Heart of Justice: Chapter 20

No sooner had Ace and her fellow Thieves descended through the open skylight of Madarame's Palace, did the group quickly discover things were not as they once were in the labyrinthine museum.

"Hmm..." Ace folded her arms, bringing her hand to her chin as she examined infrared laser alarms had been attached to the frames of the door leading out of the room they'd entered from outside.

"An infrared security system," Mona remarked, eyeing the barely visible, needle-thin red lasers as he approached from behind the young detective. "If we don't want to set off any alarms and alert Shadows, we'd best not touch them."

Ace nodded. "I'm familiar with how they work. You'd be impressed how many burglars have found ways around them, though." the young detective crouched down, examining them carefully and noticing the lowest bar was not active. "We should be able to fit if we go under this way," she said.

"Heh, well, guess we're about to be added to that number!" Skull said with a laugh. "Still, though, where'd these even come from? They weren't here last time!"

"With the exhibit going on, the rumors are probably getting more serious, and since Madarame is probably aware plenty of his former pupils haven't ended their lives, he might be getting more cautious," Mona explained. "These laser detectors may be tough to see, so be sure to look extra hard before we proceed through any suspicious doors, Ace!"

Taking a deep breath, Ace focused, and for a second, the lasers still active shone noticeably brighter. The girl took a step back, imagining herself slipping through with what she had planned, and promptly lunged forward, dropping to the ground and using her momentum to slide under the bars, Skull and Panther exchanging a glance behind her and following her example, Mona bringing up the rear of the group after.

"Whoa, that was intense!" Panther said, looking back at the protected doorway they'd just literally slipped through.

"It seems we're about to find out if my experiences of examining how burglars got around laser guards will pay off," Ace replied, looking around at the maze-like gallery before them, various turns and corners now also had similar laser alarm traps set in place as well. "...That said, it's bound to only get more challenging from here..."

"Hey, look!" Panther whispered, pointing ahead and seeing movement up ahead and the Thieves promptly took cover around an unguarded corner. Slowly, the figure came into view, resembling a uniformed security guard with a flashlight. Its skin was pitch-black, and its body slouched giving it an almost primate-like stature as it turned its head about, revealing a metal mask resembling a reddish-pink heart that covered its face with a single red eye at its center.

"Shadows," Mona whispered. "Madarame's more on-guard, now. That means they'll be more actively protecting his Palace from intruders."

"So, what're we gonna do?" Skull asked.

"Let's neutralize it. It'll be easier to get through this maze if we don't have to worry about it catching us as well," Ace said, tugging her gloves in place and dashing to another corner, pressing her hands against the wall as she kept in a kneeling position, lying in wait for the Shadow to approach. She held up three fingers with her hand, slowly counting them down to one as the guard drew closer before turning. The instant its back turned, Ace leaped into action, knocking it to the ground as she landed atop it and tore its mask clean off in a single stroke of her hand, the mask vanishing and the Shadow melting into a trio of blocky, green-skinned humanoids wielding boomerangs. Panther, Mona, and Skull immediately rushed forward joining Ace as they took formation to engage their foes.

"Three of 'em! Great!" Panther stated, getting her whip ready as it appeared in her hands and swinging it at one of the creatures, causing it to recoil back.

One of the other creatures raised its boomerang, and a red light engulfed one of the ones that had not been struck, the creature then seemed to smirk a little and fling its boomerang at Skull, who ducked out of the way.

"Ha! Nice try!" Skull said with a laugh.

"Behind you!" Ace shouted as the boomerang made its way back.

"AW SHIT!" Skull dropped to the floor barely dodging it as it flew past him and returned to the hand of its owner. "You're gonna pay for that! CAPTAIN KIDD!"

The pirate Persona appeared above Skull, before lunging forward and slamming into the one Panther had struck, causing it to explode in a burst of smoke. "HA! TAKE TWO!" he shouted, unleashing an electric blast at the one who had thrown a boomerang at him, only for it to let out an amused chuckle as the bolt of lightning barely phased it.

"Strong to electricity, huh?" Mona asked with a smirk. "ZORRO!"

The swordsman Persona suddenly appeared above the catlike thief, releasing a powerful cyclone on the green creature, that promptly cried out and fell on its back. "Oh, yeah! Now for the other!" Mona cheered as Zorro unleashed a second gust on the other.

"Panther! Let's go!" Ace shouted, drawing out her gun and Panther doing the same, firing upon the creatures repeatedly till one exploded, the other one crying out before falling forward on its knees, dropping its boomerang and sweat running down its cylindrical head.

"W-wait! Please! I'm begging you!" the creature cried out, prostrating before Ace. "S-surely there's something I can offer if you'll spare me?"

Ace regarded the small creature, her gun trained on it as she glared down at it. "Give me your power," she said sternly.

"R-really? Sure thing!" the creature said, managing a smile on its face as it stood back up, taking up its boomerang. "W-wait! I remember something!" It gave a laugh as its body began to glow. "I am Mokoi. I'm not a Shadow of this Palace, My destiny is as a Persona who will be at your side!"

In a flash of light, the creature, Mokoi, vanished, the light flying into Ace's mask, causing it to glow briefly, and the young detective could feel its power add itself to her own.

"Nice, a new mask, Ace!" Mona said with a smirk.

Ace gave a nod. By her assertion, she'd could sense she had room for another. With any luck, she'd find what was necessary to complete the twins' request. "Let's try and find the sculpture again, and we'll continue from there," she said.

It did not take long for the group to find themselves in the large room where Yusuke's portrait hung, but Ace gave pause as she noticed the red lines in the air. Focusing, she noticed what was essentially a cobweb of laser sensors in place along the walls, sending infrared bars in just about every direction.

"Well, shit!" Skull grumbled, getting a closer look.

Ace analyzed the laser bars carefully, there was a gap further up, but there was no way they'd be able to jump that high.

"How're we gonna get past this?" Panther asked.

"We just gotta look for a way!" Mona replied. "You still got that grappling hook, right, Ace? There's a support beam right near Yusuke's portrait, see if you can send it that way, maybe we can get through that way!"

Looking where Mona's paw was pointed, Ace noticed the support beam the cat was talking about and carefully held out her hand directly in front of her, diagonally upward to where the support beam was as the grapple hook appeared over her wrist and she pressed the switch, the hook firing out and embedding itself to the support beam as Skull, Panther, and Mona quickly grabbed on to Ace and all three were promptly pulled through at high speed, Ace pressed the switch again, causing the four of them to drop back to the floor, having cleared the laser grid and once more standing before Yusuke's portrait.

"Phew! Still not used to that!" Skull muttered.

"The lobby's just up ahead!" Mona said. "Which means we're just near where that sculpture was!"

"Then it'll be unknown territory from there," Panther said.

"Security is bound to get more serious the deeper we go," Ace said, leading the way into the lobby and the circling hallway to the sculpture, pausing as she took notice of another laser sensor occupying the door frame and quickly sliding under it, the others following in suit.

"Good catch, Ace," Mona said. "We'll not want to go charging on ahead, or running up to any displays or anything, got it?"

"What're you lookin' at ME for?!" Skull asked, annoyed.

Panther paused a moment, looking up at Madarame's grotesque golden sculpture, paying Skull and Mona's brief argument no mind. "...Kitagawa-kun... Nakanohara... Yonaga... everyone else... he's been doing this for years!"

Ace folded her arms, glaring in contempt at the sculpture and gave a nod. "That brings a question I've had on my mind..."

"Well, let's not do that out in the open!" Mona said, already making his way up the winding stairs leading to the door that was no longer barred shut. "Wait till we've found a safe room... I can sense one. I don't think it's that far from here!"

"There it is!" Mona shouted, pointing his paw ahead to a door at the end of a hallway that looked noticeably blurry, the four Thieves immediately rushing over, jumping over another laser sensor in succession along the way and hurrying inside.

"Phew!" Panther gave a sigh of relief as she looked around, the room briefly shifting into a dilapidated studio full of discarded easels and chairs before transforming into what appeared to be an office, its marble walls adorned with more gaudy gold plating, with glass tables and leather office chairs situated in the middle while two televisions showing muted interviews with Madarame hang over the far wall.

"So, now that we're in the safe room," Panther asked as she sat down on the sofa, sinking into its plush cushion. "...What was it you were wondering about, Ace?"

"...Seeing all this gold decor," Ace explained. "The overabundance of luxuries. I've no doubt at all Madarame must be making a fortune off his stolen art, especially if he's been doing this for so long. The question is, however, where does it go?"

"Maybe he gives it to charities?" Skull asked. "No one would ask and it fits his stories."

"Possible," Ace replied. "...Though with the way this place looks, I doubt he gives away any more then he feels he has to in order to maintain his good public image and his pretense of modesty. This place gives the impression of someone who is clearly enjoying all the benefits that come with his success... regardless of his means of achieving it."

The young detective brought her hand to her chin as another thought came to mind, glancing over at Panther and Skull. "...Furthermore, isn't it odd someone who claims to distance himself from all manner of material comforts would be driven around in a luxury car like the one we saw when Kitagawa first approached you?"

"Good point," Panther replied. "Skull! You remember that car we first saw Madarame in?"

"Hell yeah!" Skull replied, coming over. "Pretty damn fancy for some geezer who lives in a crappy shack!"

"Indeed," Ace said. "Seems another part of this mystery has shown itself, the question of where Madarame is keeping the fortunes he's accumulated without anyone knowing..."

"Then if that's the case," Mona said, approaching. "...When you look at how there's such a sharp contrast to his atelier, I'd say Madarame is living two very different lives at once..."

"The truth is sure to reveal itself in full in this place one way or another," Ace mused. "...Still, I imagine the Treasure's no where close..."

"Unfortunately, we've still got a ways to go," Mona replied. "How's everyone feeling?

"No problem, here!" Skull said with a thumbs-up.

"I'm still good to go!" Panther said, with a smirk and a nod.

Ace gave a nod. "Be that as it may, if we're only still barely in, we should take five and continue after..."

Once the group was done with their short rest, the four Thieves returned to the halls of the museum, finding themselves in a twisting and turning corridor of ivory while tile walls that hung even more portraits about them.

"Dude... how many pupils did this guy have?!" Skull whispered, staring in wide-eyed shock.

"Quite a lot, it seems. An artist of his status, it would make sense," Ace whispered back.

"Still," Panther said, sighing. "That just means... my god, so many people he's hurt..."

"We'll make him pay, Lady Ann! You can be sure of it!" Mona assured her as the group continued further down the hall, carefully avoiding more laser sensors that seemed to be around every single turn and corner they came across.

"Shadow!" Ace whispered, noticing one circling a large, four-sided column of portraits situated in the middle of the hallway up ahead.

"We'd be better off trying to avoid a fight with that one, I can sense it's really strong!" Mona whispered, noticing red smoke rising off its form. "Let's try and sneak around it instead..."

"Heh, like a real Phantom Thief!" Ryuji said with a smirk, the group cautiously approaching as the security guard shadow paced away from them, continuing its patrol around the column.

Ace led the group, leaping over another laser sensor and ducking quickly behind a corner as she watched it intently, waiting for it to move again as it took a brief pause. The girl took a few slow, deep breaths, her heart racing as she peered around the corner. Its back was still turned. Up close, from Ace's crouched position it seemed to tower over her. She looked back at her teammates, who were pressing themselves against the wall and watching their leader for any signal it was safe to proceed.

The Shadow continued to remain in place for a second, the girl was worried, if it decided to turn around and come back down the hall, they risked a confrontation. Silently, she held her hand up in a halting gesture to her teammates, watching the Shadow as best she could from her spot around the corner without risk of giving herself away should it turn and face her.

Skull grit his teeth as he struggled to remain calm. Panther cupped her hands over her mouth and attempted to keep her breathing in check. Mona gently placed his paw on her knee as he watched Ace intently with a concerned frown.

A second later, the Shadow continued on ahead, moving around the huge square column and disappearing behind it. Ace made a beckoning gesture with her hand as she immediately sprung to her feet and rushed ahead, dashing to a corner ahead in a blur of motion as she focused, her teammates doing the same and they were soon out of the Shadow's path as it continued back the way they'd come.

"That was close!" Panther whispered. "Thought my heart was gonna burst outta my chest!"

"Score one for the Phantom Thieves, though!" Skull said with a thumbs up to reassure her.

"We may run into more like this, so be ready for it!" Mona warned. The catlike thief suddenly paused and blinked, his ears twitching and his nose sniffed the air. "Hey! There's something up ahead!"

"Like the Treasure?" Ace asked.

"I dunno! We'd better investigate!" Mona said, dashing down the hallways ahead, doing a leap in the air and flipping over another set of laser sensors while Ace and the others followed behind, sliding under them.

"Mona, get back here, you damn cat!" Skull yelled as Mona reached a large exhibit hall, pausing in front of a pedestal at the center which a large, gold urn about twice Mona's height sat atop of.

"That golden sheen..." Mona fawned, his eyes wide with awe at the object on display, licking his lips as he watched its luster sparkle in the light while he paced around it.

Ace folded her arms, glaring down at Mona with a hint of exasperation. "Mona, unless this is the Treasure, we should probably leave it be," she said, looking around the room in suspicion. Given they'd not sent Madarame any calling card yet and there was a hallway up ahead leading further into the Palace, Ace was highly doubtful they'd already found their objective.

"C'mon!" Mona whined, the golden shine reflecting off his large eyes as he continued to stare at it. "I know it might be tough to take with us but don'cha think it'd sell for, like, tons?"

"Wait, Mona, DON'T!" Ace yelled as the cat suddenly leaped on to the pedestal and a click was heard, the pedestal suddenly sinking slightly.

Mona's eyes widened in horror as realization hit. "Oh no... GET BACK EVERYONE!" he cried out. The other Thieves quickly leaped out of the way, just in time for six walls of laser grids to suddenly appear, forming nine squares while also blocking access to the hallways on either side. Ace had managed to get outside their range in time on the side with the door heading further into the Palace, but noticed Panther still trapped in the middle square on her left and Skull in the square furthest back on the right, Mona meanwhile having been boxed in at the center on the podium.

"Ugh, nice going, cat! And here you were the one goin' on about us havin' to be careful!" Skull fumed, before looking over at Ace. "So whaddya wanna do? Should we all run outta here on three?"

"No!" Mona quickly shouted. "We pass through this many, every Shadow in this Palace including that nasty one we slipped past earlier will probably come running to our location!"

"I'm inclined to agree," Ace replied, looking around. "There has to be a way to shut these off."

"Makes sense," Mona said. "...There's gotta be a switch around somewhere in this room. It's a museum, after all, so there'd need to be a way for the workers to avoid setting all of these off! Look for it, Ace!"

Nodding, Ace looked to her right, then her left, noticing some crates in the corner of the latter that would allow her to scale the side of the glass dwarf wall. Rushing over, Ace leaped up the crate and on to the top of its frame and jumped down, landing behind a golden folding screen covered in peacock feather design. Looking around, Ace scanned the small area, spotting a switch on the opposing wall and approached it, noting the light indicating it as active was on and pressed the off switch. A faint grinding of machinery was heard behind her as she came around the folding screen, noticing the glass dwarf wall separating her and Panther slowly descended into the floor, granting the latter her freedom.

"Thanks!" Panther said with a smile, rushing over to Ace. "Now we just need to get Skull and Mona out!"

Ace looked around, noticing a catwalk bridging the two dwarf walls' frames on the opposite side of the room, and some crates next to the button she'd pressed, and immediately climbed up them, Panther following behind as they crossed the metal catwalk to the other side and across the other, still raised dwarf wall and hopped down.

"Shadow! Must've spawned just now," Panther whispered, pointing ahead at the heart-masked, humanoid entity dressed as a security guard pacing around the divider screen that had been set up in this room as well. Ace gestured with a tilt of her head as she led Panther around the other side of the divider screen, hearing said Shadow muttering to itself about having to deal with this alone.

"There doesn't seem to be a switch here," Panther whispered as she looked around. Ace scanned the area as well, minding the Shadow's presence nearby as it thankfully had not noticed them yet.

"Hmm..." Ace brought her hand to her chin, looking about again. "It's got to be here somewhere," she whispered.

"Where could it be?" Panther whispered back, looking through the glass windows of the dwarf wall and seeing Skull and Mona watching them anxiously from where they were trapped.

Ace closed her eyes, remembering the laser sensors when they'd first encountered them and focused, and before her eyes a faint blue aura shone from one of the portraits on the nearby wall. "Help me move that," she whispered as she pointed to it, she and Panther cautiously approached the wall as to not alert the Shadow guard, and carefully took it down, discovering another switch behind it similar to the first one, which Ace immediately pressed.

Sure enough, the glass dwarf wall separating Skull from the group slid down, freeing him.

"Awesome!" Skull cheered, rushing over to rejoin Ace and Panther, however, the dwarf wall's movement also had alerted the Shadow, who came around the corner of the dividing screen.

"HEY!" it shouted, running at them.

"Get bent!" Skull sneered, summoning his shotgun and firing at it, causing it to land flat on its back as it burst into red and black ooze and out emerged a grinning, yellow doglike creature with a lion's face.

"CARMEN!" Panther shouted, summoning her gown-clad Persona who did a twirl as it unleashed a blast of flame on the creature, harming it though not severely.

"CAPTAIN KID!" Skull cried out, his pirate Persona unleashing a blast of lightning upon their foe as well.

The creature chuckled as it once more showed resilience as it did before, and let out a roar as it reared back, and a bright blast of blue energy at Ace, causing her to cry out in pain.

"Ace! You alright?" Mona called from where he stood trapped atop the gold urn.

Ace gave a nod and regained her stance, glaring at the enemy before them. "GENBU!"

A large, turtle-like Persona with a snake wrapped around it loomed over Ace, letting out a bellow as it breathed a blast of ice at the creature, freezing it in its place.

"It's frozen!" Mona cried out from his spot. "Take out your guns and fire away!"

Nodding, the three Thieves took out their guns in unison and fired at the enemy Shadow repeatedly, the ice shattering apart along with the creature inside as it crumbled away into smoke.

"Awww yeah! Now that was some style!" Skull cheered, raising his fist in celebration.

"Totally!" Panther said with a smile.

"Alright, guys, now could someone please get me out of here?!" Mona cried out.

"Yeeeah, how?" Skull asked, looking at the laser grids that were still surrounding the pedestal Mona was trapped on.

"There has to be a control room around here somewhere that can shut off the lasers!" Mona replied. "Maybe down the hall?"

"Let's go look," Ace said, noting the way forward now had a laser grid as well and elected to lead the way back to the hall they came where sure enough, up ahead was a closed door, though the windows showed on closer inspection to be a control room. Looking at the door however, Ace noticed it was barred shut.

"It's locked, we can't get in!" Skull called back.

"WHAT?!" Mona cried out from the exhibit hall. "Then find another way in! I can't just stay up here, you know!"

Peering through the window, Ace noticed the room was empty, which was odd as it'd normally be impossible to lock a door like this from the outside as there was no key card slot, either, meaning it could only be opened or closed from the inside. Her gaze fell on an open vent in the opposite wall inside the room, closer inspection from the room's lighting told her the ventilation corridor led back to the exhibit hall Mona was trapped in.

"Let's go," she said, leading the way back and to the area where she and Panther had freed Skull.

"Did you find something?" Mona asked.

"I think so, yes. There's a vent leading into the control room, from what I could see, it looked like it goes in this direction, so there may be one here, as well we can enter from," Ace replied, examining the walls and noticing a vent grating. "Skull?" she asked, approaching the grating.

"Way ahead'a ya!" Skull replied with a grin as he dug his fingers into the grating and pulled hard until he tore it off. "All clear! Nice job findin' this!"

Ace gave a faint, though amused smirk. "I am a detective, Skull."

"Heh, right," Skull replied with a laugh as Ace crouched down and crawled into the now open vent.

"You first, Skull. I don't need you accidentally bumping into my ass!" Panther said, folding her arms and glaring. The blond boy gave a shrug and went in next, followed by Panther.

The vent was thankfully not tight, and was easy enough to crawl through on all fours as Ace led the way on a sharp turn to the left that eventually emptied the group into the control room. Ace looked around the Thieves' new surroundings as the place looked like a typical small office with a few desks and chairs about it, though she took notice of a laptop nearby and approached it.

"So this has gotta turn off the alarms, right?" Skull asked.

"It's gotta be," Panther replied. "It has the command window up and everything!"

Ace moved the mouse to click, only for a new window to come up asking to input a password. Frowning, Ace looked around the desk and moved the laptop, but found nothing until she saw a slip of paper stuck under of the keyboard that read 01134. Turning the laptop back over, the young detective decided to give it a try and typed it in.

The computer's window let out a chime, with a window reading "Approved" popping up.

"Alright! I'm saved!" Mona cheered as he watched the laser grids disappear around him and promptly hopped down to the floor as Ace, Panther, and Skull reentered the hall. "Sorry," he said, an embarrassed look on his face. "That was... very unlike me..."

"Weren't you the one who tells us not to touch stuff?" Skull asked.

"Yeah, true. I can't believe I made such a novice mistake," Mona sighed. "Even for something made of solid gold..."

"What do you mean?" Panther asked. "Gold or not, isn't it just some ordinary vase?"

As if to answer that question, the vase began to tremble, as if something inside were attempting to break free.

"Get back!" Ace urged her teammates, stepping away as the vase suddenly exploded in a shower of gold dust, revealing a spinning red gem.

"So THAT'S why I was drawn to it!" Mona shouted. "Quick! Shoot it FAST! Before it gets away!"

Immediately the group brought out their guns, firing at it. The gem toppled to the floor and exploded in a burst of red and black smoke, reforming into a lanky, shimmering blue entity resembling some sort of cartoon ghost, with glowing yellow spiraling eyes and a spectral pink gem hovering below its form.

"That's a Treasure Demon! Try and knock it down with everything you got!" Mona ordered.

Panther and Skull quickly summoned Carmen and Captain Kidd, striking with the strongest attacks they could muster as the creature cried out, coins spilling from its form onto the floor.

"Berith!" Ace cried out, summoning a horseback-riding knight that charged the ghostly creature, striking it head on, more money spilling from its body and scattering about.

The creature let out a loud groan in response, but did nothing else.

"We gotta try and beat it!" Mona shouted. "Destroy it before it runs away!"

Ace scowled, their attacks seemed to do little as the entity before them continued to groan as it writhed about. "It seems resistant to everything we have."

"Lemme try this! ZORRO!" the cat called out as his swordsman Persona appeared, and suddenly, a giant boxing glove mounted to a spring suddenly appeared before it and launched itself at the Treasure Demon, socking it in the face and knocking it to the ground. "HA! It worked! Talk about lucky!"

Immediately, the four Thieves pointed their weapons at the downed foe.

"Heh, to think you'd coerce me into giving in..." the Treasure Demon snarked as it lay on the floor, staring up at Ace. "How brilliant..."

The creature sat itself back up, chuckling. "No need for chitchat, I know when to fold. Call me Regent! Allow my existence to join yours, and become a part of you," it said, glowing brightly as it vanished in a flash of light, joining itself with Ace's mask.

"Great!" Mona said. "Good outcome considering it was our first time running into one!"

"A Treasure Demon, you called it?" Ace asked.

"Yup, it's a type of rare Shadow that likes to hide in expensive items and are made of a special kind of power. They might actually be useful for your Personas, Ace," Mona said. "They also try to run, so if we run into 'em, we defeat 'em fast!"

"Good to know," Ace replied, logging that thought away for the next time she ended up in the Velvet Room.

"Well, now that I'm finally free," Mona said with a smirk, noticing the rippling doorway of what had to be a safe room just down the hallway ahead, "...Let's continue!"

Further exploration and several encounters with Shadows later, the Thieves found themselves reaching the end of a carpeted hallway leading into a spacious exhibit room with silvery white tile and gold square-plated walls, adorned with more of the overly glitzy peacock feather patterns engraved on them as even more portraits of Madarame's ruined pupils hung on every available vertical surface, the room looking otherwise deserted.

Ace slowly approached the end of the hall, her gaze turning left and right as she studied every detail while her teammates followed close behind. She looked carefully at the frames of the doors, seeing no laser sensors present. Still, something didn't feel right but she couldn't find out what, and it annoyed her.

"Ace?" Panther asked, noticing the girl had paused right at the entrance into the large room.

Ace sighed. It seemed they had no other option but to find out. Even when she focused with the power Igor had granted her she saw nothing. Slowly, she stepped forward, with Panther, Skull, and Mona following.

The moment all fours' feet touched the tile, a humming sound was heard behind them, prompting them to turn around as a pair of metal poles emerged from either side of the entrance and switched on, electrical currents firing between them to form a fence, ensuring they could not turn back.

"W-what?!" Panther stammered.

"Intruders have been detected in the Second Exhibition Room! Apprehend them at once!" a voice ordered over an intercom, prompting the four Thieves to turn away from the electrified fence as several Shadow guards suddenly spawned throughout the room.

"Crap! Let's get outta here fast! Where's the exit?!" Skull cried out.

"Down there!" Ace pointed to a hallway with a door at the end, however, it too, had an electrified fence blocking access to the hallway as well. "We'll need to find a switch to turn the fences off."

"Over there!" Mona said, pointing with his paw to a green storage cabinet propped against a pillar. "We climb up that, we can at least get off the floor before the Shadows find us!"

Ace dashed over behind a pillar, she and her teammates barely avoiding notice by a patrolling Shadow before dashing to another in a swift blur of motion and making her way up the storage cabinet Mona had pointed out and atop the column followed by the others. The Shadow guards below continued to patrol the floor below seeking them out.

"Hey, look!" Skull said, noticing a platform where a switch was. Ace immediately made her way towards it, leaping across each pillar that served as a path to the alcove with the others behind her as she finally reached her destination and approached to get a closer look. From what she could tell, it looked identical to the two from the other exhibit hall where they'd briefly gotten trapped. With no other apparent options, Ace pressed the button, and a second later, the electrical currents suddenly shorted out. Turning, Ace and the other Thieves saw the conductors retract back into the floor, granting access to the way forward.

"Nice work! Let's keep going!" Mona said with a smirk.

Waiting for the Shadow guards to pass and leaping down from the alcove, Ace and her fellow Thieves made their way to the now accessible hallway and opened the gold-plated doors waiting at the end, finding themselves in another hallway that turned left, with blue and gold leather couches lining one side with shiny gold wallpaper, while the wall opposite of it sported cobalt blue and gold box tiles, framing a white marble tile floor.

"Okay, seriously, this place is really makin' my eyes hurt," Skull muttered, looking around in disgust as the group pressed on, making the left turn and finding a fork, one path leading to the right and outdoors, another to the left where a small rectangular pool sat surrounded by trees and leading around to a rippling door in the back Ace gathered to be a Safe Room.

"Holy shit, look at that building!" Skull suddenly called out from behind her, prompting Ace to turn and approach him, Panther, and Mona, who were standing and staring at what lay outside the doorway the right path had led to.

The path opened up to a small garden, with a walkway of gold tiling lined by flawlessly green hedges and the rectangular, golden block walls from outside the Palace, leading to the entrance of another building.

"It looks even gaudier then the rest of the museum!" Panther observed. Ace certainly would have to agree; to say it was the most overly glitzed up, absolute eyesore of a building Ace had ever seen in her life would be an accurate way to put it, with its incredibly vibrant chrome gold luster that covered its entire surface and its mismatched leaf and peacock feather patterns engraved along it. The building itself looked like it had been made from gigantic metallic gold building blocks haphazardly stacked atop one-another in an almost mountain-like shape and given tiny random windows and doors about its sides that shown an ethereal blue light. Growing around the walls were more vibrant, metallic gold, leafless tree with numerous blank portrait frames hanging in their branches. At the middle of the gold tile path were a set of doors, with a landscape painting of bamboo trees set before a lake, its coloring as bright and vibrant as the rest of the surroundings.

"Yeeeeah, definitely feelin' my eyes hurt even more, now, just lookin' at it," Skull grumbled, rubbing them with his thumbs.

"Just look at how much more distorted this place looks, though," Mona said, looking around. "It definitely has the look of having something very important hidden away in it."

"Then let's investigate," Ace replied, looking about quickly to assess there were no immediate threats and making her way down the path, the others following. As they drew close to the doors situated in the middle of the path, they promptly slid apart, causing Ace and her teammates to pause as about a dozen more hidden behind them followed suit, opening the way to a courtyard surrounded by tall, silvery spiral lamps and several discarded paint cans. Ace paused, however, as she noticed a strange, tall, electrified red barrier had been erected around the entrance into the building itself.

"The hell is this?" Skull asked.

"Some kind of security system. Infrared lasers and electrical currents," Ace observed. "It'd be impossible to get past them without injury and alerting every Shadow here to finish us off."

"This level of security only proves there's something worth protecting up ahead," Mona replied, shaking his head.

"Hey, there's something written here on this sign!" Panther called out, approaching a small, gold-plated sign near one of the conductor towers. "It says "All Personnel: This door can only be opened via the security room that lies beyond it. Please be cautious as it is impossible to open from the outside,"..."

"So wait, it's never gonna open, then?!" Skull protested. "How the hell we supposed to get past?"

"Wait a sec!" Mona cried out, jumping up into the air and his eyes wide with shock as he looked past the others. "That door! I know I've seen that pattern somewhere before!"

Ace, Skull, and Panther turned to see what Mona was talking about, noting the large double-doors behind the fence leading into the building ahead. Cobalt blue backdrop framed in gold, a gold peacock with fanned out tail feathers adorning each door.

"Right! They're just like that door I found earlier!"

"...Door you found earlier?" Panther asked.

"There's nothing more we can do here, right now, so let's get out of here! I'll explain then!" Mona replied. "...I think I know what real-world door this is based on! There may be another way to open it!"

Ace regarded the catlike thief with intrigue as Mona immediately began running back the way they'd come and before they knew it, the Thieves were on their way back to the entrance and out of the Metaverse once more...

"So how're we supposed to get past that door?" Ann asked as the group found themselves back in the real world outside Madarame's atelier.

"I dunno... Gotta be an off switch somewhere," Ryuji fumed.

"This is where I come in!" Morgana said, now a normal cat again as he climbed out of Kyoko's schoolbag. "I actually have a very suspicious place in mind!"

"You mentioned seeing a door like the one in the Palace, before," Kyoko said.

"That's right," Morgana replied. "Remember, this shack is the basis for Madarame's Palace. When we were here last time when Lady Ann was modeling for Yusuke, I actually scouted the place out!"

"You sure you didn't just do it because you were bored?" Ann asked, raising an eyebrow at the cat in suspicion.

"Be that as it may," Kyoko said. "...Would I be correct in saying that you found this door you spoke of somewhere in Madarame's atelier?"

"Correct!" Morgana replied. "It was on the second floor at the end of a long hallway. It was odd enough, such a fancy door being in such a shabby place, I'll admit, but that wasn't the only strange thing about it..."

"Yeah? What else was there?" Ryuji asked.

"Well, it was being kept shut by a really hefty-looking lock!" Morgana explained.

"Hm, if Madarame went through the trouble of locking it up like that, it'd mean there's something in that room that he really doesn't want people to see!" Ann said.

Kyoko nodded. "Indeed, and if the doors we found are based from that door, it'd mean we'd have to unlock that door in the real world in order to get through in the Palace..."

"You catch on, Kyoko, but that's only part of it," Morgana explained. "For this to work, it's absolutely important that we open the door in the real world in front of Madarame's eyes! Doing so will change his cognition that no one but him can open it."

"So if we did that, then that security system in the Palace will shut down on its own?" Ann asked.

"Basically, yes!" Morgana replied. "...I mean, it should. You understand, Kyoko?"

"At this point, it's really all we've got," the young detective said, folding her arms. "...If we want to have any hope of proceeding further into his Palace, this may be our only option."

"Yeah, you guys just gotta trust me on this, alright?" Morgana protested, noticing Ryuji and Ann both looked skeptical.

"Still, if we try this, we gotta deal with a hefty lock in the real world," Ann replied.

"It'll be a breeze!" Morgana said. "Just gimme a hairpin and I'll handle it! Still..." he explained, "...It may take a little time, and doing it all by myself in front of Madarame is going to be impossible. We're... going to need someone to distract him for a while until I get it open."

"After our last experience with Kitagawa, guilty as he felt over the ultimatum he attempted on us when I shut him down about it, it's unlikely he'd respond well to seeing us again and would never permit us entry," Kyoko said. "...And if we simply broke in, he and Madarame would have every right to call the police on us for trespassing as well as breaking and entering, and Kitagawa already knows our names and faces..."

Ann looked down, letting out a deep sigh. "Maybe... there is a way..." she said, closing her eyes and sighing again.

"Whaddya mean?" Ryuji asked.

"Kitagawa-kun's under a lot of pressure from Madarame to produce a new piece before the art exhibit ends," Ann explained. "Maybe I can... call him back and offer to... "assist" him of my own free will..."

"W-WHAT?!" Morgana protested. "Lady Ann! Are you sure you want him to see you n-nnnn-"

Ann grit her teeth. "D-do we r-really have a ch-choice here?!" she stammered, "We don't have much time!"

Kyoko's brow furrowed. "After I got you out of it?" she asked.

Ann shook her head. "Look! I hate this as much as any of you, but if it's gonna get us past that gateway so we can stop Madarame then I'll do it!"

"You're seriously gonna get...?!" Ryuji asked, staring agape.

"HELL NO! Absolutely no way am I going to expose myself in front of him!" Ann snapped, livid.

Ryuji raised an eyebrow. "...And how're you gonna get around that? It's what he'd be expectin' outta you if that's what you're offerin' to do..."

"I-I'll come up with an idea!" Ann replied anxiously. "...One th-that'll buy Morgana some time and make it so I don't need to... y-you know!"

Kyoko brought her hand to her chin, looking deep in thought for a moment. "I suppose if Yusuke is desperate enough to fulfil Madarame's demands with such a short amount of time left, he'll probably believe you, and it would be the best excuse to be admitted in without raising suspicion..." She looked up at Ann. "...Very well, I'll trust in whatever your plan is."

"Furthermore, Kyoko, Ryuji, you two will have a part to play as well: The two of you will need to enter the Palace without us, with Kyoko's ability to use multiple Personas she will be our best bet on that, with Ryuji as backup," Morgana explained. "The security system will only shut down briefly as Madarame's cognition is affected, so you'll both need to be present there to find the switch and shut it down for good."

"Just m-make sure you do your part!" Ann stammered. The girl shook her head in frustration. "This is too sudden... but if it's for Kitagawa-kun's sake... a-and bringing justice for all the people Madarame hurt... I-I'll do it! ...But what if I get found out?"

"Then we escape into the Palace!" Morgana said. "I'll be with you, so don't worry, Lady Ann!"

Ann sighed. "But you're just a cat, here, so it's still basically myself..."

"So long as you're okay enough to go through with this plan, and doing this by choice, Ann," Kyoko said. "Just keep Yusuke busy while Morgana gets the door unlocked, lead him there, and open it in front of him and Madarame. Get out of there right away, after."

"I doubt it'll be that easy, but like I said, I'll think of something. I'll call him soon as I do!" Ann replied, sighing. "...But no way in hell I'm undressing! ...Unless..." The blonde's eyes widened a little.

"What?" Ryuji asked.

"Don't worry about it. I might have an idea," Ann said, before her expression hardened once more. "Just make sure all of you do your job! Especially you, Morgana!"

"Have no fear, Lady Ann! If he tries anything, I won't stop scratching him till my claws break!"

"Anyway, I need to get home and... practice," Ann replied, shaking her head. "I'll see you all tomorrow... and that damn Palace door better open!"

With night having fallen as Kyoko arrived at Leblanc, she couldn't help but feel worn out, likely from the trip through Madarame's Palace.

"Welcome back," Sojiro said, holding a cigarette to his mouth. Kyoko gave a small smile.

"Thank you."

"You look pretty exhausted," Sojiro replied, though keeping his observation brief with there still being a couple seated at one of the booths. "You should probably go get yourself a bath and head on upstairs for the night."

The young detective nodded, it certainly sounded like a good idea. Her attention, however, turned to the TV where she noticed an interview going on.

"Oh my, is that the Detective Prince?" the middle aged woman making up one half the seated couple inquired as she, too, looked at the TV.

"Don't tell me you're hung up on him," her husband said with a hint of playful annoyance.

"No, no, of course not, though I can see why so many girls these days are crazy about him with those looks!" the wife said with a laugh.

Kyoko turned her gaze from them back to the TV, where the boy she'd met a few days ago was talking to hosts.

"...Detective work is hardly easy, even for one of my level!" Akechi replied with a modest smile on the interview.

"And yet word is you've been rising through the ranks in the DSC at a truly remarkable rate for your age!" the host commented. "Surely Japan could get in on your secret!"

Akechi chuckled, waving his hand dismissively. "You'd be amazed what you can accomplish in two years when you truly set your mind to something!" he explained.

"Maybe, but not many have achieved the fame and success you've acquired in such a time frame!" the host said with a laugh.

"Never let an opportunity go to waste when you have a lot to prove and a wish to see justice served," Akechi replied. "Plus, the case I've been working on is quite the hot subject, after all, Unfortunately, that's all I can say on the matter, right now..."

Kyoko almost neglected hearing her phone chiming, grabbing her attention from the TV as she took it out and noticed Ann was calling.

"Hello?" Kyoko asked, walking past Sojiro and the customers and making her way up the stairs.

"Hey... so I called Yusuke," Ann said. "He didn't answer the first time, but the second, he seemed really... I dunno, frustrated..."

"The pressure Madarame's probably putting on him, it wouldn't be surprising," Kyoko replied.

"Yeah," Ann said, silent for a moment. "But anyway, I told him I was willing to... go through with it, provided it was on my terms and I could back out at any time, and take as long as I needed. He apologized again for what he tried to demand and told me I don't need to, but I said I just want to help him... avoid inconveniences."

"And...?" Kyoko asked.

"Well, then he said yes," Ann replied. "I just... I wish there was another way, you know? After all I dealt with from Kamoshida and all..."

Kyoko closed her eyes, trying to think of the best words of encouragement to give. "Ann, you know I'm not exactly an effective morale-booster, but I will tell you I've seen you in the Metaverse, and what you faced down, and while you endured a lot from Kamoshida, you also brought him down. Don't underestimate yourself."

"You're right! Anyways, I think what I have planned might work, just need to... uh... test it out. I'll do my best!" Ann said, her tone sounding more confident from Kyoko's words.

"You can handle this, Ann," Kyoko replied, reassuringly.

"Thanks. I'll definitely be counting on all of you, too! I'll see you tomorrow!" Ann replied before hanging up.

Kyoko could feel the fatigue catch up to her body once more as she set her phone down and prepared herself to go out to the bathhouse, Morgana already curling up on her bed. It had been a long day, to say the least, and tomorrow promised to be, as well...

5/19

"So it's you... Kirigiri, correct?" Kyoko heard Yusuke's voice call her name in the subway station of Shibuya, prompting her to turn and face him. The boy was wearing his Kosei uniform as he had the day they'd met him, though with his blazer off.

"Can I help you?" Kyoko asked, folding her arms.

"My apologies. I simply wasn't aware you'd used this line," Yusuke replied, looking away briefly. Admittedly, the girl before him did have an incredibly intense stare, and he still felt guilty from what she'd said to him the previous day, which had given him reason to approach, as well as what else was on his mind. "I'm just rather... confused."

Kyoko's impassive expression did not waver. "...About what?"

"I was hoping you might be able to explain the change in attitude to me," Yusuke explained. "Takamaki-san called me last night, saying she'd changed her mind about the... proposition I'd... tactlessly demanded of her the other day. I told her it wasn't necessary, that you were right in what you'd said, but she... said she wished to help me avoid any "inconveniences"..."

"If she is doing this by her own consent, then I don't see what the cause for concern is," Kyoko replied.

"I won't deny this makes meeting Sensei's... expectations of me easier, but..." The boy's gaze hardened, giving Kyoko a suspicious glare of his own. "...I still find it rather odd. I only hope you aren't conspiring anything..."

"If she's willing to trust you this much, I only hope you'll ensure that trust is both well-placed and well-earned," Kyoko said, her gaze growing more intense. Yusuke, however, seemed more insulted then intimidated, though.

"I saw you touring at the exhibit, Kirigiri, and you seemed to have some degree of appreciation for art. For that I'd expect you not to be someone who'd make a mockery of it, nor judge it by some... worldly standards," Yusuke replied. "...I concede to what you said to me the other day regarding being insensitive towards Takamaki-san's comfort, so she is free to change her mind and leave if she were to decide to, but I will call the police should you choose to start trouble for myself or Sensei again."

"You have nothing to worry about from us," Kyoko replied, turning at the sound of the train to the Aoyama district pulling in behind her. "...If you'll excuse me..."

Class had been mostly repetitive for Kyoko as she listened to the history teacher Mr. Inui do his lecture. Ann looked rather anxious, though she'd not indicated if it was because of her role in this plan, whether it would work, or both having instead dismissed Kyoko's inquiry on the matter with that she'd be fine once they got that door open. Morgana meanwhile had since tucked himself in Kyoko's desk as before and had remained quiet to avoid attention.

"By the way," Mr. Inui continued. "The great artist Ichiryusai Madarame is holding an exhibit in Shibuya right now. I've actually gone to previous exhibits he's done to see his work and may I say, they are truly incredible! You wouldn't expect in his interviews, that he'd be such a charming, humble fellow!"

Ann could only scowl, but did her best to hide it. Kyoko kept her face neutral as well, folding her arms as she sat back and continued to listen, wondering where the teacher was going with this.

"I admit, it's rare to see a gentleman artist like him, particularly in a field known for such eccentric types!" Mr. Inui explained. He turned and looked over at Kyoko, smirking. "Miss Kirigiri! Good to see you look rather invested in my lecture, now! Perhaps the arts have your interest?"

Kyoko could already tell every student had their eyes on her now, as usual. Thankfully Ann and Mishima had far more encouraging looks on their faces. Deciding to go along with it, Kyoko gave a nod.

"Excellent!" Mr. Inui declared. "In that case, can you tell us which ukiyo-e artist of the Edo period is said to have moved residence over a hundred times in his life?"

Kyoko took a second to remember. "...Hokusai Katsushika," she said.

The teacher clapped. "Well done, Miss Kirigiri! Seems you know a thing or two about Japanese art history!" he explained. "Hokusai had a habit of moving, but he also changed his name quite a lot, at least thirty times in his life! His sole interest in life was art, so he stayed in poverty, wore tattered clothes, and lived in squalor."

Kyoko closed her eyes a moment, ignoring the murmurs of the other students until Mr. Inui finally settled them down.

"Come to think of it, Madarame's house is quite modest, too. A true master artist, be they from the past like Hokusai, or present like Madarame himself, put their art above their fame," Mr. Inui continued.

The young detective scowled at the irony of Inui's statement.

"Hmph!" Morgana huffed from within Kyoko's desk. "Someone who steals his students' work and makes them suffer doesn't deserve to be called a master or an artist! He's just an abusive old con man! We'll show everyone what he really is!"

Kyoko gave a nod at the cat having essentially voiced her thoughts on the matter, her eyes turning towards the clock as she waited for the minutes and hours to continue to pass.

"So guess we got the whole plan set, now. Ann, Morgana, we're gonna be countin' on ya," Ryuji said as he leaned against the rail in front of the accessway windows.

"Kitagawa seemed suspicious of this when he ran into me this morning," Kyoko explained. "It'd be for the best he doesn't see me or Ryuji so we'll want to keep a distance until you two are inside. We'll enter the Palace then."

"Right, and once that door's open, the barrier'll go down and we just gotta find the control room in the meantime and shut it down for good, right?" Ryuji asked Morgana.

"That's right, so it's important you two reach it once Madarame sees the door open," Morgana explained. "That way, it won't close again."

"No prob! You can count on us!" Ryuji said with a grin.

"Alright, well... I gotta go home first," Ann explained. "...That way I can... get ready for my plan..."

"I'll go with you, Lady Ann!" Morgana said. "We'll message you when we're at Madarame's and Yusuke lets us in, that's when you guys enter the Palace! Lady Ann will stall for time while I get the door unlocked, and when Madarame gets home, that's when we'll make our move!"

Kyoko gave a nod. "Make it so."

Once more, Ace and Skull stood before the abstract, overly bright and gaudy building that lead deeper into Madarame's twisted museum. The trip in had been met with only a few run-ins with some Shadows, but had not taken nearly as long as last time. Skull kept his eyes on the barrier, Ace standing back to back from him as she watched the way they'd come in for any Shadows.

"Hey," Skull said, finally breaking the silence as he watched the red currents dance about between the generator poles.

"Hm?" Ace inquired, her arms folded as she kept her eyes on the way back.

"You think they'll be able to pull this off?" Skull asked. "I mean, when she messaged us she was all "I'll seduce him with my acting!" an' all, but... trust me, if it's anything like Junior High, anything that involves actin's outta her league..."

"What do you mean?" Ace asked.

"...Trust me. You don't wanna know," Ryuji said, looking at the floor and shaking his head. "...Then there's the fact we got no sign this place is gonna open... when's Madarame 'sposed to be comin' home anyway? Is it soon? Plus Mona's gotta be able to unlock the door, how's he gonna show Madarame? Even if Madarame sees it, though, any normal person's just gonna close it up again."

Ace closed her eyes and let out a deep sigh, tilting her head down as she exhaled. "I understand your concerns, Skull, but unfortunately, all we can do is wait. If they fail, they'll escape into the Metaverse and meet us here regardless. If they succeed, then the barrier will go down long enough for us to get inside. "

"Well... whatever she's got planned, it'd better work..." Skull muttered, Ace nodding silently.

"I can't begin to express my gratitude for this, Takamaki-san," Yusuke said, his back facing Ann as he laid out his paints and instruments. "To be honest, after my... rash behavior yesterday, I would never have expected you to change your mind about this, least of all so soon..."

"I'm sorry to make it so sudden," Ann said as she stood by the door. "I don't blame you for being a bit... suspicious of me about it..."

"Oh, it's... not a problem," Yusuke replied. "I appreciate your forgiveness, as well. Understand, though, Sensei will be home in about a half hour at most, are you sure you're comfortable with him here? I wouldn't want to... cause further anxiety on your part."

Ann sighed loudly, shaking her head. "...It's why I'm here today, damnit..." she muttered.

"Hm?" Yusuke turned, tilting his head in confusion and having finished setting up.

"N-nothing!" Ann replied. "Just... talking to myself."

Yusuke raised an eyebrow at the girl before him. "By the way, I... didn't mean to impose when I first saw you when you got here, but... have you..." He paused a moment, attempting to find the best way to put his question. "...Gained some weight?"

Yusuke's question was not without merit. The no less then fifteen or so layers of clothing she'd had somehow managed to fit over herself had caused Ann to look comically Santa Claus-sized, to the point many of the outermost layers looked to be stretched as far as their limits permitted and she could barely even lower her arms.

"Y-you think so?" Ann asked, eyes wide with anxiety as she peeked through the many collars of the many shirts she had on that had now come high enough to conceal her chin. "I weigh the same as always! M-maybe I'm just bloated today?"

Once more, Yusuke wasn't entirely sure what to make of the situation, but with her doing this favor for him, and Sensei likely to be home soon, he wanted to get what he needed done as quickly as he could. "So, then... can you, um... get ready here?"

"Then I need to... take off my clothes, right?" Ann asked, her words slow and her tone uneasy.

Yusuke looked away, brushing back his dark hair. "Y-yes... and you're alright with this?"

"I'm... embarrassed. Can you... please turn away?" Ann pleaded. As Yusuke obliged, Ann quickly discovered even the best-laid plans could come with a snag as she found the number of layers she had made it difficult to move her arms. With a bit of straining, she'd managed to pull the top layer shirt off, her eyes widening briefly at the sound of tearing as she struggled to pull it upward and toss it across the room. Yusuke seemed to notice, his head turning slightly as the article of clothing brushed his foot as it landed on the floor.

Yusuke kept his eyes closed as he faced away, attempting to keep his thoughts focused as he heard the rustling behind him. A loud thump, however, caused them to snap open and almost turn on instinct if not for Takamaki's suddenly cry to turn back around.

"Apologies... are you alright? I heard a-" Yusuke stammered, quickly turning back to face the wall as a rather stretched pair of sweatpants soared by and landed against the wall.

"I-I'm fine!" Ann cried out, tossing a sweatshirt across the room as she struggled about on the floor due to her limited mobility after having fallen flat on her back. "I just... eh... tripped. But I'm okay!"

With a bit more straining, Ann managed to shed off another top. Thankfully all the extra padding had kept her from harming herself. "Ugh, that was so tight!" she said, breathing a loud sigh of relief as she felt a little less trapped.

"T-tight?" Yusuke stammered, shaking his head and squeezing his eyes shut as he struggled to rid himself of any possible impure thoughts. I'm doing this for art! he reminded himself in his mind. I'm doing this for art!

"D-don't look over here, okay?" Ann said, attempting to sound playful, but coming off forced. Thankfully Yusuke did not seem to notice. "Your sensei will be back soon, won't he?"

Yusuke caught a glimpse of another sweatshirt land near his feet. "I believe so, yes..."

"Then maybe we can do this somewhere else, then?" Ann inquired, "I mean, wouldn't somewhere with more atmosphere be just lovely?"

"...I'd think this should be good enough," Yusuke replied, keeping his back turned to Ann and his eyes on the floor.

"Buuuuut... wouldn't a room with a lock be so much better?" Ann asked, once more attempting to sound alluring and coming off no less forced as she tossed another pair of pants away.

"A lock?" Yusuke asked, as if confused by Ann's question.

"Umm..." Ann paused, trying to think of where to go with Yusuke's unexpected response. She'd have thought Yusuke would have surely known what she was referring to! "Uh... Must a girl say more? Are there no doors here that can be locked?"

Yusuke flinched as a hot pink spaghetti-strap top that flew over his head and landed on the floor right in front of him. "Th-the only door with a lock here is... Sensei's room..."

"Well then... why not there?" Ann inquired, sliding out of a layer of striped tights. "If it's for... the art... surely he wouldn't mind, right?"

Yusuke kept his back turned as he shook his head, noticing the tights slide across the floor near him. "No. I can't intrude. Besides, I don't have a key for it."

Ann sighed as she struggled to get a tanktop off of another sweatshirt, as relieving as it was that she could breathe a little more and burning up a lot less as all the trapped heat she'd been dealing with finally escaped with each layer she disposed of, she was still running out of layers and thus time.

"He doesn't have a key," she whispered around the corner.

"Don't worry! I got a hairpin. I'll take care of it!" Morgana whispered back, holding the object in his teeth.

Yusuke glanced down as the sweatshirt and tanktop flew past him. "Takamaki-san, if I may be so bold to ask, how many clothes did you bring, exactly? Was this... entirely necessary?"

"What do you mean?" Ann replied, playing oblivious and hoping Madarame would return soon.

"Nevermind," said Yusuke, feeling a little more concerned as yet another article of clothing slid along the floor and decided to turn. "...Are you about-?"

Yusuke froze in place when he saw a closet's worth of clothing situated next to where Ann stood, along with the many stray articles strewn about where he'd been standing. Ann herself had somehow managed to have on her entire school outfit he'd seen her in the other day underneath, even to the point of wearing sneakers over her boots. "...You were wearing all this?!" he asked, gesturing to the laundry pile next to her and looking absolutely and understandably astonished. He could only imagine the stares she must have received from people on the way over.

"Well, i-it was pretty cold today, too!" Ann said nervously, scratching the back of her head with a forced, sheepish smile on her face.

"I... suppose so?" Yusuke asked, still visibly confused. "The sun is beginning to set..."

"Riiiiiight?" Ann asked in an overly sweet tone, her forced smile spreading to a grin that was practically painted on. "...That's why a change of location would be so nice! I mean, I am gonna take it all off!"

"True," Yusuke replied, his confusion from Ann's rather odd behavior making him unsure how else to answer her. The boy brought his hand to his chin in thought, however, as he looked at his canvas, pondering her words a little more. "...Though it may make for a better picture if I do brighten my model's mood," he mused to himself.

"Uh-huh! That's right! It certainly would!" Ann said brightly at having overheard the boy, keeping her big smile in place.

Yusuke closed his eyes and smirked to himself, exhilarated by the possibilities of how this piece could turn out, growing ever more vast as his thoughts entertained them. "...Perhaps she may even be willing to try out expressive poses for use in a dynamic composition!"

Ann's eyes went wide, her smile gone in an instant. "Wait, what kind of poses?!" she cried out.

"Lady Ann! Get back in character!" Morgana ordered, hiding behind the room's sliding door.

Ann let out a forced giggle as she posed in a coquettish manner. A bit overly so.

"Heh, well let's gooooo, thennnn! I was... just starting to get in the mood, if you know what I mean!" she said, her overacting somehow going completely over Yusuke's head, even Morgana couldn't help but be surprised.

Yusuke simply stared, once more unsure how to respond to this.

"Ooooh, it's sooo hot!" Ann crooned, immediately turning and walking out of the room and down the hall.

"W-wait! You can't just wander off!" Yusuke protested, but she'd already disappeared from sight. "Sensei will...!"

He paused as Ann's uniform blazer suddenly flew by and landed on the floor in front of the open door.

"Please, Takamaki-san... we really can't use any other room!" Yusuke stammered as he looked down at the discarded jacket.

"Hey, why not this one?" he heard her voice call out from down the hall.

"P-Please! Wait!" Yusuke cried out, immediately running after her, only to discover a discarded white hoodie several feet further down the hallway. Picking it and the blazer up as it would not do for Sensei to come home to finding some girl's clothing all over his place, the boy rushed down the hall to where he saw one of the doors open, only to find no one there, and nothing out of place save for a discarded uniform skirt. Taking it up, he looked around the halls once more. "T-Takamaki-san?"

"Upstaiiiirs!" Ann's voice called.

Oh no... she isn't! Yusuke thought to himself as he ran for the stairs, Ann's discarded uniform in his arms only to come to a stop when he found her boots and tights next. Sighing, the boy crouched down to collect them up before making his way up the stairs.

"Takamaki-san, please!" Yusuke called up the stairs as he ran up. "If you could just wait and-!" Ann's blouse lay at the top of the steps, earning another exasperated sigh from him as he struggled to gather it up as well. "Could we please, just go back to the studio room, I assure you, it's perfectly usable!"

Making his way down the hall, Yusuke, arms full of discarded clothes, finally found Ann standing at a fork, wearing only a pink tanktop and blue cutoff jean shorts, now.

"Hey, what's past this place?" she asked, continuing on a head and peering around the corner.

"N-never you mind!" Yusuke stammered. "Sensei will be back soon! I beg of you, Takamaki, can we just return to the studio room before he arrives?"

"What's taking you so long?!" Ann snapped quietly, glaring at Morgana, who was currently clinging to the knob of the decorative door he'd found the previous day as he attempted to turn the hairpin with his teeth.

"You try doing this with only cat paws and no hands, Lady Ann!" Morgana protested as he hung in place.

"Is something the matter?" Yusuke asked, concerned.

"Ohhh, I was wondering... eh... what's this room?" Ann asked, facing Yusuke as she pointed to her right.

"That?" Yusuke pushed back his hair. "Why, it's a storage room for old paintings," he said.

"A storage room, huh?" Ann inquired, tilting her head with intrigue as she turned her gaze briefly over to see how Morgana was progressing. "Why not... do the piece in there? It'd be less embarrassing if we're somewhere no one can find us!"

"I'm afraid only Sensei is allowed in there," Yusuke replied apologetically.

"Aw, pleeeease?" Ann pleaded with a wide smile, swaying her arms about playfully. "It's somewhere no one can bother us! You know, so we aren't interrupted!"

Morgana sighed. "Is he really gonna buy that terrible act?" he wondered aloud.

"Would you stay focused and hurry up already!?" Ann protested, glaring at the cat again. The blonde immediately turned her attention back to Yusuke. "Look, it's getting sooooo frustrating my feelings just aren't getting through to you! Pleeeease, aren't you into girls like me?" she swooned, earning another sigh of disbelief from Morgana as he continued to work the lock.

"I-it's not that!" Yusuke protested. "It's just... we can't go in there, understand? Besides, even if I was permitted, it's locked and I don't have the key for it, only Sensei does!"

All three paused at the sound of the door opening downstairs.

"Yusuke, I'm home!" Madarame's voice called out, prompting Yusuke to turn around.

"Sensei?"

"Yusuke, is that you up there?" Madarame called, his footsteps approaching the stairs.

"Got it! It's open!" Morgana cheered, hearing a loud click and the hefty padlock promptly fell to the floor with a loud clank. The sound of the lock hitting the floor started Yusuke enough to drop the clothes he was carrying and without missing a beat, Ann rushed over to where Morgana was, swinging the unlocked door wide open and making her way into the darkened room beyond, the cat following behind.

Yusuke moved to go after her, pausing in surprise at the sight of the opened door, and something he could make out behind where Ann was standing as Madarame hurried his way up the stairs, and came around the corner.

"What are you doing here?!" Madarame snapped, his expression hardening at Yusuke instantly.

"S-Sensei! It's not what it looks like!" Yusuke protested. Ann's hand rose to her lips in concern as she notice how frightened the boy looked as Madarame glared lividly at him. Without a second thought, the girl dashed over, wrapping her arms around Yusuke and yanking him into the room before he could respond.

"Wait! NO! GET OUT OF THERE!" Madarame cried out, following down the hall and into the room after them.

"Steak," Skull grumbled, watching the barrier as he was seated on the tile path.

"Kabob," Ace deadpanned, also seated on the path facing the other direction.

"Beef skewers!" Skull replied.

"Seafood bowl," Ace answered.

"Leek stew," Skull uttered.

"Wakame," Ace responded.

"...Okay, better stop, this game's makin' me hungry!" Skull muttered in annoyance. "Still nothin' with the barriers. Beginnin' to think maybe they couldn't-!"

The ground suddenly rumbled, prompting Ace and Skull to their feet as they turned and faced the giant peacock doors, which suddenly flung themselves apart as the generator towers shut off, allowing access to a vast hallway covered in gold tile ending in a fork that lead left and right.

"Whoa! Check it out, they did it!" Skull cheered, raising his fist in excitement.

"It certainly looks like it," Ace said with a small, satisfied smile as she and Ryuji walked in through the entrance into the hallway. "Keep your guard up, we don't know what we may run into guarding the control room..."

"I think we're about to find out," Skull replied, the wall at the far end suddenly fading away revealing a path leading ahead and a significantly more buff-looking Shadow guard in a red uniform began approaching them. "Let's give it hell!" he cheered, his mace appearing in his hand.

Ace nodded, her dagger appearing in her own. The guard let out an inhuman wail as it arched back, exploding into black and red ooze that reformed itself into a towering apelike creature standing about eight feet tall despite its crouched position, its fur yellow-gold with tiger-stripe patterns and a snake for a tail. Its neck was framed in a thick white mane and its face was pitch-black with glowing red eyes and a mouth full of fangs.

"So you're the thieves who threaten Lord Madarame?!" the Shadow growled. "I will not let you pass! You cannot trespass on Lord Madarame's territory!"

With a snap of its clawed fingers, a giant weight appeared above Skull and came crashing down, the boy noticed and leaped out of the way just in time. "Whoa, dude! Not cool!" he shouted.

Seeing an opportunity, Ace summoned Genbu and unleashed an ice blast on the beast, though it seemed to do little good against it. "Hm," she mused, though the creature turned its attention on her right away and raised its paws, a wave of dark energies similar to what Irene could use when Ace had her erupting from the ground and overwhelming the two with pain.

"Take this you bastard!" Skull growled as he struggled to stand. "CAPTAIN KIDD!" The pirate Persona appeared before the boy and fired a blast of lightning, causing the beast to cry out and recoil in pain.

"Let's try fire," Ace hissed, catching her breath. "CAIT SITH!" The catlike Persona swung its blade and a blast of fire struck the Thieves' foe head-on, knocking it on its back in a daze.

"HELL YEAH! LET'S TRASH 'EM!" Skull cheered, he and Ace leaping into the air and pummeling the beast in a flurry of swift attacks as they moved about and struck it in a blurry of motion before landing on either side of it.

The Shadow collapsed to the ground, its form dissolving away in a burst of black smoke and ashes.

"Phew...!" Ryuji said, leaning forward with his hands on his knees. "Hope Panther and Mona get here, soon!"

"At any rate," Ace replied. "...Let's try not to get spotted, and get the security system turned off for good."

That in mind, the two continued their way into the Palace.

"Takamaki-san, please! This is very bad!" Yusuke protested as he stumbled about in the darkened room Ann had pulled him into.

"Hey, I found the lights!" Ann called out, and with a sharp click, the room was suddenly lit up and Yusuke's eyes widened in horror at what he discovered.

All around the room, were dozens of what appeared to be replicas of the "Sayuri" painting, propped against every wall, and many more tucked into nearby shelves.

"Th-the "Sayuri"!? What... what's going on here?!" Yusuke stammered, confused and frightened by what he was seeing.

"Why are there so many of them...?" Ann wondered aloud, looking about the room in equal shock.

"Get out! Both of you! Right now!" Madarame snapped, glaring furiously at the two of them as he stormed into the room.

"Sensei... what is the meaning of this?!" Yusuke pleaded. "What's going on here, what are all of these?!"

Madarame's glare faded as he sighed, lowering his head apologetically. "...I suppose I can't keep quiet about it, now that you've seen this," he said. "Truth be told, I'm in severe debt... so I handmade these "Sayuri" copies and have been selling them through a special connection of mine..."

"But... why?!" Yusuke asked, looking around at the copies filling the room.

The old man sighed. "You see, the real "Sayuri" was stolen by one of my pupils long ago. I assume they begrudged my strictness. That moment was... quite a shock for me, and losing my masterpiece right like that left me mired in a terrible artist's block," he explained. "...And because of this distress, some of my pupils handed their ideas over to me, from time to time..."

Ann raised an eyebrow at Madarame's explanation, bringing her hand to her chin as she recalled the rumor that reporter had given the other day about the "Sayuri" being stolen by a vengeful ex-pupil, but something still didn't add up.

"You see, Yusuke, I also realized there was no way I could keep that up, either, so i attempted to recreate the "Sayuri" a number of times, but in the end, all I could produce were... replicas," Madarame continued. "...But that's when someone came to buy the paintings off me, knowing they weren't the original... this is all my fault, Yusuke, I just... couldn't pay the price for being famous. When that happened, expectations for me rose greatly, to a point where I had no choice but to keep making them."

Yusuke's features softened. Ann looked at the boy in concern, then at Madarame, as the man continued to explain himself.

"...I know I told you I was suffering a slump when I... procured your work, Yusuke, but as you can see, that was only half of the problem. With the money I made from both these copies and the art pieces you and my pupils provided me, I am able to work the debt off, and in turn I would finally be able to provide for you better and be able to truly further your art skills." Madarame looked down at the floor, shaking his head apologetically. "...I suppose in the end I was just... too ashamed to tell you. I only hope you can... forgive your foolish Sensei for keeping this from you, and making things so difficult..."

"Please, don't apologize, Sensei, I-" Yusuke began, his face wracked with guilt as he approached.

"Wait," Ann said suddenly, causing both to look at her as she turned to face them. "Something's not right about all this... you said the original painting was stolen, right? How did you manage to make copies of it, then?"

A brief, but telling look of surprise passed Madarame's face as the man regarded her. "Why, I... happened to find a very finely detailed photograph of it... in an art book."

Ann noticed the way the man's voice trembled slightly, the girl folded her arms and looked at him in suspicion. "So you managed to sell copies of a photograph of the original? I'm not really sure how this works, but... don't people who buy paintings usually have a keen eye for the fine arts?" she asked. The girl frowned, shaking her head. "I'm sorry, but this sounds like a lie to me..."

Madarame's features hardened noticeably as he glared dangerously at Ann. "And what would you know?!"

"Something doesn't feel right about any of this!" Ann protested, standing her ground despite Madarame's threatening tone.

"Takamaki!" Yusuke protested. "How can you accuse Sensei of such a thing? You make him seem like a common con artist!"

"Lady Ann! Look at this one!" Morgana whispered from behind the shelves, gesturing toward one painting sitting on an easel under a sheet.

"Wait, stay away from that!" Madarame shouted as Ann grabbed the sheet and flung it away, revealing another "Sayuri" underneath.

"The "Sayuri?"... wait...!" Yusuke slowly walked over to the painting, his eyes slowly widening in as he looked it over carefully. "I-Impossible! This... this is the real "Sayuri"!" the boy turned, Ann could see the horror on his face but also hurt. "Sensei! You just said a moment ago the original was stolen!"

"That's nothing but a replica!" Madarame stated sharply.

"No! It's nothing of the sort!" Yusuke protested. "The "Sayuri"... it spoke to me in ways no other painting ever has! It brought me this far and kept me going all these years! Do you really think I wouldn't be able to identify it and be fooled by some... replica?!"

Ann could feel her chest tighten, feeling worse for Yusuke as the boy's eyes began to water, his voice trembling as he spoke. "S-Sensei... please... please don't tell me...!"

Madarame's face twisted in rage as he slammed his foot on the floor. "It IS a fake! It's a counterfeit that I heard was being spread around so I bought it!" Madarame shouted furiously.

Ann regarded the man with a look of exasperation. "You're seriously telling me that the actual artist behind the painting went and bought counterfeit?! That's really pushing it!"

Yusuke shook his head, his anger returning from his sense of betrayal. "You're lying Sensei..." He looked down a moment, clenching his fists. "...Yonaga-san... I remember you threw her out because you said she was stealing and copying her work as well... but later she confronted me, she looked me right in the eyes and insisted it was the other way around! W-were you lying about her as well?!"

"You'd take the word of that superstitious, delusional nutcase of a child over the word of your own Sensei?!" Madarame snapped, his words hissing through his grit teeth.

Yusuke trembled slightly at Madarame's outburst, but managed to stand his ground. "Please, Sensei! I'm begging you, tell us the truth!"

Madarame shook his head, glaring at the two coldly as he took a flip phone out of his robes, pressing a button and holding it out to them. "...I've just reported you to my private security company!"

"What?!" Ann protested, recoiling back in surprise.

"I had it set up to deal with some problematic paparazzi," Madarame explained, chuckling. "I'd have never imagined it'd come in so handy!"

"Please wait!" Yusuke pleaded, "Let's talk about this!"

"You can talk about it all you want to the police, this includes you, after all, Yusuke," Madarame replied, a cold smile on his face.

"Lady Ann! Let's go! RUN!" Morgana cried out, dashing out from around the corner and bolting out of the room and down the hall, Ann rushing past Madarame and following behind, scooping up the small clothing pile Yusuke had dropped at the top of the stairs as she did and fleeing down the stairs.

"A cat? How'd that get in here?!" Madarame wondered aloud in surprise, before looking back in direction they had both fled though making no attempt to follow. "There's no point in running! The police will be here in two minutes!"

"Takamaki-san!" Yusuke cried out, running after Ann.

"Sweet! Mission complete!" Skull cheered as he and Ace emerged from the control room.

"To think they'd just leave that door unlocked," Ace mused aloud.

"Hey, be glad for small favors, right?" Skull asked with a smirk. "At least now the system's shut down for good!"

"HEY! WHO'S THERE?!" a Shadow guard bellowed from an exhibit area nearby.

"INTRUDERS!" another one shouted.

"Crap, better get outta here!" Skull cried out, looking in the direction the voices came from before he and Ace immediately rushed back down the hallway they'd come to return to the courtyard. As they did, the generator towers let out a low hum as they powered down completely and sank into the ground.

"Well, 'least we know security's totally off, now!" Skull said with a laugh.

"Let's get out of here and meet up with the others, then," Ace replied. "If Madarame's seen them, they probably had to escape into the-!"

"NOOOOOOOOO!" Panther's voice howled loudly from... above?!

Ace and Skull immediately looked up at the sky just in time to see red rippling as Panther, Mona, and Yusuke as well come plummeting down towards them. The two quickly stepped back as Yusuke hit the ground first in a crouching position, Panther landing in his arms causing an impromptu bridal carry though the impact caused Yusuke to stumble noticeably, though he managed to right his balance just in time for the falling Mona to come down last, comically bouncing headfirst off of Yusuke's head and into the nearby bushes with a pained grunt and causing the boy to fall flat on his back in a daze with Ann now laying atop him in a heap.

"Uhh... nice of you to drop in?" Skull asked, surprised by the spectacle that had just occurred before him and Ace.

"Very funny!" Panther grumbled, sitting herself up and noticing she was seated on Yusuke's lap as the boy grunted as well, nursing his head. "H-hey! What do you think you're doing?!" she protested, shoving her palm in his face and sending the boy on his back once more. "Oh god! I'm sorry I-I didn't mean to push you that hard!"

Yusuke let out a soft moan, shaking his head from the abuse it'd received all in the course of just a few seconds before looking in confusion at the four strangely-dressed (or in Mona's case, strange-looking) individuals standing over him. "Who are you all?" he cried out, inching away as he was still seated on the ground.

"Calm down, Kitagawa-kun! It's me!" Panther said.

"T-Takamaki-san?" Yusuke asked, his eyes wide in shock before looking over at Ace and Skull. "Then... that means you two are..." his gaze fell upon Mona last. "...Though I don't recall ever seeing this cat costume before..."

The boy nursed his head again from where Mona had landed on it a moment ago. "What is this place?!

"Inside Madarame's heart," Panther explained.

"Sensei's heart?" Yusuke asked, standing himself back up. "...I'm sorry, Takamaki-san, but are you sure you're... feeling okay?" he asked, looking at Ann as if it may as well have been her that had taken a blow to the head instead.

"It's no lie, and you aren't seeing things, Kitagawa," Ace explained, approaching. "All of this is how your sensei really feels, about his place in the art world and what it means to him..."

"That's right," Skull said. "That bastard's nothin' but a greed-filled money-grubber!"

"Enough of this rubbish!" Yusuke snapped. "You... you're wrong about Sensei!"

"Kitagawa-kun!" Panther protested. "Don't you remember what you saw in that locked room?! You can't keep denying this! I know it crossed your mind, there, that something wasn't right about Madarame!"

Yusuke looked down at the gold-tiled pavement, a dejected look on his face as he struggled for a response. "Th... that's..."

"I know you may not want to believe it, but this is another reality, viewed through Madarame's eyes," Panther explained. "This... is his true nature..."

Yusuke looked around at the shimmering gold that seemed to cover nearly every surface, the overly-elaborate peacock patterns on the doors, and the bright flowing gold patterns that swam along the luminescent trees bearing gold-framed empty portraits. "This..." he began. "...This repulsive world?!" he asked. "Just who are all of you, anyway? Why are you doing this?"

"You could say were a group that changes the hearts of rotten crooks," Skull explained.

Yusuke squeezed his eyes shut a moment as he processed all he saw and what he'd been told, thinking back to that locked room. "...If what you say is true, then the sensei I knew doesn't exist at all," he said softly. "...but be that as it may, he has kept me safe all these years, ever since he took me in as a child when my mother passed away. My gratitude for that will not just disappear so easily."

"C'mon! You can't just go and forgive him!" Skull protested. "Even if he did raise you, it doesn't excuse what he's doin' now!"

Instead of responding, Yusuke's knees buckled, causing him to collapse as he looked ill, covering his mouth as if to avoid vomiting.

"Forgive me," he said, nearly gagging. "I-I'm... trying to... be rational about this, but... m-my emotions are... overwhelming me right now... this is really the inside of Sensei's heart? This... utterly vain place?!"

A red hue suddenly began to emit around the small group, causing Mona to jump into the air in panic. "We don't have time to dawdle!" he shouted. "Security level's going through the roof, right now! We need to get out of here!"

"You need help?" Skull asked, noticing Yusuke still staggering.

"No, I'll be fine... lead the way," Yusuke replied.

"Just keep close, if you need to take a moment, let us know. This place is dangerous and you won't be able to defend yourself," Ace explained, before looking over at the others. "Let's go..."

Yusuke had remained quiet much of the trip back, but had looked about his surroundings taking in every detail with a glum disposition. Ace could not entirely blame him, it couldn't have been easy at all for him to discover a man he felt he owed his life and everything he'd become to was not at all who he wanted to believe he was. Moments later, however, Yusuke froze in place and began to approach one of the portraits.

"Kitagawa-kun? What's wrong?" Panther asked, noticing he'd stopped following.

"This painting!" Yusuke stammered, looking at the portrait before him that depicted a young, dark-haired woman.

"Do you recognize her?" Ace asked. "These portraits seem to be of all of Madarame's past pupils."

"But... why are they here?" Yusuke asked, shaking his head as he continued to stare at the portrait.

"They're technically not paintings," Mona explained. "They're actually Madarame's cognitions of all of his pupils. Basically... this is how he sees all of his pupils."

"...As nothin' but objects that get him more fame and money, so that's why they're in here," Skull added. "We also... found yours, too..."

Yusuke looked down at the floor, silent. The young woman in this particular portrait stood out to him, somehow, and yet, he wasn't entirely certain why, or why the completion date listed seemed to mean something to him as well that he couldn't quite remember at the moment.

"We can discuss this later!" Mona interrupted. "We need to go! We aren't too far from the exit point!"

"..." Yusuke quietly nodded and the group continued their progress, passing through the exhibit with the sculpture of the Infinite Spring, which Yusuke also took note of but did not comment on. As the group was about to reach the doors leading out of the exhibit room, however, a burst of red and black smoke exploded before them, forming into a pair of Shadow Guards.

"Damnit! The exit is right there!" Mona protested as the guards stood before them, blocking their escape.

A sinister laugh echoed around the room behind them, the voice was deeper, with an odd reverberation to it, but Yusuke immediately recognized it nonetheless as he and the others turned around.

"S... SENSEI!?" Yusuke cried out, unable to believe what he was seeing.

There, before them, stood Madarame, or, as Ace, Panther, Skull, and Mona quickly deduced, Madarame's Shadow. His appearance and attire were a far cry from the weathered old robes and humble grandfatherly demeanor he'd had in the real world. The term "flamboyant" would not even begin to describe his shiny, almost metallic gold robe over his equally garish gold kimono, accessorized with golden sandals and socks. A silver charm hung around his neck down to his chest, and his face was covered in white foundation with black accents over his eyebrows and red lipstick, his hair now styled in a high topknot resembling a paintbrush and giving him the appearance of a shogun of Feudal Japan. Just like Kamoshida's Shadow, Madarame's eyes glowed a bright, luminescent gold as he stood before the Infinity Spring, flanked by another pair of Shadow guards as the Spring's unearthly, agonized moans emanated from it.

"Welcome, to the museum of the master artist, Ichiryusai Madarame!" Madarame declared, spreading his arms with a wide grin on his face.

"Damn, first a king, now a shogun?!" Skull commented.

"With his influence and reputation, it's hardly surprising at all, honestly," Ace remarked.

"Disgusting," Panther grimaced.

"I-is that... you, Sensei?! That attire..." Yusuke stammered. "All of this... it's one big lie, isn't it?"

Madarame chuckled as he glared at Yusuke. "My usual ragged attire is nothing but an act, Yusuke!" he said. "Honestly, a nationally-famous artist like myself living in an old shack?! I have another home, a mansion, at that! ...Kept under a mistress' name, of course!"

Ace scowled in disgust. "As I suspected with the look of this place," she said. "...You've been living a double life, Madarame... It certainly explains where your fortunes you've made off your plagiarism go."

"How very perceptive, young lady!" Madarame said with a laugh. "But nonetheless, you're still quite naïve! You think a few "procured" projects from my pupils alone could have given me such luxury?"

"The "Sayuri"...!" Yusuke said softly, realization hitting him, "...The counterfeits you made that we found in that storage room! But I don't understand... if you had the real one, why was it locked away in there this whole time? Why make all those copies? Was the story about being in debt not real either?" he asked. "Why even claim it was stolen in the first place when you had it all along?! If it's really you, Sensei, tell me the truth, please!"

"Foolish child! You still don't see?" Madarame sneered. "For starters, that debt story? Merely a means to gain sympathy from my pupils who already owe me their gratitude so they'll hand over their ideas more... willingly..." he said, grinning. "...As for that whole rumor of the "Sayuri" being stolen? It was a false rumor that I myself spread! It was all nothing more then a perfectly calculated staging!"

"What do you mean...?!" Yusuke asked, his voice trembling as his belief in the man he once looked up to crumbled more and more before his eyes.

Madarame's sickening grin spread as he folded his arms and tilted his head upward, practically looking down his nose at the boy now. "Let's see, how does this story sound?" he asked. ""I found the real painting, but it can't go public! You can have it, though... for a special price!" ...And the best part? The snobs of the art world eat it right up!" he declared, letting out a cruel laugh. "...On top of that, you wouldn't believe how much cash they're willing to pay for it! Talk about preferential treatment!"

Yusuke's face fell completely, his knees buckling once more as he could no longer take what he was seeing.

"The value of art is nothing but an illusion, Yusuke!" Madarame explained. "What's the matter with providing that illusion to eager customers? Not that I'd expect a brat like you to ever come up with, let alone truly appreciate such a brilliant scheme when you're still drowning in that illusion just like they are!"

"People like you get caught for things like this all the time, Madarame," Ace replied, her tone cold as ice from what Madarame had revealed. "...You honestly think you'll be able to keep this up forever? Someone will find out eventually. You will get caught!"

Madarame chuckled. "On the contrary, you'd be amazed what someone with my influence, and especially my connections can get away with, young lady! You have absolutely no idea who you're dealing with, I can assure you of that!"

Ace scowled, the memories of what had landed her in her predicament she was facing for the year passing through her mind. It disgusted her as a detective that people like this could exist, and bury the truth so easily.

"...You're supposed to be an artist, right?" Panther asked, livid. "You teach people to become artists, themselves! Aren't you ashamed of plagiarizing other peoples' work? Especially people who trusted you as their sensei?!"

"Why should I?" Madarame asked, his cruel sneer unwavering. "Art is no more then a tool, a tool with which to gain money and fame!" he declared. "And I must thank you, Yusuke, you've helped me greatly as well..."

"I can't believe this asshole!" Ryuji snarled. "Lookit him, Yusuke! THIS piece of shit is what your teacher really is!"

Yusuke's body trembled as he struggled to move, to look up at the garishly-dressed man before him that had raised him. "But... what about all the people that believe in you? That looked up to you and saw you as a master artist?!"

Madarame frowned as he looked down at the boy, placing his hand on Yusuke's shoulder as the Shadow guards stood on either side of him. "I'll tell you this alone, Yusuke. If you wish to succeed in this world, I advise you not attempt to rise against me. Do you believe some up and coming aspiring artist, especially one who was once one of my pupils, has any chance of finding success with my objection to hold them down?" he asked. "That Yonaga girl, she was quite talented, right around your level, in fact! I knew she'd serve well as a means of inspiring some creative spirit via competition with you, Yusuke, and in turn, produce more work for me to profit on! Of course, had she simply known her place..."

"You mean... so she was telling the truth!" Yusuke stammered, his eyes growing wide as he stared at the floor, remembering when he'd turned his back to her all those months ago believing Madarame's claims.

"She made the foolish mistake of daring to speak out against me, and look where that got her, now! A pariah, trying to scratch up pocket change with pitiful street vending!" Madarame said with an amused grin, though his expression grew more serious again a second after "...Ask yourself, Yusuke, knowing this, do you really want to subject yourself to the same fate?"

"...And Nakanohara, too," Ace said. "...You ruined his life as well when he chose to leave, too, didn't you?"

"Ah yes, that overconfident fool thought the suicide was enough to use against me, and I assure you, he was very much mistaken!" Madarame replied, bringing his hand to his chin as he mulled over it. "...It's unfortunate, both were quite talented in their own right, enough I made quite a bit of profit off of both, but I wasn't about to sacrifice my success for the sake of their misguided dreams! It was a ruin they both brought upon themselves by their own free will!"

"To think, I was under the care of such a wretched man like you!" Yusuke snapped, looking up in contempt at the man as he stood himself up. "How could you be so utterly heartless?!" he snarled, lunging at him, only for one of Madarame's Shadow guards to grab him in an armlock.

"Kitagawa!" Panther cried out, only for several more Shadow guards to spawn before them, surrounding the four Thieves and separating them from Yusuke.

"You thought I took you in out of the goodness of my heart?" Madarame asked with a laugh. "Plucking talented, but troubled young artists allows me to gain promising pupils and take their ideas!" he declared. "You were fruit that needed only be cultivated until it was ready to be harvested and earn me more wealth! After all, it's easier to take the futures of young people who have no hope of fighting back!"

"I... can't believe this..." Yusuke mumbled to himself, slumping in the guard's grip and unable to hold back his tears any longer as he thought of the times Madarame would teach and care for him as a child. He could no longer see the kind teacher, but this sneering monster instead in all of them. "...You used me this whole time, Sensei?!"

Grief, however, soon became replaced by seething rage as tears ran down from Yusuke's eyes. "...How many lives did you go and destroy? How many dreams have you auctioned off?! All for your own selfish gain?!" he cried out. "I'll NEVER forgive you!"

Madarame's expression hardened as he promptly slapped the boy hard across the face. "You dare to bite the hand that fed you all these years, Yusuke?!" he snarled, looking down at him in disgust. "Such ingratitude, you selfish little brat! I'll kill you here and now if you don't beg for my forgiveness at once!"

Yusuke chuckled bitterly. "It seems the truth is stranger then fiction, isn't it?" he asked softly. "I wanted so hard to believe... that it wasn't true. I clouded my vision for so long... letting my eyes be truly blind for so long... because I was unable, no, unwilling to see the true self behind this horrible man!"

"Have you finally come to your senses?" a deep, yet familiar voice inquired within the deep recesses of Yusuke's mind. A voice which, he realized, sounded not so different from his own...

Yusuke cried out as a horrible pain suddenly struck him in a horrible migraine, surprising the Shadow guard and causing it to drop him. Yusuke immediately fell to the floor, clutching his head in agony as the voice continued to speak within his mind.

"How foolishly, you averted your eyes from the truth..."

"Kitagawa-kun!" Panther cried out, struggling against the Shadow guards. "Is he...?"

"I think he is," Ace replied. "...Kitagawa, don't fight it!" she shouted as the guards continued to hold them back.

"What's happening? Guards! Deal with him!" Madarame ordered, his Shadow guards beginning to approach the boy menacingly.

"You're a poor imitation of yourself!" the voice declared. "...It's best you part from that aspect of yourself!"

Yusuke reared back, gripping his head with both hands as he lout out a loud scream, causing the guards to pause, as if concerned if it would be wise to approach him when they were struck by a gust of wind that emanated from where he now lay, crumpled on the ground, digging his nails into the floor till blood drew.

"Let us now forge a contract..." the voice continued as Yusuke attempted to stand back up, powering through the pain. "I am thou, thou art I! The world is filled with both beauty, and vice! It is time you teach people which is which!"

Yusuke's head suddenly jerked upward, glaring straight ahead at Madarame and the Shadow guards as a foxlike kabuki mask appeared over the top half of his face in a flash of blue flames, his eyes now a glowing gold color as well.

Madarame slowly backed away, his guards moving in front of him to protect him as Yusuke stood back up, glaring at the man and knowing what he must do next. "Very well," he said softly, bringing his hand to the corner of the mask. "Come... GOEMON!" he shouted, tearing the mask off in a single, graceful stroke, blood trailing down his face as he was immediately engulfed in an intense column of blue flame, driving Madarame and the guards back further.

A pair of bells jingled as the flames cleared, revealing the towering figure standing behind Yusuke. It was humanoid, with a massive, bulky midnight-blue robe with a purple inner lining and cerulean outer trim, with an Asian dragon pattern running along it, the name IXICAVA inscribed on its base in white, with a blue and white tasuki wrapped around the robe's shoulders. The robe covered a crimson red kimono and pants with a black and silver diamond-pattern scarf, bound by a gold obi tied with a red and white tasuki with a pair of bells at the front. The being's hands and feet covered by white gloves and boots strapped in very tall golden geta sandals. Around its neck was a metal choker with a lock, and its pale face was covered by a kabuki mask with a gold frame, a massive black and purple pompadour jutting out of the top of its head as it held a massive, ornate, ivory and gold pipe in its right hand.

Yusuke himself stood before it, now wearing a dark blue, high-collared jumpsuit with white trim over its collar, shoulders, and cuffs at the end of its puffy sleeves supported by gold buttons. A royal-blue and white striped sash was wrapped around his waist, with a white and red striped fox tail clipped to its side, his costume completed with a pair of knee-high white boots and bright blue gloves.

"A breathtaking sight," Yusuke remarked, turning his hand towards the guards as the blue flames danced around him and the Persona. "...Imitations they may be, but together, they make a fine spectacle!"

The boy clenched his gloved fist, blue flames dancing about it as well as his fierce gaze narrowed at Madarame and the guards. "Though the flowers of evil may blossom," he said, "Be it known, abominations are destined to perish!"

Yusuke thrust his hand forward, and the Persona brought its pipe to its mouth, whirling itself around on one of its geta as it unleashed an intense blast of ice at the Shadow guards, causing them to cry out as they shattered apart, their remains dissolving into smoke and ash.

"Whoa! That was impressive!" Mona cried out, whipping out his sword as he plunged it into the back of a nearby remaining Shadow guard, taking advantage of the distraction.

Madarame glared hatefully at the boy and the Persona as he stepped away. "Who do you think you are?!" he snarled, his face locked in pure, seething rage. "If you wish to continue to disobey and show me ingratitude, then you can pay the price with your life! Come forth, guards!"

Three more Shadow guards spawned around Madarame and started to approach Yusuke and the Thieves.

"The children who adored you as a father," Yusuke declared as Mona, Skull, Panther, and Ace joined his side as he glared down Madarame and the advancing guards."...the prospects of your pupils... all those you trampled upon, whose futures you exchanged so callously for riches you never deserved... no matter what, I will avenge them all, AND BRING YOU TO JUSTICE!"

"Kitagawa," Ace said, giving Yusuke a faint smile. "...Show this pretender what you've got."

"Damn right! We got your back, man!" Skull said with a thumbs-up, brandishing his mace as Panther and Mona readied their whip and scimitar respectively.

"I am ready," Yusuke said, a confident smile on his face as the guards began to writhe and twitch about before melting down into a massive puddle of red and black ooze, four winged gray humanoids in white birdlike masks and a taller, muscular blue-skinned humanoid in an iron mask and a gray blacksmith apron and gloves wielding a pair of tongs and a sledgehammer in its hands rose up to engage the group.

"You are in the presence of Lord Madarame!" the blue-skinned, iron-masked humanoid that served as the group of enemies' leader declared, raising its hammer threateningly. "On your knees, intruders!"

Yusuke closed his eyes as his Persona hovered above him, ready for his next command. "I learned much from you, Madarame," he said, "...In order to see authenticity, one must be dispassionately realistic!"

His gaze hardened. "With Goemon by my side, I can ascertain your true self without any reservations!" he shouted, Goemon once more slamming its geta into the floor and unleashing a blast of intense cold from its pipe, striking one of the bird-man Shadows and sending it falling to the floor covered in frost and in a daze.

"Nice work! Looks like that's their weakness!" Mona shouted. "Ace! Get a Persona with ice abilities and let's wipe 'em out!"

With a nod, Ace called for Genbu, the tortoise-like Persona unleashed a blast of cold of its own knocking the other bird-men to the ground as well.

"Skull, Panther, lock and load!" Mona ordered next, drawing out his slingshot as Skull and Panther got out their guns and began firing away at the downed shadows, annihilating them all and leaving behind only the tall, blue-skinned humanoid one.

"Your coordination and style are a sight to behold!" Yusuke said with a smile. "Allow me the honors..." the boy pointed at the remaining Shadow "GOEMON! STRIKE IT DOWN!"

Without a pause, the robed Persona leaped forward, swinging its pipe, slashing the remaining Shadow with the blade extending from the base of his pipe before gliding back to Yusuke's side. The Shadow cried out in pain, stumbling back as it swung its hammer, sending forth a shockwave at the Thieves, knocking them all back save Yusuke. It prepared to strike again only for its hammer to be parried by Goemon's pipe, as if it were a sword. The Persona glared down the transformed Shadow guard, its eyes peering into the empty darkness of the creature's metal mask as if right through it.

The Shadow guard grunted angrily, attempting to swing again as Goemon continued to parry, holding it back.

"You defied your sensei, have you no shame, brat?!" the Shadow guard snarled, preparing its hammer only for Goemon to once again parry it, knocking it to the ground.

"He betrayed my trust long before then!" Yusuke declared. "It's only right that I return the favor in kind!"

"Alright everyone! Let's finish it off!" Mona cried out, as he and the others leaped into the air, striking their foe in a rapid flurry of blows from every direction before landing away from it, kneeling into the floor as the enemy exploded in a burst of smoke, its remains blowing away into nothingness.

As the group turned to face Madarame, Yusuke felt his strength abandon him as Goemon faded out of existence, reforming into the foxlike mask that covered the upper half of his face. Falling to his knees, he took a moment to regain his breath.

"Yusuke," Madarame snarled, glaring down at him in contempt. "You've just thrown your bright future down the drain! Mark my words I'll destroy every chance you ever had at becoming an artist!"

"Madarame...!" Yusuke gasped, reaching angrily towards the man, who calmly stepped back, turning his nose up at him and gritting his teeth.

"You'll forever rue the day you dared defy me!" the Shadow declared, walking up the stairs before turning to face them at the hallway entrance. "...If you wish to leave here with your life, I suggest you go, now!" he threatened, slamming the doors shut behind him.

"G-get back here!" Yusuke protested, struggling to stand. "Why... I can barely stand...!"

"You've only just awakened to your Persona," Panther explained. "It's totally drained you!"

"Understand, even if you go after him, now, you'd be no match for him!" said Mona.

Yusuke shook his head in defeat. "What a disgrace I am..."

"We should get out of here," Ace observed. "I imagine Madarame's already going to be sending more guards to this very spot..."

As if to answer her statement, several Shadow guards immediately spawned around them.

"SHIT! Already?!" Skull protested.

"Quick!" Mona cried out, transforming into his van form. "Everyone in!"

Ryuji and Panther hurriedly helped Yusuke into the back of the van as Ace took the wheel, with a loud "Meow!" the van roared to life, plowing through the lobby and out through the museum's glass front doors, to the astonishment of the patrons lined up outside and the Shadow guards watching them disappear through the rippling barrier that led back to reality...

"Welcome back to the real world!" Kyoko's Meta-Nav said cheerfully from her phone. The young detective immediately looked around noticing they were now out of the Metaverse and across the street from Madarame's atelier.

"Looks like we're safe, now!" Morgana said, once more a normal, yellow-collared housecat.

"Oh, right... I was carrying these," Ann mused, noticing her handful of clothing that'd made up her school uniform she'd discarded earlier that now lay strewn about her lap.

"We probably shouldn't loiter," Morgana said. "Madarame called the police on us in the real world before we wound up here."

"We've been away... a while... haven't we?" Yusuke asked between breaths, still exhausted from the fight. "I'm sure he's... sent them on their way by now..."

"Who can say?" Ryuji asked. "For all we know he's got 'em waitin' around! You sure you wanna go back there, though?"

Yusuke looked down at the pavement. "If I'm gone too long, it'd only cause more problems and he may send the police after the three of you regarding my whereabouts."

Kyoko glanced about as she stood back up, contemplating a solution. "You have a point. We can't afford the risk... but if he sees any of us outside it may also cause problems. It may also be best you stay away for a while, at least until Madarame has calmed down."

A faint growl was heard, followed by another, prompting Ann, Kyoko, and Morgana to glance over at Yusuke and Ryuji.

"Heh, well, on the bright side I think we just found our solution!" Ryuji said with a sheepish grin as he put his hand over his stomach.

"Exquisite... I'm truly in your debt for your generosity," Yusuke said as he ate through his sandwich a little quicker then he'd meant to as the group sat together in one of Bikkuri Boy Diner's booths. "Still, I've turned on the only person who's ever cared for me... yet I also feel as though I had no choice..."

"You've known for quite some time, haven't you?" Ann asked, eating a sandwich of her own and having since gotten redressed in her uniform.

Yusuke shook his head as he stared down at his tea, cupping it in both hands. "...I'm no fool," he said softly. "There have been strange people coming by for a while, now. Years, in fact," he explained. "...The plagiarism itself was an everyday affair..."

"And you kept lying to yourself, and denying what was happening in front of your eyes the entire time," Kyoko said, taking a sip of her tea.

"Can you blame me?" Yusuke asked, looking up from his drink over at the girl. "Could you ever bring yourself to admit someone you feel like you owed your life to was doing terrible things?"

It was then Kyoko's turn to look down at her own drink, saying nothing in response.

"Why didn't you leave, though?" Ann inquired.

"Well, he is the one who painted "Sayuri", which I owe my passion for art to," Yusuke explained. "...And on top of that, I owe him a great debt..."

"You mean 'cause he raised you?" Ryuji asked after he finished a bite of his steak.

"I... never knew my father," Yusuke replied. "Or at least... I don't remember him. My mother was one of Madarame's pupils, he was kind enough to invite her to live with him after my father passed away from a work-related accident, so my mother had to raise me by herself. I was told she died as well, from illness when I was only three years old, it's likely why I can barely remember her as well..."

"So, when your mother passed away, he took you in and raised you, himself," Ann said.

"Yes, and so I did everything I could for Sensei. I thought of him as a father," Yusuke explained. "...But then he changed..."

Yusuke's grip tightened around his tea. "...To think he would treat the "Sayuri", the very foundation of his art, in such a disgraceful way!"

"You've really been through a lot, huh?" Ryuji asked.

"A part of me always knew, but I didn't want to," Yusuke replied. "...I chose to run away... I'm sorry for rebuffing you then, as well..."

"Hey, it's all good!" Ryuji said, smirking. "You don't need to apologize so much, I get it! It ain't an easy thing to take in."

"What will you do now, though?" Kyoko asked, taking another sip of her tea. "Ryuji is right, it couldn't have been an easy choice to have made back there..."

"You're right, it wasn't. And now it's made me realize how blurred and uncertain it's made the future look to me," Yusuke replied. "...So to be honest... I'm not really sure what to do..."

"We can't help the fact that Madarame's gone and changed, but we can change his heart!" Ryuji said, taking another bite of his steak.

"Change his heart...?" Yusuke asked. "You mentioned being a group who changes the hearts of crooks..."

"Haven't ya heard the rumors?" Ryuji asked, a wide grin on his face. "...The ones about Phantom Thieves who steal hearts?"

"We won't let Madarame get away with his crimes!" Morgana said, peering out from Kyoko's schoolbag on the table. "It's our duty to make him pay, and he'll confess and atone for everything he's done!"

"Phantom Thieves," Yusuke mused, once more staring down at his tea before glancing back up at the others, again with a look of curiosity. "...By the way, did my clothes... change back there?"

"...You seriously just realized that just now, after we've already left?" Ryuji asked, his head hanging and a look of exasperation on his face. Ann wore a similar expression while Kyoko had set her drink down and was now folding her arms as she stared at him, though she, too, held a hint of disbelief he'd just asked such a question this long after it'd actually happened.

"That aside," Kyoko explained, "...Yes, we are the ones responsible for the change of heart regarding the teacher at Shujin the scandal is about."

"I see... so because you went into that other world you were able to do this, and that gym teacher's heart was changed," said Yusuke. "So, the Phantom Thieves who steal hearts, to think they truly exist..."

"Surely it'd be hard for you to deny such a concept either after all you've seen in that world," Kyoko replied.

"Indeed," Yusuke looked down at his drink, then to the others. "...If you intend to change Madarame's heart, then for the sake of all of those whose dreams and futures as artists he has stolen, I ask that you allow me to join you, as a member of the Phantom Thieves, so that I may help put an end to this once and for all." He took a sip of his tea, attempting to relax himself more. "I believe that is the most civil thing I can do for the man who was, in some manner, my father..."

"Sounds good to me!" Ryuji said. "We were gonna go after Madarame anyways."

"It would benefit us to have extra manpower," Kyoko said, sipping her tea and giving Yusuke a small smile. "...You also handled yourself very well against those guards, and your reasoning is perfectly justified as far as I'm concerned, so I see no reason not to accept."

"In that case, welcome aboard!" said Ann, smirking and finishing her sandwich.

"You have my gratitude. This means a great deal to me, so... I thank you. I will do my best," Yusuke said, smiling in relief and feeling at ease enough at last to resume his meal.

"Just know, as I mentioned on the way here, there is the risk of a mental shutdown, we have ways to prevent it, but they aren't completely fail-safe," Morgana warned.

Yusuke shook his head dismissively. "...Maybe so, but Madarame is a man who has the entire art world of all of Japan completely under his thumb, in no small part due to how he has connections to many powerful and influential organizations," he explained. "The threats the him in that world made are in no way empty ones here in the real world. Even if someone as close to him as myself were to raise their voice and speak out against him, it would be snuffed out in an instant. I feel at this point, after all he's done and what he may do, there is no other option left."

"That reminds me, though," Ann said. "I wonder what's going on with the real Madarame right now...?"

"You think he's calmed down now, after that rather tight situation we all ended up in earlier?" Morgana asked.

"Actually," Yusuke said, "I contacted him before we came here. He believes I continued pursuing Takamaki-san, and as you explained, he knows nothing from the encounter we had with his Shadow," he explained. "He was also complaining to the security company how they failed to catch even one high school girl..."

"I guess that puts us in the clear, then?" Ann asked.

"Not exactly," Yusuke replied. "He's still furious about what you discovered, and said he's going to take legal action against everyone."

Kyoko scowled, bringing her hand to her chin as she looked down at the table. "It makes sense, he knows Ann is connected to Ryuji and myself, and he'd want to do away with anyone who would potentially know about his counterfeiting operation by now... something which he's sure to bury before anyone would have a chance to uncover it as evidence against him..."

"Talk about bein' way on-guard!" Ryuji grumbled.

"Think he's got more secrets if he's that desperate?" Ann wondered.

"Still, there is some good news to this," Yusuke explained. "He won't act until after the exhibit is over. That much I can be certain of. Any scandal big enough that he'd feel compelled to take legal action during the show would give him a great deal of unwanted and negative attention and be his loss."

"This just means we need to change his heart before then while the exhibit's still going on if we're going to dodge that whole "legal action" thing," Morgana said.

"By the way, one more question," Yusuke stated, glancing over at Morgana. "...Why is that cat talking?"

"Hey! Don't call me a cat!" Morgana protested. "You got a problem with me talking?"

"No, not particularly," Yusuke said, taking another sip of his tea.

"You're on... quite a different wavelength," Ann remarked, unsure what to make of the exchange, causing Yusuke to tilt his head in confusion at her statement.

"Anyway, you heard me speak in the Metaverse, so now you're able to hear me speak here, too. At least that's how I think it works," Morgana explained.

"Hm...?" Yusuke turned and looked at Morgana, extending his finger towards the cat, prompting Morgana to recoil, only for Yusuke's finger to stop at the small button in front of Kyoko's bag and pressed it. "...I'd been meaning to sample the black bean jelly..."

"...O-kay, just weird is all," Ann mused, though Yusuke seemed to not notice.

"By the way," he began, looking over at Ann, "...Regarding the... nude modeling,"

"Yeah, never happening!" Ann said quickly and sharply.

"...I was going to say, it was part of some plan, wasn't it?" Yusuke asked.

"Yes, it was necessary we opened that locked door. We'll explain later, but trust us that it was essential to affect his cognition in a way that would allow us to further infiltrate the Palace," Kyoko explained.

"...And steal his "Treasure" as you described it," Yusuke said.

"That's right!" Ryuji said. "Then his heart gets changed and the bastard confesses an' all!"

"I see," Yusuke replied with a nod, before his eyes suddenly went wide with shock. "Oh... I forgot! I don't have any money on me!"

A collective sigh came from the others.

Kyoko opened the door to Leblanc, Sojiro glanced over at her as she entered from cleaning up several coffee cups.

"You sure look exhausted again," he remarked. "Your exam grades should be out tomorrow, correct?"

Kyoko gave a nod.

"Good, for your sake, they better be decent," Sojiro said. "I can't cover for you if you're letting them slip."

"I'm aware," Kyoko replied. "It's very... unlikely you'd have anything to worry about regarding them."

"Where were you, anyway? You're back later then last night."

"Study session with friends at the diner," Kyoko answered.

"That so?" Sojiro asked, only for his phone to ring. "Hello?" he asked after switching it on, his features softening as Kyoko had seen before when he'd answer calls.

"Don't worry, about to leave," he said, smiling with a gentle tone in his voice. A second of listening later, he spoke again. "...Promise. I'll see you soon," Turning off his phone, he slid off his apron, getting his coat and hat and facing Kyoko. "You should get to bed, you still have school tomorrow. I'll be needing to hear about your exams, too, so come on back here after classes let out, alright?"

"Of course," Kyoko replied with a nod.

"I'll hold you to that," Sojiro stated, his mood slightly improved by the phone call as he made his way to the door and left, turning the sign and locking the door behind him.

"Guess we better get some sleep, we've had a long day, after all!" Morgana said, poking his head out of Kyoko's bag as the young detective switched off the lights and headed upstairs.

"Idiot child! Just what were you thinking?!"

Kyoko couldn't even look at the old man glaring down furiously at her any more as she sat silently in the jail cell's cot, her own face flushed with shame and anger. Shame for the trouble she was in, anger for how effortlessly the man she'd tried to protect that woman from turned everything in his favor.

The light reflecting off his glasses, his weathered features from his old age accentuating his deep scowl, Fuhito Kirigiri made Kyoko feel fear from him for the first time.

"Well, what do you have to say for yourself, Kyoko? Answer me!"

Kyoko knew that voice. It was a voice that was was cold, dangerous, the same one that he might use when interrogating a criminal. Little emotion yet threatening, the kind that even more steel-nerved criminals would crumple under. Bars separated the two of them, bars that separate her from the rest of the world until she'd be allowed to leave the following morning and who knew what the trial would subject her to...

"I..." she stammered, staring down at her lap where her hands rested. "I went for a walk... I was going to be back before you were... then there was a disturbance..."

""You blatantly disobeyed the rules I set for you," Fuhito said sharply, his tone as hard as his features at the moment. "...And got yourself in enough trouble for me to get a call from the police that you're in custody for assault!"

"That wasn't supposed to happen!" Kyoko protested, looking up at him now, her normally stoic composure lost entirely as her eyes were now wide and desperate for reason from him. "An intoxicated man was assaulting a woman, I'm certain he was attempting to abduct her, and I tried to step in and pull him off her... he attempted to harm me, tripped on the sidewalk and injured himself, then the police arrived and didn't even ask for my side of the story when they cuffed me."

Her grandfather's folded his arms. "...And why would they do that?"

Kyoko looked down at her lap again. "...Whoever that man was, he's someone very well-connected. Enough so that the woman he was assaulting took his side the moment he threatened her about some embezzlement this dispute was apparently about," she explained. "The police seemed to know who he was the moment they saw him and seemed ready to do whatever he said..."

"You think they were corrupted, you intend to tell the court all of this?" Fuhito asked. "...You have nothing to prove that, Kyoko. Everything I taught you, you threw away the instant you so recklessly got yourself involved! You didn't even think to show your detective license when you approached, did you?"

Kyoko's silence was all he needed. Kyoko herself felt ashamed, in the urgency of the situation, she'd acted impulsively.

"You'll put yourself in even worse trouble if you accuse this station's officers of being corrupt, with nothing but your word to go by it. The truth has no power when there's no evidence to back it!" her grandfather stated.

"...What am I supposed to do?" Kyoko asked, her voice now threatening to tremble under Fuhito's judging glare.

"Your foolish decision has already done enough to this family, Kyoko, pray it doesn't do more," her grandfather said coldly. "...You were born to succeed in the family's sacred career, Kyoko, a duty your father was all to willing to turn his back to even if it meant leaving you behind to take his place. Were you anyone else, I wouldn't even bother with damage control... but even then, I can't promise anything..."

Kyoko stared silently at the floor of the cell as she heard the old man leave.

That memory had been no less clear then it was when it had happened as Kyoko lay in bed, listening to the sounds of the night outside while Morgana was curled up asleep next to her.

As a Phantom Thief, she had the opportunity to use her skills to bring justice upon those who evaded it, and fight those like the man who had smashed her life to pieces she now had to salvage, though anonymously, yet now she and her teammates... perhaps... truly her friends... had been able to fight back against a society that seemed to conspire to crush them. They had a new target, and new people to save and avenge, including Yusuke, who had now put his faith in her and the others as well and feel inspired to stop Madarame, who had seen him as only a means to further his own goals.

Was this Igor's way of showing her that choosing to act wasn't inherently wrong?

Rehabilitation or ruin... which would be her truth was yet to be seen.

A/N: At long last, another chapter done! Big thanks to everyone who's been reading and keeping me going! I know this was a larger chapter as there was so much I wanted to cover. Next chapter I hope to get in some confidant ranking again!

0 - The Fool: Rank 3

I - The Magician: Rank 2

V - The Hierophant: Rank 2

VI - The Lovers: Rank 2

VII - The Chariot: Rank 3

XII - The Hanged Man: Rank 1

XIII - Death: Rank 3

XVIII - The Moon: Rank 2

1 - The Councillor: Rank 2

Kyoko's Personas: Agathion, Cait Sith, Saki Mitama, Genbu, Succubus, Berith, Mokoi, Regent