Welcome to my story within the world of Persona 5 Royal. If you did not read the description, I will reiterate my message once more: this story contains significant spoilers for the endgame of Persona 5 Royal. If you have not played Persona 5 Royal or reached the end of the game yet, I highly encourage that you turn away from the story now. The character list may have given away some spoilers, but if you do not want a major component of Persona 5 Royal spoiled, then turn back now.
As for the story itself, I used a lot of dialogue from the English version of Persona 5 Royal as a way to advance the story. The majority of the writing is original, but some of it is derived from the English version of the game. I hope that this fact does not deter you from reading the story.
Once again, thank you for taking the time to stop by and read my story. I hope you enjoy it.
"I can't go back to living as Kasumi's killer!" Sumire yelled. "If you try to stop me, I'll..."
"You can't be serious!" Ren exclaimed.
"Please, don't make me do this..." Sumire shuttered. Ren could see immense pain within Sumire's eyes. She honestly couldn't handle the reality that she had caused her sister to be run over by a car. Now, Sumire, donned in her Phantom Thief attire, appeared ready to fight off Ren and Akechi without a second thought.
Ren could feel his heart sink as he saw the pain in her eyes. He knew that he couldn't just let her go back to being "Kasumi." But he also knew that if he tried to do anything, he would likely have to attack her, which was the last thing he was going to do. The thought of attacking Sumire, a girl who had slowly stolen his heart over the past eight months, made him shudder.
There was only one thing he could think of that could possibly get her to come to her senses.
"Well, Sumire, if that's what you really want...to go back to living a lie..." Ren started.
"You'll have to kill me."
"What?" Sumire gasped. "Senpai...I..."
"My, what an interesting turn of events," Akechi interrupted. "It appears he's given you an ultimatum. What are you going to do about it?"
Sumire looked over at Akechi, who flashed his typical cynical smile, his arms folded, waiting to see what her next move would be. She looked back over at Ren, who still had a painfully serious expression on his face. The girl struggled to comprehend her current situation.
"Senpai...I can't go back to being Kasumi's killer...but..." a conflicted Sumire stammered.
"But that's your only option," Ren interjected. "I won't allow you to go back with Maruki. I will die before I let you be taken advantage of by him again." As he finished his sentence, he tossed his knife and gun across the room.
He also took his mask and threw it to the ground.
"I won't fight you, Sumire," Ren said firmly. He then slowly started to walk forward towards her. "But I won't let you hide from the truth anymore."
"No! Stay away from me!" Sumire shouted suddenly. She quickly summoned her Persona, Cendrillon, and hit Ren with a Vorpal Blade attack, knocking him over.
However, Ren simply stood back up and continued his advance towards Sumire.
"No! Stop it!" she roared. She continued to pelt Joker with every attack she had, sending him flying backward numerous times. Akechi could only watch with amusement at the struggle.
In the back of the room, Maruki observed the struggle with despair as Sumire assaulted Ren with all her might.
Blow after blow landed on Joker. With each attack from Sumire's Persona, the more Joker's body and clothes became torn. Blood poured out from the many wounds that were inflicted upon him.
Soon, Ren found himself struggling to stand. Even still, he continued his advance, never once breaking eye contact with the girl.
"Well...Sumire...this is it..." Ren wheezed. "Just a little more, and you'll get your wish..."
"You'll get to go and live on as Kasumi, all while I cease to exist," Ren said with a sigh.
If that's what you truly want...then kill me," Ren said. "Do what Akechi couldn't and kill the leader of the Phantom Thieves."
Sumire was tearing up as she saw how injured her best friend was. She couldn't believe what she had done...injured her senpai to the point to where he might die. It would only take one more strike from her for him to be gone for good.
"Senpai...I...I..." Sumire stammered, trying to accept the truth, yet she couldn't bring herself to do so.
"I can't go back to being Kasumi's killer! I just can't!" "But I don't want to kill you either..." "I couldn't have another death weighing on my conscious..."
"But...it would probably be best for everyone if I just went back to being her. That way, I wouldn't have to agonize about this anymore, and you wouldn't have to die!" she screamed.
Ren released a soft chuckle upon hearing Sumire's response.
"Heh...well, it seems you're fervent about killing me, if that means you can go back to your old life," Ren said solemnly.
Sumire looked down at the floor, tears overwhelming her eyes to the point where they were dropping like raindrops to the marble floor. She didn't want to kill her senpai, but what other choice did she have? He wouldn't let her go back to her life as "Kasumi," even though she desperately wanted to herself.
If he wouldn't give her the chance to hide in blissful ignorance, then she would do what she had to.
The girl gripped her rapier even tighter than before, preparing to finish her best friend off. The entire time, however, the pit in her stomach only grew deeper, and the tears in her eyes clouded her vision further.
"But tell me, is that what Kasumi would want? Truly?" Ren asked, now on one knee. "Would she want you to throw away your life just so you could live a lie?"
"Huh?" Sumire responded in surprise, loosening her grip on the rapier.
"Look...I'm not going to try to understand the relationship you had with your sister," Ren began. But if I were her, I would assume that she wouldn't want you to throw your life away like this. She didn't give up her life just so you could do that."
"W... what?" Sumire stammered. She instinctively wiped some of the tears from her eyes in an attempt to see Ren better as he spoke.
"Your sister died so you could live. She died for you without a second thought. Pretending to be her and living your life as her is not what she would have wanted," he finished.
Tears began streaming down Sumire's face, more heavily than before. Her body, exhausted from the constant emotional struggle and physical combat, finally gave out as she fell to her knees, her rapier dropping out of her hand in the process.
"S... senpai..." she choked out. "Y... you're right. I've been such a fool."
Ren got back on his feet and finally closed the distance between himself and the girl, dropping to his knees himself. Blood still trickled from the wounds he had incurred. Rather than say another word, Ren wrapped his arms around Sumire and buried his face in her shoulder.
Sumire's eyes widened considerably upon the gentle embrace that her senpai had engaged.
"Ren..." she whispered. Finally giving in to her emotions, she tossed her arms around Ren's body as well and began to cry like she never had before. Maruki, who had been watching from afar the whole time, felt his mouth drop a bit in shock by what had just occurred. Akechi couldn't help but chuckle to himself at the way that the situation had resolved.
A few minutes later, Sumire finally began to calm down from her tantrum. The whole time, she had never let go of Ren, and him the same. As she began to collect herself, she managed to choke out a sentence.
"S... senpai...," she began. "I don't understand. Why would you risk your life for someone like me? Especially after I lied to you about who I was?"
"That wasn't your fault, Sumire," Ren consoled. "It was his fault that you ended up like that," Ren's eyes now pointed directly at Maruki.
"He must have done something so you would think that you were your sister," he continued. The pair finally broke from their embrace as Sumire shifted to look at Dr. Maruki, who had not moved from his original spot.
"I know what he did was wrong..." Sumire admitted. "But I suppose I was the one who told him to do it in the first place...so I can't entirely blame him."
"I suppose," Ren replied.
Sumire turned back towards Ren again.
"That still doesn't answer my question, Senpai," she began again. "Why risk your life for me? After all, you don't know the real me...you only know me as my sister, Kasumi."
"What are you talking about? I've never met your sister," he said in response.
"Huh?" she questioned him.
"From what I understand, Maruki only made you think you were your sister. He never had the power to change you into your sister."
Ren turned to look at Sumire directly in the eyes.
"I've only known Sumire Yoshizawa, who up until a few minutes ago didn't know who she was either."
"As for why I risked my life for you...well...," he started. "You're one of my best friends...a person who I couldn't imagine being without."
"You mean as much to me as everyone else in The Phantom Thieves. And just like them, I couldn't leave a friend who needed help."
"Ren..." Sumire muttered. Her eyes had now begun to shine a bit, perhaps from the tears that were still coating them.
"Thank you."
Just as the moment was becoming emotional, the former Detective Prince wandered over to the pair.
"I hate to ruin your little sob session, but I believe we still have some business to attend to," Akechi jeered as he approached.
"Oh! Akechi! I forgot you were here..." Sumire said. "I'm really sorry you had to see me like that, and..." Sumire apologized.
"Save it," Akechi demanded. Sumire decided to heed his demand and stop talking.
Both Ren and Sumire began to rise to their feet. Unfortunately, Ren was still moderately injured from the beatings he had taken. He managed to get halfway up before he fell back to one knee.
"Senpai!" Sumire screamed.
"I... I'm alright..." Ren said. "Although you did give a good beating to me back there," he chuckled.
"I'm...I'm so sorry about that Ren-senpai...I wasn't thinking straight..." Sumire apologized. She quickly summoned her Persona and cast Diahran on Ren. The spell seemed to do the trick, as many of the bruises and cuts that had appeared on Ren slowly began to disappear.
"It's alright, Sumire. I was the one who allowed you to do that. I could have fought back, but..." Ren trailed off.
"I understand, Senpai," Sumire said.
With the spell fully healing Ren, he managed to get back on his feet. He collected his dagger and gun while also picking up his mask and placing it back on his face.
"Well…this is certainly an unforeseen turn of events," a voice echoed from across the room. The group turned to see Maruki slowly approach them. All three of them, including Sumire, entered a combat stance.
"I was certain that you would have struck Amamiya-kun down, Yoshizawa-san," Maruki said. "Despite how much it would have pained me to see it happen," he admitted.
"Tch, you're not fooling anyone, Maruki," Akechi spat. "We all know that you simply want to turn this world into your own little plaything. You would probably coin this situation as an 'unfortunate event' that occurred on your way to utopia," Akechi continued.
"And as someone who walks his own path, I'm not about to let you have your way," the black-masked boy finished.
"Perhaps," Maruki said. "But it's true that Yoshizawa-san wanted to become her sister again, so she could escape from her pain. That's what my world offers!" Maruki preached.
"Dr. Maruki," Sumire started. "You're right in saying that I wanted to go back to being my sister…to forget the pain that I have buried inside of me."
"However," she continued. "Ren-senpai made me realize something. I can't go back to being Kasumi. I can't run away anymore. I don't know how I'll do it, but I'm going to do my best to face myself and accept the truth…no matter how much it hurts me."
Ren smiled at Sumire at her bold proclamation to Maruki.
"Well, if that's what you want, then I won't stop you," Maruki said. "Just remember that if you ever find it too hard to cope, I'll be ready to help ease your pain once more."
Sumire didn't say a word in response to him.
Maruki fixed his glasses and reinforced his posture before continuing.
"Either way, my world will soon become a reality. I would prefer if we did not have to resort to violence if we can't see eye to eye, but if that's what must be done, then so be it." Maruki admitted.
"Although, if I may be frank with you all, I don't believe just the three of you will be able to take me down in combat."
Akechi scoffed at Maruki's pompous observation, yet remained silent.
"I find it hard to imagine that the rest of your team will be of much use to you all, considering they're all living their…" Maruki began. However, before he could finish, a voice called out from behind the three Phantom Thieves.
"Sorry we're late!" the voice said. Ren immediately recognized the voice and spun around to find Ryuji, Ann, Makoto, Haru, Yusuke, Futaba, and Morgana rapidly approaching. "Hope we didn't keep you waiting too long!" Ryuji exclaimed.
"Guys!" Ren said with excitement. "I'm glad you came."
"Our apologies for making you wait so long," Yusuke replied.
Haru was the first person to notice who else was standing in the room.
"Isn't that…" Haru began.
Ann noticed the others in the room as well.
"Akechi-kun and Dr. Maruki?"
The rest of the group looked over and felt their hearts jump in their chests and realized the people Ann had identified were indeed present.
Ann looked at Maruki, who was now in his own defensive stance.
"You're…you're Dr. Maruki, right?" Ann asked.
"…That's right," Maruki admitted.
"Dude, what the hell's Doc doing inside a Palace?" Ryuji asked.
"He's ruling this Palace, is what he's doing," Akechi piped up.
"Wha…? Ryuji cried out.
"Well…it appears that this requires some explanation," Akechi sighed. "I suppose it wouldn't hurt to start from the beginning."
It took some time, but Akechi and Maruki managed to explain the current situation to the rest of the Phantom Thieves. Eventually, after Maruki made his escape, the group returned to the real world. Akechi said his piece but quickly saw himself out, leaving the rest of the Phantom Thieves to talk amongst themselves.
"I'm sorry that I…caused you all so much trouble…" Sumire said. She turned to Ren with a sad expression on her face. "Especially you, senpai."
"You don't need to apologize," Ren consoled her. "Right, guys?"
Everyone nodded in response to Ren's question.
"We should probably go our separate ways for now and discuss our plan at a better time," Makoto suggested.
"Yeah." Ryuji agreed. "Tomorrow we can…" he started before remembering an awful reality.
"Oh yeah…third semester's starting up tomorrow, right?" he asked.
"I guess we're going back to school, huh?" Ann said sadly. "We still don't have any idea what we want to do from here on out, though…"
"We've got time," Morgana spoke up. "Maruki said he'll wait until February 3rd before…" Morgana trailed off. "Let's really think it over before making our decision," he finished.
Everyone nodded in agreement with Morgana. And with that, the group began to dissipate silently. Sumire was the last to walk away, other than Ren. Before she could go anywhere, Ren spoke up.
"Hey, Sumire," he said. The girl turned around to look at Ren.
"Yes, Senpai?" she asked with a downbeat tone to her voice.
"There's something else I wanted to say to you before you go," he said. "I would have said it to you in the Palace, but I didn't think that was the best time or place to say it," he confessed.
Sumire's eyebrows rose as she heard Ren's request. She could feel curiosity filling her mind.
"Alright," she said, accepting his request.
"Thank you," he responded.
"First off, I wanted to thank you for making the right decision," he started. Sumire could only gaze at her feet in response.
"I know that wasn't an easy decision to make, considering what Maruki was offering you," Ren said. "But I'm glad that you chose to accept the truth anyway."
Ren suddenly grabbed Sumire's hands and held them tight.
"Please know that if you need to talk to anyone about anything, I'm always available. Contact me anytime; I'll always make time for you," Ren said with a smile.
"Senpai…" Sumire said, with some blood rushing to her cheeks. "Thank you."
Suddenly, a smile broke out on Sumire's face.
"Heh heh," she laughed.
"What's so funny?" Ren asked warmly, letting go of Sumire's hands.
"Nothing…" she said. "It's just that you've always been so kind towards me…so willing to put whatever you were doing on hold to help me out. You even risked your life to bring me back to my senses."
She looked Ren directly in his eyes.
"Do you say the same thing to the others?" Sumire asked.
Now it was Ren's turn to laugh.
"Now what's so funny?" Sumire asked, her smile growing.
"That's the other thing I wanted to talk to you about," he said. "I wasn't entirely truthful when I told you that I value you just as much as the others."
Sumire's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
"Huh? What are you talking about?" she asked. Her voice became a bit wary as if he was about to tell her some bad news.
"Well…" Ren began, his cheeks becoming a flush red. Sumire noticed this and immediately felt her heart begin to race.
"The truth is, I don't value you just as much as the others," he said.
"I value you more. Far more."
Sumire's eyes widened as she began to process what he was telling her.
"Senpai…"
"You know why else your sister risked her life for you?" Ren asked her suddenly.
"Wait…what?" Sumire asked, now utterly confused. Rather than press him further about it, she decided to play along.
"Why?" she asked.
"Because she loved you," Ren said.
Sumire looked at the floor as she thought about what Ren had said.
"And…I suppose…" Ren stammered.
"That's the very same reason why I risked my life for you in the Palace."
Sumire's head shot up to look Ren square in his eyes. Her eyes were wide open and mouth slightly agape.
"Wait…Senpai…you don't mean…" she said, trying to process what she had just learned.
"I think you know what I mean," Ren replied simply, plastering a warm smile on his face.
"Oh…oh my…" the girl said to herself, her cheeks now the same color as her hair and her second most vital organ pumping blood faster than it ever had before.
"I…I don't know what to say…Senpai," she said anxiously, her eyes firmly stuck to the ground.
"That's alright, you don't have to give me an answer now," Ren told her. "I just figured that you should know the real reason why I was so adamant in getting you to come to your senses. I didn't want to…lose you…" he trailed off.
Both remained silent for a few moments before Sumire regained her composure and exhaled deeply. She looked back up at Ren, who hadn't moved from his original spot.
"Thank you for telling me that, Senpai. I really appreciate you being honest with me," she replied.
"You're welcome. I hope it gives you something to think about as you process your thoughts about Maruki's deal."
"It certainly does!" Sumire said with a smile. Ren's cheeks became crimson like Sumire's were a little while ago as he admired her warm smile and beautiful face.
"Well, I should be going," she said a moment later. "I really need to talk to my dad about what happened." She realized what that implied, quickly shooting her hands in front of her.
"Only about the non-Phantom Thievy things, of course," she reassured him.
"I understand," Ren laughed.
"Do you want me to walk you home?" he asked.
"That's sweet of you, Senpai, but I think I can manage on my own. Besides, if I'm going to return to being Sumire Yoshizawa, I need to stand on my own two feet," she replied.
"Alright then," Ren conceded. "Just make sure you contact me should anything come up, okay?" he requested.
"Naturally, Senpai," she confirmed.
She didn't know what came over her all of a sudden, but upon seeing Ren's friendly face, and after the wholehearted conversation they had just concluded, her body seemed to act on its own. She suddenly closed the distance between them and placed a quick kiss on Ren's cheek before speeding off in the opposite direction.
"Bye, Senpai, I'll see you at school tomorrow!" she said, running off. Ren found himself unable to move from his spot, his hand gently touching the area where she had just left her mark. Upon finally being able to move, he turned around and started to walk back towards the train station to Shibuya.
"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" a familiar voice said. Ren looked down and noticed his best feline friend, Morgana, peering from around a corner.
"That was quite the talk you had there, huh? Seems as though you really raised Yoshizawa's spirits," Morgana teased.
"Shut it, cat," Ren said, with Morgana quickly leaping on to his shoulder. The whole way home, Morgana wouldn't stop pestering Ren about what he and Sumire had talked about.