Skull and Panther looked at the pair from a distance, their stares were heavy with suspicion, unable to figure their identities. "Dude, who are they?" The girl felt that their voices were familiar, but couldn't pinpoint from where. "No need to worry, we can trust them." Mona jumped on Naoto's arms, nuzzling her. "Mroow! It's a blessing to have more comrades!" Joker approached the women, holding a friendly smile. "So, she was the friend you mentioned?" Naoto nodded and stood straighter, having recovered somewhat from the race. Rise schooled her shaky legs, she had risked her ankles on those stairs. "Risette here... oof..." Mona got curious at the way Joker's jaw dropped and the guy gawked at the idol. "You aren't pulling my leg, right?" Naoto shook her head. "It's the truth." The cat found himself snatched off from Naoto's hold, held in an enthusiastic embrace as he got subjected to vigorous petting. "What a cutie! So you're Morgana? Nice to meet you!" Rise held the cat against her chest and messed with his ears, enjoying the feel of the fluffy fur. "Nya~ This feels good~"

Then Joker noticed one thing. "Mona, do you know why they already have Phantom Thief clothes and the Persona masks?" This prompted the pair to look down and Naoto touched the item glued to her face. "So you were serious... Thank heavens." The thieves got curious at the clear relief from the pair. " Rise twirled on her feet, marveling at how the magenta skirt fluttered as the cat reached for the black feathers on her coppery mask. Then she let Mona go to check her pale grey blouse and green ballroom gloves. "I look like those western folks." Naoto didn't find fault on her new looks, the dark silver suit was easy to move in. "But why a cane?" She scrutinized the simple baton and took off her top hat. "Hey, your hair is short again!" Joker and Mona watched as the pair examined everything that was changed on them. "So...?" The cat shrugged at the question, he was clueless. "I have no idea. Perhaps it's due to their past adventures? Maybe their Personas simply went to hibernate from disuse. Then they reawakened here."

The blondes saw how their leader and pseudo-teacher were acting normal around those strangers, so they decided to give it a chance. "Yo pal, you know 'em?" Skull was still wary. "Yeah, they will be great allies, so be nice." Panther had her doubts, but they did need the manpower. "Alright then. What are their codenames?" Naoto and Rise snapped their heads to face them. "Codenames?" Mona gave them a brief run-down on the matter. "Hmm... That does have logic to it..." "Mu... What could be a good name...?" Rise fiddled with the red and gold veil covering her hair. Mona grinned as an idea popped in his mind. "You can be our Muse!" Rise sounded out the name in her head. "You're right, then I'll be Muse." Naoto was examining her own mask with her phone's screen. "It looks like an owl..." It covered three-fourths of her face, unlike the others, who only had their upper face hidden. "Do you need help?" Joker offered to think of a name for her. "No, I've decided. Call me Strix."

Once the codenames were decided and the mission was explained, Muse and Strix introduced themselves for the blondes. "We are members of a previous Persona group." This piqued their interest, but before they could ask, Mona called for everybody's attention. "This place, Mementos, is where all the Shadows unable to create their own Palaces gather, they share this vast underground and form a collective unconscious." Muse and Strix gazed at the sinister entrance. "It feels like Magatsu Inaba..." Mona explained the differences between Mementos and Palaces until the group noticed one issue. If the place was analogous to the subway system... "Are we gonna be able to get around just by walkin'...?" Mona shook his head, like an adult amused by a kid. "Morganaaa... transfoooooorm!" Strix secretly geeked out at how it sounded like those tokusatsu series. Then the cat became a van. "Ladies first."

The group was confused as to why Mona could do it. "This comes from the way cognition materializes in the Metaverse, plus training." Skull wasn't buying the half-assed answers from Mona. "For some reason, the concept of 'cats turning into buses' is extremely widespread." Strix shook her head as Muse smirked. "Bless you, Studio Gh*bli!" The teens stared at the adults, but the detective dismissed it, though. "It's an old movie, I'll show you later." After the teens got in the rear, Muse pleaded with Strix to be the driver, cheering when she gave up on protesting. "You'd better not smash up my dashing face, understood?" Muse looked at the dashboard and asked Mona for the ignition. "There's a switch just down next to the steering wheel." Motor purring, pedals and stick memorized, everybody settled down, it was all set to roll. "We're going full throttle! It's time to fly!" Strix sweated buckets at the manic grin her friend sported. "Heh, time for my Navigator skills!" Through instinct, she materialized the familiars of her Persona, that took the shapes of ghostly birds and flew into Mementos.

As the driver gripped the wheel confidently, Strix gulped the knot in her throat. "Kids, clench your teeth." The trio was confused at the advice and Mona got nervous. "Let's see... there are some Shadows... Hm... Wait, I think I found a place with distortions, that should be Nakanohara!" Mona was shocked out of his sprockets when Muse floored the gas, making the tires screech and the passengers get pressed to their seats. "Yahoo~" Strix had feared this. "Just don't get us killed." Panther was holding on Joker for dear life, then she saw a speck approaching at an insane speed. "Watch the Shadow!" Muse didn't even flinch at the speed bump. "What Shadow? Teehee~" Skull was glued to the backrest. "Eyes on tha road!" Muse had turned her head to face the teens, putting the fear of God in them. "Oi, you missed that one!" Joker, the madman, was the only one enjoying the rollercoaster, pointing out a fleeing Shadow that was trying to save its ass. "A'ight! Drift!" Skull found himself plastered to the door and with two people crushing him as Muse did a sharp turn, making Mona scream with terror. "Meeooow‼ How can a lady be this ruthless?!" Strix just covered her eyes to not see the carnage. "Whoohoo! Strike!"

~That's the way!~

Badou was writing a report for his prosecutor when he saw his surrogate niece pass by him, face full of worry. "Hey, Mikumo, what's up?" She stopped pacing and stood in front of his desk, gripping a strand of hair. "Well, I've been calling Naoto, but it keeps bouncing..." The man sighed and rubbed his temple. "Are you sure it's not just nerves?" The woman began swaying on the spot with antsy energy. "You might be right... but I was told that she was sent to keep tabs on that gang's territory..." Badou mulled over the matter, wondering why the girl got so attached to the newcomer. "Is it because she's one of the few younger than her?" He offered a lollipop to her, not knowing how to reassure the woman.

"Geh, this one is what? Tastes like some overly sweet syrup..." Badou grunted at her grimace. "That's the luck of the draw. I just bought what was on sale." He scratched his beard. "Maybe her phone is just at a place without a tower signal? Give it one day or so." Mikumo hung her head, still worried. "I do wonder why she asked all that to that reporter..." At this pace she would just get herself sick, so she decided to give his advice a try. "By the way, what is Kyouya making you do about Madarame?" Badou ruffled his hair. "Well, the brat thinks there's something fishy about the painter... He even let slip something about how his art feels fake..." Mikumo frowned. "Wait... Don't tell me we got another Ese in the works..."

The veteran crunched the sweet in his mouth. "Well, I still don't have all the details. But his financial state is a bit strange for such a famous painter." The woman rubbed her forehead, this situation did seem to be problematic. "Tax evasion...?" Badou smirked, she was catching on. "Add stellionate and forgery as well." The rockstar prosecutor wasn't going to let Madarame's fame keep his old arse from landing in prison. "Hn, and the kid is worried about Madarame's current pupil..." Mikumo then thought of what she knew about the painter. "... Now that you mentioned it, I don't think I've ever heard of any past pupils of his getting a break into the art scenario... They all ended up vanishing..." Badou stayed silent as her eyes widened. "Could it be...? Stealing the works of his pupils...?"

~It won't be like before...~

A van landed heavily on the tracks after going through a portal, there were some splotches of suspicious black matter on its chassis and it was trembling worse than a newborn fawn. "Let me get down...!" Panther pushed aside the boys and fell in an orz pose, letting out rainbow sparkles, maybe it was a mistake to have cake and milk before diving in Mementos. Once everybody got off, Mona reverted to his mascot self, curled on the ground and sucking his paw, the screams of the Shadows were branded in his mind. "Oof... that was some scary shit..." Skull was hunched over and holding his knees, attempting to calm his stomach. "At least we're mostly unscathed..." Strix was supporting herself on her cane, pacing her breathing. "That was great!" Joker and Muse were virtually glowing, eyes bright with joy, as if that eldritch ride was just a walk in the park. "Let's do that aga-" Strix grabbed their shoulders and leveled a terrifying glare as her grip became tighter. "I'll drive. No arguments. Understood?" The pair of speed demons gulped dryly, the petite detective was intimidating.

Nakanohara's Shadow watched the circus, undecided on whether he should flee with his tail between his legs, or if he should defend his territory. Once the thieves were mostly recovered from the ride, they faced the Shadow. "So that's our stalker!" Strix wondered if he was among the complaints assigned to her. "All right, let's go talk to him." Nakanohara grumbled about his ex-girlfriend as the thieves inquired about his motives to harass the woman. "It's not like she didn't treat me like a plaything! What's wrong with me doing the same?!" The teens got irritated at the man's stubbornness. "What about Madarame...?" Strix and Muse reacted with a start, one recalled her colleague and the other thought back to some strange rumors. "He stole everything from me, but you're letting him off the hook!?" Nakanohara dropped the human visage, ready to fight the thieves. Muse was the first to react, ripping off her mask. "Reveal his secrets, Le Fay!" A woman with a royal purple dress and a poisonous green cowl opened the intricately decorated book, granting Muse with knowledge about the creature. "Heh, it seems that it's your time to shine, Skull!"

The idol instructed her group to avoid getting physical and batter the Obariyon with their Personas. Joker used Mokoi's Skull Cracker to make it disoriented as Panther and Mona used their specialties to keep the Shadow in the defensive. "Burn him first! Then use Garu!" Skull sent one Zio when the Shadow was close enough, but it managed to endure. "Gigigiiih-! Curse you, thieves!" Strix blocked its claws with her cane when it attempted to lunge at her, then she reached up to her mask. "Time to close this up. Come, Irene." A lass with a deep blue suit and face hidden in shadows unsheathed the rapier, its blade glinted ominously before Tempest Slash struck down the Obariyon, forcing it to revert to its more human facade. "I-I was wrong... Please forgive me..." Nakanohara explained the circumstances that led to his obsession with his victim. "So Madarame did do something shady..." Strix wondered if Badou would heed her words if she attempted to steer him in the right path. "I'll put an end to my love for her..." Nakanohara had downcast eyes. "Won't you change Madarame's heart!?" He pleaded at Joker. "Please, before he makes more victims..." With these parting words, the Shadow faded away and left its seed of a Treasure.

Mona eyed the glowing orb with seriousness. "If we had left him be, this bud might have blossomed into a Palace." Joker took the symbol of Nakanohara's attachment and stashed it away. "So that's how you change hearts..." Muse was intrigued by this mechanic, then she wondered how they would know of the results. "If he does change, she'll prolly comment again." This success pumped up the teens, they now intended to use Mementos to train their Personas. "But, Madarame..." Strix was now trying to think of a way to covertly help that veteran. "Hold on, I still have something to show you before we leave." The humans got curious at Mona's tone. "But Strix will drive!" Following Mona's lead, the group came to face a strange corridor with a bizarre wall. "It's a dead end." But the cat wasn't disheartened, sure that there was a secret. "If my hunch is correct..." He touched the stone and it reacted, opening to reveal a stairway as the Meta-nav announced an update. "Just as I thought. When I came here before, there was no reaction." There was no way that the collective unconscious would have only one floor. "Now that the public knows of the Phantom Thieves, our existence is being ingrained in their shared perceptions."

It was now time to exit Mementos, so the group was now standing on the very first floor. "So going over the entry point is one of the exit methods..." Strix sighed, she and Muse were on a different spot when they entered the Metaverse. "Hey, aren't ya gonna tell us your real names?" Skull was still attempting to figure their real selves but came up empty. "Now that I'm thinking about it... are they...?" Panther kept her mouth shut, Skull would end up blabbing if he knew, and she still didn't know the reason those two seemed to want secrecy. "Mew, I will now explain my theory about that gate." The group circled Mona and paid attention. "As I said, this place is the public unconscious given form. So, I believe that our range of movement within is affected by the extent of the public's belief on us." Panther was curious as to why he knew so much despite his amnesia. "I don't know the answer, my mind is still foggy over some matters. That's why I wish to discover the secrets of Mementos, no matter what." Then he stood straighter, eyes glinting with inner steel. "And Mementos is also the source of Palaces, being the greatest source of distortions, so if we eliminate its focus, then I..."

Mona fell silent, but the thieves swore to aid him. "I hope you can regain what you've lost." Mona lowered his head, feeling hopeful at the support. "I'll... be relying on you guys." But then Panther just had to ask Mona's gender, sending Muse in a fit of giggles, which made the teens get curious. "Hahaha! Oh my gosh! Hahaha!" Strix covered her eyes and averted her face, increasing their interest. "I think we got a juicy story here..." Joker approached Muse and asked for an explanation. "Don't you dare-" Skull grabbed Strix and lifted her as a kid does with a cat. "Naw, tell us!" Muse controlled her giggles and held her stomach. "Back when we were about your age, Strix was considered a good catch." Panther didn't get the issue. "The thing is, she had everybody fooled, we all thought she was a dude." Joker and Skull were shaking with repressed laughter. "She even made one of our friends think that he was gay!" Strix struggled in Skull's hold until she landed a heel on his crotch, landing as he clutched his jewels. "That better be the only thing you tell them." Muse had a catty smirk. "Oh...? Are you afraid I'll tell them about your Shadow?" Muse taunted her friend. "Tell them, and I'll describe yours too!" She recoiled at Strix's words. "Oi! You weren't there!" The detective shook her head. "Yosuke and Teddie told me." The idol got a bloodthirsty aura. "Ahn? Then they're dead meat!" It was interesting to see a pair of adults bicker like kids.

Author-

I like short haired Naoto, deal with it. I hope you liked it.

Rise has Morgana Le Fay, and Naoto has Irene Adler. I already got their evolutions in mind.

If only I knew how to draw or got money for a commission...