The thieves were all having a reunion party extravaganza, where this time around, it truly felt like a reunion of more than just friends... It felt more akin to a family reunion.
Ryuji has officially forgiven the team and deeply apologized for his harsh reaction towards them, as they swore to make amends with him, as they gravely underestimated his worth as a team member... let alone how much he truly meant to them all as a friend.
Life couldn't possibly be any more fulfilling with the blonde thug. His entire home has been renovated and rebuilt to "heal the scars of the past", his mom has experienced a full-on recovery and is back to full health, stronger than ever and back to keeping her son in line to the best of her ability and on top of everything... Ryuji and Makoto have officially become a couple. They may have not broken the news to their team yet, but they decided to save it up for some other time and instead focus on just wanting to have a good time.
At this very moment, Ryuji and Makoto have taken their private business outside of LeBlanc. They were simply looking for a spot to passionately make out in, as they couldn't hide it any longer: They really do possess the hots for each other and as soon as they found a corner for them to hide behind, they vigorously began wrestling with their tongues, playfully fighting for dominance over one and the other and it got so intense, the two very nearly reached a point, where the blonde troublemaker might have stripped Makoto off of her thin summer dress, until she gently stopped by gripping his wrists and chuckling in the most adorable way imaginable...
Makoto: "Come on, it's far too early for that. Better save this up for later. I promise, it will pay off."
He began rattling and smirking in a dirty way, feeling so alive and challenged hearing this proposal.
Ryuji: "Hey now, make me wait, aren't we? You DO realize, I can start teasing you at any given moment. Never underestimate someone like me, I am dumb, but not an idiot. I know how to push your buttons correctly, Mrs. "Killer Queen"."
Makoto: "Oh, you..."
She began cutely pouting, while blushing shyly, losing her dominance very quickly as she realizes: Ryuji onlys needs the proper will and once he achieves this, she wants to clear the stage for him.
Makoto: "You're so mean, you know that? It's not fair... it's always you who makes me lose my focus..."
But in that one instance, the atmosphere suddenly became unusually tense... as Makoto expressed an odd request to the thug.
Makoto: "Ryuji, umm... I feel like going somewhere and I want you to join me. I'll be leading the way."
Ryuji: "Well, fine by me, but... hehe, it won't take too long, I'd hate to let the others wait."
Makoto: "It's important though... on a personal level, at least. Follow me."
Ryuji: "Sure, my queen, be the torch to guide our way."
Makoto: "Shut it, you..."
Later...
Makoto and Ryuji had climbed onto her motorcycle and began racing at high speeds to the outskirts of Shibuya...
...right to the cliffside that Ryuji had previously shown off to Mako. And once he realized where they were heading, his eyes shot up wide open.
Ryuji: "Hold on, are we heading to-"
Makoto: "..."
She was silent, but to confirm Ryuji's suspicion, she firmly nodded. The blonde thug was confused.
Ryuji: "But why...? Is there any specific reason you are trying to hide from me...? ...Do you intend on killing me by pushing me off the cliff?"
She elbowed him for saying that with a moronic grin of his.
Ryuji: "Ow. C'mon, I was only joking! And don't do that, I nearly fell off!"
Makoto: "Never make morbid jokes at my expense, OK? I mean it. Those never sit right with me. ...Especially if it involves you..."
Ryuji: "...You're right. Sorry about that."
Then, they stopped the bike right in a clearing close to the cliff, before making their way for the cliffside... with the two now standing on the cliff, looking up at the beautiful moon, which shone very brightly that night...
However, this didn't exactly answer Ryuji's question about why they would end up spending the night here, of all places. Of course, that goes without saying, that he genuinely feels touched at this gesture alone, that she would remember this place ...but he wanted to know: What is the point of coming here?
Ryuji: "Makoto... What's going on? You won't see me complaining exactly, but... could you please explain yourself, on what we are doing here?"
Throughout their journey here, Makoto hasn't exactly been talkative, despite their previous banter. And once Ryuji realized that Mako's eyes had been hidden under her bangs, he grew increasingly concerned. Even more so, once she slowly approached him and gently began pressing her open palms against his chest, before letting her gaze meet his and he saw how... depressed she really looked.
Makoto: "...I don't like being the one to rub salt into the wounds, but... this place right here, is where I lost my Persona abilities, before you had to eventually face me in the Palace of my own making. Ever since I realized that I was deeply in love with you, while you were stuck in a comatose state... let's just say, I had a bit of a self-reflective phase."
Ryuji: "Say what?"
Makoto: "Since you were tied to the hospital bed, I went ballistic on the team, scolding them HEAVILY for lying to me about having "apologized" to you. However, there was one detail that I completely neglected to pick up upon. I called out the team for being a bunch of two-faced liars... and yet, it felt so wrong criticizing them for it, as again, I banished one fear entirely from my consciousness, since the day you and I met for the first time, two years prior. The short of it, I began feeling like a Class S, major Code Red level of a hypocrite."
Ryuji: "What are you implying...?"
But having grown more mature overtime and having grown to understand Makoto's position more than anything, her being the only one to even know of his darkest corners no less... he himself also began piecing it together, especially remembering what Makoto's shadow told him, before their scuffle.
FLASHBACK
S. Makoto: "You are one of a kind, Ryuji. You really are a prodigy in so many ways... it's just too bad that you ended up relying on the completely wrong crowd of people to try and bring out your full potential."
Ryuji: "A prodigy...?"
S. Makoto: "You could have achieved things, far beyond just good grades. You could have been a world class track runner. You could have easily been the most influential and persuasive personality, that shall guide people, who have lost their way, back on the right track in life. You could have even been... an upstanding spokesman for the socially weak. A contributing member to society... but the sad reality is: Our surroundings ended up shaping us to be "naturally" led astray from achieving our full potential. ...and I am to blame as well."
FLASHBACK ENDS
Ryuji thought to himself:
Ryuji: "I don't get this... "You are a prodigy", "You were led astray from reaching your full potential", "You could have achieved things, far beyond good grades" and "I am to blame as well"... what was she trying to-"
Then it hit him, as if being struck by lightning. He connected the dots, as he even looked back on what inscriptions there were in Makoto's Palace.
FLASHBACK
He remembered clay statues, shaped as though they were 6 Roman soldiers ganging up on someone shaped to be a common slave from a foreign country, that just so happened to look like him with the headshape and hair...
...including a gladiator shield, on which we could see a mythical creature, shaped like Minotaur and what just so happened to look almost exactly like Kamoshida's face being pasted on the creature's mug, biting off the leg of a slave that looked just like Ryuji...
...and a crying well statue, shaped like Makoto, that looked like she was looking upwards towards the ceiling, as though she was begging for mercy.
FLASHBACK ENDS
And the moment Makoto began explaining... it all fell into place.
Makoto: "Once again, I couldn't shake this feeling of me being the bigger antagonist in this story, so I conducted my own research to verify my fears."
Her heart sank, as she spoke in a breaking tone:
Makoto: "And wouldn't you know... I was proven correct. I looked for the police report that was supposed to be filed against Suguru Kamoshida and among the victims was your name written down upon it. But this isn't what broke me... when I took a closer look at the date in which this case was to be filed, before it got dropped entirely... it just so happened to be the same date, on which you and I crossed paths for the first time, right before the next day, when I found out, Kamoshida had caused that fatal injury to your right leg, as evidenced by the date of an internal school newspaper..."
Once Ryuji realized what was going on, he felt his own heart sinking. It all made perfect sense now... Makoto didn't just lose her Persona, because of her loss in conviction alone. The loss of him and the tidal wave of guilt that had rained down upon her about having been unable to keep Ryuji safe from harm, since the very beginning, making her a complete discredit to the profession of being a student council president, had all come down to plague her conscience in the worst way imaginable.
Ryuji: "Oh no... so it was true, wasn't it...? All this time, you have been carrying this heavy load on your back... all by yourself... because you felt as though, all of what happened to me, wouldn't have happened, had you cared earlier... Makoto..."
And the moment he heard a really ugly sounding sob escaping from Makoto's lips, he became unable to hold back tears of his own, especially having to listen to this heart-shattering rant from his girlfriend... and the more it went on, even he began sobbing...
Makoto: "The moment I realized... I could have been the one to save you from all this impending hardship... and yet me having chosen an accursed letter of recommendation... over the life of another fellow human being, like myself... is telling, on how little I really cared about you, my position as a student council, the student body and everyone else around me...! It wasn't Kamoshida to ruin your life... the responsibility lies solely on MY shoulders...! I could have saved you...! But because I chose not to, in a moment when you direly needed someone like me... look at yourself...! You are the human accumulation, of how badly I failed both you and the rest of the team...!"
She began sobbing even louder, as she angrily stomped the ground and began gritting both her teeth and her knuckles, feeling so frustrated with herself at her own incompetence.
Makoto: "I understand everything now, Ryuji...! I am nothing short of an embarrassment in every way there is! And when you came to ask for my help to get through the exams, I was both shocked and disgusted at myself for not taking a hint earlier...! I took you in as a trainee, just so that all these excuses of me not being an unempathic piece of trash, would become possible! All I did was welcoming you inside, just so I, human waste like myself, can selfishly go around and show to everyone, "Look at me! I am not a piece of work! Observe!"! And yet despite all this, you stuck around... you never left...! I couldn't comprehend why and I still can't...! You ended up choosing me... why...?! Everything so far, should have been written off as manipulative, vindictive gaslighting on my part...! I kept you around, just so I can even HOPE in atoning for my crimes, not against the law... but humanity itself, that is you...! You stood by my side... you never questioned it for a second... WHY AREN'T YOU SAYING ANYTHING?! WHY DON'T YOU HATE OR JUDGE ME?! I caused you all this trouble, so why are you not hating me?! It wasn't enough, that I allowed the team to have their way with you and I did nothing to help and yet for some reason, you won't indulge in judgment on me?!"
By this point, Ryuji didn't care any longer. As his face was soaked in salty tears, and he sobbing this whole time the same way his girlfriend did, he tackled her to the ground and he began sobbing silently into the palm of her neck...
Ryuji: "Enough...! Just enough, man...! Enough with the guilt-tripping tour...! I never once judged you for all the misfortune that befell me... honestly, back then, I had accepted my fate... I ate it up, the way it was, nothing I could do about it... don't you see?! What happened, happened! So what?! Should this make me love you less than before?! Hell no! To hell with this shit! You are not to blame, Makoto... and do not make me repeat myself... having seen what your shadow withheld for info and how it showed to me, how badly you were hurting... just watching you carry all this burden by yourself... it hurts, you know! Worse than any flesh wound! Worse than my damned leg! What proof do you need, officer? To show to you, how badly I still intend... on spending the rest of my days with you? And ONLY you...?! If you want me to stay, I'll gladly do it! You gave me a reason! You gave me a second chance! You gave me everything, nothing more I can possibly ask for! I love you, damn it! And I want to stay with you...! No amount of self-hate on your part is going to change that!"
Makoto: "Ryuji..."
Both just ignored everything else around them and just began immediately engaging in a very frantic and loving, if not also really salty-tasting, kiss, with each loving body motion between the two, committed towards the other, being filled with nothing but raw and unfiltered love and passion, there was just no end to it and the way they were, they were just begging for time to just stop moving altogether in that very moment.
Then the two broke apart to catch their breath for a moment, with Ryuji looking quite committed towards her, gently cupping her face with both hands, which she welcomed by gently feeling both of his wrists with her hands snaking around them.
Ryuji: "I am not joking. Even if this sounds weird saying it now, I have never felt so sure in my life... I really do want to spend the rest of my days with you, Makoto... nobody else comes to mind. We are both super flawed... but who cares? At least, we won't be suffering all by ourselves now..."
Makoto: "I swear..."
She then snaked her arms around his neck, looking at him with the most adorable smile and blush she can muster, before tenderly telling him:
Makoto: "...you really do remain a ruling king, at giving me, the queen, the gray hairs... but since I was able to withstand all of your bullshit until now, the rest will be a cakewalk for me, now won't it?"
Ryuji: "Hehe."
Both began feeling a tight bond between themselves... their love has become definitive for each other...
Priestess & Chariot Arcana! Level up! Level 10 MAX.!
Ryuji has decided to rest on Makoto's chest, as she gently began playing with his hair, wanting him to savor this, which is the same with her, as he snakes his arms in return around her body from below...
Ryuji: "By the way, uh, shouldn't we head back...? I really would hate to keep everyone else waiting, y'know..."
Makoto: "Oh, that's right. Yeah, we should. This is your welcome party, after all. But..."
She then playfully began enveloping her legs around his lower hip region, as she also wrapped her arms around his neck, as she began rubbing her body, which is only covered by a thinly layered, summer dress, against his, while whispering in his ear:
Makoto: "...as soon as this is all over... I feel like studying... different things with you... things that neither of us ever got the chance to experience for ourselves."
The blonde thug comically had his eyes shot wide open, with his irises getting heart-shaped and him then playfully returning the favor, by rubbing his crotch region against her lower abdomen, causing her to shiver with excitement and almost instinctively gently bite Ryuji in ear to preserve her dominance, causing him to laugh out loud.
Ryuji: "You're so cruel, keeping a simple man like myself, waiting."
Makoto: "The duty comes first, then the fun."
Ryuji: "Words to live by, except that..."
He then sensually began removing one of the shoulder straps of Makoto's dress, as he preys upon the delicate and silky smooth skin of his girl's now exposed shoulder, nibbling on it like a ferocious beast. Which was only causing her to both moan, but also giggle out loud.
Ryuji: "...why do we always have to be so uptight? Isn't life more fun, when you are allowed to break some rules every now and then, hm?"
Makoto: "Stop it, you...! This is far too early, I am not ready yet!"
Ryuji: "Oh really? Your body speaks a different language though..."
Makoto: "...OK, fine, what the hell...? I am sure the others won't mind."
Ryuji: "Oh yeah, because tonight..."
He lowers his head and goes for the area between Makoto's legs...
Ryuji: "...me being the pirate, I'll be stealing your heart and some booty and I mean, the GOOD kind. Because, fun fact, whenever we walked up the stairs and I just so happened to be behind you, whenever my gaze fell upon your ass, I constantly fought the urge to not spank it REAL GOOD."
She sighed, as she giggled out loud, feeling both weirded out, but also amused at this sudden confession of preferences.
Makoto: "What will I ever do without you...?
THE END
