Chapter 3: The Best Laid Plans...

Ren sighed. He was really starting to miss the monorail back home. There he could look out the window and see the ocean. As opposed to looking out the window on the subway and seeing a wall.

By complete chance he ended up standing near another Shujin student who had found a seat. She had red hair and appeared to be some sort of athlete. Judging from the lack of bruises and her overall happy demeanor, Ren came to the conclusion that she wasn't on the volleyball team.

She turned to an elderly lady standing nearby that was carrying some grocery bags that seemed to be packed to their limit. "Ma'am, would you like this seat?"

"Oh, thank you dear." The elderly woman said, "It's so wonderful to see young people being so considerate. It's rare these days, you know."

As soon as the girl got up, a businessman made a mad dash for the seat. Ren shifted over and blocked his path, using a jolt of the car to cover his fake loss of balance.

"Really, kid?"

Ren shrugged. "Sorry. Lost my balance."

The girl gave him a nod, which he returned. The only acknowledgement they could share in the moment.

After the train reached the stop for school, he paused after getting off to take a deep breath. He wasn't claustrophobic, but if there was anywhere that could inflict that trauma, it was the Tokyo subway system.

"Excuse me!"

He turned to see the redhead again. "Oh, hey. I wasn't able to catch your name earlier,"

"Kasumi Yoshizawa. I'm a first year at Shujin." She said slightly unnecessarily. She peered at the pin on his uniform, "Oh, you're a second year? In that case, thank you for your help, Senpai." She bowed, which only made Ren feel more awkward.

"You don't have to be so formal with me." Ren said.

Yoshizawa tilted her head to the side. Objectively speaking, Ren wondered if he had just contracted diabetes from how cute it was. "You're right, I don't have to." She bowed again then went on her way. "It's a choice."

Morgana popped out of his bag. "That girl's sure something else, huh?"

Ren hummed noncommittally. "I guess." In reality, his thoughts drifted to Makoto. She was definitely more his type. Smart, didn't just laugh at his jokes but would at least make an attempt to parry his rapier wit, and despite her situation was doing all she could to help the students affected by Kamoshida.

Even if no one but him noticed.

At the school gate, trouble was brewing. Ren could feel his body tense up. Kamoshida was just standing there. Menacingly.

Well, officially he was greeting the student body as they came in. But Ren knew his true nature. Still, he had to keep up appearances. "Good morning, Kamoshida-sensei." He parroted.

Kamoshida scoffed at him. "That exemplary behavior won't do you any good once I figure out how to get rid of you. There's no place for criminals like you at this school."

Ren was about to respond with a comment on how the roll call said otherwise but was interrupted. "That's terribly shortsighted, Kamoshida-sensei." Makoto was standing there with her arms folded.

Kamoshida was slightly miffed at being opposed. "Niijima, you should stay away from him. He could be a bad influence on you."

Makoto smiled. "That may be so, but he is clearly committed to leaving his criminal past behind. As student council president, it would be remiss of me if I didn't assist in his rehabilitation in any way that I can." She walked past him, and Ren took the opportunity to leave Kamoshida behind.

"Did you really just hit Kamoshida with I can fix him, but he'll make me worse?" Ren asked.

Makoto laughed, "Well, not in so many words. But that was the overall sentiment."

Ren shook his head, "I hate to disappoint you, but I'm not actually a hardened criminal. Just a normal kid with a strong sense of justice that pissed in the corn flakes of someone with a bit too much power and not enough presence of mind to realize he probably shouldn't harass women."

"So all the rumors..."

"Completely true." Ren deadpanned. "I drive without a license too."

"Even I can tell you're joking." Makoto said, "But where did all these rumors about you start then?"

Ren shrugged. "Don't know, don't care. I'll just worry about myself, sooner or later people will figure out what I'm about."

They had reached the point where they would have to part, yet Makoto didn't want to. She knew that was probably just because Ren was the first person outside of the Student Council to give her the time of day. "That's a very admirable attitude, Amamiya-san. It speaks to your emotional resilience." She paused before glancing at her feet. "Resilience that I wish I had."

Ren turned and began to walk up the stairs. "You do have it, Niijima. You wouldn't have stopped to help me yesterday if you didn't."

Thou hast acquired a new bond... with the birth of the Priestess Persona...

Ren rolled his eyes as he continued to class. "Oh, so that's the kind of girl you're into." Morgana said.

He let the comment pass, it would not be good if people saw him actually talking to what was supposed to be his emotional support cat and understanding what he said back. He nodded to Ann. "Morning."

Ann yawned. "Morning. Are we... studying after school?"

Ren nodded. The sooner Kamoshida was unable to bully and perv his way through the student body of Shujin Academy the better. "Let's grab Ryuji, too. God knows he needs the help,"

Ann giggled, "Oh, you have no idea how true that is..."

The first meeting of the Phantom Thieves -as Morgana had called them- was officially underway. Objective one: kick Kamoshida's heart in the teeth.

"Alright, here we go. Metaverse basic training." Morgana began, "We're gonna do what we can in the real world first, to minimize risk. The first thing we need to do is figure out what your Personas can do."

Ren, Ryuji, and Ann all looked confused. It was a good thing no one came up to the roof regularly. They were probably going to be here until the school gate closed. "How are we supposed to do that in the real world?" Ryuji asked, "It's not like we can summon them here."

"Close your eyes and focus." Morgana said. "Focus on the other self within you, and you should learn what you can do with it."

They all followed Morgana's instructions. After three minutes of silence, Ann spoke. "Fire magic... I can put enemies to sleep... and lower their attack power."

Ryuji was next. "Melee attacks... Lightning magic... and I can boost our attack power."

Ren's eyes were screwed shut in concentration. "Uh... which Persona do you want to hear first?"

"Your actual Persona." Morgana said, "Not the other one you picked up."

"Darkness magic, ranged attacks, I can lower enemy evasiveness... and make them afraid." Ren reported, "As for the other one, it's basically like Ryuji's except it does wind magic."

Morgana was slightly perturbed about that, given he also did wind magic. "Okay. Next thing on the list is weapons. The weapons that were initially created by your awakening are the weapon types you're stuck with. It's just how it is. What we need to figure out is where to acquire better weapons."

Ren leaned back in his chair. "I assume the more realistic they look, the better."

"That tracks." Ryuji said, "Based on all this cognition nonsense, if our enemies think the weapons are real then they'll act like it."

Ann scratched her head. "But where will we find somewhere that will sell stuff like that to teenagers?"

Ren pushed his glasses up his nose and laughed. "We just need to find a hobby shop that specializes in model guns and replica weapons." He pulled out his phone and began to text his parents. "I'll have my parents send my tools and some models I haven't built so we don't have to buy those yet." Everyone stared at him. "What? It's a hobby."

"You wanna build a Gundam while you're at it?" Ryuji snarked.

Ren was lost in thought for a moment. "Do you think that would work? Would a Gundam model become an actual Gundam in the Metaverse?"

Morgana groaned. "The chances of that are highly unlikely." He shook his head. This was just going to be a comedy of errors, wasn't it?

"Do we even need medicine?" Ann asked, "I mean, Morgana can just heal us, right?"

"It would probably be a bad idea to just rely on him." Ren said. "Medicine probably has some sort of restorative effect in the Metaverse, because we perceive that it will cure certain things."

Ryuji started digging in his bag. "So, like this?" He produced a bottle of over-the-counter pain relievers. "I've got them in case my leg starts acting up, but if they can help us..."

Morgana moved things right along, as he was rather invested in preserving his remaining sanity, "Great. Okay, next up is code names."

"Wait, why?" Ryuji asked.

"What kind of Phantom Thief ever uses their real name?" Morgana countered, "Besides, we don't know if shouting your real names will have any negative effects inside a Palace, and I'm really not in a hurry to find out."

"That's fair." Ren said. He pointed at Ryuji. "Skull."

"Oh, cause of the skull mask? Yeah, sure. That makes sense."

The boys looked at Ann. "You know, I really get a Catowman vibe from your... uh..." Ren trailed off, unsure on how to continue without risking instant death.

Rather than strike him down with the fury of a woman scorned, Ann looked rather thoughtful. "Panther. Y'know. Like a cat, but more vicious."

"Couldn't we just call you Red Ranger, Ren?" Ryuji asked.

"Please don't do that." Ren pinched the bridge of his nose, "If she ever found out about this, Yukari would never let me live it down."

"How about Joker?" Morgana said, "Since you're our trump card when it comes to combat ability."

Ren pondered that. Joker... hmm... wait, didn't both Sakura-san and Kamoshida call me that? It's ironic in a way. "Sure."

"Okay, what about the cat?" Ryuji said.

"How many times to I have to say it, you idiot!" Morgana snapped. "I am not a cat!"

Ann leaned in. "Morgana, let me make something very clear."

Morgana took a step backwards. "Y-yes, Lady Ann?"

"Do not insult my himbo."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Also..." Ann cocked her head. "Mona."

Ren cleared his throat, and quickly embraced his role as leader to head off this disaster at the pass. "Well, we can't do anything until my things get here, so we may as well adjourn for a few days. It's not like we're on a time limit or anything."

Everyone stared at him.

"I just jinxed it, didn't I?"

Sojiro looked up from his newspaper. "You're home early."

Ren shrugged, "The train schedule is back to normal. Finally." Also, to be honest, He had come right home after the grand strategy meeting. He had homework he needed to do, after all.

Sojiro sighed, "So, you're settling in alright? The attic's in order now?"

Ren nodded. That had been a strenuous few days. "Yeah, made some friends too."

Sojiro eyed him cautiously. "And they're good people? That'll keep you on the straight and narrow?"

"Do you want my opinion or the student body's opinion?"

"Yours."

That surprised Ren. Sojiro had been gruff with him ever since he'd arrived at Leblanc. "They're good people. They just got dealt a bad hand."

"Like you." Sojiro said. It wasn't a question.

"That's right."

Sojiro slapped his knee and got up. "Well, that settles it, kid. Get out of that uniform and come back down here. Err, leave the cat up there though."

Morgana popped out of the bag. "Rude." Luckily there were no customers in the store.

"Why?" Ren asked, "I've got some homework that I need to do, and-"

"Call it a residential hazard of living here. Even if you stuck your nose in a hornet's nest for good reasons, future employers aren't going to see it that way. If you're going to be living here this year, I'm going to make sure that you're set for the future." Sojiro gestured to the café, "I'm going to teach you the café business, that way if things go south for you after you shake your probation, you'll have a fallback."

"Why do I feel like you just want part time help but don't want to pay for it?" Ren asked with a smirk.

Sojiro laughed, "You're getting paid in free rent and experience. And free food."

Ren raised an eyebrow. "What food do you even have here?"

Sojiro smiled, "I'll show you when you get back down here."

After he had changed into more comfortable clothes and deserted Morgana in the attic -at least that's what his complaining made it feel like- Ren came back down to find a plate of curry and cup of coffee waiting for him. "Is that curry and coffee?"

"Yeah." Sojiro said. After Ren had started eating, he delivered the death blow, "Oh, by the way this will ruin other curry for you."

As Ren ate the curry, he underwent a paradigm shift. This was the most delicious curry that he'd ever had, barring even his dad's own cooking! This flavor... with curry like this, how does Sojiro only own a small café like this?

"It's pretty good, right?" Sojiro said with a knowing smile spread across his face. He gestured to the kitchen, "I usually make enough for the day ahead of time but if you need it, the recipe's in the kitchen. Just follow it to the letter and it will come out perfect. Hurry and get an apron on."

Ren finished his meal and followed Sojiro's instructions. The only other apron was a solid dark green one. Sojiro nodded. "Hmm, it almost suits you. Now, I use a coffee siphon... most of the time." He opened the cupboard below to reveal an honest to God Keurig coffee maker. "This here is for the customers who piss me -and by extension you- off. They get low-cost corporate slop for full price." Sojiro pointed at Ren, "Make sure you look them dead in the eye when they realize it. It's one of the few things in life that brings me joy these days." He indicated the other item in the cupboard, "Now this... is special. This is a French press. It gives a drastically different flavor than the siphon does."

"How so?" Ren asked.

"Let me explain!" Sojiro said, "The French press gives a stronger, more full-bodied taste than the siphon. Now, both are better than your average chain brand coffee. But here, we save the French press for people we want to impress, if you know what I mean." Sojiro winked conspiratorially.

"Oh, so if Nijima-san ever comes here." Ren said, displaying the same lack of braincells as Ryuji.

"Damn, it's been what- two days? Three days? And you've already got your eye on someone?" Sojiro asked. "Even back in the day I didn't move that fast except for..." He shook his head, "That's a story for another time. Here, let me show you how to use the siphon." He paused for a moment before chastising his student, "And don't go practicing with the expensive beans! Bottom shelf is fair game, ask me for the middle shelf."

Ren nodded. "You got it, Boss."

Sojiro rubbed his chin. "Hmm. Maybe you aren't as delinquent as I thought."

Thou hast created a new bond... with the birth of the Hierophant Persona...

Ren ignored the voice in his head and listened attentively to Sojiro's instructions. When the time came for him to go to bed, he stayed awake for an hour, entertaining a pleasant fantasy of running a café of his own with Makoto after they'd both graduated from high school.

He blinked. How did this make any sense? He'd never had strong romantic feelings for anyone before, to the point where he had openly wondered if he might be asexual. But now, Makoto Niijima had walked into his life and hadn't left his mind since.

For a moment he thought it was because she was one of the few who had shown him kindness since coming to Tokyo. That was discounted immediately, as Ryuji and Ann had been there first.

He didn't know if it was just a crush or something more. He did know that he wanted to find out.

"Someone please stop me from using a cheesy pick-up line when I see Makoto next."

No one heard him. Morgana was asleep.

It's not like he could stop him, anyway.

From a distance, Ann and Ryuji looked like a true odd couple. In fact, it would be about the time for another round of rumors about them. It happened every few months or so. The truth was that they'd sort of been friends in middle school, until the fateful day that Ann had realized that she was more into girls than guys. Oh, that had set off a firestorm of gossip through that poor underfunded example of the public school system. After all of Ann's friends had deserted her -they hadn't wanted to take the risk of Ann corrupting them, they had said- Ryuji had found her soon after. Ann had tearfully told him what had happened, and that she would understand if he deserted her too. He had responded in a way that only Ryuji Sakamoto would.

"Wait, you like girls? I like girls too!"

From then on, their friendship had been ironclad. Hell, the whole reason that he had dyed his hair was to support her, cause the other kids would make fun of her for it. Even through the track team implosion and this unmitigated disaster of Kamoshida's bullshit.

But now, stuck on the same train to school, Ryuji didn't know what to say to her.

"I don't get it. What does he see in her?" Ann grumbled.

She was referring to Ren and Makoto Nijima. To be honest, Ryuji didn't really get it either. It wasn't for nothing that the vast majority of the student body called her Robot Prez. She was doing next to nothing to protect the student body from Kamoshida, but was quick to carry out any other sort of action the staff asked of her.

Although, she had helped Ren out after Kamoshida had smacked him around. That earned her a few points in Ryuji's book. "I don't know. Maybe he just likes smart girls?"

Ann scoffed, "There are plenty of girls like that at Shujin, why her?"

Inwardly, Ryuji screamed. He did not have the mental energy for dealing with Ann's cattier moods this early in the morning, "Probably because she actually talks to him instead of how the rest of those idiots believe all those stupid rumors that some-"

"Uh..."

They both turned to see Mishima. "Do you know something we don't?" Ryuji asked.

Mishima promptly clamped his mouth shut and turned around. Ryuji had officially lost his patience. He firmly grabbed Mishima's shoulder and growled in his ear, "Look, either you tell us in the next three seconds or I'll-"

"Ryuji, stop!" Ann pleaded, "Think about what you're doing!"

He froze. He looked at Mishima, who had been drawing his shoulders closer in an attempt to seem non-threatening. He let his hand fall off his shoulder. Damn it. I let my anger get the better of me. Almost acted like my old man... gotta keep a lid on it. "I'm sorry, Mishima. Shit, I'm sorry. We just... really wanna figure out who spread those rumors about Ren."

Mishima became very interested in a spot on the floor. "Promise you won't hurt me." He said. His voice was barely audible and he just sounded so... broken.

Ann took over. "We promise, Mishima. Please tell us what you know."

He turned to look at them. "It was me."

Ryuji could feel the anger boil in his stomach, but he forced it down. "For real?"

"Kamoshida forced me... he said if I didn't, he'd frame me for... the stuff he did to Suzui."

"What stuff?" Ann demanded.

Mishima told her. Apparently it had been going on for much longer than even Ann knew.

Ann Takamaki had officially reached the point of anger where she was completely calm. A tranquil sea of unyielding rage. Academically she knew that it would be his word against Mishima's, and that the school would side with Kamoshida every time. They had reached their stop and got off the train.

The two of them ran into Ren within minutes, Mishima had scampered off somewhere, unwilling to be anywhere near Ann while she was exuding such a potent murder aura. "Ren."

"What's wrong?" Morgana asked from his bag, "You guys look like you've seen a ghost."

Ryuji told them what Mishima had said to them, and Ren's expression turned into a glare that projected his sheer fury. "Palace tonight. I don't care that we don't have the better weapons yet. We're ending this. Now."

"Good." Ann said. "I can't wait to rip out that bastard's heart for what he's done to Shiho."

"Easy, Ann. Still gotta make it through today." Ryuji said.

"Sure." She replied, "But after that? It's on."

Ren felt a shared determination between him and Ann to see justice done, and he-

Thou hast created a new bond... with the birth of the Lovers Persona...

... Really? Now?

Somehow the school day had passed without any incident. The four would-be Phantom Thieves met on the roof momentarily to confirm their plans for the day. They then proceeded to their entrance point, or at least... two of them did.

Ren was stopped by Makoto just by the entrance to the school. Of all the times that she could come talk to him, it was now?

"Oh, good. I was able to catch you before you left, Amamiya-san." Makoto said, "I'd like to make a request. You see, normally I study alone, but I was wondering if you would like to study together?"

Internally, Ren was kicking himself. Yes, he would very much appreciate an excuse to spend time with Makoto, especially as she went on to say that they didn't even have to collaborate on their studying, that she would just be satisfied with his company.

Jesus, Makoto. I'm already into you, you don't have to come at me like this! Okay... what did Yukari tell me to do in situations like this? Oh, that's right... Alright, don't forget the honorific, she seems to like using them so I should respond in kind.

"I'm actually pretty busy today, Niijima-san. I promised Ryuji I'd help him with some English homework." Oh no. He could pinpoint the exact moment when the hope fled from Makoto's eyes. Did she... like him too? Questions for later. "How about this, let's exchange numbers and chat IDs, that way we can work out a time that works for both of us." There was a beat of silence before he continued to babble. "Because I do want to spend time with you. Just the two of us. You and me. Us. Yeah." The light returned to her eyes and a smile that could make flowers bloom -in Ren's opinion anyways- blossomed on her face as they exchanged contact information. Okay... how to make my grand escape... "Are you tired?"

Oh no. Please somebody stop me... no no no...

Makoto frowned. "A little bit. Why do you ask?"

"Because you've been running through my mind all day."

WHY AM I LIKE THIS?

Makoto Niijima was having a new experience. This was the first time in her life that a boy had used a pickup line on her. Before she knew it, her cheeks had turned a bright red and she was subconsciously tucking a lock of her hair behind her ear. "Really?"

Ren raised a finger before he felt his phone vibrate. That was probably Ryuji or Ann asking what was keeping him. "Yes. Okay, I... really need to go. I- we'll talk later. And study. But later. Okay? Okay."

He turned and started walking. Unfortunately he forgot that there were stairs between the street and him. He missed his foothold and started to fall. Out of nowhere, time slowed down and he saw exactly how to catch himself. He pivoted and practically surfed down the stairs. When he looked back at Makoto she was completely speechless. "To be honest, I don't know how I did it either." He quickly left before he could fumble something.

He ducked into the alley and met the others.

"Are you done?" Ryuji asked, a hint of amusement in his voice.

"Did you see all of that?" Ren asked.

"Yep." Ann said.

Ren ignored the knowing looks from his friends and took out his phone. "Give me crap later. We've got a job to do." They nodded and he paused for a moment before triggering the Meta-Nav. "It's showtime."

Two hours later, the four of them were back in the alley, all exhausted, thankful to be alive, and amazed that they had somehow secured a route to the treasure in a single day.

"Ren?" Morgana said, "You are banned from only having twelve percent of a plan before we act."

Ann raised her hand. "Seconded."

"Thirded." Ryuji groaned.

Ren looked at his fellow Phantom Thieves. "But did you die?" The chorus of groans told him it was approximately ten battles too many against the powerful Shadows that turned into the knight on horseback known as Berith to make jokes like that. "So... meet at the usual place tomorrow for the calling card?"

After he had received a grumble that passed for a yes, the weary team went home.

After he made it back to Leblanc, Ren noticed that Makoto had texted him. Just a standard confirmation of identity text. He sent one back.

Just before he passed out, she texted him back. "Did you make it home safely?"

Morgana looked over at his phone. "She seems lonely. I'd wager that talking to you is the best part of her day."

Ren nodded wordlessly as he tapped out a reply. "Other than a bird that was dangerously close to ruining my day, yes."

They talked for another few minutes before setting a day for their study... was it a date? Ren wasn't sure. In any event, three days from now they would... do that. That meant the calling card would need to be sent the day after tomorrow.

He said his goodbyes to Makoto and let the sweet embrace of sleep take him.

Video calls weren't Yukari's thing. They always felt so unserious to her. Like she was watching an episode of Star Trek. It made everything said feel unreal. "Fuuka, could you please repeat that?"

Fuuka cringed. She'd known exactly how her longtime friend would react to what she'd discovered. As she was figuring out how to word it, Mitsuru stepped in. "For reasons unknown, Tokyo is currently a hotbed of Persona activity. Cross-referencing that activity with the accidents caused by the mental shutdown and psychotic breakdown phenomena that has gripped the city has resulted in a significant alignment... except for the activity in the past few days around Shujin Academy."

Yukari felt like an iron fist had closed around her heart. "Tell me it's not Ren."

"There's no way to-"

Yukari's temper flared, "I don't give a damn if it's a lie, TELL ME IT'S NOT HIM!"

"Yukari..." Fuuka started to say, then trailed off. What did you even say to your best friend whose first love had sacrificed his life to form a seal that would keep a primal entity that could wipe out all of mankind with a thought away from mankind's nihilistic desire for oblivion for all time?

"There is no evidence that Ren Amaniya even has the potential to unlock a Persona." Aigis spoke for the first time. "Has he ever spoken to you about nightmares that occurred during our second year that could be-"

Yukari's eyes went wide. "During the dinner where I met my stepfather and him... he mentioned a nightmare where the ground was bloody and everyone was turned into coffins. I didn't think anything of it at the time because the Dark Hour was dead and gone... but now... oh fuck..."

Aigis was unperturbed by Yukari's sudden usage of profanity. "Is the situation that dire?"

Yukari held her head in her hands. "You don't get it, Aigis! None of you do! He's just like Makoto. He's kind, he cares too damn much, he'll take on other people's worries without a second thought, and taking care of himself?" Yukari scoffed, "That's the last thing he'll ever think about if there's someone who needs him!"

The tension was so thick that you could cut it with a knife. "Aigis." Yukari finally said, "What are the odds that Ren has the same ability that Makoto did? To be able to wield multiple Personas?"

Aigis looked at Mitsuru and Fuuka, hoping they would intercede. Both of them had nothing for her. So be it. "I refuse to answer."

"Why?" Yukari asked, "You'd better have a damn good reason why you-"

A tear fell from Aigis's eye. "The answer will only bring you pain."

Yukari stood up. "I'm checking on him. I can be there tomorrow."

"What good will that do, Yukari?" Mitsuru asked.

Yukari paused for a moment. "I can make sure that if he did end up caught in our... occupation that he has good friends to back him up. I also fully intend to curse out whatever god dragged him into this." She smiled weakly, "If only for my mental and emotional health."

Mitsuru bit her lip. "I'll have to look into his legal trouble, but I'll have to see if there's any way for us to provide logistical support. If he is, in fact..."

Yukari took a deep breath and finally said the words she'd been dreading out loud. "The Fool."

A/N: Ren meets Yoshizawa! That sure happened. Not much to say here, except I decided to have Ren actually feel awkward about the constant "senpai" flow from her.

Oops, my hand slipped and I wrote a Ren and Makoto scene. I think it's fair to say that at this point in her story, Ren's sort of a perfect storm for Makoto. We know at this point that her peers hate her, her sister is at least close to forming a Palace and considers her to be a burden as a result, and that she feels extremely lonely. And then here comes Ren Amamiya, just crashing into her life. A decent guy that doesn't really care what the general populace of Shujin thinks about her.

The final pre-infiltration meeting takes place. Not much here, just laying the groundwork for a few things. Also, something important. Arsene will have a full skill progression, and will never leave Ren.

Also, yes Ren is a nerd who actually builds plastic models before the events of the game. In game mechanic terms, this means that he starts with a 3 in proficiency.

More details about Ryuji and Ann's friendship. And Mishima spills the beans.

A note: for this fic, Ann's sexuality is bisexual, but she leans heavily towards women.

The beginning of Ren's training in the ways of coffee and curry. Now, I know that the coffee siphon is superior to the French Press. However, I believe that it's very in character for Sojiro to have a specific way to make coffee when romance is involved.

Fear not, a certain someone will call him out on his nonsense. Cough Kawakami Cough

And Ren realizes that he is down bad. One of my unofficial beta readers pointed out that I wrote Ren as Demisexual here, and I've decided to roll with that. No harem nonsense here, dear readers. Ren is simply built different.

Ooh, you have to infiltrate the Palace, but the girl you like just asked you out? For right now? That's rough, buddy. Luckily, he's learned well from his sister, and is an expert flirt. Unfortunately, he also somehow layered Junpei's pickup lines on top of that without even knowing the man.

Fortunately that's not a problem, because Makoto has zero Ren Rizz Defense.

Yeah, palace in one night. It's how it be. Also, as a reminder time moves differently in the Metaverse. That two hours in the real world was six hours in the Palace.

Oh no. Yukari knows. And she's going to be coming in right when the gang is writing the calling card. Better hope she doesn't delay them by a day making Ren have to reschedule with Makoto...

Next time: Yukari crashes in, the calling card is written, the battle with Kamoshida happens, and some sweet sweet fluff to tie it all together.

Be excellent to each other.