First route secured

Here is another one.

Disclaimer: I don't own Persona 5 Royal


Akira was studying, something he found he suddenly had an abundance of time to do, when he heard a knock on the door.

"Come in." He called out, looking up from his notebook.

The door opened and revealed an unknown face. A girl around his age with black hair tied in a high ponytail and wearing a school uniform.

"Oh… I'm sorry, I think I got the wrong room." She stepped back and seemed to look at the room's number. "Um, is this Sakamoto Ryuji's room?"

"Ah, yes, it is; I'm his roommate." Akira answered. "He went to a session of physical therapy, he should be back soon." The girl nodded. "Feel free to wait in here, it shouldn't take too long now."

"Alright, thank you…"

"My name is Kurusu Akira." He said after she trailed off.

"I'm Suzui Shiho, it's nice to meet you." She said with a smile.

"Likewise." He smiled back. "If you don't mind me asking, are you two friends? He hasn't gotten many visitors."

"Ah, well… it's hard to say." She frowned in thought. "I guess you could call us 'long-time acquaintances'? We went to the same middle school but we've sort of gotten… distant."

"…because of the reason he is here?" Akira asked neutrally.

"No, we just weren't in the same class anymore or had any clubs together." She shook her head. "How… how much do you know about the reason he is here?"

"…I'll tell you if you tell me first."

Shiho gave him a look.

"I will not say anything until I know what he has told you, it's not my place to say."

"…seems fair." Akira grinned and nodded. "Change of subject then, can you tell me why you're here? I'll tell you my story first if you want."

"That's alright, although I'll hear you out if you don't mind sharing." She smiled and brought a chair closer to his bed to sit down. "There isn't any big reason really, I was asked to bring him the school material he is missing." She answered, pointing to the bag she had. "Your turn?"

"A car tried to isekai me, I didn't let it."

Much like Ryuji, Shiho laughed, covering her mouth with one hand to muffle it.

"'Isekai you'? Really?" She said between giggles.

"I said the same thing to Sakamoto and got a similar reaction." Akira grinned and adjusted his glasses.

As she was laughing, the door opened and Ryuji walked in, using his crutches for aid.

He froze after taking a single step and seeing Shiho there.

"Ah… what are you doing here?" He asked, clearly confused.

"I was asked to bring you the school material." She replied. "How are y-"

"We're not in the same class." Ryuji interrupted.

Akira noticed Shiho flinched.

"…Nakaoka-kun asked me to do it."

"…I see." The other teen sighed and moved to the bed, keeping his eyes to the ground. "Just leave them on my bed, I'll see them later."

"Oh, alright." She did as told. "How are you recovering? I see your leg isn't in a cast anymore."

"I'm fine."

"…alright." Forcing a smile, Shiho grabbed her things and stood up. "Just so you know… not everyone believes what Kamoshida-sensei says happened." She turned to Akira and bowed as a goodbye before walking out of the room.

"…are you okay?" The black haired teen asked after a minute.

"…no." He admitted with a heavy sigh. "…and I honestly don't know why I'm talking about this with the guy that I've known for less than a month." He said with a shook of his head.

"I'm just that charming." Akira joked lightly.

It got a chuckle out of Ryuji.

"Remember, I will ask but if you don't want to tell then you just have to say it and you won't hear me bring it up again."

"…maybe later, I don't feel like talking right now."

"Alright." He turned back to his notebook. "You may want to check the school material, though."

"Studying? Really?"

"Do you have anything better to do?" Akira shrugged.

"…I guess not." With another sigh, he grabbed the stuff Shiho had left and began to look through them. "By the way, it sounds like I can leave the hospital tomorrow."

"Really?" He turned to him.

"Yeah, I still need to do some more therapy before my leg is completely recovered but they told me I can go home and just come back here for the sessions."

"You're continuing the physical therapy, then?"

"I… I think I will." Ryuji nodded. "I honestly don't know if I'll be able to continue running but… the idea of letting that bastard take this away from me just sickens me." He let out a sigh. "Not that I'll be able to practice at school, the team was disbanded and I'm pretty much an outcast but I'll see what I can do."

"Just come by Leblanc anytime you need to eat."

"You're paying?"

"Only the first time." Akira grinned. "You'll get hooked and want to keep coming afterwards."

The two laughed.

"Alright, deal, where is that shop anyway?"

"It's in Yongen and… actually, do you mind if we trade numbers?" The black haired teen picked his phone from his nightstand. "I'll tell you when I'm working again so you can come by and I make good on my word."

"Sure." Ryuji took out his own phone and the two traded numbers.

"In the meantime, care to give me a hand with the school material I have? I'm a bit behind on some stuff."

"…I'm not really the studious type…" Ryuji trailed off with a sheepish grin. "What school are you going to by the way?"

"Ah…" Akira trailed off. 'Shit… well, I guess I can tell him the same thing I told Shinichi-san.'

"You okay, dude?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." He assured him. "I'm… not going to school at the moment."

"Well, yeah, you got hit by a car."

"No, I meant, I haven't been to school this whole year." Akira explained. "I came to Tokyo recently, there were some issues in the school I was transferring to and they told me I could only start next year. I'll have to take an exam to see if I enter as a first or second year, though."

"Damn, that sucks."

"You have no idea." 'Literally.'

"Well, I hope you manage to enter… what school are you going to enter?"

"I honestly forgot; the name is in some papers I have back where I'm staying."

"Alright." Ryuji nodded and looked at the stuff Shiho brought before sighing. "Well, I guess I better get started with this stuff."


The next few days passed with nothing interesting happening.

Akira found himself bored more often than not now that he had the room to himself but spent most of the time, that wasn't in physical therapy, catching up with school material, reading a few books Sojiro or the twins brought him or training in the Thieves Den with Lavenza.

However, he did tell doctor Takahashi that he will agree to see a therapist.

So that's where he is now, in front of a door and sitting on a wheelchair.

Without thinking too much on it, he knocked.

"Come in." A male voice said from the inside.

Akira did as told.

"Welcome, Kurusu-kun, right?" The man asked.

He is sitting on a couch, wearing a blue shirt, khaki slacks and a lab coat, with short brown hair and glasses.

"That's right, and you are?"

"My name is Maruki Takuto." The man said amicably. "Please, have a seat… ah, I mean-"

"Pff, want to rephrase that one?" Akira asked with a chuckle as he moved the wheelchair closer.

"Sorry, I usually say that when a patient comes in."

"Don't worry, I don't mind." He assured him. "So… I'm not sure what we're supposed to do now."

"Well, there is not something in particular we have to do, really." Maruki answered. "Trying to force a conversation is counterproductive to this, you can just stay here in silence if you want." He motioned to some snacks on the table. "Help yourself to some of the snacks."

"Don't mind if I do." Akira said as he grabbed one. "I don't really have anything in mind I can think to talk about but if you want to ask me questions, I can answer them."

"Very well." Maruki nodded. "Obvious question first, how are you feeling? Mentally speaking?"

"I… honestly feel fine."

"No nightmares, scares, anything like that?"

"None."

"Your doctors pointed out that you sleep a lot. Any reason for that?"

"Honestly? Boredom."

"…boredom." Maruki repeated, looking a bit perplexed.

"There is only so much I can do in my current condition so I get bored and that makes me sleepy." 'Not to mention I actually have more fun while I sleep.' He added in his mind.

"Huh… I honestly didn't expect that answer."

"Hehe, I'm just full of surprises." The teen joked.

"How about visitors? It seems you got at least three regulars."

"That would be Sakura-san, Kasumi-san and Sumire."

"How do you know them?"

"Sakura-san is my guardian while I'm staying in Tokyo, I met the Yoshizawa twins while working at his café."

"I see. How often do they visit?"

"Every couple of days."

"What do you do when they visit?"

"It depends. With Sakura-san, he usually asks me how I'm doing and gives me the school material that is sent to the place I'm staying at plus some of his shop's curry." The teen recounted. "We talk a bit but not much, the curry is amazing, though."

"Really?"

"I've been spoiled with good curry and coffee, I can never go back now." Akira said jokingly, earning a chuckle from the doctor.

"I'm glad to hear that, how about with the Yoshizawa twins?"

"We usually talk about what's going on with them, I tell them about how my recovery is going but I don't really have much to talk about. Not much happens to you when you're bedridden." 'Nothing I can say without sounding insane, at least.'

"Well… I will be frank with you, Kurusu-kun."

"Yes?"

"I can see why Doctor Takahashi referred you to me."

"Oh?"

"There is nothing wrong with your answers, quite the opposite; you seem to be perfectly fine, as if the accident hasn't had a real impact on you."

"And that's bad?"

"It's… unusual." Maruki admitted. "Ah, I don't mean that in a bad way, there are people that aren't really affected by events like this but finding a kid your age that seems completely unaffected by it is… well, strange."

"…I honestly don't know what to say doctor."

"Let me ask you a few questions about the incident, is that alright?"

"Sure."

"Alright, how do you feel about it? Does it make you sad, maybe angry?"

"I guess… I would say it makes me angry." He answered truthfully.

"And who are you directing that anger to?"

"The one responsible." 'Although I can't really tell anyone who was responsible for it.'

"I see". Maruki nodded, a small smile on his face. "That's a normal reaction. Being angry at whoever caused you pain is only natural."

"I agree." 'There is one more person on that list.'

"I do have to wonder, though. You claim to be angry yet almost none of your answers seem to reflect that. Why do you think that is?"

"Because… I'm not wallowing in my anger, I guess."

"Oh?"

"I have other things to keep my mind occupied and it's not as if being angry at all times would do anything so…" Akira shrugged as he trailed off.

"I see." Maruki said once more. "Alright, let me ask you another question, do you think you can forgive the one responsible for the car crash?"

"Well… that depends if they apologize." 'And I seriously doubt Yaldy will do such a thing.'

"What if they did? If the person came in right now and said 'sorry', could you forgive them? Just like that?"

"I… guess? I don't think that will happen, though."

"Why not?"

"I've been here for over a week and they haven't come here yet and the police haven't contacted me at all about it, I don't even know the name of the person in that car." 'Bit of a lie but… I can't exactly say that Yaldy is the true culprit.'

"I see." There was another nod. "But, just as a hypothetical, if they came here and apologized for what they did and took steps to make it right, would you forgive them?"

"Yes." He said with no hesitation. "Personally, I think that an apology only really holds weight if it's accompanied by actions. Depending on what they did, maybe just the fact that they're apologizing would be enough but for other things…" Akira trailed off once again, a frown on his face as he remembered the guy that sued him.

"Sounds like you've thought about this sort of thing before." Maruki said. "Has someone hurt you or betray you before?"

"…yeah." Akira said, averting his gaze with a scowl. "I doubt I will ever feel as hurt as that time for the rest of my life."

The doctor's eyes widened.

"Wow, I… I apologize, I didn't think it would be something so serious." Maruki admitted. "Is it okay if I ask what happened?"

"…nothing I say here leaves this room, right?"

"Nothing, whatever you tell me stays between us."

"I…" Akira took a deep breath. "No, sorry, it's not something I want to talk about."

"I understand." Maruki nodded with a smile. "I don't expect you to be comfortable opening up to someone you just met after all; can you tell me if you have at least talked about this with someone else?"

"My parents, I've talked to them." The teen smiled. "They're on my side."

"That's good, if you have someone to talk to then I feel more at ease." Maruki nodded. "Do you mind if I ask you a question about this incident, though? Nothing detailed and you can say no."

"…I guess it depends on the question, but I will at least listen."

"Alright, it's a rather simple question really." The doctor leaned forward a bit and crossed his fingers. "Would you be happier if that event never happened?"

"…yeah, most likely." Akira nodded before shrugging with a grin. "It's not like I can turn back time, though."

"Yeah, that's true." Maruki chuckled. "But it is possible to avoid thinking about it, though."

"Hm? What do you mean?"

"It's just as I said, just not thinking about something can be really relieving. Sometimes people can even completely forget certain events that they dislike."

"I don't think I'm letting that bring me down but I see your point." Akira said. "I admit I sometimes forget what the reason for me moving here is, I've been surprisingly busy."

"Would you like to completely forget about it?"

"Nah." He said with a shrug.

"Oh?" Maruki blinked, looking genuinely surprised by the nonchalant response. "Is there a reason for that?"

"It sometimes goes to the back of my mind but I'm not running from it." The teen explained. "It happened, I accept that, and I won't let it bring me down… I think I already said something like that."

"Haha, you are a very interesting young man." Maruki chuckled. "Very well, if that's how you feel, then I won't say anything else about it."

They made some small talk in the time they had before Akira left.

"So he doesn't want to forget about it…" Maruki muttered in the lone room.


A few days later. (Third week of June starts)

Akira had gone to Doctor Maruki a few more times and then one day, his first doctor walked in to his room.

"Kurusu-kun." Doctor Takahashi greeted as he entered.

"Hey doc." Akira greeted back, noticing the smile on his face. "Good news?"

"Very much so." He nodded. "Tomorrow, you can leave the hospital."

"…really?"

"Really." The older man nodded. "I'm honestly amazed at the speed of your recovery, I kept you here for a few days longer so Doctor Maruki could have a talk with you but he has assured me that you are free to go."

"That's great." Akira chuckled. "No offense, but I was getting sick of this room."

"None taken." The doctor grinned. "You still have physical therapy sessions that you need to come to in order to completely recover but other than that, you will be going home soon."

"I see, thanks."

"We've already informed your guardian, he'll come tomorrow to pick you up. You must avoid any strenuous activities and move around in either a wheelchair or with crunches until we say otherwise." He listed a few more warning and some pain killers he can take in case he needs them before leaving him to rest.

Akira immediately grabbed his phone and sent a message to his parents.

"Great news, I'm being discharged."

He got a reply from his dad almost immediately.

"That's great! Are you recovered now?"

"Not completely but the doctor says I can do the rest of the recovery at Sakura-san's home and to just come for physical therapy."

"I'm so glad to hear it. Make sure to be careful." His mom sent next.

"I will, don't worry."

They exchanged a few more messages before they had to go back to work.

His next message went to the Yoshizawa twins.

"I'm being discharged from the hospital tomorrow."

It was still school hours so he wasn't surprised to not get a reply.

Next, he sent a message to Sojiro saying the same thing.

"I've already been told. Ah, you'll be staying at my home for the time being, you can't really go up the stairs to Leblanc's attic in your condition."

"Thanks." He debated whether he should ask something about Futaba but decided against it.

"I'll be there tomorrow to pick you up before lunch."

"Got it."

With that, he turned to a different chat to send one more message.

"Hey Sakamoto, I'm being discharged tomorrow." He didn't expect a reply since it was still school hours but, to his surprise, there was one.

"Great to hear dude, you're fine now then?"

"For the most part, I still need to do some physical therapy but I can leave the hospital."

There was no response after that.

"I'm guessing he either turned his attention to class… or a teacher caught him sending messages." Arsène chimed in.

Akira let out a chuckle at that before turning serious and opening another chat.

"Alibaba, I'm guessing you already know." The only response was the same 'this number is not available' that appeared every time he sent a message there since their last conversation.

"Still nothing, huh." Arsène commented.

"Well, we'll be under the same roof soon enough." Akira muttered.


The next day.

"Alright, we're here." Sojiro said as he parked his car. "Do you need a hand?"

"I can manage, thanks." Akira answered, grabbing a pair of crunches as he got out of the car and using them to walk to the door of Sojiro's house.

"I don't have a room downstairs so you'll have to use the living room, I'll give you a futon." The older man said as he opened the door and the two moved to the living room where Akira sat down.

"Alright… there is one thing I feel I have to ask about." He said, looking hesitant.

"What is it?"

"It's about your daughter… well, does she know I'll be staying here?"

"I told her." Sojiro said before sighing. "Look, Futaba… doesn't do well with strangers, she'll probably stay in her room most of the time; just don't bother her."

"I won't."

"Well, I have to get back to the store, call me if something happens."

With that, Sojiro turned around and left the house.

As soon as he did, Akira took out his phone and sent a message to 'Alibaba'.

"So, what now?"

He didn't get the 'number is not available' message so that was a good sign.

"…nothing." Futaba answered after a few seconds. "I'm not gonna answer any questions you ask about that incident."

"I figured, I wasn't planning on asking." He answered with a shrug. "Any rules while I'm here?"

"Not really." Akira could almost feel her shrugging through the screen. "Welcome to my tomb."

'Hm?'

"That's an odd choice of words." Arsène commented, looking over his shoulder.

The black haired teen nodded in agreement.

'I can't really talk now… guess I'll just act normal.' With that, he turned on the TV and flipped through the channels until he found something that looked interesting.


Almost an entire week passed with nothing of note happening.

He spent most of his time, not training with Lavenza, at Sojiro's living room, purposely pretending to not hear footsteps whenever Futaba walked down to go to the kitchen or bathroom. He kept in touch with the Yoshizawa twins and Ryuji via text but asked them not to visit since he didn't want to impose on Sojiro's house… or that's what he told them, the real reason was Futaba.

Something he did do, at Morgana's suggestion, is practice how to pick a lock. Morgana got him a few pins from Leblanc's attic and a few simple locks he managed to scavenge around Yongen-Jaya.

The not-cat also made some routine visits to Youji's Palace, just to make sure nothing strange happened to it. So far, the only thing he had to report was that the Shadow they had defeated before Akira was hospitalized had reformed.

He went to all of his physical therapy sessions and he was almost completely recovered. He didn't even need the crutches to move around anymore. Doctor Takahashi asked him to come back for one more just as a precaution, though.

Everything was almost too quiet when it happened.

CRASH

"What?" Akira's face turned up where he heard the sound come from.

"What was that?" Morgana asked as well.

Akira had been avoiding going upstairs, aside from the crutches making it difficult, he didn't want to make Futaba uncomfortable. Even so, he quickly made his way up and easily spotted her room.

Hesitating for a moment, he knocked on the door.

"Hey, it's Akira, are you okay?" He called out but there was no response. "Futaba?" Again, no response.

He put his ear to the door and closed his eyes but couldn't hear anything.

"…Arsène."

"I'm on it." Arsène said. "Better safe than sorry." With that, he tipped his hat slightly as he passed through the door and floated to the center. 'I see what Morgana and Zorro meant about the room being a mess.' The Persona thought as he saw the state of the room. "Wh- Akira, get in here now!" He shouted.

Without a second thought, the teen tried to open the door but it was locked.

"Shit…" He took out a pin and used his 'third eye' to quickly pick the lock. "Come on, come on… there!" With a click the door unlocked and he quickly opened it and walked inside.

Ignoring the several trash bags around, he quickly turned his gaze to Arsène and then followed the Persona's to the orange haired girl on the ground.

"Futaba, what's wrong?" He called out as he kneeled next to her.

He didn't get any answer, she just kept mumbling something he didn't understand, holding her head like she was in pain and shaking it.

"She was already like this when I got in." Arsène said.

"Quick, call the chief." Morgana called out.

Akira didn't need to be told twice, he got out his phone and dialed the number.

"Come on, come on." As soon as he heard the call connect, he quickly spoke. "Boss, it's me, something is wrong with Futaba!"

"Wh-what do you mean?"

"I don't know! You have to come back now!"

"I'm on my way!" Sojiro finished the call.

"Futaba, Futaba, Sojiro-san is on his way, did you hear me?"

Again, there was no response.

'Damn it, what do I do…?' He didn't have to think for long.

"Futaba!"

Akira heard Sojiro call out and footsteps coming up the stairs.

He moved a bit away from Futaba to give him room and the older man dashed inside the room, kneeling beside her.

"Futaba, are you alright? What's wrong?"

Like Akira, he only got mumbles as a response.

"What happened?" He turned to the black haired teen.

"I don't know, I heard a crash so I came to check on her but I found her like this." The teen answered. "Should I call an ambulance or-?"

"Out."

The two turned to Futaba, seeing her look at the two with a horrified look.

"Out, get out." She repeated.

"But-"

"You heard her." Sojiro said with a sigh. "Let's leave, please."

"…" Although unsure, Akira did as told, not before giving his Persona a look.

"I'll keep an eye on her." Arsène nodded.

"I will as well." Zorro chimed in as the other three left, closing the door behind them.

Once they were downstairs, Sojiro let out a sigh, covering his face with one hand.

"…you know I'm going to ask, right?" Akira said softly.

"…yeah." The older man let out another sigh. "I don't suppose I can just tell you to mind your own business this time, right?"

"You can… but that will just make me worry more."

"Figures." Sojiro shook his head. "I'll tell you, just… can it wait until after closing hours?"

"Sure." The teen nodded as Sojiro left the house.

"What do you think that was?" Morgana asked.

"I have a few ideas… and none of them are pleasant." Akira said with a frown.


A few hours later, Sojiro came back and walked to the living room where Akira was waiting.

"…so, this will be a bit of a long story." The older man began as he sat down in front of him. "First things first, you mentioned you overheard that man and I talk a while ago, what did you learn?"

"Not much, mostly that you have a daughter and, this is just a guess, but he is likely related to Futaba's mother, not you."

"Well… you're right about that guess." Sojiro sighed. "Futaba is not my biological daughter."

"Oh…"

"That man is Futaba's uncle from her mother's side. He had custody of Futaba before I did… and treated her terribly." Sojiro scowled. "I'll have to tell you a bit about what happened to her mother before I get into that, though."

"She is living with you so… that narrows it down." Akira said with a sigh of his own, he had a feeling about where this conversation was going.

"Futaba's mother, Wakaba, died." He revealed. "It was a few years ago, the police ruled it a suicide."

'…interesting way of phrasing that.' Akira thought but remained quiet.

"Futaba was passed around her family after that but… her living conditions were atrocious." Sojiro scowled again. "Her uncle was the last member of her family to have custody and, as far as I know, was the worst of the bunch. He barely fed her and made her sleep on the floor like an animal. As soon as I found out, I knew I had to get her out of there." The older man sighed, his shoulders slumping. "So I went to talk to him and convinced him to give me custody. I gave him money in exchange… but now he is back and wants more or is threatening to dispute the custody at family court."

"…from what you've told me, there is no chance he will win." Akira said carefully.

"Maybe, but he is related to Futaba and it's not like I have any proof about what happened." Sojiro answered. "Above all else, I don't want to put Futaba through that… she is been through enough at the hands of that man."

"Alright… I'm guessing this is related to the… well, to what happened earlier?"

"Yeah… she's had some cases like that since coming here… maybe before too but I don't know." Sojiro looked down. "I'm not sure what triggers them, she doesn't talk to me about them. She's pretty much become a shut-in, she won't go out for almost any reason. I tried to get her to see a doctor, called one over for a house visit too but she refused to see them… so I just gave her space and hoped that she would eventually come out." He sighed again. "I don't know if that's for the best but I don't have any more ideas, I talk to her, make sure she is well fed and buy her stuff she asks for but…" He trailed off there. "In any case, while I know that you had good intentions when you went to see her earlier, it might be best if you don't go inside her room."

"I… understand." Akira wanted to argue, the thought 'there must be a better solution' repeated in his head but he had no idea what that could be.

"…anyway, it's gotten late… let's go to sleep."

The teen nodded wordlessly as Sojiro got up and walked up the stairs to his room.

"…Morgana." Akira said after Sojiro was out of earshot.

"Yeah." The not-cat replied.

"Tomorrow's supposed to be my last check-up before I'm told that I don't need more physical therapy, we're going into that Palace the second I get back from the hospital."

"Got it." He nodded.


True to his word, the moment he came back to Yongen-jaya Akira immediately walked towards the entrance of Takemi's clinic.

Morgana was already there, waiting for him.

"Everything good?"

"Completely recovered, the doctors' words." The teen answered. "Ready?"

"Always."

Without another word, the two entered the Metaverse.

"It's been a while since I was here." The teen thought as he adjusted the gloves of his attire. "Almost forgot the feeling."

"Well, you've been training with lady Lavenza so I trust your combat skills at least aren't rusty." Morgana smirked.

"Heh, guess we'll see." Akira answered as he began to stretch, Morgana doing the same shortly after. "Anything that I should know? Aside from that shadow coming back?"

"Not really, I came here once again yesterday just in case and didn't find anything strange. Isshiki Youji doesn't seem to have changed at all, probably because the chief gave him money. He doesn't have a reason to think something is wrong."

"Yeah…" Akira trailed off.

"Hey…"

"I know, don't worry. I'm really pissed off but I won't let that get in the way." He assured his companion.

"Ok then." Morgana finished his stretches. "By the way, can you give me your hand for a sec."

"Hm?" Akira raised an eyebrow but did as told.

"I've been working on this since you woke up at the hospital." The not-cat said as he took something from one of his pouches and fixed it at his left wrist.

"What is it?"

"A grappling hook." Mona answered with a smirk. "It will remain locked most of the time, you press this button to unlock it and throw it, then this one to retract it. And if it's grabbing onto something when you press it…"

Joker smirked back as he looked at their infiltration point before throwing the hook, it landed next to the window and after an experimental pull, he signaled Morgana to hop on his shoulder.

"Ready?" Mona asked.

"Ready." Akira pressed the button and the two soared towards the entrance.

.

For the most part, traveling the Palace was easy.

Even with the 'time-off' Akira still remembered the basics and took full advantage of them, not even bothering to fight most of the time and just destroying shadows before they could adopt their true form, he wasn't interested in negotiating or gaining new Personas at the moment.

Eventually, they reached the area where the stronger shadow was.

"Alright, are you ready for this?"

"…hey, Mona."

"Yeah?"

"Can you let me fight that one on my own?"

"What?!"

"Don't get me wrong, this isn't me being overconfident." Joker assured him. "I just want to test myself, if you think that I'm in trouble then jump in at any moment."

"…heh, alright. Let's see what you learned with Lady Lavenza."

Akira smirked as he flicked his wrist, a knife appearing seemingly from his sleeve and into his right hand.

"Hey! Remember me?"

"Hm? You! You dare come back?!"

"Oh, I dare." Joker answered as he prepared his stance.

With a cry of rage, the shadow dissolved into a puddle before reforming into the same skeleton with sword and shield from before.

"I'll crush you!"

"You couldn't manage that last time." Joker taunted.

With another cry, the Shadow charged forward with his shield in front.

'Let's see… last time I used Kobold to hold him in place for a moment.' Akira thought, moving his right arm back. 'Let's see if I can do it more efficiently this time.' As soon as the shadow was in his range, Akira quickly stepped forward, bringing his knife in a thrust, the air around it moving with the force of the strike and forcing the Shadow's shield back.

"You-!" The skeleton pushed forward and brought his sword down.

'Persona.' The mask on Joker's face disappeared and Kobold appeared in front of him, using his club to hit the sword on the side and deflect it to the ground.

Joker dismissed the Persona immediately after and took out his gun, shooting three bullets at the enemy's unguarded torso.

The skeleton pushed through the pain and tried to aim at his legs from where his sword was.

The Persona user jumped, moving above him and behind him while shooting three more bullets at its head and back.

'I have two more.' He thought, taking half a step back to dodge a swing from the shadow's shield and immediately moving forward again, striking repeatedly with his knife at close range. Taking another step forward when the shadow tried to move back to have range for his sword and repeating this.

"VERMIN!" In anger, the skeleton jumped up, holding his sword overhead and bringing it down on Akira.

'Don't miss the timing.' Joker took a deep breath, activating his third eye for a moment, the movements of the skeleton seemed to slow down a fraction.

He put the gun away and flicked his wrist to grab his second knife, holding them in a cross and taking the hit. The force behind it forcing him to one knee.

"Ha! F-hgn!" Before the skeleton could finish what it was going to say, a blade-like shadow pierced its back.

Arsène stood behind it, a smirk on his face and his right palm, from where the shadows originated, pressed against the skeleton's spine.

"'You're always two'." Arsène commented. "I see you remember Lavenza's words."

"She drilled those words into me with training, I better remember." Joker smirked as Arsène disappeared and reformed as the mask on his face.

Immediately after, he stopped the clash and struck with his knives at the skeleton's neck, the shadow falling and forming a puddle as it was unable to maintain its form before disappearing.

"I see the training paid off." Mona smirked as he approached him.

"It certainly did." Akira chuckled as he sheathed his weapons. "Well, we got rid of the skeleton, I guess it's time to go and check the corridor we haven't explored yet."

"Yeah. Let's be careful, I'm sure it's still as guarded as before."

.

.

"…even after training with Lavenza, I don't like our chances at just rushing forward." Akira confessed.

"We might be able to get to the end but… coming back, I'm not so sure." Morgana answered.

The two of them were whispering behind the corner that led to the one hallway they've yet to explore.

A hallway with at least twenty shadows in it.

Correction, twenty 'security guards', there is no way of knowing how many shadows would form from them.

"They're all… about our strength." Joker frowned, noticing a yellow aura around the shadows after activating his 'third eye'. "Can we make them come to us?"

"We can, but I don't recommend it, the security level will go through the roof and shadows will begin to run here. The last thing we need is to be attacked from both sides."

"Well, I'm open to suggestions."

"Heh, luckily, I prepared something for this situation." The not-cat smirked as he took something from his belt.

"A… is that a smoke bomb?"

"Yep! I made some after finishing the grappling hook."

"Will that work? Won't the Shadows notice something is strange if we use them and raise an alarm?"

"…I'm honestly not certain why but Shadows don't raise an alarm unless they can actually see you. They'll certainly try to attack and notice that the smoke is strange but won't raise an alarm."

"That… forget it, 'it just works'." Joker sighed, not bothering to think more on it. "Will we be able to see in the smoke, though?"

"You will."

"…third eye?"

"Yep." Mona nodded, taking out his slingshot. "I'll stay here to throw some smoke grenades, they'll last for a bit so you should have time to get to the other side but if something happens and you have to run back, I'll do everything I can to open a path for you."

"Let's hope it doesn't come to that." Akira took a deep breath. "How many of those smoke bombs do you have?"

"Five."

"Give me two and throw one as soon as I start running, throw a second one as far as you can right after." Mona did as told and prepared.

Taking another deep breath, Joker activated his third eye and dashed forward.

A smoke bomb was immediately thrown, obscuring the Shadows' vision.

"Hm?! What's this?!" Many of them began to look around in confusion.

'So far so good.' Joker thought, moving as quickly and silently as possible while avoiding the shadows.

Even with his third eye's vision, it was proving difficult to keep dodging around the Shadows, he had to constantly zig-zag, sometimes even jumping on the wall.

He didn't dare stop, the last thing he needs is for the smoke to clear and be surrounded on all sides.

Eventually, he saw what looked like a carved piece of wood in the same shape as the hole the skeleton was guarding.

Without thinking, he grabbed it.

And an alarm began blaring as soon as he did.

'Shit!'

Joker turned around just in time to see the smoke dissipating and all the Shadows looking at him.

"Stop him!" One yelled as they all rushed forward.

'They're taking the entire hallway, I won't be able to avoid them all.' Just as he thought that, he threw a smoke bomb in the ground to mask his movements, putting away the 'key' in his coat, and rushed forward.

'Just focus on finding the path with the least amount of resistance.' Joker observed the Shadows through the smoke, even with it blinding them, they continued to rush forward. 'There is no room… I'll have to make some.'

He summoned Arsène and the Persona hit the ground with his palm, dark tendrils moving on the ground until they skewered a line of three shadows.

'It won't be enough but it's a start- damn it!' He saw the other Shadows fall into a puddle. 'This is bad… or not!' Taking advantage of the second it took them to change, he threw the grappling hook at a point forward on the roof, he leaped and hit the button so it would pull him, then pulled to make the anchor let go.

The extra impulse was enough for him to jump over about half of the Shadows as they finished forming, using another one as a stepping stone and jumping again.

"Mona!" He called out.

Zorro immediately appeared and a gust of wind hit the shadows, putting them off-balance.

Arsène reformed as his mask and he changed to Goblin, summoning him immediately.

"Mona, hit my attack!" He ordered as his Persona threw a fireball at the hallway.

Zorro sent another gust of wind at it, making it explode.

The two Personas disappeared and their users quickly ran away towards the area where the lock was.

.

.

"That… well… I don't think… I can… complain." Joker said between breaths.

"Yeah… security level… rose a lot… but it was worth it." Mona answered.

The two standing outside the 'branch' where the Shadow skeleton was before.

After a few more minutes of catching their breath, they moved towards the hole and Joker took out the 'key'.

"Here goes nothing." The teen mumbled as he placed it inside.

As soon as he did, they could hear something moving and then a door opened in front of them.

Without a word, the two walked forward, looking at a set of stairs.

They climbed up and reached a large room with a crystal ceiling that let them see the sky.

In the middle of it, there was a strange… 'shimmer' like a mirage in the dessert.

"Alright, infiltration route secured." Mona cheered.

"So what's the next step before stealing it?" Joker asked, passing a hand through the 'shimmer'. "We clearly can't just take it."

"Desires don't have a shape, to steal it we have to make it appear."

"…are you really going to make me ask?" The teen asked with an amused grin.

"A-anyway, we have to make the Palace ruler know that their desires are something that can be stolen and to do that… we send them a calling card."

"…we're announcing that we're stealing from them?"

"It's the only way to make the Treasure appear." Mona replied. "Once they receive the calling card, that 'shimmer' will manifest into something we can steal."

"Alright, I'll take your word for it... so should we go back for now?"

"Yeah, the security level is way up thanks to the Shadows in that hallway earlier, better to be careful and go back for now."

Akira nodded, taking one last glance at the Treasure.

He had to be ready for what comes next.


And done!

Phew, it's been a while. Sorry about that.

With this, the first route is secured, Akira learned a bit more about Futaba and he is ready for his first change of heart.

Also, you may have noticed I placed 'third week of June' in the story; I won't be calling out each day one by one but, to make it easy to keep track, I'll say 'number week of month' so everyone knows when the story is taking place at the moment.

As always, I hope you enjoyed.

Until next time!