November 8th.
It was the day after Mitsuyo's Palace collapsed. Hifumi slept really well that night. All that was left was to verify the change of heart and hopefully it would be soon. The morning after, Hifumi woke up from a good night's sleeping, yawning and stretching her arms out over her head. She had to get ready for school and got dressed, walking into the living room when she was finished. Mitsuyo was sitting on the couch, staring blankly at the news playing on the TV. Hifumi was a little anxious but decided to strike up a conversation after the excitement from yesterday.
"How are you feeling, Mother…?" Hifumi quietly asked. She approached this tentatively, since she wasn't sure what state her mother would be in after the change of heart.
Mitsuyo remained silent for a little while, before letting out a heavy sigh. She stared down at her lap now. "I'm sorry, Hifumi…"
"Huh…?" Hifumi blinked a few times. Did the change of heart happen that fast? It was a little jarring to hear an apology from her mother in reality. Did her words strike true to Shadow Mitsuyo? "What do you mean…?"
"I've been a terrible mother to you." Mitsuyo said, unable to look her daughter in the eye. "I've done so many terrible things…and I've even tried threatening your friends, and for what purpose…? Because I wanted to live vicariously through you…?"
Hifumi's expression softened a little bit. The change of heart looked like it was a success. Hifumi did hear all of this before, but it meant so much more coming from her mother's mouth in reality. But she had to pretend like she was hearing this for the first time. "Mother…despite everything that happened, I still love you, okay? You were part of the reason I wanted to keep playing shogi, and I love the game."
"…I see…" Mitsuyo was still feeling extremely guilt-ridden, so it wasn't easy for her to smile at that comment, even if there was a part of her that wanted to. "You're so much like your father…but that's a good thing. I don't want you to turn out like me…"
Hifumi frowned at that. "Mother, that's…"
"I deleted that picture of you and your friends. I don't intend to put them at risk just for being nice to you…that's not fair to you or them…" Mitsuyo said. "And about Mika…I'm sorry about that as well. She…cares about you a lot more than I expected, and I tried to use that…" After she said that, though, Mitsuyo fell silent.
Hifumi was a little worried. Based on what Haru reported on her father, Mitsuyo was going to be like this for an undiscernible amount of time. She was vulnerable emotionally and mentally. The last thing Hifumi wanted to do was overstimulate her. "Hey…when you feel better, why don't we go visit Father together? I'm sure that'll make him very happy."
"…Sure…" Mistuyo nodded slowly. "You can decide what we do…I don't really feel like thinking for myself right now…and you're smart…"
That was…an odd thing to hear. Hifumi shook her head, chalking this up to her mother's mind not quite being right since her change of heart. Even though there were a few serious topics they did need to discuss, Mitsuyo clearly needed a few days to recover, so Hifumi would leave her alone for the time being. "Okay. Just let me know when you're feeling better…."
Hifumi was just about to leave for school when Mitsuyo weakly spoke to her. "Wait, Hifumi…I don't know if you want to play that shogi match later or not, but just tell me if you want to cancel…"
Hifumi had to think about this one for a moment. This coming match was supposed to be her comeback match, where she would win as well. People loved comeback stories, that was true…but without her mother's influence over her opponent, there was no telling the outcome. "…I want to play. After all, it is tomorrow and canceling it would be a bit rude."
"Whatever you want…" Mitsuyo weakly nodded.
Hifumi gave a slight smile and nod, before exiting her home to go to school. "It looks like it worked…"
.
.
Shujin, lunchtime. The group gathered up on the rooftop again. Even though it was technically closed, they could get around this by just saying they were helping Haru with her plants. Nobody really cared enough to question it, so the roof was their little hideout during school hours. Plus, Haru really was watering her plants, so it wasn't a lie either. Kasumi brought her gigantic lunch as usual and it was something that the others still weren't used to. "I wish I could've seen it all for myself…" Kasumi said. She was caught up on the details of Mitsuyo's Palace.
"I think you still did plenty." Ren pointed out. "I'd probably be a pancake if not for you."
"Dude, I didn't even know you were in the Palace." Ryuji said.
"I'm getting really good at stealth, don't you think?" Kasumi smiled brightly. "I'm just glad I was able to help somehow!"
"Has anyone checked in with Hifumi yet?" Makoto asked. "She said she always sees her mother in the morning, so I can't help but wonder if everything turned out alright…"
"We did avoid another situation like my father…" Haru said, watering the plants a bit too much since her mind wandered. "So I really hope everything is okay…." Speaking of Hifumi, it was about time she texted the group chat with Akechi in it.
Hifumi: I apologize for the late update. But my mother appears to be fine. Just a little tired and very apologetic.
Kasumi leaned over to look at Ann's phone, so she was a part of the conversation. "Is that how it usually works…?"
"Mhm." Ann nodded. Kasumi's first operation was their failed one of Okumura, so it made sense she was asking. "Kamoshida was the same way. He didn't show up to school for a few days…then when he came back, he just let all of the guilt out."
"Oh, that's right…I remember now…" Kasumi nodded slowly. That was so long ago, it felt surreal.
Ann: That's great, Fumi!
Hifumi: She also deleted that incriminating picture. I think everything is finally over now.
Akechi: Congratulations, Togo-san.
Haru: I'm glad things turned out so well!
Futaba: Mission complete!
Hifumi: I also still decided to go through with that shogi game. It's tomorrow…if you would all come and watch me, that would be really nice…
Ann: Of course we will!
Akechi: Well…I may have prior engagements, so I may have to decline.
Ryuji: The rest of us will be there then! Even if I don't get the game.
Hifumi: Thank you…
Makoto waited for the text conversation to finish before speaking up. "The main reason Hifumi wanted Akechi to accompany us was for Black Mask. We still don't know what Akechi is planning exactly…but I do know Black Mask didn't show up to the Palace at the end of the day. Coincidence or not, we would have been prepared for a second time."
"We would've kicked his ass if he showed up!" Ryuji exclaimed.
"Stop being so loud!" Ann narrowed her eyes at Ryuji. Just because they were on the roof didn't mean people couldn't hear them.
"Hifumi-senpai is pretty clever…" Kasumi said with an understanding nod. She then glanced at Haru, who was still watering her plants, a bit too much. "Um, Haru-senpai. Don't you think that's enough water?"
"Huh?" Haru snapped out of it, pulling the watering can back. "Oh, you're right. My mind is just wandering a little these days…" She's been a little preoccupied, more than just with her father's death.
"Are you alright…?" Ren asked.
"Mhm!" Haru said with a slight smile, although it was difficult to say if that was the truth or not…
.
.
Hifumi was the talk of the town in Kosei High. There were plenty of students running up to her after the rumors of the previous day. Hifumi should have expected this. A student rushed up to Hifumi, looking a little intrigued and curious more than concerned. "Togo-san! Is it true that your mother got sent a calling card from the Phantom Thieves?!"
"Yes, it's true." Hifumi lost count of how many people asked her this question, and how many times she replied the exact same way.
"Is she okay? The Phantom Thieves are totally killers, you know?" And there it was. This wasn't the only student who thought the Phantom Thieves were enemies of the state. Considering Hifumi was relatively popular, it was only natural people would flock to her upon learning someone close to her was a target.
Yusuke was next to Hifumi and he was about to open his mouth to speak, but Hifumi shook her head. "My mother is fine. The Phantom Thieves were responsible for changing her heart and nothing more. I would appreciate it if you stopped with the wild accusations…"
That made the student deflate a little. Earlier this year, Hifumi Togo was reserved and barely spoke a word. As the year progressed, she became more talkative and she had a lot more bite than people were expecting. So pestering her with questions often made them feel bad. "R-Right…sorry…" The student shrank and quickly slipped away.
"Ugh…" Hifumi let out a heavy sigh, brushing her hair behind her ear.
"People really will say the first thing that comes to mind without a care in the world…" Yusuke shook his head. "It was the same for myself when Madarame was targeted. They don't really care about us, they just want to know if we know anything…"
"Mhm…" Hifumi's gaze went down to the ground.
"Although, you were the only one who offered any type of genuine concern." Yusuke flashed Hifumi a brief smile. "For that, I thank you. And I truly hope that your mother swiftly recovers, and the relationship within your family heals while it still can."
That did make Hifumi smile a little bit. She was glad to have someone at school who knew exactly what was going on. She'd feel extremely alone otherwise. "Thank you, Yusuke." There was something else she wanted to ask. It was about her mother's behavior earlier. The words 'I don't need to think for myself' still resonated with her in a bad way. Perhaps she was just overthinking it out of concern…her mother would be back to normal soon….
.
.
After school was the only time Hifumi could visit her father in the hospital. After the events of yesterday, she figured she had to let him know. She was approaching his room, but stopped. A woman with a hat and shades was seen exiting her father's hospital room. She was pretty good at covering her face too, but this only confused Hifumi. Was that… "Mika…?"
"…!?" The woman stopped briefly, but did not turn around. Instead she just kept walking, perhaps a bit faster than she already was.
"Uh…okay…" Hfiumi just blinked. That was weird. Anyway, she slipped into her father's room and greeted him with a smile. "Father, who was that?"
"…A friend." Mitsurugi replied with a smile of his own. "But my…I can tell just by the look on your face that you've accomplished something incredible. Did you get through to your mother at last?"
"I did." Hifumi said with a quick nod. "She told me some things I never knew before…and I felt like I was able to reconnect with her a little bit."
"I'm proud of you…I knew you would get the strength to talk to her face to face one day." Mitsurugi coughed a bit. "I'm also glad I was able to be around to hear about it…"
"She and I are going to visit you together when she's feeling better." Hifumi said. "It'll be so nice…having all three of us in the same room again…happy…" That was Hifumi's main motivation for all of this. She felt a huge weight off of her shoulders just being able to talk about this. "Oh…! And I'm carrying on with that shogi match tomorrow."
"Haha…give it your all. I believe in you." Mitsurugi said.
"This will be a true test of my ability. I'm going to face a pro, after all." Hifumi was very determined all the same. "And all my friends are going to watch me. I will give this all I've got, in the name of the Togo Kingdom…! Though it is rebuilding, I'm going to do my best to keep it going strong."
Mitsurugi held a prideful gaze. Hfiumi was growing and changing right in his very eyes. As her father, nothing could make him happier than to see his pride and joy happy. "Of course you will. I know you can. Your mother and I will be supporting you from the sidelines…"
"I know…" Hifumi gave a firm nod. "And I'm going to do the right thing…I'm going to tell the truth about those matches…"
.
.
November 9th.
Barring Akechi, the rest of the Phantom Thieves were at the venue where Hifumi's shogi match was taking place. They weren't allowed to actually enter the room where the match was taking place, but they were watching online from the lobby. They sat around, looking on their phones as the match played out. "…." Ren had nothing to say, he was just hoping Hifumi would win.
"Hifumi Togo!" One of the interviewers approached Hifumi. "This is your first match since your father was hospitalized. Do you feel confident that you'll be able to retain your winning streak like before?"
Hifumi remained silent for a moment. This was the moment of truth. "To be honest…I don't know."
"You don't know?" The reporter was confused. Hifumi usually boasted such confidence, and they were told that she would still have it.
"I don't know…because to tell everyone the truth today…my shogi matches have been rigged for a very long time." Hifumi just went and said it.
"She's actually…!?" Ryuji gasped.
"…." Ann was silent the whole time. Hifumi had a long text conversation with Ann the night before about this. Ann still wasn't sure how she felt, but she supported Hifumi's decision to be honest. After all, it was a choice she made on her own.
"I haven't been able to play on my own merit, because the matches were always swayed in my favor, for my benefit. Even the loss I suffered in my previous match was all scripted." Hifumi was admitting it all. She wasn't going to out her mother…she was taking responsibility for the outcome of the matches. As for her mother's role in it, that would come with its own punishment at a later date, when her mother admitted it herself. Right now, Hifumi was getting this off her chest. "I sincerely apologize to everyone who was affected by playing against me. I don't know how I can regain your trust, or your support…but I promise that I will do everything I can to right those wrongs. I will play fair from this point on, and whether I win or lose, that will depend solely on my ability."
"So the rumors were true! You've been abetting in rigged matches this whole time?" The interviewer gasped. Although their face couldn't be seen, the smile on their lips could be heard. They just struck gold after all. "Hifumi Togo, the Phony Princess!"
"Whether my skills are fake or not…you will see momentarily." Hifumi tried to brush that comment aside. But she could feel the mood of the room shift the moment she told the truth. There were probably plenty of people who wanted to see her lose…but she wanted to win to prove herself.
.
.
While Akechi didn't go in person with the others to watch the shogi match, he did watch on his phone from the Jazz Club in Kichijoji. "You actually told the truth? Color me surprised. Now, are you going to win, or lose, Togo-san…?"
.
.
Mika was watching on her phone as well. Of course, she didn't know the first thing about shogi nor did she care to. But Hifumi did make an incredibly big announcement at the price of her reputation. "…."
.
.
There were a few more people in the lobby watching the match pan out. They were shogi magazine editors. After Hifumi's announcement, they were more excited for her downfall than anything else. It didn't help that Hifumi was somewhat on the backfoot, despite managing to keep up with the pro player. "Is this the end of the road for the Phony Princess?"
"Haha, I quite like that headline, actually." The other one said. "She's managing to hold her line, but she's still getting pushed back. It's only a matter of time."
"It seems her skills weren't the real thing after all."
Ann heard enough. She wasn't going to stand by and listen to all these comments, when they didn't know the first thing about what Hifumi was going through. "Hey, be quiet!" She shouted and loudly at that. All eyes in the lobby turned to her. "Fumi's doing her absolute best out there! You don't know the first thing about what she's been through! It took a lot of courage for her to tell the truth, and she's still out there giving it everything she's got, too! I may not get shogi that much, but I know that when she plays, she always puts her heart into it!"
"Lady Ann…" Morgana was a little surprised at Ann's outburst. Although, if other people could actually hear him, he would be saying the exact same thing right now.
"Ann…!" Makoto was trying to get Ann to settle down. She understood fully where Ann was coming from, but it was causing a disturbance. "If you're going to berate them, at least do it a little more quietly so we don't disturb other people. Because I also don't approve of their words to our friend."
"Ann-senpai is right! Let Hifumi-senpai's actions speak for themselves!" And Kausmi was in on it now too.
"Don't judge her before it's over." Haru said with her sweet smile.
"I agree. The finished product speaks more than words can." Yusuke nodded.
"Hell yeah, keep those thoughts to yourselves!" Ryuji added.
"What they said." Futaba was not shouting, but her sentiments were all the same.
"Hah…yeah. They said it nicely." Ren added.
"…" The shogi journalist remained quiet. "Guess she still has some supporters after all."
Hifumi's expression did change. Apparently she was able to hear Ann and the others…or at the very least, she had a feeling they were all supporting her. She smiled slightly, even in the face of this bad situation…and then….
"What!? How did she pull that off…!?" The magazine editor gasped.
"That's it, Fumi!" Ann cheered. But Hifumi was still far off from winning. She just managed to briefly turn the tables, thus making the game a lot closer than it was looking. But in the end, Hifumi was backed into a corner. Despite her efforts, her true experience was showing and it just wasn't up to par in the pro world was trying to step into. And as such…
"I'm thinking Phony Princess, Real Defeat for the next article?" The magazine editor said. Even though Hifumi surprised them, the result was ultimately what many were hoping for.
"…I concede…" Hifumi gracefully accepted defeat, even if it was a bitter pill to swallow. That was the limit of her ability. The group's expressions fell slightly that Hifumi was unable to pull off the victory.
A little while later, Hifumi returned to the group with a somewhat forced smile. "…I played so poorly in front of all of you, and you were supporting me too…I'm sorry."
"Are you kidding?" Ann shot up from her seat to hug Hifumi. "You were so great out there!"
"Didja see the look on that dude's face when you pulled off that move?" Ryuji snickered. "That was awesome!"
"Were there really no other options?" Ren asked.
Hifumi shook her head. "I didn't want to hurt the pieces any longer…so I had no choice to concede. But…thank you all for your kind words. They helped push me forward."
"How do you feel?" Futaba adjusted her glasses.
"…I…really, really hate losing." Hifumi said with a somewhat bitter laugh. "And yet, it felt refreshing. I was able to go out there on my own talents and show everyone what I could do. Even though things did not go as I hoped, it felt as though a demon was finally purged from me. Everything feels so much lighter than it did before. The moment I felt victory was truly impossible, I felt both a strange peace and fury…"
"You really don't like losing, do you?" Ren said.
"I know that feeling very well." Kasumi nodded. " I feel that way when my results aren't what I wanted in a meet. It's that feeling of dissatisfaction…because you know you can do better. Isn't that right, Hifumi-senpai."
Kasumi was able to describe exactly what Hifumi was feeling. "Yes, that's it. While my strength is not yet up to par, it is refreshing knowing that I can get better. That I can truly improve, and that is what I intend to do. Both as a shogi player, and as a member of the group. I…I hope you can bear with me holding the title of Phony Princess, though. It's going to stick for a while…."
"I wonder about that…" Yusuke said.
"Yeah, you'd be surprised how some people started looking at you differently once Lady Ann spoke up." Morgana added.
"Your results may have been faked, but the way you played was genuine." Ann said with a bright smile. "I don't get shogi, but even I could see that. You're one of the most genuine people I know, so if anyone tries to say otherwise…"
"They'll answer to us." Haru said.
Hifumi looked towards everyone and their smiling faces. God, she felt like she was about to cry. How did she get so lucky to have to friend group this supportive? To have Ann to help her with so much? She sniffled and gave everyone a resolute nod. "I won't lose again…!"
"Why don't we celebrate Hifumi's new beginning with a movie?" Makoto suggested. "I hear there's a student film festival starting the day after tomorrow…and we've never gone to see one together? Plus we have time to kill…"
"I've seen a few with Ren! They're pretty interesting…" Morgana said. "I like the Cake Knight…"
"That could provide me with some artistic inspiration…" Yusuke said, intrigued.
"I wanna make a sci-fi movie!" Futaba exclaimed.
"Uh, there's no way a high schooler can make a sci-fi movie on their own!" Ryuji objected.
"Can we watch a romance movie?" Kasumi suggested.
"Ooooh, I like those cheesy romance flicks!" Ann beamed.
"I like those old mystery movies…" Hifumi said while rubbing her eyes.
"I like murder mysteries." Haru said while tilting her head. It was the overly excited tone that made the others sweat slightly.
Makoto held up a flier. "R-Right…um, I picked up this filer on the way, so we'll know where it is when we go. I don't know what the plan is tomorrow, but we can meet up the day after at the hideout. For now, I think we should break for the day and let Hifumi rest."
"Haha…sounds good to me." Hifumi said with a gentle smile. "I'll see you all then…"
.
.
November 11th.
Honestly? The previous day was…a haze. It felt like there was a slight gap in everyone's memory and they couldn't understand why. It should've been a normal day, but it felt like anything but? Regardless, they all gathered for the film festival and took their seats. It was a surprisingly stunning movie and the audience all applauded. Morgana was in Ren's bag, looking up at him. "What a great movie, right?"
"No kidding…" Ren was stunned by how amazing that movie was.
"And now!" The MC stepped to the stage as the applause died down. "We'd like for the preceding movie's director to take the stage! Everyone, please welcome her with a warm round of applause. Allow me to introduce her…" A young girl stood up from her seat and walked to the stage. She had white hair and red eyes, while wearing a black and orange school outfit. She was a highschooler, but that wasn't the most defining thing about her. This girl wore a white hat with a film reel on the side of it.
"…!?" Ren's eyes widened slightly. This girl…he…he knew her…
"She depicted her own struggles in the film "New Cinema Labyrinth."! Her name is…
It was all still a haze. The previous day was filled with nothing but unfamiliar, yet familiar faces. That girl was one of them. He couldn't remember exactly what happened, but Ren knew one thing. The struggle that this girl went through…he was glad to see her overcome them. A gentle smile crossed his lips and he let out a satisfied hum.