"Are you feeling okay this morning?"
The question knocked Ren out of his trance as Chie looked at him with concern. The two of them were walking to the station that morning, only a few hours after he and Morgana had returned from the Midnight Channel.
"I'm sorry, can you repeat?"
"Uhh, I asked if you were okay."
"Oh, sorry. Yeah, I'm fine. Just…" he rubbed his eyes, "Just didn't get enough sleep last night."
"Try drinking some coffee. We can stop to get you some before we get to the station."
Ren shook his head, "That's not necessary. I'll be fine."
"You sure."
"Yeah. Nothing a little work won't fix, y'know?"
…
The two of them approached Yu, who was typing on his laptop. When they reached his desk, he stood and smiled.
"Good morning you two."
He then noticed Ren's expression, one of...mistrust? Actually...no. It was less of an expression and moreso a look in his eyes.
"Is...something the matter?"
Ren just shook his head, "No, why do you ask?"
"I dunno...you don't look so good. Did you not sleep well?"
"He says he didn't. I asked him on the way here."
"Well, I'll go get you something that might help. You just wait here. Chie, the Chief needs to talk to you."
He then walked away, while Chie just sighed, gave Ren a quick "See you later" before walking off as well.
…
He took another sip of the tea Yu had brought him.
"You feeling awake?"
Ren placed it down on the desk, "Yeah, definitely. Thanks."
"No problem. Kombucha is what got me through college and my early days here in the force. You should start drinking it in the mornings before you come here. They should have them at the Inn."
"I'll look into it."
The two of them started their work, searching through files of police documents.
…
It was during a break when he went to the back of the building, taking Morgana's bag with him.
He placed it on the ground, and Morgana popped out.
"So, any change in his behavior?"
"None at all. He seems the same to me."
"Then it looks like he and his Shadow don't share memories. At least, what happens to his Shadow doesn't correlate to his behaviors."
"Much like in the Metaverse."
Morgana nodded, "Exactly. That's step one of the plan. Now, we need to ask around about any odd behaviors from Narukami. And I think we know a good place to start…"
"Chie."
"Precisely. You'd better go find her."
…
Ren found Chie sitting at a bench nearby, watching the nearby fields. She looked like she was lost in thought, her fingers lightly tapping on the armrest.
"Here all by yourself?"
She jumped slightly and turned towards him, "Geez Amamiya. Don't scare me like that."
"My apologies. Do you...mind if I join you?"
"Nobody is stopping you."
He took the seat next to her as the two of them fell into silence. Chie's eyes remained straight ahead of her, continuing to watch the field below them.
"So," Ren said and broke the long silence, "Something on your mind?"
"A lot of things."
"Okay...do you wanna talk about them?"
She sighed, "Not really...it doesn't concern you, okay?"
"Are you sure? You can trust me, y'know."
"No offense kid, but I've known you for what, two days? You're a nice guy and all, but I'm not about to talk about my problems with a kid."
"Would you tell Narukami?"
"I've also known Yu for almost ten years."
Ren looked at the ground, "Yeah, good point...sorry for budging."
She shook her head, "It's fine. I appreciate the concern, nonetheless."
…
"By the way, I wanna ask. You and Narukami have been acquainted for a long time. What was he like in the past?"
"Uhhh...why do you ask?"
"No reason. Just curious."
Chie turned away from the field and looked towards Ren, "You wouldn't just ask a question like that out of the blue. What's the real reason?"
Ren kept a straight face, "As you said. I've only known you both for two days. I feel it's only right that I make an effort to get to know you two more, especially if I'll be working with you for the next few weeks."
"That's...true. Alright, you win. Narukami is...weird. Not in a bad way or anything. He's just an unorthodox guy. He's very close to his family, especially Nanako, and he's always trying to be the guy for us to come to with our problems."
"Us?"
"Our group of friends back in high school. Here, lemme show you."
She pulled out her phone, scrolling through and before showing him the screen. There was a large group of students on the screen, most of the faces he recognized. He knew Narukami, Chie, and Yukiko, as well as all of the faces that he had seen when they were investigating those murders.
Wait a second…
He didn't get a chance to say anything more before Chie was pulling the screen back and speaking again, "Yu really cared about all of us. He was as good a friend as you could ask for."
She stopped and looked down, prompting Ren to say, "Was?"
"I...don't know if he's comfortable with me telling you this, but…"
Ren prepared himself for what she was about to say.
Play: Confession/Secret - Persona 5
Chie looked back up, "The guy with the headphones in that photo. You saw him, right?"
Ren nodded.
"His name is Yosuke Hanamura. He's the manager over at Junes. Well, he and Yu were especially close. He was his first friend when he first moved to Inaba. They hung out all the time, got into fights together, and they were the ones that got Yukiko and I together."
She smiled, "They were "partners". That's what they would call each other. They knew that no matter what happened, they would have each other's backs."
Her smile faded and she sighed, "Until…"
Ren looked at her with concern, "Until what?"
…
"Narukami caught feelings...for Yosuke."
Ren's eyes widened in surprise, which Chie noticed, "Hey, don't judge!"
"I-I'm not judging!"
"What, do you have a problem with it? Cuz that's seriously messed up, kid."
"I don't have a problem with it. I was just...surprised, that's all. Please, continue."
Chie scowled at him, but she eventually looked away and continued, "Right before Yu went back home, the first time he was here, he decided that he didn't want to leave anything unsaid. So, a few days before he left, he...confessed."
"And?"
"Let's just say that Yosuke...didn't take it too well."
"Oh…did he ever tell you what was said?"
"I know everything that happened, because...well, I was there. We all were. What Yosuke said was awful. Just vile and disgusting, it was like he was a whole different person."
She shook her head, "He told Narukami to stay away from him. Far away from him. He said he "never wanted to see his disgusting face ever again.""
"That's horrible...who would say such a thing to their friend like that?"
"I dunno. Nobody knows why he ever said that."
…
"So, what happened when he moved back here?"
Chie leaned back, "Before then, we all tore into Yosuke pretty badly when it was over with and we got him to apologize. They kinda reconciled, in a way. But...they were never the same. Yu was never the same."
"To this day, I still don't think he's over it."
"Did his behavior change?"
"At first, not really. But once time passed and our friend group started to grow apart, he definitely changed. He started coming over to the Inn all the time, went and walked with Nanako to and from school every day, started working insane hours at the department. It was bizarre. Nice to see him and all, but...so unlike him."
Chie continued, "What Yosuke said to him that day still hurts him, and honestly...I don't think he'll ever get over it. He shared more in that one confession than he had ever shared before, and…"
"Yosuke took it and spat in his face."
"Basically."
…
"Well, we'd better get back to the station. Oh, and...don't tell Narukami I said all of that, alright?"
Ren nodded, "I won't. Promise."
"Thanks, Ren."
She started to walk away, but turned back and said, "Oh, and Ren. If you're ever feeling up to it, come by mine and Yukiko's hall of the Inn sometime. She'd love to have you over one night if you want to."
He smiled, "I'd be happy to. Just let me know."
"Great!"
…
"Did you get all that, Morgana?"
"Yeah, I did. Gotta say, not what I expected."
"You can say that a lot in this town."
"I...feel bad for the guy. He does so much for everyone in this town, but it seems like nobody's ever given him that same respect."
"I agree. Do you think this has something to do with his Shadow and Palace?"
"It might. We can go over it all later. For now, let's get back to the station."
…
Ren walked up to Yu, who was standing outside waiting for him.
"Did you take a walk across the country? Where have you been?" He joked to Ren.
"Sorry, I was... discussing with someone."
"Oh, you...didn't need to apologize. I was only joking."
He sighed, "Still gotta work on my sense of humor…"
Ren looked at him confused, which made Yu laugh.
"Anyways, ready to finish up? There's not much left to do, y'know."
"Yeah. Let's get it done."
Before they got to the elevator, Ren whispered quickly.
"I'm sorry."
Yu heard it, and turned back to him, "Huh? Did you say something?"
Ren shook his head, "I didn't."
"Huh...guess I'm just hearing things."
The two entered the elevator, the doors shut, and they ascended.
Stop: Confession/Secret - Persona 5
"You did a good job today. It wasn't easy having to dig dirt on Narukami, but I think what we got was pretty good."
Ren smiled before sitting on the small sofa in front of the TV, "So, what's our next move? Should we infiltrate the Palace again?"
"I'm not sure, exactly. The Palace was small, so I don't think there's anything else we can find. I couldn't sense a Treasure in that place, so it makes me think there's not even one to steal."
"So then...what do we do? We can't just let that Shadow roam around unchecked."
"Now hold on. We're not gonna let the Shadow "roam around". I've got a plan."
Ren sat there expectantly
…
Morgana began, "After what I heard from Chie about Narukami, I started connecting the dots. Remember the Palace? There wasn't a single prisoner in the cells, no matter how far we went. His Shadow is the Warden of that prison, and I've heard that some prison wardens reside on the same premises of the prison they watch over. So, if you think about it…"
"The only person that resides in that prison...is him."
"Hehe, now you get it. He holds control over the Shadows in there like an iron grip, just like how he's holding on dearly to whatever connections he has."
Ren nodded to all of that, "His Shadow must be reflecting his loneliness…"
Ren then looked back at Morgana, "But what about all that stuff with Yosuke? Where does that come in?"
"That...I'm not sure. There wasn't anything I could think of at the time."
Ren sighed. Even when they made progress, they were always just a bit short.
…
"So, you have a plan. What is that?"
"If there's a Treasure in that Palace, of any kind, then there's only one way we can get it to appear. Think back, what have we always done to make the Treasure materialize?"
"We sent the ruler in this world a calling card…you want to send one to Narukami?"
Morgana nodded, "It's our only chance if we want the Treasure to appear."
"Hmm…"
Ren thought it over for a long while.
"If we send a calling card to Narukami, his Palace will surely go on high alert. Plus, we'll be running in blind without knowing where the Treasure is. What do we do once we get to the Palace?"
"We'll find the Warden's Office. If the Shadow will be anywhere at the time, it's gotta be there."
"Okay, but how will we give it to him? It'd be way too obvious to try and slip it to him at the station."
Morgana grinned, and then said, "You don't need to worry about that. We've got another tool we can use…"
"What tool?"
Morgana looked to the TV, Ren following his eyes.
"It comes on every rainy night. The weather report says rain for the next few days."
Morgana then looked up at Ren, "You following now?"
Ren smiled.
Two days later…
"Is there a reason you're keeping me over so late?" Chie asked as Yu was fiddling with some old medicine in his counter.
"I want to check the channel again tonight. I haven't been seeing anything on it lately, and I'm getting worried."
"You better not be thinking about going in again. There's no way we'd last that long without our Personas."
"Relax, I'm not going in. No matter what happens."
Chie was skeptical, but just said "Okay."
…
After a few minutes of them waiting, the clock struck midnight.
The TV came on by itself.
"There we go…" Yu said, eagerly leaning forward, "Come on, show me something."
Chie didn't say anything, just watching the TV intently.
Eventually, the static cleared.
A figure clad in a long, black coat was on the screen, standing in the center of a "stage" area.
"Who...is that?"
Then, the figure started speaking.
Play: Wake Up, Get Up, Get Out There - instrumental - Persona 5
The voice was distorted, but the words were clear.
"Yu Narukami."
Both him and Chie were stunned.
"Wait, does that thing know your name?! What the hell?"
"I…"
"What the hell is this?"
…
The voice continued.
"The other self that lives within you has fallen to the pain that lies deep within your heart."
"The pain and grief have cast a shadow over your very soul, leading you on a path of sorrow."
"We cannot and will not allow your inner self to create such strife for you and the people you love. We have seen first-hand the results of this distortion."
"Therefore, we, the Phantom Thieves, will rob your heart of every bit of distortion and agony."
"Tonight, we will take your heart back from your inner demons."
…
The figure then reached up and tossed something at the screen.
A card flew through his TV, hitting Yu right in the chest. He picked it up and immediately looked it over.
It was a calling card.
Signed by the Phantom Thieves.
…
Before their initial stunned reactions could subside, the figure said one more thing.
"Come find us...and we will return what is rightfully yours to you. Your heart knows the path..."
And with that, the screen went back to static and eventually shut off.
…
…
…
Yu and Chie couldn't believe what they had just seen.
"The Phantom Thieves...they really came…" was the first thing that he let out.
"Yeah, but...why are they targeting you?!"
"I don't know, but…"
He shook his head, immediately getting up to grab his glasses and his gun.
"Whoa whoa, you're not seriously thinking of going, are you?"
"What else am I gonna do? They said for me to go, so I'm going."
"But what about-?"
"Chie, I'm not arguing about this. Now stay here, I'll be back soon."
With that, Yu put his glasses on, tucked his gun away, and immediately climbed into the TV, leaving Chie to helplessly sit there.