AN: My longest chapter ever! I'm going to need a good night's sleep after this...
Chapter 13: Mementos. Maruki, Madarame
May 6
At lunchtime, the Phantom Thieves met up near the stairs on the second floor. "It ain't much, but we've been getting more posting on the Phantom Aficionado Website…" Ryuji said, pulling up a post. "I wanna make my friend apologize for not returning the stuff I lent him." Ugh, deal with that yourself!"
Ann suddenly noted some students passing by. "Hey, those girls…"
They all listened in. "You know that Phantom Thieves rumor about stealing Kamoshida's heart? I wonder if it's true," the long-haired girl said.
Her friend shook her head. "It's got to be made up. Do you seriously believe they exist?"
"But look what happened to Kamoshida," the long-haired girl pointed out.
"He probably just couldn't keep hiding it after that girl tried to kill herself," her friend scoffed.
"Yeah, you might be right," the long-haired girl admitted. "I guess there's no way they really exist."
"Most importantly, it seriously sucks that our school is gonna be known for stuff like this!" her friend complained.
"I wonder if it'll affect our college entrance…" the long-haired girl wondered.
"That's probably a normal reaction… for now," Loona said. "They'll know the truth soon enough."
"If we can take care of two or three famous guys, people'll have to believe we exist," Ryuji nodded.
"So about those big shots… We don't have any leads yet, right?" Collin asked. "Plus there's still the rumor about us threatening Kamoshida too…"
"Looks like you'll just have to live a normal, honest school life for the time being," Morgana stated. "Still, make sure you stay prepared just in case anything comes up, all right?"
"I'll keep an eye out for info on any big shots that might be coming around," Ryuji said.
"And I'll try to dig up some dirt online," Ann added.
Loona shook her head. "We made a whole group of Phantom Thieves, but we don't even have a target yet…"
"Um, there, there…" Collin said, giving the hellhound a pat on the arm that Loona swatted him for.
"I guess sometimes things just don't go the way we want them to," Octavia shrugged.
Ryuji: The police are really here… I saw 'em at the entrance.
Ann: I saw them too! They were talking to the teachers!
Ryuji: That change of heart thing's seriously amazing, huh!?
Collin: I hope we don't get figured out…
Loona: I'm pretty sure we'll be fine. There's no proof it was us.
Ren: I'm concerned.
Ryuji: C'mon, don't worry so much.
Octavia: Did you forget the rumors about you guys threatening Kamoshida? We literally just talked about it in the hall.
Ryuji: This world's Kamoshida shouldn't know anything about what actually happened to him though.
Ann: Still…
Ryuji: What we did was right. Don't go freaking out over some label.
Ann: I guess that's true…
Loona: I can't wait till we get to do Phantom Thief shit again! Ren, we're counting on you to give us the call!
"Hey, Amamiya!" Mr. Ushimaru shouted. "You! Pay attention! Is that how you listen when someone's talking to you!?"
'I feel that murderous intent again…!' Octavia thought, remembering a similar situation from last month. Mr. Ushimaru tossed his piece of chalk at Ren, but instead of getting beaned in the head, the teen dodged out of the way! The princess could have sworn that time slowed down a bit as it happened. 'Holy shit. Did Ren just use his demon powers to do that or something!?' she thought.
Mr. Ushimaru just scoffed. "Well, whatever. Moving on."
"Oh, you've got the entire class's attention! You're Charm has definitely increased," Morgana said to Ren, noting how the class was abuzz about his epic dodge.
[***]
As classes came to an end, Octavia and Ren had plans to go see Takemi again. "Is it weird that we spend a lot of our time hanging out in a back-alley clinic?" Octavia wondered aloud.
"Only if you make it weird," Ren replied. "Besides, it can't be worse than whatever demons get up to in Hell."
"I guess you do have a point there…" Octavia nodded.
Before the two could leave school, Mishima of all people came up to them. "Hey," he greeted. "Have you seen that Phantom Aficionado Website?"
"I've heard of it," Ren nodded.
"I'm the one who started it," Mishima boasted. He suddenly got close to Ren and whispered, "Um… You guys are the Phantom Thieves, aren't you?"
"Give him some space," Octavia said, pushing Mishima back.
"Sorry," he apologized. "Although… if things really are as I think, I should really keep it a secret. Kamoshida used me, and I did some horrible things to you guys. This isn't much of a way for me to apologize for it… But if there's anything I can do to help, just let me know!"
Ren and Octavia shared a look. "That's great, but…" Ren started.
"I'm glad to hear that," Mishima cut him off, before getting serious. "It's not just Kamoshida… There are tons of evil adults out there. But I'm sure the Phantom Thieves will do something… They can't let this end after just one target. That's why I wanted to make a forum where people could post their problems. There are probably a lot of people who have high hopes for the Phantom Thieves' next move. So, I've also implemented an anonymous poll on the site."
Mishima pulled out his phone and showed the two said poll. "Do you believe in the Phantom Thieves or not?" I wanna work on this forum so that eventually it'll be packed with tons of supportive posts. I'd really like to help out in the Phantom Thieves' acts of justice! Can I, please?"
'I don't know about this…' Octavia thought. 'I'm not sure Mishima is Phantom Thief material. He's like Collin, kind of, but at least Collin has training from being an angel. Mishima is just… Mishima. I'll let Ren decide on this.'
"It's up to you…" Ren replied.
Mishima chuckled. "In that case, I'll just do what I want. See you."
As Mishima left, the other Phantom Thieves came into the room. "We heard all that," Ryuji said. "Geez… It was a little awkward trying to figure out when to walk over here."
"So that forum is Mishima-kun's…" Ann said.
"Has he figured out our identities?" Morgana wondered.
"Even so, I think we'll be fine," Collin stated. "He seemed to take it well. Besides, he only knows about the Phantom Thief stuff, not the angel and demons."
"We should probably talk about this later," Loona suggested.
"You have to admit that a forum where people can post their problems could be useful for us," Octavia pointed out.
"Anyways, we gotta get looking for a new target," Ryuji said.
"And we need to stay sharp until we manage to find one," Ann added. "Once we do, we'll have to head into another Palace, so we should prep our equipment and-"
"Wait, oh crap!" Ryuji suddenly exclaimed.
"Dude, right next to my ear!" Loona said, smacking Ryuji's arm as she held her ear.
"Sorry but- don't we have an exam coming up!?" the blonde said.
"Judging by that reaction, I'd assume you're going to struggle this time too?" Ann sighed.
"It's not like you're any better!" Ryuji shot back. "All you're good at is… English!"
"I'd rather that than be bad at every subject!" Ann fired back.
"Even your Japanese is questionable at best, Ryuji," Morgana said cheekily.
"What's questionable is whether you're even human," Ryuji countered. "Ha! Good comeback, huh?"
"Let's discuss this with our fists!" Morgana hissed.
"Bring it!" Ryuji challenged.
"Will you both stop it!?" Octavia said, getting between them. "It's like dealing with children, I swear…"
[***]
Octavia and Ren soon left school and entered the back-alley clinic, ready to start another afternoon of clinical trials. That is, until a knock was heard at the front door. "So, this is the Takemi Medical Clinic of Internal Medicine?" a man's voice said. "I'm glad it's still open. Sorry, I have a child I need examined…"
"…Looks like I have a patient with an emergency," Takemi mused. Octavia and Ren stepped to the side to let the man in, followed by a little girl that presumably was his daughter. "Please have a seat," Takemi said to the girl, gesturing to the bench. "So, why come here? Aren't you under the care of another hospital?"
"I've heard rumors about this place," the man explained. "I'd like for you to examine her. She was diagnosed with bronchitis, but the medicine she was given hasn't been working at all. She has a fever that won't go away and she's losing weight because she's not hungry…"
"A young girl losing weight is definitely not good," Takemi nodded. "You should go to a bigger hospital. I can't provide a thorough examination here."
"We've been going to a big hospital! A university hospital in East Shinjuku! But all they tell us is that it's persistent bronchitis!" the man exclaimed.
Takemi's face turned serious as she stared the man in the eyes. "…A university hospital in East Shinjuku?"
The man nodded. "The doctor there performs exams like he's on an assembly line. I think he's famous or something…"
"A famous doctor, huh?" Takemi repeated. "I'm just a general practitioner out here in the sticks. As you can see, I don't even have any staff."
The man suddenly got closer to Takemi. "W-Wait! I've heard there's a medicine that can only be acquired here! Please! I'll pay you! Please, at least just examine her!"
Takemi backed up by the man's forwardness. "H-Hold on."
The tense situation was broken by the girl's coughing. "Doctor… My chest really hurts…" she said.
Takemi looked down, and Octavia felt a twisted knot in her stomach as she looked at the girl. 'A sick girl and a desperate father… Why does that sound familiar?' she thought.
"Dr. Takemi will help," Ren said suddenly.
"What!?" Takemi gasped, flustered by the statement.
"Doctor…!" the man pleaded.
Octavia just gave a kind glance to the doctor, which seemed to be the last thing to break Takemi's resolve. "Fine," she sighed. The back-alley doctor got down on the girl's level and started her examination. "Is your vision blurry? How about your throat, does it hurt?" She pulled out a small flashlight and looked down the girl's throat. "Hm. No signs of swelling." Takemi looked towards the father. "Are you sure you've told me everything about her symptoms and treatments you've tried so far?"
"Yes, I'm sure!" the man insisted.
Takemi gave a hum before standing up and pulling her phone, making a call. "Hello, Uehara-san? Is Dr. Schweitzer there? There's something I'd like to ask him about a case that was in last month's medical journal." She nodded along to the voice on the other side before handing up. "I see. Guess the ones in stock will have to do…" Takemi looked to Ren and Octavia. "There's a shelf by the reception desk. Bring the contents of the second drawer into the exam room. You'll need to help me administer the medicine. Also, bring the beaker with the red label in the fridge, a towel, wash basin, and measuring spoon…" She got an impatient look. "Well, what are you two waiting for? Get moving!"
"On it!" Octavia replied, her and Ren quickly moving to grab what Takemi needed. Finding the requested supplies, everyone reconvened in the exam room where the back-alley doctor did her thing, with Octavia and Ren helping along the way. 'So, this is what doctors do to help their patients,' she thought as they worked to help the girl. 'Sure, this isn't a life-or-death situation, but you have to be mentally strong in order to deal with this kind of stress…'
Soon the girl was feeling better, with her father being very thankful for their help. "T-Thank you so much! I didn't expect her to recover so quickly…"
"It was a very unique strain of an infectious disease," Takemi explained. "It can't be detected by conventional exams. I temporarily suppressed the symptoms. We'll make adjustments as her condition improves." She nodded. "Okay, that'll be one million yen for today."
"A-A million yen!?" the man and Octavia exclaimed at the same time.
"T-That's outrageous! You're completely taking advantage of…" the man accused, before stopping himself. "I mean, alright… I agreed to pay. You don't… take credit cards… do you? I'll go withdraw some cash right now!"
Takemi looked surprised by his response. "Wait, you're actually going to pay?" The man nodded. Takemi just shook her head before a new thought came to mind. "By the way, that famous doctor you mentioned earlier… Was it Medical Chief of Staff Oyamada?"
"Yes… are you familiar with him?" the man asked.
Takemi nodded. "…I knew it. I'm that case, I'll make this free of charge."
"F-Free!?" the man, Octavia, and now even Ren all exclaimed.
Takemi just laughed. "You seem happy," Ren noted.
"Doesn't it feel good? Treating his patient without permission," Takemi said with a smug grin. She then got an annoyed look. "…By the way, thanks to your outburst earlier… I'm going to perform a very special exam on you today…"
Ren looked nervous, while Octavia just sighed, leaving the man very confused. "So, are they your… assistants? They seem awfully young…"
"Yes, he is my assistant… guinea pig," Takemi replied. "She's just the spotter. He's about to put in a lot of hard work today. Aren't you?"
As Ren shook his head and Octavia giggled, the little girl spoke up. "Um, Doctor? Can I go back to school now?"
"Not for a while," Takemi replied. "You need to start eating and regain your strength first. Can you do that for me?"
"Yes!" the girl cheered. "Thank you, Doctor!"
"Don't mention it…" Takemi replied, but Octavia noticed how she looked away from the girl's smile. The back-alley doctor soon turned her attention back to Ren. "Your turn. I wonder what kind of response you'll have this time… Maybe you won't even be able to make it home…"
'She's having way too much fun with this…' Octavia thought, watching as the father and daughter left. 'Still, it felt good to help someone in need like that. Perhaps there is more I can do to help than just being a Phantom Thief… if only I knew what I needed to do to solve my own problems…'
[***]
"Why are we out this late again?" Loona asked, looking at her phone as she and Octavia walked up the stairs to Station Square.
"There was a man here earlier that interested me," Octavia said. "And besides that, Ren texted me and said that he was allowed to go out at night now. He was interested in the man as well." The princess soon saw Ren near the lottery stand alongside Collin. "Oh, Collin, you're here as well?"
"I'm just giving my blessings to God to forgive these humans that indulge in Greed," the angel said.
"Come on, having a lottery ticket isn't going to get you sent to Hell," Loona scoffed.
"Maybe, but letting your life be controlled by Greed most certainly will," Collin stated. "Anyway, Ren was telling me about a man making speeches around here?"
"Right over there," Ren said, pointing to a man standing on a box outside the underground entrance. The group all moved to get a better listen to the street orator's speech.
"…There have been far too many incidents recently to ignore! Can anyone deny this!?" the orator said. "The runaway-train incident, mysterious psychotic breakdowns, a school with a corrupt teacher… We have yet to discover the truth of it all! The apathy that permeates society is a direct result of negligence by our government and the media." The man stopped as he noticed Ren and the others listening. "You're listening quite attentively. Are you interested in politics?"
"Nah," Loona shook her head.
"Not really…" Collin admitted.
"I'm interested," Octavia said.
"Same here," Ren agreed.
"Are you all students?" the orator asked. "I'm delighted to captivate the interest of people your age… Hm, I could use the help of a young person, but I can't hire someone without any experience. I'm sorry about that, However, I'd be happy if you stopped by to hear one of my speeches again…" He shook his head. "Well then, that's all for today. I'm heading to the beef bowl shop…"
As the orator left, Morgana popped out of his bag to speak. "That old man's speech was impressive… That kind of talk might be useful for negotiations in the Metaverse."
"Sure, but he said he needed someone with more experience," Loona pointed out.
Collin put a hand to his face. "If only there was a way to show him your dedication…"
"Wait, didn't he say he's going to a beef bowl shop?" Octavia asked.
Morgana nodded. "I bet he's talking about the one on Central Street. Ren, what if you worked part-time at the beef bowl shop? Show him what today's youth can do!" Everyone looked at Morgana oddly. "…Look, I know it's a stretch, but a true phantom thief can't let an opportunity like this slip by!"
"If you say so," Loona shrugged. "Hey Ren, since you can go out now, how about we go to the airsoft shop and see about that "bonus" the guy gave us?"
"Should I be worried?" Collin asked.
"Nothing to concern yourself with, Lambchop," Loona assured him, though that didn't quell the angel's worries. The hellhound soon dragged Ren to Central Street and over to Untouchables, where the store was still as shady and quite as ever.
"Hey. You came at just the right time," Iwai said. "Slight change of plans. That paper bag from the other day? All yours."
"For real?" Loona asked.
"You picked it up somewhere. Nothing to do with me. Understand?" Iwai said shadily. "I didn't see it, I didn't touch it, I don't know about it. We clear?"
Loona shrugged. "Guess this is ours now," she stated, crumpling up the paper bag and stuffing the model gun inside Ren's bag.
"…If that's it, then go home. You can window-shop somewhere else," Iwai stated.
"That modified model gun should be a powerful weapon to use during Palace battles," Morgana whispered. "Let's ask him about what was inside the bag!" Ren opened his mouth to speak, but Iwai's glare made his words fizzle out.
"Ren, don't be a pussy. Just ask him!" Loona hissed in a hushed tone.
"…I can't…" Ren stuttered. "I don't have the guts to…"
Loona groaned. "Well, whenever you decide to man up, just call me and we'll figure out what this guy's deal is."
"Maybe taking on the Big Bang Challenge would help you get more gutsy…" Morgana mused.
"Or make you fat, which is guts but in a gross way," Loona said. "I'll see you later, Ren."
[***]
May 7
After school, the gang met at the hideout to discuss the Phantom Aficionado Website some more. "None of these posts are any good," Loona shook her head. "Everyone's just bitching about their parents or their boyfriends. There ain't even a hint of a hint about a new Palace…"
"We can't get everything online…" Collin pointed out. "Finding a post with name and location is asking a lot…"
"Guess we just gotta find one ourselves then!" Ryuji said.
"Are you seriously suggesting we look for a target that even the police have overlooked?" Morgana questioned.
Ryuji sighed. "Yeah, you're right. We should proly just hold off 'til exams are done with, huh? We can wait and see for a little longer, then worry about coming up empty-handed if it happens…"
Suddenly the door to the rooftop opened up, getting everyone's attention. "You…" Loona growled, crossing her arms as a third-year student with short brown hair and red eyes walked out. "Miss Council President…"
"This place is off-limits, you know," the girl said.
"We'll get out of here once we're done chatting," Ryuji stated. "Anyways, what's Miss Council President want with us?"
She looked between everyone. "The troublemaker, the center of gossip, the delinquent third year transfer, and the three second year transfer students. Hm, interesting combination."
Ann gave an annoyed look. "Great way to start a conversation…" she muttered sarcastically.
"By the way… It seems as though you got to know Mr. Kamoshida pretty well," the girl said.
"Not really," Ren lied.
"Yeah, we've only been here for a month," Octavia added.
The girl just hummed. "I heard Mr. Kamoshida used a volleyball team member to spread details of your past record. Don't you hate him? Mr. Kamoshida, I mean?"
Ren just stayed silent as Loona spoke up, "What's all this about?"
"Yeah. My friend here's an upstanding guy," Ryuji defended.
"I don't mean to offend. Many students have been shaken up by what happen with Mr. Kamoshida," the girl explained. "The rumors about that odd, calling card-esque posting aren't going away either."
The gang shared a look. "I didn't expect someone like you would care about that tactless stuff, Nijima-senpai," Ann said.
"I dunno that it was tactless…" Ryuji muttered.
"Are we done here?" Loona asked. "We can't exactly leave if you keep talking to us."
"At least try to understand my position," Nijima said sternly. "Being forced to deal with this horseplay…"
"Horseplay!?" Collin shouted, confused by the turn-of-phrase.
"Ah yes, by the way…" Nijima added. "It's been decided that this place will be closed off due to the incident. I heard some people are coming up there without permission, after all. I'm sorry to have interrupted you." She then walked off and back down the stairs.
"What was that about?" Ann questioned.
"She's just a teacher's pet, don't give her any mind," Loona scoffed.
"…She's on to us," Morgana said. "That girl seems rather sharp. We should be cautious of her."
"She really pisses me off!" Ryuji exclaimed.
"Be careful," Ren said.
Ryuji shook head. "Talk about a pain in the ass…"
"Be lucky that you don't have her in your class. I deal with that crap every day here," Loona said.
"That reminds me…" Morgana suddenly spoke up. "Study hard. Especially you, Ryuji. There are bound to be traps that will need to be solved with brains. Keep in mind that everything you do in your daily lives has an impact on your abilities."
"True," Octavia nodded. "Studying won't be so bad if we just think of it as helping us prepare to be phantom thieves…"
"I guess you got a point…" Ryuji sighed. "But man, it's just so lame… I was all fired up about helping people, not studying…"
"Well, I do have somewhere interesting to show you beforehand," Morgana said slyly. "You guys did originally promise to help me out with my mission, after all."
"Huh? Mission?" Ryuji questioned.
"He's talking about me," Octavia raised her hand. "Show us what you want, Morgana."
The not-cat smiled. "Follow me."
The gang followed Morgana to Station Square, stopping just outside the entrance to the underground. "Why are we here?" Loona asked.
"Just do as I told you," Morgana ordered.
The hellhound rolled her eyes. "All right, I've got the Phantom Aficionado Website up. Now what?"
"Look for a post with a full name in it," Morgana instructed.
"I already say there's not info on any big shots. Don't you remember?" Loona growled. "Still, it's wild that humans would use put someone's real name on here. There's some nightmare fuel for ya."
"He won't listen to what I say"… No wait, there's not name on this one," Ann said, scrolling through the website.
"Someone's bad-mouthing me in online chat rooms"… This one's got a name," Ryuji pointed out.
"Ignore those," Morgana rolled his eyes. "Aren't there any posts about more serious trouble?"
"I don't know what to do about my ex who's stalking me. His name is Natsuhiko Nakanohara," Collin read. "It says he's a teller at City Hall?"
"A government worker's stalking someone…? Eh, not too far out from something you'd see in Hell," Loona shrugged.
"That place has given you a warped sense of morality," Collin sighed.
"It's Hell, what did you expect?" the hellhound shot back.
"That should be a suitable target," Morgana said. "All right, not get the Meta-Nav ready."
"We're just gonna just right into a Palace? Fine by me!" Loona grinned.
"Hey, what happened to all that talk of "unanimous decision"?" Ann asked. "What do you think we should do, Ren?"
"Let's go," Ren replied.
"That's what I'm talking about!" Loona exclaimed.
"Okay then. Let's go," Octavia nodded.
"Let's put in the name and place then…" Loona said, opening the Meta-Nav. "The name is…"
"Actually, we don't need a location this time. Just enter exactly what I say," Morgana stated. "The keyword is… "Mementos.""
"Like the movie?" Loona questioned. "What are you trying to pull?"
'Just listen to me. It should work… I think," Morgana shrugged.
"Geez, that again?" Ryuji sighed.
"It is an unfortunate reoccurrence," Octavia noted.
"Whatever… "M-e-m-e-n-t-o-s," was it?" Loona said. The Meta-Nav suddenly lit up with a match! "We got a hit!?"
"Just as I thought!" Morgana grinned. The world shifted around them…
[***]
Location: Just outside Mementos
"Everyone disappeared!" Ann exclaimed. "It… kinda feels like I'm… walking on air?"
"Is this Nakanohara's Palace?" Collin questioned.
"That's half right, but half wrong," Morgana said. "This is a type of Palace, but its's different from the normal ones. Come on, let's head down. The Shadows here lurk underground. I don't quite understand why. It may be because they're drawn to something."
"Underground?" How are we going to get there?" Ann asked.
"How? You use it every day on your way to school," Morgana scoffed. "Follow me!"
"Ah! Wait up, cat!" Ryuji exclaimed as they all ran down the steps of the subway after Morgana. As they went down, the distorts got stronger, and Octavia noticed that everyone had changed into their Phantom Thief attire as weird red-and-black splotches appeared in the walls, floor, and ceiling.
"The Hell is this place?" Loona wondered. She then looked down to see that she was Lycan once more. "Wait, our clothes changed!?"
"The Shadows know we're here!?" Panther squeaked.
"Since the moment we stepped in," Mona nodded.
"You should've told us!" Skull chided.
We're still safe right here," Mona assured the team. "I've come to investigate a number of times. Shadows never come up to this floor. But it's a different story once you go down. This place is simply teeming with them."
"More important, what exactly is Mementos?" Omen questioned. "Tell us all the details, Mona."
Mona took a serious stance. "Mementos is… everyone's Palace."
"Huh? Whaddya mean, "everyone's"?" Skull asked.
"A Palace as grand as the previous castle only forms when a person's wishes are extremely distorted," Mona explained. "So instead of many individual Palaces, the general public has one gigantic, shared Palace. That's where we are now… Mementos."
"Now that you mention it, this place feels a bit different from Kamoshida's Palace…" Templar noted.
"When you say shared… you mean they're all put together?" Omen asked. "Even though we're all just strangers, everyone shares a… collective… Palace…" she slowed as she realized what this might mean.
"Think of it as the collective unconscious," Mona suggested. "No, never mind. You wouldn't understand that."
"Actually, I get it completely," Omen stated. She turned to Joker with a grin. "Joker, this is the realm that your dad, Raoul, watches over!"
"So, it's kinda like your own domain, huh dude," Skull said.
"Looks like a pretty crappy place to rule over…" Lycan noted, looking at the splotches everywhere.
"Raoul told me that something is keeping him out of this place," Omen explained. "The reason we even got sent to the human realm is because we won't be detected by whatever it is. This is place and it's decrepit state is definitely part of the ordeal."
"Then we need to explore it as much as we can," Templar nodded. "Now then, as for what Mona was saying… By using this place, we can change even the hearts of people that don't have a Palace, right?"
"Correct!" Mona nodded. "The steps to do so are slightly different though."
"But this place looks pretty huge," Skull noted. "Are we gonna be able to get around just by walking?"
Mona hopped down from his perch. "It seems my time has finally come." Everyone turned and watched as Mona did a weird gesture with his arms. "Morgana… transform!"
"Wait, was a henshin pose-?" Omen questioned, before Mona jumped up into the air and transformed into a van! "…What…?"
"Come now, Panther. Ladies first," Mona said, still being able to talk despite being a car now.
"A car…!?" Panther said in disbelief.
"No way!" Skull shouted.
"This comes from the way cognition materialized is the Metaverse, plus a bit of extra training," Mona explained. "It's not dissimilar to how you guys transform."
"You turning into a car is totally different that our clothes changing!" Skull shouted.
"Not that different from us using magic to transform into humans," Omen stated. "Maybe you have some relation to demon magic after all, Mona…"
"For some reason, "cats turning into buses" is an extremely widespread cognition among the general public," Mona said.
"Oh, I understood that reference!" Templar said. "I love that movie!"
"Why a bus though?" Panther asked.
"…No idea," Mona replied, giving the bus equivalent of a shrug (which looked very odd).
"Wait, why didn't you do this at the castle!?" Loona exclaimed.
"I would have if I could!" Mona defended. "But that castle was cramped, there were tons of stairs, and no way this fits on top of a chandelier!"
Not questioning it further, everyone piled into the back of the Mona Bus. "All aboard! Let's go!" Skull called.
Everyone sat there awkwardly as nothing happened. "Why are you all sitting back there? I'm a car, remember?" Mona pointed out. "I'm not going anywhere unless someone drives me."
"You can't drive yourself!?" Omen shook her head.
"Does anyone here know how to drive?" Panther asked.
Lycan nodded. "Yeah, Blitz taught me in case he was bleeding out and couldn't drive the van… long story. Joker, you get shotgun, alright?" The hellhound hopped up into the driver's seat, while Joker moved up to the shotgun position.
"Please be careful…" Templar worried.
"You better not smash up my beautiful face, you hear me!?" Mona warned.
"All right then, we'll leave the driving to you!" Panther said.
"Now start the engine! You can't drive if it's not running!" Mona instructed.
"Calm your tits, Mona," Lycan rolled her eyes. "Now then, where' the key to this thing?"
"Why would you need a key!? There's a switch just down next to the steering wheel," Mona said.
"Oh, you're one of those fancy push-button cars," Lycan noted. She pushed the button and brought the motor to light.
"That feels so good…" Mona sighed, the engine literally purring like a cat.
"Is that purring I hear? What a creepy-ass car!" Skull shook his head.
"Don't underestimate my meowtary engine," Mona said. "We're going full throttle! It's time to fly!"
"Was that pun-!" Omen started to ask, only to hang on for dear life as Lycan tore down the tracks of Mementos and brought them to its first area, Qimranut. Lycan drove like a manic, howling with glee as she drove them around and followed Mona's instructions. Soon they came to their destination, a weird portal weird the railway tracks were torn up and twisted into the void. "Uh, what's that?" Omen asked.
"This is the place… I sense the target up ahead," Mona stated. "Now, are you ready, Joker?"
"Let's do it," Joker nodded, and with that the Mona Bus jumped in. Once inside the portal, the gang hopped out of the bus and turned towards the lone figure in the area.
"Someone's here!" Templar pointed out.
"That seems to be Kakanohara's Shadow," Mona nodded.
"Lemme see. Some front desk guy at City Hall because a stalker, right?" Skull recalled.
"I don't know how much evil he's done, but we have to do something if he's bothering other people," Panther said.
"All right let's go talk to him, Omen nodded. The Phantom Thieves approached Shadow Nakanohara, the Shadow turning to face them.
"Who are you!?" he exclaimed.
"Are you that stalker!? Haven't you every stopped to consider how your ex feels?" Panther shouted.
"She's my property! I can do whatever I want with her!" the Shadow stated. "It's not like she didn't treat me like a plaything! What's wrong with me doing the same!?"
"You can't treat someone like shit just 'cause they did it to you! What a load of crap…" Skull countered.
"We're gonna change the hearts of all the bastards like you!" Lycan shouted.
"There are millions of people fare worse than me!" the Shadow defended. "What about Madarame…? He stole everything from me, but you're letting him off the hook!?"
Omen tilted her head. "Madarame? Why does that name sound familiar…?"
The Shadow burst into its true self, that of an Obariyon. "Get ready! Here he comes!" Mona warned.
Everyone got into battle positions as the fight began. "Now that I finally have what's rightfully mine… I'm not going to let you take it away…" the Shadow said. "Look… This is a winner-take-all world. Come fight me and I'll show you what I mean!"
The Phantom Thieves showed the Obariyon no mercy, quickly finding his weakness to Zio skills and exploiting it as much as possible. The new gun Joker aquired did a good amount of damage as well. In no time at all, the Shadow was down for the count. "Freaking boring!" Skull shouted they finished the battle with an All-Out Attack.
"I-I'm sorry… Please forgive me…" Shadow Nakanohara begged as he returned to normal. "I couldn't stop obsessing… N-Not after this person I trusted used me and then disposed of me."
"Still blaming others?" Joker questioned.
"You don't have to be so hard on him anymore," Templar said. "He seems like he's sorry." The angel turned to the Shadow. "So, this person you trusted… Is this the Madarame that you were talking about before?"
"I… was afraid of being thrown away again like some worthless thing," the Shadow admitted.
"So, some selfish bastard was making you suffer too…" Panther said. "Still, you shouldn't have dragged and unrelated woman into your mess."
"Yes, I know that now. I'll put an end to my love for her…" The Shadow sighed. "Hey, you can change people's hearts, right? In that case… Won't you change Madarame's heart!? Before more people fall victim to him…" He then disappeared after that, leaving his Treasure behind.
"Change… Madarame's heart…" Omen repeated.
"What that shiny thing?" Lycan asked.
"It's the bud of a Treasure," Mona explained. "Had we let it be, it very well may have blossomed into a Palace. Joker, this will make a perfect reward!" Joker nodded and grabbed the Treasure, pocketing it for later.
"So, Nakanohara had a change of heart, right?" Skull asked.
"Most likely," Mona nodded.
"But how are we supposed to know if we succeeded?" Panther asked.
"The lady posted the dude's name online. If he really does change, she'll probably comment again," Lycan guessed.
"You do have a point," Omen nodded.
'Either way, training against Shadows down here is freaking awesome! It'll be great prep for the next actual Palace!" Lycan pumped her fists.
"It's also nice to give courage to the people who post their problems online," Templar added.
"On top of that, we can sell whatever treasure we get for some cold, hard cash!" Mona finished.
"Sounds like things are going pretty great for us!" Skull nodded. "All right, we did it!"
"Hold on. There's somewhere I want to show you guys before we leave," Mona stated.
"Do you know about the being that invaded this place?" Omen asked.
Mona shook his head. "No, but maybe what I'm looking for is tied to what you seek. Don't worry, it won't take long." The not-cat informed the team that they would be heading deeper into Mementos, but they would need to find the train platform down to do so first. Once they got to said platform, Skull pointed out that the subway was still running despite being in the Metaverse. Mona didn't have an answer as to why it was like that but assured the team that they shouldn't have to worry about getting run over by the subways while in Mementos.
Down on the next floor, the Phantom Thieves found a door blocking the way forward. "What is this place? It's kinda creepy," Panther shuttered.
"This whole place is creepy, Panther," Lycan sighed.
"And a dead end at that. Why's it even exist?" Skull questioned.
"Now hold on… just watch," Mona said. "This is most likely not an ordinary wall. If my hunch is correct…" The not-cat touched the wall, which quickly pulled away to reveal another set of stairs.
"It opened!" Templar exclaimed.
"A new area has been confirmed in the depths. Updating guidance information," the Meta-Nav said.
"See. It's just as I thought!" Mona said proudly.
"What do you mean?" Omen asked.
"That wall wouldn't budge when I came here by myself before," Mona explained. "But it'd be weird for the deepest part of Mementos to be some normal place like this, wouldn't it?"
"Of course, there has to be more… and I bet that the cause of the ordeal is at the deepest part of Mementos as well," Omen speculated.
"Yeah! Now that Kamoshida's Palace is gone, and people are actually starting to talk about us… I knew something had to have changed do here!" Mona said.
"How deep is it?" Templar wondered. "Should we keep going?"
Mona shook his head. "Let's not. That's not why we're here, remember? Even if this "ordeal" Omen is talking about is further down, we've already accomplished our goal for today. We should head back, and I'll explain more once we're home."
"Sounds good to me. I wouldn't want to run head-first into some final boss level threat while we're still new to being Phantom Thieves," Lycan nodded.
The gang decided to head back from there but found something odd once they got to the entrance. "Hey, look!" Panther said, pointing out an odd little boy standing in their way.
"A person!? In Mementos!?" Mona exclaimed.
The boy hadn't noticed them yet, focusing on a weird flowery orb. He held out a hand to it, transforming the orb into a drink of some kind. "Maybe it's this one…" he said to himself. He took a sip of the drink. "Tasty!"
The gang decided to approach the boy carefully. "Hey, what's he drinking?" Skull asked.
"Why are you looking at me?" Lycan raised and eyebrow. "I don't know every drink out there."
The boy turned to the Phantom Thieves. "Oh? Hm, I thought I felt something strange for a second… So, who're you guys?"
"We should be asking you that!" Mona butted in
"Good point. Sorry about that," the boy apologized. "It's customary to introduce itself before asking another human for its name. Thanks for reminding me Mister…" He tilted his head as he stared at Mona. "Um, Tanuki? No, um… hm… Cat?"
"What took so long to come up with "Cat"!? And I'm not either of those!" Mona shouted.
"Yeah, uh, getting confused about that seems pretty normal to me," Lycan smirked.
"My name is Jose. I'm looking for the flowers," the boy introduced himself. "I'm pretty surprised to see some normal humans running around. I didn't know people could just come here."
"Well, we are pretty special-" Mona quickly shook his head. "W-Wait, that's not important! Who you are is what matters right now!"
"He doesn't have an angelic aura," Templar noted.
"Doesn't smell like a demon either," Lycan added.
"When you said you were looking for flowers, did you mean that orb thing?" Omen asked.
Jose nodded. "That's right, pretty birdy. Those seem to be the ones I've been looking for. I'm collecting as many of 'em as I can 'cause I'm studying humans."
"Study humans? That's why you turned a flower into a drink?" Skull asked.
"Yup," Jose replied.
Skull had a bewildered look on his face. "Drinking flower juice counts as studying?"
"Hey, could you guys help me with my research?" Jose asked.
"How?" Omen questioned.
"By collecting flowers for me," Jose explained. "I wouldn't ask you to do it for free, though. I find all kinds of stuff you can use while you're exploring. I'll trade you some of that stuff for more flowers."
Omen turned to Joker. "What do you think? Sound like a fair deal?"
"Seems like it could do us some good, but we don't know this kid… We gotta be careful," Mona warned.
"Oh, I'm sure he's fine. Let's give him a hand," Panther said. "He seems like he could use it, and it shouldn't be too hart to pick flowers while we're exploring, right?"
"Are we going to ignore that he called Omen "pretty birdy"?" Lycan pointed out.
"Way to put me on the spot…" Omen blushed.
"It's prolyl fine. I mean, he said he'd give us useful stiff an' all," Skull shrugged. "Whaddya say?"
"Well, are you going to help me find the flowers or not?" Jose asked.
"Let's help him," Joker replied.
"Thanks!" Jose smiled.
"Wait, wait, hang on a second! We still have no idea who this kid is!" Mona shouted. He pointed at Jose. "Don't go thanking us just yet, bud!"
"Aw, are you tired, kitty? You seem grumpy," Jose said.
"I am not a cat! And I'm not grumpy!" Mona shouted.
"I get that reference as well!" Templar said.
Jose was taken aback. "O-Oh, okay- then, are you hungry? I learned hunger can make a person grumpy." He reached into his coat and pulled out a bag of cookies. "Here, you can have this."
Mona cringed back. "Thanks, but I'll pass…"
"You're making the kid worry about you even more," Skull shook his head. "Guess there's no way outta this one…"
With the conversation over, Jose hopped into his little blue car. "I'll be looking for flowers around here, so stop by and say hi if you see me. Oh, and I guess just gathering flowers would be kind of boring, huh? Since you humans seem to enjoy playing so much, I'll come up with some fun games for you." He sat up a bit straighter. "Ah, I also remembered something humans like to say to each other: Good job!" He honked the horn of his car, which made a clown nose sound.
"What even is my life now…?" Lycan shook her head. "Who in Hell was that?"
"If he's studying humans, that must mean he isn't one himself," Templar said.
"I mean, he just seemed like some nice kid," Panther shrugged.
"Well, he didn't feel like a Shadow… I wouldn't say he's dangerous… at least, for now," Mona said.
"Anyways, if we see any of those flowers he wants, I guess we can grab 'em for him," Skull said.
Before the gang could of farther, the clown horn was heard again. "I totally forgot!" Jose came back their way. "There's something I've been meaning to give to all of you."
"What would that be?" Joker asked.
"Well, actually… I picked up something strange while I was exploring earlier," Jose explained. "Here it is…" He pulled out a glowing blue star.
"Huh? What the heck is that?" Skull asked.
"It's a star. At least, that's what they look like, so that's what I call them," Jose said.
"A star…" Omen repeated. 'It feels familiar… Perhaps something Raoul left behind…?' "So, what about it did you want to show us?"
"Humans make wishes on stars, right? That's so interesting, "Jose said. "Stars granting wishes… So, this star is going to grant your wishes."
"Our wishes!?" Mona exclaimed.
"…Or it would be nice to think that," Jose chuckled.
"Nice to think that… Seriously…" Mona sighed.
"I'll give this to you. It's so sparkly and beautiful, you want it too, don't you?" Jose said. "It's a "sign of our friendship." I know what that is. Off I go now. Good job!"
"Hey, wait!" Mona called, but Jose was already in his car and driving off.
"There he goes again…" Omen sighed. "A star that grants wishes… I'm not sure something like that is possible in any world, not even Mementos…"
"Well, I guess you can at least try making a wish," Mona suggested.
"Okay… I wish for all-you-can-eat parfaits! With zero calories!" Panther exclaimed.
"An extra-large beef bowl! With pork soup on the side!" Skull added. Everyone started at the star, but it did nothing.
"Nothing happening," Mona said.
"Maybe it works on birthday rules, where you can't tell anyone else what your wish is first?" Collin wondered.
"I guess things don't just happen that easily," Omen shrugged. "But we should hold onto it for now, just in case."
Joker nodded and pocketed the star in his coat. "Let's head back to the real world now," he said.
[***]
"Mementos, huh? I still don't really get that place," Ryuji admitted once they left. "Oh, and what was that wall thing we saw at the end?"
"I'm not entirely sure, but that wall must've been there for a reason," Morgana said. "If Mementos is the public's Palace though… it might be affected by the general public's belief in us."
"Why do you know so much about it, Morgana?" Octavia asked.
"My memories are a little foggy in that regard," the not-cat sighed. "However, I need to know what lies in the depths of Mementos, no matter what."
"And I'll help you get down there, I promise," Octavia nodded.
Morgana smiled, letting the princess pet him. "Mementos is not just everyone's Palace, it's the source of all Palaces. It used to be that Palaces like Kamoshida's with one ruler simply didn't exist. So, if we can do something about the greatest cause of distortions, I'm certain my appearance will…"
"You wanted someone to save you too…" Ann finished.
"I-I just needed pawns," Morgana backpedaled.
"I see… So that's why you kept bothering with us," Loona said.
"I'll help you," Ann said. "I hope you can regain what you've lost."
"Same here," Collin nodded.
Morgana looked touched by their words. "I'll… be relying on you guys."
"By the way Morgana… are you a boy? Or might you be a girl?" Ann asked.
"Definitely boy," Joker said.
Ann nodded. "Yeah, I agree… I wanted to make sure though, just in case."
"He could turn out to be pretty ancient," Ryuji pointed out. "What if he smells like an old person?"
"Stop that…" Morgana hissed. "In any case, of course I'm male! I mean, I…"
"What is it?" Octavia asked.
Morgana shook his head. "No… it's nothing. We're done talking about that! Anyway, we now know that we can perform minor changes of heart in Mementos. IF we come across any eye-catching leads, it may be worth dealing with them for a bit of combat practice."
"There weren't any other outstanding ones though…" Loona pointed out. "But if we change the heart of someone famous, we'll become well-known as Phantom Thieves and get a tone more of 'em. The big fish are our main targets after all."
"First you need to study for you exams," Morgana said.
"I gotta study…" Ryuji sighed.
None of them noticed a blue-haired man watching from across the way as they all went home…
[***]
May 9
Ryuji: Hey, don't you think the atmosphere at school's kinda different now?
Ann: You mean with there being no Kamoshida?
Ryuji: Yeah, nobody ever talked about him out in the open like this before.
Ren: You're imagining things.
Ryuji: Naw man, things're totally different now, and it's all thanks to us.
Collin: Either way, everything has worked out for the best. Kamoshida is being punished for his crimes, after all. That's a victory to me.
Ren: I agree.
Loona: I wonder what's going to happen to him now. He's a criminal now, and will have people hating him forever… Not that I feel any sympathy for the bastard.
Ann: He got what he deserved.
Collin: Agreed.
"Mishima is too into his job as Phan-Site Manager," Ren yawned. "He keeps talking about "deleting comments from the haters" and other phrases like that."
"Be glad that we have someone else to manage that drama for us," Octavia said. The princess then let out a sneeze before rubbing her nose. "Shit, the weather's been messing with my nose lately. I didn't even know demons could get allergies, but the pollen has be blowing all over the place."
"…Would it be distasteful to say, "bless you" after you sneeze?" Ren asked.
Octavia chuckled. "I'm not going to burst into flames with that saying, Ren. Now then, don't we have another clinical trial today?" The two went to Takemi's clinic, with no interruptions of any kind as the back-alley doctor did her examination on Ren with her medicine. As Octavia watched, she covered her mouth as another sneeze came over her.
"Allergies? It's that season, after all," Takemi stated.
"Yeah. Must be something in the air that we don't have back home," Octavia replied.
Takemi nodded. "Travelling between countries can bring out allergies you might have never had before. That's why it's important to get the recommended vaccinations before traveling to other countries. Before you leave today, I'll prescribe you a generic allergy medication that should suppress the symptoms."
"Thank you," Octavia nodded.
"…Okay, that's all for today. If you're feeling okay, you can go home now," Takemi said with a nod. The phone in the office rang, prompting the doctor to pick it up. "Hello. Doctor Takemi's Clinic of Internal Medicine… What? Again? That's, well… that ship's already sailed, so…" She put down the phone and sighed. "What a pain."
"Something wrong?" Octavia asked.
"Remember that girl from the other day? The Chief of Staff Oyamada's patient?" Takemi reminded. "Her dad's been bringing her here to be treated, even though I referred them to another hospital. I even told them about the medical error I made…"
"They trust you," Ren said.
"And was that error really your fault?" Octavia questioned.
"I'm just a quack though…" Takemi sighed. "The medical error is well documented. Everyone in my field knows about it. I led the development of a new drug for an incurable illness called "Crawford-Ende's disease." Although I wasn't the one who administered the medicine, it was the cause of the error."
"What's Crawford-Ende's disease?" Octavia asked.
Takemi explained, "With Crawford-Ende's, certain cells indiscriminately attack other cells throughout the body. When it reaches the muscles, the patient slow begins to die… There hasn't been much progress made on it- partly because there haven't been many cases of it. I worked with a pharmaceutical company that had reached the final stage of production, but… One day, I was suddenly removed from my position. That Chief of Staff Oyamada, my superior at the time, took over the entire operation."
Takemi looked pained as she recounted her story. "I don't know if he wanted the glory of developing a new drug or to become rich and famous, but… He made careless mistakes and rushed competition so he could use it on a patient named Miwa. Miwa-chan had a reaction and lapsed into critical condition. The chief panicked and laid the blame on me. Miwa-chan and her family resented me… No matter what I said, I couldn't change how they felt about me."
"I had no idea…" Octavia whispered.
"It's not too late," Ren argued.
"Well, that doesn't matter…" Takemi sighed. "The development of the medicine was suspended, so I had no reason to stay at that hospital. At least now I can keep working as a general practitioner, on my own terms… with my guinea pig. That's the new medicine I've been trying out on you. This version is in the final stage of testing. It searches for those cells that take the offensive and destroys them upon detection. That's why it's harmless for people who don't have the disease… probably."
"That's good," Ren said, Octavia nodding in agreement.
Takemi smiled. "You have a lot of faith in me. Thank you, my little guinea pig. You'd better not flake on me this late in the game. I'm inching closer to the finish line, but I need your help to reach it. In exchange, I can offer you medicine at a special price. I'm counting on you, guinea pig." The back-alley doctor gave a hum as a thought came to mind. "Now, what should I do about that girl and her dad? Being mean and scaring them hasn't worked. It's been a while since I've had to deal with this kind of nuisance. It's stressing me out."
'Maybe you could just… let them keep coming here,' Octavia thought. 'Is it so bad to have people that believe in you, Takemi?'
"…Oh, sorry, that's all I wanted to talk to you about. You can go home now," Takemi said.
[***]
May 10
Ren: Remember that politician from the other night? His name is Toranosuke Yoshida, a former Diet member. Apparently, he's lost seven elections in the past twenty years.
Loona: You sure he's the guy you want to learn politics from?
Ren: I helped him a bit last night. He makes some good points, like how we should act in the best interests of all, and how you shouldn't vote just based on party alone.
Octavia: Sounds like a wise guy.
Ren: Only problem is he doesn't affiliate with any party, so he's unlikely to get elected.
Collin: Oh dear.
Ren: If you want, feel free to meet me at the station tonight. The more the merrier.
Octavia: We'll thank about it. Thank you for the offer, Ren.
That night, the trio met with Ren and Morgana outside the underground, where Yoshida was already giving one of his speeches. "He really is passionate about what he says," Octavia noted.
"We should make use of his speech skills when negotiating with Shadows," Morgana suggested.
"Good idea. We should ask him," Collin said.
The group approached Yoshida as he took a small break in his speech. "Ah, young man. Amamiya, was it? And I see you brought some of your friends as well."
"We were wondering if you could teach us how to give speeches," Ren asked.
"And why's that?" Yoshida asked.
"I want to do what you do, and my friends are interested as well," Ren replied.
"I'd love to help you all, though… how shall I teach you?" Yoshida wondered. "…It's time for my speech. Let's talk about this later." Ren picked up a sign to hold while the others all leaned against the side of the station to listen to what Yoshida had to say. "And while our society appears to be prosperous, many of our young people are quietly suffering. They lack jobs, security, savings… The next generation will lead us into the future and yet they have no plan for how to arrive there."
"…Watch where you're going, you little shit!" a man's voice rang out, interrupting the speech.
"You bumped into me, you old goat!" a young man's voice shot back. Everyone turned to see two men, one young and one old, arguing in front of the station.
"This isn't good…" Yoshida said.
"Let them fight," Loona grinned.
"No, we should mediate!" Collin argued.
Yoshida nodded. "Yes, let's. Good citizens, please stop fighting! What is the point of bickering over such a trivial matter?"
"This is none of your business!" the older man exclaimed.
"Yeah, seriously. Just shut up!" the younger man agreed.
"What's with this guy…?" the older man scoffed, before both of them walked off.
"Well, that worked… kinda…" Octavia muttered.
"Now, if you'll excuse me, I must return to my speech," Yoshida said. "Together, we can create a bright future for the next generation."
"Ugh, so righteous… That really annoys me," a person in the crowd said. "Enough of your arrogance, "No-Good Tora"!" That caught Yoshida off-guard. "As if anyone would actually vote for you! Are you planning to embezzle funds again? Or maybe criticize one of your constituents again? You criminal!"
"No…! T-That was… all in the past…" Yoshida stammered. But it was no use, and soon the crowd dispersed as the gang moved off the side, the speech dying on the spot. Yoshida sighed to himself. "I've gone and done it again."
"Aren't you going to get mad?" Ren asked.
"I'm pretty sure that's campaign obstruction," Octavia noted.
"You're a criminal?" Loona said.
"L-Loona!" Collin gasped. "You can't just-"
"It's fine. There are many who would agree with that statement," Yoshida said. "Whenever someone calls me "No-Good Tora," I panic. I went through quite an ordeal twenty years ago…" The four all shared a look. "Let me explain. I used to be a member of the National Diet. I was elected during the rise of the "Kuramoto Children." We were backed by powerful Diet members. This was about twenty years ago. I was very inexperienced back then, both as a politician, as well as a human being. The inexperience led me to be involved in a series of major political scandals. People refer to my blunders as "No-Good Tora's Three Strikes.""
Yoshida shook his head. "The first was being caught missing a legislative meeting to take a personal vacation. Then, I was accused of embezzling a large sum of money from the party… giving me two strikes. Finally, I called a voter an idiot at an open forum, which resulted in scandal… and strike three."
"Geez. That's rough," Ren said.
"I was out… and branded a washed-up politician," Yoshida finished his story. "You said you wanted to become a member of the Diet. But do you see the man before you?"
'A questionable background… Accused of embezzlement…' Loona thought.
'But he was the conviction to change the world…' Collin thought.
'Public speaking skills could be useful to the Phantom Thieves…' Octavia thought.
"Do you really want to receive my guidance?" Yoshida questioned.
The four gave a nod to each other before letting Ren speak, "I don't care about your past."
"I'm happy to hear that, however… Everyone says I have no chance to get elected, so why come to me?" Yoshida asked.
"Have confidence in yourself," Ren urged.
"Yeah, you totally got those two to stop fighting earlier," Collin said.
"Even if they tried to clap back," Loona pointed out.
"What we're trying to say is, don't be too hard on yourself for something that happened years ago," Octavia said.
Yoshida chuckled. "You're doing a good job of cheering me up… But you may be right. The most important part about giving a good speech is believing in yourself. Perhaps one day, I will believe in myself… again. But you sure got me there. You're a strange young man, Amamiya-kun." He nodded. "Very well. If learning how to give a great speech is what you seek, then I'd be happy to instruct you. In exchange, I'd like for you to continue assisting me. Let's get started, shall we?'
'We've made a deal with Yoshida…' the gang thought.
"Let's peruse your dream of becoming a member of the Diet," Yoshida said. "…Oh my, we've been talking for far too long. Let's call it quits for today."
With that the gang split up, Ren informing them later that Yoshida would be giving his speeches on Sunday night. They all agreed to help out the former Diet member, as they could all learn something from the man, be it about speeches or otherwise. Even Loona had to admit that she interested now.
[***]
May 13
Soon the Phantom Thieves were caught in the middle of Exam Week, not having any time to go into Mementos or really hang out as they focused on studying. Come that Friday, however, and there was a mandatory school assembly that they all had to go to. Ren and Octavia stood next to each other in the auditorium that afternoon as the principal began the assembly.
"Ever since that specific incident, many of you have voiced concerns that I could not bear to ignore. We believe the mental help of our student body is absolutely vital, so we've acquired the services of a therapist." The principal turned to the side of the stage. "The floor is yours doctor."
Walking up to the mic was young man in glasses and a lab coat. 'I've got admit, he's cute,' Octavia thought.
The man gave a cough before talking. "It's nice to meet you all. My name is-" He suddenly stopped and looked down at the microphone stand. He fiddled with it a bit before continuing, "My name is Takuto Maruki. That you for welcoming me to your school." He went to give a bow, before accidentally hitting his head on the mic, much to the amusement of the student body. "No need to be formal with me, though. I'm just here to counsel anyone who's interested. You can even call me Doc, if that would help you feel more comfortable. Any assistance you need, I'll be- Oh… I guess I'm not really any good for helping with many problems…"
The student body giggled as the principal took the microphone. "Thank you, Dr. Maruki."
Once the assembly was over, the Phantom Thieves all met outside at the walkways of the school. "You ever expect this place to actually give a shit about our mental health?" Ryuji asked.
"Well, our school's made national news. Maybe they figured they'd look even worse if they didn't do anything for us," Ann suggested.
"It's performative at best," Octavia scoffed. "That Doctor Maruki though… do you think he'll actually do us any good?"
Before the princess could say anything else, Maruki walked up to the group. "Hey there," he greeted. "Sakamoto-kun, Takamaki-san, Goetia-san, Nyx-san, and Pastor-kun, right? And that must make you… Amamiya-kun."
"How do you know our names?" Loona asked with a growl, crossing her arms.
"Well, I was informed of certain students before beginning my tenure here," Maruki admitted. "Those that had, ah… previous interactions with Mr. Kamoshida. Amamiya-kun, Pastor-kun, Nyx-san, and Goetia-san, it must have been especially tough for you all after having just transferred here."
"Not really," Octavia shrugged.
"Yeah, it was," Collin admittd.
"To think I'd end up in a castle…" Ren said absentmindedly, which made other Phantom Thieves look at him in shock.
"A castle…?" Maruki repeat, confused.
"You idiot!" Loona angerly whispered.
Ann laughed, patting Ren roughly on the back. "Looks like this guy didn't get much sleep last night!"
"So… whaddya want with us?" Ryuji asked.
"Ah yes, I'd forgotten… I know I already offered my services to the student body earlier, but would you three be interested in counseling?" Maruki asked.
"Nope, not at all," Ryuji shook his head.
"Same," Loona nodded. She tilted her head when Maruki reacted with shock. "How's that surprising?"
"You were just a touch more emphatic about it than I'd expected…" Maruki replied. "Ah! But if you come to my office, you can have free snacks! All you can eat… would be nice, but there's still plenty to be had. So, how about it?"
"Tell me more of these snacks…" Ren said.
"Hey, don't fall for that!" Ann chided.
"I dunno, Ann. Snacks do sound good, and counseling is a healthy way to deal with trauma…" Collin mumbled.
Maruki sighed. "To be frank, I've been explicitly ordered to provide counseling to the students directly involved with Mr. Kamoshida. It's in the school's interests… for its students."
"Ah, the school's interest, huh?" Loona said, sarcasm dripping in her voice.
"I know that asking you to be open with a complete stranger like myself is a lot. Making this mandatory wouldn't do you any good, either. Might as well turn it into a worthwhile experience…" Maruki said. "Oh, I know! If you attend my counseling sessions, I'll teach you different ways to improve your mental acuity. Like, ways to home your concentration before exams, or not getting nervous on dates. How's that sound?"
Ann and the others looked unsure, but Ren and Octavia were giving it some thought. "And we still get snacks?" Octavia asked.
"Of course," Maruki nodded.
"Alright, alright, enough with the snacks!" Ryuji shouted in annoyance. He looked to Ren. "So, which way are you leaning?"
"No harm in a little chat," Ren replied.
Loona sighed. "I guess it'd just be more trouble for us if we didn't go."
"Yeah," Collin nodded.
"Really? Then, I guess it's a deal," Maruki said. "I'll be in the nurse's office- feel free to come by whenever it's convenient for you."
"Welp, we should get going," Ryuji said.
Maruki nodded. "Okay, I'll see you later." As the rest of the gang walked off, Octavia and Ren lingered a bit. "Thanks for taking my counseling into consideration. Now that we have a deal, I promise I'll do my best to help you."
"What's the holdup, guys?" Ryuji called.
"Sorry for keeping you like this," Maruki apologized. "Well then…"
The two soon rejoined their friends. Ms. Kawakami told the class later that Maruki would only be at the school until November, so they had until then to take up his offer if they chose to.
Ryuji: You, you guys gonna go for it?
Ann: What, the counseling?
Collin: We don't really have a choice in the matter.
Ryuji: I told Maruki I'd do it, but… I dunno if I'm really that into the idea, you know?
Ren: Not much choice.
Loona: Unfortunately. The guy better not expect me to spill my guts out to him, though.
Octavia: And it's probably better not to draw more attention to ourselves anyway.
Ann: I think I'm gonna try going today.
[***]
May 14
"Fuck exams…" Loona groaned, letting out a big yawn as she and Octavia waited for the rest of their friends to arrive. The duo stood just outside the underground entrance near Shujin.
"I would reprimand you on your language, but it would be pointless at this point," Collin sighed, his eyes looking bleary as she joined the two.
"Did both of you stay up late to study?" Octavia asked.
"Yeah. Just because I hate school doesn't mean I want to fail," Loona said. "And why aren't you tired, princess?"
Octavia raised an eyebrow. "I'm part owl. We're nocturnal creatures, so I don't get tired at night like you guys. I also don't need as much sleep since I can just use my latent magic to keep my body going. Though that normally means I need to sleep in and recharge on weekends…"
"Lucky you," Loona said, yawning again. "I just want these stupid exams to be done with…"
"Good thing it's the last day, then," Collin said. The trio suddenly got a text then.
Ren: Ann's got a stalker. Hide near the entrance so we can cut him off.
"Oh dear…" Collin said in a worried tone.
"Hell no! Ann's already been through enough shit, she doesn't need to deal with a stalker now," Loona growled.
"Didn't know you cared so much," Octavia said.
Loona crossed her arms. "We're Phantom Thieves, which means we stick together or whatever. I'll just use this as an excuse to give someone a punch to the face."
Ren, Ryuji, and Ann soon came up the steps, their leader giving a nod as he, Octavia, and Collin went to one side while Loona and Ryuji went to the other. Ann stood out in the open as bait, and everyone waited for the stalker to arrive. The sound of lone footsteps came up from the underground, the stalker pausing for a moment before coming out into the open. As soon as he started reaching a hand out towards Ann, the Phantom Thieves jumped into action, with the gang stepping in front of Ann while Loona grabbed the stalker's arm.
"Not so fast," the hellhound growled, before looking at the "stalker" in confusion. "Seriously, this is the guy?"
He was a high school student with blue hair wearing a long sleeve white shirt with a different school logo. He looked at the gang in confusion, which the Phantom Thieves returned with their own glances. "Hey, uh… are you sure it's him?" Ryuji asked Ann. "Or are you just that self-conscious?"
"I'm not that-!" Ann started to shout.
"Is there something you want," the "stalker" asked. He flinched under Loona's grip. "And could you please let go of my arm?" Loona roughly threw his arm away.
Ann frowned and pointed at the "stalker." "That's my line! You were the one stalking me!"
The "stalker" brushed some stray bangs out of his face. "Stalking you…? That's outrageous."
"I know you've been following me! Ever since the train!" Ann accused.
"That's because…" the "stalker" started to say, only for a car horn to cut the conversation short. A black car pulled up to the side of the road. The back window rolled down, revealing an old man in brown robes that made Octavia think of a certain Science Fantasy movie.
"My goodness… I had wondered why you left the car," the old man said. "So, this is where your passion led. All is well that ends well." The old man started laughing, making the situation a bit awkward.
"I saw you from the car… and I couldn't help myself from chasing after you," the high schooler explained. "I didn't even notice the calls from Sensei… But thank goodness, I caught up to you."
"Okay…" Ann said, still weirded out by all of this.
"Still doesn't explain his behavior," Loona said.
"You're the woman I've been searching for all this time!" the student said. "Please, won't you-"
"Wait a minute!" Ann said, getting flustered. Loona stepped forward again to defend Ann.
The student made a dramatic pose. "-Be the model for my next art piece!?"
The gang all froze in confusion. "…What," Octavia said flatly.
Author's Note
So, fun fact: the person that Takemi calls during her Rank 4 Confidant is actually from Persona 4, specifically the Devil Arcana of that game. A small call-back that's easy to miss if you don't recognize the name right away.
We're in Mementos now, which means meeting Jose and being able to do side-quests. Can I just say that I hate how Jose's name is pronounced "Joe-Zeh" instead of how it should be said "Ho-Zeh"? Who on the translation team came up with that idea? Oh well, at least Octavia's presence spared Morgana from getting his heart stomped on...
And we start the Sun Arcana this chapter, which all three members of the HB crew will be participating in! TalosLives helped me come to the conclusion that Octavia, Collin, and even Loona would benefit from what Yoshida has to say, and I agree. He's one of my favorite Confidants and underrated if you ask me. Yoshida also shows the strength of the writing in Persona 5, as you can engage with his story of personal redemption on the surface or go deeper into him wanting to change the corrupt political system of Japan. The Persona games as a whole do social commentary in a way where you can choose to engage with it or not and still enjoy the story either way (which as a person that is apolitical myself, I appreciate very much. One can only take political matters before you just want to shut everything off and scream into a pillow...).
Besides that, Dr. Maruki is here! He's a definite fan favorite and an integral part of the Royal storyline. It'll be fun getting to write his counseling scenes with the HB characters. Also, I want to give my thanks to his English Voice actor, Billy Kametz, who tragically passed away last year. He also voiced Josuke in Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, Anai in Aggretsuko, and Naofumi from Rising of the Shield Hero to name a few notable roles. He left an impact on a lot of fans of Persona 5 and beyond and he will be missed. May his soul find eternal happiness and rest in the next life.
We also get our introduction to the eccentric artist Yusuke at the end of the chapter here. The Madarame Arc starts next time, and I have a lot of fun changes that the Helluva Boss characters will be bringing to the table. See you then!