A/N:
Hey everyone! It's me, Cardinal Kiril again! Sorry for the long wait, this one was kind of a bitch to write. I hope you guys end up liking it!
Quick shout out and thanks to all the people who like/read/follow/reviewed my story thus far! It really means a lot to me that so many of you are enjoying the humor and drama that I set forth.
Without further ado, let's get back to The Gauntlet!
"…Sound good?"
Everybody nodded.
"Great. Let's go."
Makoto watched Akira and the rest of the boys walk down one of the diverging tunnels of Mementos. Within a few seconds, their forms were entirely swallowed up by the dense fog and oppressive shadow of the Metaverse.
Makoto was on the verge of screaming. Going to Mementos and beating the shit out of shadows was the one thing she was actually looking forward to this entire day, and now she couldn't even do that.
She took a deep breath. Well, at least I get to spend a good chunk of my time with my friends. Her present life was so drastically different from how it was previously that she could hardly believe she was even the same person. Was it really only a few months ago when she was struggling to even have normal conversations with people without intimidating them, let alone make any friends? Everybody viewed her as the teacher's pet busybody; any attempts at interaction were often met with suspicion or general disinterest. Her fellow student council members were… fine, but they rarely had a reason to meet outside of school. The only thing they all shared in common was their studiousness. Other than that, they had no shared interests, and striking up conversations with any of them for extended periods of time could be grueling.
But now, everything was different. I have FRIENDS, Makoto often thought to herself. Fucking FRIENDS! I have people who I love, and they love me back! Despite having to risk her life on a nearly daily basis, the Metaverse was the best thing that ever happened to the girl. The bonds she had formed were powerful, and she felt herself growing out of her old shell with each passing day.
What really boggled her mind was how those bonds weren't just with her girlfriends, but with boys too. Makoto had always felt more comfortable in the presence of women than with men, especially when puberty started and many of the boys she spent most of her childhood with transformed into horny douchebags right before her eyes. Upon joining the Phantom Thieves, she believed that most of her time would be spent with Ann, and she would only get to know the boys through her. But before she could even realize what happened, Makoto found herself hanging out with Sakamoto (Sakamoto of all people!) alone, all by herself, having a great time watching him struggle with a videogame at the arcade and getting a beef bowl afterwards. There was something so sincere, so simple and admirable about Ryuji's doofishness. He never felt the need to filter his feelings or hide what he truly felt, unlike Makoto, who still had a hard time asserting herself.
Shortly after that, Kitagawa noticed her studying by herself at LeBlanc and practically begged her to let him paint her, mentioning something about how her natural expression and posture, as well as the café's warm glow, allowed her to "radiate the image of a true scholar," as he put it. Thanks to her studies and generally curious nature, Makoto knew a thing or two about art history and theory, which allowed her and Yusuke to find common ground and spend hours picking each other's brains, talking about their favorite artists and paintings, or Makoto showing him some screenshots from her favorite movies on her phone, detailing their cinematographic brilliance.
Out of the four boys, however, the strongest bond Makoto had was with Morgana. One day, Morgana sulked up to her and ask if he could stay the night at her and Sae's apartment, giving a succinct "'cuz Akira's a fucking asshole" as his explanation. She snuck the cat into her room (which proved to be very easy, since Sae often worked overtime) and spent the night chatting with him while doing her homework or cooking. Their conversation began with basic things: school, the Metaverse, their friends, weird shit that Morgana found while dumpster diving. But as the night wore on, the cat's topics of interest became more personal, his answers more sincere, his willingness to open up to the girl increasing. Talking to Morgana was such a strange experience: Makoto would never have guessed that a somewhat arrogant, talking cat could be so sensitive and vulnerable. It was as if being alone with a girl flipped some kind of switch inside of him. Morgana stopped his confident façade and spilled out his insecurities. His fear of never becoming human, his desire to be loved by somebody, his constant, overwhelming need to justify his membership in the Phantom Thieves.
But those insecurities were nothing compared to the mental demon that kept gnawing away at Morgana's psyche, which was his crippling, deep-seated sense of loneliness. There was nobody in the world who was like him, nobody he could relate to or share his burdens with. All of his friends were human: they had their own problems to deal with, but at least they knew who and what they were, and had fellow humans around them at all times who were going through similar problems in their lives. But where could Morgana find another human-turned-cat? Or even a cat that he could have a basic conversation with, for that matter? He tried his absolute best to keep a straight face, to stop his voice from hitching as he kept talking. He turned his head, trying to hide his watering eyes from his friend, silently berating himself for showing such weakness to a girl. In doing so, however, he inadvertently caught sight of himself in Makoto's mirror. He stared at his form, and his blue, alien, feline eyes stared right back at him. It was then that Morgana completely broke down.
He shivered and cried, unable to stop the tears from coming out. At that moment, Makoto realized how much intimacy males needed in their lives, but how scared they were of showing it to their closest friends, afraid of being labeled unmanly or weak. She could tell that these thoughts were building inside of him for a very long time, but he never vocalized them until that day. The worst part was that he was right: no matter how hard they tried, Morgana's fellow Phantom Thieves could never truly understand what he experienced on a daily basis, could never truly connect with him on such a deep, fundamental level. The realization brought a tear to the girl's eye. She set down her pencil, walked over to the weeping cat, and gently squeezed him against her body, not caring if his cat-snot and tears got on her school uniform. She knew that she couldn't fix his problems. But the least she could do was help him through them, reassuring him with her presence.
After that night, Morgana and Makoto decided that allowing the cat to stay the night on a more regular basis would be a good idea. Akira didn't seem to mind, anyway.
Akira…
Did Akira ever feel like that? He had to, there was a tremendous amount of pressure on him at all times, and those false rumors everybody kept spouting at school must have left their mark after a while. But if the leader had a vulnerable side, he certainly didn't show it, generally being calm and collected, even when times got desperate.
Thinking about Akira just made her frustrated. Why couldn't she connect with him? Why was she on such good terms with everybody on the team, but not him? It wasn't like she didn't try to reach out to him, but her attempts were often met with neutral, unenthusiastic responses from the boy. Hell, he just avoided my question and ran to the bathroom when I asked him if he wanted to go see that movie with me, she thought. I owe so much to that guy. Why is it so hard for me to understand him? Why does it always feel like there's such a huge barrier between us?
She quickly shook her head and dispelled those thoughts, focusing at the task at hand. "Alright, girls. You heard Joker. Let's quickly get through this tunnel and see if we can find any treasure."
Ann and Futaba nodded in affirmation. Makoto began to walk into the tunnel, before she noticed Haru staring off into the tunnel where the boys disappeared into. She wasn't looking at anything in particular, her gaze simply holding still on that dark area. She didn't reply to Makoto's previous order, either, clearly lost in thought.
Upon moving closer to her, Makoto noticed something else. Her friend was crimson, and had a goofy, cartoony grin that spread from ear to ear.
"Um… Haru?"
"Hmmmmmmmm~?" Haru turned her head to face Makoto, but it was clear that she was still in her own little world, looking through Makoto rather than at her.
"Did you hear what I said?"
"Uh-huh."
"What did I say?"
"I dunno."
Holy shit.
"Haru, we need to start exploring, okay?"
"'Kay." Haru turned her head back to the tunnel, and let out a long, deep sigh, pressing her clasped-together hands against her cheek. "God, he is so hot."
Makoto's head reeled back slightly. "Woah! What?"
Haru's eyes suddenly widened. She gasped so quickly she nearly choked on her own breath. "N-Nothing! I didn't say anything! Let's, uh, let's get moving, yeah?"
But Makoto's expression didn't change. She stared at Haru as if she grew a second head. Makoto heard Ann snicker behind her. "Wow, great way to break the news to everyone, Haru-chan."
"Eh? What news? Sorry, I was zoning out there for a bit," Futaba said.
"Nothing! I didn't say anything, can we please just go?"
Ann's snickers had developed into a full-blown giggle fit. "You made such a big deal about me keeping it a secret!" She raised her voice to match Haru's normal pitch. "Ann-chan, if you tell ANYONE about this I'll throw you in front of a train! Bwahahaha!"
"Tell anybody what?" Futaba asked. "What're you talking about? Makoto, what're they talking about?"
"It's nothing!" Haru's face was still a deep shade of red, but now she was sweating profusely. "Futaba, I misspoke, that's all. I'm telling you, I didn't say anything!"
Futaba ignored her friend's pleas and looked at Makoto, deciding to find her answer there. But the older girl kept looking at Haru, still at shock at what she heard.
Noticing this, Haru quickly bounded up to Makoto. "Mako-chan, tell her! Tell her it was nothing, okay?"
"Oh, my, God."
"Mako-chan!"
"OH MY GOD!"
"WHAT ARE YOU GUYS TALKING ABOUT FOR FUCK'S SAKE!"
Haru fell on her knees, covered her ears with both hands, and started humming. "HHHMMMM HMM HMMMM, HHHHHHHM!"
Makoto turned to Ann. The blonde was also on the ground, in tears from her unrestrained laughter. Makoto looked back at Futaba, who was visibly pissed for being let out of the loop for so long. "Haru has a crush on one of the guys," Makoto said.
"WHAT?" Futaba also reeled back a little. "How do you know?"
"She called one of them hot while swooning."
"Shit!" Futaba thought about this for a few seconds, but then broke into laughter as well. "Oh, this is great! Who is it? Who?"
"I don't know." They turned to Ann, who was recovering from laughing so much. "Ann?"
The taller girl sighed and wiped a tear from her eye. "Well, don't ask me. Get it from the source!" She walked over to the still-humming Haru, whose eyes were clenched shut.
"Haru."
"HMMM HMMM MMHHMHMM."
"Haru."
"MMMHHMHM MMMMM HMHMHMM."
"HARU!" Ann gave her side a little kick, startling the girl enough to crane her head up and look her in the eyes. "The jig's up. You want me to tell them, or you?"
Haru was pensive. She looked at the three girls, pleading with her eyes to let her escape. Realizing it was no use, she sighed and stood up.
"Fine. I will come clean. I'm not afraid to admit it. But let me just say!" She took an aggressive stance and pointed an accusatory finger at each of her friends. "You three are extremely rude and very, very nosey! You have some nerve making me admit something as private, as personal as this! Why, if any of you were in my position and said you misspoke, as I did, then I would have simply let it be and respected your secrets. I am astonished that my so-called friends can't take a hint and realize that some matters are too personal for such open discussion. In fact, I would have told all three of you, eventually, because I trust all of you. But now I see that my trust was misplaced! Some friends you all are. When I joined the Phantom Thieves, I expected to form unbreakable bonds of trust with all of you, I expected my time hunting shadows and exploring palaces would allow us to have a deeper understanding of each other. But no, I suppose not. I realize now that my 'friends' are more interested in spreading dirty, uninformed gossip about me than actually being my comrades. Can I even call you my friends anymore? Friends do not stab each other in the back like this, that is for sure! Perhaps, PERHAPS, one day, I shall forgive you three for doing this to me, and maybe, just MAYBE, I MIGHT start to consider thinking of you all as friends again. But as it stands, you all have betrayed me! You betrayed my trust, you betrayed by feelings, and you betrayed me as fellow Phantom Thieves. You all should be ashamed of yourselves! Forcing a young, sheltered girl, whose father (I repeat, her FATHER) just died a horrible, brutal, violent death not more than a month ago, making her reveal such intimate, private thoughts such as this. It's sickening! It's so sickening, I can barely stand to look at you three! Why, I remember when I was still in junior high school, there was a girl who-"
"Haru's in love with Akira."
"ANN, YOU LITTLE SLUT!"
It took every ounce of Makoto's and Futaba's strength to hold Haru back and prevent her from clawing at Ann's face. Despite the fact that Haru was foaming at the mouth in anger, Ann didn't seem the least bit intimidated, having returned to the ground, laughing her ass off all over again.
Makoto was barely registering what was happening. Despite only really knowing Haru for a few weeks, the two girls were classmates for a very long time. There were times where she noticed Haru getting bullied or made fun of, as far back as middle school, in fact. But, as far as Makoto could tell, Haru had the endurance of a brick wall, despite her cute, unassuming demeanor. Haru never gave anybody the pleasure of seeing her annoyed, bothered, or offended, no matter what they said. She NEVER heard Haru swear. She NEVER heard Haru raise her voice, whether in anger or out of necessity. And she certainly never, EVER, not in a million years, EVER believed that Haru could get violent. And yet, here she was, screaming at the top of her lungs for Ann's blood, swearing up and down that she will not rest until the she throws the blond off of the peak of Mt. Everest, feeds her remains to a pack of wild hogs, slaughters said hogs, minces them up in a huge grinder, shoots the remains into the moon, and finally destroys said moon with a nuclear warhead. For such a seemingly polite, unbreakable, stalwart girl, Haru had a vicious imagination, and one of the dirtiest mouths Makoto had ever heard.
It took a while for Haru to finally calm down. She crossed her legs, closed her eyes, took several deep, long, full breaths, and remained silent for two entire minutes, her face remaining completely emotionless. Finally, she opened her eyes back up, and looked at her three friends, all of them gazing curiously at her, unsure if they should be prepared for another assault. But instead of breaking into hysterics again, the girl sighed and looked at the ground in shame.
"I am so, so, so sorry that happened. Ann-chan, I do not deserve your forgiveness." She bowed deeply towards the blonde. "Please don't hate me."
Ann chuckled at this and held Haru by her shoulder, gently rubbing her back. "Oh my God, Haru, shut up. I was being a jerk to you, I probably would have reacted the same way." She gave the girl a big hug.
They stood like that for a few seconds, until they finally released each other.
"Thank you, Ann-chan," Haru said. She looked down at her feet, still visibly ashamed at her display a few moments earlier.
A few moments of silence passed. Makoto did feel somewhat irresponsible. She shouldn't have let Haru's sudden reveal take up so much of their time. They could have explored their part of the floor by now. But Makoto knew that just leaving this sort of thing undiscussed was a bad idea. Talking things out with her teammates was something that needed to be done, and was far more important than scavenging around an empty Mementos floor looking for useless treasure.
"So…" Makoto began. "Akira, huh?"
Haru nodded. "Please don't tell him, okay?"
Futaba made an offended scoff. "Who d'you think we are? We would never do that to a friend! Your secret's safe with…"
Futaba trailed off. She cringed. "Ewww!"
"What? Futaba, what's wrong?"
"Ugh, I just realized, you like Akira." Futaba shuddered. "I'm sorry, I just don't understand you at all, girl."
"Futaba!" Ann scolded her. "What's wrong with you? You can't just say that about somebody's crush, it's offensive!"
"You don't understand," Futaba said. "It's weird, but Akira is like the older brother I never had. Even thinking about anything remotely sexual or romantic about him just feels like some kind of taboo. And hearing my friend having a crush on the guy… uggh."
"Well, Futaba," Haru said, smiling. "I'm not offended at all, and I perfectly understand where you are coming from. But I am quite sorry that you see Akira that way. I, for one, think he is very handsome." She gave a dreamy sigh. "And SO dashing…"
"I think I'm gonna be sick," Futaba moaned. "Hold on. Weren't you just roasting him a few minutes ago for being late?"
Haru giggled at that. "I suppose that's my way of showing boys I like them. Even when I was little I would boss them around and try to get them to push back. My little quirk, I suppose."
This was an entirely unexpected turn of events for Makoto. Aside from Morgana making it very, VERY clear that he wanted to bury his cat dick inside of Ann's panther-hole, she never expected any of the Phantom Thieves to start crushing on one another. Her curiosity forced her to learn more details about this.
"What exactly do you see in him, Haru? When did you start liking him?"
"Oh, probably the very microsecond I first laid eyes on him," Haru said. "I kept hearing stories about this dangerous delinquent running around Shujin, but he wasn't what I expected at all. He's always just so cool, so in control. And when I first saw him in his Metaverse outfit as Joker, giving us orders and guiding us through my father's palace…" Haru started blushing again. "You have no idea how much I like it when he gives orders and takes command. He's so manly!"
"Oh, please," Futaba groaned. "The guy's such a goofball! You should see him lose his shit when I kick his ass in Street Fighter. You'll have a very different opinion of your dreamboat, I'm sure."
"Well, I think it's super cute," Ann said. "When Haru told me about her crush, I thought it made perfect sense! And come on, Futaba, I know you see him as a brother, but you have to admit, Akira's a pretty good-looking guy."
"Bleh." Futaba turned to Makoto. "C'mon, Queen. Back me up here."
Makoto didn't really know what to say. She wanted to say that she was happy that Haru found someone she liked, and her superego kept telling her that the socially correct thing to do would be to wish Haru luck on getting her man. But instead, Makoto felt… nothing.
So, she thought. Haru likes Akira. I wonder if he likes her back? He probably does, why wouldn't he?
Something about this felt wrong to Makoto, but she couldn't tell what. She felt that something was supposed to happen, or should have happened a while ago, but never did. It was like she was missing a crucial puzzle piece, and no matter how hard she looked, it couldn't be found. Did she disapprove of Haru liking Akira? That might be it, but why would she? Haru was a wonderful person who deserved somebody to make her happy, and that person might as well be Akira, right? And the more she thought about it, the more the match made sense. They were both kind, considerate, level-headed people who preferring talking things through and being patient, rather than rushing headfirst into a situation. They have pretty good synergy on the battlefield, and Akira seemed to enjoy spending time with Haru, whether it was gardening, exploring a park, seeing a movie. And its not like one was totally out of the league of the other; Haru was beautiful, no doubt, and Akira was a pretty good match for her, at least in the looks department.
Woooahhh, okay. Stop, stop, stop.
It was true, Makoto did find Akira rather attractive, but who wouldn't? She found Yusuke and Ryuji to be attractive too, but that didn't mean she had a crush on them, right? No, Makoto decided a long time ago that she certainly did not feel that way about Akira. The spark wasn't there, the connection was flat. It didn't help that almost every interaction she had with the boy was so one-sided, so painfully awkward, like she was the only one trying to pull things along, him simply existing next to her. He was her friend… and not even a close one. Makoto really hated to admit it, but she had to face the facts. Were it not for the fact that she just happened to join the Phantom Thieves, Makoto and Akira wouldn't even be acquaintances, let alone friends. And it was such a shame, too, because Makoto respected Akira and valued his qualities. When she first got to know him, she was sure that they would become fast friends, finding a lot in common with his responsible nature and intelligence. Her expectations were practically confirmed when she realized that he loved movies as much as she did, probably even more. But no matter what they did together, it just felt so forced, so unnatural. Nothing that went under the skin, nothing that got the two to talk and actually learn about one another, like how talking to friends should be. It was ridiculous: she managed to have deeper, more heartfelt and insightful conversations with a horny, talking cat than with the leader of her group. Something about this didn't add up, it just didn't make any sense. But, try as she might, the only answer that satisfied this dilemma was the simple admittance that Akira Kurusu and Makoto Niijima were never meant to be anything more than teammates.
"Yeah, he's cute," Makoto said. "I hope he likes you back, Haru-chan."
Haru sighed again. "I don't know. I'm kind of doubtful. What if he doesn't think I'm pretty?"
To that, Ann let out a very loud guffaw. "HAH! You're kidding, right? Haru, girl, boys can't stop drooling over you, and Akira is no diff-"
Their conversation was cut short by the sound of someone yelling.
"GUYS! Queen, Oracle! Noir, Panther! Where are you?!"
The four girls immediately stopped what they were doing and turned to the direction of the voice. It was Ryuji's, and it was coming from the very same tunnel the boys disappeared into.
Makoto sprung into action. "Oracle, scan the tunnel. Panther, get ready to heal."
"On it! Skull and the others are a few hundred feet away and they're gaining on us. I don't see a-" Futaba paused. "Fuck."
"What?" Makoto looked at the younger girl. "What is it?"
"We need to get out of this place, now!"
But before Futaba could finish her sentence, the boys appeared before them. Yusuke and Morgana seemed fine. Makoto noticed that they were walking with a slight, uncomfortable limp, and she could barely detect what appeared to be a wince on their faces whenever they took a step, but she paid it little mind. The girls' attentions were focused on Ryuji, and the fact that the boy was holding their unconscious leader in his arms.
"REAPER!" Ryuji screamed. "The Reaper is coming, the Reaper is coming!"
Motherfucker! Makoto screamed to herself. How could I be so careless? How long have we just been sitting here and talking about stupid crushes? I put Joker's life on the line because of my incompetence, and I didn't even account for the Reaper. Some second-in-command I am!
"Mona!" Makoto screamed. "Why haven't you turned into a bus yet? Get us out of here!"
"I can't!" The cat protested. "It's not working for some reason! This entire floor is completely fucked, nothing is working the way it should!"
Makoto grit her teeth. Think! Think!
"We're about four hundred feet away from the entrance of this floor. Once we get a level above, we can try the bus again. Oracle, Panther, Noir, Mona, I want speed buffs on all of us, and make sure you guys heal any damage we might sustain. Skull, you go ahead. Fox, you and I are covering the rear. Move!"
They made a break for it, covering a surprising amount of ground in a very short amount of time. It wasn't long, however, before Futaba spoke up.
"The Reaper is gaining on us! We aren't gonna make it!"
"Shut up and keep moving!" Makoto ordered. She could hear the monster's moans from the tunnels, becoming louder and louder with every passing second.
The exit to the floor came into view, becoming closer and closer with every step. We can make it! Makoto thought. We can do this! We can-
Her optimism was cut short. Before she could even realize what was happening, the Reaper bounded over them and landed right in front of the exit, blocking their only chance of survival.
Without a moment's rest, the Reaper gave a loud, deafening roar, and raised its pistols at the group.
Makoto's heart stopped. She didn't want this to be the end. She didn't want to die here, in Mementos. I am so, so stupid, she thought. She gave her unconscious leader one last look. I'm sorry, Akira. I failed you, and I failed the Phantom Thieves.
She closed her eyes. God, if you're real, let me see my father. I don't care if you send me to the deepest, coldest, blackest parts of hell. Please, let me speak to my father one last time.
Her body loosened. She was ready for death.
But, something happened.
Or, rather, something didn't happen.
She expected the Reaper's gunshot to be the next (and last) thing she would hear. But instead, ten seconds went by, with… nothing. She opened her eyes. The Reaper was still there, but his guns were no longer raised. He simply… stared at them.
Makoto wanted to take this opportunity to come up with another plan, but her mind was blank. Her body refused to move. She was staring at the embodiment of Death, and it stared right back at her and her friends. What the hell is going on?
And then, the Reaper did something completely unexpected. It took a while for Makoto to register what was happening, but there it was. It leaned over to the Phantom Thieves and sniffed them. Or, rather, he sniffed Ryuji and Akira, who was still unconscious. Then he leaned over and sniffed Morgana, and then Yusuke. The boys were as astonished as Makoto was, their mouths agape and bodies shaking in petrified fear.
The Reaper seemed to finish his sniffing. He did nothing but look at them for a long, long time, every passing second feeling like an eternity.
And then he started to laugh.
Makoto slapped herself as hard as she possibly could. A huge, painful red mark was left on her cheek. The Reaper's laughs became louder, and more animate. She slapped her other cheek, leaving another mark. But the Reaper kept laughing.
And laughing.
And laughing.
And laughing.
He fell on his knees and started hitting the ground with his fist, holding his stomach through his full, sincere laughs.
Makoto was sure that she had gone completely insane.
After a few more minutes of this, the Reaper stood back up, letting his last few giggles out.
And then he spoke.
"Wow," he chuckled. "Okay. Wow. He really did it to you guys, huh?"
He picked up his guns from the ground, dusted himself off, and walked back into the depths of the tunnel.
The Phantom Thieves stood there in silence.
I think I'm gonna start vising that church on my way to school, Makoto thought.
Yeah. That sounds like a good idea.
Akira sat quietly at the edge of the patient bed in Tae's clinic. His friends, who had just explained what had happened with the Reaper, were also quiet, letting the situation at hand sink-in. They were all preoccupied with their own thoughts, trying to leverage their recent brush with death.
Akira looked up at Yusuke. The artist met his gaze, and Akira winked. Yusuke gave him a quick nod.
By the time he reunited with his friends in Tae's clinic, Akira had already mentally prepared a million different lies he could tell the girls so that they wouldn't know about his, Yusuke's, Ryuji's, and Morgana's predicament. Luckily, his fellow masturbation addicts were already prepared.
"So," Akira finally said. "How did I get knocked out in the first place? I have NO memory of anything attacking us."
He put on his best 'I have no idea what just happened, honest!' face. If there was one thing that Akira had learned in his short, virgin life, it was that feigning stupidity was a great way to get yourself out of actually having to put in effort, or an awkward situation.
"The Reaper came out of nowhere and attacked you, leader," Yusuke said. "We were lucky to have stunned him for a while, otherwise we wouldn't have been able to escape."
"This is crazy," said Ann. "We've encountered the Reaper before, but that was only after we spent a long time on the same floor. We were talking for like, what? Fifteen minutes?"
"It has to have something to do with that floor in particular," Morgana said. "I couldn't even turn into a car! That whole place is just so weird. Once we were able to move up a floor, I could get us out of there no problem."
"Imagine," Yusuke said, "how horrible it would have been if we had to run around looking for the girls while trying to escape him. We would have surely been killed!"
"Yeah, we were really lucky you girls were so close to the entrance," Akira said. Something crossed his mind, and he raised an inquisitive eyebrow at the four girls. "Wait a sec, why were you guys so close to the entrance anyway? You hadn't started exploring the floor yet?"
"Oh! Uhhh…" Ann rubbed the back of her sheepishly and tried to avert her eyes from Akira's. "Well, like I said, we were talking."
"Uh huh. What about?"
"Oh, you know! School stuff, and, uh, strategies for fighting shadows. Reaallly important stuff we needed to get sorted out before we started exploring. Yep!" Ann put on the biggest smile she could.
"Oh brother…" Futaba mumbled. "Not this shit again."
You said it, sister, Akira thought. Ann's a great model, but a terrible actress.
"Look, I'm not trying to be a dick or anything, but we were supposed to split up so we could explore the floor faster. I totally understand if you were talking about something important enough to postpone exploring, but if it's that crucial then you could at least tell me what it is."
"W-well, that's…" Ann trailed off. Akira knew that he would only get more half-baked lies from her. He looked at Futaba and Makoto, who were trying their best to appear focused on staring at Tae's medical equipment. Haru, on the other hand, managed to press herself up into a little corner of the room, staring at her feet. She was burying her face against her hands and was shaking uncontrollably.
Akira put on his leader voice. "Haru."
The girl gave a tiny squeak and looked up from the ground. "Y-yes Akira-chan?"
Oh here we go. Akira grinned. Haru's incapable of lying. Let's get to the bottom of this.
"What were you girls talking about back there?" Akira asked in the calmest, most Chad voice he could. "Anything that would interest me?"
That seemed to have a strong effect on the girl. Haru's face turned completely red, and her shaking became more erratic.
Akira started to become nervous for her. "H-hey, if you guys really don't want to tell me, you don't ha-"
"MAKOTO LIKES A GUY AT OUR SCHOOL AND WE WERE JUST TALKING ABOUT THAT OKAY? IT'S REALLY REALLY PERSONAL AND SHE DIDN'T WANT ANYBODY ELSE TO KNOW SO THAT'S WHY WE WERE KEEPING IT FROM YOU SO LET'S JUST DROP IT NOW OKAY?" Haru gasped for air and started breathing heavily.
The rest of the Phantom Thieves were all shocked at this and gasped at the nearly hyperventilating girl. Save, however, for Makoto herself. She calmly turned her head, made eye contact with Haru, and shot her the most neutral, unreadable expression Akira had ever seen.
Recovering somewhat, Haru gave a nervous chuckle. "S-sorry about revealing your, uh, your secret, Mako-chan." She gave her a big, but desperate smile. "But, uh, at least your secret's safe with us. Right? Ma-ko-chaaaan?" Haru returned Makoto's stare as best as she could, her eyes pleading with hers.
Makoto's plain expression gave way to a single, tiny twitch under her left eye. "I don't know, Haru-chan." Despite barely inflecting her voice at all, Makoto somehow managed to make every syllable sound like acid. "Maybe this secret isn't all that important after all, and maybe I should just say it right here and right now in front of all of our friends."
"OOOOOH, BUT MAKO-CHAN!" Haru was almost screaming again at this point. She grabbed Makoto by the shoulders, doing her best to not appear threatening to the others. "IF YOU DO THAT THEN THAT'LL RUIN THE SANCTITY OF OUR GIRL TALK. AND WE DON'T WANT THOSE BOYS TO KNOW OUR LITTLE SECRETS, RIGHT? IF WE DID, THEN BAD, BAD THINGS WOULD HAPPEN, RIGHT? HAH. HAH HAH HAH HAH."
Even with Haru's pathetic attempts at trying to laugh, Makoto refused to break eye contact with the frenzied girl. "Okay, Haru-chan," Makoto said, poison in her voice. "How about we talk more about this later before we make any rash and stupid decisions." Makoto produced a smile of her own, but it had some terrifying quality that made Haru's face pale. "Alone. After school. Tomorrow. Sound good?"
Haru swallowed. "Y-yes."
Ryuji leaned over to Yusuke and whispered in his ear. "I think I just shit my pants."
Yusuke nodded. "Indeed. Women are insane," he whispered back. "Let's get out of here before Makoto strangles Haru to death."
"Fuck no, I wanna see that!" Morgana jumped on Ryuji's back and joined the whisper conversation. "Cat fights turn me the fuck on!"
"They turn me on too. That's why we need to leave," Yusuke replied. "Akira, let's get out of here."
Akira, however, did not reply. He was still sitting, his fingers digging into his knees.
"Akira?"
FUCK! FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK!
In the Velvet Room, Akira was convinced that things could not get worse for him. After all, what could possibly be worse than not masturbating for a month? But now, he realized how naïve he truly was.
Akira had spent many a long, sleepless night thinking about Makoto, sometimes without even tugboating his willy. And every time, one damning, niggling thought always came to mind.
What if she likes somebody else? What if she likes Ryuji? Or Yusuke? Or some guy I don't know?
Akira realized that whether or not Makoto liked another boy was a bit of a moot point, since the young masturbation addict was way too much of a pussy to make a move on her, even if he was 100% sure she felt the same way about him. But the thought of her being with someone else… The thought of her holding some guy's hand in public, laughing at his jokes, blushing whenever he teased her, the thought of her kissing someone else, pressing her body against someone else's, HAVING SEX WITH SOMEBODY ELSE!
FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK!
Who did she have a crush on? Who? Was he handsome? More handsome than Akira? Was he tall? Taller than Akira? Makoto's a pretty girl. No, fuck that, Makoto's GORGEOUS, and extremely intelligent, and captivating, and seductive, and wonderful, and mesmerizing. She couldn't just have a crush on some average Joe on the street. He would HAVE to be handsome, he would HAVE to be tall. Probably athletic too, and gets really good grades at school. How could Akira compare to that? Why did he think a stupid, ugly, short loser like him could ever have a chance with girl like her?
FUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFU-
"Akira?"
He was driven out of his thoughts by Yusuke's hand gently shaking his shoulder.
"It's getting late," Yusuke said. "We should probably head back home and discuss this more some other time. Do you agree, leader?"
Akira didn't notice that he was spacing out. Luckily, it didn't seem all that long: the girls were wrapped up in their own conversation. From what Akira could tell, Ann was begging a rather unconvinced Makoto not to lace Haru's drink with cyanide in retaliation for the little drama the fluffy-haired girl caused. Futaba, on the other hand, was hard at work on her laptop trying to find a suitable lawyer to write Haru's will. Haru herself sat on one of the chairs, and looked relieved for some reason, despite the very likely prospect that her life may end shorty.
It didn't take long for Akira to notice this opportunity. "Okay, sorry to pester you guys about this," Akira said. "Didn't mean to cause such a stir. Look, it's late, and we've got school tomorrow. Let's meet up some other time when we're not busy and talk this through then, okay?"
"Uh, why don't you guys go on ahead without us?" Ann said. "We… still have some things we need to talk over, ha ha."
Akira shrugged his shoulders. "Go ahead, I don't give a shit," he said, in a voice that tried very VERY hard to hide the fact that he did indeed give many a shit. "C'mon guys, let's go."
The four males were about to exit the clinic, but Akira remembered something at the last minute.
"Oh!" he exclaimed. "Where's Takemi-san? I need to thank her for keeping me here."
"We managed to get here right before she was about to close up for the day," Futaba said. "She examined you real quick and said you were fine, but she insisted that you visit her tomorrow for a check-up."
"Akira!" Morgana whispered in his hear. "We're gonna see sexy doctor lady tomorrow!"
"I'm gonna to see sexy doctor lady tomorrow, you are staying home," Akira whispered back. "Now shut up." He turned back to the girls. "See you guys!"
Right as they were about to leave, Ryuji stuck his head back in.
"Good luck with your crush, Mako-chan!"
Akira grabbed him by the collar and yanked him out into the street.
The four boys, of course, were lying through their teeth. They never intended to go straight home after escaping the wrath of those gorgons. Instead, they found themselves sitting in a booth at Café Leblanc. Sojiro had already closed up shop and went home, so the four were able to talk, undisturbed.
For a while, nobody said anything. Finally, Morgana spoke up.
"Whelp, I dunno about you guys, but this day was completely fucked," he said. "I'm gonna go take a quick power fap, don't wait up for me!"
Right before he was about to hop off the table and run back to his cum-soaked pothole, Akira grabbed him by the neck and threw him back into the booth. "Morgana, no. Don't be an idiot."
"The hell d'you mean? We had a really long, stressful day, full of Reapers and Mementos and shit. Why can't I bust a quick nut or two to take the edge off?"
"Morgana, you can't be serious," Yusuke said.
"Yeah you stupid cat, if you bust a nut you're gonna lose your dick, remember?" Ryuji said. "Don't you remember what that guy said?"
"What?" Morgana asked. "Are you guys really this stupid? That guy was a shadow! A product of the Metaverse! He can only hurt us in palaces and Mementos. He's nothing but a cognition. All this crap about No Nut November only affects us in the Metaverse, and I dunno about you freaks, but I don't plan on masturbating there anytime soon."
Akira hadn't thought of this. What Morgana said made a lot of sense. A shadow could do any number crazy things to them, but once they returned to the real world, any curses, spells, or debuffs disappeared.
Akira could feel a rush of dopamine in his brain. That means I can nut! Thank you, God! I always knew you were real!
But wait… If No Nut November is only in effect in the Metaverse, then why did Igor make such a big deal out of it in the Velvet Room? Wouldn't he have told me about it?
Akira shook his head and dispelled such negative thoughts.
Nahhh! It's fine! Morgana's right, that asshole was just another shadow like the rest of them. Akira looked down at his crotch and smiled. Ohhhhh, my old friend. As soon as these guys fuck off back to their homes, we shall be reunited. He could almost hear his cock screaming in agony, realizing that its beating would resume shortly.
Yusuke and Ryuji looked excited as well.
"Of course!" the artist exclaimed. "I didn't even consider that! Thank heavens, too. I knew that if I had to go a month without masturbating I would probably go insane."
"WOOHOO I GETTA JERK OFF!" cried Ryuji. "I'm gonna pull an all-nighter to celebrate, and I ain't talkin' about studying!"
Morgana smiled and shook his head. "Where would you guys be without me? No Nut November, you can kiss my ass! And you know what? I just realized something. If there was a curse on our dicks that prevented us from masturbating, wouldn't we have all felt something? My dick feels perfectly fine! I don't feel cursed at all, y'know?"
"Yeah, me neither," Ryuji said. "That jackass was all show and no go."
"Hold on," Yusuke said. "Isn't it technically still October 31st? Akira, what time is it?"
Akira pulled out his phone. His eyes widened. "Oh! It's… 11:58 PM."
A heavy, oppressive silence fell on the room. The mood, which was once so happy and joyous, immediately became grim. Akira could feel his loud heartbeat, it was practically in his ears.
"That, that doesn't mean anything you guys!" Morgana said. He did his best to give out a genuine laugh to lighten the mood, but instead it came off as somewhat nervous. "It's fine. Really! Like I said, shadows can't affect us in real life. That's not how the Metaverse works. Let's all go to bed, and have ourselves a really nice wank, okay?"
"Y-yeah!" Ryuji said. "Yeah, let's not worry about it!" He gulped. "But…"
"But what?"
"I mean, uh… Heh, I know I'm prolly bein' stupid, but like… Maybe we should just wait and see the clock turn to twelve before we go? Like, just to make sure."
"Aww, Ryuji, you're such a pussy! But, uhh…" Morgana trailed off. He rubbed the back of his head. "Since you're so insistent about it, I don't see any harm in just waiting for the hour to pass."
"I think that is a wonderful idea, Ryuji," Yusuke said. "Let's, er… Let's just put this No Nut November nonsense to rest once and for all! Akira, how many more seconds until the hour changes?"
"Fifty."
They said nothing. Despite their earlier optimism, they all stared at Akira's phone. Akira's hand began to shake again.
The seconds ticked by.
Ryuji clenched his jaw tightly, releasing it every few seconds. Yusuke bounced his leg up and down and wrung his hands together.
Thirty seconds.
Morgana bit the back of his paw.
Fifteen seconds.
Akira felt sweat drip from his forehead.
Ten seconds.
Akira's heart kept pounding and pounding.
Five.
Ryuji swallowed.
Four.
Yusuke breathed in.
Three.
Morgana's eyes were as wide as dinner plates. He sunk his teeth into his paw, tighter, tighter, tighter.
Two.
Akira couldn't think. He couldn't blink. He couldn't even breath. Life stopped. Everything became slow, torturous, painful. He felt like he was stepping through a threshold, entering a new world that he should never have entered. For the tiniest, briefest of moments, he regretted everything. He wished he had never stumbled into Kamoshida's palace. He wished he had never met Ryuji or Ann or Morgana. He wished the Phantom Thieves had never been formed. He only wanted his regular, normal life back.
One.
God help me.
Twelve o'clock.
Midnight.
November 1st.
The first day of No Nut November had begun.
All four boys let out a breath that none of them realized they were even holding. Their bodies relaxed.
"See!" Morgana said. "Nothin' to worry about! You guys were so scared!"
"Aww, look who's talkin'!" Ryuji pointed at Morgana's paw. "You bit your paw so hard it bled!"
"Oh! Uh, heh heh, guess I didn't notice."
"Well, I for one am relieved beyond words," Yusuke sighed. "I felt like I was going to have a heart attack!"
"Looks like everything worked out in the end," Akira said. "God, I am SO glad I don't have to do this shit. I felt like a huge weight was taken off my shoulders." He stretched and breathed in deeply. "Ah! I'm so happy and worry-free!"
"I feel ya, dude!" Ryuji said. "And hey! Maybe you're the guy that Makoto is crushing on!"
Akira fell into despair.
"Oh, FUCK!" he cried. "Goddamnit, Ryuji. I was in such a good mood and you just had to remind me of that shit."
"Oh, uh, sorry," the blond replied. "But, like, I'm sure that you're the one she likes! I don't really see her hanging out with any other guys at school." He thought for a moment. "At least, I don't think she does…"
Akira groaned and pulled his hair. "Shut uuuuuppp…"
"The retard is right," Morgana said. "Just because you're a loser who spends all of his time masturbating doesn't mean that you can't get a super hot bombshell like Makoto into you. I mean, it's extremely unlikely, and your desire to fuck her is so strong that she can probably smell it off of you, and she's most likely very well aware how often you beat your meat to the thought of her, but, you know, it's still possible!"
Morgana sat on the edge of the table, already prepared to jump away for Akira's inevitable assault on his person. Much to the cat's surprise, however, this did not come. Instead of strangling Morgana to death, Akira slammed his head against the table, dug his fingers further into his hair, and moaned.
Akira hated to admit it, but everything Morgana said was true. It was a hard, bitter truth, but he had to face the facts and admit that Makoto would never, ever, not in a million years, ever see Akira as anything more than a friend. And why would she? What in the hell did Akira have to offer? She could have anybody she wanted, so why pick him?
His thoughts returned to imagining what the guy she liked must look like. For some reason, the image of Marlon Brando in Streetcar Named Desire always came to mind first.
Yeah, Akira thought. Kinda like a Japanese Marlon Brando in Streetcar. Cool. Handsome. Muscular. Doesn't give a shit about anyone, does what he wants, when he wants it. Is that the kinda guy Makoto likes? Bad boys? Dudes with an edge? Hm, or maybe some super athletic guy who's perfect at everything? Yeah, a trophy husband sorta guy, with a six pack, broad shoulders, huge dick, can probably fuck like an elephant.
Akira groaned again and stared at his feet, his head pressed against the table.
"H-hey, Akira?" Morgana asked, worriedly. "Hey, you know I was just kidding, right? I was just roasting you! I know you've got a shot with her, we all do."
"That's right, Joker," Yusuke said. He patted Akira's back reassuringly. "Haru never said who Makoto's crush was on, right? So it could very well be you. I would be surprised if it wasn't, honestly."
"Yeah fucking right…" Akira mumbled. He raised his head from the table and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Look, I'm fine. It's just been a long day, and I really don't want to talk or think about this tonight. Let's just go to bed for tonight, okay? We have school tomorrow morning."
"Yes, you're probably right." Yusuke yawned and stretched his arms out. "I am absolutely exhausted."
"Yeah, same here," Ryuji said. "C'mon, Yusuke, I'll walk you to the train. Night, guys!"
The two boys stood up and walked out of the café. Before the door closed shut, however, Akira could hear Ryuji's loud voice.
"Oh, hey Makoto! You headin' to the train too?"
Akira's heart skipped a beat. That-that's her!
Akira wanted nothing more than to rush out and talk to her. Even though he knew it was hopeless, he wanted every opportunity he could to spend time with her. But what would he talk to her about? It would be totally awkward if he just rushed out of Leblanc and started talking to her for no reason. He needed to think of an excuse to talk to her, and fast, before she went home.
Wait a second… Akira's eyes widened. Oh FUCK! I am such an idiot!
He rushed out of the café, leaving behind a puzzled Morgana. Akira looked around the streets of Yongen. His three friends must already be somewhat close to the station, because the street was totally empty. He rushed over to the station, mindful to jump over any potholes and other obstacles on his way over.
Rounding a corner, he could see his friends walking together, chatting lightly on their way to the station. There she is. A grim idea invaded his thoughts. Christ, what if she likes one of those two? What would I do in a situation like that?
He shook his head steeled himself. "H-hey! Makoto!"
The three turned around and noticed Akira standing in the street. Akira could see Makoto's brilliant, red eyes peering out from the darkness, taking the boy in, swallowing him whole with her wonderful, mesmerizing gaze. How the hell did she do that? How could she make him feel this way with just one look? Did she even realize what she did to him? She casted her spell so effortlessly, without even thinking about it, without even noticing.
He gulped without realizing. He walked over to her. He had tunnel vision: everything in his periphery began to blur, except for her. He completely forgot about Ryuji and Yusuke, even though they flanked the girl. Even they, his best friends, did not matter at this moment. All he could see was Makoto, Makoto and her red, red, red eyes, pulling him closer, and closer, and closer, and closer…
There she is, Akira thought. Queen. My Queen. He loved her codename. He loved how well it described her, how it so perfectly reflected both who she was as a person and how he felt about her. Makoto. Queen. His Queen. Akira knew in his heart of hearts that he would die for her. He would stop a bullet for that girl. He wanted to serve his Queen. He wanted to honor her, cherish her, pine for her, love her. His heart felt like it would burst at any moment, but still he approached her, wondering how his legs haven't given way yet, how he was still even capable of walking while she just looked at him like that.
Finally, after those long, horrible, agonizing seconds of walking, Akira found himself face-to-face with Makoto. There she was, her face so perfectly in focus, her body so close to his.
"Hi, Akira-kun," Makoto said. "What's up?"
Great, she doesn't look annoyed or creeped out, Akira thought. Say it! Say it!
"Er, Ryuji and I should get on the train," Yusuke said. "Makoto, you're taking the north-bound train, correct? We both live towards the west, so we had better get going before the train arrives. Come on, Ryuji."
"Eh? What're you talkin' about? The train ain't comin' for another-"
But Yusuke grabbed the blond boy's arm and led him to the station before he could finish his sentence.
Makoto turned around to face the two leaving boys. "Alright, see you guys later," Makoto called out to them. She turned back to Akira. Much to his surprise, she didn't seem uncomfortable being alone with him. Akira always assumed that his very presence annoyed the girl, and that he needed to justify spending time alone with her. He felt that she would always rather be somewhere else, be talking to someone else, that she would rather be doing anything else than spending time with him, than talking to him. Akira had no idea why he felt this way; there was no basis for this thought, no evidence to point to Makoto not enjoying his company. But the thought still came, and it worried him to no end.
She stretched her arms out, closed her eyes, and gave a long, yet petite yawn. Akira's heart was on the verge of exploding. How can somebody be this fucking cute? It's criminal!
"Gosh, what a day, huh?" Makoto said. She opened her eyes and locked them with his, making his heart stop again. "Are you feeling alright? You were out cold for a while."
"Yeah, I'm fine." Say something! Say something! "Honestly, I'm kinda surprised that the Reaper didn't do more damage to me. Guess he isn't so scary after all."
Makoto gave a small giggle. "Yeah, right. I'm sure that our cool and confident Joker could take him on all by himself."
Akira himself chuckled, but his heart still kept up its rapid pace. Hearing her laugh, talking to her, gazing into her eyes, was unlike anything he had experienced before. When she was close by, he felt happy. He felt sad. He felt amazing. He felt insane. He felt like he could rule the world. He felt like a piece of shit on the road. His heart would pound, his hands would begin to sweat. Nothing made sense, but everything was clear at the same time.
Makoto…
"So," the girl said. "What did you want to talk about?"
Akira licked his lips. He just realized how dry his mouth was, how bitter it tasted.
"You uh… You said something about watching a movie this weekend? Back at Shibuya station? Sorry for not answering your question before, I was a little, ah… A little distracted."
"That's okay."
"Cool. Yeah. So let's do it. I would love to. Wanna go Saturday afternoon?"
And then, it happened again. With her eyes peering into his, she gave that small, yet genuine, warm, seductive, hypnotizing, dizzying smile. Akira couldn't breathe. His brain couldn't function. Time was thrown out the window. The only thing that existed was Makoto. Makoto, and that smile.
"Great! Sounds good."
She turned around and walked towards the station. She looked behind her shoulder, locking eyes with him one last time. "See you then, Kurusu-kun."
And then she walked off, and disappeared through the streets of Yongen.
Akira stood there for three solid minutes, just staring at nothing. His mind was still processing what just happened.
He blinked. He felt something. Something tight and familiar. He looked down, and could feel his aroused member pressing against his jeans.
I gotta jerk off!
He turned around and bounded back to Leblanc.
Makoto smiled to herself as she stood at the station platform, waiting for her train to arrive. She kept replaying her conversation with Akira in her head. Something seemed different about him. The bored, lifeless, difficult-to-read look that he always had when talking to her was still somewhat there, but there was something else this time too. Anticipation? Excitement? Makoto couldn't tell. That boy was still very much a mystery to her. No matter how hard she tried, she could never get in his head, she could never get a grip on what he was thinking at any given moment.
But regardless, she felt happy. So, she thought, he went out of his way to try to make plans with me. And here I thought he was just trying to avoid hanging out with me. Hm, well, that still might be the case. Maybe he only wanted to see that movie with me out of some sort of obligation?
The possibility remained, however, that maybe, just maybe, Akira did genuinely want to be friends with her. Maybe she had a chance to finally get to know her leader, to see what he was really like, to understand him as a person. Maybe now he wouldn't feel so much like an alien to her. She knew the chances were small, and she knew that it was all probably in her head, but she was willing to see, willing to give them this one last chance to make a genuine connection, to truly become friends.
The train arrived and began to slow down in front of her. Her smile was paired with a small blush.
And Haru's got a point. He is pretty cool.
Akira busted through the door, jumped up the steps to the attic, slammed the door shut, undressed, and hopped on his bed.
OOOOOHHHH here we go here we go here we go!
Akira looked around his room quickly. Morgana was nowhere to be found, which was great. He's probably cumming in that pothole in the alley right now, Akira thought. He shuddered. Ew. Think of the task at hand!
He looked at his chub. He was so happy, so thrilled that he had the privilege of masturbation. He knew that this one was going to be great. It was going to be a big, fat, wonderful nut.
He reached down, and grabbed his dick.
An extremely loud, heavy bass sound reverberated in his room as soon as his hand made contact.
BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM
"What the fuck!?" Akira screamed. He pressed his hands against his ears, trying desperately to block the noise out. The sound was so loud, he was scared that his eardrums might rupture.
BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM
He fell off of his bed and on the ground, sitting with his knees. The sound wouldn't stop, the pain in his ears wouldn't stop. His room became distorted, sickly, reddish-black waves and spirals adorning his walls, his furniture becoming twisted and maligned. A wave of nausea hit him. He knew this feeling. He had felt it before.
The-the Metaverse! How the hell am I entering the Metaverse?
BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM
He closed his eyes and kept pressing his hands against his ears. He couldn't think, he couldn't understand what was going on. All he wanted was for the noise to stop, for this torture to end.
Just then, his wish was granted. The horrible bass sound ceased. Akira opened his eyes. What greeted them was not his room, but instead the infinite, mysterious, sickening void of the Metaverse. There were no walls, no floors, just him suspended in the air, held up by nothing.
He heard something behind him. Footsteps?
Slowly, he turned around, and saw a pair of brown boat shoes, connected to two sock-tanned legs.
Oh no.
He looked up. He saw the pink shorts and matching shirt.
No…
He kept raising his head. He saw the watch and clasped-together hands.
No!
He saw the thick, bulbous neck.
NO! FUCK, PLEASE, NO!
Akira saw him. He saw his smug, stupid face. He saw his black, lifeless eyes. He saw his fixed, permanent smile. He saw him, that god, that demon, that horrible being from Mementos, standing over his kneeling form, looking down at him, his pose and expression exactly the same from when he last saw him in the Metaverse.
"You!" Akira pointed at the guy. "The fuck are you doing here? Take me back to my room, now! You don't have any power over me in the real world!"
"Oh, but I do, Akira-kun." The familiar, black light enveloped itself around Akira crotch, and he could feel the horrible, tight, pressing sensation from before.
He screamed in pain. "Not this shit again! Dude, the hell do you want from me?"
"You already know the answer to that question," he said. "Did you really think you could escape the gauntlet of No Nut November just because you left Mementos? Did you really think that I am that weak?" The grip on Akira's dick strengthened, and he screamed again. "My power goes beyond Mementos, child. You would be wise to acknowledge that fact."
Akira wanted to cry. Just when he thought he could escape, just when he thought his life was coming back to normal, this shit happens.
"I know what you were trying to do," the guy said. "You were 1000% finna bust a hard, fat nut. You were going to break the rules of No Nut November. You were going to turn your back on this wonderful month. But perhaps it was my fault. Perhaps I did not make myself clear enough in Mementos. Perhaps, you need a little reminder."
He leaned over to Akira, inches away from his face, that smile still plastered on his lips. Akira would rather come face-to-face with the Reaper than be here now, in front of this asshole, this horrible pain on his poor wiener.
"Today is the first day of No Nut November. You and your three friends are not allowed to jerk off. You are not allowed to have sex with any women. You must keep this holiday in your heart and remember to keep it holy. You must not let the temptations of women blacken your soul. You must stay strong, resilient, steadfast. When November ends, so will this gauntlet. A power beyond your wildest dreams will be granted to you. If you fail, your pecker is gone. Do I make myself clear?"
The grip tightened again. Akira let out another scream. "YES! YES I UNDERSTAND EVERYTHING YOU SAID! PLEASE STOP THIS, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE!"
The pain ceased, and Akira was left on the ground, nurturing his fucked organ.
"Good," the guy said. "See you in December, homie. Oh, and don't worry about your friends. I already paid them a little visit. Guess they couldn't wait as long as you, huh?"
The guy disappeared, just like when Akira first encountered him. He felt himself warp out of the Metaverse and back into reality. He was back in his room, surrounded by the familiar walls. His body was covered in sweat. He breathed heavily.
Slowly, cautiously, he stood back up, wincing with pain thanks to his wrecked crotch.
He collapsed on his bed, panting heavily. He rubbed his face with his hands.
Fuck you, God, he thought, right before he fell asleep. I knew you were weren't real.
A/N:
Aaaaaaand that's chapter 3! I hoped you guys liked it! Gonna respond to a few comments.
Guest: I'm glad you like it! I probably will keep updating it, but as you can probably tell, it won't be all that frequently.
Aonstant Cgony: Haha, I guess most people never thought that memes and Persona could mix like this, huh?
PixieRed: So happy you like it! And glad you liked the nose imagery, that was a favorite of mine too, haha.
So, do you have any questions? Comments? Do you like where this story is going so far? Do you think the quality of writing is going down? Is there something you dislike about the way I wrote the characters? Do you have any constructive criticism that can make this thing better? Did you like it? Did you hate it? Were you ambivalent? Should I just stop writing altogether and give up on this thing?
Please leave a reply and let me know what you think! I can't improve unless you guys tell me what your thoughts are!
As always, thanks for reading.
-Kiril