█████
Afternoon
Cafe Leblanc, Attic
The Trickster just stared down at his sister's outstretched hand, her fingers clutched in a loose fist with her pinky up and out. "I think we're both a little too old for pinky promises," he teased.
"Just do it, you dummy," she replied, crossing her other arm across her chest with a huff.
He found a dread settling in his chest. He wasn't sure what she was going to ask him to promise, but he had a feeling, and it chipped at his heart. "Okay," he said, finally, reaching out to wrap his pinky around hers. "What am I promising now?"
His sister cleared her throat, and raised her other finger for emphasis. "I swear," she said, "that I will find you in the new world. After all this is done, I'll find you again. So you won't have to worry about looking for me."
He stared at her, feeling the corners of his eyes prickle. "I thought you were going to make me promise something," he managed.
"Oh, I am," she said with a mischievous grin. "I want you to promise that you won't abandon me. In all the future versions of us, I mean."
He couldn't help but smile, even as it hurt. He was going to abandon her in this world, wasn't he? That was the implication. "I swear," he said, "that I will never abandon you in any future iteration. Being your friend, your brother, is more important to me than...anything. And I will never forsake it."
She nodded. "Good! I'm a pretty fantastic girl, after all." His sister snickered. "Okay okay, one more each." She raised her finger again, puffing out her chest. "I swear that I will trust you. Forever and in every world, I will believe in you." Her hand dropped, and her smile softened, something honest and deep and perhaps just as pained. "I swear I'm always going to trust my brother. Always always always."
"Always," the Trickster echoed. Unprompted, he took a deep breath. "Whenever and wherever you find me, I'll be there for you. When you need me, I'll be there."
His sister smiled so wide she had to close her eyes. Or maybe she just didn't want him to see the tears. "I always need you," she said, quietly.
"Then I'll always be there," he said, and wiggled his pinky. "I promised, after all."
7/22 – Friday
Evening
Cafe Leblanc
The day hadn't been particularly eventful. No further texts from Futaba, and none of the Thieves had discovered any promising leads so far. It hadn't been that much longer than a day, but Ren already began to feel antsy. It was all so far outside of his control, so much up to the whims of fate, and he didn't sit well with the idea of twiddling his thumbs and waiting for information to present itself.
Ren opened the door to Leblanc and was immediately smacked in the face with raucous laughter.
"You did not!" Sojiro said, in between guffaws, wiping some sweat off his face with the hand-towel he always carried.
His interlocutor chuckled; a woman in a sharp suit, with long silver hair swept to one side, leaning a little towards the cafe owner, one hand on the countertop. "Sojiro Sakura, I am many things, but I am not a liar."
Sojiro snorted. "You're a goddamn prosecutor, isn't it half your job to lie?" A prosecutor? Wasn't Makoto's sister...
"Oh of course you would assume that," the woman replied, rolling her eyes. "I'll have you know that I've won every single one of my cases fair and square. But that's a rich accusation, coming from Mister Nepotism himself."
"It's not nepotism to get a job offer from a friend!" Sojiro pointed at the woman with dramatic ire, grinning at the woman. "That's called networking."
She scoffed. "Please. Dictionary definition; you know I'm right. Look it up!"
"I'm not going to look it up," Sojiro said.
"Because you know I'm right," the woman shot back, grinning.
"Because dictionaries are dumb and having a Masters Degree doesn't mean you're always correct."
"Oh," the woman said, "it absolutely doesn't mean that. But I do, and I'm always correct."
"You're always insufferable," Sojiro replied.
"And," she said, "I'm always right."
Sojiro rolled his eyes, and as he did, his gaze fell on Ren. "Ah, Ren, you're back." He gestured to the woman. "I don't think you've met, this is–"
"I'm more than capable of introducing myself, Sakura," she replied, brushing a strand of hair away from her left ear. The woman took a long few steps towards Ren – who forced himself to step inside the cafe – her heels clicking on the floor. She extended a hand to him with a firm but somewhat warm smile. "My name is Sae Niijima. I do believe my sister has mentioned me to you?"
Ren just nodded, reaching out to shake the woman's hand. Her grip was polite, but strong. "Yeah. Makoto said you were a prosecutor. And you work with Goro Akechi, don't you?"
Sae looked impressed. "Quite the well-informed young man. And Sojiro tells me you're an accomplished academic as well. Planning on giving my sister a run for her money?"
"Uh," Ren said, instinctively glancing towards Sojiro, who looked just a little sheepish. Sae's tone was warm, but there was something uncomfortable about it; not helped by her continued grip on his hand. He wasn't quite sure how to respond. "I'm just trying to do my best, ma'am."
"Well," Sae chuckled, "that sounds like you've got your feet on the ground, then. I suppose you get that from Mister Sakura?"
"Knock it off, Niijima," Sojiro protested. "You know we're not related."
"Oh, I'm aware." Sae finally let go of Ren's hand, turning back towards Sojiro. "Speaking of, though, you haven't mentioned Futaba at all." Ren's blood froze. "How is she?"
Sojiro's expression fell. "She's...well, you know Futaba. She's a strong girl."
"I know," Sae said. "But how is she?"
The cafe owner sighed. "About the same, honestly."
Sae nodded. "I'm sorry." She cleared her throat, glancing between Ren and Sojiro. "I would love to stay longer, but I have quite a lot of paperwork to catch up on. Sojiro, I apologize if I soured the mood, it was not my intention."
"Oh, don't you worry about that." Sojiro waved a hand dismissively. "Just stop trying to get me to deliver to your office. I told you, it's not going to happen."
"Your loss," Sae said, chuckling. "You're losing a customer, you know." She nodded to Ren, then walked past him and out the door. The bell chimed as it closed behind her.
"Who's Futaba?" Ren asked, the question springing to his lips the moment the prosecutor was out of earshot.
Sojiro raised an eyebrow. "Not someone you need to worry about." An odd strictness to his tone. "Despite what it might seem, I do value some bare minimums of privacy in my life."
A flickering anger. Where did this guy get off treating him like some stupid kid? "Does she have anything to do with the listening device I found on the one of the lights in here?" Ren snapped. He immediately regretted it, wished he could grab the words out of the air and shove them back down his throat.
Sojiro stared at Ren, confused, and then he started. "Oh! Oh, that thing. No, not at all, that was my idea."
Ren blinked. "What," he said.
Sojiro chuckled, then sighed, and massaged the bridge of his nose. "It's not..." he mumbled, then trailed off. "It's complicated. I don't want you getting involved in this."
"So, you don't trust me," Ren replied. It wasn't a question. "You think I'm going to fuck up your personal business or something?"
"That's not what I'm saying," Sojiro growled back. "Don't put words in my mouth, kid."
"Then tell me what's going on!" Ren couldn't even articulate why he was so bothered by this, but Sojiro's attitude immediately sparked an indignation in his gut that spread like a bile across his tongue. "I live here too! I know I'm not your fucking son but that doesn't mean you should treat me like like I don't exist!"
The cafe owner looked about an instant away from yelling some response, but none came. Instead, he just took a deep breath in and out. "Sit down, Ren," he said.
Ren placed his bag on the nearby table – Morgana poking his head out to watch the conversation – and sat down at the counter.
Sojiro similarly plopped down on his stool, and scratched at his goatee. "I'm sorry," he said. "I tend to get very protective over Futaba. Too many instances of someone who thinks they know best trying to...to fix her." He let out a frustrated breath. "But you deserve better than to be talked to like that."
"Who is she?" Ren repeated. "Who's Futaba?"
"Well, she's my daughter." Sojiro chuckled. "Legally, at least. I don't know if she sees me as anything more than a guardian."
Ren took that in. Sojiro's daughter. Well, that explained why she'd have access to Leblanc. "Why didn't you mention her before? Why would...you said people were trying to fix her? Why?"
"Well, she's–" Sojiro cut himself off. "It's hard to explain, out of context at least." He sighed again. "I suppose I should start at the beginning." His gaze wandered up towards the ceiling. "Before I opened Leblanc, I used to work as a sort of liaison to a government-funded research facility. I made sure all the money was going to the right place, got the findings were properly documented, kept the officials happy – boring stuff, really."
Ren just nodded.
"I ended up becoming pretty close friends with one of the researchers: Wakaba Isshiki." He smiled, soft and melancholy. "Frankly, that woman was a genius. She was the smartest, most passionate, clever person I've ever met." Sojiro ran a hand through his hair. "She ended up having a child midway through her research. Never mentioned the father, and I never pressed her on it."
He chuckled. "Wakaba never went on maternity leave either, that stubborn lady kept on working right up until she gave birth, and kept powering through while nursing a newborn." Sojiro shook his head. "I was her friend, so I decided to pitch in. Babysat on my off days, edited her sleep deprived reports into readable documents, stuff like that."
Ren was starting to piece things together now. "That child...that was Futaba?"
Sojiro nodded. "That was Futaba." He took another long breath. "Wakaba passed away before finishing her research. That was about two years ago. I'd already retired from the government by that point, but we were still fairly close." He paused, his expression firm. "Wakaba's living relatives were...unfit," the word sprung venomous from his lips, "to raise Futaba. So, I adopted her."
"That still doesn't explain the listening devices," Ren said. "Or why you've been keeping her a secret."
"I'm getting there," Sojiro scolded. "But, things were alright for a while. Took a few months for Futaba to get adjusted, but she was thriving. Spent almost every day with me in Leblanc, helping out with chores or people-watching, or just being on her computer in one of the booths. She'd struggle in public, but we'd still go out for dinner once a week. I'd take her shopping, we went to movies, normal stuff. Futaba had friends, even. She still wasn't well enough to go back to school, but she was healing."
He was quiet for a moment. "Then a year ago, she just clammed up. She didn't talk as much, and her meltdowns would come more often and hit her harder. Panic attacks, delusions, hallucinations; the works." Sojiro pursed his lips. "Soon, she wouldn't leave the house at all. Then, she locked herself in her room."
"That's awful," Morgana mumbled. "No wonder her cognition is distorted. That's way too much for anyone to handle."
"People kept trying to fix her?" Ren prompted.
"Yeah," he said. "I mean, I think I tried pretty much everything. Anyone who had advice, I'd at least listen. That's where I got the idea to put the listening device in, so she could hear what went on in her favorite cafe, even while she was stuck in her room." Sojiro paused. "But I'm pretty sure all that meddling made things worse." He ran a hand through his hair. "Futaba's just a girl," he said. "She's not crazy. She's just...hurt. And I got tired of people treating my daughter like she's broken."
Something imprecise ached inside of Ren. A pang through his ribcage, something, something. "I'm sorry," he said. "And I'm sorry for yelling."
Sojiro shrugged. "I get it, kid. Bet you're pretty tired of being treated like an outlier too, huh?"
Well, Ren wouldn't deny that was the case. But there was far more on his mind than that. "If–" He paused. How to say this best... "Ryuji and Ann and Yusuke and Makoto, they helped me...get better. Being around them made me feel like I wanted to heal, like I wanted to shrug off all the shit I was carrying around." Ren shrugged. "I don't want to meddle. I don't think Futaba is broken, and I don't want to try and fix her. But, maybe..." He trailed off. "Maybe we could help. Just knowing that someone else knows what it's like to hurt like that. That she's not alone."
Sojiro just stared at Ren, his expression blank, probably mulling over that suggestion. He stood up, rubbing the back of his neck. Quiet, thoughtful. "Ground rules," he said, abruptly. "No matter the reason, if I or Futaba tell you or any of your friends that you need to leave, or stop trying to help, then you leave and you stop. And you need to be responsible, and make sure none of you do anything to harm her or put in her any danger. You promise me that."
"I promise," he said, immediately. "Uh, would it...be okay if I told my friends what you told me?"
Sojiro nodded. "Yeah. I think that'd be alright."
7/23 – Saturday
After School
Yongen-Jaya
Ren had been to Sojiro's house once before, when he'd first arrived back in April. But he'd never once been inside. It was...homey, he supposed. Small, but probably comfortable. Ren couldn't focus much on the decor. He was far more concerned with who was within.
Sojiro led him up a small flight of stairs, flicking on the lights as he went. "Stay here," he said, once they reached the top, "and stay quiet, please."
Ren nodded. "You're the boss."
Sojiro smirked, then walked a little ways down the hallway and stopped in front of a door – Ren could some sort of yellow bands across it, like police caution tape? The cafe owner cleared his throat, and knocked gently. "Futaba?" he called. "I don't know if you're still awake. But, if you are, could you knock back, please?"
A pause. Silence, in the hallway. Then two steady, echoed knocks.
Ren could see Sojiro smiling. "Thank you. Um, have you eaten yet today?"
One knock.
"I have some leftover curry from last night. Would you like me to bring it to you?"
Two knocks.
"Okay," Sojiro said. "Could you drink some water for me? Take your meds?"
Two knocks, three times in quick succession.
Sojiro burst into quiet laughter. "Alright, alright." He hesitated. "I...do you remember the young man I was telling you about? The one who's been staying in Leblanc?"
A pause. And a sound, barely audible, muffled by the door. No more than a whisper. "...miya."
"That's the guy." Sojiro swallowed hard. "He...he's a lot like you. He has trouble sleeping, and..." He glanced towards Ren, with what looked like a silent apology.
Ren wanted to tell the man directly, but he just nodded. Slow, and steady. A silent permission he hoped would carry across the space.
Sojiro cleared his throat. "And he's trans as well." As well? Ren's heart flickered at that. "I don't think I mentioned that before."
Three knocks, sounding a little louder this time.
"I just never came up," he protested. Then he caught himself. "So, he's been doing a lot better, recently. When he first came here, he barely talked at all. He was sort of on his own. But he's got a whole lot of friends now, and they've...well, they've helped him come out of his shell." Sojiro took long breath. "I was thinking," he said, slowly, "maybe he could help. He knows some of what you're going through, after all, and he's only a couple years older than you. It could be good for you to be around–"
One firm, loud knock.
Sojiro winced. "I...yes, I understand, but..." He closed his eyes. "Futaba. Please, could you...could you give him a chance? I know how awful people have been to you, but Ren isn't..." Sojiro opened his eyes, glancing at Ren across the hallway. "He's a good kid. And I'm not lying, he reminds me a lot of you. I really think he could help."
A pause. One knock. Then another. Then two in a row. Another two.
Sojiro let out a long, relieved breath. "Thank you, Futaba. I promise nothing bad is going to happen to you. I'll keep you safe, I swear I will."
Four knocks.
Sojiro chuckled. "Love you too, kiddo. I'll bring up the curry in a moment, be right back." He walked back across the hallway, pausing to pat Ren on the shoulder. "Thank you," he said, quietly. Then he gestured back to the stairs, and Ren followed him down.
Unknown Number
Did you ask Sojiro about me!?
Ren sat down on his bed, blinking at the far more emotive text. It took him a moment to compose his reply.
Ren
I did
I'm sorry, it was sort of an accident
I didn't mean to intrude at all
We got worried when you went silent
Unknown Number
I
I'm sorry.
I hadn't decided if I wanted you to know who I was yet.
Especially not
uh
You have to know my
"real name"
right?
What did she mean, her...oh. Ren couldn't help but shudder at the implication, quickly switching over to the Meta-Nav app. "Futaba Sakura who lives at Sojiro Sakura's house," he said, as eloquently as he could manage. And then he held his breath, watching the eye pulse on the screen, those three dots swirling in a lazy circle.
"Match found," chirped the computerized voice. Ren had never been so thankful to hear those two words.
Ren
Unless there's another Futaba Sakura who lives at Sojiro Sakura's house, I think you're set
Unknown Number
Oh uh
Oh.
Well I feel
I feel really stupid now.
I got so upset over nothing.
Dumb brain.
Ren
Nothing dumb about it
We weren't clear, I apologize for that
Unknown Number
Are you still going to change my heart?
Ren
Yes
The Thieves still need to reach a consensus, but there isn't a doubt in my mind that we will agree to help you
And even if the Thieves don't agree
He took a deep breath. This wasn't...easy to say. Just the thought of going behind the Thieves' back turned his stomach, even as he knew he wouldn't need to.
Ren
I'll help you
I'll do whatever I can to change your heart
I'm not going to abandon you
Unknown Number
Okay.
Thank you.
Thank you.
7/24 – Sunday
Afternoon
Cafe Leblanc, Attic
After a silent glance around to the other Thieves, making sure there was nothing more to be said, no concerns left to be raised, Ren flicked the switch on the listening device. "Futaba, can you hear us?"
Unknown Number
I can hear you.
"Just so we're on the same page," he continued, "the Thieves have unanimously decided to infiltrate your Palace and change your cognition." The announcement would definitely cause some change in Futaba's palace, that was unfortunately inevitable. But they could at least proceed as carefully as possible with that knowledge. "Before we do so, we'd like to get as much information as we reasonably can, to ensure that our infiltration runs smoothly. You're more than welcome to refuse to answer any question, there's nothing wrong with that."
Unknown Number
What do you need to know?
Ren glanced up, giving the floor to the others. Yusuke spoke first. "How did you come to figure out your cognition was distorted?"
Unknown Number
Having paranoid fits every few days made that pretty obvious.
Yusuke winced. "I mean...not, how you knew something was wrong, but the specifics of it. You said you've tried changing it yourself, and you knew that we were able to alter cognition specifically. Did you simply pick that up from listening to us?" The question, on its own, was simple, but Ren knew what he was implying. Did Futaba have access to the Meta-Nav?
Unknown Number
Not from you.
I know some things about cognition.
Everything I was going through matched the symptoms of a False State.
I heard from you all that you could steal distorted desires.
Terms like Palace, Treasure and the concept of a collective unconscious.
Those all matched what I already knew.
So it made sense to me that you should be able to induce a Cognitive Overhaul.
Silence for a moment. Everyone looked honestly perplexed.
"What the shit is a Cognitive Overhaul?" Ryuji mumbled, scratching his chin.
Unknown Number
It's just another for a change of heart.
The big ones when you guys steal a Treasure.
"I've never heard either of those terms before," Morgana said. He seemed more shaken that the rest, plopping down on the couch and staring at the listening device on the table. "How could she know more than me..." He trailed off, and turned to look at the desk. Ren reached over and scratched behind the not-a-cat's ears.
"Where did you pick up those terms?" Makoto asked. "They're not like anything we've heard before."
Unknown Number
Can't say.
Ann hummed a thoughtful note. "Ren said you were doing really well for a while, but then things got worse. Did anything in particular set that off?"
Unknown Number
Secret.
"A secret set it off?" Yusuke asked.
Unknown Number
Kinda.
It's secret though.
Can't say any more.
"Well," Ren said, "was there any reason in particular it took so long to reach out to us?"
Unknown Number
Can't say.
Ryuji groaned. "Is that a secret too?"
Unknown Number
No.
It's
It's embarrassing.
Can't say.
Ren took a long breath. He didn't want to push Futaba, he'd promised he wouldn't hurt her and he had no intentions of doing so, but it was...difficult to have to accept so many unresponses. "We still need to figure out the nature of your distortion." Previously, they'd simply thrown potential keywords into the Meta-Nav for a few hours, and hoped to find something that worked. It wasn't much of a useful plan, and Ren didn't want to make Futaba wait any longer than he had to. "Could you...tell us what Sojiro's house is to you?"
Unknown Number
It's a house.
I don't know
It's just a place were I live.
"What's it like living there?" Ann offered. "Is it nice?"
Unknown Number
It's painful.
That spread a momentary silence across the room.
"Why is it painful, Futaba?" Makoto asked, quietly.
Unknown Number
I don't know.
It just hurts
I'm sorry.
"It's okay, Futaba," Ren said immediately. "You're doing great."
Another moment of thought, of quiet.
Ryuji sighed. "Why don't you leave, then? If it hurts so much?" Ren winced at his words, but his voice was honest. Blunt, but true.
Unknown Number
I can't leave.
I don't know why, I just can't.
I know I'm going to–
Ren stopped reading. His breath caught in his throat. Fuck. He forced himself to keep breathing, to keep reading. "I know I'm going to die here," he read.
Ann sucked in a breath of air like she'd been punched. Ryuji similarly tensed, and Makoto locked her eyes on the ground. Even the fur on the back of Morgana's neck started to stand up.
"Why do you think that?" Yusuke asked, an unbearable sorrow in his tone. "What makes you believe you're going to die?"
Unknown Number
Because this place is my tomb.
The moment the word left his mouth, Ren's hand shuddered. No, it wasn't his hand, it was–
Reality pitched to the left. A wave of red and black across his vision. The other Thieves wobbled, their forms distorting like a heat wave had hit the room. A sound like a hum through molasses. And then, it was gone.
"Input accepted," came the Metaverse Navigator's voice once again. "Ready to begin navigation."
Unknown Number
What was that?
Ren couldn't help but smile, squeezing his phone a little tighter. "We got the codephrase. We can access your Palace now." Another glance around the room to confirm, and another chorus of steady agreement. "Tomorrow, we'll start our infiltration."
I'd like to thank Jane and Jae, who've both helped me so much in being able to articulate how I write Futaba and Akechi, respectively. They both inspire me so much, and I'm very, very thankful to be their friend.
