Captain Blues: Ahoy! And here we are at the middle of this mini-arc. So sit back, relax, and enjoy the show!

Persona V: Reversing the Wheel of Fate
Chapter Seventy-Seven

[Opening Scene: Aoharu City - Downtown (Flashback - Morning)
Theme of Defeat/Loss: Aoba Park from Persona 2: Innocent Sin (PSP)]

"Today was brutal, wasn't it?"

Sumire looked up at her older twin sister's face with a disheartened expression on her face. Her sister, Yoshizawa Kasumi, had brown eyes, auburn hair with a red bow to keep her hair in a ponytail, and a beauty mark next to her left eye.

Sumire immediately felt a mixture of jealousy and shame fill her veins. Jealousy at how perfect her sister looked, even at this moment, and shame for even feeling the prior emotion.

"Hey, you feeling okay?" Kasumi asked with concern.

Sumire shook her head and glanced down at the wet ground beneath her. "It's not that," Sumire whispered. "I just don't understand why I'm doing so poorly…Even with you and Ren-kun, I keep messing up my routines. If it weren't for the major tourney happening soon, I bet coach wouldn't have me on the team…"

"Hey," Kasumi started with a disbelieving tone. "Coach wouldn't do that. She's pretty understanding. Besides, you're being too hard on yourself, Sumi. Your growth spurt just changed your eye level. The same thing happened to me too, remember? You'll get used to it in time."

Kasumi then grinned, reached out, and ruffled Sumire's hair. "I can't believe you are as tall as I am now. It's only a matter of time before you tower over Rennie."

"But there isn't time, Kasumi," Sumire softly argued as she smacked Kasumi's hand away, which only made Sumrie feel guilty at the sudden sadness in her sister's eyes at the action. "The tourney is next week. I have to get the routine down."

"Sumi," Kasumi whispered.

"I just don't get it….We practice the same amount of time. No, I practice more than you do, and yet, you're the one that always gets first place," Sumire whispered with slumped shoulders. "I can't keep up with you, Kasumi…"

"Well, It is my birthright as the eldest sister of the family," Kasumi chirped.

Sumire felt her emotions plummet to the core of the earth but then she saw it. Sumire saw the look of sympathy cross her sister's face and wished she hadn't said anything.

If there was anything that made her feel terrible, it was when Kasumi was sympathetic to her. It only made these sick feelings that swirled within her regarding how she felt about Kasumi even worse.

"All jokes aside, I know it's frustrating to feel like you're not living up to your potential. But Sumi, you're trying as hard as possible," Kasumi told her with a gentle smile. "No one is asking you to be Supergirl, you know? Just do the best that you can every step of the way. That's all anyone can ever ask for you to do."

Sumire watched as Kasumi looked up at the tallest building downtown and said, "Besides, whether it's me or you, whoever is in first or second doesn't matter in the end. Because the two of us are going reach the top of the world…Together."

Sumrie stiffened as Kasumi recalled their dream.

"Together, we're going to reach the top!" A five-year-old Kasumi cheered within Sumire's mind.

"The Yoshizawa sisters, the aces of the gymnastic world!" A young Sumire's voice followed up, her voice just as cheerful and excited as her sister's.

It felt so long ago since that day they realized their dreams to revolutionize the gymnastic world and reign on top of it together.

But that was a day that would never come to be.

Because in the end, it was Kasumi that everyone wanted. It was Kasumi that was going to reach the top of the world. She was everything everyone wanted to be while she was…

She was nothing but a pale imitation with half of the skill Kasumi had.

Why couldn't she be like her?

"You don't get it," Sumrie whispered, not even realizing that she had just spoken out loud. "You'll never understand how I feel…"

[Scene Change: Metaverse - Unknown Palace
Theme of Thy True Self: Bomb Shelter from Persona 2: Innocent Sin (PSP Ver)]

The streets of downtown Aoharu splintered and then exploded into glass shards, revealing Sumire kneeling in front of Ren's unconscious body as Kasumi, still dressed in her black and gold tracksuit, watched her.

In the reflections of the shards of glass that floated around them showed snapshots of the immediate aftermath, from Sumire desperately trying to shake Kasumi awake, to their parents sobbing at the news, to the funeral, to finally Sumire meeting with a man shrouded in darkness, with only his square glasses being seen.

"Why are you here?" Sumire asked with a broken tone. "To torment me for robbing you of your life and your dreams? By becoming you?"

"Sumire….I came to help you," Kasumi answered, her tone saddened by the sight of her sister. "To help you see the truth and help you overcome it. Not to hurt you or haunt you…"

"What truth? That I'm the one that led you to your death?" Sumire asked. "Did you really think that I could live in this world as your killer?"

Kasumi winced and held her chest as orange shards of glass floated from her back. "Sumi, surely you can't believe that," Kasumi told her. "What happened was an accident."

"An accident that could have been prevented if I had just been able to control how I felt," Sumire retorted. "Instead, I ran away and ruined everything, for you and for our family. It would have been better if I had just died instead of you."

"You don't mean that," Kasumi gasped.

"Don't I?!" Sumire snapped. "Day in and day out, all you received were praises. From Coach Hiraguchi, from Mom and Dad, and from our peers. Heck, if Ren had met you first, he would've been your boyfriend! Everyone saw you, Kasumi, the ace gymnastic captain of Gorin Academy, as the best of the best while they only saw me as nothing more than your shadow!"

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

"I didn't even blame them," Sumire tearfully revealed. "You were the best, Kasumi. No one could touch you. You were meant for greatness and me? I wasn't mean for anything more than your backdrop…If I only accepted that being part of your story was my fate, you would still be here! You still be alive and living your dream. But instead, I did the most selfish and cruel thing in the world and got you killed!"

Kasumi watched in sheer disbelief at what she was hearing. Had her younger twin sister kept all of this inside for this long?

"Everyone mourned you, Kasumi. Everywhere I went, people were mourning you. You touched so many people's lives without knowing it and the guilt of what I did, of what I caused….I couldn't take it," Sumire tearfully divulged.

"I tried, over and over again, but eventually, Mom and Dad found out….When they did, they then sent me to a doctor, who said he could take away the pain and help me realize your dream of being the ace of the gymnastics world. All I had to was tell him what reality I wished to live in," Sumire revealed. "Would I live in a reality where all that's left is a dismal shadow of greatness…Or a reality where Yoshizawa Kasumi could live out her dreams and be the ace she was meant to become? Whichever one I decided, he would give it to me."

Sumire looked down at her hands and whispered, "…The world needed Yoshizawa Kasumi, and if all I had to do was erase Yoshizawa Sumire from the memories of everyone to get her back, then I would do it. It was a no-brainer…"

"So I offered myself and allowed him to do what was needed to help me achieve your dreams. And it worked," Sumire gasped with a watery smile. "Somehow, someway, everyone, except for my parents and Ren, saw me as you. I gave them Yoshizawa Kasumi back and buried Yoshizawa Sumire in the depths of Hell where she belonged…But now it's all gone, and the murderer of Yoshizawa Kasumi is back…"

Sumire looked at Kasumi and pleaded, "Please don't make me go back to being her sister's killer. I can't handle that pain again! It's too much for me to handle! I can't live that kind of life! I can't live as Kasumi's killer! Just let Sumire remain in the shadows where she belongs. Don't rob the world of Kasumi…"

"Sumire…" Kasumi whispered as she watched more tears fall from her younger twin's eyes. This was even more difficult than she could have ever imagined. Her sister was so far gone in her despair.

And then noticed it.

The Power of Melancholy was wrapped around her sister's body as a shroud of dark, thick, inky-blue ethereal energy. Kasumi buckled at the sharp pain in her chest. Her shadow was getting stronger. Was it this power that was increasing Sumire's Shadow?

No, she couldn't allow her sister to be swallowed by this despair.

It was funny, she thought it would be Ren who would be put in this position, and yet, it was fitting this way.

Because in the end, it always came to do just Sumire and her.

"Sumire," Kasumi began. "You keep referring to our dream as "My" dream. Did you forget that being a gymnast wasn't my original dream?"

Sumire's eyes widened in surprise.

"I actually wanted to be a chef, like Mom is, but I didn't know how to cook at all. I was really sad until I saw you watching something on TV. It was of a girl named Kimberly Ann Hart, an American Olympic Gold Medalist in gymnastics. You were amazed by her and wanted to do what she did. You were so enthusiastic by it, that it made me want to try it too. And then it became my dream too…" Kasumi smiled at the memory of her and Sumire, at five years old promising to be the greatest gymnasts in the world.

"All of it came easy to me. From the first day to my last, all of it was so easy…" Kasumi drifted off as she looked away. "And yet, despite everything that I just said, I despised being the ace."

"What?" Sumire breathed.

"You say that I was the ace and that nothing or no one could touch me, and you're right. Nothing or no one could touch me…Because people didn't want to," Kasumi revealed as she held her left forearm with her right hand. "Because I was seen in such a light, everyone assumed that I was high-maintenance, arrogant, or cold. Or they were envious of how pretty looked. Along with that, came the pressure of being skilled and being "On" all the time for everyone for every second of the day..." Kasumi took a harsh breath and asked, "Did you know that Coach Hiraguchi was going to kick me off the team?"

"What?" Sumire gasped.

Kasumi nodded. "She said that despite all the talent in the world, I didn't have the passion I needed to excel. She said it looked like I was just checked out," Kasumi explained. "And she was right. All of the expectations, all of the loneliness, it was crippling me. But it wasn't just that. It was also you. While I was struggling in this position, I watched you flourish. You had friends. Sure, it was a small group, but you had a sincere group of friends who wanted to be around you."

Kasumi turned to look at the boy on the ground with shameful affection. "You had Ren…" She admitted with a frown. "One of the sweetest guys around. The boy that every girl had a crush on, even me…I tried so hard to get him to notice me, but all he saw was you. He chose you. And to make it worse, you were a far better chef than I ever could be. You could have been the ace at cooking, even surpassing Mom, something I originally wanted to do, and that was on top of your skills in gymnastics!"

"I'm the eldest twin and yet, my little sister was so much better, not only at being a cook, but having friends and having Ren. Sumire, do you know what it's like for people to look at you but not see you? It was such a lonely feeling, S-Sumire…" Kasumi's voice broke as the memories filled her head but she quickly banished them.

No, this wasn't the time for that.

"I was so envious that everyone seemed to flock to you, how they seemed to see you, but only saw the perfect and superior ace version of me. All I wanted to do was just give up and be the aloof superstar everyone saw me as until the coach kicked me off of the team…Because what was the point of being the ace when you had no one to celebrate with?" Kasumi finished.

Kasumi could see the sheer shock on Sumire's face as she revealed her deepest feelings. "Do you remember the training session right before our second big tourney?" Kasumi asked.

"I-I do," Sumire mumbled. "You were so distant and cold that day."

"That was the point that I had finally given up," Kasumi admitted. "Everyone wanted the Ace Gymnist, Yoshizawa Kasumi. But not me. So I gave them that…But then, I watched you during that training session. You were struggling so hard with your routine, but I noticed something. You never gave up. You stood up and did it again, and again, and again, until you nailed it! I was so proud of you!"

"But that event made me admire you so much. Nothing ever came easy to you, Sumire. I know that because I've seen it. And yet, you never gave up! No matter how many times you fell, no matter how many times you failed, you always picked yourself up and tried again. You never let your failures bring you down. Meanwhile, I had all but given up on trying to be the real me and our dream of the two of us standing at the top, together."

Despite the pain, Kasumi moved to the other side of Ren's body and collapsed to the ground. Slowly, she took Sumire's hands and said, "When I had given up, you showed me the way. You inspired me to try harder to be the true Yoshizawa Kasumi and not the Superstar Ace that everyone wanted me to be. You did that. No one else… And it was because of that, that I truly began to shine and be the girl people mourned for two years later."

Tears of sparkling blue light fell from Kasumi's eyes as she shouted, "So to hear you, and see you, the girl that inspired me to just be me, give up, and try to live in my shadow hurts! It hurts, Sumire! Because I wouldn't have been Yoshizawa Kasumi without Yoshizawa Sumire!"

Sumire looked thunderstruck at this reveal.

"I don't want you to be what everyone thought I was. I don't want you to face the crippling loneliness and isolation that I faced being the Ace. I don't want people to see the perfect Superstar when they look at you. I just want them to see you!" Kasumi continued. "That's all I could ever want. All that I could ever ask for!"

Sumire bowed her head and whispered, "But why? Why would anyone want to see me? I killed you…Who would want to see a killer?"

Kasumi lifted her sister's head to make her sister look at her and answered, "Me. Let me see you. The real you."

Tears streamed down Sumire's cheeks. "Even now?" Sumire tearfully asked. "After everything?"

"Of course," Kasumi said with a wide smile. "All this time, we only saw what was on the surface. And it led to this dark road between us. But through it all, one thing has remained the same. You're my sister. My inspiration. The person I care about most of all. The one that will carry our dreams as Yoshizawa Sumire…Why wouldn't I want to see who you really are?"

The pain in Kasumi's body was replaced with renewed power as she stood up and held out her hand. "But I can't force you to reveal yourself to me. The only one that can allow me to see thy true self, is you," Kasumi told her. "What do you wish for, sister? Will you let me see thy true self? Or will you resume hiding beneath my mask?"

[Theme of Realization: The Voice of Someone Calls from Persona 3]

Sumire looked up at her sister with a conflicted expression on her face. Everything that her sister told her, she knew it was true. She didn't know how or why, but the truth reverberated in her naked soul.

A part of her wanted to hide away within the mask of Yoshizawa Kasumi, the mast of her sister. And yet, hearing her sister admit to all those things, was staggering but it showed who Kasumi is. She was brave and confident, even when she was admitting her weaknesses and faults.

Sumire bowed her head and glanced at her hands.

Sumire wanted to make Kasumi proud and live as Yoshizawa Sumire again, but she was so scared to live in that reality. But it was that cowardice that led her to take the hand of that man, allowing him to hide her beneath Kasumi's mask.

Sumire replayed her sister's words in her head, she realized the truth. She couldn't go back to that mask. Not only because of her sister's words. But because deep down, she knew it was wrong. Because Kasumi was right. Whenever she failed, she always got back up to keep trying. And while that aspect of her got lost in her self-hatred and jealousy, that aspect of her could never fade away.

"Kasumi," Sumire whispered. "I've been truly helpless, haven't I? Hanging my head low, taking his hand, allowing him to place your mask over my face, all because of my insecurities and guilt for what happened…"

Sumire balled up her hand into a fist.

"Even now, as my life hangs in the balance, you stayed to yourself, even when admitting the dark truths in your heart. How could in my right mind turn away your hand now, Kasumi?" Sumire asked as she looked up at her sister's glowing blue eyes. "It'll be a long road, to not only forgive myself but to seek forgiveness for hiding away for so long from our parents, from Ren, from you, and from myself. But no matter how many times I fall, no matter how many times I fail, I will stand back up and try again! Because I won't stop until our dreams are realized!"

"Then tell me, what is thy answer?" Kasumi asked.

Sumire's eyes flashed blue as she accepted Kasumi's hand and replied, "Good or bad, I want you to see me, Cendrillion! See everything that I am!"

"Finally," Kasumi whispered, her crystal-blue eyes radiating pure light.

[Theme of Awakening: Awakening from Persona 5]

A black mask with silver highlights appeared on Sumire's face. She gasped at the mask and began to tug as her sister's voice said, "Such tenacity. It seems to fit you like a glass slipper, Sumire. And all it took was for you to slip them on for yourself, revealing who you truly are to the world around you."

Sumire tugged at the mask even harder as her sister's voice continued, "These glass slippers are an icon of glory. Not just for you, but the girl that resides within us as well. Never again, shall we allow the false prince to put his spell on us and force his cindered slippers upon our feet again."

Sumire struggled with all of her might as she could feel the mask slowly tearing away from her face as the warm voice said, " I am thou, thou art I…You are prepared for your long-awaited debut? The Ball awaits…"

"Certainly!" Sumire screamed as she finally removed the mask, blood splattering into the air, followed by an immense power.

Mona skidded in front of Ren's body and fell to one knee as the three shadows surrounded him. He was so tired but he couldn't allow himself to falter yet.

He struggled to his feet and staggered forward as he held his blade forward.

It was then he felt it.

An unbelievable amount of power coming from behind him.

"What is that?!" Evil Synthetic Organism exclaimed.

Mona barely turned around before a bright crystal-blue light exploded from behind him. Mona then realized something. His wounded, his exhaustion, they were slowly going away.

What was going on?

Mona turned around to see Sumire but was surprised to see that she had changed.

Sumire now wore a black ribbon tied to her ponytail, a strapless black leotard with a sweetheart neckline, a chain belt with two silver rose motifs with a scabbard for her rapier attached to it, a black choker, and red gloves.

She also wore a gold-buttoned black bolero jacket with ruffled flared sleeves and three floor-length coattails, thigh-length hose, and stiletto lace-up pumps that resembled ballet shoes on the top.

Behind her floated a humanoid woman with ash-black skin and blue crystalline glass clothing.

Her torso was covered by a glass dress, with a teal rhombus/diamond-shaped centerpiece covered in black numbers, with a diamond-shaped jewel in the center. Her waist is surrounded by a floating circle of golden armor with ornate heart and wing designs.

Her legs are completely covered by what seems to be a pair of glass thigh-high boots with sharp gold spikes at the end. She has blue eyes and blonde hair, with her hair tied in a light blue ribbon, whose ends seem to float in the air. Cendrillon's white cape flows down to her waist from a set of floating glass hearts that levitate just behind her neck and red lipstick.

Beneath the two, Joker's body was healed from his severe wounds and he slowly leaned up and turned to see Sumire and gasped. "Okay…this is definitely new," he murmured.

Sumire grinned and said, "Ren, there is a lot we have to talk about. But right now, I'm about to start a brand new routine. Will you and your friend assist me in gaining a high score?"

Joker moved to his feet and said, "Yeah. For old times' sake."

Sumire grinned and pulled out her rapier as she said, "Sister, you with me?"

"Always," Cendrillion answered. "Let us show these fools how the Yoshizawa sisters get down!"

Sumire smirked.

"Certainly."

Captain Blues: And that's the end of this chapter. The next chapter will end the mini-arc and start the Kaneshiro arc, so until then, time to set sail!