AN: Here's a question for you readers: when it comes to Confidants, which ones would you like to see this story cover the most, and who should Octavia, Loona and eventually Collin interact with. I'd love to hear your thoughts in a review below! (Now I feel like a YouTuber...)

Chapter 5: The Gangster and the Pirate

Location: Underground Prison

"Madame Queen!" Loona shouted. As the blue flames faded, the others looked in shock as the hellhound's appearance had changed. Loona was now wearing a tight black sleeveless top that cut off just above her stomach, black shorts with a jacket tied around her waist that bellowed in the wind, along with steel-toed shoes for her feet and orange gloves that were studded on the knuckles. While her flintlock pistol remained the same, Loona now had a kusarigama, a chain-sickle, loosely wrapped around her waist as well.

"She looks like some kind of Yakuza member now," Ryuji said.

"And look at that Persona!" Morgana pointed out.

Loona's Persona, Madame Queen, took the form of a woman wearing a black-and-white dress straight out of the Roaring 20's, gold earrings framing her face with a fedora pulled low on the face that bared a wing-shaped moon on it. The Persona stepped forward on her heels before pointing to their Shadow opponent. "Okay, pup, how about we show them what happens when they can't pay up their bets?" Madame Queen taunted.

"Fuck you!" the Shadow roared, bursting into goo as it transformed. Octavia, Morgana, and Ren all lined up with Loona as their opponent revealed themself to be a disgusting green monster with orange membranes under its arms and bony spikes sticking out of its back. "I'll just take you all on now and deliver you to Lord Kamoshida myself!"

"Yeah right, let's take this guy down!" Morgana stated. Their main focus was the Goat Sucker, but the Shadow had also called on two Gallows Flowers to back it up. "This a lot more than we've faced up until now, so be careful and conserve your energy," Morgana warned.

"Damnit, I wish I could fight, but all I had is that toy from earlier," Ryuji cursed. "I'm such a loser."

"That gun you got?" Loona scoffed. "Yeah, I don't think that'll help much. Sure, it looks real, but it only makes noises so it'll do jack shit for us."

"Actually, there is a way it can be helpful!" Morgana exclaimed, his eyes flashing with an idea.

"Did you not just hear what I said?" Loona raised an eyebrow.

"Don't worry, I'm sure this'll work!" Morgana nodded. "Attack away, Frizzy Hair!"

Ren nodded, pulling out the toy gun and pointing it at one of the Gallows Flowers. "Dude, I keep saying it's-" Ryuji stated to say, only for Ren's gun to actually fire bullets at the Shadow, unloading eight rounds into it before it was destroyed.

"Holy shit!" Loona shouted.

"Surprised?" Morgana said smugly. He then pulled out a slingshot and aimed it at the other Gallows Flower. "I'll show you my weapon too!" The not-cat blasted through the Shadow, defeating that one as well.

"Nice aim," Octavia complimented, Morgana beaming at the praise.

"Okay, you guys had fun, but let me show you what my Persona can do," Loona said, blowing her bangs out of her face. She pointed her gun at the Goat Sucker before exclaiming, "Magna!" Madame Queen snapped her fingers, making a small stalagmite shoot up from the ground, piercing the Goat Sucker and dropping it to the ground.

"You can use my powers to tip the scales in your favor any time," Madame Queen said before returning to Loona's mask.

The hellhound then followed up her spell with a few swings of her chain-sickle, ending it by pulling the Goat Sucker close and blasting his head open with her flintlock. "That's for holding me hostage, asshole," Loona said, blowing the smoke off her gun as the Shadow faded away.

With eminent danger out of the way, Ryuji come out from his hiding place and looked at Ren in shock. "Did that toy gun just shoot real freaking bullets!?" he exclaimed.

"This is a cognitive world. As long as our opponent see it as real, it becomes such," Morgana explained. "It's a good thing it's realistic-looking."

"I don't get it," Ryuji said, shaking his head.

"Basically, as long as our opponents think the gun is real, it'll work as a real gun," Octavia explained.

"And since our enemies are expecting us to come at then with guns loaded, our ammo will replenish after every fight," Morgana added.

Testing that theory, Loona opened up her Flintlock and dumped out the bullets, finding that indeed it had restocked her supply. "Hell yeah! No more having to pay for ammo on this thing," she grinned. Looking at her outfit, the hellhound pulled at her gloves. "I dunno about this getup, though. I feel like I'm some kind of anime protagonist or something. Eh, I'm sure it'll grow on me."

"Your Persona was pretty cool, Loona," Octavia nodded, patting the hellhound on the shoulder. "Welcome to the front lines."

"Now I want one of those Persona things," Ryuji grumbled. "I'm glad that I brought that gun, though."

"Come on, let's continue further into the Palace and find those slaves," Morgana said, running ahead for the others to follow.

[***]

Location: Training Hall

As they continued through the dungeon, Morgana taught the team more ways to deal with Shadows, including a special technique called the All-Out Attack. Once all enemies in a battle were knocked down, they could all jump in and beat them up with all they had. Ryuji equated it to a super move straight out of a video game. Sneaking around the corridors, they did eventually get to "Kamoshida's Training Hall of Love", the name alone making Ryuji's blood boil.

Once they got inside, the gang was treated to a horrific sight: Shadows had students tied up to the volleyball net and were whipping them as 'training.' "This is beyond messed up!" Ryuji cursed, shaking the bars. "How do I open this up?"

"S-stop it…" one of the students said, walking past the bars. "Leave us alone… It's useless."

"If we stay, obedient, we won't be executed like you guys," another student said.

"You're telling me you wanna stay in a place like this?" Loona questioned, a growl coming to her voice.

"Were you planning on taking these guys out of here?" Morgana asked.

"We can't just leave them here!" Ryuji argued.

"How stupid can you be?" Morgana sighed. "These are only humans in Kamoshida's cognition. They aren't real humans that have entered from reality. They're different from you four."

"Cognition?" Ryuji said.

"It means there's no point in saving them! They're different from the real ones in the real world. You could say that these are extremely similar-looking dolls," Morgana explained.

"Ugh, all of this shit is too complicated," Loona shook her head.

"The school's a castle, and the students are slaves… it's so on point that it makes me laugh. This really is the inside of that asshole's head," Ryuji scowled.

"Still, this is horrible," Octavia said, looking down at the torture with a solemn expression. "This must mean that Kamoshida treats the volleyball team as slaves in our reality as well."

"Our reality as well?" Ryuji repeated. He gasped in recognition. "Wait, I know these guys… They're members of the volleyball team- the one Kamoshida coaches for!"

"They must be physically abused every day… There's no way they'd be so beat up normally," Morgana said sadly.

"Don't tell me…" Ren said in horror.

"They're going through similar shit in reality!?" Ryuji finished.

"Most likely," Morgana nodded. "I mean, at the very least this proves that Kamoshida thinks of them as slaves."

"So it might be for real…" Loona said softly, clinching a fist. She was uncomfortably reminded of some of the 'discipline' she endured when was still living in the orphanage.

"I heard that Kamoshida's using physical punishment," Ryuji said. "They're just rumors, but… If they're true, wouldn't this be something to report to the police?" he pulled out his phone. "I'll use these guys as evidence. If it all goes well, we can take down that asshole Kamoshida!" Ryuji tried to open his camera app, but nothing happened. "Huh? It's not working! We can use the navigation app but the camera's a no go?"

"A navigation app?" Morgana asked.

"That's how we got here," Octavia replied, showing said app to the not-cat. Ren and Loona pulled out their phones to find that their cameras didn't work as well.

"Whatever we decide to do is fine, but we're gonna get caught if we stand around like this," Morgana said. "We need to head back."

"Hang on a sec! I just need to memorize their faces before we go home," Ryuji said.

"I'll see if these fake versions share a scent with their real-world selves as well," Loona offered.

The gang got to investigating the other cells in the training hall, finding more students being tortured. Some ran on a treadmill with a spiked roller come at them, forcing the slaves to run towards a water kettle like a carrot on a stick. Another cell had a student tied upside down as a cannon shot volleyballs into their chest. Once Ryuji and Loona got their faces/scents memorized, it was time to make a hasty retreat as to not get caught by the guards.

[***]

Location: Main Hall

As they made their escape, more guards came into investigate the disappearance of their comrades, forcing the group to go out into the main hall to leave. Kamoshida's Shadow was there, however, halting the team in their tracks.

"You knaves again?" Shadow Kamoshida said. "To think you'd make the same mistake again. You're hopeless!"

"The school ain't your castle!" Ryuji said boldly. "I've memorized their faces real good. You're going down!"

"It seems it's true when they say "barking dogs seldom bite." How far the star runner of the track team has fallen," Shadow Kamoshida smirked.

"What's he on about?" Octavia questioned, looking at Ryuji.

"I speak of the "Track Traitor" who acted in violence, ending his teammates' dreams," Shadow Kamoshida said. "Oh, I can only imagine the pain of the others who were dragged under with your… selfish act."

"Track Traitor…?" Ren said, Ryuji looking away in shame.

"What a surprise. So you're accompanying him without knowing anything at all?" Shadow Kamoshida smirked. "He betrayed his teammates and crushed their hopes, yet he still carries on as carefree as ever."

"That's not true!" Ryuji shot back.

"What a tragedy… You blindly trusted this fool, and he's led you right into your death." Shadow Kamoshida gestured to his guards. "Hurry up and dispose of them. I can't stand their stench."

The lead guard waved his sword, the three Shadows turning into Dirty Two-Horned Beasts before attacking. The Persona users jumped in front of Ryuji to protect him, with Loona kicking the blondie away as they quick became surrounded. "I'll kill you! I'll kill you 'cause King Kamoshida told us! I'll kill 'cause that's what he wants!" one of the Shadows said.

"Screw you guys!" Loona shouted, unloading her gun into one of the Shadows. Even as it fell, another Shadow appeared to take its place. "Damnit, there's more of them!?"

Octavia cast Gry on one of the Shadows, but it had little effect. "These are much stronger than before," she cursed.

Eventually the four Persona users couldn't keep up with the Shadows and used up all their fighting spirit, falling to the ground in exhaustion as they were surrounded. "Damnit…" Ren said as he slumped over.

Shadow Kamoshida smirked, brutally stepping on Morgana as the not-cat laid on the ground. "You piece of-" Morgana said, flinching as he felt the Palace Ruler's heel dig into his skin.

"I bet you simply came here on a whim and ended up like this. Isn't that right?" Shadow Kamoshida asked Ryuji, the blondie staring in disbelief and terror as his friends were restrained by the guards.

"No…" Ryuji said weakly.

"What a worthless piece of trash, getting emotional so quickly… How dare you raise your hand at me," Shadow Kamoshida shook his head. "Though it was only temporary, have your forgotten my kindness in supervising track practice?"

"Wasn't no practice- it was physical abuse! You just didn't like our team!" Ryuji shouted.

"It was nothing but an eyesore!" Shadow Kamoshida scoffed. "The only one who needs to achieve results is me! That coach who got fired as hopeless too… Had he not opposed me with a sound argument, I would've settled it with only breaking his star's leg."

"What…?" Loona said at the same time as Ryuji.

"Do you need me to deal with your other leg too?" Shadow Kamoshida continued. "The school will call it self-defense anyway!"

Ryuji fell over and looked at the floor. "Damnit… Am I gonna lose again? Not only can I not run anymore… the track team is gone too 'cause of this asshole…"

"So that's why-" Morgana whispered, only to get cut off my Shadow Kamoshida digging his heel into the not-cat again.

"Once these four are dealt with, you're next," the Palace Ruler stated before laughing.

"Ryuji!" Loona shouted.

"Don't let him win!" Octavia exclaimed.

"Stand up for yourself!" Ren demanded.

"…You're right," Ryuji said. "Everything that was important to me was taken by him… I'll never get 'em back!"

"Stay there and watch," Shadow Kamoshida ordered. "Look on as these hopeless scum die for nothing because they sided with trash like you."

Ryuji slowly stood up and started walking forward. "No… That's what you are… All you think about is using people… You're the real scumbag, Kamoshida!"

Shadow Kamoshida looked at his guards. "What are you doing? Silence him!"

Ryuji pointing at the Palace Ruler and shouted, "Stop looking down on me with that stupid smile on your face!"

"You made me wait quite a while," said a voice, Ryuji's eyes turning yellow as she grabbed his head in pain, falling to his knees. "You seek power, correct? Then let us form a pact. Since your name has been disgraced already, why not hoist the flag and wreak havoc? The "other you" who exists within desires it thus…" Ryuji rolled on the floor in pain as the voice spoke to him. "I am thou, thou art I… There is no turning back… The skull of rebellion is your flag henceforth!" In a flash of blue flames, a skull mask appeared on Ryuji's face.

'Wait, don't tell me…' Loona thought.

The lead guard scoffed. "What can you do?" He raised his sword over Ren's head. "Cower in fear and watch!"

Ryuji pulled at his mask, a blast of blue fire consuming him and pushing the guards bas as his Persona was brought forth. What came from it was a large skeleton pirate standing on a boat with a cannon for an arm, Ryuji's outfit becoming pirate themed with mostly black leather, a red scarf, and yellow gloves. "Right on… Wassup, Persona. This effing rocks!" the blondie said with a wicked grin. The others quickly recovered and got their feet as Ryuji continued, "Now that I got this power, it's time for payback… Yo, I'm ready. Bring it!"

"Don't mock me, you brat!" The lead guard shouted, bursting into goo before transforming into a man on a horse in red armor.

Ryuji pointed at the Shadow. "Blast 'em away, Captain Kidd!"

"What troublemakers that bother King Kamoshida with trifle matters!" War-Hungry Horseman shouted.

"Kamoshida's cognition ain't changing right? Then I'll act like the troublemaker I am!" Ryuji said. "Let's do this, Captain Kidd!" War-Hungry Horseman summoned two Dirty Two-Horned Beasts to its side, but Ryuji was ready for battle this time. "Zio!" he shouted, Captain Kidd firing a lightning bolt that knocked one of the minions down.

"Let me in on this!" Loona said, summoning Madame Queen and finishing off one of the minions with Magna. Octavia did the same with Gry, while Ren and Morgana used physical attacks against the boss Shadow. War-Hungry Horseman tried to cleave Ren, but he skillfully dodged out of the way before unloading his clip on the boss.

"He's all yours, Ryuji!" Ren shouted.

"Aw yeah, time for some payback!" Loona grinned.

"Let's go, Captain!" Ryuji called, his Persona using a powerful Lunge to defeat the Shadow.

"I am… a loyal subject… of the glorious King Kamoshida…" War-Hungry Horseman said in defeat. "So why… have I lost!?"

"It just proves that Kamoshida ain't anything special," Ryuji said, leveling his weapon, a lead pipe, over his shoulder. With the Shadow defeated, the group took a step back to catch their breath. "How about that!?" Ryuji shouted at Shadow Kamoshida.

"Woah… So Ryuji had the Potential too…" Morgana said, making Octavia look at the cat.

'Okay, Morgana definitely knows more than he's letting on, even if he has some sort of amnesia on top of it,' she thought. 'Did Philemon, or maybe Uncle Raoul, have something to do with his odd state of being?'

"Even if you apologize now… I ain't forgiving you," Ryuji continued.

"I told you that this is my castle. It seems you still don't understand…" Shadow Kamoshida said. Suddenly, a girl in a purple bikini with cat ears came walking out, making Octavia, Ren, and Ryuji step back I shock.

"Takamaki!?" Ryuji shouted in disbelief.

Morgana, however, had a different reaction. "Wha… What a meow-velous and beautiful girl…"

It was that moment that Octavia got a sinking feeling on her stomach, the same one she got whenever her father flirted with Blitzo on the phone in front of her. 'Oh Satan, this better not be love at first sight…' she thought with dread.

"What's going on," Ryuji asked.

"Something seems off," Ren stated.

"This is bizarre for sure," Octavia said. "What does this even mean?"

Shadow Kamoshida put a hand to Takamaki's face. "Hey! Let go of her, you perv!" Loona barked.

"How many times must I tell you before you understand?" Shadow Kamoshida said. "This is my castle- a place in which I can do whatever I want. Everyone wishes to be loved by me. That is, everyone besides slow-witted thieves like you."

"Takamaki! Say something!" Ryuji shouted.

Morgana shook off his lust and turned to his teammates. "Calm down, Ryuji! It seems that girl isn't the real one. She's the same as those slaves- a being made from Kamoshida's cognition of her!"

"Are you jealous?" Kamoshida asked mockingly. "Well, I'm not surprised. Women aren't drawn to problematic punks like you."

"Damnit," Ryuji cursed.

"Clean them up this instant!" Shadow Kamoshida ordered, summoning more guards.

"We're outnumbered," Ren noted.

"Then let's get out here before it gets worse!" Octavia suggested.

"We're not gonna do anything and just run!?" Ryuji questioned.

"Just shut up and go!" Loona shouted.

"Thank god some of us have a level head," Morgana stated.

"Fine," Ryuji relented, before facing Shadow Kamoshida one last time. "We'll expose what you really are, Kamoshida, no matter what! You better be ready for us!"

The Palace Ruler laughed. "I was beginning to get bored of torturing the ones here! Come at me whenever you want, if you don't care about your life!"

"Ignore him. Let's go!" Morgana ordered, the gang running out of the Palace and to the safety of outside.

[***]

Location: Outside the Castle of Lust

Ryuji panted as he caught his breath before looking at his new appearance. "Anyways! I don't remember changing into this!"

"You look like a thug," Ren said, getting a snort from Octavia and Loona.

"What the hell!? I-It's much better than your magician-looking one!" Ryuji shot back, making Ren give a confused noise.

"But not as cool as mine or Octavia's," Loona said with a smirk.

"Quiet!" Morgana shushed as the sound of guards came from the castle.

"So, what's going on? I'm completely lost man," Ryuji said.

"I told you before: when a Persona-user opposes a Palace's ruler and becomes a threat to them, this happens," Morgana explained. "It's to prevent you from being affected by distortions."

Ryuji felt the mask on his face. "Is this… a skull?"

"Your appearance reflects your inner self. It's the rebel that slumbers within… Not that you'll get it," Morgana said.

"Apparently that makes your inner rebel a pirate, for some reason," Octavia shrugged. "And Loona's is… a street thug? Or… what did you say earlier, a Yakuza member?"

"That's like a gangster but Japanese, right?" Loona asked, getting a "so-so" gesture from Ren.

"If you don't understand something, just stop asking questions and accept what you see for what it is," Morgana sighed.

"Easy for you to say," Ryuji whispered. He then gasped in terror. "Wait, we're in deep shit! We might've gotten away here, but we're still screwed with Kamoshida at the real school…"

"That's quite sharp of you… for being an idiot," Morgana noted. "Relax. The Kamoshida in reality can't possibly know about what happens here. A Shadow is the true self that is suppressed- a side of one's personality they don't want to see."

"It means that we'll be fine," Octavia summarized. "I mean, if the real-world Kamoshida didn't remember what happened to you guys yesterday, then it's safe to say he won't remember any of what just happened here either."

"There you have it," Morgana nodded.

"Lucky us," Ren said.

Ryuji smiled. "All right! Now that we know that, all we gotta do is-"

"Wait," Morgana interrupted. "I guided you as promised. It's your turn to cooperate with me. That's why I was super nice about teaching you idiots everything- no offense, Octavia."

Loona growled at the insult, but Octavia held her back. "You did say something when we first met about you being in this Palace for a reason."

Morgana nodded. "I need to erase the distortion from my body and regain my real form! That's why we must delve deep into Mementos and-"

"Woah, hold up. What are you going on and on about?" Ryuji asked. "We never said anything about helping you out."

Morgana looked to Ren in shock. "Huh? Don't tell me… Are you not going to repay the hospitality I showed you? Especially you! You're going to up and leave, even though you're already part of my paster plan!?"

"What plan?" Ren questioned.

"Is it because I'm not human? Because I'm like a cat? Is that why you're making a fool of me!?" Morgana shouted.

"We're busy!" Ryuji stated. "Thanks for everything, cat. You've got guts, being a cat and all. See you around!"

With that Ryuji and Ren ran off. "Hey! What the hell!? Ugh, seriously!? Why're you wrapping this up like everything's all hunky-dory!? Oh, hell no! Get back here!" Octavia and Loona just stood and watch as Morgana shouted in anger.

"Uh… We'll just leave you here for now…" Octavia said carefully. "I'll make sure they join us to help you out, Morgana. Promise."

"Later, cat boy!" Loona said with a smirk.

"I am not a cat!" Morgana screamed as the two left for reality.

[***]

"You have returned to the real world. Welcome back."

"Thank God. We're back," Ryuji said.

"Yeah, as a demon I'd just like to say to not count all your blessing on the big man upstairs," Loona said, her and Octavia transforming back into their human disguises.

"I wouldn't say Lucifer is a better one to pray to either," Octavia said. "Better locked in paradise than stuck in Hell, at least that's how I see it."

"I dragged you around a lot, huh? Sorry guys," Ryuji said, letting out a big yawn. "Ugh, I'm dead tired… How you holding up?"

"Eh, I'm fine," Ren shrugged.

"That's impressive. I'm exhausted even though I used to do track…" Ryuji shook his head. The blonde then got a big grin on his face. "But damn, if what we saw was for real, this is gonna get good! I totally remember the faces of the guys Kamoshida was treating like slaves. Once we make 'em fess up to any physical abuse, Kamoshida will be done."

"I'll help you look for them, but only because I have their scents memorized," Loona said. "How about you Octavia?"

"I'll leave that decision up to Ren," the princess replied.

"Sure, I'll help," Ren nodded.

"Now that's what I'm talking about!" Ryuji cheered. He then got serious as he looked at Ren. "Hey, so… If you're thinking of laying low 'cause you got a record, I don't think that'll help… Everyone already knows. They totally got you pegged as a criminal."

"How'd that happen?" Ren asked.

"Kamoshida opened his damn mouth!" Ryuji scowled.

"Seems all of our current problems come back to this one pervy gym teacher," Octavia shook her head. "You have to wonder why he did it, though."

"No one else besides a teacher could've leaked it that fast," Ryuji stated. "It doesn't matter if it's a student or a club; that asshole just wrecks things he doesn't agree with. Just like he did with me." He looked a bit solemn as he spoke. "No one'll take anything I say seriously. Still, those rumors about him getting physical might be real. And after seeing Kamoshida's distorted-heart thing in person, there's no way I can just sit back!"

Loona leaned against the alleyway and crossed her arms. "Look, I feel you, man, but… It might not even be worth it to go after the guy. Even if I could fuck him up with my bare claws and send him straight to Hell where he belongs, that'll just blow mine and Octavia's cover, which won't help anyone. Sucks, but that's the way it is."

"But we have to do something, and I'll help in any way I can," Ryuji said firmly.

Ren looked thoughtful before speaking up. "Okay, we're in this together."

"I'm counting on you, all of you! And don't worry- I'm hyped about this too!" Ryuji grinned. His impassioned speech was interrupted by a growling noise from his stomach. "Oh, right. I haven't eaten anything sine lunch. It'd be weird splitting off now, so why don't we grab a bite somewhere?"

"What kind of food?" Ren asked, looking a bit spaced out for a moment. 'Why do I feel like Ryuji and I just formed a special bond of some kind?' he thought.

"I'll pay for it," Octavia offered, pulling out her credit card. "Being a princess means that money isn't a problem for me."

""One Percenter Advantage" as I like to call it," Loona smirked.

"Then we gotta get some meat," Ryuji said. "Just follow me. Man, having a demon princess for a friend is awesome, and my best friend is half-demon too… You guys have to tell me about your past!"

[***]

And so the group went out for ramen bowls, with Loona and Octavia explaining how they got to the human world (and a bit about demon society as well, leaving out what IMP was all about) while Ren told then about why he was transferred to Shujin: after saving a woman from being assaulted, the man he stood up against turned out to have a lot of political power and got Ren arrested for the assault charges instead. Even with all the horrible stuff that happened in Hell, Loona and Octavia were not happy with how Ren was treated.

"The hell, man! How much shitter can that asshole get!?" Ryuji shouted.

"It's in the past…" Ren sighed.

"Really dude? If I was in your shoes, I wouldn't rest until that guy had his balls ripped off," Loona said.

"So you left your hometown and you're living here now, huh?" Ryuji said as they all continued eating. "We might be more alike than I originally thought. "

"What did you do?" Ren asked.

"I don't got a record like you do." Ryuji shook his head. "I mean, that's not the point. I guess it's how we're treated like a pain in the ass by the people around us, like we don't belong. I did something stupid at school before, too."

"The 'Track Traitor' thing, right?" Octavia guessed, getting a nod from Ryuji.

The blonde turned to Ren. "The place you're living now is in… Yongen, right? It's rush hour on the subways. I suggest you kill some time before heading home." Ryuji then poked at Ren's bowl, which was still relatively full. "What the hell, man. You barely touched your food."

Ren snatched his bowl away as Ryuji grabbed the toppings. "I can do that myself."

"Just let me do it. I gotta thank you for helping me," Ryuji grinned. The girls smirked at the guys' antics as they fought over the meat bowl. "Anyways, I got your back like you got mine from tomorrow on. As long as we do something about Kamoshida, I'm sure we'll both feel better about being at school."

Ren nodded in agreement. "Hey, how about we all get our phone numbers, since we're here," Octavia suggested. "It'll be easier to communicate in case we want to go back to the Palace again."

"Good idea," Ren replied, the four of them going around and exchanging numbers.

"Just you wait, Kamoshida," Ryuji said. "We're gonna start right away tomorrow. First, let's hit up those guys that were kept as slaves. The volleyball rally's tomorrow, huh? Shit's recommended by Kamoshida. Makes me wanna gag. But thanks to that, we got no classes in the afternoon, and we can walk around unnoticed."

"We can work out the details tomorrow," Loona yawned, stretching at bit. She looked at Ren's bowl with hunger in her eyes. "Hey, if you're not going to eat that, can I have it?"

"Loona, I can just order more," Octavia sighed.

"Yeah, let Ren-Ren eat his food," Ryuji said. "He just needs to add more ginger."

"Ren-Ren?" Ren looked at Ryuji with a quizzical expression.

[***]

Collin was glad that he had made friends with Shiho and Ann. It was hard fitting in as transfer student, much less as a person of color, but Ann has experience being of mixed-race herself. The three of them were currently sitting on a bench at school, happily chatting until Shiho gave a sigh. "I-I haven't been sleeping well lately…" the volleyball star admitted. "Whenever I close my eyes, I keep thinking about too many things…"

"Shiho…" Ann sighed.

"You should try a warm glass of milk. That helps me sleep soundly," Collin suggested. "Besides, the volleyball rally is tomorrow, so you need all the sleep you can get."

Shiho looked away from him. "Nationals are coming up tomorrow, so I keep thinking… Should someone like me really be on the starting lineup?"

"Don't worry. Just be confident in yourself!" Ann encouraged, Collin nodding in agreement. "Your skills have been recognized It's all because you work harder than anyone else!"

Shiho gave a discontented grunt. "Yeah… Volleyball's all I have, after all."

Collin looked at Shiho's knee brace with concern. "Is your injury okay? It looked really swollen earlier?" The angel subtly placed a hand over it, whispering a minor healing spell that would take some strain off it. 'Healing it fully would make it suspicious, but this will help you, Shiho,' he thought. 'If only my current position allowed me to do more…'

"No, it's nothing. It's normal… Especially since a meet's coming up…" Shiho shook her head.

Ann gave a sigh as one of the volleyball boys, the same one from Octavia's class, walked up. "Sorry to interrupt, Suzui," the boy said. "Um… Mr. Kamoshida told me to get you."

Shiho looked up with concern. "What does he want?"

"He didn't say…" the boy looked away.

Shiho looked down at the floor. "Ann, Collin, I…"

Ann also gave a sigh, making Collin concerned. 'What has then all worried? Teachers are supposed to help students, so Kamoshida must want to give her a pep talk before the rally tomorrow,' he thought. "It'll be fine!" he said.

"Yeah, I bet it's a meeting about the starting lineup or something," Ann stated, jumping on Collin's opening.

Shiho looked between her friends before smiling nervously. "…Yeah." She stood up. "Well, I better go…"

"Good luck!" Collin and Ann said together.

As the two volleyball kids walked off, Collin turned to Ann with a smile. "Want to go get snacks together?" he asked.

"Sure. I just have to get something from my locker first," Ann said. As the angel left, her smile faded. "Hang in there, Shiho…"

New Compendium Entry

Name: Madame Queen

Arcana: Twilight (variation of Moon)

Background: A legendary gangster who controlled her turf through racketeering. Despite her line of work, she was well respected by her community for standing up to rival gangs.

Initial Moves:

- Magna Spells (Earth-based magic. Hits technical damage on Frozen and Scared enemies)

- Snap (Gun physical damage)

Author's Notes

This mostly just covered the second half of the Palace investigation, but we got to see both Loona and Ryuji awaken to their Personas! Loona has Madame Queen, a real-life gangster from the Roaring 20s that was both a racketeer and social activist, working to keep the people of Harlem safe from both rival gangs and corrupt cops. As for her Phantom Thief outfit, TalosLives came up with the idea for Loona to wear something similar to Tifa Lockheart from "Final Fantasy 7", specifically her Advent Children redesign. I noticed that none of the PTs were inspired by American outlaws, so Loona fit the bill as to who should represent the classic gangster/street thug archetype.

Speaking of the hellhound, this chapter starts hinting a bit of her backstory. She'll be warming up to Ryuji soon enough, especially since they both have a bad history with shitty authority figures pushing them around. Loona's not above pushing the blondie's buttons, however, so they'll be more like a teasing brother and sister in a way.

By the way, Loona's Arcana, "Twilight", comes from the Paul Christian or Egyptian Tarot deck and is the equivalent to the Moon Arcana in that deck. Similar to how both Morgana and Maruki are both technically Magician, but Maruki's is under an equivalent card, that's how I'll be handing Loona and Collin so that they don't replace Mishima and Hifumi respectively.

Octavia equating Morgana's reaction to Cognitive Ann to how Stolas acts around Blitzo and slowly dying on the inside is something I knew I had to bring up. Hopefully our owl princess will help the not-cat not be as down bad as her father is.

And Collin is back for a scene at the end! Oh, poor naive Collin, trusting in authority figures even when your new friends are secretly hinting that Kamoshida is up to no good. I feel bad for the guy, knowing what's going to happen soon...

Next Time: The gang investigate the volleyball team to try and learn more about Kamoshida's crimes!