When Yukitaro returns to the apartment, a little later in the afternoon, Tohru seems a lot more well-rested - or, more accurately, he seems a bit more well-caffeinated.

"Hey, kid," Tohru calls, "you, uh.. you like dango, right?"

Yukitaro sits down as Tohru places a plate of it in front of him.

"Dad, where'd you get this? And how did you know it was my favorite?"

"Akira told me. As for how.. I made it myself."

Though the dango pieces are a bit lumpy, their smell is delicious, and Yukitaro can see the care put into this dish.

He looks up at his dad, who's still clad in that familiar suit, and smiles. "Thanks, dad."

Yukitaro has to stifle a chuckle at just how stunned his dad looks at that. Tohru pauses, eyes wide.

It takes a minute for him to get his bearings enough to speak again.

"Is it.. is it good?" he asks as Yukitaro takes a bite.

The right sort of savory tang fills Yukitaro's mouth, and he melts. "Yeah," he says after a few bites, "you did good on this batch."

As his dad puffs up his chest proudly, Yukitaro can't help but feel a little bit of awkward pride for how much Tohru's trying.

It doesn't stop there, either. The next day, Tohru comes up behind Yukitaro. "Hey, kid!"

Yukitaro jumps a little in his seat, letting out a surprised noise as he turns around and removes his headphones. "Shit, dad, you scared me."

His brows furrow in confusion at Tohru's expression.

The older man is practically bouncing on his heels. There's a little grin on his face, and one of his hands is patting his leg feverishly, not unlike a dog wagging its tail.

"You want to go to the shooting range with me and one of my new friends?" He sounds delighted.

Yukitaro pauses, biting his lip. Every inch of his father looks ecstatic to get this offer.

"Uh.. sure."

And that's how Yukitaro finds himself at a state-of-the-art shooting range with his dad and that man from Untouchable - Iwai, Yukitaro remembers.

Tohru and the man share a fistbump and a smirk. "My made man," Iwai chuckles, swinging Tohru into a short hug with a friendly shoulder-squeeze.

Tohru, oddly enough, reciprocates.

The two banter a bit about airsoft guns as they get the guns ready for firing. Yukitaro can't exactly understand it, but he's glad his dad looks so delighted about it.

As a matter of fact, Tohru seems unexpectedly animated around Iwai, the same way Yukitaro's seen him animated around Dojima. He's making the shopkeeper bark out laughter and crack a grin here and there.

… why does it almost remind him of Akira's way with people? He shakes the thought off.

As they get ready, Yukitaro clears his throat. "Hey, uh, dad.. I haven't handled a gun like this in real life before."

Tohru pauses for a second, but his face seems to dawn with understanding when he realizes what Yukitaro means by that.

"Then lemme teach you some of my old tricks on it."

As Iwai begins to fire a few rounds, Yukitaro takes up the gun. Tohru's at his side, assisting his grip, his aim, and several other aspects of Yukitaro's shooting.

"Don't flinch. It'll buck, but with a firm grip on it, it'll know you're the one in charge."

Yukitaro laughs. "You talk about it like it's a wild horse!"

Tohru's lopsided grin is unexpectedly amusing. "Kinda because it is. Can't go in all cocksure, or you'll get your ass handed to you."

"He's right," Iwai adds, and the three share a laugh. They keep on shooting for a while longer.

That night, Yukitaro's sitting at the table with his face scrunched up. He's glaring a hole into his English homework.

"Screw Ms. Chouno," he mumbles under his breath.

Tohru looks up from his reading.

"What's wrong? You look like you've got yourself in a twist."

"Ryuji didn't do his part of the English homework, so now I've gotta do it all," Yukitaro grumbles. "I'm this close to asking Ann for the answers."

Tohru pauses before chuckling.

Man, this kid truly was his son. Even had the slacking off gene.

"Then let me help, kid."

"How?" Yukitaro raises an eyebrow as Tohru pulls up a seat.

"You might not know this, but a while back, they added English to the police recertification exams. Dojima and I spent long, drunken evenings practicing with flashcards. Combine that with the studies I've been doing lately when I'm not part of the Thieves, and presto, you've got yourself a fluent English-speaker - at least with reading and speaking. I suck at writing it."

"Oh, yeah? Say something in English."

Tohru scrunches up his nose, trying to focus and summon all of his knowledge together before he says "I'm Tohru Adachi.. your favorite ex-serial killer, hooking in some nice bitches and whores."

Mishima tries writing it out and ends up laughing when he realizes what his father said in English.

"I'm guessing they didn't teach you swear words in police academy?"

"Damn right."

It lapses into a silent hour there with just Yukitaro and Tohru doing homework together.

It's odd, how far Tohru pushes himself on that homework for his son's sake.

Once it's done, Yukitaro clears his throat.

"You know.. Akechi told me about how you choked out Namatame."

Tohru goes completely still, breath hitching.

There's a look of fear in his eyes as he goes quiet.

Yukitaro stares at Tohru carefully.

"I don't mind, Dad. The past is in the past. Besides.. it's not like Namatame's my dad. He may have raised me for a bit and wanted to be my father, but he's not my dad."

He points a finger, jabbing it into Tohru's chest.

"You may have dropped the ball for god knows how many years of my life, but you've earned it back. You're trying. So I guess you really are my dad."

It's cheesy, but Tohru feels a warm glow in his chest there, where Yukitaro jabbed. There's one or two tears beginning to form in his eyes.

"Really?" he asks, his voice quiet.

"Yeah. Enough that, well.. I'm gonna see about going to the precinct clerk and getting my name changed back to what it should've been from the start. Yukitaro Adachi.. that's a name you've proven I can wear with pride, now."

Tohru's heart beats faster, the rush of his Persona pumping through him on an intoxicating level. The warm feeling overwhelms him, and he smiles. He can almost hear Magatsu-Izanagi's laughter rattle through his ears.

The bond you have formed has set your mind free, changing both father and son down to their core. The Adachi name has truly become a powerful one to bear.

… in other words, it's time for us to take up a new crown.

And Tohru can feel Magatsu-Izanagi ascend, taking up its new mantle with pride. It laughs again, and Tohru can already tell it's got a new name, now.

"Magatsu Izanagi Picaro.." he breathes, holding his head.

He feels a similar rush right beside him and looks over towards Yukitaro. What he sees (for a brief moment) is Yukitaro's Persona, Kinbote, changing forms entirely.

Thin, silvery filigree gives way to taut, feathered muscle. A long mane of beads, feathers, and fur grows. Claws lengthen. Eyes take on a beastly glow.

"Enkidu.." Yukitaro breathes, and he flashes a grin back at Tohru.

His face goes wide with shock when Tohru hugs him.

Chapter End Notes: I may be taking a break from updating for the next week or so because a.) midterms and b.) my birthday! :D
I'll try to at least give one other update, but I make no guarantees because the holiday season is hectic as hell. I know this was a bit of a short chapter, and I do apologize. The next chapter will be a bit more of a "filler" chapter as well, since we've been moving awfully fast these past few chapters, but once we get through that.. We get to some of the real nitty-gritty stuff. The /endgame/ material.
Thank you all for supporting this fic and enjoying it like you do. It's one of the greatest early birthday presents I've gotten.

Also, thank you once more to TheTrueOverlordBear for giving a suggestion for Yukitaro's Ultimate Persona (Enkidu) that I ended up incorporating into the fic!