safe room at the end, Goro began to take count of all the leftover fruits they’ve stored while the other three flopped onto whatever seats the room supplied. 

After letting out a sigh of relief, Kasumi leaned onto the table to look at Goro and questioned, “By the way, did you plan to take down Kuroda tomorrow if we manage to reach his Light Prison?” 

“I plan to,” Goro deadpanned coldly. 

“Right… I was just thinking, since I don’t want to wait till next week and all…” Kasumi chuckled, looking away. 

Goro raised an eyebrow, deciding not to question her behavior. He couldn’t recall anything noteworthy that would happen next week, at least not anything Kasumi would care about. He hadn’t had any issues with her for a while and he really wanted to keep it that way. It was more practical to be in good relations with his teammates.

He knew he screwed up with Kasumi before; he didn’t know how, but he did. Kasumi could be putting on a brave face in front of him, but he didn’t think she was a good enough actor for that. Besides, even if he did manage to piss off Kasumi, the most that would happen is that she would complain to Shinichi, and unluckily for Goro, Shinichi seems like one of those better parents who will find out both sides of the story then give people appropriate punishments instead of instantly blaming the foster kid and kicking him out. 

After about ten minutes of rest, the party determined they were good enough to head on to the next floor, which was thankfully more of a simple maze then any sort of complex puzzle. A needed break if Goro was honest, while it lacked any intellectual difficulty, it made up for it in physical difficulty, with Shadows with red auras patrolling left and right, creating a lot of silent stake outs. Goro debated on trying to take them down for the fun of it, but decided it was better to save their stamina for any later unavoidable fights. 

A decision that was proven to be a smart one because within a hidden nook of the maze held what appeared to be the final Memory Chamber. Standing in front was a large Shadow, decked in armor that glowed red as it was still as a rock in front of the door, always watching. They quickly discovered they had no way to sneak past it. It yelled as soon as they approached, collapsing into its true form without anyone pulling his mask off and attacking them before they could react. 

This Shadow transformed to…something that Goro didn’t actually recognize for once. It was a skeleton-like figure with a horse head and a wide hat, and Goro hadn’t the faintest clue on what possible weaknesses it had. 

“Well… This won’t be so easy,” Goro hissed as he dodged an attack. He yanked off his mask, summoning Loki to see what his curse attacks could do, Loki spinned his blade barely, summoning the black and red flames of magic from the ground, swirling around the enemy, barely denting the thing as it charged directly towards Waffles. 

Waffles hopped out of the way, summoning his own Persona midair and landing beside Kasumi. With a nod, she held out her trident as her Persona appeared behind him. With a single call, both Personas attacked, sending out a combined wave of nuclear and electric energy. The combined power was slightly more powerful than Loki’s attack, but still not enough to actually hurt the Shadow. 

Growing irritated, Goro pulled off his mask and called out, “Let’s see if she has any use here, Ixtab!” Ixtab appeared behind her, lifting her arms as psychic energy surrounded the Shadow, shooting into it. Unfortunately, he found that her attacks did similar damage as the other two. With a shout, Goro commanded Sumire to use a bless attack, allowing her to rush forward, yanking off her mask to reveal her Persona. She didn’t specialize in bless attacks, but she did the job, summoning a wave of holy light, burning the Shadow with a scream as it fell to the ground, leaving itself open for a synchronized attack, but it got back up before they could react. Turning its attention towards Sumire, it summoned a ball of curse energy over towards her, sending her to the ground before she had the time to dodge.

Goro jumped in front of it aiming his gun and gaining its attention as Kasumi rushed over to help Sumire. He ran over to the other side, the Shadow hot on his heels. Spotting a small wall, Goro jumped over to attempt to scale it, but was just a few seconds too slow as the Shadow grabbed hold of him by the shoulders and slammed him onto the ground. 

Goro gasped for a moment, not having any time to process the pain as he looked above him to the Shadow’s horse face and its blade hovering over him. Goro took his gun in one swift motion and rapidly fired every last one of his bullets until the thing staggered away, allowing a split second for him to take off his mask. 

“Take them down Robin Hood!” he called as the Persona formed, shooting a heavenly arrow directly through it and sending it flying off of him and back down to the ground. Calling out to everyone present, all four of them came together to take it down with one more synchronized attack. 

As soon as he saw the son of a bitch get replaced by black dust, Goro fell to his knees, stabbing his sword into the ground to form some sort of support for him as he regained his breath.

“Do you need healing?” Kasumi rushed over, hand already on her mask as concern laced her face. “That was really close.” 

“No, I’m fine… I just didn’t expect to be yanked down like that,” Goro huffed, picking himself up. If anything was truly hurt, it was his pride. 

“I’m surprised. That’s the first shadow you haven’t been able to recognize,” Sumire commented, looking onwards towards the memory chamber. 

“And I’m sure it won’t be the only one,” Goro scoffed, attempting to keep his pride. “The more Palaces we explore, the less familiar they’re going to get.” 

My name is Kumbhanda. 

A voice rang in his head in the voice he could only presume to be the Shadow’s. Usually they would inform him of their own weaknesses and strengths, but these guard Shadows differed from the norm.

Goro didn’t know how he felt about it, even after all this time. On one hand it told him information about the Shadows that the others didn’t have access to, but on the other hand, it was a foreign voice, not that it was invading his mind, but more a distant call, one that he couldn’t reach out to. 

He shook the thought away with a sigh, telling the others, “Let’s just head to the Memory Chamber and get this guy’s backstory over with,” and slicing through the tape over the door before stepping into the chamber. 

A young man slowly opened a doorway, stepping inside a seemingly empty version of Lady’s First. An older gentleman was behind him, scanning the area. 

“Was this the place you’ve decided?” the man asked. 

Kenshin nodded, giving a proud grin. “Right on the outskirts of Shinjuku, nice back area, perfect area to lure in unsuspecting victims,” he pitched, walking around the area. 

The older man continued to walk around, tapping his cane on the floor. “This could make a good stage. You could put up some performers,” he said. 

“And why would we need that?” Kenshin asked. 

“Why, for The Gentlemen to make his appearances,” the older man said nonchalantly. 

“The Gentleman?” Kenshin asked, a small sense of glee building up inside him. “Would that be a title for me, Sugita-sama?” 

“For you? No, that shall be my own title till I pass on,” Sugita-sama stated, walking towards one of the windows. “You hold a lot of potential to make this business great Kuroda-san, but I fear you are still lacking in a lot of areas before you can truly take over,” 

“Like what?” Kenshin asked, annoyance lacing his voice. He’s been behind Sugita-sama for the past few years at this point. Kojiro was already leading his family’s business, and even that useless sister of his managed to make something of herself. He couldn’t slack any further. He couldn’t just ride off the coattails of Sugita-sama. 

Dodging his question, Sugita-sama frowned. “You’re not ready for this business,” Turning his head towards Kenshin, a darkness covering his eyes. “No man who would own a title of The Gentleman would be content to play second fiddle to another, his hands completely clean of blood, and who could look at a woman and see anything other than an object.” 

“Excuse me?” Kenshin growled, stepping closer towards Sugita. “What kind of person do you think I am?” 

“A mere boy,” Sugita stated with absolute certainty. 

Kenshin looked away from him, hiding his surprise. Sugita-sama has always reached an arm out towards him, he always saw the man as more of a father after his brother stole away his real one’s attention. Sugita-sama, someone whom Kenshin had looked up to for years, thought of him like this? Someone too empathetic, lazy, and even clean handed? Has he even been there when Kenshin did all of his dirty work? 

This ungrateful… little… 

“Oh?” Kenshin muttered, keeping quiet for just a moment. A small sliver of an idea started forming in his head. He was a Kuroda, so it wasn’t odd for thoughts like that, but he’s never acted beyond them unless they were under orders. Sugita-sama must really have his guard down if he only thought of him as a child. 

In a swift move, Kenshin charged at the man, throwing him on the ground and pinned himself on top; the old sap didn’t give much resistance, making the task easier than he ever expected. Kenshin put both of his hands on his throat, squeezing as hard as he could. If spilling blood was the only way to create a man, then he shouldn’t have been the only one present to inform Kenshin of such a thing. 

Sugita squirmed and fought off, his attempts weak and pathetic. Men like him are only powerful due to the people who are loyal towards him, but he knew better than anyone that the second he’s dead, then those loyalties swap. Even as a child he’s known that, why else would his mother’s maids immediately kneel towards his father the second she was dead on the ground? 

For what seemed like ages, Sugita finally gasped a final breath before his eyes fluttered and going limp. Kenshin growled, turning towards one of the bodyguards standing in the door frame. Kenshin at first wondered why he never moved, but found his answer when he instead approached Kenshin with a knife in hand, placing it on the ground in front of him. Kenshin didn’t question it, grabbing hold of the knife and plunged it into Sugita’s chest before stepping away, grabbing hold of his mentor’s old cane. 

“Dispose of the body, and tell everyone that the business is under new management,” Kenshin demanded. “And get all the other business heads. Tell them The Gentleman needs them.” 

Goro barely managed to keep his surprise in as he heard the other two girls gasp in shock. Not even allowing time to comment, Goro strode towards the skull and grabbed hold of it. Whatever thoughts the girls had before disappeared when the other two skulls formed around it, circling around each other until they combined into a small crystal.

“Did it do that last time?” Sumire asked, walking next to him. 

“Yeah they do this whenever I manage to gather all three. I still don’t know what the crystal does, though,” Goro shrugged, putting the combined skull away. “We should get going,” 

Both girls looked at each other, as if they were having some sort of conversation with their eyes alone before looking back at him, choosing to not say anything. Waffles jumped on Goro’s shoulders as they continued forward and to the third floor. 

Taking the lead up the stairs, Kasumi called out, “Ok this one is already weird…” as she almost got hit in the face by a massive floating fruit. It wasn’t unusual for Palaces to have their endings get more abstract to say the least. Sako’s was more or less the exception to the rule, something that Goro was going to have to explain to the others later on. 

The room was vast, golden walls that were filled to the brim of flying fruits with flatter tops, around the space for one or two people at most to stand atop. Most of them were sations right next to floating platforms, with the only exceptions always being next to another pair of fruits. All the way at the top of the room held a nook likely leading out towards the Light Prison. 

He began to scan the area, finding a final door all the way at the top, the only issue being how high it was with little elevation to bring them up there. He could also sense a safe room not too far away either, so at worst they could always take a break. Besides the fight from before, Goro was in pretty decent shape all things considered, and the others didn’t show any signs of fatigue either so he really would prefer to keep going. 

Waffles was the first to make a move, jumping on top of a flying fruit and almost falling off as the whole room began to rotate with a low shifting sound. Every single fruit similar towards the one he was standing on began to shift, with the fruit he was standing on going forward. Another puzzle to solve. 

“Beast! Could you jump off that real quick?” Goro shouted. Waffles gave a reluctant nod, jumping onto a nearby floating platform. Nothing moved, with Waffles acting on his own and jumping towards another fruit, causing everything to shift back to their original state. Goro put his hand up in front of the sisters, letting them know to sit back and watch, and jumped on the fruit and watched it take him over to the other side as well. Stepping off, he signaled for both of them to come over. After two separate trips (not risking the fruits moving as someone tried stepping in afterwards), brought the girls over towards the other platform. 

When they all reached the same platform, Goro got a better look at the fruits around him. They were floating around gently and shifting oddly when one were to stand but it wasn’t random. and with two different types of fruits flying around, pomegranates and peaches, at least those were the only two being affected, there were plenty of other more decorative fruits flying around. 

Goro looked forward, seeing a peach in front of him. Before the others realized what he was doing, he jumped directly on the fruit, causing it to move upwards to another platform. When he hopped off, he waved over Waffles to jump over and join him, watching the two fruits next to his platform, a peach and pomegranate. They started to move in different directions. Waffles let out a yip before he hopped off the fruit, joining him. 

Goro leaned over the ledge, asking the sisters to not follow them just yet. He directed Waffles to stand on the other peach. When he did, the peach moved away, but also moved the former peach up as well. Calling out for Waffles to hop off, Goro then directed the sisters to both jump on the peach, and then jumping on the other peach to join over with Waffles. Like he expected, his peach moved forward while the sister’s peach never moved up. Goro hopped off his peach, having to scream even louder for both sisters to head back up one by one. Eventually they all managed to meet back together on the platform. 

“So what was all that about?” Kasumi inquired. 

“I needed to figure out the rules of this,” Goro told her before pointing up above them. “Look above you. There are two patterns, one based on if you step on the peach, the other the pomegranate. When someone steps on a peach, everything will move on a certain route, and if you step on a pomegranate, then they will go along another route, but you can keep something in place if you have two people on one fruit.” 

“Yeah, so what does that do?” Kasumi looked around, the puzzle losing her completely. 

Goro took out the map, tracing his finger over the room before describing, “On this floor, there are several platforms, and if my eyes aren’t fooling me, that one there will contain a button. Whatever that button does will most likely allow us to enter the light prison.” 

“Oh! So every move you make will affect something else, and you have to make sure things align to make it to the button!” Sumire tried to summarize.
“Exactly,” Goro agreed. 

“Ah I see…but is it just me, or is that a lot of fruit?” Kasumi pointed upwards, Goro had to agree, it really was a lot of fruit. He had no idea just how long it would take, but they already started the puzzle and there wasn’t any other safe room at the end of the second floor. 

“All the more reason for us to get going. Ideally we only need one person to press the button, so we can work under that,” Goro strode forward, and for what he could only assume was hours, worked on the puzzle. 

It proved to be way more difficult then Goro would have liked. Every time he thought he was getting somewhere, he would call for someone to step on something, which would only send them all the way back to where they started. It didn’t help that no one could just go back on a fruit they recently got off of, someone else stepped on the fruit to pull it over. 

At some points they had to basically play telephone because the person Goro was trying to call out to was so far away. It was even worse when the person in question was the damn tanuki since he had no clue if he actually got the directions or not. 

Goro was four seconds away from just calling out Ixtab and hoping to use one of her ropes to swing him all the way towards the button. That idea dies when he unfortunately hears her voice telling him she very much would not do that. She seemed surprisingly concerned about making sure Goro was not hung by any ropes, which judging by her theming it made him even more confused on what she was supposed to represent. While he definitely wasn’t even close to how egotistical he presented himself as, he had no desire to die by any means, at least not before he could get his hands on Shido. 

However, Ixtab’s concern might have been warranted as it took them about two hours of struggling in this fruit puzzle before Goro had invented a new tactic of slicing all the fruits in sight into pieces, allowing them to gain new positions on the board for him to dangle onto. When his party expressed some reasonable concern about this, Goro’s only response was, “It’s a win-win that we get out of here one way or another.” 

 

It took him another two hours after that to start cursing profanities at anything that looked semi fruit-like. 

 

It took ten minutes after that for Goro to completely shut down, Kasumi shoving a fruit in his face in hopes that it would pick him back up. It didn’t. 

 

It took him thirty more minutes after that to finally have the button in sight and deciding the best solution was to simply grab Waffles by the scruff of the neck and chuck him all the way over to the button before anyone could react. 

 

Waffles took the whole thing surprisingly well and nicely pressed the button nearby as Goro began to question if what he’s done qualifies as animal abuse and watched as Waffles pressed the button. moving all the platforms towards the top, forming a large platform on the top. A platform that led perfectly towards the safe room and the door. 

“Dear sweet mercy,” Goro fell to the ground, half expecting to start crying genuine tears, instead opting to just lay on the ground, feeling the glass on his face. 

“We should head into the safe room for now, we can relax and prepare for tomorrow, ” Sumire suggested. 

“Physically…and mentally,” Kasumi gave Goro a defeated pat on the head, one that he would usually fight against, but at this point,he just wanted to go to sleep then slaughter Kuroda. 

Chapter 31: Despicable, Cruel Cruel, People: Part XX

Haru Okumura 

 

May 25th, 2014

 

Haru met with Makoto again a week later. She appeared to be in a pretty upbeat mood, presumably from tying for top of the class with Akechi, which wasn’t a surprise knowing those two. Haru herself got within the top twenty. Undoubtedly better than her first go around but nothing extraordinary. If anything, Haru felt ashamed for seemingly forgetting everything that she’d ever learned in this year the first time around. She blames the romance novels that promised her that she would gain an encyclopedic knowledge of the past as soon as she traveled back, or maybe that’s why romance novels only choose the most detail obsessed, photographic memory having, and intelligent girls as their protagonists. 

Both girls exchanged some basic pleasantries before wasting no time and heading straight towards the Palace. The ride there was far more casual than before; the girls managed to come up with some light conversation about school and their grades, Makoto opening a little up about why she studies so hard. She still didn’t refer to Haru by first name, so it wasn’t much, and not nearly as fast last time, but progress was still progress. 

Kyoko was sitting in the safe room when they returned just like how they left her. She didn’t give any reaction indicating they just appeared nor that she had to wait a week, so Haru’s theory about how time progresses in Palaces without them inside seems to hold true with cognitions. Haru wanted to ask her about it but decided not to, instead getting straight to business and pulling out the map. 

“From what the map says, we’ll have only one more major area to focus on. The rest are just hallways,” Makoto stated as she walked over next to Haru. 

“There should be at least one more Will Seed Chamber coming up,” Haru added, tracing her finger across the unexplored corridors. “It’s only going to get more dangerous from here so stay behind me.” 

Brandishing her ax, Haru took the lead. She still wasn’t quite used to leading a group, but as the most experienced Persona user, she knew she had to get the hang of it quickly to protect Makoto in case of any surprise attacks. However Makoto, now fully rested, shouldn’t face any issues that plagued her last trip and having three people would cover the majority of Shadows they came across. Besides, Makoto would need all the experience she could get before facing Kuroda. 

It was strange how much Makoto seemed to struggle with even moving Johanna around. She could summon her magic just fine, but the act of riding a motorcycle was foreign to her. Haru had no clue on if she had the same problems on her first awakening or if it was a strange aftereffect of awakening twice or too early. Either way, it made Haru mildly thankful that she had others to support her before she was able to awaken to her Persona’s full power. 

Kyoko also made a few attempts to help Makoto with Johanna, trying to demonstrate with her own bike, but it still was not enough for Makoto to effectively use Johanna like before. 

The majority of this part of the underground complex consisted of winding hallways with some extra rooms only containing Shadows and some treasure chests. They did manage to find a decent upgrade for Makoto’s brass knuckles and an upgrade for Haru’s sniper rifle, so it wasn’t like exploring was a waste, afterall, Ren would check every nook and cranny for a possible treasure chest. Kyoko also took one of the extra guns for herself, just a simple glock to allow her another ranged attack.

 

The hardest enemy they’d come across so far were the Nekomata cat ladies. No one on the team had a decent counter and they were strong against Haru’s psykokinesis. It was also the first case of the group encountering a disaster Shadow, something that Haru forgot about how creepy they were. 

It was something she perhaps blocked out of her memory because she must have completely forgotten to put it in Makoto’s handbook as she watched Makoto rush to punch the muttering Shadow. It staggered back, eyes flaring with rage before launching its body forwards, grabbing hold of her. She struggled within the Shadow’s grasp, and ultimately Haru had to use her sniper rifle to take it down, knowing her friend would be caught in the ensuing explosion.  She couldn’t help but wince when the Shadow erupted, blowing Makoto back and causing some significant damage as Makoto cried in pain. 

Makoto stumbled upwards with Kyoko’s help, gasping, “How on earth are we supposed to beat those things?” before summoning Johanna to heal herself. 

“Far away, and before they react,” Haru explained, trying to think over anything else she forgot to explain. 

“Ok so just like one shot it… Got it,” Makoto frowned, sarcasm and exasperation dripping from her voice. 

“Are those Shadows any different from the ones with the glowing red aura?” Kyoko asked. “Though they didn’t mutter to themselves, and I don’t recall them exploding...” 

“No, those are just stronger Shadows than usual,” Haru explained, picking up the item the disaster Shadow dropped. “The only thing I recall is that they are usually consistent in their true form within each Palace.” 

“Strange detail to notice,” Makoto commented. Haru almost let out a chuckle. It was Makoto who noticed the pattern in the last timeline, memorizing the types of Shadow from each and every Palace and putting the pieces together. It was nice to see Makoto returning to her old habits. She had already started to notice Makoto calling out weaknesses as they unveiled the Shadow’s true forms. 

“Um… Earth to Noir, we’re still in the middle of the Palace floor with no cover.” Makoto waved her hand over. Haru only smiled to herself and they continued their progress. 

Kyoko stayed quiet for the majority of the run, only commenting on certain aspects of the Palace and how it would relate to Kojiro Kuroda. Haru was right that he was a big fan of whales; apparently when he was a child he wanted to be a marine biologist, specifically specializing in aquatic mammals like them.  

The other thing she spoke about was his relationship with his siblings. 

“Pretty early on I found out about his siblings. He never talked about his family. I was introduced to him via our parents setting us up, and I always assumed he was an only child,” She eventually brought up as the girls took another stop at a nearby Safe Room. 

“From what I know, it’s not common for influential families to have single heirs. The more corrupt they are, the more likely it is they will try to have more options,” Haru said. After her mother died, her father was shunned for a while for not remarrying. It didn't’ help that he was considered a bachelor at the time with only one child, a girl nonetheless. Despite this, he chose to remain single to focus on raising Haru to be the best she could be. It made her ponder a little, did he ever regret only having a disappointment of a daughter as he became more and more corrupted? Did he ever have plans to try to find someone to gain another heir? 

Thinking back to her own childhood, she remembered how she would tease him about his friendship with Mari-san, a woman his age who he’s still good friends with to this day. After her father’s death in the first timeline, she decided with Ren that she wasn’t going to continue on with the family business and would instead open a cafe. Though right now, with her father still alive and doing a lot of good for the company, she hadn’t even thought about if she still wanted to pursue that dream with how different things are now. 

“Right, but he told me that his older sister Aisa had disowned herself from the family, leaving the country to stay as far away from them to own her own company,” Kyoko explained. 

“According to the first Will Seed memory, it seemed no one respected her,” Makoto recalled. Kyoko silently nodded in agreement. 

“And when it comes to his brother, actually… I don’t know. I recall meeting him once and afterward being told by Kojiro that I should have nothing to do with him. I guess we’ve never seen each other again… at least as far as Kojiro was aware,” Kyoko frowned. 

“So either the family pushed him away like they did Aisa, or the guy turned out so bad that even the drug ringleader wanted nothing to do with him,” Makoto summarized. “I’m leaning on the former.” 

Haru couldn’t blame Makoto for her scornful feelings towards the man. He flat out admitted to wanting to take Shido’s offer to kill her father, and was overall not a pleasant man to talk to from her experience. At the same time, the more she learned about him, the more it made her question things. 

“Well, when I first met him, he asked a lot of questions about Kojiro’s business, and Kojiro was very much a business oriented man. I think his over enthusiasm about the product was what creeped Kojiro out, especially given Kojiro doesn’t care much for the product he sells,” Kyoko shrugged. “It came as a shock to him when I started using them.” 

“A shock?” Haru asked. 

Kyoko nodded. “To this day, I cannot discern why I did, so not even Kojiro has an explanation, at least not one he’s willing to admit.” 

Makoto crossed her arms, muttering to herself. “Did he truly believe he was above the consequences of his actions affecting him?”

“Then what caused the Palace to form?” Haru pondered aloud, ignoring Makoto’s comment. “If he didn’t care at all for what he was selling or the people he was hurting, then what corrupted him?” 

“Isn’t him being a criminal kingpin enough?” Makoto furrowed her brow. 

Shaking her head, Haru elaborated, “Not exactly. All you need for a Palace to form is a corrupted desire. Good people can have them as well, which should imply bad people don’t need to have them if they are content with what they are doing.” She tried her best to provide reasoning, but at the same time, she had a feeling that was wrong in some way. Shido was very proud of what he was doing, in fact the whole ship was themed around pride, but he had a Palace. She couldn’t really use Futaba and Sae strictly as proof against the idea that not all bad people had Palaces. It very much could be a case of “not all people with Palaces are bad people, but all bad people have Palaces.” 

But at the same time, did that mean Akechi had a Palace? Or was he like Futaba where his Palace turned into a Persona? His absolute obsession with Shido had to have spawned one if anything she knew about Palaces was consistent, but maybe being chosen by Yaladaboth changed things?

Haru shook the thoughts out of her head. All she had learned so far about Kojiro Kuroda implied that he only cared for furthering his father’s business and his life over any actual passion for the product. On one hand, it held the idea he wasn’t an evil person at heart, but on the other hand, it was clear he couldn't care less for the people he was hurting as long as it didn’t affect him or his business prospects. 

From the Palaces she had entered, all were ones she had clear biases for, the first for her father, the second for Sae, and the third against Shido. Kojiro Kuroda was the first time she’d dealt with a ruler she was completely neutral on. From her current observations she could only gather him as a further victim of the society he was raised in. It didn’t negate the people he’s hurt and the atrocities he committed, like how it didn’t negate her father’s, but it made her wonder how a person like Kuroda would have turned out if only something changed in his life to steer him away from where he ended up. 

She looked over at Kyoko, trying to piece together just what she was. Sure she was a cognition of his late wife, but there had to be more than that. By all accounts, it seemed that they did have a good relationship. While she could try to rationalize it by saying this is only a recreation of what Kojiro idealized about her, she’d been nothing but kind and helpful to them so far. It made Haru a little hopeful that her being here, her helping them, that deep down, Kuroda was calling out for help, and wanting to atone for his sins that led to her death. 

Maybe it was Haru projecting her hopes about her father too much on these people. 

The conversation carried them to the next and final puzzle room, which, much to their surprise, was themed around whales. 

It was as if they were transported to the middle of the ocean, with whales of different shapes and sizes swimming around them, scurrying away when they got too close. The massive blue ones stayed in place while the white and gray ones swam back and forth. At the very end of the room there were three doors. One which Haru could sense was a safe room, and two that she theorized to be the final Will Seed Chamber and the entrance to the treasure room. 

After a bit of trial and error, they managed to figure out that jumping on a whale will trigger the rest of the whales to move, reforming themselves into a new pattern. Patterns of how they would move would be decided by the specific species of whale, and certain combinations would block whales from moving, creating a means for a walkway towards the end of the tunnel. 

Makoto, being the natural strategist, took charge in commanding the group while Haru took pleasure in admiring the whales. 

“All these white ones have such squishy looking heads!” Haru commented, poking the head of the white whale she was standing on. 

“That’s because they are Beluga Whales. Those are called melons, which can serve as a means of echolocation, sound production, and communication,” Makoto rattled off, the stress behind the puzzle leaving her for a moment.  

“You must know a lot about them!” Kyoko put her hands together with a smile. 

Flustered, Makoto shrugged, “I wouldn’t say that. I just like reading up on things that might be relevant to the mission.” 

“And here I thought I just forgot to study!” Haru joked, deciding to point at the gray whale that Kyoko was standing on. “And how about those?”

“Those are sperm whales. They were named that because of a waxy substance on their heads,” Makoto described before rattling off a few more facts about them. Haru continued to ask her questions about things, taking her mind off the stress of the puzzle. It reached a point where she almost became a little upset once they reached the door to the Will Seed Chamber. 

“Queen, do you plan to come in with me?” Haru asked, pulling her ax over her shoulder as she prepared to collect the final will seed. 

Makoto hesitated, but soon took a deep breath and responded,“Yes… Might as well.” 

Haru gave a reassuring nod, cutting open the tape and stepping inside the Chamber. 

 

Kojiro readjusted his grip to the pole, watching as the old woman took the seat in front of him. He wished he could sit down as well, he’s been on his feet all day overseeing things with nothing in his stomach. Maybe he should have just called Kyoko and she could have prepared something for him for dinner.

However he was really hoping to surprise her. He hadn’t seen her in what, three weeks? After that call with Ken, he needed something to bring up his mood. 

He just didn’t understand that man. He hadn’t spoken to him in a year, and here he comes throwing money at his feet for anything he could use to spike people with. Kojiro didn’t know what was worse, that Ken was asking him for such a thing for his own “business prospects,” or that Kojiro gave it to him. A paying consumer is a paying consumer, after all. Maybe Kojiro could overcharge his brother to compensate for his annoyance. 

At least Aisa turned out to be normal. He tried to call her a month or two ago. When was the last time he saw her? His wedding? Yeah, she showed up in a green dress, her own design apparently. She wanted nothing to do with him, saying she was only here because it was customary and she was in the country. He could understand why she didn’t like him, and he honestly didn’t care all too much, but if she was there to design something to give to Kyoko it would be nice. There are other designers out there however, so it’s not worth the hassle when there’s already so much on his plate. 

Kojiro’s mind went back to reality when he reached his stop, nearly falling to the ground as so many people pushed beside him, and again when he nearly tripped on a beggar. 

“Anything helps…” the beggar muttered. Has things gotten so much worse since he left? Last time he checked it was illegal to beg, and he would have liked to believe he chose a more refined place to live. 

“I’m sorry, I have nothing on me,” Kojiro lied. He didn’t find it worth giving money to someone who would more than likely just hand it right back to him. 

On the way to his house he made one more stop. He wanted something special for Kyoko. A necklace, maybe? She liked rubies. They go well with her eyes. 

After calculating the best cost to ratio of each item at the store, Kojiro chose the best ruby necklace and left the store with a skip in his step. Business was doing pretty well, he could finally afford to think about expanding, and he was finally going to see Kyoko again. 

The memory cut away, quickly flashing to a scene of a woman with her hair sprawled out laying on the ground, her cheeks caved in as her teeth were falling out. Three pills trickled down her limp hand. 

Haru was barely able to process what she'd seen before the memory ended and she heard Makoto fall to her knees. Haru rushed towards her, placing her hand on her back as she took deep breaths. 

“Queen! Are you alright?” Haru pleaded, seeing the color drained for Makoto’s face. 

“Y-yeah… I just never saw a…” Makoto stuttered. Right, this was a time before Makoto dealt with her father’s death, a time before they all had to witness her father’s death in front of them, or hearing Akechi’s final words from beyond the wall. 

“If you need to take a breather that’s ok. The safe room is right here anyway,” Haru quickly rushed over and offered to help Makoto up, giving her a reassuring smile. Makoto stared off into the distance for a while, eventually accepting her help getting back on her feet. Haru rushed over to quickly grab the final Will Seed, watching the two others appear out of her pockets and combine with the new one to form a crystal. On a normal day she could assume that Makoto would have asked questions, but she was far too startled to even process what was happening in front of her. 

Kyoko was in the corner, closely gripping on to her skirt as she tried her best to stay away from Makoto’s gaze. She stated before that she doesn’t see the memories like the girls do, but she must have figured out what the memory must have entailed by their reactions alone. 

So Kyoko’s death was what triggered the Palace? Haru shouldn’t have been too surprised. 

She should have gone inside before Makoto did to spare her from such an image. She watched as Makoto continued to sit in silence, Haru trying her best to comfort her like how she comforted her when her father died. 

“Everything is going to be ok, ok?” Haru tried to say. 

Makoto shook her head. “I… I can’t… What if Dad…” 

“Your Dad is going to be ok. That will not happen to him,” Haru continued, putting a gentle hand on her shoulder. She frowned a little. She could still recall the few nights after her father died. Despite everything, the way he saw her, the way he treated her, the only thing that played in her mind was that press conference, his limp body on the floor as she rushed away from her friends, the image imbedding its place in her mind for her to never forget. Even with him alive here, that image is still there, a reminder of what will happen if she fails. 

She recalled putting on a brave face for everyone, for messaging the group not to worry about her, and getting praise for how well she handled it all. It felt hollow to her back then, Haru barely even processed her emotions about it at the time, and even when she had times where she hated him, resented him for abusing and hurting her then going up and dying by his own actions, that same memory of his death haunted her. 

Even in the engine room, those final two gunshots, and like that, all her thoughts were gone with her. Ren could barely process it himself, staring directly at the door for so long before Mona-chan coaxed him away. She could only imagine what would have happened if they saw what was through that door. Haru wasn’t sure if they would ever gain the strength to move on, perhaps that was a blessing, or just a final courtesy by Akechi before he made his final stand. 

“I won’t let that happen to your father, no matter what.” 

Makoto looked up at her, and for a small moment, her eyes softened, and she leaned a little into her. Haru enveloped her into a hug, continuing to whisper kind words towards her, reminding her that everything was ok. “I promise.” 

Makoto hesitated, her breath hitching before finally saying. “I don’t know how you’re so strong after seeing that.” 

Haru chose to remain silent. She wasn’t used to it as well, but she couldn’t afford to be startled, she needed to be strong for Makoto, and for everyone else as well. She needed to be able to take the blunt of what was going to happen because she refused to let it happen to everyone else. She couldn’t let them witness another death, she couldn’t let them blame themselves for her father, or Akechi, or all the pain Ren went through when he was taken in both times. 

After getting Makoto settled in the safe room, Haru deemed it was best to have Makoto stay there and rest while Haru and Kyoko would quickly head inside the treasure room, confirming the route before heading back for the day.

Notes:

"man I'm so sad none of my fics updated"
"wait shit it's Wednesday I'm the fic that's supposed to update"

Chapter 32: Despicable, Cruel Cruel, People: Part XXI

Goro Akechi 

 

May 26th, 2014

“Kenshin Kuroda, Lady’s First, Market.” 

“Beginning Navigation.” 

The world began to morph in front of them once again, the sky twisting itself back to that familiar blood red sky while the once unassuming bar was replaced by the endless market. 

Kasumi had a smug smile on her face as she gripped her trident. Sumire stood next to her, staring out into the distance as Waffles hopped on her shoulder. And last, stepping in front of the group, was Goro. 

This will be the first proper mission for Justice’s Truth. 

Aiko Sako was just a happenstance of fumbles and mistakes, but today was a well planned and properly coordinated attack. 

“Alright, today we have one goal and one goal only: beat Kenshin Kuroda,” Goro reiterated, pulling out his sword. They had already restocked on as much extra fruit as they could, upgrading their weapons and formulating any last minute strategies. If they weren’t ready now, then they would never be. 

Goro pulled out his phone, selecting the final safe room and warping the group right towards the top of the castle. 

Hopping inside the safe room, and securing once again that they had everything, the group quickly nodded to each other before jumping outside and heading straight towards the door, using the pass to unlock it before cracking it open. Goro checked inside, finding the glowing light in the middle of the room, as well as a plethora of guards surrounding it. If he needed any further confirmation that this was the light prison, this was it. 

“Well, I don’t think we’re going to have any issue gathering his attention,” Goro smirked, getting a sense for each of the Shadows’ power levels before shutting the door slowly. Over the years training Loki to be able to take a more supportive role has proven more useful than he expected. 

“But shouldn’t we conserve energy?” Kasumi asked.
Pulling out his gun, Goro dismissed, “These are pathetic weaklings. Three minutes at most, and that’s only if one of us decided to take a nap halfway through the fight.” 

The other members all agreed, giving Goro the cue to step back and make their entrance. With a sadistic grin, he rushed forward, kicking down the door and shooting his gun at the first thing that entered his line of sight. Following him inside, Waffles jumped off Sumire’s shoulder and, using Goro as a stepping stone, leapt all the way to a nearby Shadow and tore off its mask. Sumire rushed after him, following his lead and jumping on top of a different Shadow, yanking off its mask with all her might before flipping backwards. Goro stepped back with Kasumi, sniping down each Shadow as they appeared. 

When they didn’t go down from the guns, Goro pulled out his sword, sprinting towards another Shadow and slicing it in half as Kasumi impaled one from the side. 

After the initial assault, Goro leapt to the ceiling, grabbing hold of one of the exposed girders and scanning the room. There were about five doors surrounding the area connected to various hallways, each pouring in with more Shadows. 

Leaping back down to join the rest, Goro went back to back with Sumire as they continued to tear through the pathetic lines of defence. “No sign of Kuroda so far,” he told her between shots.

“They are definitely piling up. If this keeps going we'll have to start using our Personas,” Sumire replied, leaping away and back into the action, slicing through a few more Shadows. Goro turned around, slashing a Shadow to her side and shooting it to the ground before she finished it off with her rapier. 

“I wonder if we can manage to get one to run back to Kuroda crying,” Kasumi joined them with a smile, squatting on top of a Shadow before ripping off its mask. 

“I like how you’re thinking! Beast! Care to assist me?” Goro grinned, jumping backwards to get into view of as many Shadows as possible. Waffles gave a small nod, hopping onto Goro’s shoulders before the two yanked off their masks in unison.
“Ixtab!” Goro called out as Waffles followed with a yelp, summoning the hanging woman next to the snake-like Persona. The two Personas moved forward, enveloping the Shadows in a purple aura. The fog bore into the Shadows, infecting them and causing some to stop in their tracks and back off while others continued to charge forward, shouting useless nonsense about their lord ‘dearest’ Kuroda. Sumire and Kasumi both ran around, blocking the extra doors as Goro threw his hand out, calling for Ixtab to take them down, combining her attack with Waffles’ Persona to send the rest of them flying. 

“You think that did it?” Kasumi asked, just as the lights above them began to flash red. 

“Yeah, I think that got it,” Goro called out, slashing through two more Shadows, leaving the rest open for a synchronized attack.

With only the four of them remaining, the group found a small area on top of the ceiling, taking hold of the grid bars as they waited and recharged their energy for the man of the hour to walk in. 

Kenshin Kuroda, dressed in his red and yellow striped suit and top hat, charged in, veins looking as if they were about to pop out of his velvet skin. 

“What is the meaning of this!?” Kuroda sneered, his eyes darting around the room looking for the source of his wrath. “Who let intruders near my treasure?” 

“Treasure?” Sumire whispered before Goro held his hand up. 

Both girls looked at him with smiles on their faces. They’d been waiting for this. “Kenshin Kuroda! A man who sees others as little more than objects! We are here to bring you to justice!” Kasumi called out. 

“Huh? Who the hell are you?” Kuroda screamed, turning his head everywhere except to where the group were hidden. 

“We are Justice’s Truth, and we’ve determined your heart impure and cold,” Sumire continued the speech, jumping from the rafters and to the ground. 

“Because of this, we have selected you to have your heart stolen and your true crimes forced into the light,” Kasumi followed, landing next to her. 

“Because that is our justice,” Goro finished, landing in front of them overdramatically. Waffles followed close behind, dropping onto Goro’s shoulders as the three stuck out their weapons and pointed at him. 

“A bunch of dumb kids… What a joke,” Kuroda crossed his arms, his golden eyes taunting. “I can’t believe my guards lost to children playing pretend.” 

It took a lot for Goro to not comment. This was stupid, he knew it was stupid, Kasumi’s ideas were pretty stupid. 

He had no idea why, despite this, he felt so offended. 

“Let’s see how we pretend when we kick your butt!” Kasumi declared with overwhelming pride in her comeback. Goro looked at her in silence, before seeing Kuroda raise an eyebrow. 

“I feel you should have just said ‘ass,’ Mist…” Goro muttered.

“But Dad told us swearing is bad…” Kasumi whined. 

“Well, that doesn’t make you sound any cooler,” Goro lectured. 

“Oh, but arguing with me right now does?” Kasumi raised an eyebrow and grinning. Goro rolled his eyes. 

“Never mind! Take him down!” Goro shouted, brandishing his sword and heading straight towards Kuroda. The man had little time to dodge his blade, instead parrying his attack with his cane, leaving him wide open for Sumire to charge behind him, ripping off her mask. 

“Dance, Cendrillon!” She called out as bless magic surrounded Kuroda. Goro leapt backwards just before it hit, 

“You little…” Kuroda growled as he was knocked down and ground. He made an almost immediate recovery, slamming his cane into the ground, setting off an earthquake and knocking Goro and Waffles to the ground. Both gymnasts managed to jump to the air and dodge the attack with ease, rushing back in with their weapons while Goro recovered. 

Kuroda dodged both of their attacks, readying another earthquake attack before Waffles jumped on his face, scratching and kicking before jumping off and summoning his own Persona. 

With a yelp, the Persona let off a nuclear blast, pushing Kuroda further back toward the wall. He let out a cry in pain as he staggered to stay upwards. 

“It looks like he’s not too keen on nuclear attacks. Blow him to smithereens!” Goro screamed out, not even bothering to mask the glee in his voice as Waffles continued to rain it down on him, sending Kuroda to the ground. 

Taking out his gun, Goro walked up and planted a foot on his chest, pointing the muzzle right between his eyes, a wild grin on his face ready to give him some well-earned payback for earlier. 

Instead, he hesitated. 

He didn’t know why. There was just something in his mind that screamed at him not to do it, giving Kuroda some much needed seconds to get up and slap Goro’s gun off his hand, sending it across the room and with a second swing knocking Goro to the ground.

“You really are just a clueless child… One that knows nothing about the world,” Kuroda sneered, looking down at Goro. He didn’t get to speak any more than that, getting blasted to the side by an attack from Kasumi.

Goro stood up, planting his feet to the ground to readjust his balance before rushing forward and clashing his blade to Kuroda’s cane. 

“Really? I can tell you a little about what I know,” Goro sneered, feeling the soles of his feet begin to slide from Kuroda’s strength. 

As their weapons scraped against each other, Goro grit his teeth and seethed, “I know about how you drug young women and traffic them both in Japan and overshores. I know how you only managed to gain your portion by murdering your mentor.” 

Kuroda growled, pushing harder towards Goro, allowing him to use the momentum and feinting to the side, forcing him to stumble over. Goro flipped back, barely landing on his feet before ripping off his mask and summoning Robin Hood behind him. “And I know how you murdered Bunko Seto to keep her quiet.”

“Crow!” Goro heard someone call out, but he kept his focus on Kuroda. He knew Kuroda was still holding back. They had true forms. They always had bigger, uglier forms. He just needed to get that true form out. 

Kurdoa continued to glare at Goro, his eyes so bright as if they were small stars burning through his face, and yet, he let out a small chuckle and stepped backwards. 

“See, you are still so naive,” he muttered.

“Huh?” 

“You really think I killed one of my most loyal puppets because she threatened to expose me? You think she didn’t know how fucked her life would have been if she did that? You know she was just as big in this business as I was… leading people in, girls trust other girls more, that’s what she told me…”

It was true, he killed her to shut her up, sure she wasn't just another victim, but even then there weren't many other explanations that would explain the crime scene. Even then, there was no way that he was being honest on who she was, she could have been just trying to make by, or she felt threatened or- 

Kuroda continued to narrow his eyes, stepping forwards as Goro tried to hold his ground. 

“What? Did you think she was some sort of victim? Why the hell would you even care for a slut like her?” Kuroda sneered. 

“How could you say something like that to someone you killed?” Kasumi called out, stopping short before she could get close. Kurdoa didn’t even bother to face her, instead walking so close to Goro that he could feel his breath down his neck. 

Why wasn’t he moving? Why weren’t any of them moving? Were they all that curious to know about Bunko? Goro was the only one that cared about her. He knew that. He knew that because… 

“You wanna know why I killed her? Come on, make a guess, detective, I’ll even give you a hint, the police found a lot more than the drugs in her system.”

Goro stopped for a moment. The police were never going to give the full details. They couldn’t care less. The report stated that she was a suicidal alcoholic, but there were no traces of alcohol when she was found. Not just on the night of her death, but she also was reported to have rejected any alcohol the days before. It was completely out character of her. She could have been trying to go clean, or… 

“She was pregnant,” Goro muttered, almost dropping to his knees. Kuroda turned around, raising his arms and gesturing to the whole room with a triumphant smile on his face.  

“Right as always, Kogoro!” Kuroda lifted his arms out, displaying his superiority. “The bitch decided to confess to me that, after one of our nights together she managed to get herself a little babe, and she actually wanted to keep the shit and raise ‘em. And while I thought about having an heir, I knew that he was gonna stab me right in the back again like I did to my own mentor, so might as well take down the current problem and any future little problems, right?” Kuroda finished, resting his hands on his cane. 

Goro continued to stare at him, his mind racing. 

He killed Bunko because she was pregnant. 

He killed her because being pregnant with a child was a burden. 

Bunko was killed because she had a child. 

She was killed because of the child. 

“Poor thing. If only she didn’t get pregnant, then maybe he wouldn’t have left her.” 

“That kid, you think anyone would want him after this? He got his own mother killed.” 

“If it wasn’t for him, she would still be alive.” 

If it wasn’t for him, she would still be alive. 

“How horrible!” Sumire cried in the background. “You killed her just because of that?” 

“Yeah, she knew the risks. Children born to people like me or her are nothing but burdens. Shame she had to get caught in the cr-” 

“Loki.”

Loki appeared behind him, raising his sword over Kuroda’s head and slashing it down, almost slicing the man in two as he leapt away just in time. Goro lifted his arm, tracing it over in Kurdoa’s direction before Loki attacked again. 

This time, the blow connected, throwing him into the wall as Goro stood up, basking behind Loki’s glow, finding joy as he watched Kuroda’s golden eyes waver. 

“What the fuck is your problem?!” Kuroda growled, failing to notice Goro step forward, tracing his blade across the ground. “What, you a little slut like her too?” 

So pathetic. 

Despite everything, Goro was quite happy. 

“You know, you’re actually right. That kid would have been a monster,” Goro muttered, poorly concealing the glee seeping through his every word. “After all, we take after our parents.” 

“Huh?” Kuroda raised an eyebrow, scanning Goro’s face before his eyes widened and his mouth formed a smile. “Struck a nerve?” 

In almost a single motion, Goro swung his sword over, slashing his blade right into Kuroda’s cane, Loki raining down magic onto him. Kuroda screamed out in pain as Goro swapped towards his gun, joining Loki as they both rained bullets on the main as he desperately dodged the attack. Goro continued the onslaught, swinging his sword down again as he began to laugh to himself. 

This pathetic man. 

This pathetic, waste of space of a man. One who has the audacity to even breathe. 

All he wants to see is his sprawled up, his mangled corpse on the ground, to take joy in knowing that this man’s future days will be nothing but the fires of hell. 

Kuroda cried out, rushing away from Goro before Loki slammed his sword into his calf, pinning him into the ground. 

It was funny actually, to watch a man like this quiver, who knew that there was such a joy of having power like this? 

Goro leveled his sword up, seconds away from swinging it through Kuroda’s neck before someone grabbed hold of his arm. 

“Crow!” Sumire cried, pulling his arm back, Loki retracting back into his mask. Goro’s eyes darted between her and Kuroda, sword still tight in his grip. “What are you doing!?” 

“I…” He didn’t have an explanation. Goro whipped his head back, seeing Kasumi and Waffles behind him, the former holding her hands tight to her chest. He turned back to Sumire, who looked almost as surprised as he was. 

Neither had time to say anything else before they both heard a laughter from behind them. Whipping his head back, Kuroda began laughing, curling in on himself as he dragged his bloody leg upwards into a standing position before crumbling in on himself like all the Shadows before them, and finally showed his true form. 

Goro and Sumire stumbled back, watching as Kurdoa’s body morphed and cracked into what could only be described as a massive collection of stitched together body parts, misshapen and shoddily attached with bolts and screws. The man looked as if a child were handed the pieces to create Frankenstein’s monster and smashed its face in on itself. His mouth and eyes leaked black blood, his limbs lanky and uneven. The only thing that remained the same were those frightening golden eyes that darted back and forth like it was vibrating. 

Sumire’s grip on Goro’s arm tightened. They were quickly joined by Kasumi and Waffles, the latter jumping on Goro’s shoulders and wrapping his tail around his neck. 

“Well, that’s his true form…” Kasumi muttered, only getting a nod from Goro in return. Sumire took a deep breath, letting go of Goro and holding out her sword. 

“Then all we have to do is beat that,” Sumire forced a smile, looking back at the others to try and inspire some faux confidence. 

Right, that was their mission, to take Kuroda down and make him confess. 

This was such a pain. 

Goro took hold of his mask, his grip lingering as he questioned on who to bring out. He pulled his hand away, settling on shooting him with his gun as Kurdoa began to sprint towards them, the steps uneven and rough, his limbs almost elongating to crawl like a spider. With a sadistic grin, he reached onto his missahpen body and tore off a limp and decaying arm, chucking it towards the group like a baseball. 

“Eeep!” Kasumi cried, pulling out Briar to blast the projectile with electricity. The limb fell to the ground, slowly crumbling to dust before regrowing on Kuroda’s body. 

Sumire took advantage of the distraction, rushing forward and slicing off the same arm, watching the process repeated before joining back with the others. 

“If this is anything like Sako, there should be a way to stop those from regrowing,” Goro called out, finally formulating a plan and ripping off his mask. “Ixtab, take him down!” 

Ixtab coalesced behind him, bringing her arms up and forming a wave of magic around Kuroda, folding in on itself and exploding it all at once, sending him to the ground. They wasted no time before jumping onto the mass of flesh to get some good hits in before being pushed back. 

While Waffles and Sumire both charged forward, Goro stepped back, analyzing the arena after Kuroda’s transformation. The ruler was acting completely erratic, unable to speak with stitches covering his mouth and his limbs dangling as if they were broken. It was a grotesque sight, a fine reflection of Kuroda’s heart. 

Goro took off his mask once more, summoning Robin Hood this time and aiming directly towards Kuroda. He called for Sumire, signalling for her to slip to Kuroda’s side and to slice off his leg. Kurdoa stumbled from the contact, falling to the side and giving Goro a few seconds to rush forward, slicing off the only remaining leg he was balancing off of and leaving him immobile. 

“Now, before he can regenerate them!” Goro commanded, summoning the other three for a coordinated attack. 

It wasn’t looking good. Kuroda’s fleshy mass formulated back together and by the time he stood up, it was like they hadn't done anything. 

There had to be some sort of weakness. There was no way this man’s distortion was so rigged against them. Rigged against him . 

“Any ideas Crow?” Sumire called as Kasumi began to heal her and Waffles. Goro frowned, looking straight at the sorry sight of a man in front of him. 

He wasn’t going to let this man beat him. This terrible… little… son of a-

“If he fears others will take him down so much, then let’s have his friends tear him apart!” Goro taunted, rushing towards the single open door left in the chamber. “Follow me!” 

Through the corner of his eyes, he saw Kasumi and Sumire look at each other, reluctantly nodding before following behind him. They made a mad dash through the rooms that led up to the light prison, hearing the slapping on the ground of Kuroda’s tangled mess of a form, screeching out unintelligible sounds with his mouth sewn together. Goro didn’t look back, the sounds of the shambling ruler telling him that his plan was going to work. Eventually, they came across a turn, with a large window straight ahead of them.

“Crow!” Kasumi screamed just short as Goro leapt atop of the windowsill and took off his mask, summoning Loki and pulling ahead. He stared forwards, the red lights radiating off Loki with his body cast a Shadow in front of him. 

Kuroda sprinted after him his golden eyes the only visible part of him, the rest of his body falling part of him like a defunct machine, he continued to sprint forward, Goro offering a grin as the Ruler leapt forward, grabbing hold of Goro as his momentum sent the two of them crashing through the glass and falling down to the depths of the market below. 

With a scream, the stitches went out of Kuroda’s mouth, allowing him to finally speak, blood spitting out of his mouth. “Kill… all.” 

But instead, Goro smiled, grabbing hold of him, pulling him closer towards him and whispering. “Got you… you piece of shit… Loki!” Goro screamed, letting Loki hover below him and release his power as Goro proceeded to push against Kuroda’s mangled fingers to try getting him off his grip and use the creature to break his fall. Likely realizing what he was trying to do, Kuroda managed to kick him in the stomach, sending him crashing into the ground as Kuroda slammed down several meters away from him.

But Loki did his job, because all around him, Shadows began to glow red, their eyes glaring straight at Kuroda, rushing towards him as he tried to push himself upwards, not realizing until three Shadows were already latching themself on them. Kuroda let out an unholy shriek, Goro snickering as he weakly tried to push himself up, watching as more and more corrupted Shadows joined in, tearing him apart slowly, limb from limb as Goro’s arms gave out, black spots filling his vision as Loki continued to release his power towards anything nearby. All he knew was that the sight in front of him was nothing but beautiful. 

He didn’t know how or when he passed out, only that the next thing he heard was Kasumi calling his name and Kuroda whining. Briar was behind her, slowly hovering towards him as if she were going to pick him up. 

Goro looked behind them, finding Kuroda back in his former state, kneeling down and whimpering. Sumire, with Waffles on her shoulder, kept watch of him, her gun trained to his head. 

“You are going to confess your sins. Confess that you killed Bunko Seto and her unborn child, then turn yourself in,” Sumire listed their demands, her words beginning to blur as Goro’s eyes focused on Sumire’s gun. 

Kasumi must have noticed something wrong, putting herself in front of him, and summoning Briar to actually pick him up this time. He tried to resist, finding next to no power behind his movements, his body completely limp. 

“Do something like that again and I’ll have Briar put you to sleep for a hundred years!” Kasumi cried. Goro just stared at Kuroda, attempting to adjust his potion in Briar’s arms to get a look at him. That was shut down when Kasumi walked up and grabbed his face, forcing him to look at her.

“No!” She demanded. 

“Huh…?” 

“Violet is getting him to confess. You… you are going to get some rest, and then we’re going to be talking to dad!” Kasumi huffed, his vision was still slightly blurry, but he could have sworn that she was shaking. 

Goro just continued staring at her. Was she upset about him jumping off? He got the job done… Or was she upset about how he acted from before. Did he really scare them that much? 

What do they even want to bring up with Shinichi?

Possibilities began to swarm his mind. “Wait, we can’t bring any of this up with him!” Goro managed to pull out his last remaining strength and attempted to wrestle out of Briar’s grip, falling to the ground when she retracted to Kasumi’s mask. Sumire rushed up next to her, Waffles jumping off her shoulders and landing next to him. He gently pushed himself to Goro’s side, snuggling up next to him as Goro struggled to move through his weakened state. 

“Kuroda returned to his body. Let’s… Let’s head out for the day,” Sumire said. “We’re all tired…” 

As much as Goro wanted to ask more questions relating to Kuroda and to Kasumi’s behavior, he couldn’t find it in him to disagree. Waffles let out a small sound, laying his head on Goro’s arm before Goro felt the fatigue hit him again and the world went dark. 

Chapter 33: Despicable, Cruel Cruel, People: Part XXII

Haru Okumura 

 

May 30th, 2014

 

“Sir Kojiro Kuroda, you have been clouded by your hubris, losing sight of the world around you for your business prospects. You have harmed many people who indulge and perish through the drugs you supply, including your very own wife. Because of this, we have decided to rob you of your desires and steal your heart, making you confess your sins with your very own mouth,

Sincerely, the Phantom Thieves of Heart.” 

“One more trip,” Haru muttered, staring out at the ocean and watching as the waves gently swayed back and forth. 

“Right,” Makoto nodded. “One more trip.” 

“We’re going to head straight towards the last safe room. Kyoko-san should already be there to meet us,” Haru said. 

“Do you think he got the card?” Makoto asked. Haru nodded. She had to go through her father’s contacts, eventually finding a company that a friend of her father owns. Posing as him, she managed to get Aisa Banno’s contact information. It took a lot of convincing to finally get the address out of her. Aisa admitted herself that she always wanted to stay in contact with her family despite everything. Haru could understand. She hoped that when this change of heart works, she might be able to rekindle her relationship, even if it’s through a prison cell. 

“He should, but I’m not sure how he’ll react or if he’ll report it to the news or not,” Haru looked down to her hands. “But as long as he’s aware we’re coming, the treasure should form.” 

“I guess there’s no point in waiting now,” Makoto took a deep breath, her face morphing to one of determination. 

“Right, let’s do this! Then afterwards we could even go out for cake!” Haru joked, pulling out her phone. 

“Kojiro Kuroda, Ocean, Bridge.” 

The world melted away in front of them, reforming the Palace in place of the cool blue ocean, except this time the colors held a flashing red. The lights were blaring and the world pulsed like a heartbeat, giving Haru just the confirmation she needed that Kuroda received the calling card. 

Both girls teleported straight to the last safe room, finding Kyoko waiting for them just as they left her. It made Haru think that, once this Palace disappeared, Kyoko would be gone forever… 

Haru shook those thoughts away, exchanging pleasantries and re-explaining the plan one more time before heading straight towards the door. Before stepping through, she looked back at her teammates, gaining a final nod of confirmation. Haru recalled the moment where she first faced her father, how she trembled and paced around until they were already locked into battle. Makoto didn’t seem to hold any of those jurisdictions, instead her face hardened and determined.  

On the other side of the door, Haru could see Kuroda already standing there, typing away on various screens that covered every wall and then some. Some of the screens showed detailed security cams, while others had long logs of text that Haru couldn’t read from the distance.  Then, sitting right in the middle of the room, laid Kuroda’s treasure.

Kuroda turned around slowly, taking a few dominant steps towards the girls. 

“I’ve been expecting you,” he said, turning his gaze towards Kyoko. “Even you.” 

“Kojiro, you have to stop this! Enough people have already been hurt!” Kyoko stepped forward, pointing towards one of the screens, one that happened to detail a client list. “You saw first hand how it hurts people. What motivation could possibly have to keep going now?” 

“Does it matter?” Makoto sneered, stepping forward in front of Kyoko and Haru. “We’re here to take you down before you harm anyone else!” 

Kuroda turned his head over at her, ignoring Kyoko’s plea entirely. “When we were discussing the deaths of those officers, you got angry. Is that why you’re upset?” 

“Huh?” Makoto exclaimed, the fight in her eyes wavering. 

“If so, then I can promise that we won’t touch them. If you have any specific names I will gladly take them into further account to discuss at my next meeting.” He deadpanned, adding on. “A deal should be efficient, all parties win no?”

“We’re not making any deals!” Haru shouted, not even entertaining the idea. “We are here for one thing and one thing only! So surrender the treasure!” 

“I see…” Kuroda tapped the side of his visor, pressing in a button with an audible click. Haru stepped backwards, bracing for the transformation. He began to hover to the air, more screens appearing all around him as his visor reformed to a shape that exposed his golden eyes. Beyond him sent a wave of technology that sprouted behind him, with a force field circling around him. “Then there is no other option to consider.” 

“Brace yourselves. Here we go,” Haru muttered and tightened her grip on her ax, watching as he typed on his screens and summoned a field of electricity. All three girls dodged, leaping from the ground as the veins of electricity spread around, hitting the spots they were once standing. 

“He uses electric attacks, which means he is likely weak to wind!” Makoto described, calling for Kyoko to use her magic against him. 

Kyoko responded by lifting her hands up and sending out a gust of wind, hitting Kuroda dead on and managing to blow him back a little, but not nearly as much as someone weak to wind would’ve been. Haru did still take the opportunity to swing her ax towards him, slicing back and forth at the field in hopes of shattering it. Despite still standing tall, she could see Kuroda feeling the blows, sending him reeling to the other side of the room. 

Kuroda still remained in the air, cursing out the girls before he began to type more things on his screen, summoning a wave of nuclear attacks that Haru had to narrowly dodge while Makoto was able to brute force it. 

“Hmmm, the musketeer is by far more powerful than the rest…” Kuroda muttered to himself as he observed the girls, typing something on his screen. “The biker however… institute scan…”

“The opponent is strong, his memory and attention to detail is going to be a massive disadvantage for us,” Makoto recited as she summoned her Persona to try to blast him. The attack held a lot more impact, blasting Kuroda to the ground, allowing Haru to rush forward, comboing her melee attack with a psychokinetic attack to knock him to the ground, calling forth her teammates to top it off with an all out attack. 

It wasn’t enough to deter him, as Kuroda lifted himself to the air, and with a single swipe of his arms, pushed them all back “You will have to do more than that to beat me,” Kuroda declared as he reformed the shield around him. 

“Looks like we found his weakness,” Haru pointed out, gaining a nod from Makoto. “Do you think you can find another way to take down the shield?” She asked. 

“Yeah, but I’m going to need a distraction,” Makoto replied, getting intercepted by a flash of lighting mid-sentence.

“Not on my watch,” Kuroda growled, typing a series of commands on his screen. Haru made eye contact with Kyoko and with a quick nod, jumped in front of him and launched a coordinated attack on him.

It didn’t even put a dent within the shield, but it provided something much more important, a distraction. Haru gave Makoto one look, her teammate figuring out exactly what she needed to do and jumped out of sight. 

“Let’s try this, Astarte!” Haru ripped off her mask, summoning her Persona forward. She raised her arms as a slow fog of darkness began to wrap around him, sending him trembling. 

Instead of pausing, his fear sparked a massive burst of speed, typing almost five time faster to reinforce his shelf with various pulses of energy pushing through it. 

Haru rushed forward, hoping to get any more hits with her ax, but the attack ricocheted and nearly pushed Haru to the floor as the new shield was firmly in place. He wasn’t hurt by the attack, but the sheer fury was enough to freak him out and allow Kyoko to call out to him.  

“Don’t you see how everyone else is suffering now? I know how you must have felt when I died, so why can’t we just end this?” 

“I… I have not been deterred!” Kuroda countered, summoning another attack against the girls. Kyoko jumped in front of Haru, summoning her bike and charging straight towards him, knocking him to the side. 

“Found it!” Makoto shouted, jumping down with a cut wire in hand. The shield powered down and all his screens started to flash red before snapping down, exposing a scared and bare Kuroda. This gave Haru the perfect opportunity to summon her Persona again and blast him with a psychic attack. 

As soon as the blast connected, he snapped out of his fear spell, his earlier terrier replaced by anger as he slammed his fists in the remaining flashing screens, “You bastards!” His fingers curled, reforming another shield as the systems appeared to even out, the screens popping back up. 

“He has backup systems!?” Makoto cried. “Well… I did see a lot more wires up there.” 

“Then we need to figure out how to take out all of them together,” Haru declared. “Queen, where do you believe the backups will be?” 

Makoto pointed in the vague direction, allowing Haru to find an open vent near the top of the room. 

“They were with all the other ones! Actually the more I think of it… that isn’t a good system design,” Makoto called out. 

Exactly what she needed. 

“Cover for me!” Haru called out, wasting no time running towards the vent. Kuroda caught sight of her, intercepting her path and hurling multiple blasts of nuclear energy directly at her.  

The attacks were predictable and uniform, making dodging them all light work. She had to thank all those years of ballet for allowing her to dodge with such grace. Of course, that was until one of those blasts hit her dead on, sending her tumbling to the ground. 

“Noir!” Both Kyoko and Makoto shouted in unison before Makoto turned towards Kuroda. 

“You’ll pay for that!” she cried, yanking off her mask. “Johanna!” 

Johanna appeared from underneath her, Makoto swinging her leg over and revving the engine. Haru managed to pick herself up, only to freeze when she saw what Makoto was about to do. She was fumbling with Johanna all the way up here. There was no way she was going to be able to drive her. 

Haru’s fear was proven right as soon as Makoto revved the engine with a burst of energy, rocketing forward before tumbling over to the size, her mask frizzled up as she hit the ground, which gave Kuroda an ample opportunity to do what all good villains do. 

Monologue for years on end. 

“Girl, you are still so naive. Still, you do remind me quite a bit of my younger self,” Kuroda descended below, learning down over Makoto as a grin reached his eyes. As much as Haru wanted to be there for her, she needed to take down those shields, and if her prediction was correct, only she could do that. 

Haru sprinted towards the vent, crawling as fast as she could before finding an opening to the generator room. She could already see a cut wire that led all the way to the ceiling, likely connecting back into the treasure room. Haru followed that wire, finding an extra opening that she could use to fall back into the battle. 

“You and I are nothing alike!” Makoto shouted. 

“Really? Honors student Makoto Niijima, daughter of Sadayoshi Niijima,” Kurdoa listed. Haru’s heart nearly stopped as she looked down to the sight below her. She managed to crawl her way towards the grid rails, giving herself ample room for what she was able to do. 

“H-how did you…” Makoto muttered. 

“I saw your face, that’s all I needed,” Kuroda said. “You understand the world is ruled by the intelligent, and that only those who are willing to prove it will be able to prevail. That is how I managed to rise above and gain my parent’s attention.” 

Right, all of this was because of his parents. Haru frowned. Just how many people in the world were transformed into monsters because that was how they were raised? Was she going to become like him if she hadn’t come across the Phantom Thieves? 

That didn’t matter. If she continued to listen to him, she would never be able to take him down. Aiming her grenade launcher, she fired three shots into the generator room. She listened as the grenades bounced through the walls before triggering an explosion across the whole wall, causing the grid bars to disconnect from the side. Haru clung to them for as long as she could as they fell, finally letting go to make a safe landing and using the momentum to send a massive strike into a confused Kuroda’s chest. 

“I think that went well!” Haru commented, watching as he fell to the ground in pain. Launching another all out attack with just Kyoko, the two managed to push him back further, all the while Kyoko continued to plead with him. 

“Please Kojiro! I don’t know what to say anymore to stop you!” 

“Then stop talking!” Kuroda shouted, though Haru was starting to sense it was more because he wanted to focus on trying to bring back his shield then anything to do with Kyoko. 

“I am so sick of you!” Makoto shouted, taking off her mask again and summoning Johanna. 

“Queen!” Haru cried, watching her again attempt to get on the motorcycle. She watched as Makoto hesitated to do anything further, before feeling a hand on her shoulder. Kyoko stood behind her, squeezing her shoulder a bit before marching past and straight to Makoto. 

She stopped next to her, grabbing Makoto’s hands and moving them around as she explained, “Put your hand on the clutch, pull back on the throttle when you release the clutch. Remember, this is all in your head.” As she finished, she pointed directly towards Kuroda. 

“Right… this is all in my head…” Makoto muttered, taking a deep breath as Kyoko stepped back. She gently tightened her grip on the handle before opening them again as she let go of the clutch. “Full throttle!” 

The bike roared, charging straight towards a terrified Kuroda. Haru pumped her fists in the air, cheering Makoto on as Kuroda panicked, slamming his fists on the screens. 

“Not a chance!” Haru called out, swinging her ax back towards, him, locking him in place before she felt a gust of wind, in perfect timing, Haru leapt back, Makoto swirling around him, creating a nuclear tornado around him before sucking in on him and exploding. 

Kuroda screamed out in pain, the magic dissipated as his visor shattered. He crumbled to the ground, breathing heavily. Makoto retracted Johanna, watching her return as her mask while Haru and Kyoko joined her. 

“I… I lost?” Kuroda muttered. “But… I predicted everything… There was no calculated risk that just three…” 

“That’s where you’re wrong,” Makoto told him.. “Your ego got the best of you and you never accounted for the fact that all the backup generators were so close together.” 

She looked down for a moment, before finally putting her hands on her hips. “I feel at this point I’m supposed to deny how you see the world, but you’re absolutely right. The world does run on the intelligent, but you know who runs it more? The manipulative, just like your parents and how they managed to turn you into the perfect puppet for your empire… and if anything, I think I just pity you.” 

Shaking her head, Haru added, “Don’t you see how it is? You let your need to please your parents consume you so much that you didn’t even realize you were trying to please Shido as well, things that both led to the death of your wife and would later lead to the deaths as many others. I do sympathize with you, but you dug the hole so deep the only way to change things now is to confess.” 

Kurdoa looked away from the two of them, his eyes beginning to water. “Yeah… I guess that was what happened… There is no reason to keep running anymore anyways…” 

Kyoko walked over, crouching down as she held his shoulder, her voice soft. “Kojiro… I believe it’s time to end this now, before anyone else gets hurt.” 

Kuroda silently nodded, reaching out and cupping Kyoko’s cheek. “Have you always been here? Even after everything?” 

Kyoko smiled. “Always will be…” 

Makoto’s eyes widened as she watched Kurdoa begin to be enveloped in a white light, small particles beginning to drift upwards. He turned over towards Makoto and Haru. “I’ll confess, and I will bring forth the truth on who in the government has been backing me. It seems to be the least I can do to repent.” 

As his voice finally drifted out, Kuroda was gone, the only remnants of his existence was a gentle white mist that quickly dissipated, the treasure above them lowered down to Haru’s arms and revealed itself to be a small box. Haru looked back at where Kurdoa once stood, knowing that, despite his best efforts, there was no way he was going to be given the opportunity to expose Shido. 

“W-what just happened?” Makoto stepped back, looking around the area. 

“He returned to his true self. We should head out soon before the palace collapses,” Haru stated, pausing as she noticed Kyoko standing behind her. “Kyoko-san… I…” 

Kyoko put a hand in front of her, stopping her from speaking as the white light began to envelop her as well. 

“Kyoko-san!” Makoto cried, looking over at her. Kyoko looked at both of her arms as they slowly faded away, laughing a little. 

“Ah… I almost forgot…” She exclaimed, frowning a little as she looked back up at them. “I guess this is goodbye…”

“Oh… I guess… Thank you for showing me how to ride…” Makoto muttered. “I don’t know why, but once you laid it out, it felt like a field of memories came back to me.” 

Haru grabbed hold of her sleeve, letting out a silent gasp. 

“Yes, you are quite a natural,” Kyoko laughed. “You know… I still remember when I first met him. We were already arranged to be married… and I almost hit him with my motorcycle in protest.” 

“Really?” Makoto’s eyes widened, gaining another chuckle from Kyoko. 

“We weren’t exactly the love story that came from the movies, but that’s how things always go…” Her voice trickled down a little. “I believe that it is time for you all to return to your home, while I continue to live on in Kojiro’s heart.” 

Haru let out a low hum, eventually mustering up a smile. “Thank you Kyoko-san!” 

“No, thank you for everything,” Kyoko said, gently raising her hand up as a whale swam above them, casting a gentle shadow over her. 

“It’s a pleasant memory. Please never forget your own,” were her final words before she drifted off to the sky, completely gone by the time the shadow that cast over her passed. Neither girl had time to process her departure, the sounds of the rumbling ground and falling objects took their attention. 

“Oh right…the Palace!” Makoto cried, pulling out her phone and fumbling with the settings. 

“About that… The safe room teleportation feature doesn't work once the ruler is defeated…” Haru turned her head away, failing to keep her voice from shaking. Exploring this Palace made her realize her guide was not as thorough as it should’ve been.

“Well then…” Makoto muttered, looking around them before she ripped off her mask. “Get on!” 

“But…” Haru tried to protest before noticing how Johanna changed forms, creating some extra room for her to sit. Haru didn’t say anything further, jumping on the back and holding on tight as Makoto sped away, desperately trying to find some sort of escape. 

Swerving left and right, avoiding different carnage that was falling between them, Haru knew they only had so long before their Metaverse outfits would disappear and so would Johanna. 

“There has to be some sort of way the Shadows would get to and from here,” Haru cried. 

“Right, there was an elevator from where we entered! That’s going to be our best bet if there are other Shadows attempting to escape,” Makoto replied, ever keen to detail. 

Haru narrowed her eyes around, catching sight of an elevator near the end. She shouted out towards Makoto and pointed, briefly letting off of Makoto as she used her other hand to keep her hat on her head. 

Makoto slammed her foot on the petal, making one final dash before it dissipated in a blue flame, leaving the two girls tumbling just outside it as the floor crumbled beneath them. Haru doubted she would be able to use her Persona, she was able to ax off any nearby Shadows and Makoto grabbed hold of the edges of the elevator, pulling it open with strength only attributed to someone like her. 

With the smallest opening, both girls rushed in, Haru swapping to her gun and finishing off any Shadows hoping to hitch a ride. 

The elevator was clanky and crumbling, each second Haru hesitated if they were going to make it on time before barely reaching the top and opening. The building was by far wrecked, water coating the ground as the girls rushed through. Taking charge, Haru sliced down every nearby Shadow, searching for any escape route before Makoto called out. “There!” 

Haru looked over, seeing multiple Shadows trying to get on an emergency raft, the girls making quick work of them as they hopped on. Haru brought out her gun again, shooting down any remaining enemies as Makoto worked the controls, ramming the engine and pushing the girls away as the water rumbled. The ensuing wave pushed the girls towards the air, washing away any remaining Shadows as they crumbled to dust. 

Haru grabbed hold of her hat as Makoto slammed the gas, making that final push towards the entrance as Haru witnessed the bridge crumble from behind them. 

Chapter 34: Despicable, Cruel Cruel, People: Part XXIII

Shinichi Yoshizawa

 

June 1st, 2014

 

Never in Shinichi’s life had he ever been forced to negotiate a higher wage for someone he’s trying to hire. According to Himari’s contacts, this man had an almost spot on record when working with troubled youths and those who've suffered severe trauma, but alas, he had to spend all morning convincing a therapist that Shinichi did indeed have enough money to pay him a living wage, as well as a bonus for any struggles he might have with the kid in question. 

Of course, Shinichi only had Goro Akechi’s file to go off of when describing the patient this man will be receiving, as the kid himself seemed more willing to dive straight into a volcano than talk about his feelings. Even then, ten different foster families for a kid starting at six years old couldn’t have been good for him. Especially not when at least one required him to be forcibly removed because the foster family in question were both abusive and druggies looking to exploit a child to get an extra hit. 

At least that was over with, and once Shinichi actually got the courage to actually talk to Goro, he could start setting up appointment dates. 

“In recent news, Kojiro Kuroda has turned himself in to the police as the head ringleader of a massive international illegal drug trade. He has promised to work with the police to name influential figures who have been funding him, several of whom have already been arrested. More at two.” 

“Good riddance,” Shinichi muttered, taking a sip of his morning coffee. Himari was next to him, having her own drink. All of the kids were already awake, staring intently at the screen while the weatherman told them how much longer the rain was going to last. Shinichi took Goro as the type to watch the news, but he was surprised to see Kasumi and Sumire joining, though he couldn’t help but notice the strange distance between them. 

“I heard he had a complete change in personality,” Himari commented. 

“Like that teacher?” Shinichi asked, recalling the strange occurrence of Aiko Sako coming out of nowhere to confess her sexual relations with students, even to her own detriment He wanted to ask Goro about it, with his reports stating he was a student under her care previously, but either out of fear of his reaction, or Shinichi’s cowardice, he decided to leave that to the therapist when he finally set that up. 

“Yeah but way more drastic. He gave us information on every client he’s sold to asking for them to get medical attention. Some of my friends have been up for the past two days trying to deal with the influx.” 

“Why are you the one dealing with them?” Shinichi asked. Himari shrugged.
Himari shrugged and looked back at the TV, tuning into some news about some sports drama. “Nope. Not my wing.” 

Shinichi looked back at the kids, studying the young boy he just took in. He thought things were going fine. All three of them would go out together for long periods of time and were actually speaking to each other, but in the past week, Goro had been avoiding his daughters at every turn. The only time he even came out was to watch the news before hiding back in his room to study. 

Kasumi and Sumire both seemed to know something about why their relationship was so strained, but seemed just as unwilling to speak as Goro. It didn’t help that the few times they seemed to try to talk to him, he would avoid and ignore them completely, leaving both girls with frowns on their faces and their eyes lingering on the shut door. Kasumi appeared particularly annoyed. 

Shinichi was a fool to believe he was qualified to take on a foster kid, especially one like Goro, but there was no way in hell he could give him up. Not after seeing the face of his caregiver at the hospital and the absolute neglect and scorn she held for the kid.

All he knew that night was that once he saw that woman’s face, her utter disdain for a child whose only crime was unwillingly falling down the stairs, he knew he couldn’t let him go home with her. 

It was shamefully easy to negotiate. The whole process was stupidly easy when he could throw money around to get people to do whatever he wanted. He knew he should feel bad about it, abusing his wealth and status like that. But at the same time, he would gladly do it again. Despite all the challenges, he liked Goro. He liked those rare moments where his eyes would light up when talking to his mother or when Sumire would come to him for help on her homework. He knew that, underneath all those masks and defense mechanisms, was a sweet boy who wanted to help others. 

“After the strange confession from Kojiro Kuroda, the investigation has indicated that his sudden change of behavior was prompted by a mysterious calling card that was attributed to a group called ‘The Phantom Thieves of Hearts.’The details of what was inside this card has not been revealed by the police, as of now.” 

“Phantom Thieves…” Kasumi muttered to herself. “I wonder who they might be.” 

“Coincidentally, Kenshin Kuroda, the younger brother of Kojiro Kuroda, has also come forth confessing his own crimes, stating his own reasonings being out of fear for his own life. Whether or not this is connected to these ‘Phantom Thieves’ remains unknown. Some of the crimes he’s admitted to include running a human trafficking ring, using illegal drugs to use against victims, and the murder of his mistress and unborn child.” 

“Mistress,” Goro sneered, his eyes trained on the picture of the man on the screen. Both of Shinichi’s daughters snapped their heads over to his direction, as if they were ready for him to react. 

“Akechi-san…” Sumire muttered, snapping him out of his gaze on the TV.

He shook his head and readjusted himself, staring at Sumire like she had suddenly grown a second head. “I… I apologize,” He managed to choke out, quickly getting up and walking past Shinichi towards the door. “I just remembered something I need to do,” he managed to explain, putting on a clearly fake smile and rushing outside. The tension in the air remained until Kasumi gave a massive huff, falling on the couch Goro was once sitting on. 

“And here I thought he would be happy about that,” she sighed, changing the channel to one of her dramas. 

“Kasumi, honey, have there been any issues as of late?” Himari asked, putting her coffee down. 

“I dunno, does it seem like there are?” Kasumi scoffed, getting a small nudge from Sumire. 

“Well I just want to make sure that if there are any issues between you and Akechi-san…” 

“No,” Sumire interrupted her. “It’s just… I think he thinks we’re mad at him.” 

“Why would he think that?” Himari asked, walking towards the two of them. 

Sumire tilted her head down and attempted to put her thoughts into words, “Just… I guess…” 

“You seriously haven’t noticed how defensive he’s been?” Kasumi whined. “I’ve been trying to tell him that we’re not upset at him, but he’s not having it, and I don’t think that Kuroda is-” 

Another forceful nudge from Sumire, shutting her up. Himari frowned her brow. Shinichi knew why Sumire was so quick to defend him. While Himari didn’t object to taking in Goro, she certainly was concerned about how he would affect her daughters. What got to him more was what Kasumi was trying to say before. Goro had been acting defensive as of late. No… He’d been acting that way ever since he first arrived. 

Whenever he perceived that he had offended one of them, he apologized and went back to staying silent. He never came out of his room unless he was needed, and even when he was out, he was always dressed as if he was a guest at some sort of formal event. Every time he handled something that wasn’t his, he would hold it as if dropping it would get him shot on the spot. It made Shinichi truly wonder if there was only one family of those ten that were abusive. 

Shinichi stood up from his seat before he could even perceive his own movements. It was about time he stepped up and actually did something. Just taking in the kid wasn’t enough. He needed to actually step in for once and help him. 

“I’ll go talk to him,” Shinichi said, heading out the door, grabbing hold of his rain jacket and an extra umbrella. 

It took him around ten minutes before he found him. Goro was huddled by the wall in an alleyway, his eyes drifting to the one across from him, slightly shivering from the rain. 

Shinichi leaned over and quipped, “Trying to find shelter from the rain?” 

Goro turned his face towards him, scanning him before turning away. “Yes.”

“And I’m just going to guess leaving was a spontaneous decision and not a planned one,” Shinichi continued to joke, walking closer to him. Goro just kept his gaze trained on the wall across from him, staying silent. 

It really made Shinichi wonder why he never decided to read any books on raising foster children before this moment. In hindsight he definitely should have at least looked up some articles online. 

“If there is something bothering you, you can always tell me.” 

“I’m doing fine.”

“Come on,” Shinichi insisted, shaking his head with a lax smile on his face. “I may not be a mind reader, but I can at least figure out when someone is upset,” 

“I apologize.” 

There were those apologies again. The way it came out of his mouth was almost automatic, like some sort of wind up toy. It was something that was starting to get on his nerves. It wasn’t even any sort of “sorry.” It was always “my apologies,” and “I apologize,” as if acting even a little casual would get him a scolding or worse. 

“I’m not offended. You don’t have to apologize, and don’t say anything after that,” Shinichi stated, leaning on the wall himself. 

“Right…” Goro said, bringing his head down to his knees. 

“You know Kasumi and Sumire aren’t mad at you, if that’s what’s bugging you,” Shinichi told him, attempting to get some sort of reaction out of him. 

More silence. 

“And I know th-” 

“They should be.” 

“Huh?” Shinichi whipped his head at Goro, his eyes still trained on the wall. 

“I don’t get them…” Goro muttered, a hint of annoyance in his voice. 

Shinichi sighed, leaning his head back to the wall. “Because not everyone is out to get you, ya know? I mean, God I hope so if I raised my daughters right,” Shinichi laughed, turning his head towards Goro. “And I’m sure if you just talk to them, you could sort out any misunderstandings you might have.” 

Goro remained silent. Shinichi almost just wanted to scream at this kid. To reach his hand out and plead for him to tell him the problem.

No, that’s his fault. He should have reached out beforehand. 

“That’s what’s going to annoy them more than anything,” Shinichi said instead, Goro finally breaking his staring contest with the wall to look at him. He remained in eye contact for a few seconds, his mouth opening for a slight second before he looked away from him again. 

“Would that actually fix anything?” he managed to say, his voice so quiet that it was almost drowned out by the pouring rain. 

“I mean, it can’t be any worse than letting it bottle up to the point of hurting the others around you,” Shinichi said, keeping his tone casual. “It’s like a faucet. Of course one that’s constantly leaking might cause you to eventually replace it, but if it one day exploded on you, you’d replace that too.” 

“Huh?” Goro stared, his mask breaking for a moment to judge him for his terrible analogy. 

“What I’m saying…bad metaphor aside, is that you seem scared that if you say anything that’s wrong that we’ll just up and get you, but bottling it all up will just make things worse,” Shinichi attempted to explain. God he is bad at this. He decided to just give up on that, changing the subject and asking, “The news. You were waiting for that story, weren’t you?” 

“I knew about the woman,” Goro told him.

“Ah, the one who was killed, just because of the child,” Shinichi replied, putting aside that he had no reason why Goro would even be aware of her before now. “Truly a despicable man.” 

“So you agree… huh…” Goro managed to let out a dry laugh, sinking his head further into his knees while still keeping his eyes trained on the wall. Shinichi watched as his gaze kept wavering, making him believe that Goro wanted to say more, that he wanted to tell him what’s wrong. 

He looked down at the kid, finally taking a deep breath, trusting his gut on what he was going to say next. 

“You know I’ve read your file,” He didn’t even need to finish the sentence before Goro whipped his head back towards him, training his eyes on Shinichi’s distant expression. “You were raised by a single mother before she killed herself, no?” 

More silence, but one he expected. 

“Usually the decent ones don’t open with that,” Goro answered, his voice holding a bit of disdain to him. 

“Yeah, but I’m fully aware that you’ve been told that information enough that I don’t need to hide the fact I know,” Shinichi shrugged. He may have no clue what would be the normal or correct approach to this kind of situation, but maybe he could try something new. “Did that case resonate with you?” 

Goro remained silent again, turning back to stare at his wall. Shinichi watched as his grip on his legs began to tighten, his eyes completely focused yet still dazed. 

“I-” 

“Did the file say who my father was?” Goro asked. 

“... No, there was no information on him,” Shinichi answered. He assumed the man bailed. If he died there would at least be a record on him, or maybe he would have been sent to a relative on his side. The file did say he was offered to the few relatives on his mother’s side, all rejecting him. 

“That makes sense. Anyone who’s read the file would have told me if they knew,” Goro frowned, his grip on his legs tightening once again. 

“They shouldn’t have been using that information against you,” Shinichi said. It was a guess to believe they would taunt him with that, but by his silence, he knew he was correct. “The file doesn’t say much about your life before you entered the system only that-” 

“I know who my father is,” Goro blurted out, surprising both Shinichi and himself. He shouldn’t have been surprised. Goro’s mother died shortly after his sixth birthday, so it wouldn’t be unreasonable for him to remember that if his mother told him. 

“I see…” Shinichi barely managed to reply before he kept talking. 

“Masayoshi Shido. It was a one night stand,” Goro continued, saying each word so quickly as if he spent a second to pause, he wouldn’t be able to speak ever again. “She told him about me, and he left her because he saw me as a burden to his career, and eventually I became too much for her.” 

Shinichi remained quiet, watching as Goro’s eyes widened, surprised at the things he was saying. 

“I was the reason why she killed herself, like how that child was the reason why Bunko Seto was murdered,” Goro admitted, his voice growing in volume. “If only I’d been a better son to her, or if I just wasn’t born, then she would be alive right now.”

“No,” Shinichi interrupted, a little too loud for his liking, but it let Goro snap his head back towards him. “You didn’t do anything wrong.” 

“B-” 

“And don’t you dare blame yourself for the actions of your mother or that bastard of a father,” Shinichi scolded, lowering his tone once he saw Goro flinch at his words. “I… I’m sorry about that.”

Shinichi slid down the wall to a seated position as he trained his own eyes at the sky. “I shouldn’t yell at you.” 

“No… I shouldn’t have-” 

There he was again. The single time he managed to say anything and Shinichi was here making him feel bad about it. Who knows how many times Goro had tried to express what had happened to him, how he must have blamed himself for his mother’s death, when in reality it was… 

Masayoshi Shido, that politician. Yeah, Shinichi remembered him. He was on the stairway, he stood there, staring down as everyone was panicking over an unconscious child. Once the ambulance arrived, Shido was already running to his limo with an annoying look on his face. It wasn’t hard to believe at all. 

Did Shido know? Was that why Goro was there that night? To tell him who he was?

None of that mattered right now. He looked back at Goro, taking a deep breath before giving him an easy smile. 

“Here, let me make my own confession in return… and don’t tell them I said this, but Sumire wasn’t planned at all,” Shinichi admitted, gaining a somewhat shocked expression from Goro. “Well that’s not exactly true, Himari and I always planned for two kids, but we were kinda expecting to wait till Kasumi was at least three till we tried for another one.”

Goro opened his mouth before shutting it again. 

“But that’s the thing, when we found out Himari was pregnant again, you know the first thing I thought? I thought… Well I should say something corny, like, I was the luckiest man in the world. What I actually thought was ‘thank god I bought the extra large crib.’” Shinichi laughed before taking a deep breath and looking back at Goro. “A good parent would never look at their child and see them as a burden. I cannot speak for your mother and what she went through, but to put any blame on yourself for that man’s selfishness,” Shinichi stated, moving closer towards Goro. 

“I ap… I understand,” Goro said, looking down. “I just… I don’t know anymore…”

“That’s ok. The thing that hurts me the most is seeing how you kept all this to yourself when we’re all here to help you.” 

“I don’t think you deserve to bear that burden,” Goro stated, a small level of bitterness in his voice.

“Does it matter what I deserve? If I wanted a carefree and easy life, then I would have never had kids… No, I wouldn’t even have gotten married, remained a bachelor and drank till I dropped,” Shinichi joked before putting an arm around Goro’s shoulder. He felt a small flinch, but Goro seemed to appreciate the gesture after a moment. 

“But sometimes there are mistakes,” Goro started before Shinichi cut him off. 

“And if there are mistakes, we own them. We don’t run from them like cowards. We care for our children because they are our greatest treasure. Any good parent would tell you that,” Shinichi explained. 

“I see…” 

“Yeah,” Shinichi nodded before adding, “Could you promise me something?” 

“Hm?” 

“Just be more open. Even if it’s not with me. or my daughters. Just take it step by step and talk about what’s bothering you before it consumes you and you hurt those around you.” 

The two remained in silence for a few moments before Goro asked, “Are you trying to talk about the therapist?”

Shinichi panicked before calming down and muttering, “You heard me talking to him this morning… haven’t you? I… I honestly didn’t know how to bring it up with you, because I didn’t want to come off as aggressive.” 

“No… It’s fine, I should do it,” Goro’s gaze went down to the floor. There was a feeling of defeat in his words, like he was simply too tired to fight it. “I don’t want to hurt anyone…and I need to apologize to your daughters, for many things…” 

Shinichi smiled, pulling Goro a bit closer towards him. It wasn’t the ideal response, but it was progress. “Atta boy. And you should talk to Kasumi and Sumire. Believe me, they are more understanding than you’ll expect.” 

Goro gave a silent nod. Shinichi questioned if he should take him home immediately but ultimately decided against it, instead letting Goro lean into him for a while. He wanted to let him know for sure that, no matter what happened before, Shinichi was there for him.

Chapter 35: Despicable, Cruel Cruel, People: Part XXIV

Makoto Nijima 

 

June 1st, 2014

“After the strange confession from Kojiro Kuroda, the investigation has indicated that his sudden change of behavior was prompted by a mysterious calling card that was attributed to a group called ‘The Phantom Thieves of Hearts.’ The details of what was inside this card has not been revealed by the police.” 

Makoto carefully watched the news. Listening. Listening to how Kuroda turned himself in, as well as spilling several other names, including his own brother, that solved at least one minor mystery. 

“Those cases,” Sae began, flopping onto the couch with a wide grin on her face. “That’s the type of stuff I’m going to work on.” She got the job at the SIU, and while her first case was a minor one, it was a case nonetheless. 

“You got all the information on your case yet sis?” Makoto asked, moving over a little to accommodate her. 

Sae nodded. “Yes, it’s some sort of small-time vandalism, but it’s a good stepping stone, I’m also being paired with a detective, though they are apparently still sorting out the details of that.”

“Which reminds me, we should head out for tonight,” her father commented as he walked in, leaning over the couch to join his daughters. “Celebrate Sae becoming a prosecutor, Makoto’s top scores, and me finally getting a break from that damn case.”

Just hearing that make Makoto relax a little. The change of heart worked. Kojiro confessed his sins, and her father was alive. It was almost hard to believe. If it wasn’t for that Okumura girl, she would have never learned about those strange Palaces, she would have never awakened to Johanna, and she would have never saved her father. 

It was strange to think about—just how easily her life as she knew it would have ended. How she would have been left an orphan and had her relationship with her father end on such a terrible note. 

Makoto looked back up at him, giving him a warm smile. He might be a busy man, but he always did what was right, and Makoto was ashamed to think that she only learned that when he was so close to being taken from her. She needed to find the time to pull him aside and apologize to him… to repair whatever they have, if there is anything broken to begin with. 

The thought continued to haunt her, what would happen with Sae? Would she be forced to provide for them? She was always the responsible type, but she would feel terrible if she had to take care of her while also tackling her new job. The idea made Johanna stir, gently reassuring her that she will work to make sure Sae will never have to deal with that. 

“You know, I still think you should try to become a defense attorney,” her father stated, taking a seat next to Sae. 

“You saw what type of person Kuroda was,” Sae argued, rolling her eyes. “How could I defend someone like him?”

“Well… I guess since he’s so open to assisting the police, he might get a more lenient sentence,” Makoto pointed out. She didn’t agree with the sentiment, afterall, he only did change because they forced them to, but she’s seen enough lawyer shows that she could make a couple guesses on how to defend him. 

“Yeah, it won’t be hard to prosecute him. What I wonder about is if they are going to let us know the names he gives,” her father questioned, scratching his chin with a smile. 

“What does that mean?” Sae inquired. 

“Corruption,” the man declared before explaining, “I guarantee you that if he names any of the big names’ buddies, it will be quietly swept under the rug and we’ll never hear from him again. Similar to whoever was in cahoots with his brother, the human trafficker." He sighed a little, his gaze drifting off a little. “That’s how things are, all those disgusting people will live another day… free and despicable.” 

 Turning to Sae, he finished saying,  “Promise me this, Sae. Never lose sight of your justice.” 

“I won’t,” Sae declared, giving him a smile. 

“That’s my girl,” he leaned over, giving Sae a hug before extending his arm out towards Makoto and pulling her in. 

“I know I haven’t been around as much lately, and we’ve had issues… but now that Kuroda is over with I’m going to have a lot more free time if my next case is what I think it is… so… God I’m bad at this… just I want you to know just how proud I am of you two.”

“I love you too dad,” Makoto smiled, watching as the news moved into a segment about the Phantom Thieves. It was strange to see. It felt almost a little unreal that her trip in a fantasy world was being brought up in the real world, especially hearing the anchor talk about her in such a way. It was odd, but also thrilling in a way. That there was a group out there making a difference, a group that people will assume to be some big organization of professionals. A group that in reality, is just of some supernatural teenagers trying to make a difference. 

“And that’s my next assignment there,” her father chuckled, letting out a deep sigh. 

Makoto froze in her spot, letting out a nervous laugh. 

“The Phantom Thieves…? The force really believes in them?” she tried to say, just getting a shrug from her father. 

“They are a suspicious group that could have threatened the Kuroda brothers. I can’t share the details, but it was certainly an oddly worded letter—one that was shipped all the way from abroad with no return address.” 

That was right. Okumura managed to come into contact with Aisa Banno to send the calling card to hide their identities. Makoto hoped that she wouldn’t get caught. Though are they blaming what happened with both Kuroda brothers on them? She doesn’t recall paying much attention to the case, except that he suddenly went crazy. Perhaps he did that because Kojiro Kuroda received a calling card? Could it be something else? 

Makoto felt a vibration from her phone, letting her to excuse herself to check what it was. 

 

Okumura: have you seen the news?

Okumura: Kojiro Kuroda turned himself in 

Okumura: and they are discussing the Phantom Thieves! 

 

Makoto never knew why Okumura was so insistent on calling them that, when discussing what should be in the calling card, Okumura didn’t leave anything for debate. In fact, Makoto was starting to see that Okumura can be quite forceful when naming things. 

 

Makoto: Yeah, I heard.

Makoto: And my father got back home safe.

Okumura: thank goodness! 

Okumura: I was worried 

Okumura: which reminds me 

Okumura: I want to ask you, since I don’t think I ever asked you 

Okumura: I found another target I wish to help 

 

Makoto looked away from the phone. While she liked the concept of helping people by bringing people to justice, she wasn’t sure if she could take something like that again right now. Not after seeing that vision of Kyoko’s dead body. 

 

Makoto: I’m not sure… Who are we talking about? 

Okumura: Wakaba Isshiki, a researcher

 

Wakaba… That was one of the people Makoto has been looking into. Did she have distorted desires? Could her research be more useful to understanding the Metaverse than either of them know? 

Or could Okumura see her as a threat? If she is one of only three people on the planet trying to look into the cognitive world, it would make sense for the one person who can enter there to want to silence her. Unless Wakaba has other nefarious intentions that Okumura knew about. However if that’s the case, why would Okumura target her? Is it possible that her research on the Metaverse is affecting something underneath there and Okumura feels the need to keep the Metaverse stable? 

Of course all of this goes back to the question of who is Okumura? How connected she is the Metaverse and just why would she be so concerned about what a researcher is doing?

 

Okumura: I need to do this to protect her, she hasn’t done anything wrong 

 

Makoto’s thoughts were interrupted by the new message, and she reread the text a couple times, trying to process what she was saying. 

 

Makoto: ? 

Okumura: some people have palaces that aren’t necessarily there because they are an evil person or done bad things 

Okumura: Wakaba is one of them, she has pushed herself too much with work and that caused her to create a palace 

Okumura: and one of my sources say that Shido is trying to get ahold of her research 

Okumura: by any means necessary

Makoto: But why does that mean we have to take down her Palace? 

Makoto: Shouldn’t we focus on taking down bad guys? 

Okumura: not until we’re in a better spot to do such 

Okumura: getting the calling card to Kuroda was already risky 

Okumura: but we needed to do that to save your father 

Okumura: but Wakaba should be easy, we can find where she works online 

 

Makoto decided not to mention that she’s already been looking into her and her coworkers. 

 

Makoto: Ok, but that still doesn’t answer my question.

Okumura: right

Okumura: I have reasonable evidence to believe there is another Metaverse user who is working for Shido 

Okumura: I haven’t been able to confirm anything, but if my suspicion is correct, then Wakaba will be this user’s next target

 

“Makoto? What are you doing?” Her father called out after a while, snapping her out of her thoughts. 

“Oh! I’m just… texting a friend, you know… Okumura-san?” Makoto answered, looking between him and Okumura’s messages. She couldn’t deny Okumura’s suspicions, but it was also becoming clearer and clearer by the day that she was hiding something from Makoto. That meant she still had reason to doubt Okumura or her intentions. So far she seemed pretty keen on fighting for justice, and this is the first time she has openly mentioned that other Metaverse user to her. 

Of course she wasn’t surprised at all that this person existed, nor that they are on the opposing sides, but working for Shido? The conspiracy? It all seemed to baffle her, but the more she thought about it, the more it haunted her. Of course that’s why Okumura was so concerned about Shido, whoever this other person was, if they knew her and opposed her, then this is all personal to her. She was starting to understand why Okumura might have been so closed off about her motivations if her theories are correct. The fact she is now willing to open up about this might be a good sign for later.

“Well we’re getting ready to go out to dinner, so hurry it up!” Sae called out. 

 

Makoto: My sister is calling for me. Let’s discuss this in full later. 

 

Makoto slid her phone into her pocket. Taking a deep breath before heading out to her family. There was a lot more she needed to do, to figure out, but right now, she just wanted to be with her family. 

Haru Okumura 

 

June 1st, 2014

 

Haru put the phone down, her mind wandering as she stared at her computer screen. She debated on telling Makoto that Akechi was the Metaverse user she was after, but she feared that Makoto might deny her or tip him off. Besides, she should get proper evidence before she accuses Akechi of possibly being a future murderer. After all, she didn’t even know if he was still active. There’s the possibility of Kenshin Kuroda, but he was such a massive target compared to what Akechi usually targeted, nor did it seem like someone Shido would care to take down. 

It’s around the same time as when she sent the calling card, so depending on how connected they were he could have just freaked out and turned himself in. The Will Seed chamber did mention that they were still speaking, even if the elder brother loathed the younger’s very being. 

Beyond her theories about Kenshin Kuroda, at there haven’t been any more reported psychotic breakdowns as of late, so whatever Akechi was doing, it was likely not in the Metaverse. That being said, she had no recollection of his actions at this point of time. She wasn’t exactly tracking them in the last timeline. 

Haru twirled around the treasure in her hand: the small ruby necklace Kojiro bought for Kyoko. She wondered what to do with it, eventually deciding that Kyoko would want her to hold on to it. She had so much expensive jewelry that it wouldn’t cause as much suspicion if she had it compared to Makoto at least. She looked over to the side, finding her sweater. It wasn’t the same one as the last timeline, completely forgetting where she even found it, but the new one wasn’t exactly bad either. It was a similar shade of pink, cropped with big puffy sleeves that bunched at the elbows with small ribbons, it might take a bit of convincing for her to ditch the standard blazer, but she managed to wear down the principle with her status and perseveracy once before, she can do it again (though the more she thought about it, Shujin never really enforced their dress code as hard as any other school she knew).

She shouldn’t be focusing on uniforms right now, she has no way to tell that Wakaba is being targeted. 

That could mean that Wakaba was in the clear, that no one was after her, but there was no way Haru was going to take that chance. She just couldn’t. Not just to stop Shido, but to protect Futaba so she wouldn’t have to lose her mother again. 

Haru pulled out her phone, opening the Nav while she clipped the necklace over her neck. 

“Wakaba Isshiki.” 

“Candidate found.” 

Notes:

I would like to thank the lovely ACoord for beta reading this fic! The link to her profile is below
https://archiveofourown.org/users/ACoord