Author's notes: Decided to write a little something with the Metaverse this time around. Probably will write more.

Joker and Panther

The rain fell gently as Ren made his way from Akihabara back home. As he rounded the corner, entering the familiar Yongen-Jaya back alley, he finished sending a message to the Phantom Thieves group chat:

"Group meeting at Leblanc, Mementos after."

They were currently waiting for the change of heart to occur in Okumura, and they still had a little less than two weeks before Haru would be sent off, so what better way to help pass time than to sharpen his skills as a Phantom Thief? Truthfully, he'd much rather spend today with Ann. The rainy weather would have been a great excuse to visit her at her place, watch a movie together, maybe even cuddle. But that idea was thrown out when he got a tip from Mishima about a pair of thieves in Akihabara. He and Morgana went to investigate and found more than enough information to I'D their targets.

"You're not wet, right Morgana?"

Morgana wiggled his head out of Ren's bag. "No, I'm good. It's a good thing I told you to bring that umbrella this morning, huh?" He nodded, the piterpater of water droplets hitting the umbrella ceased as they reached the underhood of Leblanc. He closed his umbrella, shaking off some of the water before turning the knob and entering.

"I'm home."

While the cafe was open there weren't any customers at the booths. Sojiro was behind the counter talking with a customer that Ren was very familiar with, he lightly gasped, surprised to see her here. From her blonde twintail hairstyle to the familiar Shujin Academy uniform with hoodie and red leggings combo. Sojiro was about to greet him when she beat him to it.

"Welcome home." She said cheerfully. Yes, Ren was very familiar with Ann Takamaki. Hearing her voice welcoming him home made his heart flutter, he could feel his cheeks heating up. Morgana wiggled himself out of Ren's bag, now propping himself on his shoulder.

"Hi Lady Ann!"

"O-oh. Hey Morgana." It slipped her mind that Morgana was with Ren, at least he interpreted her greeting as ment for both of them. "So where have you two been? I was sure you would have come straight here because of the rain."

"We had to go to Akihabara. But I'm surprised you're here already, I had just sent a message for all of us to meet here."

"Not really much I can do when it rains, so I thought I'd come to Leblanc and spend some time with you guys." She playfully turned in her counter seat, hands gripping the metal as she turned left and right, her legs following each turn, a smile on her face as she looked at Ren and Morgana. The latter leaped from the bag to an empty stool then leaped to another stool until he was in Ann's lap. She was surprised at first but settled for keeping him in her lap, she lightly stroked his fur, eliciting blissful purrs from him.

Ren rolled his eyes. "Have you been here long?"

"Maybe for like an hour or so."

"How about I make us some coffee then?"

"Ooo, that sounds great."

As Ren rounded the corner to get behind the counter he noticed that Sojiro hadn't taken his eyes off him. His right hand on his chin and his left propped his right arm by the elbow, his eyes were narrowed and he was smiling. Ren paused, he looked at him much like a deer would at headlights. Sojiro chuckled, passing Ren to get out from behind the counter.

"Well since you're here I'll leave you to man the shop. Since it's raining I don't think we'll be getting any customers. Close up early if you want."

Ren blinked. "Are you sure?"

He chuckled again. "Yeah it's fine, don't worry about it. I don't want to… interrupt anything." He said this as he looked back and forth between Ren and Ann, the latter who also looked at the adult with curiosity. He grabbed the umbrella in the corner and opened the door. "I'll just leave you to it." He closed the door gently behind him, popping open the umbrella as he began walking home. "I wonder…" he smiled and chuckled once more. "I think it'd work out for those two."

…

"Listen up, we got a few targets to discuss." It was a typical meeting for the Phantom Thieves, preparing for an exploration into Mementos they all gathered in their leader's room. Futaba sat on Ren's bed while everyone else gathered around the table, Morgana stood at the center of the table giving the rundown on today's targets. "We have two targets; a pair of identical twins named Nichi and Barichi Haisai. These two have been running amok all around Akihabara. They've been stealing from people and stores by having one steal and the other run by the exit to make people think their getting away. They also seem to have some kind of mini explosive that the people refer to as a FireCracker Bomb. No doubt it's something they use to aid in their escapes. No one's been able to catch them and they've been able to avoid any conflict too."

"Wait, they have actual bombs?!" Haru asked.

Makoto shook her head. "I don't think they're actually bombs. It's more likely they're some kind of makeshift using small firecrackers and smoke by packing them into a ball."

Morgana nodded. "That might be, but I have no doubt that when we go to Mementos the cognition will recognize it as a bomb, so be on guard."

"How old are these guys?" Ryuji asked.

"From what we've gathered, they're about eight years old. Apparently their father is in jail for armed robbery and their mother has been working most hours of the day. I think that's how they've been able to do this without any interventions."

"I feel bad for them." Ann said. "They're just kids…"

"That may be," Yusuke said. "but we need to show them the error of their ways. If not, their crimes will only escalate in severity."

Morgana nodded his head. "Yusuke's right. If we can stop them now they'll be all the more better for it. Is everyone in agreement?" The nods and grunts of affirmation were unanimous, today they enter Mementos to bring justice to the Haisai twins.

…

There was something definitely strange about their target. Usually a target in Mementos could be found in an alcove within the cognitive subway, but reaching this pair of targets was… different. With Oracle's help they were able to pinpoint their location, however, traveling there had led them down an ever narrowing subway tunnel. While there was still more than enough room for Mona to travel down the tracks in van form, it was starting to get a little uncomfortable and slightly concerning.

"Hey," Panther said looking out the window. "is it normal for the walls and ceiling to be getting closer?"

"Do you think it might have something to do with our targets?" Fox asked. "They are quite young, perhaps they don't understand the concept of vanishing point so their cognition would make the subway tunnel actually get smaller?"

"That just might be the case when it comes to younger targets." Mona answered. "Though I don't like the idea of thinking that kids would have distorted desires."

"We aren't going to hurt them, are we?" Noir asked. "The intel we gathered said that they run at the first signs of conflict. It doesn't feel right to have to use violence on kids. Maybe we could try and talk this out?"

"Noir's right." Skull chimed. "I mean, kicking shitty adults' asses is one thing but these are just kids. It just doesn't feel right."

"I'm glad we all think that." Queen said. "Shadow or not they're just kids and I don't like the idea of having to use our personas on children."

"Then we're all in agreement." Joker chimed in. "We'll talk them down into a change of heart, no personas. "But," he added. "if we have to get physical we will." Everyone nodded in agreement, they just hoped it wouldn't have to come down to a fight.

"I'm seeing someone up ahead guys. We should get out here." Mona opened his backdoor, allowing everyone to get out before reverting back into his regular form. Up ahead, they could see a little boy, dressed in a yellow raincoat and wearing a red bucket hat with matching rain boots. He was startled by their appearance, he began looking around frantically, he looked to flee at any moment.

"So which one is he?" Skull leaned down to ask Mona.

"I don't know. I told you, they're identical."

Upon reaching the boy they all crouched down to be at similar height to appear less intimidating to him, it still didn't help that he appeared to be searching for a way out and was slowly inching away from them, he never turned his back on them however.

"A-a-ar-are y-y-you The Ph-Ph-Phantom Thieves?" Joker nodded his head. "But I-I-I thought you're supposed to get the bad guys…"

Skull scratched the back of his head, averting his gaze from the kid. "Yup, we beat up all the rotten people out there. Any idea why we're here?"

The boy gasped, trying to back away; he tripped over a rail, falling on his butt. He began scooting away, never looking away from The Phantoms, panic now taking over his features. "N-N-No! We didn't do anything bad."

Panther elbowed Skull, chastising him before approaching the boy. "You know, stealing from people isn't a good thing. No matter what, you can't go and steal things."

"Brother was right, you wouldn't understand at all!" Bewilderment and confusion took them as the boy whistled then picked himself up and ran from The Phantom Thieves. Panther reached out for the boy before she noticed three orbs stop their rolling infront of her. They couldn't have been more than a foot big and were very shiny, it seemed like something was sparkling out of them and they let out a really low 'hissss' sound. Her eyes widened as the sound became non existent, these orbs were just like the bomb Mona used in their combo move! But that would mean-

Above the shouts and cries of her teammates, she could hear Joker shout her name. A second later she felt someone shove and roll her to the ground, a second after that she could feel the sounds and shockwaves of an explosion. Her eyes closed shut and she could hear the sounds of screams and falling rubble. Though she couldn't see what it was, she could feel something bracing itself against her and fearing the sounds of her surroundings she clung to whatever it was, hoping that it'd protect her. The chaos began to settle as the sounds of small bits of rubble fell and rolled. Panther slowly opened her eyes, being greeted by a shade of gray, she was confused. While she couldn't quite see, she could hear muffled voices that sounded distant for some reason.

"...ther….!" "...ker…!" "C…n you …ear me…?!".

As more of her senses returned to her she could feel parts of her touching the floor but she felt like she was being held by something and through the dust and debris she could smell a familiar aroma of coffee and cologne. As she gripped her gloved hands she could feel them clutching onto a fabric of sorts. If she focused enough she could feel something firm beneath what she grasped, as well a very slow rising and lowering of her hands. She even heard very slow, labored, breathing above her. Everything was starting to make sense; the shadow had thrown bombs at her and Joker had leaped to save her. Which would mean that above her was-

"Joker?!"

She looked up, it was apparent that Joker held her to his chest, his body having covered her from the explosion. His mask was gone, blood ran down the left side of his head, his left eye closed and his right looked down at her. His breathing was heavy and his face was marked with various bruises from the dirt and debris that struck him, yet through his labored breaths he smiled at her.

"Hey… you're not… hurt… right?" She was too stunned to verbally respond but shook her head. "That's… good…" She could feel his arms loosen around her, his right eye began to close as he began to lean away from her, falling to her right side with a thud. With her vision now cleared she could see that they were still in the Mementos tunnel only it was just them as a massive wall of collapsed ceiling more than likely separated them from the rest of the thieves.

"Joker! Panther! Are you guys alright?! Answer us!" Now that she was fully aware she could make out Mona's voice from the other side.

She quickly sat up, sliding herself out of Joker's barely conscious grasp and brought herself to his side. "We're here!" Her eyes did a quick scan of him, he unquestionably took the brunt of that explosion. A massive hole was made on the upper back of his trench coat, exposing his scorched back and the rest of him was covered in dirt and burn marks. He was bleeding from the head, it began to flow to the right side, and his eyes were shut tight. His teeth were grit and air was sucked in and out through them as they were long and slow. "But Joker's not doing so great! I'll heal him up! You guys try and find a way around!"

"A way around? Did you pick anything up, Oracle?"

"Yeah! There's a service door back before the tunnel starts getting narrower. It leads out further from this point and I think our targets will use that to escape."

"Then let's hurry." Panther could hear Mona transform and the sound of multiple car doors opening. "Take care of Joker for us and we'll meet you further in!" The sound of screeching tires and the roar of Mona's engine echoed through the wall of debris and quickly became quieter and quieter as they doubled back.

Panther wasted no time, quickly frisking the pockets and inside of Joker's trench coat in hopes that he was carrying two types of medicine that would help him out of his current predicament. Whether it was by the prepared fullness of their leader or by the luck of a god she was able to produce the two medical items she sought, a tube of 'Nohar-M' and a vial labeled 'Takemedic'. She used her teeth to pull off her gloves, squeezing out some of the clear gel onto her middle and index finger. She looked over his back once more, given the destruction around them it was a wonder how the entirety of the back of his trench coat hadn't disintegrated. The discoloration of his skin was severe, ranging in various shades of red to crimson to even near black with more probably hidden from view.

"This is going to sting…" As she applied the ointment Joker's hands instantly balled into fists, his exhaling coming out as a deep, painful, growl and his head tried to dig itself into the ground. "Just bare with it a little longer…" She doubled her speed in applying the ointment, it was already working thanks to the effects of the Metaverse as each rub of it restored coloration to Joker's back. His pained growls soon subsided to low pants, the pain having diminished greatly but he was still in no condition to move. Panther discarded the now empty tube, looking over the wound one last time seeing that her efforts had turned his bloody, blackened, back glossy and pink. She nodded, his burns were gone, now to restore his health.

She reached over to him, hooking him by the upper torso with her arms crossing at his chest. With a heave, she was able to lift him off the ground enough to drag him onto her lap. Joker now faced upwards, his head rested at the top of her thighs while the rest of his upper back lay across her lap. She shuddered slightly, feeling the gel based ointment through her suit, not ideal but this made it easier to give Joker the medicine. Her right hand reached for the vial while her left gently caressed Joker, moving the hair from his face delicately. Dirt and blood mixed together in his hair, the latter still flowed from his crown covering his face like a crimson mask. His eyes were still shut and his breathing still slow and labored, he looked pale underneath the crimson flow. She called out to him, hoping for him to respond, yet he hadn't changed. Her hand moved down to his neck, she checked his pulse, the feeling of her fingertips brushing against him caused him to groan in response. He was conscious, but his pulse rate was very low; so he was barely conscious. She craned his head so that he was looking up at her, with her right hand she uncorked the vial and swigged all of it in one go. Her hands gently cupped his cheeks, his lips slightly parted, she leaned down and pressed her lips against his. She turned her head slightly, opening her mouth pouring the contents of the medicine into Joker via kiss, it was the best way she could ensure a near unconscious Joker would drink it. She held the kiss, a trail of the liquid escaped her lips, she held her breath, silence followed for a short time and eventually broke as Joker reactively swallowed the fluid that was given to him. She parted from him, panting slightly to catch her breath, pink dusting her cheeks after having done such a gesture.

She checked his pulse again, the rate had increased, coloration came back to his face, and his breathing was steady. She smiled, he'd recover in no time. She crossed her arms over his collarbone holding him in a hug and lent down once kissing his forehead, her lips now glossed by his blood.

"You had me worried there…" He stirred a little and his eyes slowly opened, taking in the sight of Panther looking down at him from above, giggling. "In stories, it's always the prince that wakes up the princess with a kiss. Not the other way around."

He smiled. "Even princes need waking every now and then. I'm glad a princess like you came to wake me up." She laughed a little, only he would think of saying something like that. She could feel him attempting to get up but held him down in her embrace, he looked at her questioningly.

"You're not fully healed yet, I'm almost done. Carmen." Her Persona manifested behind them, taking the cigar out of her mouth and blew a breath at them, green particles raining down on them. Ren could feel his body being rejuvenated as he relaxed in her embrace. "That was really reckless of you."

"Sorry." He reached his hand up, placing it on one of hers. "But you know, I'd do it again if it meant protecting."

"Always so reckless." The blood that covered his face had evaporated and she no longer felt his bare back on him, a sign that his coat had repaired itself and his wound healed. "But thanks for saving me." She kissed him once more, now leaving her lip print on his forehead and Joker noticed the lack of red on her lips.

"Hey, were you wearing lipstick?"

…

"The door's just up ahead, hurry! They're right on us!"

With Joker having fully recovered him and Panther gave chase to the runaway Haisai further down the tunnel. To their surprise the tunnel had opened up to a vast space full of tracks and support beams on the ceiling and acting as pillars. Given the amount of space catching up to the Haisai shadow seemed like it would be impossible but Joker had just the idea; why run when they could fly?

Using the ceiling support beams, Joker used his Grappling Hook to swing from one beam to the next, his other arm held Panther who clung to him for dear life, her arms hugging his neck, as they swung through the air. The runaway was spotted in no time and he was accompanied by his brother, making tracking both all the more easier.

"We've got to cut them off!"

"Alright, brace yourself then!"

Before she could question him, Joker grappled onto another beam this time swinging a lot lower and releasing at an angle that flung them far ahead with Panther's screams accompanying them as the Haisai twins looked overhead to see them sail by. Launching the grappling hook above him Joker quickly dislodged it, cutting his momentum so he could descend back to the ground. As they fell Joker flipped himself a complete 360 degrees as to change the position he held Panther, now supporting her with both arms carrying her bridal style. He landed with a soft thud, landing in a squatting position, the Haisai twins pumped the brakes on their running, sliding to halt themselves resulting in them falling on to their backsides as they made attempts to scurry away after doing so.

"Please, never do that again." Joker just chuckled as Panther let herself off him, both now staring down the Haisai twins. She cleared her throat before pointing an accusatory finger at them, her other hand gripping her whip. "That was a really dangerous move you pulled back there! Someone could have died!"

The brother on the left, and furthest from them, sucked his teeth and scowled. "You don't understand us at all! We're doing this because we have too! You guys are acting just like those mean people who took dad away! You're both the same!"

For a moment she felt her resolve waver before she felt Joker's hand gently touch her back, a sign of reassurance. "Go for the one on the left." He whispered. "Use your whip to bind him so he can't move. Wait for me to rush the other one, that'll be the signal." Panther didn't like the idea of having to use her whip on kids but they had to be subdued somehow lest they decide to throw more bombs. Joker slowly began to approach them, his hands raised up, palms facing them. "We don't want to fight, we just want to talk. What you two are doing isn't right, you shouldn't be stealing from people."

"You don't know anything!" In that instant, Joker lunged his grappling hook near the brother on the right, now flying towards them he extended his arm, grabbing hold of the brother on the right and sailing past them. Before the left brother could act, Panther's whip coiled around him, binding his arms to his side. Panther tugged slightly causing the brother to lose balance and fall to the side, he could only look on seeing Joker restrain him with his arm tucked under his chin, holding him up to his chest as he struggled to break free. "Hey! Let Barichi go!"

"You care a lot about your brother, don't you?" With his other hand Joker took out his knife, now pointing it at the brother he held hostage. Panther flinched, while she trusted Joker knew what he was doing seeing him hold a child at knife point was… unnerving to say the least. "So why put each other in danger like this?" He looked up at him confused. "Maybe you two have been getting away with stealing because you haven't been caught by anyone. But what if you were, like now, do you think you could do anything? Could you save your brother?" Joker started to have the knife inch closer to Barichi, causing Nichi to scuorm and wiggle to try and get out of his bindings but Panther didn't relent on the grip she had on him. The flat end of the knife touched Barichi's cheek, both brothers froze out of fear. "Do you understand what I'm trying to tell you?"

Nichi could only watch them, feeling utterly powerless he hung his head low gritting his teeth in frustration. "B-brother…" He looked up seeing tears falling from his brother, his arms stopped trying to free himself. "I don't wanna do this anymore. What if… what if we end up like dad? Whenever mom comes home I can hear her cry every time. She misses dad too. I-I-I don't want to make mom even sadder!"

"Barichi…" He stopped struggling, essentially going limp, hanging his head low enough to touch the ground beneath him. His hat came off revealing the short brown hair hidden beneath it. "What else can we do mister? We don't have money, that's why mom works so much and why dad's gone. Dad said he needed to save the house but we never saw him again and mom is doing everything she can to earn money. What else can we do, huh? We just- we just want to help mom!"

"Your father must have felt desperate, that's why he stole that money. I'm sure he wants better for you, both of you." Joker put away his knife and let go of Barichi, who dropped to his knees. "Return everything you've stolen and apologies to everyone. Then talk to your mother, let her know what you've done and how you feel. Just be honest with her and tell her that you want to help."

"You make it sound so easy, mister…"

"But he's right." Nichi could feel his bindings loosen and thus he wiggled his way out and ran to Barichi, holding him tight as he looked up at Joker. "Your dad knows what he did was wrong, that's why he wants better for you two, so you don't end up like him." Panther put away her whip, walking up to the twins, she crouched down, now at even height with them, and lifted her mask and smiled at them. "But kids can help their parents if they really try to. I know you two can."

Joker had also crouched down and lifted his mask. "Your mom needs you guys."

Nichi averted his gaze and felt a tug on his arm sleeve, he looked down at his brother.

"I… I wanna help mom…"

He patted Barichi's head. "Y-yeah… let's help mom, for real this time." Nichi looked back and forth at Joker then at Panther. "I'm sorry for throwing that bomb at you lady and that you got hurt, mister."

"Hey," Joker smirked, and pointed his thumb at himself. "do I look hurt to you?"

He smiled at them. "I guess not. Thank you, both of you."

They both disappeared leaving behind an orb of light that Joker scooped up.

"Mission accomplished." He flashed a smile at Panther but looked puzzled when she looked back at him with unamusement and arms folded across her chest. "What's wrong?"

"You pulled your knife out on a kid…"

He laughed nervously, scratching his cheek. "Oh. But we didn't hurt them-"

"That's besides the point!" She stomped her foot towards him and brought her arms down angrily. "Did you really have to threaten him like that?! You're so reckless!" Joker raised his hands defensively, she tilted her head slightly still glaring at him. "Anything to say for yourself?"

"How about we go to Akihabara and see how they're doing… and I'm sorry."

She walked up to him, grabbing both ends of his coat's collar, her facial features having softened as she looked at him with a soft smile. "Good. I look forward to it. And… well…" She still had him gripped by the collar but she was fidgeting and she couldn't look at him, was she blushing too? Joker smirked, he gently placed a hand on her cheek, she was looking back at him, he leaned forward and kissed her. She froze up for a split second, her grip on him tightened in that moment, bringing him closer and deepening the kiss. Joker pulled back, his smirk widened.

"Thank you, for keeping me safe."

She let go of his collar, crossed her arms and pouted. "I should be the one saying that…" He couldn't help but laugh, even when she had protested. It wouldn't be too long before they reunited with the rest of the Phantom Thieves.