Chapter 10: Johanna

Makoto woke to bright lights overhead and was immediately hit with the stale antiseptic smell of the hospital. It reminded her of the hours she spent in the emergency room waiting-hoping-for any news that Dad survived the accident. Sis had broken the news when they got home, telling her in cold and clinical terms that they lived in a new reality, one where they had no one to lean on except each other. On that first day, Makoto could sense the grief Sis kept at bay in attempting to be strong for her. That warmth still showed itself from time to time, but it was becoming increasingly rare the way sunlight waned with the advent of winter.

"Ah. Glad to see you awake," said a low, husky voice. Your friends are worried about you."

Makoto sat up and winced as the blood rushed to her head. Where am I? She looked around and saw that she wasn't in the hospital after all. She was in a clinic of sorts, yes - but the room was small and cluttered with strangely labeled bottles and supplies. Sitting beside her was a woman in fishnet tights, high heels, and a minidress. Her face was heavily made up, something Makoto was not in the habit of doing. Sis wore little makeup, preferring to keep her routine simple with a few swipes of mascara, but this woman looked like she was going to a heavy metal concert. If it wasn't for the lab coat she wore over her unconventional attire, Makoto would have never guessed that she was a doctor.

"Dr. Tae Takemi, at your service," she said, with a playful wink. "Don't push yourself too hard. You've got a nasty cut there. It should heal up in a day or two, but I recommend bed rest until then."

Makoto nodded and put a hand to her side, feeling the bandage underneath the fabric of her white tunic. Her head was still throbbing and she reached up to feel a bandage there as well. Her whole body ached as pushed aside the blanket and swung her legs over the side of the bed. It was an excruciating effort.

"How did I get here?" she asked before the other woman could speak. There was a question in her eyes, and Makoto knew she was wondering how a high school girl came to have these injuries in the first place. She thought she'd ask some questions of her own, first.

"How?" Dr. Takemi asked. "Or where 'here' is?"

"Umm..." Makoto racked her brain for context. The last thing she remembered was the abject terror of standing before Kaneshiro as he threatened to sell her into prostitution.

"Your friends brought you here," Dr. Takemi said. "You're at my clinic in Yongen-jaya."

"Friends?" Makoto blinked.

"Yes. Unless you think of them in a different way?" she said, and Makoto couldn't help but notice a twinkle in her eye.

Then she remembered: the Phantom Thieves! Ren! They had come to her rescue just as Kaneshiro's men seized her. Something close to joy arose in her heart. Her gamble had paid off. The Phantom Thieves had found Kaneshiro's lair. That meant they could change his heart and put an end to the blackmail once and for all.

But when Dr. Takemi stepped aside, and she saw Amamiya in the doorway, that feeling quickly dissipated. He was glowering, his mouth turned down, the space between his eyebrows creased. He wasn't happy with her, she could tell.

"I'll leave the two of you alone to talk things out." Dr. Takemi shot Ren a look as she sidled past, and his expression softened. Makoto felt a surge of jealousy. It was the same acidity she felt when Sis sang Akechi-kun's praises, but more intense, and she wasn't sure if she liked it. She did know that it was much too silent once the door clicked shut, and so she offered a tentative start to the conversation.

"Thank you for saving me," she said, playing with the hem of her tunic.

Ren sighed and nodded in return. He walked past her to a cabinet, where Dr. Takemi stored some of her medicines. Whether he was familiar with its contents or just pretending to be to avoid her gaze, she couldn't tell.

"That could have turned out badly," he said. "Very badly."

"I know that. I was the one on the floor with my hands tied."

"You're lucky Morgana has sharp hearing."

"Morgana?" Makoto replied, confused. Was this another woman in Ren's life she didn't know about? And why did it matter anyway? There were lots of people in her life he wasn't privy to. Akechi, for instance.

Ren paused for a moment, then waved away the comment. "Um, a friend. Of sorts. Never mind. I...we need to talk. About our agreement."

Makoto was feeling a bit more in her element now. Eye contact was always a good sign. "You know Kaneshiro's location. That should be all the information you need to change his heart."

"All the information we need, huh? The last piece of the puzzle…" He looked away, and the hope in Makoto's heart started to wither. "Do you want to know what happened after you passed out?"

"Of course," Makoto said. She tried to keep her voice steady, but a quiver betrayed her fear. Indeed, she was bracing herself for the worst news imaginable.

Ren had spent the last several hours deliberating with the other members of the Phantom Thieves. After carrying Makoto out of Kaneshiro's lair and calling Dr. Takemi for help, they gathered in his attic bedroom, which looked more cozy than decrepit these days. Ren had taken the time to sweep the floorboards and straighten the memorabilia on his shelves. He looked at them wistfully, wishing he could be sightseeing now instead of his current situation.

Kaneshiro asked for three million yen. They were on the hook for three million yen in exchange for Makoto's life.

And three million yen was nothing to sneeze at, given the dire consequences if they couldn't cough up the money.

The threat of going back to jail, for one.

And the thought of Kaneshiro laying another hand on Makoto.

"I didn't know it was possible to have so much money!" Yusuke said. He was sitting at the card table Ren set up, arms resting on the back of his chair.

"No kidding," Ryuji echoed. "Think of all the beef bowls you could buy."

"Dream a little bigger, Ryuji," Morgana chided from Ann's lap. "Ramen bowls?"

"Well, what would you spend it on?" Ryuji snapped. "And why do you care, you're a cat!"

"Something more sophisticated than a bowl of noodles. And I am not a-" Ann gave Morgana a scritch and his protest dissolved into purring.

Ren pinched the bridge of his nose, eyes closed. He didn't need another fight. Once again he found himself thinking - for a split second - about leaving. All of his Phantom Thief responsibilities, all of his friends. Just disappeared into the night. Life went on just fine before he set foot in their lives, and he was sure it would continue that way if he left.

If only abandonment was his style.

"What do we know so far?" he asked, hoping to get the conversation back on track. The bickering died down, and Ryuji took a seat mid-way on his path to throttling Morgana.

"If only we could do something about that bank," he sighed. "Would be nice to just break in and steal the three million, eh?"

"I don't think it works that way," Ann chastised. "Besides, we can't get in unless Morgana can turn into a helicopter."

There was a moment's silence, all of them meditating on the hopelessness of the situation. Ren took the opportunity to check his phone and saw a text from Tae.

She's doing fine. I expect her to wake up at any moment now. Come over if you'd like to see her. A purple heart, a flower, and two xs and os.

Morgana's eyes lit up, two orbs of wonder.

"Ohhhhh!" he cried.

"What? What is it?" Ryuji sat up again.

"The girl! What was her name…"

"Niijima-san?"

"Right, Niijima Makoto. She might just be our key in!"

"What?!" the room said in unison.

"Listen here." The cat leaped onto the table. "We've become Kaneshiro's targets. That means we've become customers of Kaneshiro's bank."

"Are you saying the reason we couldn't enter before was because we weren't considered his customers?" Yusuke asked.

"Precisely. And wouldn't you say that she, in particular, is a special customer?" Morgana looked around the room, a sergeant surveying his troops. It dawned on Ren that this might be the opportunity he was looking for. There was another aspect to all of this, one he kept from the group and given far too little thought to, given how frequent his dreams were becoming. He could think of no better way to keep an enemy close.

"Let's take her with us," he said.

"Seriously, Ren?!" Ann nearly dropped Morgana, she stood up so quickly. "I know I said we should rescue her, but that doesn't mean I'm okay with her knowing about Phantom Thief business!"

"Why not?" Ren asked. "She already knows our identities. And she's responsible for our current situation. I don't see the harm in bringing her with us."

"Don't see the harm?! Because of her, you're going back to juvie! Because of her, all of us are going to have..." She trailed off, and Ren knew she meant to say "a criminal record." Just like him.

She didn't, so he let it slide.

"It hasn't happened yet," Ren said flatly. It was one of the things he hoped to get squared away.

"She risked her life doing something so reckless. At the very least, she has the right to know," Yusuke said quietly.

Ann frowned and muttered something about not wanting Niijima to die being a low bar. She looked up when Ryuji put a hand on her shoulder. Not for the first time, Ren wondered if there was something going on between his friends behind the scenes.

"Don't worry, Ann-chan," Ryuji said. "I think we can find a way to make this work for all of us. Right, Ren?"

It occurred to him then that his friends had been wondering the same about him.

When Ren slipped away into his dream realm, he was always in his prisoner's garb, always behind bars surrounded by two bickering wardens. Igor, the impish man who ruled the velvet room, offered cryptic statements about ruination and charged him with averting a cataclysmic event with the help of a mysterious app on his phone and a bevy of friends with a similar talent - the ability to overcome their shadow selves and wield Persona.

Since meeting Niijima Makoto, he had a feeling that she was going to affect his life in innumerable ways. It felt a little like fate, the way everything was crashing into each other. His dreams, the student council president, the Phantom Thieves' mission to bring justice to those who couldn't fight for themselves. The very notion of justice itself. His probation.

He knew he had the best chance of persuading the student council president to join forces, and so he entered the clinic alone, leaving the others outside to speculate about their conversation. He'd assured Ryuji and Ann that he would stick to their plan. His phone burned a hole in his pocket with the incriminating evidence as he explained to Makoto their current situation.

He could still see the glint in Kaneshiro's eye as he tossed a stack of bills to his companion and told her to buy herself something nice. Equally chilling was the grin on his face as he held up his phone and snapped several photos of the teenagers surrounded by drug paraphernalia, including one where Makoto was front and center.

Kaneshiro would make the photographs public if they didn't come up with the money, he told her. Ren knew they couldn't. They were fucked, as Ryuji so eloquently put it. And now Makoto was sitting on the edge of the exam table, hands folded in her lap, head bowed and looking repentant.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for this to happen," she said. "I was stupid."

"You're not stupid." Ren sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "But you should've thought this through more. I mean...running to Kaneshiro? He who traffics drugs and girls?"

Makoto winced, and Ren could have sworn he heard her swear. "I was so caught up in trying to be useful. I'm going to cause trouble for Sis too."

"You mean Sae-san." This was the first time she'd spoken of her life outside of school since the arcade. He knew her father taught her how to defend herself, but that was it.

She looked up, startled.

"You've met her?" she asked. "How?"

Ren shrugged, thinking of the easiest way to explain his encounter with Sae-san. "I work part-time at a cafe. She stops by sometimes."

Makoto nodded but looked like she'd never considered her sister having a life outside of home and work. He supposed it was possible, given the elder Niijima's aggressive stance at the cafe, that Leblanc was an exception to a life of duty and toil. "Well, she's a much more remarkable person than me. A lot happened after we lost our father three years ago. It's just the two of us living together, and I'm still a child, so all I am is a burden to her." She said this last part quickly, as though it wasn't relevant to the conversation.

"And that's why you were reckless?" he said, his voice sounding a little harsher than he intended.

Makoto's eyes flew up to meet his. "I just wanted to be useful in some way to someone…"

She looked so forlorn and lost, it was all Ren could do not to give her a hug right there. He was pissed, yes. She was so stupid for running into danger, and he shouldn't feel any sympathy for her at all, but that one glimpse behind the presidential mask was enough to chip away at his armor. This was the real Makoto, the one who did stupid things because she was hurt and lonely and had nowhere to belong. She wasn't so different from the rest of them. She was still his opponent, yes, but he understood her a little better now. And the way her hair fell into her eyes without the headband to keep it in place was especially adorable.

He thought of the photographs, thought about Ann and Ryuji's threat to send only those pictures with Makoto to the police if she didn't comply with their demands. He hoped it wouldn't come to that. He hoped she would join them without any resistance, and he'd never have to tell her about their plans for the blackmailer to become the blackmailed.

"I'll do something about the money," she said. "Just wait a minute while I talk to Sis and then we can let the matter drop."

Ren shook his head. "No can do. We can't have you rushing things on your own anymore and making the situation worse. Besides, we thought of another way you could help."

She looked at him warily. "We?"

"The Phantom Thieves. Come with us."

Makoto was already on her feet, checking her appearance in the mirror. Tae had done a remarkable job setting her to rights.

"To where?" she asked, and Ren once again had to shake his head at her recklessness. Perhaps he'd misjudged her before. If there was one quality the student council president didn't lack, it was courage. He held open the door for her and felt victorious when she stepped through without hesitation. She was engaged and he was one step closer to fulfilling his destiny.

Makoto never believed in fairy tales. She thrived on hard facts, the observable evidence. These were the bread and butter of the police force that put food on the table in the Niijima household, and over her lifetime she'd grown to revere them. If someone had told her there was another version of Shibuya with a floating bank in the sky, she would have thought they had lost their mind. Yet that was exactly what she saw after following the Phantom Thieves back to the city center, mere hours after she had woken in Dr. Takemi's clinic.

She would have preferred to go straight home after the excitement of the day, but there was no way the Thieves were letting her out of their sight after the stunt she pulled. Her willingness to leave the clinic with Amamiya was borne as much from her suspicion that she had no other choice as it had from wanting to make up for her actions. Ren had shown her the pictures, and it was her fault that the entire group was dangerously in debt, after all.

Her stomach flipped as the world around her wavered and contorted into an inexplicable vision. The sky had a green cast to it, and meandering across was a stream of yen making its way toward a regal building overhead. Instead of people, there were ATMs, rows upon rows of hard edges marching down the street. The rest of the scene was as expected-the buildings and streets appeared exactly as they did before.

"Oh my goodness," she cried, eyes fixed on the bank. "It's floating in the air! This-this can't be real. This is reality?!"

"Be quiet. I know this is all very exciting, but the Shadows are going to notice us," said a small creature at her feet. Makoto saw that it was some sort of monster cat and took two steps back, stifling a shriek.

"That's Morgana, the cat that was in Ren's bag," a feminine voice said. "This is what happens when we come here."

Makoto became aware of the four figures standing before her. The closest one was also the tallest and wore a hideous animalistic mask. Upon closer inspection, she saw that it was the face of a kitsune.

"A canine?" she breathed.

"It's Fox," sighed a voice behind the mask. It sounded like Kitagawa.

"This is Skull. And I'm Panther," said the feminine voice again. Makoto turned, expecting to see Takamaki in her school uniform, only to be taken aback by her outfit. She wore a red latex suit with a horned mask and a scandalously low neckline. She was standing next to Sakamoto - or rather, Skull, who raised a hand in greeting. Makoto scanned the metal ridge that conformed to his trademark slouch and transformed it into something fearsome.

The last figure gave off the impression of a mysterious stranger one might encounter in the night. Makoto was drawn to the flowing trench coat, perfectly tailored to a lithe figure, and the two dark eyes watching her from behind a demi-mask. He had an air of authority that was more apparent here than in his Shujin Academy uniform, and Makoto found it intriguing. Very intriguing. She almost canted towards him but caught herself before the group.

"Amamiya-kun?" she breathed. "Where are we?"

"It's Joker," he said. "And we're inside Kaneshiro's…" He looked around them, searching for the right words.

"The world inside his heart," Takamaki supplied.

"Joker…" Makoto turned the name over in her head. She wondered how he came to have it. It was something she'd like to know about each of their call names eventually.

"Or, another reality in which Kaneshiro's distorted desires have materialized," Joker added, before launching into an explanation about the Metaverse. The other Phantom Thieves joined in, stumbling over each other as they explained the laws of this other reality and finally revealing their methods.

Makoto soon learned that much of the Metaverse seemed predicated on matters of the heart. Persona were the manifestations of each of the Phantom Thieves' hearts when faced with hardship and strife, the malevolent thoughts that spawned them tamed and trained. The Palace they were standing in was both the world inside Kaneshiro's heart and contained a heart itself, a treasure representing the distorted desires that aided in its creation. Once the treasure was stolen at the hands of the Phantom Thieves, the Palace collapsed and its owner felt remorse for their actions. It explained Kamoshida's confession mere weeks before nationals and Madarame's impromptu press conference at the end of a career-defining exhibition. It sounded very much like the application of optical illusions in social cognitive psychology, and she told the group as much.

"We don't know anything about that," Panther replied.

"But you have to admit she's catching on pretty fast," Skull observed. "Definitely faster than Panther. Maybe even faster than you, Joker."

The jaundiced glare from his teammates was so quick, she almost missed it.

She gasped after learning that Kamoshida's treasure had been the national trophy. The teacher had been so intent on winning the competition, so confident in his athletic superiority, that he abused his students and never thought he would face any consequences. She couldn't help but wonder about Kaneshiro's treasure. There must be some tangible motivation for his vast criminal network. She wanted to know his secrets; this man who had evaded her father and sister for so long.

Sis. Makoto had no idea what to tell her when she got home. She doubted they were even on speaking terms after last night. She was reminded again that she would have to ask Sis for help if the Phantom Thieves failed to change Kaneshiro's heart. Three million yen was more money than Dad or Sis had ever made. People did not command that sort of money, only organizations - like the Tokyo Metropolitan Police.

Great, Makoto. Just great. she thought to herself. What better way to prove you aren't useless?

She supposed she would cross the Sis bridge when she got to it. For now, there were other matters on her mind, such as being the Phantom Thieves' key to the Palace.

"We'll make it go well," Skull said as they approached the floating bank. The party had begun to talk amongst themselves, pointedly ignoring her, part prisoner and part asset. "Everyone'll notice us for sure if we take mob boss down."

"Our justice will also become resolute," Mona said.

"Think we'd be able to give courage to those in need if it happens?" Panther pondered.

For the sake of those in need… they sound just like Dad, Makoto thought. Again she thought of that horrible day at the hospital. The condolence calls in the weeks that followed, the visits from her father's friends and associates. The funeral, where she stood alongside Sis receiving mourners, where she learned through whispered conversation that her father's death hadn't been an accident after all.

A grand staircase materialized before their eyes, and Makoto felt Mona dart past her. She couldn't help but admire his adorable form as he bounded up the stairs, eager to plunder the treasure within.

"Well, this is new," Skull said, pausing to gaze up.

"Seems almost welcoming compared to last time," Fox said.

"It looks like Mona was right about bringing you along," Joker said, and she thought she saw a hint of a smile playing on his lips.

They followed Mona up the stairs, Joker leading the way and Panther bringing up the rear. At one point, Makoto looked back to see the other girl watching her as though she would fling herself off the staircase in an ill-fated attempt to escape. While she might deserve the other girl's disdain, she didn't like the way she monitored her every move in the Metaverse. It would be one thing if she feared Makoto would turn on them, but Kaneshiro had them all backed into a corner. Did Panther doubt her competence?

More importantly, did Joker?

Makoto shook her head, telling herself that it didn't matter whether he did or didn't. This wasn't friendship but an alliance of convenience, and it wasn't the time to be thinking such things.

"I hope your aikido is as good as you claim," Panther said, heels clicking against the concrete. "Enemies attack us here. You're probably going to need it."

They finally reached the landing and advanced through the ornate double doors. Two security guards stopped them just past the front desk, batons at the ready.

"What business do you have here?" one of them said. Makoto felt someone jab her from behind. At least it wasn't quite a shove this time. And at least when she stepped forward, she stood shoulder to shoulder with Joker, who gave her a reassuring nod.

Here goes nothing.

"I'm one of Kaneshiro's customers," Makoto declared. "I'd like to speak with the bank president."

"Do you have an appointment?" the guard replied.

Makoto grit her teeth. An appointment? How ridiculous. She certainly didn't need one to meet the real Kaneshiro.

"No," she replied.

"Then you may not see him."

"And if I say the issue is urgent?" Makoto shot back, prompting a surprised look from Joker and the others.

A booming voice over the intercom.

"Let them pass."

The guards lowered their weapons and stepped aside. Makoto felt some of the tension leave her body. Her hands had balled into fists, and she released them, flexing and unflexing her fingers.

"Reception is to the right, towards the back," one of the guards said. "I strongly advise that you do not attempt to go elsewhere."

The inside of the bank was expansive, its gilded corridors designed in an art deco style reminiscent of 1920s America. As they marched down the corridor, she caught Fox looking at their surroundings with equal parts amazement and disdain, his trained eye catching details the rest of them passed over. For her part, Makoto could only think of the robber barons she learned about in civics class, who ruled their cities with iron fists and drained public coffers to satisfy their boundless greed..

They reached the reception office, where another guard showed them in. The room was vast and formal with a big boardroom desk in the middle. A panel on the wall drew back, revealing a flatscreen TV. Kaneshiro had his back to them.

"Unauthorized entry. Property damage. And other comes to three million yen in total. That's what you're here about, Miss Beautiful President?"

His hair was slicked back as it was in the real world, but any resemblance ended there. As Kaneshiro turned, she saw that his complexion was a ghoulish shade of purple. Instead of casual clothes, he was dressed in a grey pinstripe suit that really did remind her of a robber baron.

"I'd be willing to give you a loan, you know. The interest rate is ten percent a day," he said. "Of course, I have a more manageable option for people like you."

Makoto scoffed. Of course, there would be an interest rate of three hundred thousand yen a day. He had no intention of letting her go, no intention of allowing her to pay back the debt. "That was your plan from the beginning, wasn't it?"

"That's quite the insight, Niijima-san," Kaneshiro said. "Your older sister would be proud."

"Keep my sister out of this," she snapped. She was so tired of the comparisons to Sis. Kobayakawa used them to make her do his bidding, and it worked like a charm. It never occurred to her until recently that perhaps she wasn't meant to follow in her sister's footsteps.

Kaneshiro smiled wolfishly. "Oh, don't worry. I have such wonderful goods right in front of me." His gaze shifted between Panther and Makoto.

"Young women are such great assets," he said with a chuckle. "They lack strength - be it social, physical, or mental. It's as if they only exist to be devoured by the strong. That must have been the rule since the dawn of time."

He was truly a despicable man. Makoto's hands had balled into fists again, but her anger quickly turned to fear when the security guards transformed into demons, grisly creatures with horns and teeth ready to draw blood. Makoto felt her breath hitch and stepped back instinctively, then felt someone grasp her by the shoulders. She turned and came face to face with Joker, eyes shuttered behind his mask. For a moment, they were back in the student council office, moments before their first kiss - and then he practically thrust her behind one of the big oak desks.

It was her first time seeing the Phantom Thieves in action, and she noted all the ways they made up a well-oiled team. Skull summoned a bolt of lightning that knocked two of the creatures off their feet, while Panther followed up with a shower of bullets and Fox sliced his way through the fray, stopping to cast a healing spell after getting nicked in the shoulder. Joker weaved his way between the skirmishes, inflicting damage where he could. He was like a cat, primed and ready to strike at the slightest provocation, and he looked so graceful doing so that she had to remind herself not to stare.

Following each member of the team was a wave of blue light taking the form of various historical and mythological figures. She could make out a sea captain floating above Skull and a beautiful seductress fighting alongside Panther. Fox summoned the outlaw Goemon while Joker's was the gentleman thief Arsene. Makoto recognized them as the Persona they spoke of earlier and wondered what hers would be were she ever to conquer her darkest thoughts, her worst impulses.

As the last of the monsters fell, Makoto crawled out from under the desk and grasped Joker's waiting hand. He practically yanked her out of the room and down the corridor, the others following closely behind.

"Make sure you don't get separated from us," he said.

The architectural features that had caught her eye were nothing but a blur now. They rounded the corner and sped through the lobby, which to Makoto's relief was empty. Her legs were burning, and she was struggling to breathe. She hoped the wound on her side hadn't opened back up. The exit was in sight, only a few meters away.

Three more of the monsters erupted from the ground.

Joker skidded to a halt, causing Makoto to crash into him.

"There's no end to them!" Panther screeched before being swept off her feet and slammed into the pillar. Skull jumped to her rescue but was intercepted by another blast of magic that left him sprawled on the floor next to her.

Even Joker was struggling to fend off his attackers. It was a valiant effort for sure, with his dagger slicing the air more times than she could count, but he was vastly outnumbered. As he dodged one shadow's relentless attacks, another was closing in from behind. Makoto could spot the danger immediately. She was about to shout, telling him to watch out, when she felt another presence, cold and predatory and familiar.

To her horror, she saw that it was Kaneshiro in the flesh. He brushed aside her hair with his grubby fingers, whispering close.

"Hello again, Niijima-san. Your friends are dead men walking, but you'll be just fine."

He held her by the arm. When had he gotten close enough to grab her arm? She tried to pull away, but Kaneshiro held firm.

"Your sister is quite a beauty, I'm afraid," he purred, digging his nails into her skin. "I know…I'll make her my personal slave. Use her as much as her body will allow. And once I get bored, I'll sell her off. Poor Sis," he chuckled to himself. "She could've been successful if only her younger sister wasn't so dumb."

"Please stop!" Makoto sobbed. My sister has nothing to do with this!"

Her relationship with Sis was in shambles, but she was still her sister, the one who protected and kept watch over her as a child. Kaneshiro's words were like a vise around her heart. She hated to see Sis suffer. Despite all their differences, despite last night's hurtful words, they were still family and the only ones left who could remember their parents.

"Then you had better start taking customers tomorrow," Kaneshiro sneered. All you gotta do is endure it and do as you're told. You'll earn three million yen in no time."

Makoto's head snapped back.

Endure it. Do as I'm told.

It was an old refrain she'd been following her entire life. To succeed in this society meant keeping your head down and doing as you're told. And to what end? Sis was miserable at her job. Makoto would be thrust into a competitive society when she graduated, no matter how stellar her academic record. She'd always known this, yet she chose to take the side of the teachers, believing they had their students' best interests at heart - and also that doing so would give her an advantage in this race.

No more.

"I've been listening to you go on and on," she ground out. "Shut your damn mouth, you money-grubbing asshole!"

All the suppressed anger from the past few months bubbled up to the surface. She was blind with rage and grief, for Suzui-san, for Sis, for the missed opportunities to make a difference at school. Her head began to throb again, and her eyes filled with tears - or were they? She tasted more iron than salt.

A voice from deep within her began to speak.

Have you decided to tread the path of strife?

She clutched at her face, hoping to stop the bleeding. The words came to her easily.

"Yes... I'm here."

Very well, let us proceed with your contract at once.

A searing pain, an explosion of blue light, and she found herself sitting atop a motorcycle, revving the engine as though she'd been doing it all her life. She glowed so brightly that the others stumbled back, and even Kaneshiro seemed surprised… and afraid, watching her claim her power. The Phantom Thieves didn't know what hit them.

"Is that a bike?" she heard one of them say.

"No… that's a Persona." They sounded a little awestruck, as well they should be.

I am thou, thou art I. You have finally found your justice. Please never lose sight of it again.

Makoto secured her iron mask in place with a single gloved hand. Johanna spoke the truth. She was in control now. The shadows didn't stand a chance.

Happy Halloween! I don't have much to say about this one, aside from being glad that it's finally finished and ready to post.* And just in time for Nanowrimo! My goal is 50K words across various projects. We'll see how close I get to finishing the last three chapters of this fic in a series of sprints. Not making any promises. :)

*Not true, I have a lot to say - but I'm trying to keep the self-deprecation to a minimum here.