Literally: spool pasta on someone's ears
Meaning: to talk about something for a long time, to convince someone intensely and eloquently

"Oh," Sumire looked at the blue-haired boy in front of her. "So you already know who I am."

Yusuke raised an eyebrow. "Hm?"

"Since you… since you stole my heart and all. In mid-November?"

Goro's brain finished rebooting. "Wait, when exactly? I was with the Thieves mid-November." He looked at the artist. "I missed one meeting, that's when it happened, didn't it?"

"I believe so, yes. You were shooting a public service announcement, weren't you?"

Sumire gave him a knowing look. "Shooting a PSA, huh?"

The detective sighed. "I know this sounds like a euphemism for wetwork, but I really had recordings for a public service announcement that day." He put on a smile. "'I'm Goro Akechi, and I eat my veggies like a good boy!'" He mimicked taking a bite out of something. "'Om nom nom!'" He took it off. "Seriously, fuck picky eaters. Someone cares enough about you to make you a warm meal and you'll whine because there's green peppers in it or something? Then fucking starve."

"Not that I disagree with the sentiment," Yusuke piped up, "but we are getting sidetracked. What were you two doing in Mementos? And come to think of it, why is Mementos even accessible?" Beat, realization. "Also, does Yoshizawa know about your… sins?"

"Yes to the last one." He scowled. "Maruki told her."

The artist raised an eyebrow. "…Takuto Maruki? The former councilor in Shujin Academy's employ?"

"Uh huh," Sumire nodded. "To keep things short: you all had confided in him, and because of that he got the powers of that Yadda-yadda god you had fought, and now he has a Palace in the real world and he can change reality and grant the desires of everyone." Beat. "I know, it sounds implausible."

"After the events of the past year, few things sound implausible to me." Yusuke reassured her. "Go on."

"We had gotten in touch with Akira," Goro butted in. "He's back in his hometown, having never gotten his criminal record. By his own admission, he's too burned out to do his usual thing, and since there were no other Thieves available, I'm… kind of the acting leader now."

"And I'm helping!"

"And Yoshizawa is helping," the detective gestured at the smiling gymnast. "She got a Persona yesterday, and took it out for a test drive with me today. She's… satisfactory. We're spent for now, but tomorrow the two of us are planning to infiltrate Maruki's Palace." Goro did his best to appear low-key intimidating. "He's trying to merge Mementos and reality, and I've already seen how these things end. I know his perfect reality might be too tantalizing for you to let go, but do not try to stop me, Kitagawa."

Yusuke chuckled - dammit, he had overdone it and came out sounding silly again. "First of all, in spite of all the other changes, we remain on a first name basis, Goro. Second of all," the smile disappeared, replaced by a look of concern, "are you still in touch with Akira? Apparently Maruki's ideal reality involves our paths remaining in parallel."

"I have his phone number." The detective pulled out his phone and tapped the screen a few times. The corner was secluded enough and so he turned on the loudspeaker too. After a moment, Akira's voice came from it: "Hello?"

"Hey, Goro here," he greeted him. "I just wanted to check up on you."

"Aw, you didn't have to," he replied, happy. "Nothing's happening and I love it. And how are you?"

"Fine, I suppose," the detective shrugged. "Yoshizawa has exceeded my expectations so far. Also, I just bumped into Yusuke in Shibuya, he wants to-"

Call ended 00:14.

"-talk."

After a moment, the phone buzzed with an incoming call. Goro picked it up. "Sorry, I panicked," Akira said on the other side. "Get Yusuke on the phone."

The detective passed the phone to the artist and he put it to his ear. "Greetings."

To Goro and Sumire, Akira's voice was inaudible murmuring.

"Slightly disoriented. What is going on?"

Cue a lot of murmuring, punctuated by the artist going "Uh huh" once or twice. Akira must've been describing the situation from his POV.

"And yet you aren't here."

More murmuring.

"Understandable. I would prefer to stay in touch with you though."

Murmur.

"What kind of question is that?" Yusuke seemed appalled. "Because I am indebted to both you and the Thieves as a group for dragging me out of an abusive household, and because you're my friend, Akira!" He sighed. "I respect your decision, I just want to make sure you'll have someone to lean on. Do you even have any acquaintances in Fuefuki?"

The other end of the line went dead silent.

"Are you still there?" the artist asked.

More murmuring.

"Thank you. I'll copy the contact information from Goro's phone. Don't be a stranger." He hung up, moved the detective's phone to his left hand, pulled out his own with his right, and copied the data manually, with more grace than one would expect from someone using two devices at once.

"So…" Sumire spoke up, "what happens now?"

Yusuke returned Goro's phone. "Now that I have a complete picture of the situation, I…" he paused, "I want to show you something."

"You won't get me to stand down," the detective said. It wasn't a veiled threat this time, just a polite yet firm statement.

"This isn't my goal. I simply want to discuss my current situation in a more suitable location."

"Which is?"

"One of the art galleries in Ueno."

Sumire glanced at Goro. "We don't have any more plans for today, do we?"

The detective felt on edge, but at the same time, the idea that this was all just a trap of some sort seemed… implausible? Was that trust? This might have been trust as far as he knew. "Very well then, lead the way. I'm not a native Tokyoite, I don't know what's the most convenient way to get there."

The gymnast was mildly surprised. "You aren't from here?"

"I'm not. Before this whole mess went down, I was commuting from Kawagoe."

"The route isn't complicated," the artist explained. "We can take the Ginza line straight to our destination…" He scanned his surroundings. "…as soon as I remember where its platform is."


Yusuke led Goro and Sumire through the crowd in one of many halls in one of many galleries of Ueno. Paintings in various styles were hanging on the walls. The artist and the detective had nothing to say the whole way through, and the gymnast didn't feel courageous enough to initiate small talk with either of them.

The trio finally stopped in front of one of the artworks, depicting a woman in a red robe cradling an infant in her arms, with a tree branch in the background. A small brass plaque was hanging underneath: Mother with a child, I. Kitagawa, watercolours on silk, 19XX.

"I assume you're related to the author of that painting," Goro demonstrated his deduction skills.

"My late mother, bless her heart," Yusuke seemed understandably melancholic. "I barely remember her, she passed away over a decade ago."

"I could have sworn I had seen it hanging in Leblanc," Sumire remarked.

The artist nodded. "And now it is exhibited in an art gallery, gathering praise from critics and museumgoers alike. And all thanks to-"

"Yusuke!"

The three spun around and noticed someone approaching them - an older man, dressed just a bit too plain.

"Greetings, sensei," the artist politely bowed his head. "I didn't expect to encounter you here."

"You wouldn't have shown up if you did," he joked, and the other two wondered how close to the truth that statement was. "I see you've brought friends. You know who I am, don't you?"

The gymnast shook her head. The detective thought about the answer for a moment - he had a good picture of who he was in the real world, but in Maruki's reality, his knowledge wasn't worth much. "With all respect, I do not follow the world of art too closely."

He smiled. "Let me introduce myself then: I'm Ichiryuusai Madarame. My main claim to fame are the portraits I've painted over the years, but I'm also a sensei to another generation of artists, Yusuke amongst them, and I also helped promote some other creators."

The detective pointed at the painting on the wall. "Such as the late Mrs Kitagawa?"

"Yes. Though truth be told, I had my work cut out for me there," he admitted. "The moment the critics caught wind of this painting, they were enamored with it. It's a one-of-a-kind masterpiece." He glanced at his protege. "Not that I don't believe Yusuke here won't be able to produce something to match or surpass it in due time. But enough about that; I don't believe I've met your friends before."

"I'm Goro Sakura, and this is Sumire Yoshizawa," Goro introduced them, not willing to let the artist or the gymnast get his surname 'wrong'. "We've met Yusuke online, and interacted for the past few months."

"This is our first meeting in person," Sumire added, technically not lying.

"I promised to treat them to a meal after showing them my mother's magnum opus," Yusuke added, "so please excuse us, sensei."

"Here," Madarame reached into his pocket and pulled out a banknote, then gave it to the artist. "It's on me."

"Thank you." Yusuke turned to his friends. "There is an underappreciated ramen shop nearby. Follow me."

He marched away. Goro and Sumire said their goodbyes and left behind him. As soon as the three were way out of Madarame's earshot, the boy muttered "Truth be told, I am somewhat hungry. If you want to join me, the shop is not far away. And on the way there, we can talk a bit more… openly."

In lieu of a response, Goro's stomach growled. He gestured towards the exit. "Once again, lead the way, please."

The three promptly marched out through the side door and into Ueno Park. Few people were around, since low temperatures and leafless trees of January weren't particularly inviting. Yusuke promptly marched down a public footpath, and Goro and Sumire kept up with him.

"You were introduced to the changes to reality done to placate me," the artist said. "At this point, you might have noticed an odd, unexpected element." He turned to the detective. "Yoshizawa does not have our shared history, but I think you are clever enough to have figured it out by now."

Truth be told, he had not. But with the other two staring at him expectantly, he was not going to admit defeat. Think, what was odd about all this? The painting's name was different, but that could've been his mother's choi- His mother! She wasn't alive for some reason - but he admitted she had died early in his life, there weren't enough fond memories of her for Maruki to bring her back, and with Madarame promoting her work at least she remai-

The coin dropped. "Your perfect reality has Madarame in it," he said out loud. "The abusive credit-stealing prick."

"He seemed nice," Sumire remarked.

"Of course he does now, especially after the Thieves stole his heart last year," Goro countered. "Hell, maybe deep down he actually wanted to be a proper artist and mentor, and Maruki took pity on him, but that doesn't mean Yusuke has to humour him."

The artist sighed in response. "Truth be told… a part of me wanted this." His fists balled up. "A part of me that was beaten into submission by years of Madarame's abuse. A part of me convinced that there's no other place in the world I could possibly belong in. A part of me I want surgically removed."

"You're being relatable and it's concerning," the detective muttered to nobody in particular.

Yusuke either didn't hear or didn't care about his comment. "The intrusive thoughts were nagging at me until, at New Year's Eve, I finally saw the seams in this reality. Unfortunately, I was deprived of everyone's contact information, and when I tried to go to Leblanc and speak to Akira in person, I panicked after seeing Mrs Isshiki among the living."

"She's Mrs Sakura now, but go on."

"I have spent the last few days aimlessly wandering, until yesterday, when I saw Yoshizawa exit the Metaverse. I decided to keep my eye on that corner of the Shibuya station, and, well, you know the rest." He stopped dead in his tracks and turned to face the other two. "This reality offers me nothing of value, and I want to help you bring it down."

After a beat to process this, Sumire asked: "Couldn't you have opened with that?"

"Outlining my situation and motives beforehand made my declaration less suspiciously convenient."

"…that's fair."

"Welcome onboard then, Fox," Goro outstretched his hand, and the artist shook it. "It's good to have you with us. Let's go get you some equipment-"

Sumire's stomach protested, about as loudly as the detective's did not that long ago. She smiled. "After that promised ramen, maybe?"

"Yes, of course."

The three continued marching, led by Yusuke, who spoke up: "Now that the important matters have been discussed… why did you introduce yourself as Goro Sakura?"

"In Maruki's ideal world I got adopted by Sojiro." He put on a cocky smile. "Thankfully, in spite of all the other changes, we remain on a first name basis."


Sumire slurped up a noodle. "Um, Kitagawa-senpai?"

"Please, no need for formalities," he protested, lifting a bowl of miso ramen to his mouth. "Call me Yusuke."

"O-okay, Yusuke-san…" Pause. "Do you think the other Phantom Thieves will break out of Maruki-san's reality on their own?"

Slurp. "It's possible."

"Uh whoo-" Goro swallowed. "I wouldn't count on that."

The artist smiled. "Have you not underestimated us once already, Goro?"

"…touche."