Day - July 25 (Tuesday)
Time - Morning
Location - Shibuya Station
It was around 7:30 in the morning; Ren and Morgana strolled around the Shibuya Underground Walkway to board the train leading to Yongen-Jaya. Nothing much has changed over the time that they spent away. The city is still bustling with people, and the lines were busy as always. Ren happened to line up just in time for the next train and managed to enter inside.
"Crowded as always," Morgana said while inside Ren's bag, "Did you ever miss having to line up like this?"
"Not really," said Ren, "If anything, having to commute during rush hour was a nightmare most of the time that I stayed here. It's one of the few things that I preferred back at home, where there's not much people to shove you out of the way."
The train moved, and in just 15 minutes, they have finally arrived in Yongen-Jaya station.
Location - Yongen-Jaya
Ren and Morgana just arrived down with Ren's luggage. They're about to approach the backstreets. Having some time left to spare, Ren waltzed around to check if anything had changed during the time that he lived here. The Takemi Clinic was closed down for the summer as stated by a notice placed on its sign. Having felt a bit thirsty, Ren bought some Nastea by one of the vending machines. Afterwards, he finally approached the café. The signage was still closed, and the lights as seen from outside were still closed. Were they a bit too early?
"Ummm... Do we have the time right?" Ren asked, "We did agree that we're supposed to meet at 8."
"I think we should just go inside," said Morgana, popping his head out of the bag, "They'll probably arrive soon."
Ren did as suggested to him.
Location - Café Leblanc
The place was still relatively dark. Sojiro didn't seem like he was inside the café as no one was by the counter. It seemed like they were too early. Ren looked around. It didn't seem like anything changed throughout the time that he was away. The "Sayuri" painting wasn't moved away. The smell of coffee and curry was radiating around the place.
"Did we get the time right?" Morgana asked.
"Yeah we should have," Ren confirmed, "We agreed to meet at 8."
The two were somewhat confused and worried. But after a few seconds, the whisper of a female voice counting was heard.
"Okay, 1... 2... and..."
The lights were suddenly lit, alongside poppers raining confetti from the side with people arising from the tables and counters as they said,
"WELCOME HOME!"
The gang popped out from hiding and surprised both Ren and Morgana. Ann, Makoto, and Haru hid by the first, second, and third tables respectively from the entrance to the stairs. Futaba, Ryuji, and Yusuke hid by the counter. Ren and Morgana simply stared, a bit surprised with a bit of confetti all over them. Ren's best friend Ryuji, walked by him and greeted him by his arm.
"Surprise!" Ryuji said with a pat, "Missed us?"
The rest of the gang also walked towards him and greeted him.
"We missed you so much!" Futaba said, hugging Ren.
"Did you gain any inspirations while you were away?" Yusuke asked, with his artistic instincts playing once again.
"How have you been?" asked Ann.
"Did you get any taller?" asked Haru.
Makoto was the last to greet Ren. Prior to when Ren returned to his hometown, he admitted that he was willing to be Makoto's "study partner" when she said that she wanted to study about "love" after Eiko told her that she would flunk a test about it. Ren, seeing Makoto's potential and willingness to improve herself, took the risk and entered a relationship with her.
"I missed you so much," Makoto said tenderly, while she grabbed Ren's hands and offered him a kiss. The rest of the PT's screamed in excitement.
"Don't forget about me though," a voice said that was heard by the kitchen. It was Sojiro.
"I'm back," Ren said cheerfully.
"Yup, and I see you've got yourself another smooching huh?"
Sojiro knew about Ren's relationship with Makoto, so during Valentine's day on the year that Ren returned to his hometown, he left Leblanc for the two to have their own privacy. The rest of the gang knew about it after sometime that Ren and Makoto decided to make their relationship known.
"Well," Sojiro continued, "I don't really want to delay your reunion conversation. Feel free to use the attic throughout your stay. I had it cleaned up just for you."
"Thanks boss," Ren said sincerely.
"Also, while you're free to hang out with your friends all they along, I also have to open up shop soon, so don't be too rowdy."
"Got it."
Afterwards, Ren and the rest of the PT's went up to the attic and arranged the chairs and tables for them to converse among each other. Sojiro stayed down and flipped the shop sign "Open".
"Perfect," he said, "Just as the moment that I was enjoying peace and quiet."
Ren and his friends had plenty of fun catching up to the events that happened to them while they were separated. Due to the tedious college entrance exams that Ren, Ann, Ryuji, and Yusuke had to take, they couldn't reunite during the summer of last year. Most of their conversations were about their entrance exams, their college life, and Futaba's current situation in Shujin Academy.
"I still can't believe I even managed to pass that exam," Ryuji said with a slight giggle, "I was deadass struggling at the Math portion and practically had to rely on luck for like 1/4th of the coverage."
"I know that feeling," Ann followed up with her side of the story, "Luckily, I didn't struggle that much in English. I actually got a relatively high score in that portion."
"Good grief," Makoto said, with her mom friend instincts playing up, "Both of you were lucky enough that we spent weeks of nonstop reviewing. I even had to miss a few org meetings just to assist the two of you."
"Don't forget," Morgana followed up, "Ren constantly had to give both of you online reviewers and send URLs about entrance exam tips just to ensure both of you passing."
"Eh," Ryuji said, "I wouldn't worry too much about it. The important thing is that it all worked out in the end."
"Speak for yourself," said Ann, "You barely even managed to enter. You were lucky by like one point."
"Hey! It's not like you're any better. The only part you did even remotely decent at is English. And that's just your advantage of being bilingual."
"Better that than not being remotely decent in anything at all!"
"Hey hey!" Haru interrupted, "I think it's all good that both of you passed already. We should also check on how everyone else is doing."
"That's right!" said Ren, who then turned his attention towards Futaba, "Futaba started school in Shujin last year. How have you been doing?"
"I'm curious too," Ann also said, "How is high school so far? Did you manage to earn some new friends? Are the teachers any good?"
Futaba admitted that her initial first year wasn't the best.
"Well," she said, "To be honest, it wasn't that easy for me at first. During the first day I entered, I had a couple of classmates that made fun of me due to my anxiety and my general nerdiness so to speak. I had to eat lunch a lone for a few days, though I at least managed to befriend a few girls after joining the computer club since they had almost the same interests and personality as me."
"That's great to hear," said Ren, "Also, how is Kana doing anyway?"
"Oh yeah," said Morgana, "I remember Ren mentioned about your childhood friend to us a while back. Do both of you still get along?"
"W-well," Futaba said, "Yeah! We still talk even though she's studying somewhere else. I've heard that she's moving to a different city with her parents. But we did promise that we'll still communicate from far away."
"I'm glad you're finally able to open up again," said Makoto, "If ever anything happens in school, just be sure to update us and Sojiro about it okay?"
"Yup. I will."
"What about you Yusuke?" Ryuji asked, staring towards him, "How did your entrance test go?"
"Ah, yes," Yusuke replied, "It was splendid."
"How so?" asked Ann.
"Kosei granted me a letter of recommendation at the Musashino Art University, granting me a financial scholarship. I still had to take the entrance test, but I managed to reach the cut-off score."
Ryuji felt a pang of envy towards Yusuke's news.
"Lucky you," Ryuji said, feeling somewhat jealous, "Due to my record label during my first year in Shujin, the school wouldn't grant me an athletic scholarship to secure my future."
"Don't feel so down," Ann said, trying to comfort Ryuji, "What's past is past. We all know that you didn't want it to happen, and it was Kamoshida's fault all along."
"True, but it still made things harder for my mom."
"Hey now," Ren said coming up to Ryuji, "We're here to catch up with each other's lives, not to recall tragic memories."
"Right," Ryuji answered, "I'm proud of you Yusuke."
"Your kind words are accepted," Yusuke told him, "Thank you."
"What about you Makoto?" Morgana asked, "How's the 2nd year of college going?"
"I have to admit," Makoto answered, "Having to adjust to the university life wasn't easy. It wasn't the same as back in high school. I barely made it to the dean's list this semester."
"I know that feeling," Haru said, "Some of my grades ended up being average at best. Luckily, I didn't get anything lower than a C."
"Well," Morgana said, as he stared at Ryuji mockingly, "At least both of you are doing decently, unlike this guy over here."
"What are you staring at me for?" Ryuji asked, a bit annoyed, "For your information, I didn't fail any of my subjects."
"You didn't?!" Futaba asked, shocked.
"Oh no!" Morgana responded, "Ryuji actually didn't fail any of them? What strange alternate universe is this?"
"Aww shuddup!" Ryuji reacted, "Why is it so surprising that I actually passed all of them?"
"Well you certainly didn't fail," Ann said with her eyebrows straightened, "But you got a D in at least half of them."
"Says the one who only got one B score."
"Hey! You didn't even get anything higher than a C."
"You two never change huh?" said Ren, smiling a bit.
"Well at least it wasn't as bad as before," Makoto admitted.
It was still the beginning of summer. The gang tried to update each other in what was happening with their current life. Ryuji still wants to pursue his athletic dreams despite his busted leg. Ann decided to pursue her modelling career. Yusuke had with him his art scholarship. Makoto plans to become a police commissioner. Futaba is still in high school, but she continues her plan to research about cognitive psience in college. Haru dreams of opening up her café chain and is taking up business management and agriculture. Ren himself plans to get into law school after graduating, but Sojiro also had plans to let him inherit Leblanc. Despite the busy years of the PT's lives, they managed to have this summer be used as their free time before continue working on their dreams. Some of them were eager to go on a road trip, but some preferred to simply stay within the city.
"If we're going to enjoy this summer," Ryuji stated, "We should definitely go on a trip somewhere."
"I hear you," Ann agreed, "It definitely feels like a good time to hit the beach don't you think?"
"If I may suggest," Yusuke said, "Kyoto. I believe that the shrines and the temples will be great inspiration for my next art work."
"Pass," Futaba said without hesitation.
"Yeah," Ryuji added, "I'm not down for a month-long art tour."
Yusuke sighed at his friends' responses.
"I sure hope you're not forgetting that you're in college already right?" Makoto told both Ryuji and Ann, "I understand that it's still summer and you're all eager to unwind a bit for now, but you must also consider the fact that it's not the same as we were in high school anymore. If you can still afford to fail some of your subjects back then, I suggest you change that habit now because it will negatively affect your future. Travelling somewhere far away might not be the most ideal activity at the moment."
"Aww maan," Ryuji whined.
"She has a point though," Ann admitted.
"If you want," Makoto said, "We can do something short like an overnight camping trip or something."
"A CAMPING TRIP?!" Futaba asked, a bit terrified, "Won't there be bears along the way?"
"Relax," said Morgana, "It's not like we're gonna be camping in an actual forest."
"I think a camping trip sounds great!" said Haru, sounding quite enthusiastic.
"You think so?" asked Ren.
"Yup. Back at home, we still have plenty of camping supplies that my father used when the company would go out on a picnic or sometimes a hanami."
"That reminds me!" Futaba also had a hint of an idea, "We have some tents just at the house. I'm sure Sojiro will allow us to borrow them. If we get the chance, he might even let us borrow his RV."
It seemed like more and more people were agreeing that going on a camping trip would be the best idea for them. It's only by a unanimous decision, however, that they will officially go with it.
"Okay," said Ren, "If you're in agreement to go on a camping trip please raise your hand."
Everyone, along with Ren himself, raised their hands, and the decision was official.
"Alright then," said Makoto, "When do you think we should have your camping trip?"
"I have a scheduled photoshoot throughout the week," said Ann, "So I won't be free at the time being. I suggest we have it the weekend after this weekend."
"Sounds good to me," said Ryuji, "Long as we'll have lots of fun and make memories together."
"In that case," said Makoto, "We should start preparing our camping supplies by this weekend, along with the place that we'll be camping in."
"Before that though," Futaba mentioned, "We need Sojiro's approval as well. We won't be able to have our trip without the transportation."
"Ryuji," Ren turned his attention towards him, "Don't you think you need your mom's approval as well?"
"It's all good," Ryuji said, "She's willing to let me do what I want as long as I'm with some people that I can trust. She knows well enough about you guys so there's nothing to worry about."
The gang was shocked to know about this.
"W-wait," Morgana said, a bit worried, "Does she know about the Phantom Thieves as well?"
"It's no big deal," Ryuji responded, "Even Ren's parents know that he's the leader of the Phantom Thieves."
"Yup," Ren confirmed, "Seems like everything's going smoothly. Let's go ask Sojiro if he's willing to let us borrow his RV."
Time - Evening
The gang had finished their conversation about their lives and also decided to go on a camping trip. But before they can officially have it, they need Sojiro's approval. Having spent the entire day in the attic, the shop has already closed and Sojiro was just cleaning up. Ren told Sojiro about their plan to go on a camping trip and if he was willing to let them borrow some tents and drive his RV.
"You're planning to go on a camping trip?" Sojiro asked, "I suppose I can allow it."
The gang rejoiced, but Sojiro had them calm down for a moment.
"Whose going to drive though?" he asked another question, "I can't let someone without a license drive the RV."
"I got my license already back in my hometown," said Ren, "I'm more than capable of driving the RV."
"Okay. I will trust you on this. I'm giving you all my approval for that camping trip, but if I see any kind of damage on that RV, I'm not letting anyone of you out without a fine. Got it?"
Everyone nodded at what Sojiro said. At the same time, they were all happy that Sojiro was willing to let them have their camping trip and go borrow the RV and some camping supplies. Futaba went and gave Sojiro a hug.
"Thank you so much Sojiro!" Futaba said, smiling from the bottom of her heart, "This is going to be the best summer ever!"
"Look at the time though," said Makoto, looking at her watch, "It's already getting late. We should probably be getting home."
Ren was reminded of something. He remembered that he brought some games that he can play with his friends and told it to them.
"Before that," he said, "I brought some playing cards and board games. Does anyone want to play tomorrow night?"
"Ooh!" Ryuji said, "I'd be happy to play with you tomorrow. How about everyone else?"
"Well..." said Ann, "I guess I can come after my photoshoot tomorrow."
"I'll be coming too," said Futaba, "I'd love to play other games apart from computer games."
However, Yusuke, Makoto, and Haru had other stuff to do and cannot come tomorrow night.
"Sorry," Yusuke said, "But I'm doing an important painting that I must finish. I'm afraid I can't come."
"Same here," said Haru, "I have to assist our employees for an important project for the time being."
"I have other plans too," said Makoto, "I'll be having dinner with my sister tomorrow since she wants to make up for her shortcomings during the time that she resented me."
"Okay then," said Ren, "That means only Ryuji, Ann, and Futaba will be coming over to see me and Morgana tomorrow."
"Seems like it," said Morgana, "Let's just make the most of our time together during the camping trip."
The gang nodded, with Sojiro confused, but not that surprised, as to why they nodded when all he could hear from Morgana was his meowing.
"Guess we should be going now," said Ryuji, as he turned his attention towards Ren and then towards the gang.
Ryuji was one of the people who missed Ren the most, along with Makoto, since he was Ren's best friend during the times that he was an outcast in Shujin. Seeing him again made him feel the urge to express how much he missed him.
"You know..." he said, "It feels really great that we got to see you again."
Everyone nodded in agreement. Then they all said their goodbyes and left Leblanc. Makoto gave him a goodbye kiss then approached the door, but Ryuji was the last person to leave the shop. Before exiting, Ryuji walked up to his best friend to give him a bro hug. He then bid his goodbye afterwards.
"See ya Ren!" Ryuji said, as he was the last person to approach the door, "Let's make this a good one!"
The gang had finally left, and Ren, Sojiro, and Morgana were the only ones left in the shop. Sojiro had Ren help him clean up. Afterwards, he then reminded of what Ren must do as he leaves.
"Alright," said Sojiro, "You know what you must do. Flip the sign close and don't forget to turn off the lights."
Ren nodded and then Sojiro made his exit. Ren flipped the sign close and turned off the lights before he went back up the attic. Morgana was on top of his shoulder has he walked back up. Ren changed into his sleeping clothes after reaching the attic and prepared for the night. He was excited for the adventures that await him and his friends for the summer. They have plenty of time to think about other activities they can do together. They can also plan a beach trip and attend the summer fireworks festival to make up for what happened before when it got interrupted by the rain. Morgana also felt happy to see everyone again, especially Ann after a long period of not seeing her. The Phantom Thieves all felt excited for what they feel would be the best summer of their life. However, what they don't know is that the summer that they are expecting, won't be as pleasant as they want it to be.
Okay, some of the scenes here felt similar to the reunion in Strikers. The events will still be completely different though. Planning this story can be pretty difficult since I'm also busy with online class and I had to do some research regarding the characters and make them act the way that they would as canonically as I can. It's also one of the main reasons as to why I can't really update this story fast. I will, however, work on it until the end and give it a proper ending. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and I will work on the next chapter soon.
