Phantom Thief Joker Chapter 58: Fifty-Eighth Caper, a JoJo's Bizarre Adventure + Persona Series Crossover fanfic

And so here we are at the final chapter, with one last treasure to snag. But as my longtime readers know... This isn't the end for Joker's adventures... Disclaimer: I don't own Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, the Persona series, Lupin the Third, or any other referenced media.

Fifty-Eighth Caper: Road to Origins, The Glittering Plumage

Tsugiyoshi sat down across from Duodecuple. "May I again offer my congratulations on your victory," Duodecuple said, "I'm curious as to how you performed such a feat. I'd imagine your Stand played a large role." "You guessed it," Tsugiyoshi admitted, "At first I considered a strategy of targeting the key-bearers and preventing Joker's victory. But any path in that regard just involved wasted time as the others wracked up the points, leaving me with low-scoring targets. So I instead focused purely on finding high-point target. That left quite a number of paths where I was successful."

"Since this is your first Juni Taisen," Duodecuple said, "Any thoughts on the other warriors?" "Other than how cute Chicken is?," Tsugiyoshi replied, "I honestly didn't interact with them much, though I did study a bit of their history. And for the most part I think they're decent people. Which actually leads into my wish." Duodecuple smiled. "Ah, so you've already decided." Tsugiyoshi nodded. "You said the system this time was a new one. Well, my wish for it to be the default system for the Juni Taisen going forward." "That can certainly be arranged," Duodecuple said, "I'll make sure it is done, and I look forward to seeing you and the others again in twelve years time."

Soon enough, Duodecuple was met by Joker and Violet. "Ah, the famous Joker," Duodecuple said, "Such an erudite, debonair, angelic, lionhearted, transcendent..." "Spare me my own hype," Joker said, "I believe we had an arrangement." Violet smiled as she revealed The Repulsion of Civility. "Ah yes, a skillful theft," Duodecuple said, "And as promised, I shall tell of the last piece of the collection. Recently, a certain package was delivered to a place called the Spirit House, a small house currently owned by the infamous band Gorillaz."

Joker and Violet facepalmed. "Murdoc Niccals," the said together. Murdoc was well-known as something of a loose cannon hedonist who used legally questionable methods to keep his band together. Honestly, having him exposed would do the group some good. "At present the band is making a trip to Osaka," Duodecuple said, "Apparently a brand new casino has turned up there. Construction occurred over the course of several weeks." Joker was a little surprised. "Japan has strict anti-gambling laws. Even in Osaka it shouldn't be easy to get the rights to build and run a casino. We need to check this place out for ourselves."

Just as Duodecuple said, the casino was already in place. "Man this place is jumping," Joker said. "And for some reason there's no ID checks at the front door," Violet noted, "We should be able to get in with the help of our masks." The inside was a three-floor gaming bonanza filled with various games, all of which could be rife with information. "You hit the blackjack tables," Joker suggested to Violet, "I'll check out the dice games." Violet nodded and they split up. Little did they know, one of the security guards recognized them.

The mysterious manager of the casino contacted someone using a video chat. "It seems Phantom Thief Joker and his female partner Phantom Thief Violet have infiltrated my casino." 'Are they looking for the last collection piece?,' the other man asked, 'We know it is heading in your direction. Perhaps you should contact the police.' "Police won't move unless a calling card is issued," the manager pointed out, "After all, for all they know these could be cosplayers. Besides, I'd rather police not investigate my casino for longer than they need... For obvious reasons."

'I see your point,' the mysterious man admitted, 'The world is becoming smarter and smarter as it shrinks in size. And the local police are quite competent. Once they get a whiff of what's going down here... It would only be a matter of time before they get Speedwagon involved. And we spent quite a bit of time hiding in the shadow to insure they couldn't retaliate for the theft of the Joestar Collection. Very well, keep an eye on them for now. Let them have some fun, even. But the second they lock onto The Glittering Plumage...' "I already have emergency contacts on standby," the manager replied.

Joker had to admit, something was a little off about this casino. For starters, he couldn't use his thief mask to contact Violet or Alibaba. It was a phenomenon similar to when the duo was drawn into Days of Old. Of course, he still had eyes on Violet so that was no issue, but Alibaba was likely concerned since nothing seemed outwardly suspicious about the building. Just then, some static came in on the communicator. '...ker... Come... Come in Joker.' It was Alibaba's voice. "I hear ya, Alibaba." 'Oh,' Violet said, 'Looks like we have communication.'

"Good to hear from you," Joker said. 'Took me a while to figure out this trick,' Alibaba said, 'I don't know what isolated the casino from all electronic signals. Only standard phone lines seem to be able to get through. I ultimately had to rely on my own Stand to get it done.' 'You have a Stand!?,' Violet asked in surprised. 'It's more or less the secret to my stellar hacking skills,' Alibaba admitted, 'It's even linked into your thief mask communicators. Anyway, it seems that our final target for now is already in Osaka and heading for the casino. You should be able to find them at the club on the third floor.'

"This looks like the place," Murdoc said as he pulled into the casino's parking lot. Noodle, the band's female guitarist, lowered her glasses, giving the casino a suspicious look. "Something's off about this. Japan's supposed to have anti-gambling laws, even in Osaka." "Let's not forget that calling card Murdoc got," said Stuart "2D" Pot, the band's lead singer. "I don't know what you're talking about," Murdoc said dismissively. But Russel Hobbs, the band's drummer, had already grabbed the card from Murdoc's shirt pocket.

"Murdoc Niccals, we are the Phantom Thieves Joker and Violet. Tonight we will steal The Glittering Plumage from your possession." "So what did you do this time?," Russel asked. "Oh come on!," Murdoc called out indignantly, "I haven't broken any laws! Lately..." 2D rolled his eyes. He could name a number of law Murdoc had broken over the years, especially before Gorillaz had been formed. "Great, now they'll be gunning for you." "Yeah, but they sent that card to Spirit House," Murdoc pointed out, "And I have the necklace with me." He showed that he was actually wearing The Glittering Plumage.

"Ugh," Noodle muttered, "Let's just put that out of our minds for the evening. We came here to have fun." They soon reached the club on the third floor, ignoring all the games. Even Murdoc had to admit their income wasn't liquid enough for gambling, deciding to save that for when their next album hit the shelves later in the month. The club was really jumping and booze seemed to be flowing, largely into the mouths of unlucky ducks blowing off whatever money they had left to drown their sorrow after a bad round of games. The band was soon seated at a table together.

The music changed to a single the band did together, and Noodle headed out to the dance floor, soon inviting 2D to join her. "Those two have been getting close as of late," Murdoc noted with a scowl. "Can you blame him?," Russel pointed out, "After all the shit you put 2D through, plus how much of a bitch his ex was..." "Okay I'd argue the former is just being tough but fair," Murdoc said, "But I agree with you on the second one. And 2D is the youngest guy here, so Noodle would certainly gravitate more towards him. Anyway, I'm hitting the bar."

Just as he reached the bar, the song changed for a quick karaoke session. He recognized the song from Panic! At the Disco, one of their newer songs. He then gasped when he saw a man dressed like Joker take the stage and start singing.

Finders keepers, losers weepers

Welcome to the end of eras
Ice has melted back to life
Done my time and served my sentence
Dress me up and watch me die
If it feels good, tastes good
It must be mine
Dynasty decapitated
You just might see a ghost tonight

And if you don't know now you know

I'm taking back the crown
I'm all dressed up and naked
I see what's mine and take it
(Finders keepers, losers weepers)
Oh yeah
The crown...
So close I can taste it
I see what's mine and take it
(Finders keepers, losers weepers)
Oh yeah

Sycophants on velvet sofas
Lavish mansions, vintage wine
I am so much more than Royal
Snatch your chain and mace your eyes
If it feels good, tastes good
It must be mine
Heroes always get remembered
But you know legends never die

And if you don't know now you know

Mortal kings are ruling castles
Welcome to my world of fun
Liars settle into sockets
Flip the switch and watch them run

Oh yeah
(Finders keepers, losers weepers)
I'm taking back back, taking back back the crown
I'm all dressed up and naked
I see what's mine and take it
(Finders keepers, losers weepers)
Oh yeah
The crown...
So close I can taste it
I see what's mine and take it
(Finders keepers, losers weepers)
Oh yeah

Finders keepers, losers weepers
Finders keepers, losers weepers

Murdoc was so shocked at the sight of Joker, even if he wasn't sure it actually was Joker, that he didn't notice as Violet snuck up behind him. With an expert bit of pickpocketing, Violet quickly had the necklace in hand. However, she had been spotted thanks to the surprisingly alert security team. And they quickly relayed what had happened to their boss.

Goro was speaking with a local police commissioner. "I sincerely doubt Joker's reign will end just because he obtains all of the Joestar Collection pieces," Goro noted, "He's the Lord of Crime now. He has an obligation to maintain the worst evils of society." "Hey, Moriarty retired when he got what he wanted," the commissioner pointed out, "Joker's likely to be the same. Regardless, this could be our best chance to finally catch him. We just need to wait until-" 'Emergency call from Osaka, all available units,' came the intercom. "Until something like that?," Goro asked as he grabbed his jacket.

Inside the Velvet Room, Igor contemplated the situation. "How intriguing. It seems a brand new chapter in the lives of the Phantom Thieves is about to unfold." A new girl entered the room. "You called for me, Master?" "Ah yes," Igor said, "Margaret has chosen to retire, and so I must humbly request for your assistance. Joker will certainly be needing our help in the near future. They will soon discover a dangerous plot to rewrite the fabric of this world." The young girl bowed. "Of course. It is our duty yo serve the Trickster and his allies in their endeavors, after all."

The casino was suddenly in chaos as an alert came out throughout the place, Murdoc realizing The Glittering Plumage was gone, as was Violet. She had quickly moved to meet up with Joker. "I think we've overstayed our welcome." Joker nodded. 'There's police heading toward the casino!,' Alibaba called out, 'You've got to get out of there!' "Security here was way too alert," Joker noted, "It's almost like they were expecting us. For all intents and purposes we should have been seen as cosplayers. But we'll worry about that once we're out of danger..." And with that, the two Phantom Thieves hurried to make their getaway.

To be continued...

Next Story: Star Are Eternal
Gaiden Story: Phantom Thieves Origins

So yeah, next I'll be returning to my side-by-side writing for both stories. And Phantom Thieves Origins is being completely rewritten with Persona 5 Royal in mind. See you guys then. Read and review.