4/27

The man's smile sparkles. He beams it to the studio audience, then throws his hands in the air as the show's intro music – a flamboyant remix of a trending pop song - kicks in. "Welcome, Welcome, Welcome Back! It's another episode of 'Tokyo Girls and Country Boys!'"

Thunderous applause and screams - mostly feminine - from the audience.

"I'm your host, Tatsuya Ota!"

"Ota! Ota!" Everyone screams.

The man laughs and bows his head. "Thank you, thank you. My adoring fans. Always willing to chant my name, despite my never actually doing anything." The crowd laughs. He lets them, then holds up a single finger. Silence reigns.

"Now then, I think we should begin! You all know the rules. We will introduce three boys from the country, and three girls from Tokyo. Then you, yes you the audience, will vote. You will pair one guy with one of the girls, and those two will go on a date! And hopefully we get to see some sparks fly!"

Whispers spread amongst the crowd.

"Now, now, don't go getting excited just yet!" Ota shouts. Everyone laughs. It is, in fact, the same laugh as before.

"It's time to introduce our first guy!" He swings around in his chair and motions to one of the armchairs behind him. "Tell us who you are, Kurusu-kun!"

The spotlight refocuses. Akira Kurusu smiles out at the crowd. He nods and holds up his fingers in a 'V.' "Hello," he says, loud and clear. "My name is Akira Kurusu. I'm seventeen years old. I just moved to Tokyo from the country. I attend Shujin Academy. My ideal girlfriend would be someone who speaks her mind, is cute, and goal oriented." He stands and bows. "Please treat me well with your voting!"

The crowd laughs.

That same laugh.

Akira sits down. Ota chuckles and smiles warmly at him. "A fantastic introduction, Kurusu-kun!"

"Thank you, Ota-san!"

"But, I have to ask a question, if you don't mind."

"Of course," Akira says. "Please, ask away."

"Why are you lying to us?"

The crowd is silent.

Akira blinks. "I'm sorry, what?"

"Why are you lying to us?" Ota asks. His smile is no longer warm. It is a cheap plastic thing, glued on a dummy. "Why are you lying to us?"

Akira shakes his head. He looks out at the audience. He can't see any of their faces. They are silent, still silhouettes. "I'm not lying."

"Why are you lying to us?"

He looks back at Ota. The man's skin is too smooth. It has no pores. "What am I lying about?" He asks. His breath is coming quicker now. His heartbeat too.

Ota's head tilts to the side, farther than a human head can tilt. "Who are you, Kurusu-kun?"

"I'm Akira Kurusu. I'm seventeen years old. I just moved to Tokyo-"

"Why are you lying to us?"

"-from the country. I attend Shujin Academy. My ideal-"

"Who are you?"

"-girlfriend would be someone who speaks her mind, is cute-"

"Who are you?"

"-and goal oriented."

"Why are you lying to us?"

Akira looks out into the audience once more, but he cannot make anything out. "My name is Akira Kurusu. I'm seventeen years old. I just-"

"Who are you?"

"-moved to Tokyo from the country." He spots a cameraman. It is himself, Akira Kurusu. Only, this figure wears a sable overcoat, blood-red gloves on his hand, slick shoes. On his face - Akira's face - he wears an ivory mask.

Joker smiles at Akira. "Who are you, Akira?"

Akira wakes, and sits up in bed. His clothes are soaked in sweat.

Morgana lays curled alongside him, undisturbed.

Outside, the sun begins to rise.

#

"This is killin' me," Ryuji groans. "If the guy's had a change of heart, that's great. But the least he could do is tell us if we're still expelled or not!"

The four lounge on the school's rooftop. When the discarded lawn chairs are stood up and brought together, it's a surprisingly nice spot.

Ann flicks through her phone. "Everyone's talking about his leave of absence, but no one thinks it's anything serious." She sticks out her tongue. "Bleh. A few are actually worried about him."

Morgana lays on his back, purring in the sunlight. "Don't get down, guys. We stole Kamoshida's treasure. His Palace collapsed. He had a change of heart, I'm sure of it. We just have to wait."

"That's the hard part," Akira says, hand on his chin. "I'm with Ryuji. I want to know if I'm getting kicked out of school. Again."

Morgana and Ann glance at each other. "Hey, Akira?" Ann asks. "I've been meaning to ask about that."

"About what?"

"Like, the whole story with you. I mean, I saw your record and stuff online, but that's obviously not the whole story."

Akira blinks. "I didn't tell you guys?"

Morgana shakes his head. "I don't know about it either."

Ryuji beams. "He told me."

"No one asked you," Ann says, with a pout on her face. She looks back at Akira. "If it's okay with you, would you mind telling us?"

Akira shrugs. "Sure, I don't mind."

He tells his story, and everyone makes the same protestations. Even Ryuji, who has heard all this before, gets mad all over again. Ann and Morgana shake their heads, and then a voice says, "Whoa. So that's what happened."

Everyone jumps. "Who's there?" Ann shouts, dropping into a poor approximation of a fighting stance.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Open-palmed hands poke out from behind the roof's entrance. Mishima steps out from behind, his eyes on the ground, face pale. "I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to eavesdrop."

"Geez, dude!" Ryuji shouts. "Are you a freakin' ninja? How long have you been there?"

Mishima lowers his hands and nods towards the door. "I came up a little while ago. I was about to announce myself, but then Kurusu started talking and I would've felt bad about interrupting." He blinks and stares at Morgana. "Is that a cat?"

"Don't worry," Morgana says. "He can't understand me. He hasn't been to the Metaverse."

"He's Akira's," Ryuji says.

"What're you doing here?" Ann asks.

"Um," Mishima says. "I just, well, the thing is..." He gulps, stiffens and bows. "I'm very sorry!"

The four look at each other. "Who're you bowing to?" Akira asks.

"All of you. I'm very, very sorry! For everything." He lifts his head and looks at Ann. "I'm sorry, Takamaki. I knew what Kamoshida was doing. I knew how bad he was, and I never did anything about it. And because I kept my mouth shut, all that horrible stuff happened to Suzui." He looks at Akira. "And I'm sorry I put your stuff online. Kamoshida made me do it, but if I was braver, I wouldn't have. Then, no one would know about you and you wouldn't have to listen to everyone bad mouth you all the time." He looks at Ryuji. "And I'm sorry to you too, Sakamoto. If I'd come forward when you'd first pressured me, then maybe Suzui wouldn't have jumped. Maybe she'd be fine now." He lowers his head, and keeps his body stiff and bent.

Ann is the first to speak. "It's okay," she says, with a sigh. "I mean, I knew what he was like too. And I didn't do anything either."

Ryuji clears his throat. "Yeah. I've known what he was like since last year. But it's not like I stopped him or anything. If I'd done something back then, something else, then maybe we wouldn't be here."

Akira nods. "You're a victim too. Don't forget that."

"But still," Mishima says. "There must've been something I could've done. But I never did. I'm sorry."

Ryuji smiles. "C'mon dude, stop bowing. People keep doing that to me lately and it's making me uncomfortable."

Mishima straightens, and his eyes are red-rimmed as if he's about to cry, but no tears fall. "I just wanted you all to know."

"Hey," Ann says. "How'd you know we were up here anyway?"

Mishima's face turns red. "Well, I've been building up the courage to say this all day. So when school ended, I sort of followed you guys up here. I'd been standing outside that door for a while." He sighs. "Not like my apology means anything. We're still going to get expelled for all this."

Ryuji chuckles. "I wouldn't worry too much about it. Certain 'parties' have dealt with Kamoshida."

"Shut up, you idiot!" Morgana yowls. Ann and Akira turn their glares on him.

"What?" He asks.

Despite their solitude, Mishima's next words are whispered. "Are you talking about the Phantom Thieves of Hearts?"

Ann belts out a laugh. "Like, the what?"

Mishima frowns. "Oh, come on. You obviously know what I mean. There was that calling card yesterday and everything. I thought it was just a prank. Is that what you're talking about, Sakamoto?"

Ryuji shrugs. "Maybe." Morgana juts out a paw and slashes him across the back of his hand. "Ow! What the hell, Mona?"

"Stop blabbing," Morgana shouts.

"I didn't blab!" He blinks and looks up at Mishima, who watches him with furrowed brows. "I mean, uh, bad cat."

Akira sighs and stands. "Yuuki," he says. Mishima's eyes widen at the sound of his name. He steps up to him and rests a hand on his shoulder. "I forgive you. For posting my information online."

"Y-you do?"

Akira nods and smiles. "Kamoshida forced you to do it. I know you'd have never done it otherwise. As for the expulsion?" He lowers his hand and shrugs. "At least if we get kicked out, we all get kicked out together. Plenty of free time to hang out. I've been dying to check out some Tokyo arcades."

Mishima smiles. "I could show you those."

Ryuji and Ann glance at each other. Both shrug.

"Cool," Akira says. "So don't worry, alright? Everything will be fine, one way or another."

"O-okay," Mishima says, grinning. "I'll, uh, leave you guys alone now. Thank you for forgiving me!" He bows once more, turns and heads out the door.

Akira frowns and sits back down.

"You really gonna hang out with Mishima?" Ryuji asks.

Akira shrugs. "I don't know. I'm still pretty pissed. I mean, he posted all my stuff online."

Ann blinks. "You just said you forgave him."

"Well, he wasn't going to leave otherwise. And we didn't want him to keep asking about the whole Phantom Thieves business."

"Damn dude," Ryuji says. He chuckles, but there's an uneasy edge to it. "That's kinda cold."

Akira remembers his dream.

Who are you?

He shrugs.

Ann's phone vibrates. She takes it out and purses her lips. "Oh."

"What's up?" Ryuji asks.

"There's a shoot in town, and one of the other girls just dropped out last minute. They want to know if I can come by and fill in for her."

Morgana's jaw drops. "You're a model, Lady Ann?"

She nods and grins. "Mmhmm. I should get going."

"This, uh, this 'shoot' as you call it," Morgana says. "It's probably pretty far away, right?"

She shakes her head. "No. Actually, it's only a few blocks away. I won't even have to take the subway to get there."

"I see," Morgana says.

"Later guys, text me if anything comes up."

"See ya," Ryuji says.

"Bye," Akira says.

Ann opens the door and disappears through it. Morgana stares at the door for a few moments. "I'm gonna go scope out the neighborhood for a while." He turns back to Akira. "I'll meet up with you later." Then he darts away.

"Weird," Ryuji says, and then his face brightens. "Oh, I forgot to tell you, I started putting together that workout plan I was telling you about."

"Oh yeah?"

Ryuji stands, fists clenched. "No time like the present, right? Come on, let's get started!"

"Right now?" Akira asks. He hadn't planned on getting any exercise in today.

Ryuji nods. "I can't sit around waiting, dude. I gotta move! You're with me, right?"

Akira smiles and stands. "Okay. Let's do it."

#

The two boys make several circuits around the school, before they collapse in a heap against the outside wall of the gym. "Man," Ryuji groans. "I'm really outta shape."

Akira takes a few deep breaths. "It's crazy, how much fitter we are in the Metaverse."

"I know, right? That's the reason I want to do this. So we can be even tougher over there." He frowns. "But I guess that's kind of pointless now."

"What'd you mean?"

Ryuji shrugs. "If Kamoshida's heart changed, is there a point to going back there? Actually, his Palace collapsed, so can we even go back?"

Akira pulls out his phone. "That app is still here."

Ryuji nods. "Yeah, it's on mine too. I haven't tried it out since yesterday though. Too nervous." He chuckles. Then, his face grows somber. "I have to level with you about something, dude."

Akira, his breath finally returning to normal, says, "What's up?"

"Remember yesterday, when we were running out of the Palace, and I fell?"

Akira nods. It had been a quick thing, just a short trip. Ryuji might've been on the ground for no more than a second or two. Then he had pushed himself back up and kept going.

"Well, I didn't really trip. It was my leg. The one Kamoshida broke. Ever since we started going to the Palace, it's been acting up."

"Like, hurting?" Akira asks. Ryuji nods. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"I didn't want people to worry about me. I didn't want to be a burden. Ninety-nine percent of the time, I was fine. Even when it hurt, I could stomach it, ya know? But when we were full on sprinting out of there? It just gave out for a second. I nearly pissed myself." He pauses. "You know how, sometimes, you have a really big thought, all at once, a lot faster than you'd be able to speak it?"

"I think so," Akira says, then nods. "No, I know what you mean. Like, when you look at someone and you immediately know something about them."

"Yeah, kinda. Well, when I fell, I remember thinking, 'This is it. Kamoshida's gonna get me after all.'"

Akira leans forward, and folds his hands together. "To be honest, when you fell, I was scared too."

"For real?"

Akira nods. "I don't really remember what I thought, but I don't think I could think anything at that point. I just really didn't want to die, and I didn't want any of you guys to die either."

Ryuji smirks. "Then I guess it's a good thing I didn't."

Akira smiles, but he doesn't feel anything behind it.

"So, that's another reason why I wanted to do this today." Ryuji reaches down and starts to massage his leg. "I want to get stronger. I want to be able to run again without having to worry about my leg giving out, like yesterday." He frowns and averts his eyes. "So, if it's cool with you, could you help me with that? Training is easier when you've got someone to do it with."

Akira grins. "Of course."

#

"So," Akira asks as they near LeBlanc. "How was Ann's shoot?"

Morgana squirms from inside the bag. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Right."

He speaks, but his mind is elsewhere. He's barely had any time to process the Palace's collapse. Or his dream. He can still see himself, as Joker, smirking over at him from behind the camera. Who are you?

And what did the collapse of Kamoshida's Palace mean? Were they done with the Metaverse now? Had the man really changed?

He opens the door to LeBlanc and steps inside. It is early enough that the cafe is still open, but there are no present customers.

"Something wrong?" Sojiro asks, from behind the counter.

Akira looks over at him. "Huh?"

"Your face is all scrunched up. Is it a girl?"

"Oh. No, it's not."

Sojiro smiles. "Uh-huh. It's a girl."

Akira frowns. "I'm serious. It's not a girl."

"If something is making you look that anxious, and it's not a girl, you've got a sad life, kid." He sighs and rubs the back of his neck. "Go and put Prince upstairs. I'll give you your first real lesson. Like I said, ladies love a man who can make coffee."

Guess I'm doing this now. Akira nods. As he walks past Sojiro, he asks, "What if someone doesn't like coffee?"

"Everyone likes coffee, some people just don't know it yet."

When Akira returns from upstairs, a woman sits at the bar. She is in her mid-thirties, wears a drab, brown suit and worn out loafers. Despite this, her makeup is expertly applied. Her black hair is done up in a ponytail with side fringe. She beams at Sojiro. The man's return smile is less intense, but smooth. His eyes are half-lidded.

"...a fan myself, of course," he says, an easy lilt to his voice.

The woman laughs. "Soji-chan, you're so funny!"

Akira blinks. Soji-chan? What is happening right now?

The woman turns to Akira. "Oh, this must be your new apprentice."

Sojiro chuckles. "Apprentice may be overstating it a bit. He lives upstairs. Helps me out from time to time, when he's not getting into trouble at school."

She frowns. "Are you making trouble for Soji-chan?" She asks Akira.

"N-no," Akira replies, as he steps behind the bar.

Sojiro shakes his head. "I'm just teasing him, Handa-san."

The woman pouts. "How many times do I have to tell you to call me Yuriko?"

The man regards her over the tops of his glasses. "Maybe just once more." He winks.

The woman reddens, giggles, and takes a sip of her coffee. "You're so mean."

"If that's true, why do you keep coming back?"

The tint in her cheek intensifies. She laughs. "Stop teasing me!"

Akira stands and watches this exchange. Seriously, what is happening right now?

Sojiro turns to him and says, "Alright, time for a lesson. Grab an apron from the kitchen and put it on. I'm going to show you the basics today."

"Oooh," the woman whispers. "A lesson from the great Sakura-san. I'm jealous."

Sojiro walks him up and down the bar. He instructs him on the multiple instruments utilized in brewing coffee. Akira, despite himself, is impressed. He'd no idea there were so many steps involved.

"Oh sure," Sojiro says, when Akira brings this up. "You could just get instant coffee. Buy some of those 'k' things they've got over in the States. But where's the majesty in that?"

"Majesty?" Akira asks.

Sojiro reaches into one of the bean carriers and withdraws a handful of the small brown pellets. "These beans were planted and harvested by men and women beneath a burning sun. They were inspected, packaged and shipped halfway across the world to specific vendors. These vendors rise in the early AM to make it to the markets where they sell them. People like me buy them, bring them here, and painstakingly squeeze the liquid bliss from them. We owe it to those vendors, to those harvesters, and to ourselves to treat these beans with the respect they deserve. With the majesty they've earned. Coffee that takes ten seconds to brew diminishes all that."

Akira blinks. "Oh."

The woman at the bar swoons. "Wow."

Sojiro deposits the beans back into the carrier. "That's why I'm so concerned with doing things the proper way. We owe it to those who came before."

The woman takes another sip of her coffee and whispers, "I never knew supply chains could be so romantic."

"Do you understand now?" Sojiro asks Akira.

"I think so. I mean, I've never thought of coffee like that before." He smiles. "It's pretty cool."

Sojiro rolls his eyes. "Don't get all sentimental on me."

The woman stands. "Soji-chan, I've got to get going. Thank you so much for the coffee!"

Sojiro slips past Akira and makes his way down the bar towards her. "Please come again, Handa-san." He smiles that same, cool smirk.

She averts her eyes. "One of these days, Soji-chan, you're going to call me Yuriko. Count on it." She straightens, picks up her purse, and walks out the door.

"Okay," Akira says, once she's gone. "I have to know. What was up with that?"

Sojiro picks the money up off the table. "Customer service."

##
A/N: No confession today, just some creepy dreams and coffee dads. As always, thank you for reading Crimson, and thank you to everyone that has recommended it to others, commented, left a Kudo, or subscribed to it. You people are saints in a world of madmen.

Now, I want to level with you guys about something. Next week, the week of the 21st, is the week of my finals. The chapters for this week are ready to be posted, but because I've got to buckle down and study, I don't know how much writing I'll be able to do. As such, I'm considering reducing next week's posts from three, down to two. Nothing crazy, but I think it'll help me maintain my three week buffer, so that I don't have to rush through any chapters. Anyway, it'll depend on how the studying goes. If it goes smoothly, and I can still find time to write, then there's no problem. If not, then I'll either post on Monday and Friday of next week, or Tuesday and Thursday, to change things up.

And there's another thing I should let you guys know about. I'm getting married in mid-September. Right afterwards, we'll be going on our honeymoon. So for two weeks, I won't be doing any writing, and I probably won't have the best internet connection. I'll see if there's a way around it, but most likely, there won't be any updates for the weeks of September 18th and September 25th. I'd like to, if I can, find a way to reduce that to just one week without posts, but I can't make any guarantees.

I wanted to give you all a heads up, so you don't think I vanished or anything. I'm having an absolute blast writing Crimson, and I've really enjoyed talking with a lot of you. I have no intention of stopping.

Anyway, that's all I've got to say. Have a good Monday, and I'll see you on Wednesday!