I own nothing. Monika does.

Sayori gave Mai one last smile as she prepared to leave the library. The librarian smiled back before gesturing to Makoto, asking a silent question. The student council president was preparing to leave, and Mai was not blind to the fact that it was at the same time Sayori was preparing to leave. However, the pink haired girl gave an assuring wave of the hand, before turning away and exiting through the door.

Makoto's visit had shocked both of them. Still, the sudden arrival had also left confusion in Sayori, especially when the student council president stuck around, chatting as if they were lifelong friends. Sayori had decided to play along, knowing the real reason Makoto wanted to see her for had to wait until they weren't in the presence of prying ears. However, Sayori was determined to not let that interfere with her day.

"Sayori, could I speak with you for a moment?" Makoto asked as she fell in step beside the girl.

"Sure, though if it concerns 'you know what,' then you should probably wait until our next team meeting," Sayori spoke idly. She had a short pause in her step, turning to wave at a couple of friendly students. "Have a good day!"

"No. It's nothing to do with that, really. I guess it's just an embarrassing thing to ask," Makoto replied sheepishly. Slowing her own pace, she made the sure Sayori could still keep up. Afterall, the girl was pausing to speak talk to other students every few steps. Makoto couldn't help but feel a slight envy for the talent Sayori possessed in that regard.

"Go for it," Sayori said with a reassuring smile.

"Well, you already heard the things I admitted to Ann, all those rumors," Makoto began. "I was already having a bit of trouble communicating with my peers before. Now, it's gotten even worse."

"You know that stuff with Kamoshida wasn't your fault. He had a pretty tight grip on everybody," Sayori responded, attempting to stay reassuring.

"I realize that, and I also realize that it's a similar situation with Kaneshiro. But still, none of our classmates have realized that," Makoto said with remorse. "They all feel like there's something I could have done, and now that I've failed to provide that thing that they need, they don't really view me in the same light anymore."

"I thought you weren't going to worry about meeting high expectations anymore," Sayori responded. "Even so, I'm not worrying myself with something like that either. I'm probably the wrong girl to ask when it comes to restoring reputations."

"It's true that I'm not going to trouble myself with those things, at least not as much as before. However, you're wrong about being the wrong person to ask," Makoto now had a determined look in her eye. "When we fix this mess with Kaneshiro, things are going to return mostly back to normal. But one thing is going to remain the same… I'm still going to have a strained relationship with our peers."

Sayori tilted her head in confusion. "How exactly can I help with that?"

"I was wondering… could you help me fix that? Even though you barely even talk to anybody outside of your friend group, it's easy to tell that those around you are comforted in your presence… Also, you should know that everyone in the school knows your name," Makoto responded, shocking the girl.

"How did that happen?"

"The same way it happened with Akira, I suppose. Though I think people consider you less of a delinquent, and more of a mystery. That's besides the point, though. What I'm trying to ask is, will you help me reach out to my classmates?" Makoto asked. "It would be easier to stop thinking of myself as useless if I know that there are people who feel like they can count on me, without putting pressure on me like the adults all did."

Sayori smiled kindly in response. "Of course! I get it now… Don't worry, Makoto! I will teach you everything you need to know. By the end of our escapades in these coming weeks, you'll be waving and giving out high fives like you're the star of a parade!"

"Actually, I was just hoping you could do the talking for me…" Makoto replied awkwardly. "Like, I'd say one thing, and you would say it to everyone else, and vice versa."

"Nonsense! I'll even make you a little rhyme to help you remember your lesson," Sayori offered.

"Okay. I guess that works, too."

"Great." Finally reaching the entrance, Sayori was about to say goodbye to the student council president, when another thought struck her. "By the way, why did you feel like I should know that everyone knows my name?"

"Oh… Because in the past five minutes, I counted at least three boys staring at you in a rather uncomfortable way."

"What?!"


In his apartment, Goro Akechi shuddered slightly. Looking up from a pile of information on his newest case, he glared at empty space.

"Why do I feel like I'm about to be very annoyed, and more than likely upset?"

When nothing responded back, he shook off the uncomfortable feeling. He had work to do, after all.


"I'll have to talk more about that stuff with Makoto later, maybe I'll bring Ann along too. It might be nice to have a talk just between us girls," Sayori thought to herself as she walked to the hideout. The group had a very ambitious goal to complete as much of the Palace as possible. While Sayori trusted that their confidence was well deserved, she was mentally preparing herself to be exhausted.

The rest of the group was already waiting for her when she got there. Sayori blushed in embarrassment. The girl had payed a brief visit to the apartment, making sure that Goro knew she had a "club meeting." Hopefully it didn't sound too unreasonable when she explained that it may be a few hours.

"You're just in time, Sayori," Akira spoke quietly. "Meet your new classmate." He gestured at Makoto, confusing both girls immensely.

"Classmate? In what?" Sayori asked.

"The art of Phantom Thievery. You girls are both still learning about this stuff," Akira explained.

"In a sense, aren't we all still learning about that?" Yusuke pondered, causing Akira to sweat.

"Th-that's true… But still-"

"Let's not get too off topic," Makoto cut in.

"We should infiltrate Kaneshiro's palace and begin the heist," Morgana agreed.

"Yeah, let's go," Sayori said, but soon something occurred to her.. "Did you guys discuss anything important while I wasn't here?"

"Not much that you can't worry about later," Ryuji replied.

"The only thing you should know right now is that we have eighteen days to steal Kaneshiro's heart," Ann helpfully explained. "That's plenty of time though. Especially since we plan on getting as far as we can today."

"With that said, we should get going," Morgana said. The others all nodded in agreement. Soon enough, the subway was rippling like a piece of fabric in the wind. The Phantom Thieves of Hearts had begun their new mission.


"Queen is rather scary on the battlefield," Valiant thought to herself. This was one of the many times she would be glad to have the job of offering defense. Watching their newest member on the battlefield was rather intimidating. The way Queen crushed her enemies made Valiant thankful she was no longer someone in need of a change of heart.

"Valiant, the enemy is going to strike soon. Raise the defense!" Queen commanded. Sayori complied, making sure everyone was prepared to dodge the strike with her own abilities. After double checking that Panther was sufficiently out of enemy reach, Valiant hopped back to her position and raised her own shield. The guard dog's attack hardly reached its mark, let alone did any damage. Makoto gave the final strike, shouting "Fist of Justice!" As she did so.

"That was so easy. It was like disciplining a misbehaving pet with a rolled-up newspaper," Sayori commented, wanting to see what everyone thought.

"Uh, might wanna leave the clever quips to us, Valiant," Morgana replied with a cheeky smile.

The noble thief pouted. "You guys are so mean."


After bypassing several different security measures, riding on top of an elevator, and defeating a stupid amount of shadows, the group was finally starting to make it down to the lower floors. Kaneshiro's greed was much more suffocating down here.

Joker smashed yet another vase, a shattering sound echoing down the long hallway. Valiant couldn't help but cringe. "Seriously, how does nobody hear this?" However, that question would have to wait until another time, as the thieves were already moving. Going down a few staircases, the group noticed a surprising sight. Kaneshiro was talking to one of his guards by the elevator. From their earlier encounters with the shadows, it was easy to tell that this one would be tough to beat. The yellow uniform gave it away.

Walking up to the pair, Queen was quick to make their presence known. "Kaneshiro!" she shouted angrily.

The purple man turned in shock, a vein bulging on his forehead. "Y-You bastards… How did you get this far? What about my security!?" Valiant almost laughed. He seemed so surprised, yet there really was no reason to be.

"Sorry, that shit was a piece of cake for us!" Skull replied, the serious frown on his face saying he clearly wasn't sorry at all.

"Well, I wouldn't say it was that simple," Fox replied honestly.

Still, it was very clear that Kaneshiro was already on edge. "H-Hey, finish off these vermin here! Keep them away from the elevator at all costs!"

"Yes, because one guard is too much for us, even though we defeated two just like it not that long ago," Valiant thought confidently. It only made sense that they would be able to defeat this one just as easily. Giving her shield a quick inspection, the girl prepared to offer as much defense as possible.


"Where is Kaneshiro?!" Queen exclaimed after the battle. The greedy man had disappeared from sight, as the elevator shut behind him.

Skull growled. "He took off while we were busy fightin'."

"It's alright, Queen. We don't really need to face him right now, anyway," Valiant responded thoughtfully. "Besides, the less time I have to look at his ugly mug, the better."

Yusuke then noticed something on the ground. Picking it up, he began to closely inspect it. "While that is a fair point, his hurry to leave did us a small favor… Kaneshiro left this behind." The others all walked over to see what Fox was referring to. "It's a journal. Let us see what lies inside…" The blue haired thief said, opening the book and flipping to the only intact page.

Peeking around the tall boy, Valiant frowned. "With all of the technology in this place, I would at least think Kaneshiro would have a lock on a possibly important book."

"Not like we can't just break the lock anyway," Skull replied.

"True. I wonder what the code might be for?" Valiant wondered.

"Let's get on the elevator and find out," Mona replied enthusiastically.


"All of this running around for different codes. I hope whatever this treasure is, that it will be worth all of the effort," Valiant commented. "It would be disappointing if all we got out of this was an empty credit card or something."

"Well, making sure we don't spend the rest of our lives in debt or in prison is worth the effort," Akira replied. "Either way, we'll go out to celebrate after this."

"We've finally secured our route to the treasure," Morgana exclaimed happily. "Let's get out of here and start planning our calling card!"

"It will be quite interesting to see what we come up with," Fox agreed.

Sorry for the late update, folks. As you may know, there were problems with the site that prevented me from logging on and posting. Thankfully it's back on now, so here you go. I hope you enjoy the chapter. Please read, review, and I'll see you next time!