5/20 – Friday
After School
Shujin Academy

At a single glance at the crowd of students around the posted exam scores, Ren nearly abandoned his decision to check his own results. But curiosity won out over anxiety. So, he waited for the throng to disperse. "So loud," Morgana said from inside his bag.

"Tell me about it," Ren replied.

"How much longer until we can leave?" The feline sounded genuinely distressed.

Ren scooted closer to the posted scores, just at the edge of the circle of students now. "Hold on," he said. "I'll–" And all the air was knocked out of his lungs by someone's skull colliding directly with his chest.

"Oh my god! I'm so sorry, are you okay?" A young woman's voice. Vague form in front of him. His head was spinning a little too intensely to make her out.

Ren hadn't quite been knocked over, thankfully, he regained his breath to find himself a few feet back from where he expected to be standing. But, still standing. "Yep, I'm alright," he said. His eyes fell on a girl with short brown hair and a shocked expression, both hands in front of her mouth. "I'm alright," Ren repeated. He made a show of brushing himself off.

The young woman took a deep breath. "I'm glad. Sorry, again." She gave him an odd smile. It struck Ren, her dark brown eyes looked almost crimson in this light. "Are you..." Her expression changed, sort of a confused half-recognition. "You're the new student, right? I mean, you joined Shujin pretty recently."

"Uh, y–" A particularly exuberant shout from a nearby student made Ren flinch. "Yeah. That's me."

"Ren Amamiya?" she prompted.

He blinked. "Yes?"

"Ah." The young woman took a moment, almost sizing Ren up. "Congratulations," she said, in a curt and insincere voice. Before Ren had a chance to ask what she meant, the girl turned on her heel and practically stormed away down the hallway.

"What was that about?" Morgana wondered.

"Beats me," Ren said. Well, at least the crowd had dispersed a little more. He slipped closer, just close enough to read the scores.

It took Ren quite a while to find his own name on the triplicate sheets. He'd pessimistically worked from the lowest score up, grimacing at Ryuji's low 30 and Ann's much more reasonable 65. Gaze skimming the top of the list, he was about to start at the beginning again for fear of having missed his own score, when he saw it.

#2: Ren Amamiya. 97%

He stared at the score. Second place. Second place? After his exhausted, fugue performance, he'd nearly aced the exam? Not only that, he was only behind the first-place student by a single point, quite close to eclipsing the 98% "Makoto Nijima;" whoever that was.

"How'd you do?" Morgana prompted.

"Good," Ren finally managed to reply. "Real fuckin good."


5/20 – Friday
Evening
Madarame's Palace, Entrance

For whatever reason, perhaps the relative thinness of the Metaverse at its far edge, Ren was able to get a single bar of cell reception in the parking lot just inside Madarame's Palace. A spotty bar, but a bar nonetheless. After a few minutes of craning, adjusting and holding his phone over his head like a torch, his "hanging out with friends at the arcade, be back late" text to Sojiro finally sent.

"Sorry for the wait," he said, pocketing his cell.

Panther shrugged from nearby, stretching out each of her legs in turn. "Hey, no worries. I don't mind getting an extra long break." She raised both arms over her head, letting out a little strained sound, and then dropped back to a casual stance. "Ready now."

"Mmph!" Skull protested, cross-legged on the cement, his mouth full of the slightly stale melon bread Ann had brought for the Thieves. He stuffed the last bite in his mouth and washed it down with soda.

"Careful," Ren laughed. "You're gonna choke, dude."

Skull grinned and flipped Ren off, swallowing hard. "Alright, alright, let's head back in."

"Mona?" Ren called, squinting towards the truck near the Palace's main entrance. "Coast still clear?"

A small fluffy thumbs-up from the other side of the wall.

"Come on over here for a sec, let's talk strategy." Ren adjusted his crimson gloves and waited for Mona to scramble back across the courtyard. "We're halfway to the Treasure now. Security is low, but don't expect the Shadows to just lie down for us."

Mona shook himself off, loosing a bit of dust that'd clung to his fur. "What's the plan, Joker? Same formation?"

Ren rubbed his chin. "Two and two is working out pretty well for us. Skull, I think you'd be better suited on the front lines though."

"Damn straight," the boy grumbled. "I'm pretty tired of mopping up Mona's messes."

Ren cut off Mona before the not-a-cat could growl back a response. "That's why you'll both be taking point. Mona's sharp, and you're strong. So, work together." He gave each of them a pointed glare. "Can you both handle that?"

"Hmph." Mona's fur ruffled, but he nodded. "I suppose."

"Yeah," Skull said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Uh, sorry Mona."

"Apology accepted," Mona grumbled back, sounding more than a little bit genuinely thankful.

Ren nodded, turning to Panther. "You mind joining me in the cleanup crew?"

Panther laughed. "Not at all." She spun her whip-dagger between her fingers. "Wherever you need me, Joker, that's where I'll be."

Ren smiled. "Glad to hear it." He was. More than he could probably find the words to express, right now. He took a deep breath. "Okay. Let's push forward."


"Crap!" Skull let loose a further toward of expletives under his breath, gaze darting from one advancing front to the other. "Joker, we're pinned down!"

Unfortunately, Skull and Mona had walked directly into a Shadow ambush, caught between a trio of giggling pale nymphs and two pyromaniac fairies. The hallway, lined with paintings, was too tight for them to slip past either attack.

"Skull, face forward!" Ren ordered. He darted around the corner towards his allies, Panther close behind. "Keep those three on the defensive! Mona, watch his back; we'll take care of the fairies!"

Mona scrambled around the blond, blue sword up, ready to defend his teammate. "Skull, go!"

"Got it." Skull's hand darted to his mask as he spun towards the nymphs. "Captain Kidd!"

Ren forced himself to stare away from Skull's attack, towards the two flittering foes. "Panther, covering fire! These things hate bullets, keep em distracted!"

"Right!" He heard her skidding to a halt behind him, and the click of her SMG. Ren dove towards the left wall, and the crackling of continuous munition pierced the air.

The fairies cried out, but Ren didn't stop. His gaze, his full attention, was locked on a glass case against the wall. He reached it in one breath, pulled himself up in another, and then tensed. As predicted, the Shadows had risen up, flying towards the ceiling to avoid Ann's submachine burst. They would have been out of reach, except that Ren had given himself a bit of newfound height. He smirked, unsheathed his knife, and leapt off the glass case.

Two swings in midair, each catching a surprised fairy, was all it took. Both foes, wings clipped, fell to the ground just as Skull managed to stun the third of the nymphs.

"They're down!" Mona exclaimed. "Joker, it's all you."

Ren grabbed hold of his mask. "Rampage, Mokoi!" A slight strain against his chest, and the whistle of a dark spirit swinging wildly through the air. He felt the collision, felt each impact, each blow crushing illusory flesh. Five shadows screamed, and popped like balloons.

Mokoi faded back into his mask, and Ren felt the sudden weight of exhaustion press down on him. He almost dropped to one knee, forcing breath into his lungs. A green glow enveloped the edge of his vision, and the fatigue quickly drained out of his limbs. "Thanks for the heal, Mona." Ren rolled his shoulder, stretching out. "You shouldn't use Zorro for healing right now, though. We've got plenty of medicine still, you should save your strength."

Mona scoffed. "I'm fine, I've got strength to spare." The feline took one step, and paused, sort of stumbling. "On second thought, good idea."

"Skull, how're you holding up?" Ren asked.

Skull glanced over his shoulder, flashing the biggest grin Ren had ever seen on him. "You kidding? I'm better than ever." He laughed, and Ren found himself momentary entranced by the boy's sheer unfiltered joy.

"I'm good too, thanks," Panther teased, punching Ren in the shoulder. "Ready to go?"

A chorus of nods. "Move out, then," Ren said.


"Well," Skull said, "shit."

The Thieves hadn't travelled far before their progress was abruptly cut off by an enormous gaudy door at the end of an empty courtyard. It had a design reminiscent of a peacock's plume, trimmed with gold and held shut by a huge lock nearly as big as Mona. The feline was currently trying to shove his paw under the door, seeing if he couldn't open it from the other side somehow.

Ren stood over the not-a-cat, staring into the lock. He could try to pick it with the device Oxymoron had him build, but the cylinder was far too small for this behemoth. He pushed his whole hand inside, trying to feel inside for the intricate parts. Maybe he could pick it by hand?

"Any luck?" Panther asked.

"No," Ren replied, and pulled his hand out, shaking it off. "It's smooth inside. I think it's some sort of cognitive barrier, like there isn't really a key for it."

Mona grumbled from below, yanking his paw out from under the door and sitting down in a huff. "Sure seems that way."

"How does that work?" Skull scratched his head. "Does he know we're here or something?"

Mona shook his head. "It must mean he's confidant that he's hidden his crimes well. Whatever he's done," he jerked a thumb towards the door, "is farther in, and he doesn't think anyone can find out."

"Hidden..." Panther sized up the door.

The door. Ren blinked. "Wait, Mona. Didn't you say there was a locked door in Madarame's shack?"

Mona nodded, looking first confused before realization dawned across his face. "Oh!" He scrambled back, examining the barrier with a renewed vigor. "This must be it! This door represents Madarame's cognitive version of the door in his home."

"Does that...help us to know?" Skull asked.

Mona rolled his eyes. "As long as Madarame thinks only he has access to that room, this cognitive version will stay shut. But, if we can unlock it? His cognition will change, and the door here will open up."

Ren leaned back against the door, hand on his chin. "Do we just need to unlock it? If he comes back home and the door is unlocked and open; would that be enough?"

Mona shifted. "It...might be."

"He might just think he forgot to lock it though," Panther added. "Or think that Yusuke was snooping around."

Skull winced. "I'd rather not make that guy take any sort of fall for us. He seems like a good dude."

And they still weren't aware the extent of Madarame's mistreatment. The though of the painter's wrath falling on Yusuke sent a bolt of fury and tension through Ren's bones. "That's not an option, then. We need Madarame to know, unequivocally, that it's the Phantom Thieves who broke into his home."

"So, we leave a calling card or something?" Skull asked.

"That'd be a big risk," Mona mused. "It should open up this door, but depending on what sort of card we leave, it could send the Palace into insanely high alert. Worst case, it might prevent our next calling card from being effective enough to manifest the treasure."

Panther let out a low whistle. "Do we have any other options?"

"Uh," Ren said. "One of us could get caught breaking into that room."

"And then probably arrested," Skull continued. "So, no."

The calling card idea seemed the most promising. "Mona," Ren said, "do you feel that we could phrase a warning to Madarame that would let him know we're onto him, but convince him we're not taking action quite yet?"

Mona thought that over. "Possibly. I can't say for sure, but that could definitely work."

"Then I guess that's the next step." Ren pushed off the door. "Mona and I can make the calling card tonight. Skull and Panther, you two should wait right here while we deliver it to Madarame. As soon as this door opens, you two can make a break for the next Safe Room."

"Why the rush?" Panther asked. "Can't we just wait for you to catch up?"

Ren shook his head. "If the card works at all, it might only work for a few seconds. If you wait for us, and the door closes again, then we're screwed."

Skull let out a long sigh. "Two days in a row of infiltration sounds kinda rough, to be honest."

"We don't have to–" Ren began, but Skull cut him off.

"Nah, just teasing you, Joker." He grinned. "Hell, we got to Kamoshida's treasure in one day. Taking a night off is a goddamn luxury."

"I've got time tomorrow," Panther agreed. "Sounds like a good plan to me." Then, she paused. "Uh, Joker? What about Yusuke?"

"Oh." Shit. Ren had completely forgotten about him. He ran a hand through his hair. "Hm. I think..." It'd be easiest to get Yusuke to simply agree to some sort of alibi, to let Ren pick the lock and then leave with him; accomplishing as much without his cooperation sounded almost untenable. "I think I tell him the truth."

A silence.

"What part of the truth?" Skull asked.

"All of it." Ren found his gaze traveling up, to the faux night-sky, shining with searchlights, golden stars sparking on the other side of blue clouds. "Exactly who I am, and exactly what I plan to do. And ask him to lend us a hand."

"That's crazy!" Mona protested. "You're going to reveal our identities to our target's son?! How do you know Yusuke will even agree to help us change Madarame's heart?"

"I don't this plan will work without his agreement," Ren said. "If he says no...we might just have to abandon this infiltration."

Another moment of silence. "That sucks," Panther said. Then, she laughed. "But I think I'm okay to take a chance on Yusuke."

Skull grumbled something, then cleared his throat. "Yeah. If you trust the guy, Joker, I'll trust him."

Mona stared around at his teammates, a shocked expression on his little fuzzy face. "I don't believe this." He shook his head, and sighed. "I don't know why I'm agreeing to this...but, okay."


5/21 – Saturday
Lunch
Shujin Academy, Rooftop

Unknown Number
This is Yu Narukami. Sorry.
Please come up to your school rooftop during your lunch break today.
If Miss Takamaki and Mr Sakamoto are available, please ask them to join you.
A friend of mine would like to speak to you all.
Also: a gift from me.

Ren was still rather put-off by yet another person having inexplicable access to his phone, but he decided Yu's polite intrusion was far more welcome than another demand from Anachronism – or their other, less agreeable benefactor.

"Who's this guy we're meeting with, again?" Ryuji asked. The trio had made it up the stairs to the rooftop entrance together, but none seemed in a particular rush to open the door to the roof itself.

"His name is Yu," Ren said. "He's a Persona user, and he knows other Persona users. He said he killed a god once, I think."

"This feels..." Ann fiddled with a hair-tie. "This is weird, right? It's not just me?"

"This is super weird," Ren confirmed.

"I also think it's weird," Morgana added from inside Ren's bag.

"Cool," she said. A silent breath. "Ren, Could you please just open the fucking door?"

"Right, right. Uh, sorry." Ren stepped forward, took the handle, and pushed open the door to the roof.

There were three chairs, arranged in front of a small table – the same one the Thieves had used to plan out their infiltration into Kamoshida's Palace. On the other side of that table sat a woman with long red hair and a piercing gaze, wearing a sharp black buisness suit, both hands together. Yu was there as well, leaning up against the nearby radiator, arms crossed, facing away from the high-schoolers. Ren didn't know him well enough to be sure, but it almost seemed like the young man was pouting. Seated next to the redhead was another woman with turquoise hair pulled into a ponytail, wearing a plain white dress. She barely imposed herself into the space, her hands in her lap and her gaze locked on the table.

"Please," the woman with the red hair said, "take a seat, you three. Close the door behind you."

None of the Thieves seemed in any mood to debate her instructions, and it didn't take long for them to seat themselves on the other side of the table.

The woman spoke again. "My name is Mitsuru Kirijo, the current head of the Kirijo Group. If you've heard of us, you've heard only of our front; a trading company focusing on what many would describe as 'unconventional investments.' In truth, our primary concern is the support and administration of a particular group of...gifted individuals." She laughed. "We call this group the 'Shadow Response Unit.' It should come as no surprise that their work entails the destruction of the entities known as Shadows, and all associated malignities." Mitsuru hesitated, then added, almost as an afterthought: "I am also a Persona user."

Ren stared at Mitsuru. This was...a lot to take in. Judging by his friends' silence, they were probably also similarly lost.

Yu broke the silence. "This lady finds Persona users," he explained, "gets them all together, and makes sure we've got the support we need to fight Shadows and save the world."

"Oh," Ann said. "That's cool. You're cool." She sounded completely in awe.

Misturu laughed. "I appreciate the flattery, Miss Takamaki." She gestured to Yu. "Ren probably told you both about Yu Narukami. He, along with Aigis, are two of our most effective Operatives." She addressed Ren directly. "You may not know this, they possess the same power that you now hold. The 'Wild Card,' I believe it is called."

The rooftop air didn't feel particularly cold, but Ren shivered nonetheless.

"And this," Mitsuru continued, "is Fuuka Yamagishi." The woman in the white dress started. "She is one of the most talented young women in the modern field of information technology, and the finest navigator I know." Misturu smiled softly. "She's also a personal friend of mine, and I trust her with my life."

"Why," Ren said, "are you telling us all of this?"

"She wants to convince you that you're in good hands," Yu said. He sounded almost spiteful, some bitter edge to his tone. "That you can trust her to 'take care of things.'"

Mitsuru sent a quick glare towards him. "Narukami," she said, "is speaking in rather blunt terms, but he is not incorrect." She adjusted one of her long sleeves. "If I am not mistaken, he told you that we have been able to secure access to the realm known as Mementos."

Ren nodded. "But you're unable to get into the Palaces, right?"

"Not for lack of trying," she mumbled, "but yes. We are currently in the process of researching some way of identifying and accessing Palaces. We..." Mitsuru hesitated. "We had an agreement within the SRU that we would help the Phantom Thieves in any capacity that we could, but that it would be impossible for us to take the burden of your duties away from you."

Her wording struck Ren in an odd, somewhat frustrating way.

"However," she continued, "it's been brought to my attention that we may be able to find access to Palaces after all." Mitsuru paused, shifting in her chair. "If...we were to do so, if we were to enter Palaces as we have entered Mementos, for the sake of assisting the Phantom Thieves, would you accept that?"

Ren stared at her. "I don't understand what you're asking us."

She sighed. "Yu. Could you please explain what I'm trying to say without making me seem like some sort of supervillain? You seem to be far better at articulating this than I am."

Yu laughed. "Sure. I can do that." He pushed off the wall, uncrossing his arms. "So, I mentioned to you that we couldn't help you in the Palaces because we lacked access. That's still true, but Fuuka here figured out that we might be able to piggyback off whatever access you have. But," he added before Mitsuru had a chance to cut in again, "Miss Commander here feels it's best for Shadow Ops to use that access to supplant the Phantom Thieves."

"Yu!" she snapped. "That's not..." Mitsuru let out a long sigh, brushing her hair out of her face. "I am asking two separate requests of you. The first is for you to allow us to study how you enter Palaces, so that we may use our resources to aid your goal of changing hearts, including lending you the assistance of our Operatives. And the second, is to ask you to allow SRU to take over the duties of the Phantom Thieves."

"What!?" Ryuji spluttered. "You're telling us to retire!?"

Mitsuru nodded. "I don't suggest you three surrender your autonomy, far from it. But..." Ren saw something in her eyes, some sadness breaching through her strict demeanor. "You're children. You shouldn't have to fight like this, it isn't fair for you to put your lives on the line." Mitsuru tapped her fingers on the table, an idle sound that seemed to dwarf the distant bustle of Shibuya nearby. "If you agree to our terms, we will grant you as much administrative power as we can. You three will have exclusive authority to select targets, to set the pace of our actions, to directly oversee infiltrations and the changing of hearts. It is my desire to allow you three to remain as the Phantom Thieves, while taking you out of danger."

"You want us to leave the fighting to the adults," Ren said.

"Yes," Mitsuru confirmed.

Ann crossed her arms, gaze locked on the ground. "I don't like it. I don't like having to answer to someone else, especially since we don't really trust you yet." She sighed. "Ren...you're the leader. What do you think?"

"What should we do?" Morgana added.

Ren felt all eyes on him. He closed his own, forcing a curtain of dark over the scene, hiding himself from the weight of their expectations. If Mitsuru was to be trusted, and Ren believed the sincerity of her words, then this was a hell of a deal. The chance to keep Ryuji, Ann and Morgana safe. Commanding far more experienced Persona users, giving the Thieves far greater of a chance to succeed in their goal. Ensuring hearts would be changed, promptly and effectively.

It was a no-brainer. It was the easy way out.

And whose dreams would he be betraying to take that out? His teammates, who had placed their trust in him, who had chosen to fight by his side? Mishima? Shiho? Himself?

You won't make my mistakes. You've already made that clear.

Ren opened his eyes. "No deal. We're the Phantom Thieves, and we're not surrendering that to anyone. Not even you."

Mitsuru nodded, her eyes still gleaming with grief. "And of granting us access to the Palaces?"

"No," Ren said. "We're able to enter the Palaces through something called a Metaverse Navigator. If you can figure that out on your own? Fine. But we're not letting you slow us down. You want to help, then stay out of our way." He stood, and Ann and Ryuji hurriedly joined him.

"Yeah!" Ryuji added. A little unnecessary, but Ren appreciated the support.

"Children like us aren't patient enough to just wait around while adults debate the best course of action," Ann said, her tone sharp. "You should know that."

Mitsuru closed her eyes. She let the silence linger for what felt like minutes. "Yes," she replied, "I should." She opened her eyes and smiled at Ren. "Very well. The SRU places our implicit trust in the Phantom Thieves. If you ever require assistance, for any reason, our resources are yours. All you need to do is ask." She pulled a black buisness card out of her pocket and slid it across the table.

"Um," Fuuka said, finally speaking. "Good luck. You can do it. If...if anyone can change the world, it's you all."

"Thank you," Ren said. He took the buisness card and pocketed it. "Now, if you'll excuse us, we've got class."

"Oh! Hold on!" Yu practically stumbled over the table in his rush to reach Ren. He was grinning like a dumbass. "Told you I had a gift for you, right?" Yu reached into the pocket of his uniform and handed a pair of glasses to Ren. "Here."

The glasses were broken. Incredibly broken. They were missing one leg, and the only remaining lens was covered in a spiderweb crack. Ren raised an eyebrow at the gift, then stared at Yu. "Sure this is the right pair?"

Yu laughed. "Just take it, you little gremlin." He pressed the spectacles into Ren's hand. "Trust me. When you need 'em to, they'll work." Yu smirked. "Sometimes, you just need to see things as they are."

Ren turned to leave, and paused. "Actually," he said. "There is something you could do for us, Mitsuru."

The woman nodded. "Name it." Mitsuru smiled. "We are at your disposal."

"We need some dirt on a famous painter." Ren could feel Ann and Ryuji start next to him, as they most likely figured out exactly what he was talking about. "Think you can dig something up for us?"

Mitsuru's eyes gleamed with understanding. "I'll see what we can do."


5/21 – Saturday
After School
Near Shibuya

"I'm sorry," Ren said.

"Another ulterior motive?" Yusuke teased. Once again, he ran his brush across the canvas.

"Yeah," Ren replied. "I think...you're probably gonna have to put this painting on hiatus."

Yusuke glanced over for him, smiling as if he was searching for some humor in that statement. At the sight of Ren's solemn expression, his face fell. "I see." He put the brush down. "You're done modeling for me, then?"

"I'm done lying to you," Ren said. "I'm sorry. This...I really enjoyed being your muse, or whatever I was, but I can't keep lying."

Yusuke crossed his arms. "And the truth is what, exactly? Are you simply investigating my Sensei, or–"

"Not quite investigating." Ren took a deep breath, and pulled the piece of rectangular black and red cardboard from his pocket. "Here." He handed it to Yusuke.

Yusuke took the card and read it aloud. "Sir Ichiryusai Madarame, you have shown yourself as a blossoming sinner. We have witnessed the evidence of your crimes, and hereby find you guilty of harboring distorted desires. We extend to you: an opportunity to correct your sins. If you confess your crimes, we will take no further action against you. This is your first and final warning. Signed, the Phantom Thieves." He stared at the card, reading it over and over again, eyes tracing those words. "Ren, what exactly...does this mean?"

"Suguru Kamoshida," Ren said, "was a man of indescribable sin. He abused his position of power over those who sought his approval, and drove am innocent girl to the brink of death. We made him confess his sins." Despite the confident air he was forcing behind his words, Ren found himself rubbing the back of his neck. "I'm a Phantom Thief. We seek out the guilty and reform their hearts."

Yusuke handed the card back to Ren, pushing it back onto the Thief as if the act of holding it was painful for him. "My...my Sensei is no sinner," he protested. There was no confidence behind his words. "He is a good man, a noble man. He struggles, but he tries so very hard. He's nothing like...that."

"He's manipulating you, Yusuke."

"How do you know!?" The young man's voice cracked. "You don't...you don't have anything."

Before today, Ren would have agreed with him. Thankfully, Mitsuru had gotten back to him promptly with the information he'd requested. "Natsuhiko Nakanohara," Ren said. Yusuke flinched at the name. "He was also a student of your Sensei, I'm sure you know him."

"He left in disgrace," Yusuke said, quietly. "He was a bitter man, and he couldn't handle the pressure of being an artist."

"He was sixteen." Ren had memorized Nakanohara's story, read it over and over on his phone on the train ride over. "And he was an incredibly talented sculptor. Yet, he claims none of his sculptures ever sold for a single yen. Madarame took each one, and donated it to a different gallery. Nakanohara left Madarame with hundreds of thousands of yen in debt, and he quit being an artist in order to pay off his crushing student loans. Yet, somehow, Madarame can still afford to host cocktail parties at fancy bars with the gallery owners who he says showed such distain for his students' work."

Yusuke was silent. "Do you have any proof?" He sounded desperate. Desperate for an out, some relief from this unfair truth.

Ren took another deep breath. This was miserable. He wished nothing more than to provide such a respite. But he couldn't. Not now. "I have an email from the owner of the Shibuya Art Gallery to one Ichiryusai Madarame, promising half a million yen for an untitled landscape painted by someone named Y. Kitagawa."

Yusuke's gaze shot towards Ren. "No," he said. "No, that's..." He stared at the Thief, through him. Silence.

"I'm sorry you had to find out like this," Ren said. He was. So, indescribably sorry. "If there was any other way, I would have taken it. But I need your help."

"You need my help," Yusuke said, his voice empty, "to change my father's heart."

Ren nodded. "Or," he said, "you kick me out of your house. You forbid me from returning, you forbid me from taking any further actions against him. And Madarame's heart will remain unchanged."

Yusuke thought in silence. "Must I choose now?" He smiled, but both his voice and his hands shook.

"Now would be best," Ren said. "But if you need time, I can give that to you."

The young man straightened up. He looked over at his unfinished painting, and picked up his brush. He dipped the end in black paint, and made one long stroke across the canvas. "Whatever needs to be done," he said, "if it will fix his heart, I will do it. I want my father back, Ren."

Ren couldn't help the pained smile that crept onto his lips. "Thank you, Yusuke."

Yusuke nodded. "So, what now?"