Shiho: Suzui Shiho here and I am excited to be here!

Haru: My hero in the flesh. I am curious as to what will happen this chapter

Ryuji: Who knows but alls I know it's gonna be hella interesting.

Ann: Then stop the stalling and lets get to it!

Morgana: Then everyone…

Ren: It's Showtime!

Persona V: Reversing the Wheel of Fate
Chapter Eighteen

[Opening Scene – Okumura Residence (Morning)
(Theme of Okumura Residence: Have a Short Rest from Persona 5]

Shiho was ecstatic.

Last night was the first time that she felt that she had complete control over her life. Not only in standing up to Kamoshida but with summoning that bizarre yet incredible power. Her happiness was bubbling over from how wonderful she felt.

She had to get it out somehow, and there was only one way to do so.

Cooking.

Next to volleyball and art, cooking was her favorite thing in the world to do, and it was where she could express herself through it so quietly, she slipped out of her sleeping best friend's protective hug and tip-toed into Haru's kitchen.

Thankfully, the kitchen was empty.

Shiho grinned and rushed to the refrigerator, and when she opened it, she saw loads and loads of food.

There was so much that she shed a single tear of happiness. "Wow…" she whispered as she rubbed her hands together in delight.

"Enjoying yourself, Hero-chan?" Haru's voice said from behind her, causing Shiho to turn around to see Haru in the kitchen's entrance, wearing a silk pink floral gown, a smile on her face.

"Haru-chan, good morning," Shiho said with a smile on her face. "There is so much food in here."

"Father likes to eat extravagantly," Haru replied. "From French to America to Chinese, he loves it."

"French?" Shiho asked. "I've always wanted to visit Paris…"

"I've been. It is charming. In certain areas," Haru replied. "If you want, I can arrange for all of us to go in the future."

"Whoa, seriously?" Shiho asked in shock.

"Of course. My father is many things, not often good, but he allows me to do whatever I please as long as I follow his orders," Haru said, but Shiho could sense some bitterness in her words.

"However, this is not about him. This is about you," Haru replied, instantly perking up. "You saved me yesterday. All of you guys did, but you directly saved my life. How could I ever repay you?"

"A-Ah…" Shiho said as a flustered expression appeared on her face. "It was no big deal. You stood up for me at a time where I couldn't. I owe you for that. So, let's consider us even."

Haru giggled and said, "Very well…"

"But I do want to ask…Can I cook breakfast?" Shiho asked.

"Why, of course," Haru said. "Mind if I help?"

Shiho smiled.

[Scene Change: Interrogation Room (Nighttime)
Theme of Nightmare: Interrogation Room from Persona 5]

"I can't believe you would hurt that innocent man. I don't feel safe with you in our house. Leave!"

"I-I don't feel safe around you anymore, Ren-kun…I'm sorry…It's over…Goodbye, Ren…"

"…But that is what happens when you face off against true justice…"

[Scene Change: Okumura Residence (Morning)
(Theme of Sadness: Living with Determination from Persona 3]

"Ren!"

Ren's eyes opened up to see Ryuji's concerned eyes staring down at him. "W-What?" Ren asked with a confused stammer.

"You had a nightmare, dude…" Ryuji explained. "You were saying stuff about your parents and some girl. It was so bad you started to cry…"

"O-Oh…" Ren stammered out as he leaned up on the bed, and then he felt tears on his face. "I'm sorry…" Ren apologized with a whisper.

"Dude, don't you even think about apologizing…" Ryuji said with a frown. "I kinda understand myself."

"You do?" Ren asked.

"Yeah…It's a long story, and I don't like talking about," Ryuji said with a frown on his face, but then he grinned and added, "But you shared what happened to me, it's only fair, right?"

"You don't have to do that, Ryuji," Ren said.

"You're right, but I want to," Ryuji replied. "R and R connection, remember?"

Ren grinned and said, "R and R connection."

"So I'm just going to come out and say it. My dad used to drink…A lot. Like so much, he would smell like he was drenched in the sauce. And when he got like that, he would beat my mom and me," Ryuji softly said.

Ren was stunned.

"No fucking way," Ren said.

"Yeah…No one knows about it. So yeah, I was the poor little abused boy of an alcoholic abuser. I try to keep it all under wraps. I don't want pity, you know?" Ryuji softly said.

"But yeah, he would abuse us daily. Mom would often try to force the abuse on herself, but it never panned out that way. So that caused me to act out somewhat, and that caused me to lose a bunch of friends, Ann included…" Ryuji said softly.

"Yeah, you two were friends back then, right?" Ren asked.

"Well, kinda friends. I still kept a distance because back then, my dad was still in our lives, and after some severe beatings, I decided she wouldn't want a worthless loser like me in her life, so I pushed her away," Ryuji answered.

"But after he left, I was so terrified of him, I would have nightmares of him coming back and killing us both…It haunted me…And because I pushed everyone away, I had to deal with it alone…" Ryuji finished with a shrug.

Ren clenched his fists tightly as a scowl appeared on his face. Suddenly, Ryuji laughed and said, "Whoa Ren-Ren, you got so mad all of a sudden."

"Why shouldn't I?!" Ren shouted. "You don't deserve that shit, Ryuji! You're a great guy!"

Ryuji looked taken aback by the shout, but then he lowered his gaze and smiled as he mumbled, "Heh, geez man…I'm not that cool."

"I think you are," Ren said with an earnest smile. "I mean, you stood up for me countless times from the start! Hell, we didn't even know each other fully, and you still risked it all to help me. You're wonderful."

"Awww, jeez," Ryuji said with a faint blush but with a significant smile. "You're making me blush."

Ren grinned, happy to see the smile on Ryuji's face after seeing it so serious and sad during his story. "So yeah, I pretty much alone until I joined the track team, and you know how that all ended up but fuck it, I have no regrets how things went down," Ryuji said.

"You don't?" Ren asked.

"Hell no. If I didn't go down that god-awful path, I wouldn't have met you or reconnected with Ann or met Haru, Shiho, and Morgana. I don't feel so alone anymore," Ryuji replied with a smile on his face.

"Ryuji…You are a great guy," Ren said with a smile.

"Nah, far from it," Ryuji said. "But the reason I said all this shit and bared my soul was that… I understand where the nightmares are coming from and if you ever need someone to talk about them, call me. I don't care how late it is or what; we're boys now, and I won't let you suffer through them alone," Ryuji said with a confident grin on his face.

"I-I don't know what to say," Ren said.

"Then don't say anything and just allow it. I won't take anything less than that," Ryuji replied happily.

It was then Ren felt that feeling he had got during his talk with Igor, and while it was amusing now, it left a bitter feeling in Ren's chest at this moment.

"I am thou, thou art I…
Thou hast acquired a new vow.

It shall become the wings of rebellion
That breaketh thy chains of captivity.

With the birth of the Chariot Persona,
I have obtained the winds of blessing that
shall lead to freedom and new power…"

"Dude, you smell that?" Ryuji asked suddenly.

Ren sniffed the air and said, "That smells like bacon…"

[Theme of Sadness: Living with Determination from Persona 3]

Ann felt tears falling from her eyes as she stood in front of the door that led to Ryuji and Ren's guest room.

She didn't mean to pry on their conversation, she had honestly come in to tell them Shiho and Haru had created breakfast for them, but then she heard Ryuji's story.

'That entire time…He was going through all of that alone…' Ann thought tearfully. 'And I just let him push me away like that…When I…Damn you, you soft-hearted moron!'

"Dude! It smells so good; let's go get some!" Ryuji's voice shouted before she heard a set of two footsteps coming towards the door.

She quickly wiped her tears and put on her best face and opened the door, and said, "Hey guys! You're awake."

"Yo, good morning Takamaki," Ryuji said with a grin.

"G-Good morning Ryuji-kun…Ren-kun," Ann said. "Come on, Shiho and Haru made breakfast. I was sent to grab you guys."

"Awesome! It smells good," Ren said with a bright smile.

"Why are we still here and not eating?" Ryuji question.

"Then let's go grab some food," Ann said, but as Ren and Ryuji walked past, she saw the slight limp in Ryuji's gait and felt her eyes water.

[Theme of Okumura Residence: Have a Short Rest from Persona 5]

"Good morning, guys!" Haru and Shiho said in unison as the trio entered the room.

Ren and Ryuji stared at the large table filled with food. Pancakes, sausages, bacon, French toast, eggs, the works. But there was also cooked tuna steak, most likely for Morgana.

"Oh my god…" Ryuji said, immediately unbuckling his belt. "I'm going to pig out so damn hard!"

"I am now ravenous," Ren said.

"Well, we didn't make this just to have you guys stare. Dig in," Shiho said.

The trio quickly sat down and began to dig into their food while Morgana trotted in and said, "Good morning, guys."

"Morning, Morgana," Ryuji and Ren said with their mouths filled with food.

"At least swallow!" Ann exclaimed.

"Whoa…He talked, and I heard him," Haru said.

"Of course I did. I am hu-Is that Tuna Steak?!" Morgana exclaimed.

"Of course," Shiho happily said as she walked to Morgana and picked him up to place him at the table in front of his breakfast. "The best for the one that saved me from doing something terrible."

"Whoa, I gotta save beautiful women more often!" Morgana said before he dug in as messily as Ren and Ryuji.

Shiho chuckled as she sat down between Morgana and Ann and began to eat while Haru sat beside Ren and began to eat as well. "Oh god, this is so delicious," Ren said happily.

"This French toast is so sweet," Ann muffled through her full mouth of the delicious food.

"This tuna steak is to die for," Morgana moaned out.

"I wish I could put these pancakes and sausages in an I.V so it could go directly into my blood stream," Ryuji groaned out.

Twenty minutes passed, and the table was filled with empty, dirty plates, and the group sat slumped in a delightful coma.

"I can't feel my stomach," Ryuji mumbled with a peaceful expression.

"Thank god we managed to finish it all off," Ann mumbled.

"Thank god my wound is completely healed; otherwise, you guys would need to take me back to the hospital," Ren said.

"My stomach," Morgana moaned, laying on his back with his paws curled.

"I guess our combined cooking technique is a rousing success," Haru said happily.

Shiho giggled and said, "We'll need to collab more often then."

"Okay…Now that our stomachs are filled with delicious food, wanna talk bidness, Ren?" Ryuji asked.

The light-hearted air then vanished and became serious. "Let's do it then," Ren said as he leaned forward and intertwined his hands, his glasses reflecting in the light.

"Calm down, Gendo," Ann said with a snort.

Ren smirked and said, "So last night, a lot of things happened. Ann and Shiho awoke to their Personas."

"So they have a name?" Haru asked.

"Yes," Morgana said. "Personas are a manifestation of your rebellious heart, born from frustration, being wrong or take advantage of. Should the person decide to embrace it, they then gain the power of their true self."

"So my true self…" Shiho said as she looked at her hands. "I didn't realize I was so powerful…I felt unstoppable in that state."

"The first time is usually the strongest," Ryuji said. "After the second time, it started to mellow out quite a bit."

"I see…But then, why didn't Haru-chan get a Persona like me?" Shiho asked.

"I don't know. It could be that there is something she's not ready to face yet," Morgana suggested. "I mean, Lady Ann didn't become a persona user up until last night as well."

"Yeah, she wound up beating our asses in the process," Ryuji quipped with a chuckle.

"Speaking of that…I'm so sorry. I should have been more in control of myself and listened to you guys," Ann said regretfully.

"Don't sweat it," Ren said. "We were all hurt by what Kamoshida tried to do with Shiho. Understandably, her best friend would want to carry out vengeance as well."

"Yeah, water under the bridge," Ryuji said with a smile.

"Thanks, guys…" Ann mumbled softly with a small smile.

"But yeah, it could be Haru-san is not ready yet, and it can take time, so there is no rush," Morgana said as he looked to a thoughtful Haru.

"Yeah…After seeing what you guys had to fight, I'm not sure if I want to deal with that yet," Haru lightly said. "But speaking of that…What were those? And where was that place?"

"That place is the Metaverse," Morgana began. "You see, The Palaces and the Metaverse itself are the product of the cognition of individuals and society, with those reflecting how they perceive the world. In this world is where the shadows roam. Shadows are the true self that is suppressed—a side of one's personality they don't want to see, and often, these shadows are recruited by the Palace ruler. Such as Kamoshida…"

"I see…" Haru muttered. "And was that the real Kamoshida?"

"No. That was Kamoshida's shadow self. A corrupt version of him," Morgana answered.

"If that's even possible," Ryuji quipped.

"Right? Anyways, most people's negative and corrupt thoughts are blended into the Metaverse in a location called Mementos, which is a Palace for all of humanity. However, particularly strong shadow-selves have a dedicated palace where they're able to grow their power which is known as a "Palace" where King Kamoshida currently rules," Morgana explained.

"And because his palace is a manifestation of his distorted desires, he can pull in shadows and use them as guards to protect that palace from an attack," Morgana explained.

"Wait…So those shadows that we fought are the shadow-selves of people we know?" Ann asked.

"Yes," Morgana said.

"Oh…That's bad," Ryuji said.

"Are they able to remember any of it?" Ren asked.

"While cognitive existences do not affect their counterparts, in reality, the Shadows still represent the unconsciousness there so subconsciously, any shadow we face, their real-life counterpart may realize who we are deep inside," Morgana answered.

"That's really bad," Shiho said.

"With that being said, there is a way to stop Kamoshida and right the wrongs he has done, and that is to steal his treasure," Morgana said.

"Treasure? That must be the way we could destroy the palace," Ren said.

"Yes. Kamoshida's treasure is his corrupted heart and the key to his power. If we can take it, we effectively force a change of heart by stealing his warped desires, but like I told Ren, two things can happen. One: He will become unable to bear the weight of those crimes, leading him to confess them himself. Or Two: with stealing his treasure and wiping away his distorted desires. It could erase all of his desires like eating, sleeping, and even living, turning him into a zombie just waiting to die," Morgana said.

"Are those the only choices?" Haru asked with a frown on her face.

"Those are…I've wracked my brain to figure out something else, but that's the only way to end his terrible reign," Morgana replied.

"Then I say we do it," Shiho said. "He has done so much evil to not only us but to everyone that goes to Shujin. I know for a fact that he has slept with many past and current students and tortured and blackmailed others. He has gotten away with this for so damn long that I don't care of the risk."

"I agree," Ryuji said. "Normally, I'd be unsure about this, but after seeing what nearly happened to Shiho, seeing the palace, and finding out he wanted to cripple me, so he goaded me into a fight? I have no compassion for him."

"You all already know my answer," Ann said darkly. "I want him gone…Simple as that."

"And what say you, Haru?" Ren asked.

"Me?" Haru asked with surprise.

"Yeah…You're involved in this. You know everything. You have every right to decide Kamoshida's fate as well," Ren said, with Shiho, Ryuji, and Ann nodding in agreement.

"I..." Haru frowned and said, "I agree…I always heard the rumors but seeing how evil he was…How willing he was to murder me and try to force us all to be expelled to hide what he did to Shiho-chan. It's unforgivable."

"Well, Morgana…Looks like we're going treasure hunting," Ren said with a smirk.

"Great…Then tonight, we go to his palace and make our way to the top," Morgana said.

"Wait, if we're going to do this, don't we need like codenames?" Ryuji asked. "I mean, those shadows are alternate reality versions of people we know, right? It would make things easier if we had codenames to hide our identities."

"That's a good idea! Thinking like a true thief!" Morgana said with a pleased tone.

"Well then, I guess I'll go by "Skull" then," Ryuji said. "I mean, my mask is a skull and a pretty badass one at that, hehe. What about you, Ann?"

"Well…I have no idea," Ann said.

"Well…Your suit is bright red, you have a cat mask, and you got that tail so how about Sexy cat?" Ryuji suggested.

"You think I'm sexy?" Ann asked with a teasing tone.

"U-Um…Well…I-I um…" Ryuji stammered, which caused Ann and Shiho to giggle.

"I'll take that as a yes, but I'm not down for that as my codename," Ann replied.

"How about, Catgirl?" Ren suggested.

"It makes me sound like Catwoman's apprentice or something, so nope," Ann replied.

"How about Hellcat?" Haru suggested.

"Cause of the fire?" Ann asked.

"Yeah," Haru said.

"That has some potential but no. I want to be known as something more than a little cat…" Ann said before she tilted her head in thought. "Hmm…How about "Panther"?"

"I think it sounds pretty cool," Shiho said excitedly.

"You think so, Shiho-chan?" Ann happily asked.

Shiho nodded enthusiastically.

"I mean, it does sound ferocious," Ann said.

"Oh! How about "Cougar"? It's so wonderful," Morgana said.

Ann took a deep breath and replied with a swift "Ew," and then said, "I think "Panther" is the way to go!"

"Alright, Skull and Panther," Ren said with a nod before he turned to Morgana and said, "What about you?"

"Me? Um, I don't really need a codename," Morgana slowly said.

"True, but you're part of the team, right?" Ren asked.

"Yeah…I am!" Morgana said. "How about I keep it short and simple. Mona seems pretty short, sweet, and simple, right?" Morgana questioned.

"I like it," Ann said.

"It sounds decent," Ryuji said with a nod.

"It's adorable," Haru said.

"And it fits him too," Shiho said.

"Well, what about you two?" Ren asked Shiho and Haru.

"Well, I won't be going through Palaces with you guys anytime soon, so I don't think I need one for now," Haru said.

"But you're still our friend and still part of the team," Ryuji said.

"You guys still want me on the team, even if I don't go to a palace?" Haru asked.

"Of course," Ann chirped out.

"You're stuck with us," Morgana said.

Ren and Shiho smiled at her as their reply, why made Haru's cheeks heat up. "W-Well…Can I shelve mine for later?" Haru asked. "I want to put some serious thought into it."

"Sure. We'll shelve your codename for now," Ren said. "And that leaves you Shiho."

"Lioness," Shiho said instantly.

"Lioness?" Ren asked.

"Yes…I've never had control of my life, from my parents, my shadow, and to Kamoshida. I've always been someone's puppet to control but no more. I want to unleash the raging lion that I know beats inside my heart to drown Kamoshida in his sea of sin. So "Lioness" is my codename," Shiho answered.

"Sounds Fearsome. I like it," Ryuji said with a supportive thumbs-up.

"The Ferocious feline duo, we are Shiho-chan," Ann said with a wink and a grin, which caused Shiho to giggle and nod.

"And last but not least, we come to you, Ren," Morgana said.

"Joker," Ren said instantly.

"Joker? Why that?" Ryuji said.

Ren smirked and answered, "I don't know truthfully,…But that name holds a lot of weight in my heart. I don't think I can see myself being called anything different."

"I can see that," Morgana said. "Plus, you seem to have something special with being able to change persona. You're our wild card, the Joker."

Ren smirked confidently and said, "Then we're all set."

"But just because all of you can summon your personas doesn't mean you aren't rookies," Morgana said. "You guys have a long way to becoming Phantom Thieves, but hell, I think this is the start of a beautiful friendship we all got going. Now let's go change Kamoshida's heart and bring him to justice!"

"I'll toast to that," Ren said as he raised his cup of orange juice, prompting everyone to do the same. "To Kamoshida's defeat," Ren said.

"To Kamoshida's defeat!" The others chorused.

Rain: And that is the end of this chapter. So I decided that this chapter will be the official formation of the Phantom Thieves along with some future plot points. One, Ryuji's confidant will not involve the track team but will delve into something I felt was understated and that was his family life while also setting up Ren's own arc about his hometown and his relationship with his parents.

Also, this set up Ann beginning to focus more on Ryuji to start their romance along with but this will also set Haru down her path to start rebelling. The next chapter will be dealing with Makoto and Ren's notebook as well as the first calling card so until then…

Ren: Stop the show!