November XX, 20XX

"Yes, sir, it'll be done in an instant, no need to worry." A young man spoke these words into a cell phone as he walked through the Tokyo police station. "Yes, everything's taken care of. That prosecutor wasn't able to accomplish anything, and as for his associates, well… they'll be dealt with with as much ease as him, that's for certain. I'll call you again when it's done. Goodbye." Ending the conversation, he hung up his cell phone, shoved it into his pocket, and let out a small laugh to himself.

Calm down, Goro, don't lose yourself, here, he thought to himself as he did just that. You don't know who might be watching. Gotta keep a level head and let the world think you're still just Goro Akechi, ace detective, hero of Japan, everyone's golden boy, but especially his! Just keep up that image until you get into the room. After that, well… that's when it all goes down.

Making his way underground, Goro soon found himself at his destination, the interrogation room. The guard standing outside looked at him for three seconds before shooting him a knowing glance and opening the door for him. When the door closed behind him, Goro took a look forward and saw the person he was dealing with: a teenager roughly his age wearing a high school uniform breathing heavily at a desk. Goro smiled wide at the sight of him, for he knew this person well. This was Joker, leader of the infamous Phantom Thieves of Hearts and the most wanted man in the country. Not only that, he was also Ren Amamiya, local high school junior on probation for assault. Not only that, but there was one other thing that Ren was.

"Good evening, Ren. How's my favorite brother doing?" He was Goro's brother.

"..." Ren merely looked at Goro, dazed.

"Cat got your tongue, Ren? Well, that's no surprise. You've certainly seen better days. Going off of those bruises on your face and wrists, the guys who were in here were very rough with you, even making your handcuffs too tight. Not only that, but…" Looking down, Goro saw an empty syringe on the ground near Ren's feet,

"They even drugged you! Wow! They're not messing around, huh! I guess these are the kind of perks that the almighty leader of the Phantom Thieves is entitled to."

"...Goro," A tired, raspy voice escaped Ren's lips.

"Oh? Have you regained some clarity, Ren? What is it? What do you want to tell me?"

"...Is that a gun in your pocket, or are you just happy to see me?"

In response to this, Goro let out a stream of hearty laughter, the man clutching his sides from the ferocity of it.

"The drugs start wearing off, and that's the first thing you say?! That is so you, Ren! Ahahahahahaha! And you know what? Know what?

"It's both, actually." Regaining his composure, Goro pulled a small pistol out of his pocket and pointed it at Ren's head, the teen having just enough clarity to look at it in shock.

"What the hell is this…"

"It's a gun…? We use them all the time…?"

"You know what I mean. What are you trying to do, here…?"

"Oh, right, of course. That's simple, really: I'm going to kill you. I'm going to take this gun, shove it in your mouth, and blow your brains out all over the nice, clean floor. After that, I'm going to do the same thing to each and every one of your friends-"

"Our friends," Ren interjected, his glazed eyes gaining a steeled resolve to them.

"Your friends," Goro repeated, his words now laced with malice. "To think that I actually had to act like I cared about those idiots for half a year. The only thing more humiliating is the fact that they all actually bought into it. Honestly, death is too much of a mercy for them."

"Goro!" Ren stood up from his chair and took a few steps towards Goro only to stumble in place and stop in an instant.

"All of that can be avoided, though. All you have to do is make a little deal with me: join forces with me, and I'll make up some story about the Phantom Thieves using their witchcraft, or whatever the sheeple call what we did, to escape from custody. How does that sound?"

"Like shit," Ren snarled at him. "How can you even do this, Goro? How can you work with that bastard after everything he's done… and expect me to just do the same?!"

"You don't understand. You've never understood."

"I understand that you're a coward." And that's when Goro put his gun away and punched Ren in the face. Ren, in turn, followed this by driving his own fist into Goro's face.

"God… dammit!" Goro shouted, punching Ren in the face a second time, this time with enough force to send him to the ground. "Why the hell do you always have to make things so difficult?! Always going against the crowd, always making a scene for your so called 'justice'... it's so annoying!

"It's so goddamn annoying!" Once more, Goro pulled out his gun and pointed it at Ren, this time holding it with much more ferocity. In spite of this, Ren merely looked at him with a mixture of anger and indifference.

"What was it all for, Goro? Everything we did this year… all the fighting, all the bonding… what was the point of it all if it was going to lead us, here?"

"...I don't even know, anymore." Goro said this with a solemn expression, barely even looking Ren in the face.

Then a blue butterfly appeared between them, catching both of their attention for a moment. That was certain to cut the tension.

"..You are held captive," a voice called out from nowhere. Mysterious, yet oddly familiar, Goro thought. "Prisoners of fate to a future that has been sealed in advance. This is truly an unjust game... Your chances of winning are almost none. But if my voice is reaching you, there may yet be a possibility open to you...

"...I beg you. Please overcome this game... and save the world... The key to victory lies within the memories of your bonds—the truth that you and your friends grasped. It all began that day... when the game was started half a year ago... For the sake of your world's future... as well as your own... you must remember…"

April 09, 20XX

"How long do you feel like sleeping, Akechi?" The stern voice of the senior detective woke Goro Akechi up with a start.

"My… My apologies…" Goro muttered underneath the laughter of fellow officers. He didn't usually fall asleep during work on account of always making sure to get at least eight hours of sleep every night, but for some reason, he couldn't stay awake for a brief moment, back there.

"As I was saying, at the moment, we still don't have any leads on the sudden uprise of incidents the public has dubbed 'mental shutdowns' and 'psychotic breakdowns.' While we have numerous persons of interest, there isn't enough to go on for a full-scale investigation. Akechi, would you mind reminding us of one of our persons of interest, without looking at your file?"

Should have seen that coming, Goro thought to himself. Using my time asleep as a way to embarrass me, even further. Too bad I'm not an idiot like the rest of these people. "Kunikazu Okumura, CEO of Okumura Foods. Several victims of the mental shutdowns and psychotic breakdowns were people whose businesses either competed directly with Okumura Foods or blatantly badmouthed them. There's no solid evidence to make this anything more than a coincidence, but it's at least something. Did I get it all right, sir?"

"..." The disgruntled look on the senior detective's face pointed to a definite "Yes." "That's all for today. Everyone's dismissed." With that, Goro and all the other officers exited the conference room, the rest of the people barely even making eye contact with Goro. It's just jealousy, Goro told himself. They're just upset that some kid is making them look like idiots, even when he's half-asleep. I may not be a Detective Prince, but at least I know how to do my job. That's more than can be said for all of you.

"Oh, wow, look at the time." Goro came out of his internal monologue when he noticed a clock on the wall of the police station. "I better get going; don't want to keep him waiting."

"Even though I say that, he's the one keeping me waiting." After the meeting ended, Goro exited the police station and made his way to the Shibuya train station, the young man having made plans earlier in the week to meet someone there. They were supposed to have arrived at around four in the afternoon, but looking at his phone, Goro saw that it had been almost an hour since the agreed upon time.

"What in the world?" Speaking of Goro's phone, something else that caught his attention was the appearance of an app, one that he had no memory of installing onto his phone. It looked like a red eyeball with a black, star-shaped pupil surrounded by a jagged red and black border. When Goro pressed the icon, the name of the app didn't appear and all that happened was that it got larger in size.

"Weird…" Goro didn't think twice about uninstalling the app from his phone. "I hope that's not a virus, or anything…"

"I hope so, too. Same thing happened on my phone; it was pretty weird."

"You, too? Maybe it is a virus, then. Could Medjed be up to something, again?"

"'Medjed'? What's that supposed to be?"

"Come on, I've told you about them before, Ren. Medjed is..." It was at this moment that Goro realized he was talking to someone.

"Yo." Not just any someone, though. This particular someone, wearing the black blazer and plaid pants of Shujin Academy, was Ren Amamiya, someone who was more than just a lifelong friend of Goro's.

"Ren! Great to see you! How's my favorite brother doing?" He was also his brother.

"Alright, considering everything. Also, last time I checked, I was your only brother."

"Yeah, yeah. What's with the glasses? You need them, now?"

"No, my vision's fine. They just make me look chic."

"Oh, so you're one of those people."

"Excuse me for having style."

"Oh, shut up," Goro said, brushing Ren's remark aside to pull him into a hug, one that was reciprocated and ended several seconds later. "Come on, let's get an early dinner; you must be hungry, right?"

"I could eat. The Big Bang Burgers any better in the city?" Ren asked, Goro immediately gaining a disapproving look on his face.

"Yeah, we're going to do a little better than that. I'm also going to have to ask you to never suggest something like that, again."

"I guess this is better than Big Bang Burger, Goro." That was the only thing Ren had to say when Goro brought them to his restaurant of choice. The restaurant, one simply called "Pneuma," was a hole in the wall-type of restaurant with an air of class that didn't fit its classification. The tables were draped in fancy silk sheets and illuminated by classy mood lighting, the sophistication emphasised further by the classical music playing through the restaurant. A mustachioed maître d welcomed the two of them with a smile and, after conversing with Goro for a minute, brought them to a table in the center of the room, not even needing a single yen of bribery.

"You sure seemed friendly with that guy, Goro."

"When you spend so much of your time visiting all the finest restaurants in the city, you tend to wind up befriending the people who work there." Goro said, putting a napkin down on his lap. "Not doing so when you see them so many times is just bad manners. Plus, if you make them think you like them, you eventually start getting all sorts of perks."

"Always with the ulterior motive; fourth grade softball, all over again," Ren said, using a napkin to wipe some dirt off of his hands before putting it back on the table.

It was very easy for one to find contrast between Goro and Ren. Where Goro sat with perfect posture, Ren, while not acting completely slovenly, sat with a very visible slouch. Where Goro's brown hair fell into a short, clean cut, Ren's was a curly mess that would look like that, even if he actually tried using product. Goro often put formal clothing into his everyday selection, his current outfit consisting of a double-breasted silver sport coat, dress pants, and black gloves, and he always looked comfortable in those clothes. Ren, on the other hand, was never relaxed in formal wear, much rather preferring the comfort of casual clothing; even now, he kept pulling on the collar of his uniform every few seconds to let some air flow into his chest. Nevertheless, it was this kind of contrast that helped the two of them get along and was welcomed with open arms.

"Uniform a little tight, Ren?"

"'Little' is an understatement, Goro. At least the one I wore at my old school let me breathe. Can't wait for the summer months when I can at least ditch the blazer."

"It's not that bad; I get by, just fine," Goro said, stopping to take a sip of water. "Still, to think that we're going to the same school, again. We haven't done that since junior high, right? That's pretty exciting."

"Be more exciting if there were actually good circumstances behind it," Ren said, forcing Goro's smile to drop like a hot potato in the butteriest of butter fingers.

"Right.

"I tried to do something, Ren. The picosecond I was free, I got your case file faxed over to me and went over every inch of it. It was too much for me, though. That guy who sued you had so much money and so many connections that I couldn't even get his name and face from the higher-ups. He went to so much trouble to punish you for something that wasn't even your fault..." Underneath the table, Goro started locking his napkin in a vice grip.

"It makes me sick. Police officers like myself are supposed to prevent situations like this, yet we… yet I was completely powerless. Just thinking about how that bastard was able to get away from this without a scratch on him because of how powerless I was-"

"Goro, stop," Ren cut in, putting an arm out in front of himself. "You didn't fail me. I know you did everything you could, so you don't have to beat yourself up for it. Yeah, this whole thing sucks, but there's nothing we can do about it, so… I just need to make the most of it."

"Right, sorry," Goro said, releasing his napkin. "Let's just order something, assuming my outburst didn't ruin your appetite."

"It'd take a lot more than that to ruin my appetite," Ren said with a smile that put Goro's mind at ease.

Above all else, I'm just glad that one of us can be strong.

"Home sweet home. Well, I guess that's the case for the both of us, now." After the brief moment of discourse, Goro and Ren enjoyed a pleasant meal of lively conversations and dishes so fancy and delectable that the mere act of describing them would be insulting. Following that, the two of them made their way to Goro's loft in the city, where Ren would be living for the next year.

"Nice place you got here," Ren said, following a whistle. "Giant flat screen, Kirishima designer couch and chairs, dimmer switches. I guess you do have some style."

"I don't get why that's surprising," Goro said, ignoring Ren's eyeroll. "Your stuff was dropped off earlier, and I put it in the room down the hall on the far left. My room's right across from there, and please don't go into the room right next to mine. That's my study."

"You have a study? What do you do in there?"

"Exactly what the name implies, and I reiterate, don't go in there."

"Is the stuff you study porn?"

Goro merely furrowed his brow in response to this.

"Fine, fine, keep your secrets. Not a big deal."

"Thank you. Now it's not too late, but we're meeting with the principal of Shujin and your homeroom teacher tomorrow, so you should get some sleep, soon."

"Whatever you say, Mom."

"Love you too, bro," Goro said with a faux smile. Ren said nothing as he walked to his apparent room. Once Ren entered and closed the door behind him, Goro took the moment to sit down on the couch and let his head fall down in a solemn air.

"A whole year, together… A whole year of trying to make things right…"

It should go without saying that despite referring to each other as brothers, Goro Akechi and Ren Amamiya weren't actually brothers. Goro was born into a single parent home, his biological father having abandoned his mother not long after his conception. Even though they were poor and shamed by the community for being a broken family, Goro's mother did her best to raise him right. When she died, no one was more upset than Goro, mainly because he was the only person who actually would be upset.

After that, what followed were several years of Goro being bounced around from foster home to foster home, none of them ever being able to stick. Some were distant relatives only looking for government stipends, others were strangers who treated him like a piece of furniture the second child services weren't around. There wasn't really any time after his mother's death where Goro thought that he was truly happy. At least, of course, until he was adopted into the Amamiya family.

The Amamiyas were a family of three who lived in the suburbs of Kyoto. An unassuming bunch who, for an eight-year old Goro, were a Godsend. The father, Raizo Amamiya, had a stern attitude that masked an overall kind person who treated everyone with respect, never raised a hand in anger, and always taught his family to do the right thing for others. The mother, Runa Amamiya, had a kindly disposition that masked nothing on account of her being a person who wore her heart on her sleeve, showered companions with affection and praise just for fun, and always taught her family to always have a positive outlook on life. The son, Ren Amamiya, had a quiet personality that masked a person who thought hard about everything, acted only when necessary, and wasn't afraid to speak his mind.

Out of the three of them, it was Ren who Goro bonded with the fastest. While it didn't take long for Goro to accept that Raizo and Runa's kindness was genuine, too many past experiences with less than stellar guardians made it difficult for Goro to open up to them as fast as he would've liked. However, those guardians were always childless adults who never even considered how important raising a child could be, a clear factor in why they always turned out so poorly. As a result, Goro had no prior biases towards what it would be like to have a sibling, giving him a fresh start with Ren.

If Goro had to guess when things truly took off, it would have to have been when a seven-year old Ren started a certain conversation on a certain day.

"I'm pretty sure you were adopted because of your name," Ren said.

"My name?" An eight-year old Goro asked on a certain day in response to this.

"Yep. Dad's 'Raizo,' which has 'Ra,' Mom's 'Runa,' which has 'Ru,' I'm 'Ren' which has 'Re,' and you're 'Goro,' which has 'Ro.' It's like they're trying to have a complete set, or something."

"Is that right? I guess they'll just be biding their time until they can add a 'Rikichi' or 'Rinshou' to the family, then. I wonder if they'll even notice me until that happen."

"Do you not know what a joke is, or something?"

"I'm sorry?" Goro asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Why would I actually mean any of that stuff? What kind of people would adopt someone just to complete some kind of collection?"

"You'd be surprised by some of the reasons a person would take in an orphan." Goro looked at Ren in anticipation for another response, but he said nothing.

Instead, Ren walked over to Goro and gave him a quick, yet tight embrace.

"Is that alright, Goro?"

"Yes, that's alright," Goro said with a smile.

From that moment onward, Goro and Ren were the best of brothers and the best of friends, virtually inseparable from one another. Their only real separation came when Goro moved to Tokyo to go to high school, but that was a situation out of his control. Even living hundreds of miles apart from each other, the two of them still managed to stay in contact with one another, however limited the opportunities for that were between their respective schoolings and Goro's own work as a detective.

Then came what Goro considered the worst day of his life. A month prior, not long after the school year had ended, Goro received a rare call from his adoptive father in which he was told that Ren had been arrested. That he had attacked an innocent man on the street for seemingly no reason and was moments from doing the same to a passing woman. That he was being sued for assault, was expelled from his school, and was on the verge of being sent to juvenile hall.

It took all Goro had within him to not storm out of the police station and hop onto the next bullet train to Kyoto, an act made slightly easier by the chief making him finish up the latest mental shutdown case. Once that was taken care of, Goro called his family back to get Ren's side of the story. According to Ren, the man in question was drunk and trying to force a woman to get into a car with him. All Ren did was tell him to stop, but the man tripped over his own two feet and, in a fit of rage, blamed Ren and forced the woman to say that he was attacked.

This can work, Goro told himself. Ren's innocent! That means there's a chance.

Keeping this thought in mind, Goro had a copy of the case file faxed over from Kyoto so he could look over every millimeter of it and figure out what sort of help he could provide as an officer of the law.

The answer, in this case, was none. From looking over the case file and calling the chief of police in Ren's town, Goro discovered that the person Ren allegedly assaulted had somehow arranged it so his name was completely redacted from the record, so no one actually even knew who was suing Ren. Not only that, but the man had hired a large team of lawyers just to take down a high school student, allowing Goro to conclude that he was an extremely petty, well-connected individual, the worst kind of person to have a lot of cash.

There's nothing I can do, he concluded. Rens innocent, but he has no chance. Some entitled asshole is going to ruin his life for no reason, and I'm completely powerless! Do I really have to just sit back and watch Ren fall apart?!

The trial came and passed. Just as Goro predicted, the court was rigged against Ren and he was pronounced guilty, without hesitation. However, all was not lost. When Goro initially went over the case, he had, in his state of rage, forgotten about the fact that this was Ren's first offense. That, combined with him being a minor, made the judge express a bit of leniency and give Ren a chance: spend a year on probation without getting into any trouble, and his record would be cleared.

It seemed simple enough, but how, exactly, was Ren supposed to carry out this sentence? Ren still needed to go to school (dropping out was probably not the best course of action, given the circumstances), but now that he had been marked a criminal, no school in Kyoto would be willing to accept him. Even if there was such a school, Ren would still be forced to spend a year being judged and ridiculed by his peers for a crime he didn't commit. Such an environment would make it impossible for him to properly survive a year of probation; for all Goro knew, the people there might even conspire against Ren. No, Goro couldn't allow for Ren to have to deal with that.

That's why Ren's living with me, Goro thought to himself. Part of Ren's probation calls for a guardian to monitor his rehabilitation, and as soon as the judge learned that his brother was the would be Second Detective Prince, it was easy for me to get the job. Thanks to that, Ren was able to leave Kyoto, spend his year of probation at a Tokyo school without judgemental eyes, and, as far as the court is concerned, "be under the watchful eyes of a truly upstanding individual." What a joke.

"You're going to get through this, Ren," Goro said. "I'm going to do everything I can to help you, to make sure you can survive this. You can count on at least that much."

Finished with his aside, Goro stood up from the couch and headed off towards his room. In the midst of the walk, Goro pulled out his phone to check his email and see if he had any missed calls. Neither were present on his phone, but what was present, curiously enough, was the mysterious app he had deleted, earlier that day.

"What the hell? Is it really some kind of virus?" Not willing to ponder the thought for more than three seconds, Goro deleted the app, once again.

"If it shows up a third time, I should probably get a new phone. Hope this isn't happening with Ren's phone, at least."

Letting the sentence fall off into the air, Goro shoved his phone back into his pocket and continued walking to his room. After entering it, Goro changed into Kirishima silk pajamas, engaged in five minutes of calisthenics, and quickly fell asleep.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Goro! Hey, Goro! Wake up!" Someone's voice woke Goro up from his slumber. Goro wished that wasn't the case, though, because his current location was decidedly not his room, it was a jail cell padded with what appeared to be blue leather. The rattling of chains and the dripping of water in a toilet quickly caught Goro's attention, but they were quickly drowned out by the sound of singing that put even the finest opera houses to shame accompanied by a piano that made even the best look like amateurs.

Just what sort of dream am I having? was the first thought to enter Goro's mind. Why am I in a jail cell listening to opera music and… It was here that Goro took a moment to look at his current attire, a stereotypical prisoner's uniform and a pair of old style handcuffs locked around his wrists. This better be a dream, because that's the only way I'd tolerate having someone take my Kirishima clothing away from me.

"If you're awake, then get over here, Goro!" There was that voice again, as loud and obnoxious as it was, before.

I'm coming! Just shut up, disembodied dream voice! Goro stood up from the cold bench that had replaced his bed and moved towards the bars of his cell, a process that took more effort than walking typically did on account of the apparent ball and chain around his right ankle. Once Goro reached the bars, he saw that the interior of the area was a circular bricked floor, the bricks the same blue as the leather padding of his cell, and the floor was surrounded by jail cells identical to his own.

I don't see anyone across from me. Is the owner of that voice in a cell next to mine? How am I supposed to look, though? Goro looked around the cell for something that could be used to solve the problem. The walls? Nothing. Immediately outside of the cell? Nothing. On the floor? Something. The something being a piece of reflective glass. Convenient, but as Goro picked it up from the ground, he didn't choose to complain.

Okay, let's see, now… Goro thought to himself as he stuck the glass outside of the cell. Who, exactly, is joining me in this dream… After a few seconds of angling the glass, a figure was finally captured within it. A figure dressed the same as Goro. A figure Goro knew all too well.

"Ren?!"

"I knew that was your snoring, Goro," Ren said. "Took you long enough to get over here. I mean, I'm assuming you got one of these ball and chain things on your leg, too, but still, you'd think the people in my dreams would be more cooperative."

"What are you doing here? I know that if I ever dreamed up something like this, I'd never allow for my subconscious to put you in it, with me. ...Hold on. Back up. Did you say this was your dream? This is my dream, Ren."

"No, it's not?" Ren responded, eyebrow raised in a quizzical manner. "This is my dream, Goro. I think I'd be able to tell."

"No, you wouldn't. You wouldn't be able to tell because this is my dream, something that I'm able to figure out because I'm the one experiencing it."

"See, the thing about that is… you're wrong."

"Will you just-"

""Ahem!"" One voice, two voices, dual voices interrupted the two of them, in spite of no one other than Goro and Ren being present. Or, at least, that was the case up until a second ago. Now, standing in front of Goro and Ren's cells were two little girls dressed like prison guards (if prison guards wore dark blue shirts and black shorts, of course). Both girls had silver hair, one done up in buns, the other tied into a braid. Braid, the one in front of Goro's cell, wore a hat with the letters "O," "Y," "O," and "O" on it and held a clipboard in a gloved hand while Buns, the one in front of Ren's cell, wore a hat with the letters "X," "M," "R," and "N" on it and held a riding crop in a similarly gloved hand. The final point of commonality between the two of them was the fact that they both stared at Goro and Ren with a single golden eye, Braid's right, Buns' left, and their other eyes were covered in an eyepatch with the letter "V" on it.

"So which one of us dreamt up the tiny cosplayers?" Ren asked.

"I have no idea," Goro said before turning his attention back to the two girls.

"Well, well, well, looks like the Inmates have finally come to," Buns said.

"'Inmates'? Is that why we're locked up in these cages?" Ren asked. "What the hell did we do to deserve this?"

"Do not fret over this," Braid said. "The two of you in reality are currently fast asleep. You two are only experiencing this as a dream."

"Wait, so is this a dream, or isn't it?"

No response.

"Ren and I both think that we're the ones having a dream, but that doesn't make sense. And now that you're saying we're 'experiencing' this as a dream. What's that supposed to mean?"

No response.

"Answer me!" The response was Braid slamming her clipboard against the bars of his cell, the vibrations making him step back a bit.

"Settle down, Inmate!" Buns shouted. "And you and your brother stand up straight! You're in the presence of our master!"

"'Master'?" Ren asked.

The girls still gave no response. In lieu of one, they both turned around and stepped aside so the two brothers could better see what was in front of them. The "what," in this case, was no longer just more cells. In the center of the room, where there once was nothing, there was now a wooden desk with a balding man sitting at it dressed in a black suit and white gloves. In contrast to the girls, that was essentially the only thing that looked normal about his appearance when one factored in his bulging, bloodshot eyes and a nose so massive that it looked like something one would see on the mythical tengu.

"Tricksters…" the man started, his voice booming, his mouth never moving from a ghastly grin as he extended an arm out towards Goro and Ren, "welcome to my Velvet Room."

Velvet Room? What the hell is a Velvet Room supposed to be? Goro thought.

"I am pleased to make your acquaintance," the man continued. "This place exist between dream and reality, mind and matter. It is a room that only those bound by a 'contract' may enter. My name is Igor, and I am the master of this place, remember it well.

"I summoned the two of you here to speak of important matters. They involve your lives, as well."

"What?!" Goro shouted. Our lives… Ren's life?!

"Let us out of here!" Ren shouted. In response, Buns banged her riding crop, one that was apparently electrified, against the bars of his cell, forcing him to step back.

"Know your place, Inmate! Who do you think you're talking to?!" Buns shouted. Through his piece of glass, Goro could see that Ren had calmed himself down.

"Still, this is a surprise…" Igor said. "This room reflects the state of the heart of its guest. To think that it would become a prison. Even more surprising, however, is that it would house two guests, at once. Ren Amamiya… Goro Akechi, you truly are 'prisoners' of fate. In the near future, there is no doubt that ruin awaits the two of you.

"'Ruin'?!" Goro shouted, panicked eyes glancing at the glass in his hands.

"Is this some kind of joke?" Ren asked.

"Worry not. There is a means to oppose such a fate," Igor said. "The two of you must be rehabilitated… rehabilitated towards freedom. That is your only means to avoid ruin. Do the two of you have the resolve to challenge the distortion of the world?"

"I'd rather avoid ruin..." Ren said.

What the hell is even going on here? Goro, on the other hand, was less decisive.

Ruin? Rehabilitation? Distortion of the world? It's like we're being asked to save the world, or something. Us! Ridiculous!

Even still, why do I care? This should all just be a dream, none of it should even matter, yet I can't stop myself from feeling anxious. Why, though? That doesn't make sense, so why am I doing it? Why am I…

"...Same here. Ruin would probably suck."

"Very well," Igor said. "Allow me to observe the path of your rehabilitation." As Igor finished his statement, Braid and Buns turned back around towards Goro and Ren.

"Ah, pardon me for not introducing the others. In front of you, Ren, is Caroline. In front of you, Goro, is Justine. They serve as wardens, here."

""'Wardens'?"" Goro and Ren repeated.

"Hmph! Try and struggle as hard as you like," Caroline said.

"The duty of us wardens is to protect inmates," Justine said. "We are also your collaborators. That is, if you remain obedient."

"I shall explain the roles of these two at another occasion," Igor said, as if he expected to see them, again. "Now, then, it seems the night is waning… it is almost time. Take your time to slowly come to understand this place. We will surely meet again, eventually…"

"What are you talking abo-" Before Ren could finish his statement, a bell sounded throughout the room.

"It appears that our time is up," Justine said.

"You've gotta be kidding me!"

"As if," Caroline said. "Now hurry up and go back to sleep."

"Hold on!" Goro shouted. "I still have tons of questions! You better answer them, or-" Before Goro could finish, he was already thrown back into sleep.

So this is the first time I'm writing fanfiction in a long ass while. Let's see if I'm any good at it.