It's been a while since I update. I had a really long vacation :D Now is time to come back and finish this once and for all. It will take a while, sure, but I will finish this fanfic!
Chapter 36: Open Path, Questions, Treasure and Calling Card
Naoki's POV
"Alright... Here we are" I said as we go inside the house. To be honest, every time I go back home I feel like I'm going inside a jail of some sort and Misaki is my warden. I know it's a normal house, it belongs to a man that barely comes back and doesn't care about us at all. I wonder what awaits me after this, what will happen to Misaki? What will happen to me? Will she be the same or will she become someone unable to function as a person? I saw what happen to the people whose hearts are changed... They regret every single action, so much in fact that they might commit suicide. I hear that a girl did indeed commit suicide and that make me doubt for a moment, but considering what Misaki was doing... I was willing to take the risk. Not for my own safety or the rest, but because I care about my sister and I want this to end now before it goes out of hands and now there's no turning back. We'll end this. "Misaki's room is upstairs. The first door to the right... I'll see if she's around" I whispers and Morgana nodded. "Be careful"
"Don't worry about me. I unlock a door before. I have experience" He said with a smirk or at least I think it was a smirk. I couldn't actually tell.
"Okay, I trust in you. Just be careful, I don't want you to get hurt. I like cats"
"I'm not a cat!" He yells
"Don't yell!" Without thinking I yell back and wait for something to happen, but Misaki didn't appear. "Huh... She's not around. Let's go then, I'll help you" I took Morgana upstairs and we walk to Misaki's room. Morgana climb to the door and in that moment Naoki hear the front door opening. A silence invade the house then Misaki's voice could be heard.
"Naoki? Can you come here for a moment?" Said Misaki with a strange sweet voice, like she was another person. Me and Morgana exchanges worried looks. I take a deep breath.
"Don't stop. I'll deal with her" I said, with a little of fear in my voice. I was scared of my own sister when she talks like that, all sweet all of the sudden is never a good thing.
"Be careful. I'll tell you when I'm done. She has to see her room open so when I'm done, bring her here" Morgana repeat something that I already knew. I walk, slowly, down the stairs and saw Misaki, strangely enough, she was smiling at me.
"Misaki... I wasn't expecting you to be here this... Early" I said, nervously.
"That's bullshit and we know it, Brother" Misaki took out a gun from her back. That alone was enough for me to take a few steps backs without thinking. "You know... I have something to tell you, Naoki. Will you hear me out?" She keeps smiling.
"I'm listening... But can you put that gun down?" I ask and Misaki, strangely enough, did what I said and lower the gun. "What is it?"
"I know that the Phantom Thieves are already trying to steal my heart, that is why I'm going to make sure they don't reach it" She move the gun around and I take several steps away from her. "I also know you are helping them... I saw it all on the other side" When she said "The other side", my eyes widen while thinking about the Metaverse. Does she know? How?
"T-The other side...? What do you mean?" I play dumb, obviously, but that proves to be a big mistake. Misaki stares at me, with a smile on her face and without saying a single thing, she shoots me in the shoulder with the gun. She didn't even hesitate, she didn't even doubt. She just shoots me with a smile, like it was no big deal. I was in shock and fall to the ground. My back hit the ground, followed by my head and it took me seconds to realize what just happened. In reality, it took me seconds, but in my mind looked like hours, maybe even days. I blink and feel the pain coming from my shoulder and scream while my hands reach my shoulder where the wound was. I was my hand stained with blood.
"Don't lie to me, I saw them all in that world. My other self, my "Shadow" talked to me... She shows me what happens, what you all are doing and none of you are going to win this. None of you are going to reach my treasure" She said while her eyes turn glowing yellow. "Now decide carefully... You want to live or die?" Her voice distorted and she sounded like her Shadow.
"It... Can't be... Are you the Shadow?"
"Nice, you figure it out... I can switch place with my self in reality. It's been a lot of fun actually. I had my doubts in the beginning, but that God did keep his promise" She said and I didn't understand what she was talking about. The pain was so strong that I couldn't think straight.
"God? What?"
"Nothing important... Now, what should be my next move here? Should I kill you slowly or should I first grab that CAT and put a bullet in his skull?!" She yells and saw the stairs. Morgana was seeing the whole thing from up the stairs. When Misaki made eye contact, Morgana run away.
"The door is open, Naoki!" Morgana yelled and run away.
"I can hear you, Kitty!" Misaki yells at Morgana and runs after him. She leaves me on the floor, bleeding out. The pain was worse than I thought it would be, but despite that, I did my best to stand up and run after her. I go up the stairs and found her entering her own room. The door was wide open and in just a couple of seconds, I saw Morgana being throw to the hallway wall. Misaki gets out of her room and point at him with the gun.
"Sweet dream, Kitty," She said. I, without thinking, run toward her and push her away before she could even shoot. She let go of the gun and in the heat of the moment I punch her really hard in the face, and to my surprise, I knocked her unconscious. The next thing I saw was that she was bleeding from her nose and her eyes were closed. I hyperventilate thanks to the situation, I got myself up and get away from my sister's body.
"Shit, shit, shit... Morgana!" I turn around and help Morgana who was still on the ground. "Are you alright?!"
"She... kicked me too hard," He said. "I think she broke one of my ribs..."
"Dammit... Come, let's get out of here" I said while I carry him in my arms, almost like I was carrying a baby.
"Thanks, Naoki" He simply says.
"Don't worry. We'll take care of you... God, I hope this works..."
Akira's POV
I, along with Ann, saw how the door opens violently in front of us. The chains break themselves and as soon the door opens we enter and found ourselves in what can only be described as an Empty Space. This place looked like it has no end. Everything around us was white and we were stepping on water. We were walking on water. In this vast emptiness, we saw the Treasure sitting on top of a twisted dying tree. The tree was growing on top of what it looked like a blue box. In reality, that box was a cell and to my surprise, it looked really familiar... It looked like the cell from the Velvet Room, surrounded by chains and on top of that, inside of it was Misaki... But she looked different from the Shadow we saw and from the real Misaki. She was a little girl, crying in the corner of her cell. She was wearing inmates clothes like she was some kind of prisoner and I couldn't help but feel both sad for her and a feeling of Deja vu.
"Misaki?" I ask as I get closer to the cell. Misaki didn't look at me, she keeps crying. "Are you really Misaki?" I keep asking, but she refuses to look at me in the eyes.
"Is she...? She can't be the Shadow" Said Ann with disbelief. "Maybe she's a cognition or something. Maybe a copy of how she sees herself?"
"A girl... Locked in a cell..." I said, but it can't be. This felt too familiar for some reason. I felt a sense of familiarity. That cell, I have troubles looking at that cell. "She isn't a cognition... I don't know what she is, but I feel that she's more than that. Besides... Why is the Treasure on top of her cell? Maybe there's a meaning in this" As I say that, we heard how the Palace start to change again. When that happens, Misaki inside the cell looks at me with tears in her eyes.
"Run," She said with fear. "Get out of here! She's coming back!"
"Who?" Ann asked
"My Dark Self" She almost whispers. "Run... Before she finds you here. And you don't want to see the "other one", She's worst than my Dark Self"
"What?" I ask and the entire room was swallowed by the darkness.
"Please... Run" She said while crying.
"Let's get out of here, Ann" I said and we run away from the room and proceed to get out of the Palace...
Ryuji's POV
The giant red wall disappears and opens us a new path in front of us. It shows us a familiar door, at least for me. I don't know where I saw that door though. "Alright! Let's keep going!" I run to the door and Makoto try to stop me.
"Ryuji, wait!" She yells. I push the door and open it completely... Only to find myself outside of the Palace.
"What the...? Wait! This is the fricking front door!" I yell in realization.
"I recognize it right away, but I'm surprised you didn't," Said Makoto. "But I'm still surprised, it took us outside. The room we saw when we enter disappear and switch places. I'm impressed of this Palace and to be honest. I want to explore it, but considering what kind of person this Palace belongs to, I think is better to change her heart right away"
"Yeah... I give her credit for the Palace too, but it's a frickin' pain in the ass!"
"... Why a labyrinth though?" She asks. "This is supposed to be her home... Everything here is twisted and upside down. It changes so fast too"
"It makes no sense," I said.
"No... Maybe it does. Remember the keyword "Dungeon". I don't know her, but from what I could tell, Misaki is a twisted person, someone cautious, someone with secrets and really dangerous. Maybe this Palace is the way it is because she's making changes in her own house, maybe changing things from one place to another... Or maybe this is a way of showing how she is in control of the place and can do whatever she wants. Maybe it's twisting because of that... But the Dungeon part... Why is it a Dungeon?" Makoto asks and we hear someone behind us.
"She's the Warder and I'm her prisoner" We turn around and saw Naoki with Morgana. Morgana was healing his shoulder. "You might not believe it, but she's a big fan of medieval settings and fantasy worlds. So I'm not surprised she sees our house as her own personal Dungeon"
"Naoki! What happen?" I ask while pointing at his shoulder. "You are bleeding!"
"We got back to reality and try to open Misaki's room to enter the room with the Treasure" He explains and not only me, but Makoto's eyes widen too.
"You found the Treasure already?!" She asks.
"Yes" Morgana answers. "We change her cognition a little, we only have to wait now to see if Joker and Panther enter and-" In that moment, Akira fall from the sky and landed, kind of gracefully, on the floor.
"Argh! The hell man?! Where did you come from?!" I yell and he simply points at the Palace. We saw a door on the wall, around the third floor and Ann didn't want to jump.
"I'm not jumping! Is too high!" She yells.
"Come on, Panther. Is not that bad!" I yell so she can hear me.
"Screw you, Skull!"
"Just jump" Said Makoto. "We'll catch you"
"Fine..." Ann was doubting for a moment and finally jump. I make sure to catch her, but she ended up landing on top of me. The next thing I knew was that I was facing the floor and Ann was sitting in my back.
"That was close," She said.
"Close?! You landed on top of me!" I yell.
"Relax. I bet it didn't hurt you"
"That's not the fricking point!"
"Can you two calm down already?" Naoki asks. "So, it worked?" He asks Akira and he nodded.
"Yes, we got to the Treasure, but there's something we have to talk about. Let's go back and go with Kagura. She and Yusuke need to hear this..."
Yusuke's POV
They come back from the Palace and when they did, it was getting dark outside. We all gather in the living room and hear everything Akira has to say and what he thought was happening in the room where the Treasure was. To be quite honest, I was confused as to way there was another Misaki inside a tiny cell. It took me by surprise and I didn't even know what to think of that. My eyes focus on Kagura for a moment, she looked depressed. Before they come back, she was getting more and quieter, like something was bothering her and I could tell that she was about to yell in frustration or something worse. Her eyes were screaming, she wanted to let something out.
"So... What do you think that means?" Ryuji asks the question we all have been asking ourselves.
"To be honest... I think that we are dealing with someone with a serious personality disorder... Does she, Naoki?" He asks Naoki who was quiet for most of the time. He shrugs.
"Actually I wouldn't be surprised at this point. I know she has issues, but a personality disorder would explain quite a lot... But aren't we in a problem if that's the case?" Naoki was a little concern.
"What do you mean?" Ryuji asks.
"It's actually a good question," Said Morgana. "If we change her heart, we don't know for sure what kind of effect will have on her. Supposing the personality disorder is real, then when we change her heart, the Shadow will go back to her real self... But the question is, which one? The Girl in the cell or the Misaki we already know"
"It's confusing to even think about it" Said Ann. "But it's only a theory, right?"
"Kinda... But didn't looked a little weird to you that the Treasure was on top of that cell, not only that, that there was a tree growing on top of that cell" Said Akira and Naoki's eyes widen.
"A tree? You didn't mention a tree... How it looked like?" He asks and Akira didn't waste time to answer.
"It was twisted and it looked like it was slowly dying... Why?"
"..." Naoki remains silent for a moment, thinking about something, leaving all of us with curiosity, even myself wanted to know what he was thinking. He raises his head and looks at us. "I think I know why... But I'll rather stay quiet"
"If it's something personal, I'll understand" Said Makoto. "Still, we should be careful, even if she doesn't have a personality disorder. What she did is too much for someone to bare. Taking someone's life is too much and maybe she will..."
"If she commits suicide..." Said Kagura, but shut herself up. "... Nothing. Forget that I talked at all"
There was a tense atmosphere around us, we knew that we should be careful. Not because of the danger of what might come next, but the danger of facing a Shadow that could easily go between worlds. That, for me, was completely impossible, but we don't really understand the Metaverse, how it works and what can be done and what not.
"... I don't know if we can face her Shadow. We might be destroyed before we even reach the Treasure again" Said Ryuji.
"We have to try. The Treasure is right there. We have to act now" Said Ann.
"The path is open, the problem is reaching the room again," Said Akira. "Kagura... What do you think?" Akira asks for Kagura's opinion and she took her time to come up with a solid opinion.
"I... To be honest... Want to get this over with as soon as possible" She said. "Let's do this tomorrow and get this over with... I'm not in the best mood and we don't have time. We don't know what might happen next if we let her be"
"I agree, we should change her heart as soon as possible" Said Makoto. "We can send the card tomorrow. Are we all agreed?"
We all agreed almost immediately, to be honest, I didn't want Kagura to be part of this, but she seems better. More quiet than usual, but a little better nonetheless. By tomorrow she'll be better, but I couldn't help but think that maybe something might happen, something unexpected. That day we use the rest of our time in thinking about a strategy to climb the Dungeon. Ryuji and Kagura make the Calling Card for Misaki. Akira, Makoto, and Ann discuss the best way to avoid the changes in the tower and climb it as soon as possible. I was with Morgana and Naoki, we were having a little conversation. Naoki was nervous and I don't blame him.
"Naoki... Everything will be alright" I said and he simply nodded.
"I know, but there's something I can't get out of my head... What if we change her heart and Misaki... You know... Die... I don't know if I can live with that... To know that I kill my own sister"
"It's not an easy choice, I know that" Said Morgana. "But keep in mind that if we don't act now, it'll get worse"
"I know, it's just that... Even though she did all this, she's still my family and it doesn't matter how much I hate her, she's my sister and I spend all my life with her. I don't know if I can take it"
"In times like this, you have to be strong," Said Morgana.
"Strong... I wish I was strong... In reality in such a weak person..."
"A weak person wouldn't risk his life to save my life. You are stronger than you think, stop thinking like that"
"A strong person doesn't need the muscle to be strong, but to have the determination and the courage to stand and do what's right. Naoki, you are strong" I said and Naoki gives me a weak smile.
Shortly after the Calling Card was done we all decided to have dinner at Kagura's apartment. We order sushi and after we were done, we review our strategy for the Palace once more and after that everyone leave, even Naoki. He didn't want to go back home and we all knew why that's why Akira took him with him and let him stay in the cafe. Once everyone leaves, Kagura stay in the living room, sitting on the table and staring at her scar. I sit next to her and out of nowhere she speaks.
"... I'm feeling better... Physically, but emotionally... I think I'm a mess right now. I'm... afraid" She was having a hard time saying that out loud and I could tell, her face was trying to be a neutral as possible. "It's the first time in a long time I feel so afraid of someone... The idea of dying didn't cross my mind for a really long time"
"..." I remain quiet.
"I don't know what will happen tomorrow. I know that we will be victorious, but I can't help but feel that Misaki has something under her sleeve. Something ready for us. She taunts us and maybe we are where she wants us to be... Let's be careful tomorrow and make sure to not fall into a trap"
"I will be careful, but you have to be too. I'm worried about you. You almost die today..." Only by saying that it makes me realize how fragile she is. The last thing I want is for her to get hurt... Not only her but the rest of the team. I don't want them to get hurt.
"... Thanks for worrying about me, but stop it. I'm alright, Yusuke. We should go to sleep, tomorrow will be a tough battle"
7/3 Sunday
It was morning already and Misaki was sitting in her living room. She found herself walking toward the little table and saw an unusual card on top of it. She smiles and recognizes the Phantom Thieves logo on it. She picks it up and read the message out loud...
Miss Misaki Hanazawa, The Demon of Madness. The crimes you have committed are despicable and unforgettable. You've done so much evil that you are beyond forgiveness. We will, without fail, steal your twisted desires and expose you as the murderer you are. We will rip out your sheep clothing and the world will finally see the wolf beneath that skin you were using. Prepare for confessing your crimes...
From the Phantom Thieves.
"Well... What a nice Calling Card. Still, will they succeed or fail? I can't wait to see the results... I can't wait to see them die at the hands of my Other Self... Hahahaha... HAHAHAHAHAHA" Everything around Misaki distorts itself and the Shadow appear.
"I WILL CRUSH THEM. NO ONE ESCAPE FROM MY DUNGEON... ALIVE... HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA"
While Misaki laughs, A butterfly... A Black Butterfly stare at her from the corner of the room. The Butterfly fly away from the living room, to the window and outside of the house. Outside the Phantom Thieves open the Metaverse Navigator an enter the Metaverse. The Black Butterfly disappear in mid-air shortly after the group enters the Metaverse...