10/4 – Tuesday
After School
Shibuya Station

It wasn't hard to spot Mitsuru amidst the early rush-hour crowd, even though they'd only met in person once, and even though she was dressed today in a far more informal dark jacket and jeans than the sharp suit she'd worn before. Her red hair was still an immediate giveaway, as vibrant as ever, covering her entire back in a near mane.

"Hey," he said, scooting past a spaced-out-looking old man to stand by the young woman. "I'm not late, am I?"

Mitsuru took a moment to check her watch before smiling his way. "Not at all. Our train is still ten minutes away. Plenty of time." She let out a breath, like his presence had somehow relaxed her. "I'm quite glad you're here, Ren. I know this will likely be, at points, quite a somber trip. But it means a lot to me that you decided to join."

He shrugged, but the gratitude washed over him like a crisp wave, chiller than the Autumn air and far more pleasant. "It's cool. I mean, even somber sounds like a nice change of pace."

"Hm." She gave him an odd look. "You mentioned...memories, yes?"

"Yeah." He adjusted his bag on his shoulder – it felt so uncomfortably light, since Morgana had decided to stay at Leblanc to work with Futaba. "It's been sort of a crazy few weeks. Not anything drastic, and I don't wanna get into it too much now, but I'll probably have some info for you in a few days." It was a very unsteady 'probably,' one that lingered on his tongue like a bad aftertaste. He did want to tell her, but beyond receiving the consent of the other Thieves, he still felt hesitant for reasons he couldn't quite articulate.

"Understood." She faced the platform again, pausing herself with a breath. "Unless that information places the SRU in danger, you have no obligation to disclose it. I will accept whatever you choose to tell me, as much or as little as that might be." Mitsuru chuckled dryly, as if at a bitter inside joke. "I understand that my habit of prying has caused far more harm than I would like. While I am hardly perfect, I do wish to amend that behavior, to the best of my ability. I promise you, Ren, I will not pressure the Thieves, nor you, to tell me anything beyond that which you are comfortable with."

"Thank you," he said. "It's tough, sometimes, to know what's important and what isn't. Sometimes there's stuff I don't share that turns out to be bigger than I thought, or stuff I do share that turns out to be super inconsequential." He gave a little smile. "I'm not perfect either. But I'll do my best."

She chuckled, returning his smile "That's quite a mature assessment. If I might be so bold...I am proud of you for making it."

"Yo!" The energetic shout nearly made Ren jump, and he glanced past Mitsuru to see a pair of young women approaching the two of them from the other end of the platform. One was unfamiliar, with a grey vest over a white formal shirt, dark slacks and vibrant purple hair. But the other? Short brown hair, pink shirt, blue jacket with a popped collar, and shorts that didn't at all fit the close-to-Winter weather. Nothing like the outfit he'd seen her in before, but it was definitely her. "Ren, holy shit. Mitsuru said she wasn't sure if you'd show. Good to see you."

"You too," he replied, grinning. "Been a bit, Miss Takeba."

"Yukari," she corrected. "I know I'm your elder, but don't treat me like an old lady or something." She laughed, bright and loud.

The purple-haired woman ignored both Yukari and Ren, walking right up to Mitsuru and leaning in to whisper – oh, nope, that was a kiss, that was definitely a kiss the woman was planting on her cheek. "I'm glad we made it," she said, her voice quicker than Mitsuru's, and lighter, but no less articulate. "Takeba's director insisted on reshooting an entire scene before he'd allow her to leave."

"I told him I had somewhere to be," Yukari added, shaking her head with a frustrated sigh. She glanced around the platform. "Where's Fuuka and Junpei? Don't tell me they're missing this. I mean, Junpei I'd get, but–"

"They're catching the train at Yokohama," Mitsuru cut in. "I assume you heard from Aigis as well?"

Yukari nodded. "Yeah, she's gonna meet us in Tatsumi, right? Something about getting an early start."

Mitsuru hummed a confirmation, then turned back towards Ren. "Ah, I don't believe you've met...well, er, Ren, this is Kikuno." She gestured stiffly to the purple-haired woman, who bowed her head slightly. "She's the co-head of the Kirijo Group, and serves as both treasurer and administrator within the Shadow Response Unit."

"And your wife," Kikuno added, a shadow of a smile on her lips.

"And my wife," Mitsuru echoed, almost bashful. Yukari just snickered at that, hands in her pockets.

"It's nice to meet you, uh, Miss Kirijo." Ren bowed his own head to the woman. "Were you part of S.E.E.S. too?"

She shook her head. "No, not quite. And I won't be joining you on this trip, unfortunately. Someone needs to keep an eye on Teddie and Yosuke, after all."

Mitsuru near-shuddered. "Oh, heavens. Please don't let them destroy any more experimental technology."

Kikuno made a sound in her throat, a hum like a laugh that lasted only an instant. "I won't." She took Mitsuru's hand in hers, locking eyes with the woman. "Have a lovely trip," she said, steady and soft. "And give him my regards." After a long few seconds, she let go, making her way back through the crowd and out of sight.

Mitsuru watched her leave, letting out a long, lilting sigh that seemed to hang in the somehow quiet air. "I will," she said.


With how quickly Mitsuru and Yukari made their way to a spot near the back of the train where the crowd was lighter, Ren found himself even more convinced in the ritual of this journey, and even more out of place as a result. Still, he settled down near them, and waited. It was about a half hour before they made it to Yokohama, but the time passed quickly enough with Yukari rambling off something like a dozen interconnected stories about her many television misadventures. By the time they pulled into Yokohama Station, anyone else unfortunate enough to sit in the back with them had left, probably scared off by the young woman's unshakable volume.

"Here we are," Mitsuru said, raising a hand to cut Yukari off midway through an explanation about the intricacies of the auditioning process. "Now then, assuming they aren't running late..." She trailed off, peering towards the front of the train. Yukari similarly leaned partway off her seat to gaze at the new passengers milling their way inside.

"You said Fuuka and...someone else?" Ren couldn't help but join the search, even as he wasn't quite sure what he was looking for.

"Yes," Mitsuru said. "Another former member of S.E.E.S., by the name of–"

"Junpei fucking Iori," Yukari exclaimed, half-grinning and half-glaring at a young man with dark hair and a gotee in what looked like a bright blue sports jersey and a matching baseball cap. "You had a whole year to prep for today, and you still show up in that fucking outfit."

"I didn't have time to change," Junpei fired back. "Extra innings are a bitch and I had to strike out on purpose just to get here on time." He crossed his arms, similarly matching her mixed expression. "You could at least appreciate the sacrifice."

Yukari snorted. "Appreciate the fact that you can't hit a home run to save your life? I'm good, thanks."

"He did hit one today," came a soft voice from behind Junpei, from a very familiar young woman with teal hair and the same plain white dress and black leggings he'd seen her in before. "Just the one, though." And she glanced towards Ren with a little smile. "Hello Ren. Are you doing well?"

He nodded. "Pretty well, yeah. Out of my element, I guess, but I'm fine."

"Good," she said. And without another word, she walked over and plopped down next to Mitsuru, resting her head on the other woman's shoulder.

"Good afternoon to you as well, Fuuka," Mitsuru chuckled, reaching up to ruffle her hair affectionately.

"Ren..." Junpei repeated, brow furrowed before his expression lit up. "Oh, this guy's the kid!"

"That would be the leader of the Phantom Thieves, yes," Mitsuru replied, almost a hint of defensiveness in her tone. She was getting mad for his sake? That was...huh. Unexpected, for sure, but kinda nice.

"Ren Amamiya," Ren said, standing and offering his hand to the young man.

Junpei reached out in an instant and bumped his knuckles against Ren, smacking his hand first down and then up in an incredibly elaborate fist bump, then pulling it back and wiggling his fingers. "Sup," he said.

"Oh my god," Yukari wheezed, her shoulders shuddering from a stifled laugh. Fuuka giggled too, and even Mitsuru looked like she was hiding a smile behind one hand.

"Hey shut up!" Junpei whirled towards them, a scowl across his face. "You girls don't have a monopoly on getting to be cool around the new guy. This is fucking misand–" The train lurched, and Junpei cut himself off with a yelp as he stumbled forward and grabbed onto a nearby metal pole for support. This time, Yukari really did burst out laughing.


They made it to Tatsumi Port Station close to sunset, the island clinging to the mainland by a pair of bridges, surrounded by water now coated in a mix of oranges and blues from the sky above. Their destination, though, was farther inland.

"Mitsuru had to argue for weeks with the local government to get the spot approved," Yukari explained on the way, as the five of them walked along a cobblestone path flanked on either side by trees. "They felt it was too close to Naganaki Shrine, and they didn't want to hand over such a small bit of land. So, Mitsuru bought a whole acre behind the Shrine just to shut them up." She chuckled. "And then as soon as they stopped squawking, she turned around and donated everything but the spot she wanted to a local conservationist group."

"I think she still might be blacklisted from doing business in Tatsumi after that," Fuuka added.

Ren stared after the woman leading the quintet up a small flight of stairs, her crimson hair like fire against the setting sky. He could absolutely imagine her pulling that sort of stunt. "Is that why the SRU moved to Shibuya?"

Fuuka shook her head. "The Shibuya headquarters is less than two years old. We moved our operations there after we found out about Mementos."

"Shibuya's pretty cool, but man, I miss Gekkoukan's field," Junpei said, shaking his head sadly. "That place was the fucking best. I never missed a pitch there."

Yukari snorted out a laugh. "Iori, you graduated five years ago, the only reason you were still playing on that field is because the coach was fucking senile. And you didn't miss a pitch because the pitcher was a second-year."

"I'm sure you could still play there if you really tried," Mitsuru said, her voice drifting back to the group, throwing a start into Ren's step. She gave a little half-smirk over her shoulder. "Last I heard, the Gekkoukan Strings are on a legendary losing streak. Perhaps they could use a professional talent such as yours to break that slump."

Junpei slowly broke into an enormous grin, reaching up to turn his baseball cap backwards on his head. "Hear that, girls? And Ren." Adding his name almost as an afterthought. "It's my calling."

"Yeah," Yukari added, "and it's calling 'loser, loser, loser.'" She whispered the echoed words as if they were carried on the breeze.

"Oh!" Fuuka perked up. "Speaking of losing–"

"Come on," Junpei groaned.

"–was your shoulder acting up at all today? You seemed more off your game than usual." Ren saw Mitsuru slow her confident pace slightly, like she was waiting for the answer too.

Junpei shook his head. "Nope, not at all. Just couldn't focus, cause I didn't wanna miss this." He gestured to the five of them and their sylvan surroundings.

His shoulder. Why did that sound so familiar? Oh! "You're the one who got shot," Ren said, the realization spilling out his mouth before he could stop it.

Mitsuru and Yukari both seemed to stiffen, almost wincing, but Junpei just nodded. "Yep. Took a bullet for a bud; never regretted it, and I'd gladly do it again." He reached up to pat his right shoulder for dramatic effect.

"You won't," Yukari said, an odd tension to her tone. She cleared her throat, her gaze drifting towards the trees and away from him. "We're not gonna let that happen again. So you won't need to."

"Yes," Mitsuru said, an echoed strain, an echoed oath.

Fuuka hummed something like a thought in her throat. "Here we are," she said.

'Here' was the top of a hill, almost a small cliff, that overlooked both the shrine Yukari had mentioned and Tatsumi proper behind it. There was small clearing amidst the trees, with a handful of benches, and a twenty-something-foot walk up to the edge of that hill. And it wasn't empty. There was a young man with light hair and pale suit near the edge, head bowed like he was looking down at something. Ren could see a small assortment of flowers by his feet, and the implication hit him like a slap to the face. He forced his gaze away, as if mere observation would disturb the moment.

On the benches, much closer to them, was both a familiar face and an unfamiliar one. Aigis, in a long dark coat and that eternal red tie, and a young man about Ren's age with brown hair, an orange shirt and a half-buttoned school uniform. At a glance, he almost looked like Akechi, but there was no way in hell Akechi would have greeted anyone with that sort of enormous smile, nor would he be holding onto a visibly exuberant white shiba inu who looked desperate to squirm out of his grasp.

"Koro!" Yukari knelt down, opening her arms wide. The dog barked out a greeting. "Come to mama!"

"You asked for it," the young man said, and let go of the shiba. Immediately, the hound surged forward, bounding across the grass, barreling into Yukari and licking at her face. "Nice to see you too, Yukari." And his eyes fell on Ren. "Oh. Hey there."

"Hi," Ren said, not exactly sure how to greet the stranger, who seemed just as lost for words as he was.

"That's Ken Amada," Fuuka said. "He's the youngest inactive human member of the SRU. He was in S.E.E.S. in middle school, but he's a high schooler now." Ren couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. These guys fought alongside a middle schooler? Judging by everyone's expressions, Fuuka probably wasn't joking. Shit. Being a high school Persona-user was crazy enough, he could only imagine how terrifying that must have been for the guy.

"I'd be the youngest acting member too, if Mitsuru let me," Ken said, standing up and brushing dog hair off his lap. He still stood slightly to the side, not fully facing them, and Ren realized it must have been to let Aigis read his lips better.

Mitsuru merely chuckled. "You're the one who said you wanted to graduate first, I'm simply keeping you to task."

"What are you complaining about?" Junpei asked. "You're graduating next year, that's like, no time at all."

"So says king whiner of whine mountain," Yukari added, barely getting the words out as her canine friend tried very hard to cover her entire face with doggy kisses.

Ken laughed. "Gonna be a little more than a year. I'm taking the rest of the semester off to help save the world, remember?" He let out a long sigh. "Betting there's a hell of a lot of makeup work for me when I get back." And the young man sent a little skewed grin towards Aigis. "No rest for the wicked, right?"

"I will be happy to assist," Aigis said, standing as well. "I still have memories in my archive of my own time at Gekkoukan." She paused, then faced Ren, giving a slightly odd smile. "Hello, Ren. It's very nice to see you. I hope you have been managing well since we last spoke."

He nodded. "Nice to see you too, Aigis. Uh, Narukami said you've been keeping busy, right?"

She nodded. "Yes. There has been a steady surge of Shadows as we grow closer to the end of the year, and as I am the SRU Operative with the greatest endurance, I have taken it upon myself to ensure that not a single Shadow will threaten my friends or yours."

Even though she was just doing her job, Ren couldn't help but feel a little spark of guilt that she'd been overworking himself for his sake, even partially. "Thank you. But I promise, we can handle tougher Shadows than you might think. You don't have to push yourself too hard."

"She won't need to," Mitsuru added. "We had not properly prepared for that increase, but after today, the SRU will be operating at full capacity again."

"They're finally bringing me off the bench," Ken said, with a little chuckle. "I was almost gonna start calling myself the Junpei Kid or something."

Fuuka burst into airy giggles as Junpei sent a glare towards his younger. "I'll have you know," he said, raising a finger in indignation. "That I've been an active Shadow Op for over a year now, and I'm still playing ball every week."

"How's that working out for you?" Ken asked, tilting his head in a faux-innocent fashion.

"I..." Junpei began, then trailed off, lowering his finger. "No comment."

"Spoken like a true athlete," Aigis said, with a little laugh of her own.

Ken finally turned his attention to Ren, giving an awkward little smile. "We already know each other's names, but we should probably still introduce ourselves, right?" He took a few steps forward and extended a hand. "Ken Amada, as you heard. Second-year at Gekkoukan. I would be a third-year, but...well, I got a bit of a late start."

"Ren Amamiya," he replied, shaking Ken's hand. "Second-year at Shujin."

"No kidding," Ken said, breaking into a grin. "I mean, I knew you were a high schooler, but we're in the same year? That's kinda crazy."

Ren just shrugged. "Yeah, but isn't craziness the norm in–" He chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. "I was about to say 'our line of work,' but it's not even that really, right? Our hobby?"

"I guess fighting monsters to the death is sort of a hobby," Ken confirmed with a laugh of his own. "Oh, before I forget." He scooted over and pried the shiba inu out of Yukari's gasp, completely ignoring the young woman's wail of dismay, hefting the canine in his arms. "This is Koromaru Junior!" His voice was slightly strained from the effort. "Her dad was part of S.E.E.S., but he retired a couple years ago, cause he's an old dog now."

"No new tricks," Aigis said, solemnly shaking her head.

"But turns out his daughter can use a Persona too," Ken continued. "So she'll be working with us. Go on, say hi!" Koromaru Junior gave a quiet little bark, panting in Ren's general direction.

"Uh," Ren said, not exactly sure how to process the concept of a canine Persona-user. Then again, there was Morgana, but he wasn't biologically a cat. The shiba inu in front of him looked like a perfectly ordinary dog. "Hi there, Miss...Koromaru Junior." He extended a hand, and the canine sniffed it twice and then licked his fingers.

"Looks like you're dog-approved," Yukari teased, still sitting on the grass.

"That's the only approval I need," came an unfamiliar voice and a little chuckle. Ren turned to see the young man he'd spotted before, walking his way back from the flower-laden cliff edge. Up close, he had a faint shadow of a goatee and buzzed short grey hair – despite his lack of wrinkles – and an odd x-shaped scar near his left temple. "I'm Akihiko Sanada, by the way. I assume you're Amamiya?"

Ren nodded, but he found an irritation wriggling into his breath. "Sorry if it's rude to say, but to be honest, it's a little unnerving that everyone knows my name before I even meet them."

"Ah," Aigis said, sounding almost sheepish.

Akihiko chuckled. "Yeah, that's...a little unfortunate. Not exactly something I think any of us really wanted." He glanced towards Mitsuru, something unreadable in both of their expressions, before looking back at Ren. "I'd love to exchange some proper introductions, but first things first." He gestured with his head back towards the hill's edge, down the path he'd just walked. "Do you want to say your piece? I know you didn't know him, but..." He trailed off, like he didn't know how to articulate what he wanted to.

Ren felt a dozen eyes on him, and he tried not to panic under the sudden attention. Okay, deep breaths. Did he want to? He could always just say no, he trusted that they would respect that. But then again...something in him wanted to participate. He'd been invited to this ritual, to something sacred to these people. "I would," he said, quieter than he'd expected. "Thank you."

"Alright." Akihiko smiled and stepped out of the way, giving a little wave towards the path. "Go right ahead." He paused for a moment, like he had remembered something. "There's no wrong way to do it. Just follow your heart, and you'll do fine."

Ren nodded, and his feet began to move, and he walked past the man and onto the path. Immediately, the faint breeze tore his breath away. Walking with purpose, without confidence, unsure and unfit and welcome and belonging. Each step was a tragedy, and each breath was a symphony.

"Just don't step on the flowers!" came Junpei's voice from behind him.

"He knows!" Yukari snapped immediately. "He's not an idiot!"

Ren found a smile creeping onto his lips. The path felt no less sacred, but the tension in him was a little lessened. And he walked. Step by step by step, until the sound of the young men and women behind him faded away in the whispering wind. And then he stopped.

It was a simple thing. A small bed of assorted flowers; not left, but grown, poking out of the wild grass. Some yellow or purple, but most were red. Ren could see the whole of Tatsumi from here, and it was a breathtaking view. But his eyes focused on a piece of simple stone embedded into the earth, past the flowers. Even with the fading light, he could read the headstone clearly.

Shinjiro Aragaki
1991 - 2009
Vivunt in Aeternum, Nostra Luna

"Your name's Shinjiro, huh?" he said. The breeze felt somehow motionless up here, like it was waiting for his next words. "I don't blame them for not telling me, just sorta weird to find out like this." Ren gestured to nothing at all. "I don't really know what I'm doing here, sorry. Apparently, I'm supposed to be like Arisato. They were your leader or something, right?" He cut himself off with a breath, hesitating. "I don't know if I'm anything like them. Besides their name, I don't know who they were, what they were like. I don't know what you were like." Something was caught in his throat, and he cleared it. "I know you meant a lot to them. I know they miss you. And I know, whatever we're fighting against, they're gonna give it their all, cause they just wanna come back here again next year and tell you how it went. I mean, I don't know that for sure, but it feels right." Ren's gaze drifted up towards the shrine, and past it, past the city, to something distant he couldn't place.

"Time. I don't know that I'll ever have enough. Not for everything I want to say."

"You will. If you make it."

"It sucks I couldn't meet you, Mister Aragaki," Ren continued. "I don't know if we would have gotten along, but something tells me you're a good person. Someone I would have liked to meet, if I had the chance." He felt odd. Emotional in a way he hadn't expected. A heaviness had settled in his gut. "I hope, wherever you are..." Ren's breath caught. "No, that's not really what I want to say. Sorry."

He cleared his throat again, staring down at the headstone with as much focus as he could bear. "I know I'm younger than almost all of them, and it's not really my place to say, but I know what we're fighting is dangerous. Things could go really badly. But I don't want you to worry about that."

He breathed in the fire of sunset, and breathed out the chill of autumn. "Because I'm gonna keep them safe. Whatever we're facing, I'm gonna stop it. I know it's a lot to ask, but please trust me." A silence that stretched into nothing, and he pulled himself away, eyes locked on the grass path. "It was nice speaking to you." And Ren started walking again.

Ren had half-expected to trail behind the others on the slow walk back to Tatsumi station, but he didn't have much headspace left to tend to his own anxieties when the stroll was so filled with conversation. Akihiko spun what were probably tall tales about the oddest places, learning martial arts in the Tibetan mountains and wrestling Siberean bears; and yet Ren felt somehow convinced the man really had been halfway across the world, learning how to quickdraw from a lanky cowgirl with a golden grin. Ken's stories were far more mundane: getting in trouble with some friends he'd made in high school, solving a handful of campus mysteries in his spare time, and dozens on dozens of fun facts about the different subjects he'd been studying at Gekkoukan – with Aigis intermittently adding her own assorted trivia. But even more remarkable was when the attention turned to Ren.

"I don't know," he mumbled, giving a sheepish grin. "I mean, it's just...normal Persona-user stuff, probably."

Ken burst out laughing. "One thing I've learned from hanging around these goobers," he said, jabbing a thumb towards Yukari, who had both Akihiko and Junpei in simultaneous headlocks. "There's no such thing as normal Persona-user stuff. It's all fucking bizzare." He leaned over to nudge his shoulder into Ren's. "So spill, dude."

And that broke the dam. Ren spilled like his fucking life depended on it, throwing out story after story, tracing every single Thief's awakening into a tapestry of overwhelming will. Every truth he'd wanted to tell Sojiro for months. He told them about his sister, about his cat, about his partners – the word still felt so odd against his tongue, but the pride shining in their eyes made it feel all the more beautiful. He recalled Ann's intervention, the temperamental Lupin, his bizarre friendship with Akechi – that got more than a handful of raised eyebrows – and the twin wardens who had challenged him to a fight to the death on more than one occasion. And he told of Oxymoron, of how she'd stopped time to threaten his life in Mementos, of how she'd shattered Narukami's glasses, of how she'd opened a door for him only to vanish into the dark. And he told of the memories, of Anachronism's iteration, of the recollections that dragged their touch across his sleeping mind.

"Please," Mitsuru said, hand up, halting a near-barrage of inquiries from the other former S.E.E.S. members. "Don't overwhelm him. Whatever he has to share, it is his prerogative to do so." And she sent a pointed glance across a wide-angle. "A world left behind is not something sweetly recalled. Ren hasn't dug into our trauma, please show him the same respect."

"It's not all bad," he said quickly, trying to assuage the embarrassed air that immediately settled in the wake of Mitsuru's statement. "There's...a whole lot of good there, too." Ren shrugged, feeling an odd and wonderful tension weaving its way through his ribcage. "Oxymoron gave them time, and a chance to fight. I think he was grateful for that, despite everything." The words drifted across his tongue before he could stop them. "And there's a whole lot of life that a year can bring."

The mood evened out, quieted after that. Ren couldn't help but feel guilty about that, but judging by the assortment of soft smiles and distant gazes, they were simply...thinking. Lost in nostalgia, in a lingering aftertaste both sweet and bitter. And before he knew it, he was seated next to Aigis on the train back to Shibuya.

"Ren," she said, throwing a start into his wandering thoughts. "If you don't mind, I would like to update you on something."

"Not at all," he said, facing her so she could read his lips without issue. "Update me on what, exactly?"

The android was quiet for a time, staring at the shifting view through the windows behind Fuuka and Ken – the latter of whom was showing the former something on his cell phone. "I visited Tatsumi earlier today to confirm something related to what I showed you two months ago."

A plain red ribbon in a small tan box. A name across her lips. "Arisato," he said.

She nodded solemnly. "Their remaining belongings are stored within the old S.E.E.S. headquarters at Gekkoukan. And I..." Aigis sighed, a tiny breath of steam escaping her. "I needed to know."

"If the ribbon was from that iteration, or something?" he asked.

"Yes," she said. And she reached into her coat, withdrawing the same tan box he'd seen before, handing it to him.

Ren found his breath unsteady as he popped the lid. A pair of ribbons, identical, lying in the soft fabric within that box. Even as he wasn't quite sure of the implication, the sight sent something like vague horror through him. "Do you think Oxymoron got it from them somehow?"

"I'm not sure." Aigis reached over, gently closing the box and removing it from Ren's grasp. "My analysis on the two has proved they are indeed the same ribbon. While it seems almost impossible that Arisato could ever..." She trailed off, an odd catch in her artificial breath. And she slipped the box back into her coat, hand lingering over it, over her heart.

"Maybe she went back before whatever happened to them," Ren offered. "Or, from a version of Arisato that..." He couldn't say it. Not to her. He couldn't trip the sadness in those eyes.

"Perhaps," she said. "But it seems unlikely." Aigis closed her eyes. "There is a small tear in the ribbon. It's not much, almost inconsequential. Likely, no one but myself would be able to perceive it. But before the Fall, I mentioned it to them. They said they would fix it, if we..." She paused again. "Should this be a message from Oxymoron, or from Arisato themselves, then that tear would not be there. They would know." She shook her head, opening her eyes again. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to delve so deeply into awful memories."

"It's okay," he said, even as his brain whirred at nothing. Something about what she said, some word of turn of phrase had caught on his mind, a recollection he could barely–

December 31st. Oxymoron, under duress, saves daylight from the Fall.

Ren felt his breath chill to subzero in his lungs. "The Fall. Aigis, you said...what is the Fall?"

Aigis blinked, then slipped into a slight sheepish smile. "Ah, I apologize. Sometimes I forget that such an event is not common knowledge, considering..." And the smile faded, her eyes focusing on him. "Ren, are you upset? What is troubling you?"

"Sorry, it's just, I mean, it's something in one of the parcels. One of them mentioned..." An unfamiliar fear gripped at his heart, stalling the words against the roof of his mouth, pinning his better judgement to the ground under the sheer weight of terror.

"Ren," Aigis said, firm enough to shock away his mortification. "Please relax, if you can. There is no danger here." She gestured to the train car, to Mitsuru and Ken's back-and-forth-banter, to Yukari comparing her bicep against Akihiko's, to Fuuka cooing over Koromaru Junior as Junpei scooted steadily closer like he just wanted to join in. "You are safe. Should there be a threat, we will protect you." A cold oath shone in her warm eyes. "I will protect you."

Ren nodded, shoving down that fear, pushing it away. It felt like muscle memory, driving his truth into null, his breath into static. But he wanted her to know. He needed her to know. "One of the parcels had a calendar, sort of. Like a future planner of stuff that was going to happen, documenting all the Thieves' actions. Except, nearly all of it was redacted, there wasn't much to learn there." He took a breath. Fuck, this was mortifying, and he didn't even know why. "The last two entries weren't redacted, though. The first was some cryptic nonsense about crying blood, and the second one was 'Oxymoron, under duress, saves daylight from the Fall.' I thought that was just something about her time traveling, but..." And he trailed off.

Aigis was stiff. Her eyes wide, clicking and spinning, focusing and unfocusing. Hands tense and still in her lap. "When?" she said.

"Sorry?" He felt tension wind his spine into a spiral.

"When did it say that would occur?" Her tone was neutral. Her voice was so calm, so empty.

"December 31st. It didn't say the year, but I've got two years worth of memories from Anachronism. So I'm guessing it means New Year's Eve, 2017." Fourteen months and twenty-odd days, he knew the time on instinct. Like a ticking time bomb strapped to his heart.

Aigis nodded and her gaze slowly shifted across the train, focusing on Mitsuru. "I need to discuss this with her." And she shook her head, as if ridding herself of something, focusing back on him. "I apologize. I can't tell you everything, but I..." Aigis hesitated. "No, you deserve to know." Breath in, breath out, a hiss in her throat. "Ren, these memories, how much have you seen?"

Ah. He caught the implication instantly. "To the end," he said, quietly. "It's blurry, and scattered, but I know that the world is probably gonna end if we don't stop whatever it is."

"Yes," she said, carefully. "I don't doubt that." Her gaze drifted, on him but somehow distant. "The Fall is what S.E.E.S. was founded to prevent. It is, as you said, the end of the world. Many lives were lost in order to prevent that outcome. And we...Arisato delayed it."

Ren felt a chill creep back in as he followed the logic. "Delayed." Arisato had given their life, and only managed to push that fate farther back. And now, it was catching up to them.

"They sealed away the entity responsible for invoking that apocalypse," Aigis continued. "Though, I think there will be another time for such details." She gave a smile that Ren could tell was forced. "I'm sorry. But please know, it is a threat we have faced before. Back then, we were young, and inexperienced." There was such a kind lie caught in her irises. "The SRU has more than doubled our numbers since that time, and we have had seven years to strengthen our hearts towards facing similar threats. We shall not allow history to repeat itself." And in that moment, he believed her. Ren didn't know if she was right, and probably neither did she, but he felt her conviction like a thunderclap across every reservation.

"Neither will we," he said, trying to match her firmness even as his voice shook. "It's our world too. I've got people I care about here, and I'm not going to let them die." Ryuji, Haru, Futaba, and Morgana. Ann, Makoto, Yusuke and Kasumi. Akechi, Shiho, Mishima, and Hifumi. Sojiro, Takemi, Maruki, Shinya, Chihaya and Ohya. He'd fought for six fucking months for them, for himself, for the echo of the life he'd lost. He didn't want to give up. He...he didn't want to die. Ren forced himself to meet her gaze. "I'm going to fight. And I know the Thieves will fight too."

The smile that graced Aigis this time was so genuine. "I would expect nothing less," she said, quietly. "You Thieves are defined by your rebellious souls, are you not?" Aigis chuckled. "Even if we were to lay down our arms, for whatever reason, I have no doubt you all would find your way to the front lines." Her voice was so odd, so fond, so full of admiration. "But of course, none of us would prioritize our safety over yours."

"Wouldn't do for the adults to sit back and let the kids die for them," Ren said, the echo of Takemi's voice slipping under his tongue.

Aigis chuckled. "Yes. It wouldn't do at all."


The former S.E.E.S. members slowly filtered out as the hours stretched, as the train rumbled on and on and on. Junpei nearly missed his stop, Fuuka paused to pat Ren's head before she left without a further word, Yukari made him promise to stay in touch, and then it was five – well, six including the shiba inu currently passed out on Ken's lap.

"Yongen-Jaya," chimed the overhead voice. "Now arriving: Yongen-Jaya."

"That'll be me," Ren said, grabbing his bag off the seat and standing up – and immediately pausing when Akihiko similarly stood.

"Sorry," he said, with a little smile. "Forgot to ask, but would it be alright if I walked you home? Kinda late after all, and we haven't really had a chance to speak yet."

Ren paused. Okay, getting that sort of request from a stranger would ordinarily be the biggest red flag imaginable, but...Mitsuru trusted him. Aigis trusted him. "Sure," he said, giving a nod. "That's alright by me."

"Don't stay out too late," Ken deadpanned, giving a little smirk. "I'll end up stealing your favorite room."

Akihiko just rolled his eyes, turning towards Mitsuru. "I'll stop by headquarters after. We're still in Odaiba?"

Mitsuru chuckled. "As if we'd move our base of operations without properly alerting you."

"Hey, it's been a while," he fired back. "I've got an old man brain up here." He tapped the side of his head, where the scar was. "You know I forget stuff."

"Have you been writing notes to yourself?" Aigis asked. "The best way to reinforce memory is–"

"To write it down, I know, I know." Akihiko grumbled out a sigh, rubbing the back of his neck before throwing a little smile towards Ren. "And this is why I'm taking the long way to headquarters."

Ren couldn't help but laugh, just a little. "Thank you for today," he said, bowing his head to Mitsuru. "I'm really grateful for the invitation." To Ken and Junior. "It was lovely to meet you both. Take care." And to Aigis. "Thank you. For telling me, and I know it wasn't..." He bit back further rambling elaboration as the train doors peeled open. "Anyway, thanks." And he scooted out into the subway station.

"See you 'round!" came Ken's voice from behind him.

"Be safe!" Mitsuru added.

And then they were silent, him and Akihiko, walking together through the near-empty station.

"Can I ask you something?" Ren said, once they had made it out of the subway and onto the street proper. "Sorry, uh, I mean if you've got something else to say then–"

Akihiko shook his head with a little laugh. "Go right ahead." He had his hands in his pockets, gaze drifting across the street, as if he was just taking in the nighttime sights. "I've probably got a million things to say, and a million more to ask, but I don't think there's any rush."

Ren's question bubbled back down his throat as curiosity quickly took its place. "Like what?"

"Advice, mostly," the man replied. "Been fighting Shadows on and off for seven years, and training my ass off whenever I wasn't." He flicked his thumb against the side of his nose. "So, I've picked up some tricks. Better to learn them through me than trial and error, I figure."

"Probably," Ren said. "Did you ever wish anyone had given you, like, an instruction manual when you were starting out? 'How to be a Persona-user for dummies,' or something?"

Akihiko burst out laughing. "Constantly. I mean, back then I had Mitsuru, she knew way more about all this stuff than I ever could, but she still didn't know everything." His smile shifted somewhat, far more melancholy than it had been a breath before. "When S.E.E.S. started out, it was just her, me and Shinji. And I know for a fact that...well, I wish we hadn't had to figure so much out on our own."

He rubbed the back of his neck. "We made some pretty stupid mistakes. People got hurt." And Akihiko sighed, straightening up like some weight on his shoulders had inexplicably vanished. "But from everything you've said, you and your friends have been handling all of this so much better than we ever did. And I'm glad for that."

Ren nodded slowly, trying to take that all in. He couldn't say his track record was anything close to spotless, but the Thieves had managed their way through some pretty challenging situations. "Bet we could still use some pointers," he said. "I don't know if ursine wrestling is ever going to come up, but you never know."

"You never know," Akihiko agreed, chuckling along.

"And, uh..." Ren hesitated. "You don't have to answer, if it's too much or you just don't want to, but my question was actually about Mister Aragaki."

"Hm." Akihiko took a long time to say anything further, glancing up at a nearby streetlight as they passed underneath. "What about him?" He didn't sound angry or upset, just a genuine prompt to continue.

"I guess, I'm kinda curious what he was like." Ren shrugged. "I mean, I didn't even know his name until I saw it...yeah. And no one's said anything about him."

The man smiled, dry and humorless. "Yeah. Sounds about right." He rubbed the back of his neck with a sigh. "It's a tough thing, Ren, losing someone like that. Seven years, and half the time I don't even want to think about the guy. And the other half, I can't bear to consider forgetting him." Akihiko tilted his head slightly, as if listening for something in the breeze. "But I guess it's a little different for me than everyone else."

"How so?" Ren asked.

"Because I was in love with him," Akihiko said. Like it was the simplest thing in the world, rather than a truth that shot a hole straight through Ren's thoughts.

"Fuck," he whispered. "I'm...I'm really really sorry. That's awful, I'm so sorry."

Akihiko's hand was on his shoulder. And it froze every fear in his chest. "Deep breaths, kid," he said. "Not your fault. I'm okay, and so are you." Ren nodded, forcing his heart to steady. The touch lingered for a long few seconds, then he let go. "Losing Shinji was rough, yeah, but I'm not the only person who got it that bad that year."

"Aigis," Ren mumbled.

"Yep," Akihiko sighed. He stared off at nothing, gaze far more distant than the sidewalk it was locked on. "Not to say that anyone in S.E.E.S. got off easy, but...some of us had it especially rough. Ken and I took Shinji the hardest; he was like a brother to Ken, and to me...well, you know. You already know about Aigis and Arisato, sounds like. And then Mitsuru and Junpei lost people they cared about too."

"That's awful," Ren said. It was a stupid understatement, one so reductive it almost made him wince, but Akihiko just nodded.

"It was a while ago," he continued. "That doesn't mean it didn't hurt – hell, it still does – but none of us stopped fighting. For me at least, I've only ever fought harder to make sure nothing like that ever happens again." A momentary tension across his face, like a pulse of anger, and then it was gone.

"How'd you manage?" he asked, the question finding breath despite his void-drenched brain. "How do you...get through something like that?"

Akihiko hummed, as if mulling the question over. "We all coped in our own ways," he replied, finally. "Ken went back to school, he said he wanted a chance at a normal life and we agreed that's what Shinji would have wanted for him. Mitsuru and Aigis threw themselves into the SRU, kept on finding threats, fighting to save the world, the whole nine yards. Junpei..." He trailed off into an odd, strained chuckle. "I'm pretty sure he just tries not to think about it. Which is a hell of a shame, he's probably way worse off for that."

Ren raised an eyebrow. "Yukari pushes him around a whole lot, but she probably just wants him to wise up, doesn't she?" Something told him she was a whole lot like Ann, in that way.

"Sure does," Akihiko said. He cleared his throat. "Junpei Iori, the only thing standing between you and the person you want to be is you." It wasn't the best impression of Yukari, but he definitely got her intonation down pat. "So stop acting like an idiot already!" And he threw a little grin towards Ren. "She's pulled that out something like five times already, and those are only the ones I've been there for."

"No kidding," Ren said, smiling back, a little familiar warmth settling in his chest.

Akihiko faced forward again. "As for how I made it through," he said. "I left. I couldn't bear to stay around them for long, I just got..." He trailed off, staring down at his own hand, curling and uncurling his fingers.

"Angry?" Ren prompted.

"Depressed, I think," he said. "I just kept looking for people who weren't there." He smiled, and it looked so pained. "No one could ever fill the hole Arisato left when they vanished. And for Shinji, for me, it felt that way twice over. There was just an emptiness there that I couldn't handle." He took a breath in, and out, and held his hand to his chest. "I can't stay away, though. I miss Shinji every fucking day of my life, but I know he wouldn't want me to sit around moping. And he definitely wouldn't want me to shut out the people who care about me." A tiny smile quirked the corner of his lips. "That's what he did, once. And I never stopped giving him shit for that, not until I could drag his sorry ass back. And if he were still around, I know he wouldn't rest until he could do the same to me."

"I'm glad," Ren said, the only words he could think of. "That you did, I mean. It's...easy, sometimes, to stay away when you're hurting. I know what that's like." He knew it so, so well.

Akihiko paused. "You asked what he was like, didn't you? Shinji was..." He shook his head, smiling just a little. "He was like no one else. Most people were scared of the guy – he was big, strong, quiet. Sort of soft-spoken, half the time he said anything, it was in the same gruff-ass deadpan. But...he was so kind, when he wanted to be. He cared a lot about everyone in S.E.E.S., even though he'd never admit it out loud. You could tell though. It was always the little things, the way he always brought extra snacks on missions, the way he'd offer his jacket if someone was cold, the way he just...knew when you were upset, even if he didn't always know what to say to make it better."

He reached up to rub at his eyes, clearing his throat. "We grew up together, you know. Friends since we were kids, and I remember...back then, sometimes I'd break down, or get so mad I wanted to hurt someone, and he'd just hold his arms out and say 'hurt me. If you've gotta hurt anyone, hurt me. Cause you know I can take it.' The idiot." He chuckled, and there was a sob hidden in it. "Like I ever could. And I guess he probably knew that. He always did know people so well, better than they knew themselves sometimes."

Ren let that all wash over him, and he almost felt as though he could...see him. The outline of someone, broad shoulders and a barely-hidden smile, someone so strange and yet so familiar. Like he'd known the man all his life, even as he'd never once met him. "I wish I could have had the chance to know him. Mitsuru said...that she thought he'd have wanted to meet me."

Akihiko nodded, sniffling once and then throwing on a wavering smile. "Ren, kid? He would have fucking adored you."


A hundred million thank yous to the ever impeccable Jane for beta-reading this chapter! Mwah!