I have lived my life best I could no matter how harsh or how strange the conditions were. My older sister has given so much for me since our parents left our lives. It has started to eat away at her heart in mind, so much so that she is changed, becoming someone I hardly recognize. I worked so hard as a student to reach the top of my class in Shujin Academy that I nearly became like her myself... Thankfully, I had friends who saved me from a terrible situation I threw myself into, as well as from myself. With them I joined the Phantom Thieves and grew stronger because of it. However, our most recent target has died due to mysterious figure who is framing us. Our newest recruit, ace detective and nuisance, Goro Akechi is aiming us in a new direction to catch this culprit. The source of the mental shutdowns. In order to get to the culprit, we will need bait, another target.
This target is my sister, Sae.
I wait at home with an awkward pit in my stomach. How am I going to face her knowing that her target is now targeting her? Do I just live each day like nothing is happening between us? I hear her soon enough fiddling with the lock and talking with someone. When the door opens I find myself taken aback when a child runs in excited as he looks around.
"It's so small...! Kinda cramped isn't it?"
Sis walks in after him looking even more tired than usual, yet she has a smile on, even when taking the boy by his ear with a her usual stern tone.
"That's why you will be sleeping on the couch. You have a sleeping bag, right?"
"Ow! O-Owowowow! Yes! I do! Yes ma'am!"
"Good. Now behave."
Watching this scene play out before me is surreal. Sis never brought a stranger home, especially a child, how else was I supposed to react with outside of disbelief?
"Sis?! W-Who's this? Could you please explain all of this for me?"
Sis flashes a glare she always sent my way when she didn't want to be bothered. She huffs a breath and makes her way to her laptop on the kitchen table.
"It's a long story, how are your studies coming along, you're not being distracted are you?"
Always my grades. It is her go to when she does not want to talk or needs to focus on something if she finds herself idle.
"I'm not. I'm still top of the class."
"Good. Don't grow complacent. The higher your scores the better the school we can send you after graduation."
"Yes..."
I grew quiet as I look between Sis and the boy who stares back at me. Soon we find ourselves simply staring at each other. He waves at me with a friendly smile. Sis spoke up as I wave back.
"Okay... This is Karol. He doesn't have anywhere to stay, so for the short time being, he'll be staying with us. He shouldn't cause too much trouble, right Karol?"
Sis flashes her signature glare at him. He must already know her as he seizes up like a soldier at attention. She relaxes and closes the laptop before addressing me again.
"I can't watch him all day due to my own agenda, so while you're not at school, could you watch over him for me? I need to look into a few things regarding his records."
My eyes widen. Tomorrow is Saturday, and it has already been booked, it is on one of the bi-weekly Phantom Thieves meetings. I had set that up myself so I had to attend.
"A-Ah! But, tomorrow I have a study group to meet with! Isn't there anyone else that could-"
"No, and I have asked, but you're my last hope for this. Don't worry, he's not as troublesome as he looks, for the most part. Just take him with you."
Sis would never relent. I had to accept yet another responsibility forced upon me. She stands and takes a seat next to me. An apologetic face on...
"I know I haven't been the best sister to you, Makoto. You really have worked yourself to the bone, don't think I don't notice, things are just difficult right now. Please help me here."
"... Sure, Sis. I don't think I could say no to that."
I smiled but wanted to kick myself for answering with that of all things. What else could I have said though?! Sis never was one to beg or be vulnerable... As I recalled this my gaze returns to Karol. He sat there on the ground fiddling with his large bag. He pulls out some questionable items before taking out yen bills and coins. An alarming amount of bills and coins. He looks to Sis waving one handful of bills her way.
"Hey! Hey, Sae! Where should I put the money? You said to give you half right?"
I look at her stunned as she simply put her face in her hands with a small chuckle.
"I... May have found a temporary solution to our financial security. Karol is small but resourceful. I'm going to take a bath and go to bed. You two should do the same after me. I need the rest."
Karol nods and shoves everything back into his bag. No wonder it is so big. As Sis left, I take notice of the stitches on the back of her shirt, and my face must have shown this as Karol grew nervous. Leaving us alone, I thought now could be a good time to learn about this mystery, as well as why Sis had taken such an interest in him. I take a spot by him and kneel down offering a hand.
"So, Karol-kun. It's nice to make your acquaintance."
He takes it with a rather firm grip for someone his age.
"It's nice to meet you too... Uh..."
"I'm Makoto. Looks like I'll be looking after you then. I'm not like my sister, but I do keep busy, I hope that won't be a problem."
Karol shakes at me before he holds up a strange looking phone.
"I've got this to keep me busy too! Don't worry, I'll stay out of the way."
"Well I guess..."
Karol seems like any other kid. Sure his clothes were weird but that is harmless. I have a few more questions to ask him.
"Where did you get so much money? Don't take this wrong way but it looks incredibly suspicious..."
Karol did not look or sound guilty. In fact he looks suspicious of me.
"How come you don't have this much money?"
I am not sure how to properly react to that answer. He is so small and silly looking that I nearly mistook the question for a joke.
"Ahaha... Well, I don't have a job, though I do save my allowance. It's just that you don't see too many adults just pulling out cash confetti from their wallets."
"Oh...! Well... Consider it my job! It's commission, so I don't get paid often, but I get a lot with what little I get. I'm a hard worker after all."
That comes as a surprise. Is Karol an apprentice? There is no way he could legally be working. I need to get a real answer soon. I have just the question for him.
"Karol? Why did my sister have stitches on her favorite shirt? She rarely finds herself in scuffles nor the type to clumsily tear her clothes. Would you know anything about that?"
I had to really hit him with full force. I must be getting better with being intimidating seeing as Karol grows even more nervous. He glances away from me and fiddles with his fingers.
"I... Uh... No comment."
That irked me. However, getting angry or forceful would not solve this, I had to be reasonable. I lean away from him and smile.
"We'll be living together for a bit. She's my sister as well, don't you think it's only right I have an idea of what's going on, Karol?"
Joker must be rubbing off on me because I could see it. Karol's lips quiver as he turns his head away from me now. His eyes look back to me. Just a bit more and I would have my answer. Before I could press him further, Sis returns in her favorite bathrobe, calm and cool as always after she takes a hot bath. She looks to us both.
"Are you two getting along?"
We both nod at her in unison. That must have done the trick as she made her way to her room.
"Good. Go to bed now, it's far too late in the evening for talking, you'll have all of tomorrow to do that."
"Yes Sis."
As I left, I find myself stopped by Karol for just a moment, he whispers to me.
"I-I'll tell you everything later...!"
A pleasant surprise. I nod as he releases my hand and make my way to my room.
"... That's nice to hear. Good night now."
The next morning starts the same as any other. In fact I began to think the whole meeting with Karol was a dream. Sis had left another one of her notes on the table next to my breakfast.
I'll be headed to the office to make up for lost time investigating the case. Study hard but do take some breaks in between sessions. Be careful when walking around town. Don't get involved with anyone unsavory and stay out of trouble you two.
Sae,
A sigh escapes my lips as I sit down. Sis treats me like a child even when she scolds me to grow up. Then I notice something odd. You two. Who could she be talking about. It could only be Karol, but he is nowhere to be seen, I could only find his bag as I got ready for the day. It sits there at the door with another note on it. However, I can not read the writing, it was too thick and jagged yet also too neat to be chicken scratch. Almost another language entirely. I throw it away and find myself at an impasse.
You see, my own personal handbag had gone missing, I could not have misplaced it and Sis hardly touches my things these days. Curosity further drives me to the bag, but it isn't mine to dig through, and I was on a time limit. Perhaps Karol went outside for a walk? I could not be sure, he certainly was no longer here, and so I decide to take his bag with me.
It is lighter than it looks to be. I catch a few glances on my way out and around town, I certainly could not blame them, but the trip to Shujin was none too difficult... I certainly did look rather silly in the eyes of my peers as I walk through the halls though. I found my friends soon enough on the second year hallway, being a third year myself is convenient, since it allows me to see them before going to class. I approach them with a smile.
"Good morning everyone. I hope you're all doing well?"
Ryuji, a blonde delinquent with a good heart but vulgar tongue, rudely points at me with this desperate tone in his voice.
"Makoto! Thank God, you can tell these two the truth, they think I'm lying!"
I turn to our fellow students, Ann and a quiet boy we've taken to calling Joker, although there was a third individual among them. A cat pokes his head from Joker's bag with a glare at Ryuji.
("That's cause you ARE lying! Makoto, great timing, please set the record straight with this idiot!")
I look between them all with my brow raised. Not at the cat being able to talk, I have grown accustomed to Morgana, but he and Ryuji always argue with each other. Rarely am I the subject though.
"Keep your voices low. Could someone explain to me what I'm supposed to be refuting here?
Ann rolls her eyes and waves off both of them as she answers.
"Ryuji thinks you have some lost relative or something because he, apparently, saw Niijima-san with some kid."
"Yeah!"
Ryuji interjected. His mouth flying off the handle as usual.
"I keep telling you guys that I was there! It was totally Sae with a kid! Hey-!"
He snaps at me and points at Karol's bag.
"T-That's the bag I was talking about too! See? It even has the effin' jewel I was talking about on it!"
Ann leans over as I show the bag off. I had never noticed the odd emblem it held until now. Morgana scoffs and looks to me.
("So what? There are probably tons of bags like that! Lady Ann, you're our fashionista, can't you say something?")
"I sure can. It's way too big to be a trend. Plus it's kinda bland without the jewel. You could probably use it for something like camping or whatever. Why are you even using it Makoto?"
All eyes fall on me. I can feel a small bead of sweat on my brow as I brush my hair with my fingers trying to laugh their intense stares away.
"W-Well I can't speak for my sister's actions, but there is some truth to Ryuji's claim, this bag isn't mine. She did in fact bring a boy to our apartment last night. This is his."
Morgana groans and sinks into Joker's bag as Ryuji laughs triumphantly.
"I may have been off a bit, but now you know I'm right, yeah-!~"
("Ugh... Whatever! You guys are about to be late for class so get to it!")
"O-Oh crap! See you after school!"
We all went our separate ways; I make it to class just on time though. As the teacher spoke and I took notes, I knock my eraser off my desk, garnering a slight groan that turns to a sharp gasp.
A gloved hand comes out of the bag and takes the eraser. It then offers it back to me. I shake my head sweating some as I can feel the color of my skin fading away. I barely manage to keep myself low enough to a whisper as I hesitantly take the eraser.
"K-Karol...?! Is... That you?"
The hand gestures into a thumb up before slipping back into the bag. I can not believe this. I have to be hallucinating; I am having a strange dream in the middle of class. I will wake up if I pinch myself. I jump before I get the chance as the hand taps my leg.
"... W-What...?"
I could just hear him whisper back to me as I try not to draw too much attention to myself. Which is incredibly difficult in my position in class.
"I gotta go to the restroom...! There is one at school right...?"
"Did you not go at home?! O-Okay hold on...!"
It was not too difficult to excuse myself. If anything I could come and go as I please, though I would never abuse this privilege, it came in handy. I stop just outside the restrooms and look around cautiously before I set the bag down.
"Okay, coast is clear. You can come out now."
I watch in suspense, then awe, as Karol seamlessly hopped out of his own bag. He runs into the boys restroom and soon comes back out with his gloves placed in between a belt loop.
"Thanks for that! I thought I wouldn't make it... Whoa!~ So this is your school? It looks... Pretty official."
"And you look very out of place! How did you even fit yourself in the bag!? Does Sis know about this?!"
"... We-Well... She knows that the bag could hold me...!"
I bring my hands to my face mumbling incoherently even to myself.
"I don't even know what to do with this information..."
"I'll just stay in the bag until you leave school! You won't even know I'm here!"
"... Is this what it's like for Joker? Fine, just keep yourself quiet, you really aren't supposed to be here."
I lower my hands and gasp again. Even though I saw him jump out, it is still alarming to see him go back in, especially so cautiously. Once he is inside and I had gathered my bearings, we return to class, the rest of the school day proceeding as normal. With the final bell, I take leave of the classroom and begin to do my part in cleaning the school, and for once I am glad to say rarely do I receive help in this area. Once I was sure we were alone, I open the bag to see Karol asleep, and lower it to the ground.
"Wake up, Karol. School is over and we need to talk."
"Huh-?! Oh... Sure."
He lazily drags himself out of the bag and onto his feet with a yawn.
"Wha'sit we supposed to do now?"
"What's your deal. What is it that you and Sae are so insistent on telling me? I'll have you know I've only tolerated this for so long for her sake. Please, come clean now or I won't be held responsible for my actions."
That woke him up. He is not as nervous as before. Karol reaches into his bag and pulls out the strange smart phone.
"Okay, okay. A few days ago, I woke up in an alley in this town, with this in my hands. It alerts me to... Jobs I have to do. I'm really trying to make sense of it."
"You're not. What is this job you keep alluding to?"
"It-It's...!"
The device starts to vibrate and light up with the screen detailing the image of a strange creature. It had to be an avian of a kind. Karol looks at it with a determined glare before looking around, clueless.
"Are there any stairs to the roof?"
"Yes, just down the hall, but what does that have t-"
He snatches his bag off the ground and makes a mad dash for the stairs. I could hardly believe it as I ran after him shouting.
"Karol! Get back here this instant! You're not supposed to be there!"
I follow him up to the roof and to a scene I thought I would only see in my activities as a Phantom Thief. Another friend and fellow member, Haru, had set up a garden she grows here. I do my part so neither student nor staff bothers her. However, she and I stand dumbfounded at the sight before us, a giant bird with thick feathers swoop down on Haru with a cry. She dives to the ground and narrowly escapes the razor talons. The wind it carries behind it as it flies back up almost knocks me back down the stairs.
"Ha-Haru! Quick! Get inside!"
She ran for me as I hold the door open. My eyes scan the roof for Karol; they fly wide as I find him climbing the railway to keep students from falling. He shouts loudly as he waves at the monster bird. This of course led me to shouting at him as I run to stop his suicidal attempt.
"Karol, no! Get down from-"
The shrill cry of the giant hawk interrupts me as it comes down for us both. It leans up to take my head within it's talons, and it nearly did, until Karol jumps off the fence with a pickaxe as big as himself in hand.
He stabs it deep within the shoulder of the hawk and causes it to falter, yet still grabbing me by my own, it takes us both into the sky. It is hard for me to see from under it, but I could still see Karol dangling from his weapon, he takes one hand off it to his bag.
He takes the bag off of his shoulder and swings it at the head of the giant hawk. Heavy pounding and crunches sound with each strike, even the head moves about. I hope that Karol's assault really does hurt this thing. I look around and scream as we near a building. It thrashes and flips Karol on it's back.
The hawk proceeds to slam it's own back against the window and drag itself along the side until we reach the edge. I hold up my arms to keep the glass from hitting my body; flying away from the windows, I find a glass shard in my leg and take it out stab at the claws digging into my shoulder.
I manage to get enough hits in for it to release me. Unfortunately, I did not calculate how high we were, shortly entering free fall as I descend.
Just as I near the lower buildings, I land onto something soft with a hand grabbing me, still alive with all of my limbs in tact.
"I got you! Just hang on tight!"
"K-Karol!?"
He looks far worse than I, as did the bird, the pickaxe now sticking out of head. He must have stayed on top of the hawk when it crashed against the building. He holds onto the furry feathers of the hawk and pulls me up to his side.
"I think I cracked the head open! He's starting to fly real low now!"
"THIS IS INSANE! HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO GET DOWN WITHOUT CRASHING?!"
"Uh..."
He shrugs at me as I took hold of the hawk. Fearfully, he makes his way up the back and to the neck before standing up, taking hold of the pickaxe to stable himself.
"K-Karol?! What are you doing!?"
"Trying to land it...! Ngh!"
Holding on tightly to the handle of the pickaxe, Karol jumps and stomps down on the head of the hawk. Each stomp lowers it to the ground. Soon we enter a green park with trees. Knocking itself into them, the hawk crashes and throws us both off of it, all three of us tumbling to the ground.
My body aches all over. I can barely feel my shoulder and it takes my all just to sit up. It looks like we landed in Inokashira Park. I can hear the hawk's weakened cries; it helplessly squirms in a dirt trail mafe from the crash. Karol groans before turning the pickaxe on the blunt side as he approaches the monster. A final swing flattens the head.
He pants heavily and puts the oversized weapon into his bag. Drained of stamina, he falls on his back with a tired sigh, his hands over his face.
"This thing was sooo weak! Why did it give me so much trouble!? I have to be better for the next one..."
"... Next one...?"
Oh no. No no no. I did not like hearing that one bit. I stand to my feet marching over to him. I have had enough stalling.
"No more deflecting questions, Karol. You're going to answer my questions, now!"
To my amazement he looks more frightened of me than the giant bird he killed.
"I-I know! I know... Hey. Your shoulder is messed up! I can fix that!"
"Wha-! Didn't you just hear me?"
Karol ignores me and takes out yet another oversized weapon, although this broken greatsword looks more viable than the pickaxe from before, he slams it into the ground with a glowing circle forming on the ground.
Both of us find ourselves healed of our wounds. Karol still suffers from bruises and small cuts. His attention is then taken from me and moves back to corpse. It vanishes under a dark cloud that evaporates quickly. It leaves behind one thousand yen and it's sharp beak.
Karol scoffs and pulls at his hair.
"Ah-! What!? That's it!? The spider gave more money than this!"
"Wait... Spider?"
"U-Uh...! Well..."
I find myself less angered at him now. Maybe because he did save my life, or probably because he had that kind of air about him, I shake my head and lower myself to eye level with him.
"Does Sae know about all of this?"
"Yeah. She's the one who told me to call it my job when people ask. I really wanted to tell you but... Would you have believed me before now?"
"... No. No I wouldn't."
I think it is worse in my case than with Sis... Fighting monsters was often as a Phantom Thief... Oh my God!
"I'm late! My shirt is a mess and I'm- Oh what am I going to do?"
Karol digs into his bag with a gasp.
"I can sew your shirt up! It's a cleaner cut than what Sae got, so I should make it look better, I've got tons of practice!"
"Wait Sae was in one of these monster attacks?!"
"...! I-I'll uh, I'll tell you on the way to your study group!"
I could not help but roll my eyes at that response. As I sat down to let Karol work, I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket, a sweet sense of relief rise in my chest upon realizing it is still by my side. I take it out and see the group chat flooded with messages from everyone.
It is going to be a long day.
