Helicopters soared overhead, getting closer to a posh casino. It was a picture of anarchy on the inside. Signs and games that sparkled and glowed flashed with light. People were uneasily gazing around, whispering to themselves or others. Some people began to flee.
Between the lights, a black shadow danced unseen.
Men in black entered the room.
"Spread out and secure the target." One ordered.
They walked around, searching for anything- or anyone- that could lead them to their target.
A woman jumped onto a chandelier, revealing herself to the crowd. As quickly as she appeared a man called out, pointing to her.
"L-Look up there!"
His call turned all attention to said woman. Clad in a t-shirt sectioned off into quadrants (red, black, red with a bedazzled black diamond, black with a bedazzled red diamond), black and red vertically stripped pants, and black high heeled boots that reached above her knees. A pair of long gloves (one red, the other black) hid her hands and her red-brunette pigtails flew in the wind. On her face was her iconic mask. A white bird-shaped mask with a black design around the eyes. A silver briefcase was in her hand.
Once she had revealed her to the crowd, the men in black began to deploy.
"Target has been found. Moving in to capture." One instructs.
With a smirk, she jumped off and got ready to escape.
As she began to jump across the ceiling lights, boyish voice spoke to her, telling her to get going.
"This is our only chance!" Another male said.
"Stay calm! You can get away now!" A girl added.
"We'll retrieve the briefcase on our end." Another girl said.
A static filled radio transmission filled her ears.
"em...suspects...not...confirmed...Hold... your...positions..."
"...Hm? ...What was that?" The girl thought aloud.
"Don't worry about us. Just concentrate on getting away! But I have to say, showing yourself above that crowd earlier was an excellent move." The boyish voice complimented.
The heroine begins to jump from one sign to another.
"Nice work as always, Harlequin."
"I bet Skull wouldn't pull it off that smoothly." A girl's voice teased.
"This happens because you have no sense for aesthetics." a more elegant male voice agreed.
"Nobody asked you, Inari!"
Harlequin kept on going until another security guard saw her above them.
"There she is!" He said.
"Just run! Get out of there!" a girl's voice commanded.
"OK, the enemy's focus is on her! Looks like the rest of us can slip away!"
"Everyone remember where we're meeting up?" a perkier voice said.
"No worries. I can guide you all."
Harlequin had finally landed on a balcony when she ran into some guards that morphed into monsters.
"Take 'em down, Harlequin!", the girl in question smirked, flipped into the air, and ripped one of the creature's mask off.
Said shadow began imploding until it burst into black and red, exposing a Sacrificial Pyrekeeper.
Harlequin stops the beast in seconds, allowing it to flee while also blocking a couple more weird individuals in black suits. Harlequin walks up further to see if she can see a route through the other guards looking for her to move quickly and hide in the shadows for the other to pass by her and exit next.
"Good. You defeated them with ease."
"More of them? Be careful!"
Harlequin dodged the strange men before launching onto another balcony.
"Harlequin, behind you! Go through that door!"
Harlequin followed direction and ran into a room filled with cages.
She passed through the other guards without them spotting Harlequin sneaking by them.
"You should be able to get out that way! Hurry!"
"Dude, can she even hear us?!"
"Don't worry, I'm picking up everyone's voices. Just go, Harlequin!"
As she entered a windowed room, she noticed a man in black running by, cursing in vain as he looked for them. She dashed into the shadows to dodge a passing figure in black. She dashed up nearby steps after he departed. She observed them from the window at the top.
They were searching feverishly, examining security cameras and ordering agents to move and keep seeking.
"Where'd they go?! Damn it! I can't confirm the intruder's location." A security guard complained.
"Uh ahead! Stop"
"This is bad! Hide Harlequin. You'll never get away if you just keep fighting. Hide in the shadows, and sneak past when you see an opening! " Harlequin hid in the shadows and waited till. the coast was clear.
"….Hey, are you sure she came this way? Understood. I will continue the search!"
"Ugh! How many of them are there?!."
"Everything okay? The security level might rise if you take too much time."
"I know, I know! I'm looking for another route. Just hang on. Oh, perfect time. Harlequin, look up!"
Above her was a metal grate.
"Can you use that thing and just fly over there?" she shot her grappling hook and flew up.
"Now keep going!"
As Harlequin makes it into another room, she is stopped by one of her companions.
"Harlequin-stop! It's an enemy-right near you!"
The Shadows appeared to stop Harlequin from going anywhere else.
"Even you can't take on this many-Huh?! Harlequin! Those weird readings from earlier are already closing in on you too!"
It was odd, a boy and girl wearing a similar garbs to Harlequin and co. step in.
The girl wore a black mask with silver highlights and has a black ribbon tied to her ponytail. Her main outfit consists of a strapless black leotard, a chain belt with two silver roses motifs, and a scabbard for her rapier attached to it, a black choker and red gloves. Her black bolero jacket has gold buttons, ruffled sleeves and three floor-length coattails. She wears thigh-length hose and stiletto-heels that resemble ballet shoes on the top.
The boy outfit consists of a black ankle-length tailcoat, a high-necked waistcoat with gold accents, cinched black pants, brown-black winklepickers boots with taller heels and a pair of red gloves. Over his eyes is a white, birdlike domino mask with black designs around the eyes reminiscent of full eyeliner and sharp lashes. He looked to be the Joker to her Harlequin.
"We0'll end this right now!" they said in unison.
"Harlequin, it's them! They're the weird readings I've been getting!"
But they seemed to be on their side, as the Joker shot one of the Shadows dead and the redheaded one sliced at the shadows with her sword.
"My weak self relied you two so much...That ends today. Let's do this!" The redheaded stranger said.
Harlequin readies her bat and the trio attack and stop the other three remaining Shadows.
"The enemy readings have decreased?"
"That's..."
"It's been a while since all three of us last fought side-by-side. But this time, it's our turn to come to your aid. Now let's win this!" the girl said.
It was a great fight, those enemies didn't stand a chance.
"I think...that's the last of them?" the boy asked.
"I genuinely have no clue what just happened, but I take it you're okay? Wait-bad news! Enemy backups headed your way! You need to book it, right now!"
"Go! We'll make it harder for them to track you down." the boy said
"..You still have something you need to do as a Phantom Thief, right?" the girl asked
Harlequin nodded.
"Then we won't stop you. Since we're not members of the Phantom Thieves, we're in no position to interfere." the girl said before they both jumped and landed on a platform "But...please don't forget the promise we made, okay?"
"Harlequin, you need to get outta there! Go! Go! Go!"
Harlequin goes upstairs now to finally outrun the entire swat unit. She then creeps around the other rooms, outwitting the other security personnel and passing by the security room itself.
"She's not alone! Find them and kill them all!"
She runs off the stairs but the security team was on her tail. She bust through the top door, only to see the casino again.
"Something wrong? The exit should be up ahead."
She stared through at the stain glass window
"Through there...?" she asked in awe.
"Nnh...! That's just how it is. After that commotion, the bottom floor completely closed off. Hey, can you make it!?"
Harlequin smiled at the challenge but the guards see Harlequin to make her escape.
"Over there! There's nowhere to run!"
Harlequin simply smiled, jumps onto the railing and starts running on it. She jumps near the glass window.
"See ya!" she said mockingly, even blowing them a kiss.
She throws herself into the glass.
"What a showoff."
"You're so reckless, you know that?"
"But that's why we love her."
She landed safely on her feet or at least she thought. The area erupted with light, IT WAS THE POLICE!
"Enemies, here!? These readings…It can't be!"
"What happened?!"
"Make a run for it, Harlequin! Now!
"An ambush!?"
"Harlequin, can you handle this!?"
"Harlequin!"
"Oh no!"
"Just hurry it up and go!"
"Capture her!" One officer says.
Only...lots of cops from cars, men, and guns waited for Harlequin to capture her. She tried to climb up top, but more were waiting for her. Harlequin was pushed down to the ground to be down and was handcuffed.
"Didn't expect to find some kid. A high school girl in that matter. You have your teammate to thank for this. You were sold out." an officer said, bring a hand to grab aggressively at her hair.
"Suspect confirmed! Cuff her!"
She was taken in for mugshots. All of the charisma and confidence in her look gone.
The girl was knocked out, her hands behind the chair she was sitting in.
"Guess the drug was too strong." The man walked around the unconscious girl. "Wake her up."
She was hit with a cold bucket of water.
Her eyes blinked open, water running down her cheeks. She turned her head. The room was foggy at first, but her vision gradually improved. She was with two males in a dark room.
"No dozing off."
She tried moving her hands, only to find they were bound by the handcuffs. She tried feebly to move freely.
"You still don't get it, do you?"
"Give it up" her chair was kicked and she fell on her side.
"Nngh.." she coughed and felt a foot on her cheek.
"Come on, cooperate. Or what, you want another shot?"
She looks at the camera to be recording all of this mess. Weren't there laws in place to prevent things like this from happening?
"Huh? What about the camera? Are you thinking it can be used as video evidence?" he grabbed a large chunk of her hair and forced her to look at him
The girl refused to even give him an answer, however she was dropped and kicked.
She coughed and wheezed in pain.
"Obstruction of justice, blackmail, defamation, possession of weapons...Manslaughter too, yeah? Talk about the works. To think that all these crimes were led by a brat like this...And you seemed to be enjoying every second of it...Huh?"
"I was…enjoying it…? Everything's hazy…I can't remember..." The girl thought to herself
"...You should know your place."
The man then undoes the cuff off of her to do something for them.
The agent in the corner approached Akira. He knelt down and removed her handcuffs. Once she was free, he ruthlessly shoved her against the ground. She lifted herself from the ground, tenderly massaging the bruises that had appeared on her wrists. The agent handed her a clipboard without even giving her a chance to gather her thoughts.
"It's a confession under your name."
"I understand.." she choked out, weakly.
He held out a silver pen to her, but he came closer to her "Don't expect to walk out of here in one piece. We're going to make you understand. One must take full responsibility for their actions."
She visibly shivered but took the pen nonetheless.
"Reina Amamiya" she wrote and handed the clipboard back to them.
Afterwards, she heard voices, opposite from her. What were they going to do with her? She hoped they didn't beat her up anymore or worse...
She remember hearing more voices, she wasn't really paying that much attention anymore honestly.
Suddenly, a gray blonde woman wearing all black appeared in front of her "I didn't expect it'd be you."
Huh? Was Reina supposed to know this woman? Great, more things she'd forgotten about.
"You'll be answering my questions this time." Sae stated.
She looked down, noticing the needle on the ground "Those bastards..."
The woman's look softened as she looked at Reina with concern "Can you hear me? It seems you've been through a lot."
Reina simply nodded, not in the mood to be talking right now.
"Almost anything can happen here...and I can't stop them." Sae stated.
What was going on here? Wasn't their laws to protect criminals in case they were innocent or something?
"That's why I need you to answer me honestly. I don't have a lot of time either." she asked
"What was your objective? Why did you cause a major incident? I didn't think it was a prank from the get-go, but I couldn't assemble a case for prosecution. It's because I couldn't figure out the method behind it." Sae said.
"Of course, you couldn't" Reina said.
The powers they possessed were not something any other normal human could possess.
Sae scoffed "True. There's no way I can be convinced of such a..."world" just by reading the reports. At least you're coherent. When and where did you find out about that world? How is it even possible to steal another's heart? Now, tell me your account of everything...Start from the very beginning."
Reina has no choice but to tell Sae the entire story in order to gradually remember what caused her to be caught and so on. She saw a glowing butterfly crossed her line of vision.
A child's voice spoke up from the random butterfly.
"…Reina Amamiya...You are held captive. A prisoner of fate to a future that has been sealed in advance. This is truly an unjust game...Your chances of winning are almost none. But if my voice is reaching you, Reina, there may yet be a possibility open to you...I beg you. Please overcome the game...and save this world...The key to victory lies within the memories of your bonds – the truth that you and your friends grasped. It all began that day...when the game was started half a year ago...For the sake of your world's future...as well as your own...you must remember...
Reina awoke with a start, she was on the train.
"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for riding with us today. We will be arriving in Shibuya shortly. This is the last stop for this line. Please transfer here for all subway lines. The doors to your left will open." The speaker instructed.
She remembered now, she had been sent to another place because she tried to be a hero and failed.
"Please! Help!" a woman cried out.
Keiko shoves the man aside to help out the girl, causing him to trip and fall down. He then went on to sue on Reina.
"Damn brat...I'll sue!" the drunken man said.
Sadly for Reina, it worked out in his favor. She was sent away and her perfect record was tarnished.
Reina narrowed her eyes, frustrated about how unfair the situation was. Until she overheard a conversation between friends.
"What? Are you for real? A mental shutdown?"
"It's the truth!"
"To a person, though? That's gotta be a joke! You really love all that occult stuff, don't you?"
Reina was walking in the central area. Reina then looks at her phone and notices a black and red eyeball app on her phone that she tries to remove, but it didn't budge. Everything except herself was soon frozen. Then she saw blue flames flare up from nowhere, morphing into some kind of creature, and out came a creepy smiling version of herself. Then time began again. Reina deleted the strange app on her phone and continued on her way, as it appeared to be nothing.
That's the first chapter. I decided to make this because I've only had my PC and Switch so I never really got to experience Persona 5 Royal (also I am terrible at emulating). So I was happy when it finally came out on both! I also wanted a female protagonist because I like playing as my own gender (not that there's a problem doing the opposite). Like I said, I wasn't into Persona 5 Royal when it came out but I was a little excited when the 'Kasumi is the female protag' rumor came out and was swiftly disappointed when it was disproven. So I made my own fanfic version. That also I can't mod (if the program doesn't flat out not work on my computer, it still typically doesn't work. I have experience with Persona 4 Golden to prove it).
Also, why Akira is still here is because I wanted to acknowledge the rumor that Kasumi was thought to be the fem protag by letting the normal protag taking Kasumi's place, but then I felt so bad for leaving Kasumi out of the fic entirely, so I decided to try to have my cake and eat it too. And have them be a duo. Also Akira's the first Persona protag I've had an attraction to (I kind of liked Yu, but it pales in comparison to Akira). That's why Reina is called Harlequin and not Joker. Also, I named her 'Reina Amamiya' because I believe the PC's name to be 'Akira Kurusu' (that's what I've named him so far in my saves so far), so I used a female variation of his alternate name.
Last but not least, Reina's voice will be Kate Higgins (mostly doing her Ami Mizuno/Sailor Mercury voice, though Sakura Haruno will typically come out when she's Harlequin.
So that's all hope I can get this through and hopefully I don't bite off more than I can chew.
