...Curse my life.

*ahem*

Welcome one, welcome all, to Makoto Reacts! This is a really fun project I had in mind from the moment I discovered Persona 5. A few things to get out of the way first:

- Pairing-wise, Akira here is shipped officially with Haru. Makoto has an unnoticed crush on him. Futaba and Akira are more like sworn-brother-and-sister. Ann doesn't give 2 damns and is fine with being his good friend.

- Spoilers for the game. Crack. Fourth-wall demolition. Slightly twisted personalities. Many references. Bottom line is, if you were coming here expecting the Phantom Thieves to very closely resemble their in-game selves, you might be slightly disappointed.

- Makoto Reacts takes place one year after the events of the game, with Haru recently having opened her private coffee shop, Cafe Noir (sorry I can't type the slash at the top of Cafe). Akira has also returned and made a permanent residence right next to Haru's cafe.

- Makoto Reacts draws heavy inspiration from "Weiss Reacts" by ElfCollaborator. The context of the first chapter should make that obvious. (Like, seriously tho, they're almost the same thing, wow, how original, IncompetentGuy)

Enjoy!

Edit: I just made a few significant changes, namely modifying the description and adding in the lemon author's screen name.

Edit #2: Added Makoto reviewing the fic on behest of one of my reviewers' suggestion. (Seriously though, no offense, Agent 5.)

OK, hang on a second. Future me reporting. I tried to make some sneaky changes to Chapters 1 through 3 since this fic was born, but I recommend that you should probably skip to chapter 5 (The late New Year special). I'll rewrite the first 3 chapters if I can, but if you want to read them now, well, it's your choice.

There wasn't much doubting the fact that Makoto Niijima was an avid fanfiction reader.

She discovered the website " " not long after Akira returned to Shibuya half a year ago, seeking a mental return to the adventures she had had as a Phantom Thief. She'd missed sneaking around in cognitive palaces, and the thrill of fighting against Shadows alongside her team. She wondered how people would interpret their own fantasies about the Phantom Thieves.

But today, when she was scrolling down, one story title stuck out.

"The Priestess and The Joker", by "StandbyForPhantomfall"

"What is this...oh..." Curiosity got the better of her, and she clicked. "…M-me, with...Akira?" Makoto's cheeks flushed. She knew full well that Akira was already dating Haru, but that didn't stop her from harboring feelings for him every now and then.

"...M rating? Meh, I guess this couldn't hurt too bad..." Makoto began to scroll down and start reading this story, unaware of what loomed ahead.

It started normal enough, with some fluff between her and Akira, and a couple of slightly predictable shenanigans with her team. Then Chapter 2 hit, and...well… she'd seen the word 'lemon' many times before, but never really understood it, only knowing that it was about...adult stuff.

Makoto could only hazard guesses of the definition before, but now she fully understood why this was called a lemon.

Any embarrassment she'd had while reading this story turned into a combination of itself and fury.

"What...what in hell is this?" The fanfiction was now implying – or rather, describing – some...indecent things between Makoto and Akira. Makoto could only stare in disbelief at the screen as the tale of intimacy got wilder, and-

She immediately switched away, blushing hard. Who would write this sort of crap? And...granted, she did like Akira, but knew there wasn't much chance since he was with Haru already. But still, the possibility that she could be the one who was with Akira instead...just not this far...

She took a few deep breaths to stabilize herself. "T-this is...My god…Who would write this?"

Immediately, one name popped into her mind. It was a far-fetched guess, but she was a prime suspect…

"FUTABA SAKURA!"

"Wha-huh?"

Futaba's original plan of chilling in Cafe Noir with Akira and Haru was suddenly cut short when Makoto burst in, looking very pissed off indeed.

"Uh, what is it?" Futaba regained her composure quickly. "You wanted to PVP me again, or-"

"Explain THIS!" Makoto shoved her tablet into Futaba's hands. The tablet was displaying…

"...Is this...what I think it is…?" Futaba asked with an expression of shock on her face as she read the fanfiction that had triggered Makoto.

"You know full well what it is, Futaba!" Makoto screeched. "Now take this stupid story off the site right now!"

"Wha-me?! Are you...are you out of your mind, Makoto?" Futaba said. "This is...look, I am a 100% percent supporter of the Akira X Haru cause, and I would never write Akira with...someone else! Granted, whoever wrote this is really good..." She added silently.

"What's going on?" Akira asked, now making his way over from the counter along with Haru. "Let me see whatever this is..."

"Er..." Futaba stuttered as she showed him the 'lemon', while Makoto glared at her. It took only a few seconds for Akira to start shaking his head in disbelief, and for Haru to cover her mouth in shock.

"This is...insane." Akira said. "For one thing, I would never betray Haru. For another...we, uh, have never done this sort of thing before, did we, Haru?"

The owner of Cafe Noir could only nod her head in response, trying not to blush and failing.

"Whatever!" Makoto yelled. "Bottom line is, you are going to explain this, Futaba, or I will MAKE you!"

"How do I explain something I don't even know?!" Futaba snapped.

"Long story short, I may be a good fanfiction writer, but I do NOT condone such acts of indecency in my fics! OK?"

Makoto tapped her foot impatiently. Futaba's explanation seemed genuine, but she couldn't think of anyone else who had written this.

Her thoughts were interrupted when Futaba suddenly started laughing. 'W-what's so funny?!" Makoto hissed.

"Why are you still denying it?" Futaba doubled over with laughter.

"Denying what?"

"Is it because you're too afraid to confess that you like open relationships? Or do you simply want Akira's...I don't know, affection?"

Akira and Haru facepalmed; Makoto almost lost her temper again due to embarrassment. "...What? I don't...h-he and Haru...I would never-"

"In all seriousness, I actually don't mind a three-way relationship." Haru chimed in, taking both Futaba and Makoto by surprise.

"Wha-?" Futaba was not expecting this revelation. "...Oh wow…"

"But we can't make it official until all three members confess their love." Akira said with a nasty smirk.

"W-what?" Makoto was now immensely irritated. "No! I-I'm not into you, and I w-won't be for a long time!"

Futaba collapsed to the floor laughing. "It's so cute, Makoto, how deep in denial you are~"

"S-Shut up!"

Pretty soon Akira and Haru had joined Futaba, causing Makoto to grumble impatiently, embarrassed.

"...But seriously though, I didn't write that." Futaba said after the laughter had died down. "And I don't know who did. Maybe you could ask Ryuji, Ann or Yusuke?"

"...Fine." Makoto stood up and made to leave, but paused just before she opened the door. "Uh...sorry for bothering you."

"Oh, no worries!" Futaba smiled. "It's just been really amusing for me. Seriously, your short temper is meme material, Makoto!"

"If it wasn't a Phantom Thief, who did write this...thing?" Makoto thought to herself. "I will find that person, this 'StandbyForPhantomfall', and when I do..." She clenched her fists. "I will make them pay for portraying me in such an undignified way..."

But her anger melted away unusually quickly when she thought about the events that were implied to have occurred between her and Akira. Looking around to check nobody was peeking, she quietly saved "The Priestess and The Joker" into her downloads.

"Nobody needs to know about this...Futaba would give me hell..."

She paused. "You know what? I'll leave a review on this."

- From: QueenJohanna

I have...no words to say. Just...no. I do NOT like Akira like that, and this fic is far beyond the constraints of what I would call indecent.

Then again, this is...me I'm talking about. I have to admit I get angry a lot. But...

Just don't write stuff like this anymore. Please.

- Makoto Nijiima

"Alright, Futaba, are you going to sleep or not?" Akira asked as he stepped out of the bathroom. "You wanna take top bunk or bottom bunk tonight?"

"Top bunk, please." Futaba replied. "Just let me finish this chapter..."

"Wait a minute." Akira abruptly pushed Futaba aside and looked at the suspicious document she was writing. "W-wait!" Futaba panicked.

It took a few special words on the screen and a guilty smile from Futaba for Akira to figure out what was going on.

"If Makoto finds out about this..." He shook his head, grinning. "she's going to kill you, you know that?"

"That's a risk I'm willing to take." Futaba snickered. "Seriously though, the look on Makoto's face...legendary item!"

Akira sighed. "Alright, whatever. Just make sure you go to sleep early, okay? It's school night."

I literally just banged this first chapter out in a single day. Granted, it's pretty short by my standards, and it's slightly unoriginal, but I couldn't pass this opportunity by. And I have big plans for Makoto Reacts.

Next time, should Makoto react to r/churchofmakoto or StarCraft II? Leave a review, and help me decide!

Also, personally, Akira X Futaba is my actual OTP, but Haru makes a lot more sense as Akira's lover, and Futaba being a sworn-little-sister makes for more entertaining scenarios.

P.S. See if you can guess the reference I made.

Stay tuned!