Chapter Twenty-Six

Yume bites her tongue as hard as she can and reaches up once again. She feels the bartender's counter, an eye always on the shadow man in a tux mixing drinks for guests. Finally, she grabs the paper she wants, biting her tongue harder to keep the curse-turned-exclamation silent as she ducks away and behind the crates in the dark corner. The sound of glass shatters and she notices the cup stain on the map. Whoops.

While the shadows in Himura's mind clean up the mess, Yume tries to sneak a peek at the map with what little light she can use. All she can see is a… barcode?

"Ugh," the bartender grumbles, picking up a ruined napkin. He makes his way to the phone on the wall and dials. "I need someone to send the customer's map down here. … Yes, another one. … I will get this one to Juniper, as soon as it arrives. I know it's not protocol. … Fine."

Yume raises an eyebrow at the lucky break. Here she was worried she'd have to teleport out if he went searching. More importantly: customer's map? There's more to this place than a six-by-six inch piece of paper?

Yume hides behind some untouched chairs and crates at the very back of the seated dining and theater room. She goes over the map, frowning. It isn't just a barcode, but there is a string of numbers and letters in the bottom corner. The map itself shows 'special' rooms in addition to the theater room and entrance. It doesn't show any servicing halls and staff rooms that she has definitely passed. The safe room she uses is smudged out, which is very interesting to the four year old with a mind for patterns. Two other rooms are smudged out as well, and she makes finding one of them a goal for the next hour she's got left here.

Now, for the barcode, Yume rummages through her things and unwraps her phone from its bubble wrapping. She goes to Himura's dungeon tab and painstakingly types in each number and letter into the search bar of the map. It works, and Yume glances over to the door nearest her left. A guard stands watch over the exit to the paths for the next safe rooms.

The girl sighs and turns to the stage to watch the dancers as she tries to think of a way around this. Somehow knock out the guard? See if there is an exit backstage? She'd rather take the routes she knows, and not guess and check. Maybe keep her phone out if she has to take the risk. Risk without reward is more than likely if she can't-

A dancer collapses. Yume's wince turns into a horrified gasp when the dancer suddenly falls through the stage and out of sight. The girl quickly scrambles up the crates for a better view. She brings a hand to her forehead to focus and peer but there's… nothing. Someone's already taken the dancer's place. There isn't any faltering in the other ladies' moves as the newest dancer places herself the missing one's steps.

Yume swears and drops into a ball on the crate. Discarding her planning, she watches the dancers spin and twirl and leap. They go through the motions but now that she focuses and looks at their every move, it stands out. They move gracefully, but never expend more energy than they must. There are pale dancers, but there are also ashen. Some bodies are too tightly coiled. Others shake at their strain. The dancers on stage are not having fun, and not doing this because they love it.

The question now is why?

Yume shakes her head and looks over to the bar. She repacks her cellphone and stuffs the map in a spare pocket. Her face scarf is repositioned securely around her mouth, and then she slinks towards the man getting a free map from the bartender.

She didn't want to think of this – isn't sure it will work – but it's an option she has to try at least once; if she can figure out how to work it.

Yume quietly haunts the shadows behind the VIP known as Juniper. When one of his hands gets the map from the bartender, Yume brushes her fingers against his other one. She doesn't feel different, but she takes no chance and turns away, moving to the shade of a banister close to the guarded exit.

Legs reflect against the banister poles instead of her head; pants the same colour as Juniper's. Yume bites and swallows the whine building in her throat. She can't stop her wide eyes, staring at something that isn't. She glances at her hands. They don't reflect in the pole, but they are unchanged in her view.

Whatever happened with Jack Frost worked and she's trying hard not to breakdown.

Yume discreetly tugs the fingerless gloves and lowers her hands back to her sides. When she shifts her legs, the reflection copies. Size difference, yet same motions. That makes sense, but what happens when she moves to look at people? A full-body mirror would be helpful, instead of a pole in the ground. And what about arm length? What if people start going through her? Can people go through the… projection? And how does it break? Does it- will it keep to reality? What happens if she returns home looking like someone else?

A voice comes from behind her, cutting through her thoughts. It's a masked waiter, telling her it's her time for the special event. He thinks she's Juniper. After receiving a strange look when she glances up at the mask, Yume keeps her eyes forward and nods. She keeps silent as she's lead past the guard, into a soundproof hallway. Does the projection include voices? Is the person she's hiding as acting out-of-character? Where are they going?

The last question is answered quickly. Apparently there is a strip club in the cabaret. And not just one type.

"What even?" Yume mutters after the masked waiter has left to serve some other people. She has instructions to follow the map to other sections of the cabaret. This first room is apparently the mixture of erotic and raunchy, and splitting around the area leads to more of one or the other. Yume moves for the hallway with the safe room in the middle, the one which leads to the erotic sections. The girl tries not to appear like she's running for it. Once inside, she lets her body shake out the shivers and panic, blinking in shock as the room shifts into a practice room and then back to storage. It's too many thoughts and theories for her brain to handle at the moment. Right now, she looks for a reflective surface. Very carefully, Yume looks at the legs of her reflection. Then she slaps herself.

"At least that works." The girl rubs her jaw; not stopping the relieved smile spread as her reflection copies her staring at same-height green eyes. "But there's got to be a better way."

She's not complaining; it's just ouch.

"Now," Yume moves to the table in the middle of the room. She shoulders her bag and digs for her phone. "Where am I going…?"

There's a small, thin hallway in the corner of the nearest erotic section. She can use that to connect towards the backrooms. Her map labels them staff rooms, but they also lead to the other safe room. She memorizes the path as she sips from a water bottle. A few normal hallways, one other tiny hall leading to a room, and some stairs. It should be simple enough.

"Should be," she mutters, packing everything away. The sight of a back, belonging to a masked shadow-person, isn't comforting though when she peeks out the door. Even then, ducking behind the shadows of furniture and walls actually seems to successfully hide her from the shadow patrols. Maybe they can't see through the sides of the masks, Yume ponders. As long as she stays in the peripheral, nothing even twitches towards her.

Then comes the next problem: there isn't a staff door in the erotic section.

Yume barely needs to hide, as all of the attention from the VIPs are on the dancers. She slips into the corner and feels around in the dark. Her hands find cool metal, and then slide down further to find gaps.

An air vent.

That's just grate.

She stifles a laugh at the unintended, sarcastic pun and carefully undoes the screws. It takes her longer than she'd like to get the cover off. It takes even longer to crawl through the cold, dusty inside.

Almost done, Yume thinks as she drags herself into the light of the staffroom. The pattern of hallway hide-and-don't-let-them-see continues after, with her dodging the masked shadow people as she lurks in the dark spaces.

The girl freezes at a clicking sound coming from an open door. Heels. She goes to hide by the door shadows, slowly peeking in.

Himura paces back and forth. A dancer in her late teens or early twenties sits with her back straight in a chair, unmoving and unblinking. There's something almost familiar about the younger woman, but the doors on the other side of the room slam open before Yume can figure out why. Another dancer is dragged in by two of the masked staff. The other moves out of the chair just in time for the dragged one to be forced into it.

This one is more than familiar. Crying silently as Himura puffs her chest and stalks in front of the chair, this new dancer was the one who fell through to the floor in the main area.

"Your punishment has been decided," Himura says in a low, betrayed tone. As if the older woman is hurt by even looking at the crying woman. "Alha will be dealing with you from now on." The woman cups her hands under the crier's cheeks. "You've wasted your potential. You could have been great; if only you focused and practiced." The woman shakes her head sharply and steps back, turning fully around and signalling to the guards and other dancer. "Get her out of my sight."

"N-no," the dancer begs, being dragged towards Yume's door. The girl dives away behind a few boxes, listening to the screams come closer. "Madam! Please! I will be better! Give me another chance!"

Yume holds her breath as the crying dancer is dragged into the hall. The blank faced one grabs the door, slamming it once the others are out. As flat as her face, Himura says, "There are no second chances for the broken."

Not even when the silence penetrates can Yume find her breath. She carefully looks over at the room Himura is locked into. Then she continues, trying hard not to rush to the safe room.

All of that was how Himura sees the world if she had some form of absolute power. Yume assumed it would be bad but…

No second chances for the broken?

It's frightening to think what would have happened had Yume not proven she could hold positions for long stretches of time. That might have been a minor punishment if this is how Himura would treat older dancers. And Alha… The woman is familiar because Yume's got some good dirt on the nightclub the woman works at. It's a classy place, even with the drug money and prostitution that goes on behind the scenes. So, the question, did Himura teach Alha to dance, or does she control the young woman's working situation?

Yume, safely tucked in the safe room, stares at the slow-changing numbers of her phone's clock.

Is it all deeper than she thought?

This is Persona. The answer is most likely 'yes'.

;;;

"Idiots," Kotori huffs and practically guards the shorter girl. She glances over at Yume. "Don't pay attention to them."

"Thanks," Yume's mouth quirks in a smile before she looks worriedly over at the group Kotori normally hangs out with on break. "But, I don't want to get in between your friends and you…"

"You aren't," the girl snorts and settles against the wall. Yume unconsciously copies the position. "And really, we're only friends by con-vein-ee-ence. We keep up on gossip with each other, but we don't, like, um, play or anything."

"Still," Yume ducks her head to hide the smile. "Thank you. I appreciate you staying by me this class."

"I think we're all a bit afraid of teach on some level," Kotori mutters back, crossing her arms as her shoulders hunch. "And besides, I owe you for yesterday."

"You don't-"

"I really do," Kotori frowns and glances around the class with a calculating look. "I've never even thought twice about disobeying the teacher, but I needed the out you gave me. I never thought about a mentor being wrong before."

Yume's eyes flicker up, and then go back to people watching. She understands, of course. It's just always a bit sad to see when a person realizes that being an adult doesn't mean they know best. It's been a… long time since Yume lost that filter. Not since- well… not since before her younger brother's death last life.

"Why do we not question?" Kotori mutters, talking to herself. "Why does no one realize how wrong it all is?"

"Did you question?" Yume asks, following the girl to their places when the madam calls end of break.

"No," Kotori says; face a cool and thoughtful expression. It contrasts her frustrated words well. "I had all the information, but I didn't want to get involved. Why didn't I want to do anything?"

"Probably a few reasons," Yume says, avoiding the taller girl's sharp eyes. "I know I stay silent because I don't want to draw attention. If I started talking about how hard we are pushed in these lessons, too many negative things could happen."

"You're afraid."

Yume slips her a tired, sardonic smile before the lesson continues. "Like you said, we all are on some level."

The fear their words will be brushed off. Told they are exaggerating. Told they just need to practice more. Their words pushed aside because how could a woman who's worked so long with kids, teens, and adults actually do that? How could she get away with it?

The fear they will get in trouble going against authority. This is their teacher, instructor, mentor. Himura is supposed to push. She is taller, stronger, and scarier. She has the power against all her students.

The fear of drawing attention to their home life. Yume and a few others' fear. If those in charge do listen to the student's complaints, their guardians will be brought in to deal with it. What if there are no guardians or if there are bad guardians? What if dancing is an escape from home? What if telling someone changes everything?

After class, the four girls – Haru, Kotori, Miwa, and Yume – walk to the front entrance together. They split two and two; Yume squawking when Miwa ruffles her hair in goodbye. The other girls laugh and they leave on a happy note. It's a relief; a great feeling that her friends can make her smile after the stress of exploring the dungeon, and then being stuck in Himura's class today.

It makes her feel a little more normal. It makes the world feel a little more real. She may not be able to explain to them why it's important she cares, but the fact she does care is important to her little red and black haired self.

"Mr. Takakura is staying for dinner tomorrow," Haru says with an uneasy smile as they wait for her ride.

Yume holds the older girl's free hand and prompts the rest. "Is it alright he is staying?"

"It is." Haru's shoulders slump and she tightens her grip on the younger girl. "He normally only stays over when there is a big project happening within the company. Or when there's going to be one."

"Oh," Yume nods. "So, do he and your father talk about business all night?"

"For many days," Haru whines in a whisper. "And I know father wants me to start sitting in on their meetings but it's hard…"

"So don't," Yume leans her head on the other's shoulder to offer some comfort. "Not until you're ready. And if you father pushes, tell him you aren't ready and maybe list off some reasons why you feel you aren't ready."

Haru relaxes, hugging the girl when the car rolls onto their street. "That's a good plan. Can I phone if I need some ideas?"

"Of course," Yume reassures her. Haru ruffles Yume's hair, adding to the mess. The younger girl groans and waves as her friend slides into the limousine. Then she's off, merrily walking home with plans to pick up some snacks and say hello to the stores' employees she hasn't seen in a while.

Not noticing a boy with reddish-brown eyes pausing on the sidewalk to watch her.

;;;

"Sojiro?" Yume asks as she oh-so-helpfully pushes their dirty plates across the table so he can put them in the sink. "Do you think you can pick me up at-" she says the time fifteen minutes after dance class has ended.

"Sure," he hums thoughtfully. "Why?"

"I usually wait with a friend after class," Yume explains. "We have to cool down, get changed, and wait for her driver… stuff like that."

"Alright," he raises an eyebrow but doesn't press why. Sojiro's a great friend. She makes sure to give him an extra hug when she smiles and thanks him. "You're the one waiting longer. It's not my problem."

"Still, thank you," she smiles and follows him to the door. Dinner finished, he walks her back to the apartment building. It's a comfortable silence and she can let herself relax and be the introvert she is at heart.

She wonders if these moments of calm will be a common thing. Yume really hopes so.

;;;

"I would love to," Yume says, hiding her surprise the best she can. It's easy, as they talk over the phone. Show on her face, not her tone. "Whenever you're ready, Akira."

It takes him almost five minutes of him starting and stopping before he gets the hand of reading out loud. A couple words are tripped over, a few coughs, and some pauses when he has to remember to relax, but he gets through the prologue of his reading assignment.

"You did really well," Yume says, blinking wide eyes at the couch cushion across from her. And he did. That's the most she's heard him say in one go, and he did it well. When his voice gave out on a word, he calmed down and whispered lower so he could say it instead of skipping it. "And you have an awesome voice. Like, there's a public speaker tone to it. I mean, the kind of voice that holds the crowd; that people listen to. You know?" He hums positive in response. "How are you feeling?"

"Exhausted," he says, huffy.

She laughs, "Well, I'll let you sleep soon. Oh, right, forgot to tell you earlier, but I won't be able to answer the phone tomorrow night."

There's some rustling, but otherwise it is suddenly silent on the other end of the phone. "Akira?"

"Why?" he asks, tone almost weary.

"Futaba and I are having a sleep over." Yume blinks at the soft sigh coming from the other side. "I just thought I should warn you. I'll definitely be around Sunday if you want to phone again, but I won't be able to pick up tomorrow."

"Alright," he agrees quickly. "So, talk a little longer."

"If you don't want to go to sleep right now." She laughs hesitantly.

"No. Talk."

Yume blurts out a chuckle, which is then reciprocated when he hears her mock, "So bossy."

She finally stops their chat when she can hear him yawning through the receiver. Yet, even after she's placed the phone back in its cradle, something makes her think he would have stayed up all night just so he wouldn't mind missing their chat the next day.

"That's silly," Yume chuckles to her reflection around her toothbrush. She looks at the foam mustache gathering and chuckles again.

It's okay. She'll take what silliness she can get before she has to face her nightmares once again.

A/N: Apparently writing out a dungeon isn't enjoyable and takes longer than it should. Anyways, thanks for reading! Hope everyone's enjoyed!

Thank you, guisniperman, for your review! Yep, you're correct with both. Now Yume just needs to connect the dots… Glad to hear Kotori's welcomed! Thank you so much for your review, and I hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Thank you, GlaresThatKill, for your review! It really means a lot to hear that; thank you so much! For Yume's typing, she might as well be using one finger with how long it takes on her phone, hahaha. Apologies it's been a wait between updates; I hope the chapter makes up some of that. I hope you enjoyed, and thank you so much for your review!

Thank you, Xxser3ndipityxX, for your review! I hope I do him justice (no pun intended) as the story progresses; especially as he's one of the few characters I'm looking forward to writing more. Yep, Japan's just full of strong dungeons it seems. It's not quite Yume being distorted… but there's a whole mess of plot lines that will explain it; hopefully I can get them to answer something by the end of this dungeon. Honestly, I'm waiting for it too. Hopefully the build-up for the actual plot of Persona 5 will be worth it. Thank you so much for your review, and I hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Thank you, Avatar . NIX, for your review! Hahaha, I don't think any of the girls would mind if someone punched her. Just got hold off for the dungeon boss… Glad to hear! Hope you're okay for a little Futaba fluff next! I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and thank you so much for your review!

Thank you, Mia, for your reviews! Oh yes, definitely not done with the Eguchi family. It's be really funny to see, because how does no one not find the app on their friend's/family's phone? And when the Thieves and Yume meet… I hope I do that cluster justice. Thank you so much for reviewing, and I really hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Thank you, kalmaegi, for your reviews! Right? Akira doesn't even have to try and he's ranking up Charm. Definitely more on time loop Akira later, and hopefully Yume's Arcana is worth the suspense. I hope you enjoyed, and thank you so much for reviewing!

Thank you, Eleni, for your review! It really means a lot to hear you like it enough to reread it. Thank you so much! You're really close with the white dot idea. At the moment only the Dark Hour has one, but it may change later… You're really on the right track with Tetsuya. He will explain it later, but he does have something Yume would consider a 'main character power'. Got it in one with the blue dot. The strange feelings are a bit more complicated… same with Yume's situation; thank you so much for writing out your ideas, I'm so glad to know the hints are getting picked up. The other Persona games will have… moments. I haven't played either, but they do happen and Yume will get sudden reminders that they do happen. Hopefully I can do justice for the other games. Thank you so much for reviewing. I truly appreciate it, and I really hope you enjoyed the chapter.

Happy February