Ann stands in the alley with Ryuji and Morgana waiting for Akira. He was still gone when the bell rang so Ann grabbed his bag and Morgana from his desk and went to wait in the alley.
"Wonder what she's doing to him?" Ryuji says.
"What do you mean?" Ann asks.
"Well, I've had to deal with Ms. Pres. before and it wasn't usually that nice. She was always on my ass about studying more and improving my grades. Now I have to hide from her just since she won't leave me alone."
"Your grades could use some improvement from what I hear," Morgana says as he sticks his head out of the bag.
"Don't start with me today, cat."
Ann ignores the argument that ensues as she looks up at the school. Somewhere in there Akira was being held as a prisoner by Makoto Nijima, Student Body President. Ann has never interacted with her, herself, but what she's heard is that Nijima-senpai is intimidating. Supposedly her sister is a prosecutor in the SIU, and Makoto has ties to the public prosecutor's office for troublesome students. Ann also couldn't stand her. Either she knows about Kamoshida's abuse or she's so incompetent she can't see it.
Ann stares at the school, eyes darting back and forth between the various windows just to just catch a glimpse of that bushy, messy hair. The world seems to drown out around her as she scans the school. Patiently waiting for him wasn't an option, she wants him here now. They need his guidance, his coolness, his collectiveness when they enter the metaverse. They've come so close to getting Kamoshida's treasure that they can't afford to lose their Joker now.
"You know what Ryuji?" Morgana asks.
"What?!" Ryuji shouts back.
"If you were any stupi—"
"Guys!" Ann shouts. "He's coming!" she says pointing to the school. As all heads turn to the school, they see Akira walking towards them, head down and hands in pockets as always.
"Hey, what happened?" Ryuji asked as he walked up.
"Not much. She just told me to stay out of trouble," Akira responded as he took his bag back from Ann. "She mentioned you and Kamoshida specifically."
"Did she say anything else?" Ann asked.
"Not really. So," Akira says as he smiles at the group, "You guys ready to go get into some trouble?"
XXXX
"Ok, we're in!" Ryuji shouts in jubilee as they enter King Kamoshida's throne room.
"Quiet down, you idiot!" Morgana retorts. Ann waves the group over to the railing of the balcony they stand on to see Kamoshida and his shadow guards in the throne room below.
"Oh shit, it's Kamoshida…!"
"And… a ton of soldiers," Ann adds.
"How have you not captured the intruders yet?!" Kamoshida shouts. The crowd of shadow knights shout out their apologies and excuses.
"C'mon, we've gotta keep moving," Morgana says as he pushes lightly against Ann's leg. They creep along the balcony they're on to get behind the throne and through a door in the back.
"Where do you suppose this leads?" Ryuji asks once they're inside. Ann looks around to see that the hallway they find themselves in is dark and desolate. But at the end of it appears to be a large, old wooden door. She approaches it and with the rest of the group to stand next to it.
"This sturdy-looking door's pretty promising. Let's head inside!" Ryuji exclaims. Akira nods in agreement and moves to push the door open. As suddenly as his glove makes contact with the door, it swings open effortlessly and silently to reveal a large treasure room filled with gold. The students and their cat enter the room and approach a floating shimmering orb in the middle of the room. No matter how hard Ann looks at it, it constantly appears as if it's never in focus and always on the edge of her vision.
"Hooooolllyyyyy shit," Ryuji mutters as he stares at the orb.
"What is it?" Ann asks. Morgana chuckles at the group's stupor.
"That's the treasure. We finally found it!" he says.
"You sure?" Akira asks.
"Absolutely. Simply finding the treasure isn't enough. We'll need to make it materialize before we can steal it. See, desires have no physical form by nature. So, we'll need to make the real person aware that their desires are in fact a treasure. Once they're conscious that their desires might be stolen, the treasure will finally show itself."
"So, we need to make Kamoshida know we're aware of his treasure, his desire," Akira clarifies, "and it'll manifest into something we can actually steal?"
"Yes," Morgana says. "To do that, we'll have to warn them. Tell them, 'We're going to steal your heart' ought to do it. Since you guys are well known by Kamoshida, telling him outright would be begging him to do something the moment you told him. So, we'll have to leave him a calling card."
"That's so frickin cool!" Ryuji shouts. "It's like what a phantom thief would do!"
"Alright," Akira says, "all that's left is to send Kamoshida the card in reality and come here to steal the treasure, right Mona?"
"Mhmm, but once we send out the calling card, there'll be no turning back. We'll be committed to stealing the treasure. We'll have… I'd say… about 24 hours to take the treasure once the card has been sent."
"Let's regroup tomorrow after school and discuss it more ok?" Akira says. "Good work today, team."
Ann's heart flutters at the compliment Akira had just given her. She had done a good job and they were ready to take on Kamoshida. They'd finally done what she'd promised to Shiho. I need to go and visit her again, tonight. No matter how tired I am!
XXXX
Ann enters Shiho's room later that night. The room is empty except for Shiho in the bed and the ever-present rhythmic beeping of the monitors. Ann sits down, smiling as she's finally gotten the room to just her and Shiho again. Normally a nurse or one of Shiho's parents were sitting with her, but today was one of the few days Ann had with her alone. Days when she could tell her all about their work in Kamoshida's palace.
"Hey… we made it today. I think you'd be really proud of the progress we made," Ann says as she grabs Shiho's hand and sits down. "It was kind of amazing actually. We weren't sure if we were going to go since Nijima-senpai, you know, the student council president? Well she called Akira into the office right before the final bell. I thought my heart was going to drop out of my chest.
Was she going to prevent him from going? Did she somehow know? I was wracked with panic," Ann chuckles. "But sure enough, he came out and met us in the alley and off we went. We had to get to the top of that tower I'd told you about a couple days ago. Honestly, fighting in the metaverse like this is exhausting. But, it's also exciting. The constant fear of danger and mistakes, the thrill of sneaking into a place and laying the smack down on the shadows inside? It's… great.
I love it. I love the feeling of having Carmen blast Andras's with fire and whipping Archangel's or shooting Silky's. Hehe, one time, Joker and I had one cornered, guns pointed right at it. And before I even knew what I was saying, I shouted, 'THIS IS A HOLDUP!'" Ann says as a fit of laughter overtakes her. A moment later she regains her composure.
"So, we fought and shot and burned and electrified and kicked ass until we made it to the top of the tower. We found Kamoshida's treasure and it was… just a ball. Some floating ball. But Mona says we just have to send Kamoshida a calling card in reality and he'll make the treasure a tangible item.
So, Akira, Joker, is having us meet after school tomorrow to discuss doing it and what doing it will entail. I can't wait to see what he decides…" Ann tails off as she turns to stare out the window at the lights of Tokyo outside. The bright lights and dark night create an amalgamation of blurred lights and dark voids in the sky.
"There's something about him, Shiho," Ann says, her voice barely more than a whisper. "I think about him all the time. Especially after everything we've done together in the metaverse. I told you I thought he was cute when I first saw him, but… there's just something about him I can't get him out of my head. He's so confidant in everything he does. He always gives off an aura that he doesn't care about what's happening in the world around him but at the same time when he speaks, he can say a million things in a single sentence.
Shiho, I don't know what this feeling is. I've never been so… captivated by someone like this before. When I'm alone at home in my apartment, I think about him and what he might be doing," Ann looks back at Shiho's face and smiles. "I can't wait for you to wake up and meet him."
Ann spends another half an hour sitting with Shiho and telling her about her adventures in the metaverse. She tells her about Ryuji and Morgana's fights, Akira's plans with ambushing shadows, her own struggles with the physical demand of battle, and about Akira some more. Ann only stops when the night nurse informs her visiting hours are over and she needs to go home, at which point she places a kiss on Shiho's forehead and departs for home.
XXXX
"Will that be all Haru-chan?" the maid asks?
"Yes, Rosemary," Haru smiles as she takes the plate of crackers and dip, "I'll send for you if we need anything else for tonight."
"Very well," she says with a deep bow, "enjoy your night Haru-chan." Rosemary walks out of Haru's bedroom closing the door behind her. As she leaves, Haru grabs the remote control to her sound system and hits play.
"Let the bodies hit the… FLOOOOOORRRRR!" the speaker roars as Makoto drops her pencil and shrieks in fright.
"HARU!"
"SORRY!" Haru shouts back as she struggles to contain her laughter. Pressing the volume down on the remote brings the sound system down to barely background noise. "Forgot I had it up that high last time."
Makoto gives Haru a stern look but quickly breaks into laughter herself at the absurdity of it all. Haru know she defies expectations of how she looks versus how she acts and what she enjoys. It's the main reason she dresses as girly as she does, second only to genuine love of the look of the fashion of it.
"More heavy metal Haru?" Makoto asks as she grabs a cracker.
"Yes. Father said it was a band he listened to when he was abroad in America when he was in college. I find the music quite pleasant when gardening."
"How do you think you did on the early American history quiz this morning?" Makoto asks her.
"I think I did quite well. The only question I couldn't remember was the American president from the first world war that was very sick and had a stroke during his presidency," Haru replies.
"Woodrow Wilson," Makoto says.
"Dammit! I guessed Coolidge-san," Haru says as she angrily bites into a cracker. "Why must we learn about history of America? How is that relevant to our daily lives outside of school?"
"It's good to have a well-rounded education Haru," Makoto says smiling, "besides I thought you liked learning about the world wars?"
"I do, I don't like learning about boring presidencies of other countries," Haru smiles back.
"Admit it, Haru," Makoto says. "You just want to learn about the weapons of war and how powerful they are."
"I would never deny that," Haru replies as she tilts her chin up and closes her eyes in a posh stance. "At least that's entertaining."
Makoto laughs as Haru gets up to change out of her school uniform. She digs through her closet to find a comfy night shirt to wear.
"Did you call your sister?" Haru asks.
"I did, she wasn't going to be home tonight anyway, so she didn't mind. As long as I 'stay on top of my studies,'" Makoto says with a mocking tone in her voice. "I love her, and I know she means well, but I swear I barely see her anymore."
"I know what you mean," Haru says as she pulls on a night shirt. "Father is the same way. Ever since Mother died, he's always working on something for the company. I only see him in passing."
"At least we've got each other, right?" Makoto says.
"Of course!" Haru says as she sits back down. "Did I show you my new cactus?" Makoto shakes her head causing Haru to get back up and move to her window sill and remove a small cactus in a pot from it. "It's called Opuntia, but most people refer to it as 'prickly pear.' It's commonly found in Mexico, but I know someone Father works with who grows them in his town for a small food business and was able to get one!"
Haru feels an abundance of energy in her body just from talking about the cactus. The feeling makes Haru feel like she can rule a mile and do a million jumping jacks. "I can't wait for it to grow out of this pot so I can transplant it."
"It looks great Haru," Makoto says. Haru beams at her as she returns it to her window sill.
"Thanks, I'm really excited about it. So, what are we studying tonight?" Haru asks. Makoto seems to have not heard her as she looks at her phone.
"Huh? Oh, sorry. Ummm… how about Calculus?" Makoto suggests.
"Works for me," Haru agrees as she grabs her backpack and begins to dig inside for her notebook.
XXXX
A/N: Hey, everyone. I wanted to drop a note here to say thanks again for reading. School has been keeping me busy which is why I didn't get a new chapter written or posted last week so I figured once I got back to it, I'd drop two to make up for it. I'm beginning to introduce Makoto and Haru to deviate a bit from the game story and I had a lot of fun writing Haru. Makoto, I struggled with and went through a couple of rewrites of her sections as I try and nail down how I want her character to be in this story. That being said, I appreciate those of you who have followed the story and favorited it and keep coming back whenever I post a new chapter. It honestly does wonders for my motivation to keep going. Thank you again!