Apologies for the delay in updates.
Play: Home - Persona 5: Strikers (or Scramble, whichever it is for you)
Ren zipped up his suitcase and placed it down on the floor, double-checking the bed and shelves for anything he had forgotten.
"You got everything you're gonna need?" Sojiro asked him from the steps, standing next to the bag that Morgana was in.
"Yep. All good to go."
A few days ago, the same man from before called to let Ren know that he had gotten the position and the two of them worked out all of the travel and lodging details. Today, he was leaving for Inaba.
And while it was really for Phantom Thief business, he couldn't help but feel excited about this new opportunity.
"You sure you don't need me to drive you to the station?"
He pulled the suitcase over towards the steps where Sojiro was waiting, "I'm sure. I've gotta hand Morgana off to Makoto anyways, since she'll be taking care of him while I'm gone."
"We could've taken him back at my place, you know."
"I know, but I don't want him getting in the way there or here at the shop. It'll only be for a few weeks, anyway."
"Well alright then."
Ren picked up the Morgana bag and the two of them headed downstairs. Leblanc was empty, as Sojiro had purposely kept it closed for a little longer before Ren left.
They got to the door, and Sojiro put his hand out in front of him towards Ren.
"Good luck, and be careful. Let me know when you get there."
Ren smiled, taking Sojiro's hand and shaking it, "I will. I'll see you soon."
He let go of Sojiro's hand, and he opened the door and walked out into the street.
…
Outside, Yusuke and Futaba were waiting for him.
"There you are!" Futaba said, popping up instantly and moving towards him, "Did you pack the whole attic? What took so long?"
Morgana popped out of his bag and spoke, "We had to make sure not to forget anything. Sorry."
"Are you two ready to go?"
"Yeah, we're good. Where's the van?"
Yusuke stood straight up from the wall he was leaning on, "It's parked just down the street, by Boss's house."
"Perfect. Let's go."
The three of them, with Morgana keeping his head poked out, walked away from Leblanc.
…
Ryuji and Haru were standing outside of the van, with Ann and Makoto sitting in the front seats when they walked up.
"There you guys are!" He said with a smile Ren stopped before him.
Makoto rolled down the window and asked him, "Are you ready to go?"
He gave her a thumbs-up, as Ryuji came up and grabbed his suitcase from him.
"Let me get this for ya."
"You don't have to do that, Ryuji."
"C'mon, it's the least I can do!"
Ren just shook his head and smiled, "Alright then…"
With his suitcase loaded, the Thieves all piled inside. Not long after, they were driving off.
…
"Isn't this exciting? Getting an opportunity to work in this position isn't something you find very often, especially not here."
Ren nodded, "I'm grateful for it."
"But man," Ryuji said to Ren's right, "To think that one request would have you going all the way to Inaba. Never thought it'd play out like this when we first saw it on the site."
"But it's given us a new opportunity as Phantom Thieves as well," Haru added from the back, "It'll allow us to help more people outside of Tokyo. Or really, allow you to help more people."
"Do you guys remember the rules we went over?" Morgana piped up from the bag on Ren's lap.
Ann looked back and said, "I think so. Just check in on Mementos and be sure to report any new palaces we see to you and Ren. Right?"
"There was also to avoid meeting at Leblanc to discuss Thieves business. Our temporary hideout is to be the café on Central Street."
"That's all right, but there's one more."
"Ahh crap, what was it again?" Ryuji said while rubbing the back of his head.
Ren chuckled at them, "The last one is that Makoto is acting leader of the Phantom Thieves. She'll decide when you go to the Metaverse and everything around that. She'll also be the point of contact for Mishima when any new requests come in."
"I won't let you down, Joker. I mean, Ren."
"I know you won't. None of you ever have and you never will."
"Aww Ren, you're gonna make Ryuji blush." Futaba teased.
"Knock it off!"
Haru giggled and joined her, "I think he already is!"
"Not you too!"
They all shared a laugh, except for Ryuji.
…
…
…
They were now on the platform, just as Ren's train pulled in. The doors opened, and the intercom above called to the passengers to board.
"Well," Ren said, looking back at the entire group, "It's time."
One by one, they gave him a goodbye message.
Ryuji: "Be careful out there, man."
Ann: "Let us know if anything happens!"
Yusuke: "We'll be there at a moment's notice if you call."
Makoto: "Stay safe, and look out for each other."
Futaba: "I'll be watching you out there, so don't do anything stupid!"
Haru: "Please come home safe and sound."
Ren smiled brightly and gave them one last, "Take care, guys. We'll be back soon."
Morgana peaked out and yelled to them, "Don't forget about me!"
"We'll see you both soon!"
…
Ren gave one last wave to his friends on the platform from his seat, all of them waving back as the train slowly started to move away from the platform.
Within a few seconds, they were past and out of the station, on their way to Inaba.
He unzipped the bag slightly more, and Morgana peaked out, "No turning back now. It's only gonna be you and me from this point forward. Are you ready?"
He nodded, "I've been ready."
"That's what I like to hear."
Morgana then popped out fully, "The duo that started it all! Joker and Mona, gonna take down Amagi's Palace by themselves!"
One of the train staff was walking nearby, "Did...did I just hear a cat?"
"Shut up and get back in the bag!" He whispered to Morgana, who quickly stuffed himself back inside.
He looked outside of the window, as the Tokyo skyline slowly got smaller and smaller the farther they moved away.
"I promised back in Mementos that we'd take her heart…"
"We're coming, Mrs. Amagi. We're gonna help you, no matter what…"
Stop: Home - Persona 5: Strikers
The room was dark and empty. The only light was the little amount of sunlight coming from the closed blinds.
His grip faltered a bit, but he took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and calmed himself. His grip tightened on the blade handle.
Lifting the sword above his head, he swiped down quickly. He wasn't swiping at anything, just trying to gain control.
He hadn't wielded a sword like this in years. The department didn't allow them, despite his proficiency with the blade in his hands.
He then brought the sword back behind him, thinking back to the TV world and the Midnight Channel, closing his eyes…
…
In his head, he imagined that he was facing a Shadow. His Shadow, standing before him and holding the same blade.
"I have to face myself…"
His eyes opened, and he slashed forward. He imagined his Shadow blocking his blade and countering, which he blocked himself.
In the real world, he was just slashing at nothing in a dark room. But in his mind, he was doing it.
Facing his Shadow, to reclaim what he had lost.
His Shadow stabbed at him, and he kicked them back.
He brought his sword back and slashed upwards, making contact and cutting straight through.
He then stood up tall and held his sword at his side.
…
When Yu opened his eyes, he was back in the room. His Shadow was gone, as it was never really there.
The only problem was the massive gash that was now in the wallpaper…
He rubbed the back of his head, letting out a light "Whoops".
…
Just then, his cell phone started ringing. He pulled it from his pocket and read the screen.
It was Chie.
Yu answered, "Yeah?"
"Hey, that guy's train is gonna be here soon. You gonna come by so we can go pick him up?"
He looked at the clock on the wall. It looks like he had been at it for longer than he planned…
"Oh, yeah. Guess I lost track of time. I'll be there soon."
"You'd better hurry or we're gonna be late."
"Relax. We won't be late."
With that, Yu left the room and hung the sword up in his bedroom, where it would stay until it was needed.
He then departed his home.
Seems like it crept up out of nowhere
All-around
You it's not quite what you foretold
…
He lowered the volume on his phone a little before going back to the magazine he was looking through. Morgana was peeking his head out to look through the window, watching the countryside and the trees pass by.
"Enjoying the view?" Ren quietly asked him.
"Yeah. It's nice. Have you ever seen anything like it?"
"I have." He said as he continued skimming through the magazine.
…
A little after that, the intercom on the train came alive.
"Now arriving in Inaba Station. Please gather your belongings and prepare to head to the nearest exit when the train is stopped."
"Looks like we're here," Ren said as he took out his earbuds and returned them to his bag. Morgana also returned to his bag as Ren began to pack up all of his belongings.
Soon, the train began to slow and then came to a halt when they reached the station. Ren got up, slinging the Morgana bag over his shoulder and moving to grab his suitcase from the overhead bin.
Once done, he walked towards the exit of the train, proceeding down the platform and towards the exit.
Play: New Days - Persona 4
He finally reached the exit to the station, walking through the doorway and down the steps.
Here they were. Inaba, the home of the Midnight Channel.
Morgana popped out once again and took a large, deep breath.
"Wow...the air is so fresh! It's like I'm in a whole new ecosystem!"
Ren smiled at him, "Nice, isn't it?"
"You bet it is! The air in Tokyo's got NOTHIN' on this! I like this town already."
"Hey!" They heard someone yell.
"Oh snap. Incoming." Morgana said as he scurried back into the bag.
…
When Ren looked over, he saw two people approaching him, a man and a woman, both dress in business casual. The man had a head of silver hair while the woman had bowl-shaped light brown hair.
As they approached, the man asked him a question, "Are you Ren Amamiya?"
Ren nodded, "Yes sir. That's me."
"Okay good. See? Why do you always doubt my judgment?"
The woman shot the man an annoyed look, "I've been doubting things you've done for years now."
The man sighed but looked back at Ren with a smile, "Sorry, where are my manners. My name is Yu Narukami. I'm the one that set up that apprenticeship you applied for."
"Oh, well," Ren put a hand out and Yu took it, "It's nice to finally meet you, Sensei."
"Please, there's no need to be formal. Just call me Yu, or Narukami. Whatever you prefer."
Yu then gestured over to the woman on his left, "This is my partner. I'll allow her to introduce herself."
The woman put a hand out, "Satonaka-Amagi. Chie Satonaka-Amagi."
Ren took her hand and shook it kindly, but...he'd heard that name before.
…
"Chie Satonaka-Amagi. A detective at the local police department."
"Satonaka-Amagi? That's a weird last name."
"Amagi must be the surname. Perhaps Amagi-san's spouse?"
"Correct."
…
He then thought, "That's right. She was the one that put in the request for Amagi-san. And she's Mrs. Amagi's spouse? Interesting..."
While those thoughts went through his head, he smiled and shook her hand, "It's nice to meet you, Satonaka-san. Can I call you that?"
"No need. Just Chie is fine."
"Alright."
"Now that pleasantries are out of the way, why don't we go somewhere else where we can chat?"
"Sounds good."
With that, the three of them walked away from the station.
…
They found a park table to sit at and were enjoying a leisure conversation among themselves.
"So, how long have you two been working together?"
Yu answered first, "Years now. I worked at the department in my old hometown for a few months before I moved back here."
"Moved back here?"
"Yeah. I lived here for about a year when we were in high school because of my parents. That's when I met Chie and all of our other friends."
Chie picked up for him, "He left right before we graduated from high school. Aside from a few visits, we never really saw him until he moved back to town full time."
"The chief made us partners after that, and it's been like that ever since."
"Really? How long ago was that?"
"I dunno," Chie said before looking to Yu, "It's been what, four years now?"
He nodded, "Coming up on five."
"Jeez. Time flies. Don't you agree?"
Ren lightly chuckled, "I do."
…
"Well, tell me more about yourself. Yu said that you had an assault charge on your record at one point. What happened with that?"
"Oh yeah. That."
"You don't have to tell me anything if you don't want to."
"No no, it's fine."
Morgana whispered from the bag, "Don't disclose too much…!"
Ren ignored him, crossed his arms, and began, "One night when I was going back home, I ran into this drunk guy being really grabby and pushy with a woman. He kept trying to force her into getting into a car with him, and I just couldn't let it go, y'know? Unfortunately, when I stepped in, the guy ended up falling and hurting himself. To make matters worse, he made the woman lie and tell the police I attacked him out of nowhere."
Ren looked down at the grass, "That man was Masayoshi Shido before I knew who he really was."
"Jeez...now I feel bad for voting for the guy."
"Huh?"
Chie flinched, "Oh, sorry! He was...trying to make a joke."
She shot him a glare, as Ren just laughed lightly.
"Oh, don't worry. It's fine. It's all in the past, and besides. It was dropped anyway after his confession."
"Right…"
…
Yu then looked at his watch, "Oh wow. It got late fast."
He then stood up, "We can start working tomorrow if you want. I'm glad to give you a day or two to get used to the town if you need."
Ren shook his head, "There's no need. I'll figure it out."
Yu smiled, "Well alright then."
"You're staying at the Amagi Inn while you're here, right?" Chie asked him.
"That's right."
Chie stood up as well, "Cool. I live nearby there, so I'll show you the way. You can head home, Narukami. I've got this."
"You sure?"
She nodded.
"If you say so. It was nice to talk with you in person, Ren. I hope you'll enjoy working with us these next few weeks."
"I hope so as well."
Yu smiled and waved at the two of them as he walked off into the streets of Inaba.
"The Inn isn't too far of a walk from here. Just follow me."
Ren grabbed the Morgana bag and his suitcase, "Lead the way."
The two of them walked in a different direction of town.
Stop: New Days - Persona 4
Play: Signs of Love - Persona 4
She opened the door to the Inn and the two of them entered together.
The main lobby was empty aside from one person. It was a tall dark-haired woman wearing a long, pink kimono.
Wait, where had he seen that before?
The woman turned back to them, speaking as she did so, "Hi, welcome to the Amagi I- Oh, Chie! You're home!"
Chie gave a small wave to the woman, "Hey Yuki."
Ren just stood there as Chie walked up and hugged the woman in the kimono, a hug that lasted a good while.
When the two of them pulled apart, Chie spoke to the woman, "I brought us a guest today."
She turned to Ren and said, "This is Ren Amamiya. He's the one that got the apprenticeship that Narukami is doing. Ren, this is Yukiko Amagi, my...wife."
…
"So, this is the real Yukiko Amagi."
Yukiko walked up to Ren with a smile and shook his hand lightly, "It's very nice to meet you, Ren. I'm glad you'll be staying with us while you're here."
"Yeah…" Ren said lightly, "Me too."
"If Chie or Yu are ever pushing you too hard, let me know. I'll be sure to give them a stern talk if they do."
"I'm hurt you'd assume I'd do anything like that to him."
The two of them giggled lightly, Ren just continuing to watch the two of them.
…
Yukiko then brought her attention back to Chie, "I'll meet you in the back once I'm done helping him to his room, okay?"
Chie fake pouted, "Okay fiiine. If you insist."
She grinned and walked over to Yukiko, leaning up and kissing her lightly on her cheek, "Love you."
"Love you too."
"I'll see you at the station tomorrow, Ren."
Chie then walked off into the Inn, leaving a flustered Yukiko and a still observing Ren alone.
…
"Looks like you two have a great relationship."
Yukiko's smile was massive, "Chie is the best. I hope you enjoy working with her. How long is the apprenticeship?"
"A few weeks."
"That's great! Enjoy every second of it, okay?"
"I will."
"Now," she said, reaching for his suitcase, "Allow me to take this and show you to your room."
"Oh, that's not necessary. I can take it."
Yukiko smiled at him once again, "Please allow me. You're our guest here, y'know. Now, follow me."
…
He followed her until they stood in front of the door to where Ren would be staying for his time in Inaba.
"I made sure to put you somewhere near Chie and me, so if you need us for anything you can easily find us."
"You two...live here?"
She nodded, "We have our own private area, away from the guests. It's just down the hall though. If you ever need one of us, just come by."
She then unlocked and opened the door to the room. It was small but cozy. It had a bed in the far back corner, a small couch and a TV on the left side wall, and the door to the washroom was in the far right corner.
"I hope this works for you."
Ren walked in behind her, "It's perfect. Thank you, ma'am."
"Glad I could help. Now, here's your key." She said, giving him the room key, "And I'll get out of your way so you can rest. I'm sure you're exhausted from the trip out here."
Now that he thought about it, he was feeling a bit tired.
Yukiko was already past him and closing the door, "Have a great night and enjoy your stay, Ren."
"Thank you, Amagi-san." He replied.
With that, she shut the door.
…
…
…
After hearing her feet move down the hall, he finally placed down the bag and unzipped it fully.
"Alright Morgana, time for you to come out."
Morgana jumped out of the bag, almost knocking Ren over.
"Jeez, man! If I had known it'd take this long for me to get out of this stupid bag, I'd have stayed back with the other guys!"
"I...did offer to have you stay with Makoto."
"And let you do this on your own? No way!"
Ren sighed, "I'll buy you sushi later to make up for it. Now just calm down."
Morgana sat down, "Fine, but on the other hand...I heard everything. So, you've met Yukiko."
Ren walked over to the bed in the corner and sat down, "Yeah, I have…"
"Well…?"
"I gotta say...she's nothing like her Shadow acted. She's kind, respectful, and she and Chie seem like they have a great relationship."
He looked down at the floor, "Which makes me wonder why she put in that request in the first place…"
"From what I heard, it didn't seem like Amagi would be the type of person to have a Palace."
"Yeah, I know. That's what makes this so weird…"
Morgana stretched out, "Well, we can worry about that later. Tomorrow, the real investigation starts once you're done working at the station."
Ren nodded, "Right."
He went and shut the lights off and then climbed into the bed.
…
"Yukiko in person is certainly much different from her Shadow counterpart. Is she hiding it to remain hospitable, or...No, there's gotta be something. She has a Palace. There has to be something that we're not seeing…"
Whatever secrets she and this town held they would find.
Just some other day. It was a long day of traveling for them.