Author's Notes: A very good (almost) Autumn to you all! Hard to believe it's been less than seven months and we've made it this far into the greatest Persona 5 fic on the internet, isn't it? But here we are, and on we will go until we get to the end with all the ups and downs on offer. There might even be one such twist in this very chapter.

Before we get too carried away, here's a nod to my excellent reviewers:

UltimateCCC: Might be, or might not. But what will they go through in the meantime?

Sora Hashinara: Thanks! I'm glad you liked it, and hopefully you like this one and what's to follow.

Many thanks to Firion as always, helping make this from a good story to the best one you guys will read anywhere. Also, some musical accompaniment for the chapter is Athena Cykes from the Ace Attorney 6 soundtrack.

Now then, off we go! See you guys on October 14th!

All or Nothing

The Niijima residence was quiet that Saturday evening. It was quiet most evenings, afternoons and mornings, but this time one of its two inhabitants was particularly pensive, and the house reflected that. Her shoes sat cockeyed next to each other on the mat, not parallel in their usual millimetric precision. Her coat had missed the coat stand and now lay astride an arm of the nearby couch. In her room, her school bag had been dropped by her bed, not upon it or next to the table where she could open it and get started on homework. The only part of her usual routine being observed was the stroking of her favorite Buchi-kun plush, but as she lay on her bed and stared at the ceiling those strokes were half-hearted at best.

That as much as half of Niijima Makoto's heart could be put into these things was progress. She'd been in her head and on autopilot since the assembly at school the day before. She'd heard of the message on the school bulletin board, had seen pictures of it and asked the advising teachers about the allegations – as outlandish as they sounded, they were serious enough to warrant proper consideration.

All lies, that's what she'd been told. Kamoshida-sensei's subsequent absence was totally unrelated, and the rumors were just rumors.

To then hear him confess to those crimes, passionately demanding censure and incarceration, tearfully confirming his guilt before the largest audience the school could provide, it felt like her world had shifted a few small, crucial degrees. She'd wondered if she'd dreamt the whole event, but everyone else had an expression of disbelief and dawning horror on their faces, much the same as what she was sure she wore herself. The reactions of the faculty all spoke to her of unmistakable guilt.

But that couldn't be right. The teachers were the authority of the school. It was in their employment contract (she'd taken the opportunity to read it and all other relevant documents when she joined the student council) that they were responsible as the guardians of their students while on school grounds. The penalties for breaking that rule were clearly outlined and had been put into action when Shintani-sensei had been arrested. Principal Kobayakawa himself had reinforced how strict the rules of conduct were…

So why had he acted like that on the stage? Why had the teachers told everyone to leave like this was something to hide? She had told Kurusu-san that there were procedures in place to protect students, that abuse would be prevented or investigated to the fullest extent of the law.

But if the rules and laws had failed Suzui-san and all those other girls, if those entrusted with that duty of protection had violated it, then…

She looked, not for the first time, at the picture on her nightstand of her and Daddy, her father laughing into the camera as he held his giggling six-year-old daughter. His oaths as a police officer, his unshaken code in the pursuit of justice, they circled her mind as she tried to make sense of it all.

The sound of a key to the front door pulled her from her thoughts. She figured she must have been staring at the ceiling all day, but she checked her bedside clock and frowned. No one besides her should be here. Getting up from bed, she left her room and went to the entrance.

A familiar figure was slipping off her shoes and raising an eyebrow at the coat askew on the couch. Niijima Sae, still in her work clothes, turned and smiled at her.

"Sis," Makoto greeted as she approached. "You're home early."

Calling it early was polite. It was not uncommon for Sae to stay away for several days at a stretch when a big case was going on. Pushing it to a week had happened once or twice. Makoto was acquainted with the duty officers at the government housing building when taking Sae fresh clothes or toiletries. When Sae was on someone's trail, she never let up and often lost track of everything else before coming up for air.

Now, however, she was shrugging out of her coat and setting Makoto's in place, home during normal working hours. "I took the night off. I wanted to see you."

"Of course," Makoto smiled.

The smile must have let something slip, because Sae asked, "Is there something wrong?"

"No, but this is a bit… different. You aren't usually home at this time of day."

"Hm. Well, tonight is different."

"How?"

"I heard the name of your school at work today. A teacher at Shujin was arrested after confessing to attacking a student of his?"

Makoto nodded. "Kamoshida-sensei. The gym teacher who went to the Olympics. He… he said he raped Suzui Shiho."

"The girl who jumped from the roof?"

"Yes." Makoto was surprised she knew that name.

It must have shown on her face. Sae elaborated, "You mentioned her. And that's not such a common thing that it wouldn't stand out." She stepped closer, looking Makoto over intently. "Are you all right? Did he try anything with you?"

"No, Sis. I'm okay. In gym class he was like any other teacher. He never crossed any lines or even spoke to me very much."

Sae's eyes narrowed. "Nothing? Not anything, no matter how minor or innocuous? Nothing that could have been more than just a teacher interacting with his student?"

"Nothing. I promise, he didn't come near me."

"You look uncomfortable. I'd never say you're lying to me, but…"

"I have a lot on my mind, but it's only tangentially related to that – I swear to you that Kamoshida-sensei never touched me. I'd tell you and everyone else at school if anyone tried that."

Sae deflated, her aggressive pursuit curtailed by her apparent relief. For a moment she looked like she was going to hug Makoto, her hands even twitching, but she didn't. "Good. That's... that's good. If anything like that happens, you know what to do, right?"

"Yes. I have your number and I've been keeping up with what Daddy taught me."

"Even better. I won't allow anything to happen to you. And you have a long life and a good career ahead of you, we can't let anything get in the way of that."

Makoto hedged, as she often did when the subject of her future job prospects came up. She made to deflect with, "Except for a dependable boyfriend or a good husband, right?"

The attempt at humor sank. Sae's eyes narrowed. "You haven't mentioned any boys from school so far. Is there someone you like in that capacity?"

"No, Sis," the younger girl sighed. "It was just a joke."

Sae eased up enough to smile, but it looked awkward on her. "Right. Well, you remember and you've been sensible about that sort of thing so far. I'm glad I don't have to worry about that where you're concerned."

Makoto wasn't sure how to take that. She'd never been asked out for so much as a group play date in elementary school, and it was starting to weigh on her to see other girls with their boyfriends while she remained single and seemingly ignored. Wasn't first love supposed to be part of one's school experience? Did boys not think of her as a girl? Was there something wrong with her?

"What's on your mind?" Sae asked. "You said there was something bothering you."

Whining to her Big Sis over her lack of dating prospects would probably fall on deaf ears – Makoto couldn't recall the last time Sae went on a date or even expressed in conversation her preference in men. The very idea felt foreign. "Suzui-san," Makoto answered instead. "I was told by someone that she was in a bad state. The day she jumped I was going to speak to her about it. That same afternoon, and I… Only it wasn't just her. There were other names Kamoshida-sensei mentioned. Other girls he… attacked. He said he did terrible things to them. Did you hear about that?"

"Not the specifics, no."

"Those girls aren't at Shujin anymore," Makoto went on. "The things he said, what he did to them and where they ended up, who could they go to for help? Shintani-sensei, one of the gym teachers at Shujin before I got there, was charged and convicted for inappropriate conduct with a student, but that turned out to be arranged to frame him. No one else stood up for those girls, not one of the other teachers. Every last one of them was supposed to protect their students from this."

"That's what the police are for," was the answer. "I looked into the case before I came home. Parents made accusations and complaints before, but Principal Kobayakawa intervened and said that the reports were false. Without evidence to follow, the cases were dropped. Some of the officers thought there was more going on than what was being said, but there wasn't anything to justify reopening any investigations." Sae let out a regretful sigh. "They get lots of prank calls and false accusations. Too many to respond to with all the other files on their desks. Most of the time cases like this go nowhere, it's just someone looking to get a teacher in trouble. This was the exception, and it's too bad it happened."

"The consequences are…" Makoto hesitated. "I can't imagine going through that, believing that no one cares. For that to be the only way out. Where are those girls now?"

"Preparing a joint claim lawsuit, if they or their families are smart."

"But in the moment, when this was going on and they were alone with nowhere to go to for help, no one was there for them, except…"

"Except?"

"The people who said they would bring Kamoshida-sensei to justice this time. The Phantom Thieves." Makoto described the notes on the bulletin board, the vow of reprisal for the victims and the calling card that had caught her eye.

Sae smirked tolerantly. "Vandals and graffiti and a criminal's convenient turn of behavior. There's nothing supernatural about it. Either Kamoshida was terrified he was going to be exposed after he took it too far with Suzui-san, or someone got irrefutable proof of his crimes so he admitted to it before he was arrested. I've seen it before."

"For how he looked when he was confessing, I feel like it's more than that. You should have been there, Sis. I've never seen anyone break down like that."

"I'd believe it, trust me. I've made some pretty hard characters crack like eggs when they realize where they're going."

That was a point Makoto couldn't deny. Prison in Japan was no joke, and maximum security for the major crimes was a serious thing. Forced labor, solitary confinement, and huge fines were common sentences, and that didn't cover the social black listing of convicts after they'd done their time. "That… hm. Do you think so? Just normal cause and effect?"

"Yes. Don't let someone fill your head with nonsense about mystical thieves fighting for the people or someone stepping in for the sake of setting things right. 'Heroes' like that don't exist."

Those words sounded like more than a statement. There was a hint of something deeper that Makoto understood and didn't want to dig into. Daddy and Mom lay in that direction. "I'll have to find out why I didn't hear about any of this," she said instead. "The teachers didn't say anything about girls being abused, and the other students never told me there were complaints against Kamoshida-sensei." She looked up, putting some pieces together. "Actually, he might be the only one who no one complained about. Maybe that should have been a clue."

"Should it?" Sae asked. "Careful about inflating your view of things. You are just a student. The extent of your responsibilities on the student council is planning events, taking polls of student opinion, and keeping the library, health and disciplinary committees in check. No one expects you to preside over something this big, and those who do try to drop it in your lap aren't doing so for your benefit."

"People see the president as someone they can come to with cases like this," Makoto insisted. "I expect that much of myself."

"Maybe. Don't beat yourself up too much – people aren't always reasonable in their expectations, and you have exams coming up."

"Yes, Sis."

The night passed with a pleasant dinner between them. Makoto studied before going to bed, but one thought wouldn't rest no matter how much she willed it to, the thing she hadn't asked of Sae. What Kamoshida-sensei did was evil, of that there was no question. But if that was true then the people who brought him to justice, however they did it, had to be right. Did that mean that the moral answer here had come from the Phantom Thieves like the letter said? When those who went unheard had no other place to turn to, when the proper authorities were proven to be insufficient like Kurusu-san said, was this how the victims got justice? Was the right answer really outside the bounds of the law, regardless of what Sis and Daddy taught her? But if that was true then what role did the police play in society? What did it say of the law if the moral answer could be pursued in spite of it?

Those thoughts rippled across her mind, the gentle touch at the epicenter going unnoticed and unheeded as Makoto turned herself into knots for an answer that never came.

7 7 7

"Here we are, Miss."

The young woman thanked the driver, getting a congenial nod in return, and stepped out of the car. The house staff greeted her and bowed, doors were opened for her, and as she made her way to her room she gave her regards to the servants she met along the way and received smiles in reply.

As her bedroom doors closed behind her, she reflected on how fake they all were.

She'd always believed herself to be friendly, if not friends, with people around her. Those who worked for her father had known her all her life, addressed her warmly and had always seemed just an arm's reach away if she ever needed anything beyond the bounds of an employer and her staff. Not that she did, of course – Father would disapprove of her getting that close – but she could have if the circumstances demanded. Ever since that day, though, certain faces seemed much less trustworthy. Speech as she passed that had seemed innocuous now stood out to her as contemptuous, and the open hands of those around her were there for her to focus on so she didn't see the sneers. Not in every case, but in enough that she knew she wasn't imagining it.

That hadn't been the only thing to change. When she sat at her vanity and brushed her hair, the corners of the mirror wavered as though it were crafted from water instead of glass. At times she imagined that someone was watching her from her own reflection, or that there was a room on the other side awaiting its mistress to return. At others, she found herself humming tunes she'd never heard before. When she practiced dancing, whether ballet or ballroom, she had the sense of someone being on the floor with her. Not merely the visualization of a partner to shadow, but some watching presence that did not mean ill upon her. When she tried to grasp that feeling, she only ended up losing her balance and falling to her backside. She would often laugh at her musings – how could anyone watch her if there wasn't anyone else in the room? – but the feeling of a patient someone persisted.

Then there was the day of the assembly. Kamoshida-sensei's confession had shocked the entire school. Even now she could still hear his shouts and sobs. But what stood out to her the most was the image going around, the symbol of the Phantom Thieves. Something about the burning mask and top hat felt familiar. Not to the point where she could say where she'd encountered it, but more that she wasn't surprised to see it in the first place, and she couldn't explain why. What she did know was that none of these thoughts had come to her before… before ending up in that place.

She still dreamt of wherever that was – the screaming winds and the sense of wrongness that clung to that castle like a scent, and the thief with the white mask and the long black coat. She hadn't told anyone about what she'd seen there, how she'd run scared without looking back – she didn't think for one second that they would believe her. On the few occasions where she had thought of doing so, she got the sense that she shouldn't like a phantom finger was put to her lips.

She shook her head. Such notions were dandelion fluff and dust motes on moonbeams. Whatever the cause, she just had to go on being who she was and doing what she did. She changed out of her uniform and went about her day.

It was at school on Monday the 29th when she crossed paths with the new transfer student. She hadn't had the chance to meet him, and when that thought came to mind she smiled to herself. No, she'd had whatever chances she'd taken the time to create – the problem was that she hadn't used the opportunity, and that wouldn't do. He was a newcomer and he deserved having at least one person greet him properly. She approached him in the hallway where he stood talking with a blond second-year, waited for a lull in their conversation, and greeted him with, "Good morning!"

They blinked and turned to her. The transfer student was lean and tall even for a boy, he had dark, wavy hair she could imagine was soft to the touch, and he watched her through large, unflattering glasses. When she focused past them, she saw that he had deep, gray eyes. They would look better if he wore glasses that were less obvious, something curved with a slim profile to fit the feline angles of his face.

He smiled uncertainly and answered in a soft voice, "Good morning."

"You're new here, right? How are you liking Shujin so far?"

The blonde smirked and left. The guy scratched the back of his head. "It's been… interesting."

"Because of what happened on Friday?"

He grimaced. "A lot of people have been talking about that."

"It is a pretty big deal."

"Sure, but this is all a lot of nonsense. Now everyone is jumping on the bandwagon like they were on it right from the start." He looked to the side. "You'd never think they stood around letting it all happen in the first place, probably staying silent to graduate and get out of here, never thinking about it afterward."

"That's one way of looking at it," she hedged before steering into a more mundane topic. "Where are you from? Was it anything like Tokyo?"

"Aga, near Niigata. It's different from this place, quiet and much smaller. But the people were the same, always itching for the juiciest bit of gossip. It was at least this bad because Aga's out in the sticks – people were starved for drama."

She shuffled a little. "I guess it does seem like that. Well, I hope it hasn't been too bad of an experience for you."

He looked over, seeming surprised. "You haven't heard of me, have you?"

"No. Should I have?"

"If you haven't yet then don't worry about it. It's nice to talk to someone who doesn't get caught up in that stuff."

"I'm glad I could help." She wasn't sure if that counted as helping, but it seemed like a nice thing to say. "Well, I should get going. I just came over to say hello and welcome you here, even if the welcome is a little late."

"I appreciate that and the sentiment."

"You're Kurusu-kun, right? I'm Okumura Haru."

"Nice to meet you, Okumura-senpai. Thanks for talking."

Haru nodded in reply and left. He was rather awkward and quiet, but he seemed like a nice boy.

7 7 7

This day was becoming one of the worst in Akira's time at Shujin. He'd had enough for some pretty good points of comparison, but before he even arrived at school it had turned into a circus. The conversations he overheard from the other students on the commute were all about Kamoshida and his confession. Were the chatter just about the ramifications and scale of the crimes committed, that would have been understandable; things like this didn't happen every day and people would have a lot to say on the subject. But the first bits of talk Akira encountered were ones where everyone now suddenly couldn't stop bringing up the abuses.

"I knew there had to be something up with Yamagata! She'd never turn on her boyfriend like that without someone leaning on her!"

"Niijima must have known about some of this, don't you think? You don't get to be president of the student council with clean hands!"

"Using Namba like that. How low can you go? Poor girl deserved better than that. People should have spoken up for her."

"Tachibana was always really nice. For her to leave never made sense; my brother and I both said so. Now we know why."

"Which teachers do you suppose were in on it? My money's on Kawakami-sensei. I've seen her talk to Kamoshida a lot; that can't be a coincidence."

"I've heard guys say they've seen Miya working a corner in Shibuya. I always figured it was a lie, but if that's true then Kamoshida has to pay!"

The pretense and self-righteousness made Akira's vision shift toward red. Here were students who had looked the other way or been complicit in their silence from the very beginning, yet now that the tyrant had been toppled they were all speaking as though they'd had the silver bullet in their back pocket the entire time. No mention of going to the police with this evidence of theirs to fortify the case, no word of support given to the victims or talking to others about networking to prevent it from happening again, just bloviating with stolen valor now that there was a target to take shots at with impunity. Akira listened only so he could get a metric of the school sentiment, but quickly wished for a different topic to arise. Meeting Ryuji halfway through the trip only marginally improved his mood – there were more students to walk with, so there was more crap being flung around.

School had been no better. Snide remarks and suppositions prevailed about the teachers and their accountability in the crimes, about the inactivity of the student council and the current president who was said to not care about any of it, and even about Suzui-san. Girls Akira passed by huddled together and spouted venom about whether she'd set Kamoshida up, whether she'd found out about the other girls and hooked him to crater his life, and whether she knew that there were those whose sports aspirations were tarnished by Kamoshida's confession, others whose careers would never even start now. How selfish of her! She was selfish, too; she had to be! No one was that nice!

He'd had to catch Ann-san before she could rip into them. As it was, her spinning around with murder in her eyes was enough to disperse the chatterboxes, but the mood remained below sea level.

It stayed that way when Akira overheard the members of the volleyball team. The narratives shifted with the wind, at times stating that they had put up with Kamoshida's abuse only so they could speak to the police and provide evidence of the crimes now, or that they were his most beaten victims for what they went through, that they'd been cowed into submission from what a cruel, vicious monster he was. Some even brushed off their injuries, saying they hadn't been as badly hurt as they seemed so they were stronger than him – though only now that he wasn't around to hear that – while a few even lied through their teeth saying that they were the ones who tipped off the Phantom Thieves, insinuating that Kamoshida had been brought low only because of their heroic endurance of his punishment.

Akira wasn't sure if he should even touch his food for fear of puking it back up.

The one bright point was Okumura-senpai, warm and fluffy as fresh bread if completely unexpected in her hospitable demeanor. Her questions were normal and Akira regretted that his day had been such that normalcy was beyond his ability just then.

Last had been Mishima, the worst by far. The student had trailed Akira most of the day, dragging up the courage to come up to him in his class at the end of lunch and say, "Now that Kamoshida isn't around, I can talk to you."

Akira sighed as he glanced over. "About what?"

"Do you think I'm evil because of what he made me do? Some people have said that today, and others look at me as if… I didn't have a choice; you don't know what it was like."

"I didn't ask, Mishima. It has nothing to do with me."

Mishima went on, undeterred. "He found out about you before you even got here. Something about you having a record back home. He had me spread those rumors."

Akira straightened, turning to face him with full attention. "Is that so?"

"Yeah. That was how he operated. He got to people early and wore them down without being the person to do it. If it had gone on long enough, he'd have gotten to you too."

"Like he did with you? He pushed you into doing his bidding because you wouldn't stick up for yourself or go to the cops, right?"

Mishima looked away.

Akira went on. "You admitted to lying to the whole school about me, someone you'd never met. You're telling me this as though you're free of any responsibility just because he was pulling the strings, like you're not a thinking, functioning human being because someone scary had your number. Don't lump me in with you or any of these other idiots who are suddenly all talk now that he's gone. We're not alike."

"You don't think so?"

"Basic pattern recognition is all you need to see the obvious."

"No, I guess you aren't like us. You're different. Like you could fight back." Mishima got a feverish look in his eyes. "Did you put that message up? Are you one of the Phantom Thieves?"

Half the conversations in the room stopped right then.

Akira's eyebrows raised. "What?"

"You had reason to hate Kamoshida–"

"So do Ryuji and a lot of other people nowadays."

"But you were Sakamoto's friend first. Kamoshida went after you, and I heard he was going to have you expelled. And you just transferred in. It's always the transfer student who comes in to save the day!"

Most of the students shook their heads and went back to their chatter. Akira couldn't hide his incredulity. "Are you serious? A TV plot line and a vague connection that could apply to anyone in this school, that's your evidence?"

"It's right, isn't it?"

"You need to read better manga and watch different shows. There've been other transfer students here before, I'm sure, and unless you have some idea on how I could go around stealing someone's heart without using a scalpel, you're just grabbing at straws."

"But if you were one of them…"

"I'm not. Your line of questioning is irrelevant."

Footsteps approached. Mishima turned to see who it was, then did a very convincing impression of a sheet.

Ann-san glared at him, a snarl on her face. "You."

"I… I…"

"You're near my seat. Get away from it and stay out of my class."

People were watching again.

"Takamaki-san–"

"You set Shiho up. You were Kamoshida's messenger boy, you knew what he was doing and you said nothing. No notes to the police, no records to help her now, nothing. You threw Shiho to the wolves to save your own skin. Better her than you, right?"

"If I hadn't, he would have…"

She closed in. "What? Scared you? Hurt you?"

"That wasn't all! What he would have… it wasn't nothing to me!"

"Shiho almost died. Her head is stitched and stapled closed from when they operated on her. Operated! Her arms and legs are a wreck. They don't know if she'll walk properly again. She was sent to Kamoshida by you, do you know what he did to her? I know; shall I tell you? And you're here talking about how bad you had it?"

"Y-yes, I did that, but I didn't have a choice!"

"You're just making excuses, Mishima," Akira pointed out. "It's all Kamoshida's fault for pushing you, all his fault for being a monster and picking on the weakling of the pack. Never your fault that you went along with it, that you pitched in or stayed silent and made things worse just like everyone else here. Stop pretending you're innocent."

Mishima protested, "I am! He was a monster! You're attacking me, but I'm a victim here!"

"You're wasting my time. You need to leave if you aren't going to help make the situation better."

Ann-san grated, "Get out. Don't come back here without a written invitation."

"It wasn't my fault! I'm just trying to help! The Phantom Thieves would understand! They'll take down criminals like Kamoshida, whatever it takes!"

"OUT!"

Mishima scurried toward the door to the note of dead silence. The class either turned and stared or looked everywhere but at the pair.

She flounced into her seat, cupping her face. "That was too loud."

Akira took his chair. "You did better than I would have."

"Do you think…"

"No. He's grasping like everyone else is, and no one looks like they're taking him seriously."

"You've heard what people are saying, right? They're just words and people are going to behave differently after something that big, but…"

"Yeah. I get it."

"Accusations, backstabbing, the whole place going crazy. Is this what we fought for?"

Akira had no answer, and it weighed on him the rest of the day until he and the others left school at Morgana's instruction. The conversations around them were even worse than that morning, and Ryuji almost got into two fights telling the speakers to shut up. The three took a different route to be free of the noise, waiting and dodging packs of Shujin students without even trying to hide it. Finally they got to the train terminal and went down an unoccupied side corridor. "What are we doing here, Morgana?" Akira asked.

The cat got out of the bag, told them, "Follow me," and went to a corner past the restrooms, probably where the janitors kept the cleaning supplies. "Now take out your phones."

They did. A new destination blinked cheerily on the screen. "Mementos?" Akira asked. "What's that?"

"Make sure we're alone, then let's go."

They checked the corners, then hit the button. The world shifted and swirled dark and red, but more than when they'd gone to the castle. The noise around them quieted and changed, and the terminal now looked like something out of a horror movie. This wasn't a place or normal transit anymore, but the station for the train that carried the damned and departed. Haunting wisps lit the rail lines and the tunnels were dark and howled like predators.

"The train station's a Palace now?" Skull asked. "Whose?"

"Everyone's," Mona answered. "The collective unconscious of the people in Tokyo has made this place. It's not specific enough to create a unique Palace, not like what Kamoshida had, but it's leaning in that direction."

"You're talking about millions of people," Panther pointed out. "They've made this? What're we supposed to do about it?"

"Fix it. I think."

"You don't know?"

Mona sniffed and winced. "This place has the same stink to it that the castle did. The Shadows are here, and wherever they gather is a place we have to find and destroy."

Skull shook his head. "Look at the size of this place. How many heart would we have to steal to make a difference?"

"Fewer than you think, but even if it's a lot of work, we still have to do it."

"Why?"

"Because Suzui-san wasn't the only victim of someone like Kamoshida. There are others like him, and they need to be stopped. This is proof of that, and there has to be someone or something behind it."

Joker recalled Igor's words about a looming evil and other possible perpetrators. It seemed something was actually going on. "When did you find out about this place?"

"The other day, when I was looking for a fence for our stuff."

"Why's this our problem?" Skull asked sourly.

"We're Phantom Thieves," Mona answered. "Dealing with this is what we do."

Skull snorted. "For who? Why? Who's payin' us?"

"You made contracts with your Personas to rebel and bring down people like Kamoshida, right?"

"Which means we can rebel against your rules as easily," Panther replied. "It's our power to use as we like."

"Not for some dipshits who're gonna spit on us and be as bad as the bastards we brought down," Skull added. "You heard that shit today, right? No way I'm fightin' for them."

"That's temporary," Mona insisted.

"Is it?" Joker asked. "The same people who said and did nothing before, begging for a savior, are chewing at each other and acting like they had no say in their own situation. They aren't going to change; they're weak and rotten to the core. Why should we help them? What if we created another Kamoshida by taking him down?"

"That's on them," Mona replied. "Maybe there are bad people in the bunch, but there were always going to be. You're not fighting for them; you're fighting for the good ones who don't deserve what'll happen to them if we do nothing."

"Does that balance it out?" Panther inquired.

"You tell me. Would you have let Suzui-san be left unavenged if it meant not hearing what you did today? I wouldn't have, that's why I was there in the first place."

"So we're the servants of whoever needs us? Fighting for diminishing returns and helping people who won't stick up for us or themselves anyway?"

Mona answered, "You don't know that, and what's the alternative? Going off on your own and hitting back against whoever you don't like? How many people are on that list? Rebellion without a cause is dangerous, to you and to the innocent around you. Without rules and a goal, you'll become what you hate and fear, or even worse."

"We saw what Kamoshida did to everyone," Joker protested. "We would never take it that far."

"No? If you think that, you're wrong. You have this power, but do you know what kind of damage you can do with it if you screw up? We're dealing with people's psyches – real minds tied to real, human lives. If you break them, even by accident, they're stuck like that with no chance of help or repair – you don't get a do-over. Or maybe you think you'll be moral and ethical about changing hearts by swinging at whoever's right in front of you, is that it?" Mona turned. "You barely know anything about anything, Panther – you and Carmen would have killed Kamoshida if we hadn't stopped you. Guess how that would have looked on this side. Who would have been the bigger monster than him in that case?"

She flared, "That's none of your business!"

"If you go do your own thing you'll end up the same as him or worse, because you're angry or afraid of–"

"Shut up! Your rules haven't helped us, have they!? Not if we made things worse by taking that bastard down!"

"Then make it better!" Mona snapped back. "You avenged Suzui-san, you can handle some rough words, and if this bothers you that much, do something about it! Show them they're wrong and the ones you were ever going to convince will follow you!"

Skull snorted. "You heard them, didn't you? Those idiots at school were always cowards, and we made that situation worse. You think I'm gonna do that again? Forget it. I'm out."

"Until another teacher comes along, or a bully or a boss," Mona pointed out. "You'll get scared they'll end up like Kamoshida so you'll attack them first or corner yourself in paranoia. You'll change someone's heart who doesn't deserve it and you'll end up breaking them. Because that can happen when you don't know what you're doing, and you guys don't, do you? This is who you are now, Skull. You made the deal – you don't get to walk away from it!"

"That won't happen."

"Really? Look me in the eye and say you wouldn't use this power to prevent what happened to your leg from happening again. Tell me, who might end up hurt in that case?"

Skull couldn't hold that stare. "Screw this. I'm gone."

"Same," Panther said. "I did my part, it's got nothing to do with me now."

"We're not heroes," Joker concluded. "That's not what we're here for."

Mona's ears drooped for a moment, but then they went back as his eyes narrowed. "A duel then."

"What?"

"I challenge you three to a duel. If any of you win, I'll go find some different thieves and you can do what you like. If I win, you listen to what I have to say without arguing."

"You'd be fighting all of us, Mona. That's not necess–"

"It is to me. There's something I have to do and I can't do it alone. I need people I can trust, people willing to go to the wall for what they believe in. Either you're those guys or I'll find the ones who are." He looked at them coldly. "If you're just punks who're going to make things worse and then whine about it like those weaklings you're complaining about, if you think I'm some annoying cat, then what do you have to lose?"

"That wasn't…"

"Or if you aren't like that, prove it. But you'll do as I say, follow my lead, because we're dealing with the minds of people who can't fight back – either you take it seriously or you're just failures and mistakes waiting to happen."

Skull rolled his shoulder, growling, "Pretty mouthy for a fur ball, aren't you?"

Mona fired back, "Three on one shouldn't be a problem for you, right? Let's go."

"All right. You're on."

Skull had barely said it before the stone under Mona's feet steamed and went red. The cat darted to the side, narrowly tumbling free of the explosion but getting pelted by shrapnel. Panther glowed blue, Carmen manifesting behind her with an eager grin. Flames blazed and raked the cat's fur, but he flung his paws out. A shiny marble bounced toward Joker, then erupted in light and noise. The other arched toward Panther, exploding in an ice blast that sent her rolling to the side and locked behind a frozen barrier.

Using the distraction, Mona threw a sling stone, catching Skull's shotgun and knocking it just off mark to send the shot wide. By the time Skull reacquired his target, Mona had closed in and was swinging, forcing scimitar and pipe to clash and clang as they fought. The cat's small size and remarkable agility made him a hard target to hit, but more importantly, he was aiming his strikes low and to the right – Skull's bad leg. The response was knee-jerk and furious, overswinging with his strikes.

Mona swung at an opening, but Skull knocked it down with his forearm. "Not happening," he grated, sparking with electricity. Voltage ran down the pipe and he swung down with the force of a lightning strike. Mona blocked the blow, but current arced down and streaked across his body. Mona jolted and yowled, but if someone were expecting him to flee, they would have been disappointed. Mona jumped in, slipped his sword around the pipe and struck Skull at the shoulder. Before he could back out of range, Mona leapt up, twisted his sword, and hammered Skull on the trapezius and brought him to his knees. A concussive wind blast to the face sent him down hard.

Ice melted into steam as Panther fought her way free, and Joker had shaken his head enough to clear the ringing and dancing lights. He pulled his cards free. Mona skittered out of Joker's line of fire, ducking and diving while glowing bright, his wounds mending on the fly. Panther ignited the air around her and took aim with her fire blasts. Mona ran in an unpredictable route, bringing her shots close to the others. Skull ducked back but wasn't in the blast radius, and Joker flinched as the flames licked close but didn't catch. Mona tumbled into a corner, turned and blew with gusts that pushed Panther's hair back and did nothing else–

–except snuff out the flames completely. She tried to spark them again, but the winds swirled and choked out any attempts. She bent and coughed, struggling to breathe.

Distantly, Joker understood what had happened. Mona had changed the air's composition to an inert compound, something that the fire couldn't feed on.

A sling shot to the leg cost Panther her footing, and an air blast put her on her back. Another thrown ice charge left her writhing on the ground.

Two down, but by now Joker knew how his opponent would move. He locked eyes with the cat and the fight was on. He summoned Bicorn to hit from one angle and rushed in from the other, narrowly missing as Mona ducked between their strikes and bolted about. Zorro manifested and fought back, but Joker had Agathion up to buffer against the blow. Mona sent a wind blast at him, but Andra put ice up just fast enough to crack. Then Joker struck the ice, sending sharpened shards at his foe and leaving him reeling. Joker had his dagger out and ducked into range, striking rapidly and without pattern. Joker's height, strength and leverage served him well. He had the cat ducking and slipping about, got a few good hits in and grit his way through some in return. He struck and moved randomly, making it impossible to guess where he'd turn next. Mona couldn't keep up, doing the same thing while glowing with healing a second time.

Joker switched his Personas, lashing out with Arsene or diverting attention with Berith and giving him the opening he needed to attack. Mona had to duck away and swing wildly, and Joker rushed in, blade low. He slashed fast, catching Mona's sword and knocking it from his paws. That was his opening. Joker spun, card out–

Just as a blade cut it in half. The tip of Zorro's sword rested against his neck, stopping him cold.

He looked up at the intractable Persona, then past it to the brightly blazing Mona. Joker realized in that instant that the opening had been a feint. He'd taken the bait and Mona knew he'd be too close to get away.

That was when he recognized what lay in the cat's eyes, what had been there the whole time: unshakable resolve. This was someone who would take on any foe and never flinch, who would stare Armageddon in the face and dare it to blink first. Rules reinforced with purpose, an unwavering resolve to set things right, a rogue with a code that wouldn't accept compromise or anyone's second best.

Someone driven not by rebellion or reciprocity or revenge, but conviction.

A hero.

Joker shook his head and choked down the familiar feeling that rose in his chest, crushing it without mercy. It was too soon to deal with that. He raised his hands and backed up a step. "That's the match, Mona. You win."

Zorro vanished. The cat hunched and panted, "Good."

Panther pushed herself to her knees. "That's it?!"

"We agreed to his terms and he beat us," Joker answered. "If we weren't ready or if we underestimated him, that's on us."

"So you'll go along with him?"

"I'm going to listen to what he has to say. That was the deal."

Skull grumbled but got to his feet, using his pipe for support. "Yeah, it was."

Mona glowed with healing once more, then went over to the recovering duo. "You almost had me, you know. Charging up like that was a smart trick."

Skull shrugged. "Came to me in the fight, that's all."

"Don't downplay it, and don't stop doing it. You're learning fast, and you'll be able to do as much as I can or more if you stick with it, Skull."

That straightened the teenager's spine and got a nod from him.

Mona went on. "Same with you, Panther. Heating the rocks was a great opening move, and you didn't hesitate to ambush me. That's good tactics. A lot of those shots had better aim than before, too. You're getting control of your Persona, aren't you?"

She huffed but nodded with a smile.

"If you keep that up, you might be able to pinpoint your fire to a certain point. Imagine that, burning arrows or a sword, or even concentrated heat on a specific area – that wouldn't require air to burn. You'd be pretty scary at that point."

Joker laughed. Mona didn't need to rub their faces in his victory – once his point was made, he brushed the dirt off and was one of them again, no questions asked. Not only was the cat gracious, he was even helping them by pointing out where they could improve without mentioning where they'd fallen short. Now it was even harder to be angry with him.

Panther cleared her throat as she came over. "I was serious about one thing. If we're going to help you, we need to get paid for it. Our gear isn't going to come free, and we all have expenses to cover."

"If we take down more Palaces, you'll get money the same as before," was Mona's answer. "Might be even more if it's someplace where there're a lot of valuables."

Skull looked over. "Those expenses, you talkin' about Suzui?"

That brought Panther up short. "How did you know?"

"Injuries like what she must have aren't gonna heal overnight. They'll mean physio and surgery, and that's expensive. Pitchin' in to help her and her folks, that seems like the kinda thing you'd do."

Mona nodded in understanding. "We'll definitely see more of what was in Kamoshida's castle, but you can have part of my share if you need it, Panther. That's a good cause."

She looked at them, then blushed as she looked down. "Thanks. I thought you'd… and with Carmen, I... Thanks, you guys."

Joker smiled as he came over, his mind set. What a difference this was between Mona and Igor. Had the old man been willing to help out and get dirty, maybe that last conversation would have gone differently. Someone who could fight beside them and offer a hand in compassion and understanding, that was someone Joker could work with. "What's next?"

Mona answered, "I'll show you. Come on."

The cat led them down the stairs to a platform, then to the end of the terminal where a grotesque door of skeletons and silent screams awaited. He touched it and the locking mechanism clicked and groaned, grating open to reveal the way down into the gloom.

"This thing wouldn't open when I came here last time," he explained. "It seems that dealing with Palaces and their masters is the key. The more we help those people and take down monsters like Kamoshida, the further we can go."

To Joker it felt ominous and anticipatory, as though the depths were welcoming any foolish attempt to delve into them.

Skull shivered. "It feels… wrong. What's down there?"

"Shadows, and more people who are worse off than the ones up here. They're not bad enough to create their own Palaces, but they could get there if we don't do anything. We need to help them and get to the bottom if we want to get rid of this place."

"How far down does it go?"

"I don't know. But it's too big and too dangerous for me to explore alone."

"We'll be there to help you," Joker promised. "That was the deal."

"You don't ask for light favors, do you?" Skull added. "Good. If it wound up bein' somethin' simple, it wouldn't be worth the time."

Panther looked down into the gloom, then nodded. "We can practice here for when the next Palace comes up. We'll be ready for it."

Mona looked at each of them and nodded. He said, "Let's head back. There's no sense in tiring ourselves out every time we come here."

"That would be nice," Joker answered.

A few minutes later they were back in the real world, flinching at the noise from the train terminal. They left the abandoned hallway and skirted a group of Shujin students, some who stared at Ryuji or Akira belligerently. The topic of conversation hadn't changed in the slightest since that morning. When they were gone Ryuji chuckled, then laughed until he was doubled over. Akira picked up on what was funny, caught the chuckle bug and ended up laughing just as hard.

"What is it?" Ann asked, hiding a smile of her own.

"Everything they're sayin', it's all so stupid," Ryuji got out through gasps. "Actin' like they're all that, like they got any idea what went on, struttin' around, it's hilarious."

"Like a barn rooster pecking at your shoes," Akira put in between laughs. "Some even say they helped with Kamoshida, do you believe that?"

All three were laughing hard on that point.

After a while, Ryuji gasped out, "Can't believe I let those clowns get to me. Haven't cared what they think for years, why'd I start now?"

"I can understand why," Ann said when she recovered.

Ryuji looked over with an earnest grin. "My head's cleared up. Thanks, Morgana; I needed a good fight."

The cat grinned. "No problem. I'll beat you any time you like, Ryuji."

"Next time'll be different!"

The guys burst out laughing again. Ann chuckled, "Boys."

Ryuji wiped his eyes. "C'mon, let's go somewhere to celebrate. We did our first job, we got a team together, and we can put this crap behind us. That deserves a victory lap."

"I have a place in mind," Ann said. "The Wilton Hotel. They do buffet so we won't break the bank."

"Ehh, that still sounds pricey."

"I got some coupons we can use. It shouldn't cost much."

Akira offered, "That works. Splurging once won't hurt."

They left the terminal together, occasionally chuckling or grinning at the antics of the others. At some point between going to Mementos and now they'd settled into a comfortable stride. They were new to it all, but they were also set on the path. Whatever came up next, they would face it together as Phantom Thieves.

7 7 7

The Wilton was the kind of place where the napkins were imported and you needed a professional linguistics department to read the menu. The uniforms of the staff were pressed and starched daily, and lobby held an air of arrogance that was thick enough to smell. It wasn't normally a place for students to hit up. Akira dressed in his blazer and button-up shirt, expecting to need some sort of class, and Ryuji looked decidedly uncomfortable in his shirt and hoodie. Only Ann really looked at ease, even if she was just in her leather jacket and usual attire. The maitre d' knew she didn't belong when he looked down his nose at her, but her confident stride and daring eyes cracked his confidence and got them through the door.

That was about all it got them, however. The fine print of the coupons read at the establishment's discretion, so the Thieves got the table off to the side where they wouldn't be seen by the proper customers.

"Pompous pricks," Ryuji muttered after they were seated.

Akira shrugged. "The worst seat here beats the best at Big Bang Burger any day."

"And there's half a table just for the fish dishes!" Morgana had hearts in his eyes and his drool was in danger of waterlogging his bag.

"Guess we know what he'll be getting," Ann laughed. "Stay here in case anyone has allergies. We'll get you what you want."

They went to the buffet tables and loaded up their plates. The guys ignored the sneers while Ann glided past the other patrons, catching more than one appraising eye. It was clear that her Persona was there in spirit, teaching her Summoner the ropes. Akira got Morgana a pile of fish, dished up some delicacies he'd heard of but never had, and went back to enjoy his meal with the others. They were already in conversation when he got there.

"You're gettin' a lot of practice with Carmen." Ryuji noted to Ann between bites. "Good – these guys deserve it."

She twisted one of the expensive napkins. "Yeah, about that. You talked about Kamoshida affecting your mind once. Was it like when we fought him?"

Ryuji shrugged. "Pretty close. I didn't have a Persona, so I think it was as bad or worse."

She twisted harder. "Was it… like what I did at the park?"

"Hm?"

"With Carmen. Was it like that?"

"Oh." Ryuji scratched the back of his head. "Kinda? But it was different. I knew you weren't gonna try to kill me, and that counts for a lot."

"But it was the same sort of thing, right?"

"Only a little."

Her face dropped. "I won't do it again. Not to you, anyway. Feeling it for myself, you guys shouldn't have to go through that. I'll make sure that when I use it, I don't include you."

"You are still learning to use this stuff," Akira noted, "and none of it came with a manual. It'll take time, so don't beat yourself up over it."

"I will, though, because I never thought it might be like that. Going through something for myself… It was a wake-up call. It'll be more useful if I don't catch everyone around me anyway, so even if it takes some work, I'll be careful when I'm around you guys."

Akira shrugged. "I'll take that. Keep up your practice and we'll call it even."

Ryuji added, "Yeah. Thanks for considerin' it."

She nodded.

Morgana didn't say much, busily devouring his meal down to the plate.

The conversation was easy from then on. Ryuji regaled them with his tales from the track team, Ann talked about her modeling work and her family, and Akira pitched in some stories from back home. They loaded up their plates again, then one last time. Akira was by the dessert trays when he was shoved against the table hard enough to jostle his glasses off.

"Watch it!" he snapped. The other patrons had looked down at him, but no one had outright manhandled him until now.

A bald guy in an expensive suit turned just enough to glare sidelong at him. "They're letting children in here now? The quality of this place has gone downhill."

There was something familiar about that voice, but before Akira could place where he'd heard it before, someone else came up. "Apologies, sir. Hey, kid! Watch where you're going!"

Akira wiped at his glasses – they'd gotten cream on the lenses – before he glared back. "You first. I was just standing here."

"Talking back at your betters is a bad way to go through life, you know."

"What betters? I'm a paying customer too."

The bald guy left without another word. The guy in the suit, apparently an assistant or guard, drew himself up.

But then someone stepped up next to Akira. He was tall, urbane, clothed in a stylish suit that stood out against all the black of the other customers, and turning a coin through his fingers. "I saw it. Someone owes this young man an apology." His voice was smooth and fit his looks, hitting just the right note to be heard clearly through the chatter around them.

The guard stared without speaking.

The stranger made the coin disappear and pulled a kerchief from his breast pocket, handing it to Akira. "Here. Your glasses look like they need it."

"Oh. Thanks, but I'll use one of these." Akira reached for a nearby napkin.

"Please, I insist. Someone here should treat you with the proper respect."

The guard chuffed. "Proper? He's just a kid."

Akira was cleaning the cream off, or he would have responded.

"While adults stagnate, their ability diminishing every year," the stranger replied in his place. "The young are raw potential, wouldn't you say? The world will be theirs one day, so they are worthy of our time and investment."

The guard watched stubbornly. After a few heavy seconds he snorted, turned and left.

Akira watched, feeling the charged air dissipate. The stranger chuckled. "How entertaining, to believe his own lie. Are you all right?"

"Yeah, nothing's broken."

"Good."

Akira handed the kerchief back and put his glasses back on. "Thanks. You didn't have to do that."

The man laughed. "It's not you I find amusing, but that man and the master who holds his leash. Do you know why?"

"No."

"When you look around, you see people who probably have well-paying jobs and important titles. You see the trappings of wealth and prestige, and they all come here to show it off to each other. This must be the place to be then, wouldn't you think? Someone like you doesn't deserve to be here because you don't mix with their sort, right?"

"Yeah, I'm with you so far."

"What's so funny is that it's all fake. The menu boasts authentic and foreign dishes, but the Wilton had to change their food sources to somewhere less expensive – and less prestigious – last year. The plates are older, just polished and waxed to look new; the staff have had to turn away foreign visitors because they can't meet the demands that come with them; and even the linens and furniture are of inferior quality now. Look at the art on the walls, you see those paintings? I see at least two that are fake. But the patrons act like it's the real thing. All this arrogance and pretention, and its foundation is a lie."

Akira looked around with this new information. "Do people know this? I guess they must otherwise they'd go somewhere else, right?"

"They'd say so, I'm sure, but the reality is that the competition was accused of the same thing a year or so before the Wilton changed its policies. They're the last one standing and this is the only place with the appearance of this much class in the area, so those who don't know buy into the facade while those who do know don't talk about it."

Akira smiled ruefully. "That's pretty crazy."

"It is, and that's why it's so entertaining. People buy into the lie and allow it to persist – even support it – because they brag about coming here to wow their colleagues, and they'll defend that lie because they place so much of themselves onto its validity. Such is their nature, and if you can laugh at that then you'll always be amused." The man looked over, his face friendly in its mirth. "But I'm sure you have other things to do besides listen to a stranger wax poetic about his twisted hobbies. Thank you for indulging me."

"Not at all. Thanks for sticking up for me."

"It was the least I could do... pardon me, but I didn't get your name."

"Kurusu Akira."

"Mamushi Takashi. It's a pleasure. Enjoy the rest of what this fine establishment has to offer, and don't worry if you feel out of place. Sometimes not sharing the same space as everyone else is the best place you can be."

"Thanks for the advice." Akira watched Mamushi-san go to the food tables like he belonged there, turning that coin through his fingers as he picked up an apple, examining it. "Strange guy," Akira concluded, loading up enough to package up and take back to Leblanc. He'd be eating well for a while.

By the time he got back to the table, the others had bagged their dishes up as well, likely to the sneers of the staff.

Ann turned to him and mentioned, "That looked like a good conversation. What happened?"

"Met someone who had something interesting to say about the food here. He mentioned that the linens and plates aren't as high quality as they seem, did you know that?"

"After the last time I got up, yeah. Same with the silverware, Carmen's saying that it's not the real thing. I'm glad we're using coupons, or I'd regret paying to be here for more reasons than the bad service."

"I hear you. Anyway, what did I miss?"

She looked back at their lone human companion, who squirmed and looked to the side and said nothing.

Ann sighed. "Go ahead and ask him, Ryuji."

The athlete scratched the back of his neck. "Those glasses of yours. Are they for show?"

Akira touched them. "What a question. Why do you ask?"

"Like, are you a brainiac? Your eyes bad because you read a lot?"

"I do pretty good on exams, if that's what you're asking."

"It kinda is. Midterms are comin' up and I… don't always do great on them."

"Okay, I'm with you so far."

Ann sighed. "Could you help him study? That's what he's asking."

"Hey, I was gettin' to that!" Ryuji objected.

"You were taking too long."

Akira hedged, "Given how different the material is from what I'm used to, that might be hard, but–"

"It's my mom," Ryuji blurted out. "She's got a lot goin' on and I… just don't want to make it worse."

Akira smiled. "I get it. I don't know how much I can help, but I'll do what I can."

Ann pitched in, "See? And I'll help too. You mom's great, and I could use the extra practice anyway."

Ryuji looked at them both, then nodded. "Thanks."

"No problem. Part of the team, right?"

That got a smile from him. "Yeah."