"Come on!" Ann says, fists on her hips. "God, you're taking forever!"
"Can you blame me?" Ryuji asks, peering over his shoulder. "I'm freakin' out, here."
They walk down the street towards the Aoyoma-Itchome train station. Akira had boarded a train some fifteen minutes earlier, but now the two of them were supposed to hop on a train, and speed off to their 'date.' "This whole plan is so dumb," Ann grumbles, and glares as Ryuji ducks behind a corner and peers back out. "Oh my god! Stop already!"
"But what if they are following us?"
"Then you're just going to tip them off by acting like that."
Ryuji's eyes widen as he turns back to Ann. "Oh, crap. You're totally right!"
Ann shakes her head. They don't even know who 'they' are. The more she thinks about it, the weirder the whole thing seems. If it's the police, why would they turn to the Principal of Shujin to investigate them? And for that matter, why would the Principal ask Makoto Niijima to assist?
Ryuji begins to march down the street, head still, hands flat at his sides, the very image of someone up to no good and trying desperately not to show it.
"I can't even with this," Ann sighs, reaches out, grabs Ryuji's arm and begins to drag him towards the tunnel's entrance.
"H-hey!" Ryuji shouts, and tries to pull from her grasp.
"No," Ann says. "No more delays. We're going on this dumb fake date whether you like it or not!"
"It's not that," Ryuji says, and yanks his arm free from her hands. Ann turns back to him and sees him staring down an alley. His eyes narrow. "It's that." She looks in the direction he is, and frowns.
There is a heavyset boy on the ground. He wears a Shujin uniform. Over him stands another boy, also wearing a Shujin uniform. It is very clear what is happening, but before her brain can catch up to her instincts, Ryuji is barreling down the alley with a shout of, "Knock it off!"
The kid, whom Ann recognizes as second year Daisuke Takanashi, turns towards the noise, and grimaces. Ann follows Ryuji into the alley, a scowl writing itself across her face.
"What're you doin' to him?" Ryuji asks, when he stops alongside them.
Takanashi rolls his eyes. "Oh, piss off, Sakamoto. This is between us." He turns his gaze down to the boy on the ground. "Right, piggy?"
Guilt fills Ann as she realizes she doesn't know the boy on the ground. The pins on his shirt collar identify him as a second year too, but the name is a total blank to her. The boy's eyes never venture higher than anyone's knees. "Y-yeah," he mumbles.
"Like hell," Ryuji counters, and steps between the fallen boy and Takanashi, who steps back. "I saw you knock him down."
"It's his fault. I asked him, nicely, I might add, for the answers to a test he had a period ahead of me. The idiot gave me the wrong ones!"
"B-but," the boy protests. "I told you I'm not very good at history! I warned you yesterday!"
"Then you should've cheated off someone near you, and then given me the answers, fatass!"
The boy on the ground shudders.
"Stop it," Ann says, finally finding her voice. "Don't talk to him like that."
Takanashi look at her. "Takamaki? Seriously? What're you doing here with this loser?"
Ann's eyes narrow. "We're on a date."
Takanashi blinks. Ryuji reddens.
"Really?" The bully asks.
"Yep," Ryuji bumbles out. "We are on a date. That is definitely what is happening right now."
Ann shuts her eyes and sighs at Ryuji's awful acting. And I thought I was bad.
"Wow," Takanashi says. "You sure are easy, Takamaki."
Ann opens her mouth to retort, but then something happens. One minute, Takanashi is leering at her, and the next he is up against the alley's wall, his uniform's lapels wrapped in the fists of Ryuji, who wears a... well, the best word to describe his face is 'snarl.'
"Say that again," Ryuji says, his voice low. "Please."
"Ryuji," Ann says, because she cannot think of anything else to say.
He looks back at her, his expression softens, and he lets the boy go. "Get lost, Takanashi."
The bully dusts himself off, and straightens. "Yeah, whatever, man. You're all bark."
"Keep talking. Seriously."
The kid shrugs and starts to walk off. "We'll settle up later, Piggy," he calls, and gives a lazy wave before he's down the alley and gone.
Ryuji sighs and turns to the still prone boy. "You okay, Maehara?" He asks, and offers a hand.
"Huh?" The boy asks, blinking. Then, he hesitantly reaches out his hand and takes Ryuji's. "Y-yeah. Thanks."
"Is he really forcing you to give him the answers?" Ann asks.
Once Maehara is standing, he seems to shrivel up. "Well, it's not like I mind it," he says with a shrug. "But, I did tell him that I suck at history." He shakes his head. "It doesn't matter."
"Yes it does!" Ryuji insists. "That jerk is totally using you."
"I know," Maehara says. "But, we used to be friends, when we were kids. He's not really that smart, and he stinks at studying. I guess I figured I could help him out, and then..." He sighs. "Well, whatever. I appreciate what you did Sakamoto, you too Takamaki, but nothing's going to change. Unless the Phantom Thieves change it."
"Huh?" Both Ryuji and Ann asks at the same time.
Maehara perks up, glances past them down the alley and steps a few feet closer to them. "Check it out," he says, pulling out phone. "Have you guys heard about the PhanSite?"
"Um," Ann says.
"Yeah," Ryuji says. She shoots him a look. He shrugs.
"Well," Maehara continues, oblivious. "I totally put in a request for the Phantom Thieves to change Takanashi's heart." His fingers fly over his screen and then he turns it towards them.
"Dear Phantom Thieves," Ann reads. "My old friend Daisuke Takanashi is bullying me. He's forcing me to give him money and to give him the answers for tests. He's not a bad guy, not really, but I don't know how to get him back to way he was. Please, Phantom Thieves, I know you guys are probably more concerned with jerks like Kamoshida, but it'd be great if you could help change his heart. Your fan, Minoru Maehara."
When she finishes, all three are quiet. Maehara stands there, pink faced, eyes on the ground. He retracts his phone and sticks it back into his pocket. "A-anyway, thanks for sticking up for me guys, I should get going." He shakes his head. "Man, Takanashi's really gonna give it to me tomorrow." He nods once more and slides past the two, and begins to speed walk out of the alley.
"Hey, Maehara!" Ryuji calls out. The kid turns. Ann's eyes widen as she opens her mouth to cut him off, but Ryuji barrels onward. "Don't worry, dude. The Phantom Thieves will definitely change Takanashi's heart."
Maehara blinks, then smiles. "I sure hope so!" He waves goodbye, and resumes his walk.
Ann groans and begins to say, "Ryuji, what're you-" but he cuts her off.
"I know what you're gonna say, Ann." He looks at her then, a small smile on his face. "But I also know you're thinking the same thing as me."
Ann stares at him, then sighs. "Let's go."
"Some date, huh?" Ryuji asks, then reddens, before chuckling and looking down the alley. The two make their way back to the street.
"Hey, Ryuji?" Ann asks.
"Yeah?"
"Thanks for sticking up for me," she says, eyes on the ground. "When Takanashi said-"
"Pssh," Ryuji replies, blowing a raspberry. "You don't have to thank me for that. That douche was asking for it."
Ann looks at the Ryuji, but the blonde boy, whether intentional or oblivious, keeps staring ahead. She smiles, and keeps walking alongside him.
#
You're gonna miss something.
Shut up.
You're gonna miss something.
Shut up.
You're gonna miss something.
SHUT UP.
Akira sits at LeBlanc's bar, his eyes directed down at the varnished wood counter, but his mind is a million miles away. In his head, he runs through, again and again, every avenue and obstacle and option he can think of.
There's always a way out.
You're gonna miss something, his brain shouts back at him, in a sing-song voice.
A single mug of coffee sits next to his hands. He does not remember where Sojiro put it there. Morgana is out, 'patrolling the neighborhood, looking for suspicious characters,' and it is just as well. The cat had chattered incessantly on the train, and Akira needs the privacy of his own thoughts right now.
They don't know. They suspect. They can't prove anything because it was all in the Metaverse. Except, it wasn't all in the Metaverse. Akira had warned Kamoshida, after all. "We're coming for you, Your Majesty."
Stupid. Stupid. STUPID.
He can feel Sojiro's eyes on him, but the man stands at the far end of the bar, drying mugs. Akira is the only other person in LeBlanc.
"I thought you were bringing friends," Sojiro calls down.
"They're on a date," Akira mumbles. "They'll be here soon."
Sojiro cracks a smile. "You're gonna third wheel? Sad."
Akira doesn't reply. Sojiro's grin fades.
The door chimes. Sojiro's face falls further. Akira waits to hear the voices of Ann and Ryuji, but instead, he only hears a voice, feminine and touched with authority. "Good afternoon, Sakura-san."
Another of Sojiro's 'customers,' he thinks, and returns his attention to his own situation.
Makoto. She's investigating me. That... No. Ignore that. Unimportant right now. What do I do? I could continue the study sessions. Feed her false information. She trusts me. Doesn't she?
"Good to see you," Sojiro says in a tone that indicates it is anything but good to see her. "Don't suppose you just came for a cup of coffee?"
You're gonna miss something.
"I'd like to speak about-"
"Over here," Sojiro says, and nods towards the far end of the bar. "Please."
Akira hears the clicking sound of footsteps pass him from behind, and the noise tickles his memory, but he can't afford to pay that any attention right now.
Why would they send Makoto to investigate us? Who even are 'they?' The police? If it's the police, why did they involve the Principal? How did they even know about us? Why would they suspect Shiho?
From down the length of the bar, Akira hears the faint echoes of angry whispers.
Why would they suspect Shiho? She was in a coma. Was it because of her connection to Ann? Or do the people investigating them know more than they're letting on?
Is it anyone other than the Principal? It wouldn't be hard for him to find out who had challenged Kamoshida. But if it's not the Principal... Can we afford to think like that?
You're gonna miss something.
Shut up! Then there's Mishima. He knows. What if the site isn't as secure as he thinks it is? Fuck! What if Nakanohara does decide he doesn't appreciate that we just went ahead and changed his heart? What if he blabs about us? Stupid. Stupid. STUPID!
The sound of something heavy being set on the bar bounces its way down to him, and he blinks, then shakes his head clear. The whispers grow more intense.
Should we stop? For a while, at least? Dammit, but if we stop, then won't it be suspicious that the Phantom Thieves stopped right after we started being investigated? But, so what? How would they prove we found out? They can't ask Morgana. He's a cat. What would they even ask him if they suspected? Even if they could confirm his presence at Kobayakowa's window, how would they prove it conveyed information to us?
You're gonna miss something.
Shut up! They could make something up. Would it even matter? Why would they even wait to gather evidence? Why wouldn't they just arrest us now? They did it me before. Built a case on lies. They could just say the same thing! They could take our phones! They could check our text messages! Oh, fuck! Our text messages! He reaches into his pocket and pulls out his phone. He scrolls through the conversations he's had with Ryuji and Ann. Damning message after damning message. He begins to delete them, then realizes he has no idea if these are backed up anywhere. Does he need to reformat his phone? How would he do that? If he searched for 'How to reformat phone' online, was that traceable?
"...not gonna order anything, I've got nothing else to say," Akira hears Sojiro say, a touch of finality in his voice.
What if we just stop? Just quit? But if they did that, Morgana would never recover his memories. Would he be okay with that? Would I be okay with that?
You missed something.
The thought flutters through his mind with no more intensity than a light breeze, but it is enough to bring him back to himself.
Someone is speaking to him. "...cuse me?"
He straightens and turns his head.
There is a woman standing alongside him. She is tall, and perhaps in her mid-twenties. She looks to be around Kawakami-sensei's age. Her outfit is a stern black business suit over a black turtleneck. Her hair is tinged toward gray and her eyes are a deep brown Akira almost mistakes as red.
These scrutinize him, but he can't mistake a dullness shot through them, an exhaustion. Though her makeup is applied with precision, Akira can see the faint hints of dark circles beneath her sockets.
"Is that a Shujin Academy uniform?" She asks. Her voice is direct, authoritative.
"Y-yes," Akira says, before he can gather his thoughts.
She nods, a single, solid dip of her head. "I thought so. What would bring a Shujin student out to this place?" There is a look to her that suggests she will not accept silence as a response. Akira can almost feel himself wilt beneath it. He glances back towards the far end of the bar. Sojiro is out of sight, but Akira can hear the sink in the small kitchen running, and the familiar sound of dishes being done.
"I live here," he says. What am I doing? Who even is this person? Stop talking!
She blinks. "I was unaware Sojiro had taken in..." She pauses, shakes her head. "I suppose it's been some time since I visited the file."
The file?
The woman's attention refocuses on Akira. "Well, I suppose your living here would explain your presence. Is Sojiro your uncle?"
Akira considers staying silent, but under her gaze, what can he do? "N-no." Change the subject! Change the subject! He clears his throat before the woman can continue her inquiry. "How do you know about Shujin?"
"Hm?" She asks, then waves the question away. "Oh, my younger sister goes there."
Akira nods, and makes an effort to turn back to his coffee. "Maybe I've seen her."
"I would hope so," the woman says. "She's the Student Council President. Makoto Niijima."
Akira's eyes snap back to hers. He sees it now. The red tint in her eyes. This is Makoto's sister? This is Makoto's sister. And here she is. In LeBlanc.
He starts to laugh. It does not begin as a laugh, more of a chuckle. But then it grows until the smile splits his face wide, and the sound belts out of him uncontrollably.
Her eyes narrow. "What's so funny?"
He shakes his head. "Nothing," he says, when he can. "It's nothing."
The woman stares at him, a newfound intensity in her eyes. Akira's laughter diminishes but does not die. He breaks his gaze with her and returns to his coffee. "I suppose," Makoto's sister says after a long pause. "I'll be going then."
She turns and begins to walk towards the door. Akira hears the click-click-click of her shoes and recalls the same sound from the courtyard's alcove. It is the sound of a Niijima on the march. Most likely, an angry Niijima.
Before his brain realizes what his mouth is doing, he calls out, "Tell Makoto I say hi."
The footsteps stop. He does not hear the chime of the door.
When she speaks, it is the sound of shattering ice. "And why would I do that?"
Somehow, the already low lights in the cafe dim a bit closer to total darkness.
Click. Click. Click.
Akira is not laughing now.
Click. Click. Click.
He feels the elder Niijima's presence grow behind him. What was the answer to that question Inui-sensei asked us today? The one about the sisters that could turn you to stone if you looked at them?
He has never wanted to not turn around so badly in his whole life, but he does.
Oh, that's right, he thinks, when he sees her eyes. Gorgon.
"Tell her you say hi?" She asks. The length of a heartbeat passes. "What is your name?"
Akira's mouth creaks open. "I didn't-"
"Don't dodge the question. What is your name?"
"I-"
"I can find it just as easily on my own end, using my own resources, but that would waste my time and I promise you, young man, I am not someone whose time you want to waste."
"Akira Kurusu." His name topples from his lips but before he can even regret it, she presses onward.
"And what is the nature of your relationship with my sister?"
"Relationship?"
"Judging by the uniform, you're a second year. Yet, you refer to her as 'Makoto' and not 'Niijima-senpai. That indicates some degree of familiarity. Am I wrong?"
Her glare is a supernova, a blizzard, a sandstorm, a tidal wave. A very small, very dim, part of himself realizes his brain has completely shut off. "S-she asked-"
"She asked you to call her that? I find that highly unlikely. Perhaps I should rephrase my question. What are your designs upon my sister?"
His mouth is full of sawdust, and his jaw works uselessly.
"Answer me!"
"She tutors me!" Akira blurts.
The woman blinks. "She tutors you?"
"Yes! She meets with me in the library after school sometimes to help me with my homework. The teachers asked her to."
They also asked her to investigate me and my connection to the Phantom Thieves. He keeps this part, thankfully, to himself.
"How long has this been going on?" The woman asks.
"Hey!" Comes Sojiro's voice from down the bar. Akira turns and sees the older man approach, wiping a towel over his hands. "What're you grilling him for?"
"This doesn't concern you," the woman retorts, her words sharp and biting. "I'm inquiring into your ward's relationship with my younger sister."
"Relationship?" Sojiro asks, and looks at Akira. "You're dating someone?"
"N-no!" Akira blurts out. He feels the older Niijima's eyes burn a hole in his back. "She just tutors me."
Sojiro shrugs, and looks back at the woman. "First I'm hearing about it."
Akira can hear the smile in the woman's voice when she says, "So, he's kept a secret from you. How fitting, considering I doubt he knows about-"
"Not another word," Sojiro barks, and Akira flinches in his seat. A storm crosses over the older man's face. "I've been exceedingly polite towards you, Sae. But it's time for you to leave. Now."
"Very well," the woman, Sae, says. Before she turns, she steps even closer to Akira, and her shadow eclipsed his own on the bar. In a tone that brokers no argument, she says, "Stay away from Makoto."
Then she turns and walks out the door.
Sojiro shakes his head. "That woman..." He mumbles.
"What was that all about?"
"Mind your business," Sojiro snaps. Akira shuts his mouth. The older man sighs rubs the back of his neck. "Do yourself a favor, kid. If you are interested in that one's sister, lose that interest. Fast."
Akira stares into his coffee, now cold. "She kind of reminds me of her sister, actually," Akira says. "They're both intense."
Except ath Akira remembers enjoying the mix bag of emotions that rollercoastered its way through him when Makoto acted like that. But this one? Nothing but dread.
"Yeah, well, she'd have to be, for her line of work." Sojiro snatches up the rag and starts to march back towards the kitchen.
"What does she do?" Akira calls after him.
"She's a Public Prosecutor," Sojiro says, before he turns the corner.
Akira lowers his head until it lays upon the countertop. "Of course she is."
#
"You didn't listen."
Akira lifts his head off LeBlanc's countertop. Only, it is not LeBlanc's countertop. It is the cold steel table of the interrogation room, over which Sae's gaze burrows into him.
"What?" Akira asks.
Sae sighs. "Whatever else you think about me, Kurusu, know that I have a very good memory. I remember that conversation."
Akira chances a smile. "I wouldn't call it much of a conversation, Niijima-san."
Sae's eyes narrow, but the edges of her lips twitch up for the barest of seconds.
Yes! Akira thinks.
Then her gaze becomes cold once more. "You didn't listen, though. I told you to stay away from her."
"You did," Akira says, nodding. For a moment, he lets himself forget the present. He lets his memory drift back to those afternoons in the library. To the streets of Shibuya. To the booths of LeBlanc.
"Makoto didn't let me," he says, with a shrug. "She's stubborn."
Sae shuts her eyes. "Yes, she is." Then, she reopens the manila file and withdraws a sheet of paper. "But that's enough about that. So, you successfully changed Suguru Kamoshida's heart. You were confident in your abilities and chose a more high-profile target."
Akira spits out a small laugh.
"What's so funny?" Sae asks.
"I wouldn't say I was confident in my abilities," Akira replies.
"How would you describe your disposition at the time?"
"Terrified."
Sae blinks, and somehow her frown intensifies. "I see." She sets the sheet of paper on the table and slides it towards him. "Well, terrified you may have been, but you still continued to operate as a Phantom Thief." He taps the photo of Ichiryusai Madarame. "Tell me about this man."
Akira leans back in his chair and lets out a whistle. "That guy was a real piece of work."