Morgana was bored at the Kurusu home. He wanted to go outside, but it had just started to rain. His food and water bowls were full, but he wasn't hungry or thirsty. Besides, he preferred fatty tuna over cat kibble, but then again, beggars can't be choosers. Morgana breathed a sigh of boredom as he sat on the window sill looking out at the rain, trying to think of something to do. He did feel kind of sleepy, maybe because of the soothing sound of rainfall. He figured he might take a nap. Not so much to distract from the boredom, but more to take his mind off what Akira said to him earlier.

"Fine! You wanna leave!? Leave! That's all you do anyway!"

Morgana felt there was truth to what Akira said. He once ran away and temporarily quit the team over petty drama. He disappeared after they defeated the God of Control and didn't bother to return until almost two months later because, in his own words, he "felt it would've been awkward." Finally, more recently, he left his best friend, the one who'd always been by his side, as he was going through a hard time. Morgana was mad at himself, feeling partially responsible for letting Akira slip further into despair.

*CRACK!*

"GYAAHH!" Thunder and lightning struck loudly. The sound was so harsh and unexpected that Morgana jumped off the window sill and fell to the floor, knocking the wastebasket down in the process. "Ow… that hurt…" he muttered. "Some cat I am… can't even land on my own feet." He was so lost in his thoughts that the thunder caught him off guard. Again, thank God for carpeted floors. The wastebasket wasn't full, so it's not like there was a big mess. There was just a single crumpled-up piece of paper that had rolled out. Morgana was about to roll it back in, but remembered Akira nervously glancing at the wastebasket earlier when Morgana asked him what he had been doing all night. Being the curious cat (ahem) that he was, he un-crumpled the bit of paper and began reading it. "What the…?"

It wasn't a suicide note, but it sure read like one.

Meanwhile, Akira Kurusu felt like he was in two places at once.

He was on a cliff side as his eleven-year-old self being threatened with a blade to his throat by a mysterious man in a red coat who was yelling at him for reasons he didn't fully understand.

He was also in a wedding hall during his cousin's wedding reception, having a violent seizure on the ground in front of his closest friends, members of his family, and a bunch of strangers.

Either way, Akira felt like he was in Hell.

"HELP! SOMEBODY CALL FOR HELP!" Rise was crying out as she saw blood pour out of his mouth. The other Thieves worriedly rushed from their table over to the stage to check on him. Ann, Makoto, Haru, and Futaba were freaking out while Ryuji and Yusuke were pale as ghosts.

"S-Should we move him somewhere?" Ryuji asked, agitated.

"I-I-I think t-there's a back room…" Rise could barely talk through her shaking and shedding tears.

"No! We can't move him!" Makoto firmly stated.

"But look at all this crap on the stage! He needs more space!" Ann yelled.

"Then let's move it!" Haru frantically added. Haru, Makoto, Ann, and Ryuji cleared the amplifier, cables, mic stand, and any bits of wood from the now destroyed guitar away from Akira. Futaba stood by, frozen by fear. Yusuke held her in his arms to try and comfort her. The guests could be heard chattering throughout the entire hall. Yu rushed over along with another woman.

"Sayoko can help!" he said. The woman in question stepped forward and kneeled down next to Akira.

"What's going on?" Sayoko asked.

"He's having a seizure. Are you a doctor?" Makoto asked.

"I'm a nurse, Sayoko Uehara," she introduced herself. "You two, give me your jackets!" Sayoko demanded of Ryuji and Yusuke. They took off their blazers and handed them to the nurse. She then crumpled them up and went to place them around Akira's head. They weren't pillows, but they would have to do. Yu picked Rise off the ground and held her close.

"Th-The blood…" Rise cried.

"He must've bitten his tongue or his gums. Don't worry; I doubt it's anything serious," Sayoko assured her. She then moved to loosen his tie to help his breathing. However, before she could, Akira's body stopped jerking. "O-Okay, I think the worst is ov-" As she was finishing her sentence, Akira's eyes suddenly shot open, and he sat up like he nothing had happened.

"Woah, that was fast…" Ryuji noted.

"Are you okay?" Sayoko asked Akira. He didn't respond. He had another thousand-yard stare and probably didn't even notice that she or any of the others were there. He wiped the blood from his chin and cheek and spat out some more on the floor next to him before trying to get up. "Woah, take it easy there!" Sayoko said, placing her hands on his chest, trying to keep him down. Without a word, Akira pulled her hands off and tried getting up once more.

"Akira, please!" Haru begged him to stay down and let them help, but Akira was having none of it. Without saying anything, he batted everyone away, got up, and walked off the stage.

"Akira, hold up, I don't thi-" Yu tried to stop him, but Akira made his way past him as well.

"Where are you going!?" Futaba yelled out.

Akira didn't stop. He walked through the wedding hall and headed for the exit. Several people tried to stop him out of concern. People he knew like Kanji, Riku, Chie, and Dojima failed to get him to stop. Family members like Maki and Shinsuke Kujikawa couldn't reach him. Even people he had just met hours ago, like Yu's high school sports, music, and drama club members and even the bitchy-sounding woman whose name Akira couldn't remember tried talking to him. He ignored them all. If someone put a hand on him, he quickly batted it away without making a sound or diverting his gaze. Akira walked out the double doors of the wedding hall and slammed them shut before heading out into the pouring rain. On his way out, he bumped into two people, but didn't stop to apologize. He kept on walking like a man possessed.

"Akira…?" he heard a female voice call out, but he paid no attention. What did catch his attention was a male voice yelling.

"AKIRA! WHERE'RE YOU GOING!?" Ryuji ran and caught up to him. He put a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, man. What are-"

*POW*

Akira quickly turned around and decked Ryuji hard, knocking him down to the ground.

"Argh, dude, what the-"

*BAM*

Before Ryuji could finish his question, Akira kicked him square in the face.

"AKIRA!" Makoto yelled out. The other Phantom Thieves who had followed him out gasped at what they saw.

"WHAT THE HELL!?" Ann yelled as she rushed over to check on Ryuji. Akira walked over and stood over his best friend lying on the ground, hand up to his nose. Ryuji looked up and saw the same look Akira had in his eyes five months earlier when he pushed him down in the RV. Only this time, instead of offering him a hand up, the only he provided was an ominous warning.

"Stay the fuck away from me," Akira said in a quiet but threatening tone of voice. "I fucking mean it. All of you; stay the fuck away from me." He then removed his faux glasses and looked at them. "I don't know why he ever wore these, stupid," he said before casually tossing them on the ground next to Ryuji and walking away. The others came over and helped Ryuji up, who had a bloody nose.

"Akira, wait!" Futaba came running over on the verge of tears. "W-We just-"

"THERE IS NO 'WE' ANYMORE!" Akira turned around and yelled. She took a step back. "WE are done! I AM done! With Tokyo! With Inaba! With ALL OF YOU!"

"Akira, please listen to us…" Yusuke pleaded.

"W-We just want to help you…" Haru said, shakily and tearing up.

"OH, WILL YOU STOP. FEEDING ME. THAT FUCKING GARBAGE!? HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO FUCKING SAY IT!? I DON'T NEED NOR DO I WANT YOUR FUCKING HELP!" Akira was fuming. The others just stared, speechless and terrified, as he kept ranting. "If you want to text about me behind my fucking back in your stupid little group chat, be my fucking guest! But don't try and act like you want to fucking help me! Do you understand!? FUCK ALL OF YOU!" Akira's expression changed for a second when he noticed who he had bumped into. It was his mother and Sumire, standing by the entrance of the hall under an umbrella Kairi was holding, both with their jaws on the floor and frozen at the sight of the unhinged Akira Kurusu before them. Akira hissed in pain and cringed as he put his hand up to his head.

"Akira…" Makoto quietly extended her hand out to him; Akira quickly slapped it away.

"FUCK THIS PLACE! FUCK IT!" Akira yelled before walking off. He ran to the bus stop, where a bus was just arriving; he got on and disappeared before the others could catch up to him.

This wasn't 'goodbye,' and it sure as hell wasn't 'I'll see you later.' It was 'fuck you,' plain and simple.

Akira didn't know where the bus was taking him, but he didn't care. Any way he saw it, he was going nowhere. After a while, he got off someplace and wandered around for a bit. Akira wound-up stumbling upon a convenience store. He wanted to drink, no one was around to stop him. It was the perfect time. Akira went inside and walked to the back of the store where the alcohol was. He picked up a bottle of whiskey, but no TaP soda or anything to mix with. There was no need to try and hide it anymore. Akira went up to the register and set the bottle on the counter. The clerk asked for his ID; Akira pulled it out and not-so-casually tossed it on the counter.

"Ren Amamiya?" the clerk asked after picking it up. Akira didn't say anything or even flinch. The clerk gave it back to him and rang up the bottle of whiskey.

"Can I get a lighter?" Akira asked the clerk.

"You want cigarettes too?"

"Did I say I wanted cigarettes?" Akira asked, frustrated. "Just give me a fucking lighter." The clerk said nothing and grabbed a pack of BIC lighters from behind the counter and added it to the total. Akira paid, grabbed his grocery bag, and walked out of the store.

"Have a nice day!" the clerk yelled out.

"Yeah, bite me," Akira replied before slamming the door.

"Jeez…what's his problem?" the customer who was behind Akira muttered as he walked up to the counter. "Hi, Yano-san, how's your day been?"

"Fine, until that guy showed up, tch…" The clerk glared toward the door. "Bah, anyway. How are you, Inoki-san?"

"Fine, thanks. Can I get two packs of my usual smokes?" the man named Inoki asked as he placed a candy bar on the counter.

"I'm out of Lucky Strikes, unfortunately," the clerk shrugged; Inoki sighed.

"Just my lucky day, no pun intended." He rubbed his head and scanned through the selection of cigarettes. "Fine then, I'll take two packs…Marlboros, please." The clerk nodded and grabbed them off the shelf.

"How's work?" The clerk asked.

"Busy…" Inoki sighed. "I got offered the morning shift to watch the holding cells in lockup tomorrow. Which means I'm going to have to get up early," he groaned.

"Wasn't tomorrow supposed to be your day off?" The clerk rang up the candy bar and cigarettes.

"Yeah, don't remind me…" Inoki handed the clerk some yen.

"Why didn't you say 'no?'" The clerk took the money and put it in the register.

"It was an offer I couldn't refuse, hehe," Inoki said in his best Marlon Brando voice before chuckling. "Ah, it is what it is. It's not the worst job ever. All I'm doing is sitting behind a desk for a few hours," he said as he pocketed his cigarettes and candy bar.

"That's basically what I do, haha," the clerk chuckled.

"Nuh-uh," Inoki wagged his finger. "What I'm doing is babysitting dumbasses while they wait for someone to bail 'em out." The two shared a chuckle.

"Tch, whatever. Have a good one, Inoki-san. Say 'hi' to Kota-san for me."

"Will do!" Inoki nodded. "See you soon, Yano-san." He walked out of the convenience store and opened up his umbrella. Inoki found the same guy from before leaning against a lamppost, drinking whiskey straight up. For some reason, he decided to walk over to him. "Hey, you all right?"

"What do you want?" Akira asked without turning around.

"Nothing, I was just wondering what you were doing drinking in the rain? Bad day?"

"What's it to you?" Akira took another sip; Inoki had a gut feeling.

"How old are you?"

"Twenty, why?"

"Nothing. It's just that you seem kind of young to be shooting whiskey straight up."

"What business is it of yours how I drink? You a cop?"

"Actually, hehe," Inoki chuckled and pulled out his badge, "yeah, I am. Don't worry; I won't ask you to show me your ID or anything," he said, pocketing his badge.

"Then, can you please leave me alone?" Akira turned around and faced Inoki, who froze for a second.

"Yeah…sorry…" he raised an eyebrow. "What did you say your name was again?"

"Ren Amamiya."

"Do you need a ride somewhere, Amamiya-kun?"

"What the fuck is wrong with you, man?" Akira smiled sadistically, nearly breaking down in laughter.

"Again, nothing. You just seemed like you were having a bad day," Inoki chuckled and playfully lifted his hands in surrender. "I got no issues with you."

"Hmph. Well, as far as I know, I'm not breaking any laws." Oh, the irony. "So, if you'll excuse me…" Akira walked off in the other direction. Inoki huffed and got back in his car.

"Was that…? No way…" Inoki muttered to himself. "No, it couldn't be…" He turned on the ignition. "… Akira?"

Meanwhile, the Phantom Thieves, along with Sumire and Kairi, walked into the Kurusu home. Ryuji leaned on Ann as she helped him to the couch. He was clutching his head, wincing in pain as he pulled out the bloody tissues from his nostrils.

"Are you all right, Ryuji-kun?" Kairi asked.

"Meh, my head really hurts…" he groaned.

"Hold on, I'll go get you some ice," Kairi said.

"Kairi-san!" Makoto called out. "Have you heard anything from Yu-san?" Kairi checked her phone.

"No, nothing yet. I'll let you know when I do. Don't worry," Kairi said as she continued to the kitchen, and the Thieves went to the living room. There was a moment of awkward silence in the living room as the Phantom Thieves all took seats around the living room. Sumire broke the silence.

"Can someone please explain to me what just happened!? What happened with Akira?" No one answered right away. They just looked down at the ground. "Well!?" Sumire asked again. She had on her own dress, a strawberry peplum dress with white cone-heel shoes, expecting to come to a wedding and have a fun time with her friends and boyfriend. Yet, here she was, with her boyfriend was missing and her friends looking anxious and worried.

"We're not entirely sure," Yusuke began. "Akira was performing onstage with Rise-san. He had another seizure, and-"

"WHAT!?" Everyone looked to the doorway to see Kairi with a look of shock as she dropped the ice pack she had gotten for Ryuji. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN, ANOTHER SEIZURE!?" she furiously asked. The Thieves all looked at each other.

"Well, we have to tell her now," Ryuji groaned. The others reluctantly nodded.

"You've all been keeping this from me!?" Kairi asked in disbelief.

"We're so sorry, Kairi-san," Haru began. "We just… we didn't think it was our place to tell you, and-" Kairi lifted her hand up to stop Haru.

"Save it," she said as she grabbed the ice pack and tossed it to Ann, who held it to Ryuji's head. "Just tell me everything."

"Well, it started after Akira first got back to Tokyo in March," Makoto began. "He started getting headaches. We all went on a camping trip during spring break, and on our way back, he had a seizure in front of us."

"Oh my God…" Kairi put her hands over her mouth in shock.

"I have to be honest, Kairi," Sumire began. "The seizure Akira had in front of us wasn't the first one."

"W-What do you mean?" Kairi nervously asked.

"The day he got back; we all went out to dinner. On our way home…Akira was assaulted by some drunk men."

"WHAT!?" Kairi thought she was going to have a heart attack.

"It wasn't anything too bad!" Futaba frantically tried to put the fire out. "It was just a couple of bruises."

"AND a seizure, Futaba!" Sumire snapped; she didn't often snap.

"R-Right… sorry…" Futaba looked down at the ground like a scolded dog.

"I'm sorry we didn't tell you," Sumire apologized to Kairi.

"It's not your fault… I really regret not asking you all for your contact info," Kairi lamented. She then had a thought. "Hold on, did Rise know?"

"She knew about the seizures, Akira told her when she came to visit for Golden Week. She doesn't know about the assault, however," Sumire admitted. Kairi sighed and ran her hand through her hair. While she was mad that Akira hadn't told her was bad enough, but the fact that Rise had lied to her face when she asked her how Akira was doing made her angry just as much. "Are you all right?" Sumire asked her.

"I'm fine, Sumire…" she huffed. "Keep going, Makoto-chan."

"Anyway, we didn't know either until he had one in front of us," Makoto continued. "We brought him to a doctor friend of ours, who recommended him to go see a neurologist. She said he doesn't have epilepsy and found nothing wrong with his brain. He even got an MRI at the hospital, and they also found nothing wrong."

"So, why's he getting seizures?" Kairi asked, scratching her head.

"We don't know," Ann said, rubbing Ryuji's back to try and comfort him. "But there's definitely something wrong with him."

"Ever since he came back, we've noticed he's been acting differently than the last time we saw him. He's been more aggressive; he's been a lot angrier…" Yusuke trailed off.

"It's almost like he's a different person," Haru said, nervously rubbing her arm.

"You know, you might not be far off…" Ryuji said, throwing down the ice pack.

"What do you mean?" Futaba asked.

"Oh yeah, it was weird," Ann began to recall. "Before he threw down his glasses, he wondered why he even wore them in the first place. I never got that either, to be honest." Ann got distracted.

"I've often wondered that as well. He doesn't need them, yet he wears them anyway?" Yusuke interjected.

"It's something I did when I first moved here when I was a kid. I took an old pair of my father's glasses and put in fake lenses. I stopped wearing them when I became an adult, but Akira found them one day when he was eight and started wearing them," Kairi explained. "I don't know why he wore them either, but he liked them so, meh," she shrugged. "But that doesn't matter, right now. Please continue, Ann-chan."

"Right, uh…h-he wondered why he ever wore them, but the way he said it sounded kinda off."

"Off how?" Makoto asked.

"I don't know why he ever wore these," Ryuji said.

"Ryuji, we get it. Not the time," Futaba glared.

"No, I'm tellin' you, that's exactly what Akira said. He said, 'I don't know why HE ever wore these.'"

"You mean, he spoke he in the third person?" Haru asked.

"Yeah, I guess," Ryuji shrugged. "When I looked up at him, it was like I was seein' a different person."

"Could it be D.I.D?" Yusuke asked. Everyone looked at him in confusion. "Dissociative identity disorder?"

"That's crazy!" Futaba exclaimed.

"It seems plausible. Akira has experienced blackouts and has no memory of certain lapses in time. He's been detached from his emotions-"

"I doubt it," Kairi interjected. "I thought the same thing too for a while, but nothing came of it. I took him to a few doctors after…" Kairi trailed off and looked down as she had to catch her breath.

"After he was abused?" Sumire softly asked. Kairi looked up and swallowed her saliva.

"N-Not exactly…but…he told you all about that?" Everyone nodded.

"A few months ago," Ann said. "We've known he was abused since last summer, but he told us the whole story not too long ago."

"We couldn't believe what had happened to him. I-I…felt so awful for him," Haru said somberly.

"Made me sick, literally," Ryuji interjected. "For a while, we thought it was his dad who did that shit to him."

"No, never!" Kairi shook her head. "Minoru never did anything like that. He was a wonderful father who loved Akira," she said before looking back down.

"And his brother, correct?" Yusuke asked.

"H-Huh? What brother?" Sumire asked, looking around at the others; Kairi's head shot back up.

"The one we just found out about today. Like, less than an hour ago," Futaba said.

"He didn't tell you about Tetsuya?" The Thieves shook their heads. "Then, how did-"

"We found out at the reception when Rise-san proposed a toast to someone named Tetsuya, who she claimed was Akira's brother," Yusuke said.

"We were super confused," Ann added.

"We never knew he had a brother," Makoto added; Kairi took a deep breath.

"So, that's who he was talking about…" Sumire quietly murmured as she remembered Akira screaming in his sleep.

"Tetsuya…was my first son…" Kairi began. "I had him five years before Akira when I was seventeen…and I loved him so much…" She was trying hard not to cry. "H-He died…seven years ago now, accidentally drowning in a lake." Sumire walked over to comfort Kairi as she shed a few tears. The Thieves felt terrible for her.

"We're so sorry, Kairi-san. We can't even begin to imagine what it must be like to lose a child," Haru softly said, placing an arm on her shoulder. Kairi recomposed herself.

"I-It's the worst feeling you can imagine, and I hope none of you ever have to go through something like that…" She took a deep breath and gathered her thoughts. "Anyway," she sniffed and wiped tears from her eyes before continuing, "it was after Tetsuya passed away that I took Akira to a doctor. He sort of—how do I say it—became… disconnected mentally. He talked a lot less, showed a lot less emotion…" Kairi paused for a second to think. "To be honest, I don't remember him crying once after Tetsuya passed away. Not even at his funeral."

"So, you're saying Tetsuya's passing was so traumatic that Akira went catatonic as a result?" Yusuke pondered.

"Not entirely, but in a way, yes," Kairi nodded.

"Jeez, no wonder Akira was so quiet when he was in Tokyo…" Futaba recalled.

"That's true. When I first met him, he never talked much. When he did, he only said a few words. He did get better at speaking over time though," Ann added.

"He wasn't great at communicating an' yet we still made him our leader, hehehe," Ryuji awkwardly chuckled.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Kairi asked.

"Oh! Crap!" Ryuji whispered to himself. He looked around to see the other Phantom Thieves glaring at him.

"You mean when he led you all as the Phantom Thieves?" Kairi casually asked.

"Yea-wait…" Ryuji's eyes went wide. So did everyone else's as they all looked at Kairi.

"You don't need to hide it anymore. I know all of you are the Phantom Thieves," Kairi showed a hint of a smile.

"You know!?" Ann freaked out.

"I know," Kairi smiled and nodded.

"H-How long have you known?" Sumire asked.

"I've known for quite a while. Ever since I saw you all on TV when you sent that warning to Masayoshi Shido."

"The Futaba canon," the hacker muttered. "It was broadcast throughout the entire country. I guess we shouldn't be surprised that you saw it."

"To be fair, it wasn't the most subtle of statements, looking back," Haru pondered.

"We weren't tryna be subtle; we were sendin' that bastard a message," Ryuji said.

"Although, there's something I'm curious about. I remember seeing nine figures on the screen. Counting Akira, who's not here, I count eight. So, who's the ninth?" Kairi asked. The Thieves looked around at each other.

"Umm, oh wow, how do we explain this one?" Makoto wondered.

"Well, um, you see, Kairi-san…the ninth member was Morgana," Yusuke said.

"…the cat?" Kairi raised an eyebrow. "I'm totally lost…"

"It's a really long story, but basically, we can understand everything Morgana-senpai says. He was part of our group," Sumire said. Kairi looked around at the others, who nodded in confirmation.

"Sooooo, whenever he meowed…he was actually talking to you all? Like an actual person?" she asked.

"Pretty much," Ann said.

"Oooookay, I guess I'll just accept it for now," Kairi gave in.

"Hey, where is Morgana, anyway?" Futaba asked as she looked around.

"He's probably upstairs in Akira's room," Kairi suggested. "The two of them argued when I told Akira he couldn't bring him to the wedding."

"Really?" Ryuji asked. "Jeez…has Akira been fighting with everyone today? Oh, uh, sorry, Kairi-san," he hastily said. Kairi checked her phone once more, still no word from Akira or Yu. She sighed before getting up from her seat.

"I'm going to go make some coffee. You kids want anything?" The Thieves all nodded and gladly accepted some coffee. Kairi went to the kitchen; Sumire got up as well.

"I'm going to go get Morgana-senpai. We need to catch him up as well." Everyone nodded. Sumire proceeded to go upstairs to Akira's room. She found Morgana asleep on the bed. She sat down beside him and gently stroked the fur on his back for a while to wake him up. "Morgana-senpai?" she whispered gently. Morgana purred for a bit before opening one eye.

"…huh?" He was still asleep, "oh, hi-SUMIRE!" until he wasn't. "Thank God, you're here!" Morgana shot up to the surprise of Sumire. "Where're the others?"

"Everyone is downstairs. A-Are you all right? What's going on?" she asked; Morgana ran off the bed and hopped on the desk.

"You gotta see this! Come on!" Sumire got off the bed and walked over to the desk. She found a piece of paper that looked like it had been recently thrown away. She began to read it. When she finished, she and Morgana ran back downstairs to the living room. Everyone turned to her.

"What's up, Sumire?" Kairi asked as she served coffee to everyone.

"You have to see this!" she worriedly exclaimed.

Somehow, Akira found himself on the beach, not Shichiri beach, but a different stretch of coast. If he was being honest, he had no clue where he was, but, once again, he didn't care. He sat in the sand under a boardwalk, taking shelter from the rain, giving himself a chance to sober up a little after drinking the entire two-hundred milliliter bottle of whiskey earlier. It didn't manage to erase the taste of blood in his mouth; he must've bitten his gums hard during his seizure because every time he spat, there was a bit of blood mixed with his saliva.

Eventually, it stopped raining. He got up and started walking off the beach. He came across a public ashtray and decided now was as good a time as any. Akira got out the pack of BIC lighters he had bought from the convenience store and pulled out a single lighter before tossing the rest in the garbage can next to the ashtray. He then pulled out his wallet along with his ID card. Not his fake, his real ID card. He looked over the card that identified him as Akira Kurusu, struck the lighter, and brought the flame to the card, setting it on fire before putting it in the ashtray and watching as Akira Kurusu burned away before him. Before he left the beach, he felt his cell phone vibrate for what seemed like the nine-millionth time today. He pulled it out and saw he had over ninety-nine missed calls, and God knows how many messages, both voice, and text. He shrugged before tossing the phone somewhere onto the beach. He wasn't sure if it had reached the water or not, but it didn't matter.

He walked off the beach and starting walking along the highway. After about two hours of walking, he found himself in a town. Because of the rain, the night fell sooner than expected. The wind was howling, and the warm, summer temperature was nowhere to be felt. It was cold and rainy, as if autumn had come early. Akira didn't know where he was, and he didn't particularly care about finding out. The cold wind and rain didn't know either. They only came and went, not bothering to find out the truth. Akira just wanted to get more booze and perhaps something to eat. He stumbled upon another convenience store, bought another two-hundred milliliter bottle of whiskey along with some small sandwiches and a bag of chips. He sat on a bench and ate his dinner. The sandwiches were a day past their expiration date and had an odd taste to them. Akira was trying to think back to where it all went wrong. He finished his food, got up from the bench, and started walking again.

"When did things start going to shit?" he thought as he walked, taking sips of whiskey. In his mind, Akira felt like he was conversing with somebody; there was a back-and-forth going on. When he would call, his thoughts would respond to him.

"Was it the wedding? No, things were already fucked up then."

Another sip.

"Was it getting assaulted by that asshole near World's End? No."

Another sip.

"Was it the argument with Mom? No, that's not it either."

Another sip. The bottle was getting lighter, and Akira was stumbling more and more.

"Was it Shido? Pfft, yeah, right. Life was already fucked up before he came along."

Another sip.

"Was it the abuse? Close, but no."

Another sip.

"Was it Tetsuya dying? Maybe. Life did get worse after that."

Another sip, but nothing came out. The bottle was empty.

"No. It wasn't Tetsuya. Suppose you had to trace this downward spiral back to one moment where it all began, it would be…"

Before Akira could piece it together in his mind, a flashing neon sign on the side of a building did it for him.

Cinema City.

"Yeah… you…" Akira spoke aloud with venom and bitterness in his voice. He began to feel enraged as he stared at the movie theater whose construction took his father's life. "You… took…"

*SMASH*

"EVERYTHING FROM ME!" he drunkenly yelled as he threw the empty bottle at the theater wall. He picked up rocks from the movie theater's parking lot and started hurling them at the building, all the while yelling and shouting obscenities. "FUCK YOU!"

*SMASH*

One of the rocks thrown went through a window. Glass shattered all over the ground. Akira breathed heavily as he put his back against the wall and slumped down to the ground, covering his face with his hands. He sat there for a while, still on the verge of tears but not able to let anything out, until…the cologne.

"Hey! What the fuck are you-… Holy. Fucking. Shit. You gotta be fuckin' kiddin' me!" a male voice exclaimed. Akira uncovered his face and looked to his right before quickly looking away again. He couldn't believe it—his childhood bullies and, more recently, the people who had mugged him; Raden, Jiro, and Kaz. Fate really was a cruel mistress. "Kurusu? Is that really you?"

"Never heard of him. Name's Amamiya," Akira responded, avoiding eye contact and hiding his identity since it didn't seem like Raden recognized him.

"Holy shit! It is Kurusu!" It didn't work. "I fuckin' knew it!" Raden exclaimed. "Wow, it's been a while, hasn't it?" he chuckled.

"It's only been five months, Raden." Almost to the day, too.

"Aw, whatever, like I'd remember that far back anyway. Then again, I am a bit hammered right now, seeing as it is my birthday," Raden said as he looked Akira over. "Jeez, speakin' of hammered, you look like hammered shit. Lemme ask you somethin'. Where's your fuckin' change jug, huh?" Raden laughed; the other two joined in as well. Between his slurred speech, beard, disheveled clothes, and messy hair, Akira did kind of look like a hobo. Raden continued spouting his spiel. "Though I gotta admit, that's a nice suit. How much did it cost? What? Did you get a job as a butler or some shit? You really somebody's bitch?" Akira didn't respond, but the trio cracked up like it was the funniest joke they had ever heard.

"Fuck off with the fucking wisecracks, Raden. I'm not in the mood," Akira said, still not looking at him.

"Oh. Oh, my bad, I'm so sowwy. Did I hurt your feewwings?" Raden said sarcastically. "It's just that, uh, I thought I told you that I never wanted to see you again, Kurusu."

"I thought you said you didn't remember that far back?" Akira retorted.

"Ooooooh…" Jiro and Kaz said in unison. "He's got you there, Raden," one of them said.

"Shut the fuck up, Jiro!" Raden yelled. "Now, back to you, Kurusu," he said as he approached Akira. The closer Raden got, the more he could smell the whiskey. Likewise, Akira could smell the cologne. The same one Raden was wearing when he mugged him in the woods. Raden kneeled in front of Akira and started talking to him. "Since, apparently, your memory is so much better than mine. Why don't you tell me what I said I'd do to you if I ever saw you again, huh?" he said before slapping him in the face. Akira didn't respond; he didn't even look him in the eye. "Hey!" Raden yelled as he slapped him again. "Look me in the eye and tell me what I said, Kurusu!"

"Listen to him!" a member of the trio added.

"Which do you want first?" Akira replied, earning himself another slap.

"Don't fuckin' act clever, you monkey-suit wearin' motherfucker! ANSWER ME!" Akira finally looked up. Something caught his attention. A chain around Raden's neck. He found himself staring at it for a while. "What? The fuck is you lookin' at?" Raden asked. "Oh, I know what you're lookin' at, hehe…" Raden chuckled as he took the chain off from around his neck and dangled it in front of Akira, who froze in disbelief. True to his word from five months ago, Raden had taken the ring Sumire had given Akira for Christmas and was wearing it around his neck as a necklace. "Haha, yeah. This? This little piece of asshole tax we took from you? That's what you were lookin' at, huh? Gotta admit it's a nice ring. Just wish I knew what the fuck 'my joker' meant. You wanna tell me?" Akira didn't respond. "Hmph. Didn't think so."

"…" Akira had no words. He was at his lowest point, and yet he somehow kept falling further down. Akira realized that every low can be lowered.

"You know, Kurusu…" Raden paused as he slipped the chain back around bis neck. "My memory's not that foggy. I remember exactly what I said to you before you left. I believe my words were, 'I will kick the living shit out of you,' am I right, boys?" Raden turned to Jiro and Kaz, who shrugged in uncertainty. "Trust me; it's what I said." He turned back to Akira. "Now, be that as it may, lucky you, you caught me on a good night. It's my birthday, I've had a few drinks, and I'm in a good mood, so I think I'm gonna let you off the hook this time around. Oh, and don't worry about the window either. See how nice I can be?" Raden chuckled. "C'mon, boys." Jiro and Kaz walked up to Raden as all three stood in front of Akira. Raden smiled sadistically. They turned around and walked away. "See ya around, Kurusu. You fuckin' owe me for this."

Suddenly, something snapped inside of Akira. He felt enraged, like the whiskey in his system was gasoline, burning through his veins, fulling his rage. Just like with the drunk outside of World's End, Akira was seeking vengeance. An eye for an eye; the foundation of revenge, best served cold, or in the case, with a hell of a buzz. Raden was right; Akira owed him, but it wasn't anything of monetary value, and it sure as hell wasn't out of gratitude. It was a righteous kick in the ass; a debt that was about twelve years past due, and Akira was finally ready to pay the piper. Better late than never. He got back up, not really thinking it through. Akira was about to go up against three other guys while pretty heavily intoxicated. The whole thing screamed bad idea, but Akira didn't give a damn. If he was going to get beaten up, he was going to be a pain in the ass for them as well.

"You've got something of mine!" Akira yelled out. The trio stopped in their tracks. Jiro and Kaz turned around, but Raden didn't.

"The fuck did you just say?" Raden asked, still facing away from Akira.

"I said…" Akira clenched his fists. "You've got something of mine…and I want it back." Raden turned around and smugly smiled at him.

"It's three on one. You really think you got a good chance of walkin' away from this in one piece?"

"No, but I can make damn-well sure none of you assholes do, either. One way or another, I'm taking my ring back." Akira didn't know much about gambling, but he still felt Lady Luck was on his side, or perhaps, he was over-confident, like Joker. Either way, he was going all-in. Raden pulled the ring out from the inside of his shirt and showed it to him.

"You want it? Come and get it."

Akira marched forward, as did the trio. All of a sudden, it was a brawl in the parking lot. Despite it being three-on-one, Akira held his own. He hit hard and fast. He had imagined the trio ganging up on him; the stooges holding him while Raden got his shots in. As far as Akira could see it, the only thing his plan had going for it was that the trio weren't smart enough to pull this move. Jiro and Kaz were pushovers, and Akira knocked them down with just a few punches. Despite this, the trio got some good hits in as well. Akira's forehead started bleeding as he was busted open after getting knocked to the ground and landing headfirst on the curb. For all he knew, he might've had a concussion after that, but it was going to take more than that to stop him. Akira kept getting up.

He felt like his body was on fire; he had so much anger built up that he almost felt happy to let loose. The trio was going to have to kill him if they wanted to keep him down. He put on a big shit-eating grin and let these guys take turns trying to kick his ass. That was his plan; it wasn't a good one, but Akira was a fighter, even if he looked and felt like the bottle of whiskey he had smashed against the theater's walls moments earlier. It wasn't a fair fight, and Akira didn't treat it as such. After all, there are no rules in a street fight. He hit the two stooges with punches and kicks below the belt, which put them out of commission for a bit. Raden grabbed Akira from behind and tried to choke him out; the two struggled and ended up setting off a car alarm, which blared non-stop, providing a soundtrack for the remainder of the fight.

Akira used the car as leverage to propel himself and Raden backward until Raden's backside slammed into the wall hard. Akira elbowed Raden in the stomach, which allowed him to break free from Raden's clutches before kneeing him in the gut and in the face when Raden bent forward, trying to catch his breath. He fell backwards and landed in the empty parking spot. Akira got on top of Raden and punched him in the face, again and again. Like his punches were the staccato percussion to the melodic repetitive motive of the car alarm. Akira's fists were singing Raden a lullaby at an allegretto tempo. Eventually, the bully had had enough. Blood was gushing from his nose, sticking to Akira's fist. The man formerly known as Joker didn't want to stop; he wanted to make his childhood bully pay for years of physical beatdowns and emotional torture.

"Stop! Stop it! Please!" Raden cried out.

"I never thought I'd see you beg, Raden," Akira hissed before grabbing him by the collar and headbutting him in the face.

"S-S-Stop! I give up! You win!" Akira didn't feel like a winner. There was no glory to be found in this situation. This wasn't the Phantom Thieves changing the distorted heart of a corrupt individual and making them confess their crimes. Nobody had been helped, or avenged. Beating Raden wouldn't get rid of his seizures. Akira was no hero; he felt no better than the trio. Here he was, letting the psychopath within him control his every move; his fists driving on their own, one after another, putting a dent in the bully's skull. All over a simple ring...

"The ring…" Akira had briefly forgotten his reason for this attack. The red mist in his eyes slowly began to fade, but, looking down, he still saw red. Raden's face was messy, as was Akira's, though, his busted-open forehead gave him the edge, but that wasn't to say Raden looked any better. Like the bully, Akira had had enough; it was time to take back what was his. Raden saw Akira raise his fist once more.

"Stop it!" Akira brought his fist down but didn't punch him. Instead, he grabbed the chain around Raden's neck and snapped it off. Akira looked at the ring in his hand before clenching his fist and quickly pocketing it. As if he was trying desperately to salvage the remainder of his sanity, whatever was left of it. In the end, it all came back to her.

"Mark my words, Raden," Akira began, "if I ever see you again…" He grabbed Raden's collar again and lifted him up closer to his face. "I will… Take. Your. Hear-"

*BAM*

Akira was interrupted by one of the stooges hitting him with a cheap-shot in the back of the head. Next thing he knew, they were both pulling him off Raden and throwing him to the ground. They began kicking him while he was down again and again. Soon, Raden got back up and joined in. All three were kicking the living shit out of Akira, just like they said they would months ago, serving as a perfect metaphor for Akira's life recently. Somehow, Akira fought them off once more, and the brawl was back on, but it didn't last nearly as long as the first. Red lights flashed and off-key sounds of wailing sirens crescendoed as a single police cruiser pulled up to the parking lot and two police officers showed up at the scene, breaking up the brawl.

"FREEZE! POLICE! THAT'S ENOUGH!" The quartet stopped fighting. The sirens were like the bell calling for the end of the round. It was a hollow victory; there would be no rematch. "All of you! Down on the ground! Hands behind your head!"

Akira had jelly legs and was barely standing by the time the cops showed up, but the same could be said for the trio. His face was a battered mess, blood spilling from his nose, mouth, and forehead. He wasn't sure what brought the cops, it could have been the car alarm, or maybe someone inside the movie theater had called the cops after the window was broken. Whatever it was, it didn't matter anymore. Lady Luck was long gone, and Akira lay face-down on the ground, spitting out pints of blood and kissing the pavement as the police officer cuffed his hands behind his back.

Something told him the criminal record was going to stick this time.