Disclaimer: I do not own Persona 5!

Unfortunately, I've been coming down with a Writer's Block recently, so there may be times when I can't upload once every two weeks. (it was originally once a week, but then I had to work on Tricked, my other fan fiction.) So if I can't follow my schedule, at least you guys will understand why now. But I tried to compensate by making this chapter a little longer.

With that, enjoy the story!

"So… today's the day, huh?" Ann muttered as she tapped her pen on her school desk as a habit of hers.

It was the day of the competition, but by then, all of them had already given up on hope. None of them know what to do, and even if they somehow managed to convince Yusuke today not to quit ballet, it was too late for him to even take part in the competition that he had previously worked so hard for.

"We don't even really know what's going on in his mind," Akira added. "Goro said that he had done something about it, but is it really going to work?"

"We can only let Yusuke-chan choose what he wants at this point of time," Goro replied. "We have already done all that we can. If that boy still can't see the fact that there are also people supporting him, then I really don't know what else we can do."

The blue-eyed girl sighed sadly as she left her pen on the table. "I still can't believe that he would give up after spending so much time and effort on his routines. I don't think it's worth it, do you?"

Akira shook his head as he adjusted his glasses. "Definitely not. But let's have some faith in our friend. Maybe he had somehow decided to take part in the competition at the last minute? Ohya-Sensei did say that she had registered his name into the competition two months ago."

"Again, it really depends on what that boy wants now," Goro reminded them. "We can't force him to change his mind, you know?"

Once again, there was silence. Then Akira nodded sadly. "There really isn't much we can do. We can only hope for the best now."

"Mako-chan? Are you alright?"

Surprised, Makoto turned to Haru. "Yeah, I'm fine. Whaddup?"

Haru had a concerned frown on her face. "Because... well, you look really upset today. Did something happen?"

The red-eyes girl's mouth snapped shut. "... Oh, yeah. About that..."

Placing a hand on her friend's shoulder, Haru smiled assuringly at her. "Do you want to talk to me about it?"

"Something pissed me off yesterday and I'm still so God damn peeved at it, but I'll tell you at a later date. I'm not sure if it's comfirmed yet, after all."

"'It'?"

"... Ugh, okay! I'll just tell you. It's a role in an action movie. I got the role of the God damn damsel in distress... Let's hope it's just temporary or something. I'm gonna confirm it with the person who casted the roles tomorrow."

"Oh, I see... Well then, good luck, Mako-chan!"

Makoto smiled back. "Thanks. I probably gotta need all the luck that I can get."

Haru started to smile as well. "But anyways... are you planning to go and spectate the competition this afternoon?"

"Duh! Even if Yusuke ain't gonna perform, I'm definitely gonna cheer our school's ballet girls on, y'know!"

"Hehe, that's great to know, because I'm planning to go there too."

"Hell yeah! Let's go together!"

"Holy crap! I never imagined the place to be so damn big!" Makoto gawked as they stepped into the concert hall, which was where the competition was going to take place.

Ryuji slapped Makoto's arm with a look of disapproval. "Makoto-Senpai, that was loud! Pipe down!"

"Aw, come on, loosen up a little, Ryuji! You're always so stiff!"

However, Makoto did have the rights to be amazed at the gigantic concert hall. The acoustic properties of the hall was fantastic due to the panels hanging from the ceiling, and the entire place was lit up with small lights that look like stars in the sky. The chairs were also very comfortable, enough for someone to just sleep on.

But who could sleep when the intense competition was going on? They had to silently cheer for their team, after all.

Suddenly, Ann spoke up. "Hey, by the way, I heard that all of the competitors have to wear plain white masks just to ensure fair judging?"

Goro nodded. "Yes. But nothing is really fair if you think about it... They managed to take one factor of a wonderful performance off for the sake of judgement, but there are still other things that may cause the judgement to be biased, such as music and sometimes even body figure."

Akira snorted. "If only there were really one person who was that objective, but nah. Everyone was born with the ability to have their own opinions of certain situations, so of course judgement may be biased at times despite all actions taken."

Ryuji squinted at them through his frames. "You know, it is one reason why the Thinking and Researching Programmme was set up and promoted in our school in the first place..."

"Yeah, and remind me what was that about again, Ryuji?"

The blond-haired boy sighed and shook his head. "Why do I even bother..."

Suddenly, Makoto grabbed Haru's arm. "Oh, hey! The competition's about to start soon! Come on, let's grab our seats!"

As they nestled themselves down into their seats, the smart-looking emcee walked onto the stage with a bright smile as he said, "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the 25th Ballet Nationals competition, where we appreciate the arts of Ballet and its grace!"

A round of applause filled the hall while Akira glanced around. "Hm, there's a lot more people here than I expected..."

"Without ado, let us begin with a speech from the CEO of the organization, Mr Takeshi Nakamura!"

As another round of applause echoed in the room, Makoto groaned in dismay. "Ugh, why a speech, of all things?"

"It's standard concert and competition procedure, Makoto..."

"Thank you for that wonderful performance, Himiko-san. Now, the judges will go out to finalise the results of the competition. While they do so, the audience will be treated to a special performance put up by each of the students in this category: the Gala category, where the ballet students will not be judged for their performance, and they can be as creative as they want. These students are also finally allowed to reveal their own faces in this category. Please give a warm hand for Misaki Fujikawa!"

Futaba was staring in amazement as the dancer left the stage. "Holy crap, all of those performances were fantastic, especially the second last one!"

"Yume Kobayashi, right? Yeah, I got to admit, her performance is amazing!" Ann nodded in agreement. "Plus, she's from our school!"

Makoto placed a hand under her chin. "I thought the one who added some modern move into her routine was pretty creative, though. You know, Misaki Fujikawa? The one who's about to perform?"

"Regardless, all of them have captured the essence of each of their performances," Ryuji remarked. "This is going to be a tough fight..."

Goro chuckled lightly. "Come on, guys. Have a little faith in the girls from our school, will you?"

"Wait, who were the ballet students from our school who are competing in this? Yume Kobayashi is one of them, then Tsumugi Tomoe, then..." Akira continued to ramble on before Goro shushed him.

"Pipe down, Akira. She's about to perform."

Standing in the middle of the stage with a slight swagger, the girl who had danced a slightly modern style waited for the music to begin. Akira made a point to note that Misaki was wearing something that... didn't look like a ballet costume. With a revealing colourful singlet and tights, she looked as if she were going to a club.

Was such a thing really allowed on stage? Then again, maybe it's because it's the Gala category. There really are no limits as to what the participants can do.

The music wasn't what anyone expected either. Loud rock EDM music suddenly began playing, and the young girl started to rock it onstage, tossing her sunglasses and leather gloves off towards the audience as if she owned the stage. The crowd went wild upon the revelation of the fierce but hot features on her face.

Makoto was the first one to verbally respond in the entire group. "Holy crude, I never expected a rock performance at a ballet competition!"

Goro chuckled at the spunky girl's face. "Expect all kinds of performances during the Gea category. Don't be too surprised about anything."

"Is that how we're really gonna go by now?!"

"I mean, the best way to wow an audience is to surprise them, isn't it?"

Makoto sighed as she shifted around in her seat. "Well, guess you're right, Drama Queen. I can't argue with you. You do have the experience, after all."

As the drums slammed on the last beat and the last chord on the guitar was played, Misaki struck a dramatic and dynamic pose, flashing a wide grin towards the audience. Akira wanted to burst out laughing when he heard part of the crowd scream in excitement and the fans from Misaki's school cheering and chanting her name for her support. "She does have a lot of followers!"

Ann nodded. "Misaki's a really popular choice. I can see why, though. She's brought a modern touch to something classical. If only Yusuke actually realised how much potential he had to change the ballet world…"

Makoto pouted irritatingly. "Come on, Ann! Let's just enjoy the concert! I mean, it's a competition for the ballet students, but we're literally just here to appreciate the arts and enjoy the performances put up by them!"

"Haha, I guess you're right, Makoto. Alright, I shan't mope any further. Let's continue!"

As the thunderous applause ended, the emcee began to walk up onstage once more. "Oh my, Misaki-san really did light up the stage and excited the crowd up there with those EDM dance moves! Thank you so much for your performance, Misaki-san! And now, my goodness! Apparently, our next ballet student is planning to spice up the stage a little with the song 'The Succubus Advances'! Please put your hands together for Yume Kobayashi!"

Another round of applause echoed around the room as Futaba glanced at the rest of her friends in surprise. "T-The Succubus Advances…?! But that's a really…!"

Ann nodded back in agreement once more. "Whoa… It's pretty interesting how Kobayashi-san started off with something really emotional as her competition piece, then something this sexual as her Gala song…"

"It'll be interesting to see how she pulls it off…" Goro added before he chuckled a little again, causing Akira to turn towards him.

"Have you forgotten to take your meds again…?"

"Oh, no. I'm just high. I took some marijuana, you know what I'm saying?"

"Do you need me to bring you to a therapist to stop your addiction?" Akira continued the conversation before he started giggling himself.

"Oh my god, Akira, it was just a joke! Are you gifted?!"

"Yeah, I'm gifted, alright!"

"Shh!" Ryuji shushed them with a frustrated look on his face. "Quieten down! There are people watching you two already!"

Realising that Ryuji was right, Akira sank back into his chair and got comfortable in his seat. "Alright. Mama Bear…"

Meanwhile, Yume had already taken her place on the stage, and was decked out in a black leotard with fishnet stockings covering some parts of her outfit that had skin colour on it in contrast with the conservative shimmery white costume she had worn earlier when observed by the main judges. Akira thought it was weird that Yume didn't wear a tutu like the rest of the girls, but maybe she just wasn't comfortable with the fabric flouncing around.

The music started, and everyone could already tell what type of dance it was going to be with the slight Flamenco in the background. Yume, who still had her mask which covered the top three-quarters of her face, slowly turned towards them and licked her lips in a seductive way that gained a loud 'Whoa!' from the crowd. With hips staring to sway to the music, she twirled her hands towards the ceiling before bringing them back down, and did a spin before a split in mid-air.

Makoto brought her hands to her mouth as she stared with widened eyes. "Holy cow, that was already breathtaking!"

"Yeah, she's really graceful," Ryuji quickly added.

As the girl continued to pirouette around and charm the audience with a slight hip-sway and a look of vulnerability on her face and in her body language once in a while, Akira couldn't help but feel as if that playful look in her eyes was very familiar, and it gave him goosebumps whenever he felt that she was really seductive. Why was that so…?

As the ballet shoes lightly and elegantly tapped the wooden floor, he soon realised that his whole soul was glued and focused on the performance, as if it was the most captivating and enchanting thing he would ever see in his entire life. As the girl placed the back of her hand at her mouth such that only her shadowed eyes were visible, Akira felt a shiver down his spine when Yume gave a sultry expression towards their direction.

For some reason, he had a strange gut feeling that he was going to hate it, but why…?

Akira soon had his answer when in the middle of the performance, Yume Kobayashi twirled herself around once more, brought a hand to her mask and tore it off, using the momentum to toss the mask towards them. Ann quickly caught it, and nearly shrieked in surprise when she realised who the dancer was!

"Y-Y-Yusuke?!"

Futaba was no better when she brought a hand to her mouth and screamed out a loud, "Whaaaaaaa-?!"

Haru stared with wide eyes. "Wow…"

Akira's reaction was to only stare in shock. He wasn't surprised to see Yusuke on stage. He was shocked to see Yusuke dancing to such a song! What the heck?!

"HOLY SHIT! No wonder I thought she didn't have boobs!" Makoto gawked in amazement as she leapt back into her chair, while Ryuji could only blink furiously and slowly bring a hand to his mouth.

The only one who seemed to be enjoying it all was Goro, who was starting to chuckle madly and forcing himself to hide his laughter. "Pfft…! It's difficult to accept the truth, isn't it?"

Akira shook his head in disbelief. "We've all been fooled."

The audience seemed to be stunned by how the entire situation developed too, but somehow, they quickly caught on, and Akira soon heard girls screaming out 'Yume Kobayashi's' real name when Yusuke gave them a smirk and did his final pose onstage.

"Wow! That's a huge turn of events! I hope you don't mind me for saying that, Yume-san!" the Emcee chuckled upon saying that as he started to walk back up onto the platform while Yusuke exited from the back with a laugh. "You have really wowed the audience this afternoon with your performance, and I'm very impressed to see you being able to pull off such a role as well! Well, thank you very much for your amazing performance, Yume-san! And now…"

Meanwhile, Makoto started sniggering, "I never realised that Ann could be such a huge squealing fangirl when it came to these types of things…"

"Shut up, Makoto! Come on, guys! We need to look for him!"

Sitting in the backstage room, Yusuke heaved a sigh of relief. He had to thank his lucky stars that the dance was successful. It didn't matter if he won this time or not. Plus, it was a bonus to finally get that huge burden off his chest.

But damn, revealing everything in such a huge event as this one? Man, he was starting to become as flashy as Goro Akechi…

He had already decided that he was just going to explain it all to his father. No, he wasn't going to pursue ballet as his only interest in both passion and work, but he was going to do it as a hobby, and no one could stop him! And screw all those people who were going to laugh at him for liking ballet — he had the choice to do what he loved! His friends had already taught him that.

Plus, he wasn't alone. There were people out there who are trying so desperately to hide what they loved to do. If he, as one of those people, didn't step out to give himself and all these people a voice, who was going to do so?

Yusuke couldn't believe that he had actually decided to take this route, but after that incident with Hideki Yamamoto and Goro Akechi, he had found his answer. Similar to Ann, he wasn't going to let anyone push him around anymore! But, he also had to create his own future plans. This involved his future career, and even though it was a painful fact, ballet wasn't really that popular as it used to be back then. Sure, there were people in this day and age who really appreciate and love those who did ballet, but the numbers were dwindling madly, and he knew it.

That doesn't mean he couldn't do it as a hobby whenever he felt stressed out, though. Yusuke smiled to himself as he began to stash some of his items back into his bag.

"Yusuke!"

He took a deep breath before he sighed in response. He knew that they were going to come over to check on him.

The door burst open, and his group of friends quickly charged in. Wheezing madly, Futaba smiled as she looked at him with elated eyes, "You did it, Yusuke-Senpai!"

"Holy crap, though! I didn't expect you to actually pull of such a stunt!" Makoto cackled madly before she paused. "But will that get you disqualified since Yume Kobayashi isn't your real name and you signed up as a girl?"

"Eh, I don't really care about that anymore," Yusuke shrugged back with a laid-back smile. "At this point, it's not really about winning, but to come out of the closet. Speaking of which, what did you guys think about my performance?"

Ryuji started to chuckle lightly. "It was really amazing. Ann was squealing throughout the entire thing as if she was going to explode…"

Ann smacked Ryuji's shoulder, causing him to yowl in pain. "Stop teasing me about it already, will ya?!"

"But Makoto-Senpai was laughing at you for it too…!"

"Alright, then two smacks for Makoto too!"

"HEY! Don't drag me into the smack-fest, Ryuji!"

"Alright, alright. We got to get out of this place soon," Akira quickly notified them. "We lied to those people outside that we were delivering something to one of the dancers in the back room and just sneaked in here. If they find out that we were just chatting, they'll kick us out from seeing the rest of the performance!"

The red-eyed girl stared at Akira in dismay. "Oh, really? Shit! Okay then, let's go, guys!"

As the entire group quickly scuttled out, Goro paused for a moment and turned towards the ballet dancer. "Hey, Yusuke-chan?"

He looked back at the dramatic boy. "What is it, Akechi?"

Goro simply smiled back before he turned and walked out of the room. "Great job. You've really outdone yourself this time. And please, just call me Goro next time, m'kay, darling?"

Yusuke looked at his vanishing back before he snorted in amusement. He really had to thank that boy at some point in time for giving him the inspiration to do something like that.

"Aw, man! That was such a waste…"

Makoto blew her fringe up in frustration as the entire group stepped out of the Performing Arts building. Unfortunately, because Yusuke hadn't really been practising when he was on hiatus, he didn't get any of the top three positions. However, he did get an honourable mention, so at least he gained something.

"That isn't a waste! Yusuke did get the support of much of the audience," Haru disagreed with a soft smile. "I think you did really well today, Yusuke."

"Thanks, Haru. I appreciate that."

Suddenly, everyone stared at the blue-haired boy, who had changed into his usual singlet and school pants. With a confused frown on his face, Yusuke looked around at his friends and asked, "Wh… what's wrong? Do I look like a bucket of fuck or something…?"

Akira did a spit take as he started to laugh madly, "Yup, it's Yusuke, alright! I nearly thought you had a change in personality when you suddenly spoke like some gentleman!"

"But it would be really nice to see you acting more kindly to others," Ryuji added.

Yusuke started to chuckle. "Well, maybe it's because I'm feeling a little more relaxed than usual. Guess doing that delinquent persona took too much of a toil on me. But honestly, acting as an asshole for such a long time has already been ingrained as a part of me, so don't be surprised if I act like an ass at one second and be nice in the next."

Futaba cocked her head to the side. "But what made you have a sudden change of heart, Yusuke-Senpai…?"

Ann giggled, "Futaba, we aren't acting as the Persona 5 characters now…"

"Let's just say, Goro's words that day made me think about my actions," the delinquent smiled back at them. "I thought about those times we tried to make Ann stand up for herself such that she wouldn't get bullied by that Aiko Nakamura, and I realised that our cases do have similarities, after all. I was being a bitch that time about why her case and mine were so damn different, but when I thought about it, weren't they both about seeing beyond all those fucking haters and embrace the support you get from the rest of the people who actually do support you in what you do, or who you are?"

"Heh~ So I was the one who made you change, Yusuke-chan~?" Goro cooed irritatingly, causing Yusuke to glare at him.

"Shut the hell up, that's irritating! I may be thankful to you, but don't get too damn cocky."

He jumped back immediately with a sad expression on his face. "Eh… scary~"

"But anyways…" Yusuke sighed in exasperation before he continued, "Seeing you guys trying so damn hard just to get me to continue ballet kinda lighten my spirit up. If ballet was something I had come to hate, I would have just given up right away. But it's not, and I know that I love it. So I knew that I had to let myself be heard. At this point, I can't give a single fuck about discrimination anymore. Let them come at me if they want to, because I don't give a damn anymore."

Makoto grinned and slapped Yusuke's back, causing him to yowl in pain. "Now that's the Yusuke whom we all know and love!"

However, Ann was looking a little worried. "But… what about your father? Doesn't he disapprove of your passion for ballet?"

"Let's just say that my son has really made me proud of him today."

The group turned around upon hearing hard-bottom shoes clacking on the ground, and came to face a middle-aged man with black hair that was starting to grey out. Decked out in a rather expensive suit and with bodyguards surrounding him, Akira could tell that he was a big shot around the area.

Yusuke nodded at the man. "Hey, Dad."

Makoto went slack-jawed. "Whoa… Yusuke, that's your father?! Holy hell, how rich are ya?!"

"Yusuke has told me about his plans. I have always prevented him from taking ballet lessons because of his grades, and that Ballet is honestly dwindling in popularity just like some of the other Performing Arts. If he weren't able to get a degree and graduate from university, there's very little chance in him being able to live in such a metropolis world. Of course, it's not all about graduating and getting degrees, diplomas and masters… but sometimes, you just need to secure something first, you know?"

"I told Dad that I was going to study hard, and graduate from a university, while managing my time wisely such that I can practise Ballet as well. After all, it's like he says. I'm gonna have to secure my future too, y'know?"

Goro nodded as he took in the information. "So Kitagawa-san… you didn't allow your son to take part in Ballet lessons because you disapproved of the Performing Arts. And your reason to that is because it's dwindling in popularity and you believe Yusuke-chan wouldn't be successful in life if he were to only work on Ballet, is that it?"

Yusuke's father sighed. "I know it is unfortunate that I actually think that way, but if you really want to do well in the Performing Arts sector, you really need to be the cream of the crop. You do understand this too since you're a part of the National Drama Stage cast, don't you, Akechi-san? Being famous and earning money from these types of stage acts is not easy."

Akira heard his friend breathe out in a loud way he had never heard before. Was Goro actually… furious about what Yusuke's dad had just said?

"It's my choice: I've decided that it's best if I studied so that I can handle Dad's business in the future. It can't just go down the damn drain without someone to help with the organising later on, after all," Yusuke replied with a shrug and a smile. "Plus, I still get to do what I love."

Ann nodded in agreement. "Guess that's for the best too. There's a reason why my parents want me to at least graduate even though I'm planning to work as a model in the future."

"But anyways, enough talk about all this. How about you invite your friends over for dinner later, Yusuke?" The man laughed and patted his son's back. "After all, you did managed to appease me, and I'm really proud of your performance today. This is a thing worth celebrating. Just tell them to hop into the car if they'd like to join us for food, okay?"

Yusuke nodded, and for once, Akira saw a shimmer of happiness in his friend's eyes.

"Alright, just get into the car if you all'd like to eat some stuff, I guess."

Ryuji face-palmed immediately. "That's not how you invite people, Yusuke…"

It was a happy day, and Yusuke's father was right — it was worth celebrating about! Yet as Akira, the person at the back of the line, stepped into the car and sat beside Goro, he couldn't help but realised how silent the brown-haired boy had suddenly become.

Something in his gut feeling told Akira that he had to talk to his friend about it after dinner.