Chapter 13: Death
Ω • Ω • Ω
•Akira•
4/22, Friday
DEADLINE: MAY 2ND
DAYS UNTIL EXPULSION: 10
Steal Kamoshida's heart
"Welcome, is this your first time in the library?" He aimed his best disarming smile at the girl behind the counter, nodding at her.
"Yes, actually. I was wondering how I rent books from here?"
"Well…" the student librarian's voice trailed off as she heard several whispers from students around the library, whether at tables or study desks, all discreetly staring at him and murmuring about the 'transfer student.' "Um… y-you wouldn't happen to be the, um…"
He huffed under his breath, as Silky and Slime giggled and laughed in the back of his head. "Yes, I would, in fact, happen to be the 'evil' transfer student. Now, the books?"
"O-Oh, um, yes, well… you're only allowed to rent one book at a time, so make sure that you bring back the book you decide on when you're finished with it if you wish to get another. And r-remember to sign out the book you've chosen, and sign it back in when you return it. T-That's really all there is to the system."
"Understandable. I'll return once I've picked out a book." He turned away and wandered further into the library, ignoring the stares and whispers. As he looked through the bookshelves he noted the various titles, from fiction to fantasy, until he found one book in particular.
'The Gentleman Thief, by Maurice Leblanc.' The cover of the book had an illustration of the thief, while the blurb on the back read 'A novel which tells the tale of the legendary and infamous phantom thief, Arsène Lupin.'
Trickster…
'No.'
But—
'I'm not renting it, Arsène.'
But thou must! Dost thou not want to learn more about thy other self?! For I! Am! Thou!
'And thou art a bitch. I'm not renting a book that's about you, your ego is big enough already.'
Come on, Mister Joker, look at those puppy eyes!
'Pixie, I can't see you, only hear you, and Arsène doesn't have eyes. His entire face is just a damn mask."
Master Arsène is pouting now, Master Starr.
He rolled his eyes at Silky's words. 'And he doesn't have a mouth, either.'
Master, Arsène is sulking in corner.
'WHAT CORNER, SLIME?! WHAT THE FUCK DOES THE INSIDE OF MY MIND EVEN LOOK LIKE?!'
Stress is bad for you, dear, you should relax.
'Not now, Saki!'
Well, there's a television over there, a couch here, looks like a fridge…
The librarian looked up and smiled nervously as he approached with a dead look in his eyes, handing over 'The Gentleman Thief.' "I'd like to rent this, please."
"Um, of course. Just sign here so we know you're taking a book out."
He silently signed and exited the library, placing the book in his bag as Morgana moved aside to make room. "God I hate my Personas…"
Ω • Ω • Ω
The inside of Takemi's clinic looked the same as the last time he had entered, no patients and Takemi herself behind the counter working on something. He cleared his throat to get her attention, waving at her. "Takemi-sensei?"
"Oh, it's you. What do you need now?"
"Hardcore drugs." She simply stared at him and he rolled his eyes. "I'm joking. I came by to get some more medicine. However… I also wanted to ask about some 'special' medicine that I heard about."
"Oh?" She leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms. "Is that so? Hm. Alright, head into the exam room." He nodded and did so, sitting in the same seat as last time and going over his cover story while he placed his bag on the floor.
"Are you—"
"I'll handle it, Morgana. Don't worry." Takemi eventually entered, and he watched as she walked around the room before locking the door and leaning against it. "I have a girlfriend."
"You do?" He looked down at Morgana deadpan, while Takemi just glared at him.
"So, you eavesdropped on that conversation, and decided you wanted a taste of that medicine, right?" She shook her head. "It's too bad, I was going to toss it all out. I got a little too carried away with creating it, after all."
"Then there would be no trouble with me taking it off your hands, correct?"
"…" she leaned forward, looking down at him. "I already have your reasons for needing the other medicine I've been selling you, but why would you need this kind?"
"The stress and anxiety—"
"Will be countered by the medicine you already have."
He looked her in the eyes, before making sure to slowly move them towards the ground, clutching his fists against his knees and thinking about embarrassing memories to force himself to blush. "I… need them for my exams." Keep details vague, and let whoever you're speaking to come to their own conclusions… an effective way to trick someone without needing to outright lie.
"Exams?" Takemi sighed, rubbing her eyes. "Oh yeah, entrance exams, right?"
"Yes… I have to do my best, for my fa…" he trailed off, closing his eyes. "I have to do my best. I can't fail them, I don't want to even chance it." What conclusions would she come to from what he'd said? Perhaps that he had an overbearing family and wanted to impress them? Perhaps that he wanted his father to be proud? Whatever she came up with, he could only hope that she believed it.
"…Ugh." She squeezed the bridge of her nose, before unlocking the door and walking away from it. "If you just want to reduce your fatigue, grab an energy drink or something, I have no obligation to help you with this."
"Please!" He stood, trying to make his hands shake, as well as his voice. "Your other medicine is really helping, but these exams are too important. I can't…"
Scratching the back of her head, she turned away so he wouldn't be able to see her face. "You are really annoying, you know that? The medicine is really expensive, not exactly something a high schooler could get his hands on. I'd say it costs about as much as a car. So, how about you just go home."
"W-Wait! Could I at least work for it?"
"What, like part-time assistance?" She looked at him and tilted her head, and he could tell that she was trying to discern his body type from beneath his clothes. "Do you consider yourself someone with a good amount of stamina?"
"Absolutely, yes!"
"Hm… Well, I have been looking for a young person around your age to help me out… But I haven't been able to find one, even after putting ads out in the paper. Are you up for it?"
"Wait, what would I be doing, anyway?"
"Do you want it or not?"
"...Yes. To pass those exams, I'll do anything."
"Alright. Then you'll be participating in clinical trials for my medicine."
"WHAT?!"
"Hang on, I'll be right back." She walked towards the back of the room, grabbing several objects from different draws and he blinked in shock. What exactly did she mean by that? Was he going to be testing dangerous medicine for her?
Thou may have a higher likelihood of dying to thy doctor's medicines, than thy foes blades.
Before he could respond, Takemi was ready with a cup filled with a brown liquid. "Here you go." He looked back and forth between the cup and Takemi dubiously, and she smirked down at him. "Worried about the side effects, huh? Well, you can relax. Rest assured, my autopsy is guaranteed to find out exactly what part of it killed you."
Morgana looked up at him with worry in his eyes, moving around in his bag. "Uh, Akira, I don't think you should go along with this…!"
He frowned, while Takemi shrugged. "What, aren't you going to take it? The exit's right there if you want to leave."
Well, it couldn't be any worse than the concoctions his mother made whenever anyone in their family got sick, right? He glared back up at Takemi, bracing his taste-buds and stomach. "Bottoms up." He chugged the entire cup, and Takemi immediately recoiled in surprise at his actions.
"Wha-! I can't believe you actually drank it…" When nothing happened for several seconds, she rubbed the back of her head. "Wow… Still doing okay, huh? Hm. Not bad, for a high-schooler."
He grinned, even as a sickly feeling began rising in his gut. "J-Just… call me Duke Nukem, ba-baby, because I've… I've got…" He felt his face turn green and he clapped his hand over his mouth as a terrible stench exuded from his mouth. "B-Balls of… steel…"
"Uh…" He fell out of the chair and collapsed to the floor, the room going dark.
"Akira!"
Really? This is how we die? Unbelievable…
"Welp. Game over, I guess." Takemi's voice was the last thing he heard before he blacked out completely. He wasn't quite sure how long he was out, but he drifted in and out, before waking with a gasp.
He sat up, his head throbbing as he moved his legs, finding himself on Takemi's examination bed. "Urp…" He held back a burp as his stomach gurgled, and looked around in confusion.
"Good evening. Do you remember anything from the moment you took the medicine to now?"
"Nothing. I… didn't say or do anything odd, did I?" He hoped that he hadn't mumbled anything about his thievery with Ryuji and Ann, but luckily Takemi shook her head.
"You briefly woke from your coma, but you were completely dazed during the entire examination. You eventually lost consciousness, and fell back asleep."
He breathed a sigh of relief that he hadn't revealed any of their secrets, while Silky hummed in his mind. Though, at one point you were muttering something about being a nasty crime boy, Master Starr.
"Onto the main issue." Takemi turned from her computer and glared. "Are you out of your mind? Only an idiot would have drunk that!"
"You're a licensed doctor, right? You wouldn't risk giving something to a patient that would actually harm them." She stared at him, before looking away.
"...Fine. By the way, the reason you lost consciousness was because of the taste. It produces a foul smell when it mixes with the gastric acids, similar to surstromming. Oh well. All that matters is that thanks to you, I was able to get some good data."
"So, it's time for your end of the bargain."
"Yes, it's my turn to make good on the deal we made. It's why I waited for you to wake up." When he sat up a little straighter, she focused fully on him. "I don't want the general public to know about my original medicines. So, you're strictly prohibited from disclosing what happens here to anyone. Understand?"
"Of course."
"Then it's a deal. As long as you come here for it, I'll give you the medicine at a good price whenever you want. Maybe I'll even add additional selections in the future." She softly laughed, leaning back in her seat and crossing her arms. "I look forward to your continued patronage."
He smiled at their deal, and Arsène hummed. The remedies she has provided thus far have shown great results. Future work with her shall prove very useful.
I am Thou… Thou art I.
Thou hast acquired a new vow.
It shall become the Wings of Rebellion
that breaketh thy chains of captivity.
With the birth of the Death Persona,
I have obtained the winds of blessing that
shall lead to freedom and new power…
Death Arcana, Back-Alley Doctor: Rank One
He immediately paled when he realized that his new doctor who would be supplying his team with medicine was of the Death Arcana. Tarot fortunes were something that he did not know much about, though he at least knew that Death never truly meant death, but in actuality a major change… Still, it was rather unnerving.
"So, when can you come back for your next clinical trial?" Seeing his confused face, she shook her head. "I suppose you don't remember that… Well, I was saying that teenage test subjects are quite valuable in the medical research industry. So, I'll provide medicine for your entrance exams, and in exchange, you'll be my little guinea pig."
"That's… a fair exchange. S-So long as whatever you test on me doesn't knock me out for more than… urp… a few hours."
"Hm… I have to perfect this medicine, just like you want to pass those exams. Let's help each other, shall we? Now, if you're able to move, feel free to go home." Feeling a bit gutsier from taking the dangerous medicine, he carefully stood up and grabbed his bag, slinging it over his shoulder. It rumbled slightly as Morgana, who was sleeping peacefully inside, moved around.
Exiting the exam room, he made his way towards the door of the clinic and tried to keep his lunch in his stomach. Urp… "S-See you, Takemi-sensei…"
"Starr-san, you haven't given me your contact info." He paused, and she sighed. "So I can contact you when I've prepared the next clinical trial."
"Oh, right." Nodding, and then regretting having done so as he got dizzy and pretty lights flashed before his eyes, he fished out his phone and exchanged numbers with the doctor.
"By the way, I'll have some compensation ready the next time you come by, based on the data I collected today."
"Sounds g-good."
"You live pretty close, right? You might still feel some dizziness, so take it easy on your way home. I don't really feel like writing up an autopsy, so stay safe." She turned and walked back into the exam room, leaving him by the entrance swaying on his feet nervously.
Master, you no seem well…
'Yeah, no shit, Slime…'
Ω • Ω • Ω
4/23, Saturday
DEADLINE: MAY 2ND
DAYS UNTIL EXPULSION: 9
Steal Kamoshida's heart
"It's a trick question, sir. Emperor Nero won all of them, music, theatre, and chariot racing."
Inui-sensei nodded as the class whispered to each other, shocked that he managed to answer. "Correct. Nero won many awards in all kinds of competitions. All rigged in his favor, of course…" The teacher continued, and he went back to looking out the window. The rest of his classes passed in the blink of an eye as he continued to think on what to do for that day.
Going back to the Palace was out of the question. Besides the fact that the beating they'd taken from the Heavenly Punisher was so severe that the whole team was still sore, and he was still sick from the medicine he'd gotten from Takemi the day previously. He hadn't even managed to do anything truly productive when he'd gotten back to Leblanc after ingesting that awful medicine, he'd simply made a singular lockpick before passing out.
He shook his head as he stood from his seat, slinging his bag over his shoulder. "Takemi likely won't have the next test ready yet, and we shouldn't return to the castle just yet." As he began exiting the classroom he saw Mishima shuffling ahead, looking down at his shoes and trying to ignore everyone around him. He began to call out to him, before thinking twice about it and shaking his head. If he was seen being greeted by him, everyone would probably begin shunning the boy.
He didn't exactly want to make Mishima's life any harder than it already was, so made sure to give him a wide berth as he walked past. "Starr-san!" He blinked and turned back, seeing Mishima approaching him, a nervous look on his face.
"Mishima-san? Is there something you need?"
"Uh, y-yeah." Having noticed how he'd drawn a lot so students' attention by calling out to him, Mishima lowered his head and cleared his throat. "I-I wanted to talk with you, about… y'know."
He nodded, leaning against the side of the hallway to let people by, and lowered his voice. "About Kamoshida?"
"Yeah. I-I wanted to ask you, um… you seemed like you were planning to do something about Kamoshida-sensei, but—"
"Don't worry. The fewer people who know about it the better, but we'll solve this. Just go about your days like you normally do."
"Is there at least something I can do? Some way I can help?"
"No, there's… actually, volleyball practice is still going on, right?"
"Yes, and he's just as brutal as ever…"
"Hm." He crossed his arms and thought for a moment. "I know we're going to be putting a stop to this, but still… Not being able to do anything in the meantime is infuriating."
"Yeah…"
"Okay. I know how you can help." He smiled as Mishima visibly brightened, before shaking his head. "It'll involve you speaking to Kamoshida again, however."
Immediately, Mishima wilted. "Oh."
"Listen. All you'll need to do is tell Kamoshida that an inspector is going to arrive sometime to check out the volleyball team, for some sort of tournament or something similar in the future. You'll have to handle the more exact details, you know much more about volleyball than I do."
"How's that going to help, though?"
"We both know that the injuries your team has aren't normal, and everyone else in the school either holds Kamoshida on such a high pedestal that they won't even dare think that he could be doing harm, and everyone else fears him. However, someone not affiliated with the school at all and who knows that those injuries you have aren't normal volleyball injuries wouldn't hesitate to act.
"Kamoshida may be the king of Shujin, but outside it, he has no power. Just the thought of an inspector from out of the school thinking something is up will frighten him to his core, and he won't risk touching a single student until the two weeks are up. In that time, the plan Ryuji and I are working on will hopefully take down that bastard."
"Hopefully?"
"Hopefully, definitely, they basically mean the same thing." Mishima looked at him skeptically, and he placed his hand on the boy's shoulder. "If you aren't up to it, I can do it—"
"No! I-I can handle it!" Mishima shook his head. "I can do this… I've been around Kamoshida a lot more than you. I think I know what exactly I should say to make Kamoshida believe me…"
"Alright. I trust that you can handle this."
"Yeah… good luck with that, then." he nodded at Mishima and continued walking to his previous destination.
Dost thou think thy accomplice will be able to accomplish their task?
'I don't know. Mishima definitely has a backbone when it counts, but alone he may not be able to muster the courage. Still, if he thinks he can do it, I'll trust him to do it.'
Very well, Master Starr. What are your plans for this day?
'I'd rather relax today before returning to the Palace tomorrow, Silky.' He entered the school library, ignoring the whispers that began about him, and sat down at one of the more hidden tables to begin studying.
Master relaxes by studying? Master is weird.
Yeah! You're really smart already, Mister Joker, so go relax or something!
'I'd rather finish studying before relaxing. Exams are going to occur within a few weeks, and I aim to be number one in at least my grade if I can't be number one in the school.' He snorted, turning a page in his textbook. 'I'll show them just how much smarter the 'delinquent transfer student' is compared to all of them.'
Hm. If I were to borrow a phrase from the children of this age, twould be 'calm thine breasts.'
He blinked, looking up from his textbook. 'Did you just tell me to 'calm my tits' in archaic English?'
Yes. Thou wishing to stand out wouldst not benefit us in the slightest when a thief's goal is to hide within the shadows.
'Getting the best scores in class won't alert anyone to our activities, ignoring the fact that using the Metaverse allows us to act in secret.'
Just be careful, Trickster. A boring existence it would be, spending the rest of our days talking within a prison cell.
He huffed, before returning to his textbook. He could at the very least agree to that. Spending all day doing nothing while talking to the voices in his head? That would drive him mad.
Ω • Ω • Ω
Returning to Leblanc that evening, he saw that there was only a single customer, enjoying coffee at one of the back booths. However, the man stood up and nodded at Sakura, handing him some money. "Thanks for the coffee, boss. See you next time."
Sakura nodded back, while he stepped aside to let the customer exit. Before Sakura could walk towards the table, he grabbed the plate and cup, making his way towards the sink. "Why don't I help you out today, Sakura-san?"
"Oh? Alright, grab an apron and we'll start."
After washing the coffee cup and plate, he went to grab an apron while putting his bag and Morgana upstairs. To be honest, he wasn't all that interested in helping. But, if it got Sakura-san to be a bit more lenient, then it was a win in the end. Plus, the Arcana Boost he would get when fusing Hierophant Personas if he ranked up their bond would be very useful.
Another woman had entered and sat down at a table as he got ready, and after Sakura made her cup of coffee and a plate of curry, focused on him. "Now then, since you're gonna be working in my store, I'll need to hammer home the basics… you know what I'm talking about, right?"
Wooing customers.
"Making coffee," he answered, ignoring Arsène's chuckles.
"Yup. Glad you understand that much. This store's not the busiest around, but I'm real particular about how we do things here." Sakura's smirk transitioned to a frown as he poked him in the chest. "And I'll kick you out no questions asked if you serve a bad cup, you got that?"
Well that was harsh. "Understood."
The women eating at one of the tables giggled. "Let me tell you, So-chan definitely does things right with the coffee. It goes so well with his special curry, that I can't help ordering the same thing every time!"
That was true, he ate it every day for breakfast, and their taste together was so good that he still wasn't tired… though curry probably wasn't good to eat every morning. Should he invest in some cooking supplies for his room?
"What can I say? Each of my customers gets an experience personally tailored to them."
"Can you tell me the key to that wonderful flavor, So-chan? I'd love to make it at home, sometime."
"Sorry, that's a trade secret. You're free to try and guess based on the taste though." He felt his eye twitch as the back and forth between the customer and the owner continued before they finally left and Sakura turned towards him. "When you run a shop, you get all sorts of customers. Knowing their personalities is absolutely vital. That's what being in foodservice is all about."
"Right."
The bell on the door rang as someone entered, and Sakura began turning to them. "Try and gauge this customer's personality. Welcome—" Sakura stopped mid-sentence, shocked by whoever had entered. He looked at them as well, but the man looked like a normal person to him. "You…"
"Hey there, it's been quite a while, Sakura-san! I heard you had opened up a shop, so here I am! It wouldn't have hurt to mention it to me though." The man looked around Leblanc and nodded. "You've got a real nice place, here. Right by the station and everything."
"Your order?"
"No small talk? That's cold. Oh, but this smell… sure brings back memories! You're still making that curry, huh? Guess you haven't gotten over her yet."
Sakura narrowed his eyes and he looked silently between both men. It seems Sakura knows this intruder.
He's kinda rude, right?
If this wasn't going to go anywhere… He put on his best smile and bowed to the man. "Excuse me, sir, but if you won't purchase anything, I'll have to ask you to leave. After all, we will be closing soon, and if you won't be buying anything, then..."
"Eh?" The man tilted his head and hummed. "You got a part-timer here? Whatever, I just stopped in to say hi today… but I'll be back again soon! Bye."
The bell rang once more as he exited, and Sakura turned to look at him. "You shouldn't get involved—"
"In other people's business blah blah blah." He sighed. "I know. But if he isn't a paying customer, then I don't need to treat him like a customer and he shouldn't be here. Plus, he just seemed suspicious."
Sakura sighed. "Maybe so… still, how did he even find this place? But, if you noticed just how shady he is, then maybe you have an eye for some things after all. Now, if we have time to talk, you have time to learn, specifically about bean types."
"Beans are nice."
"You're not gonna be of any use to me if you can't pick up the ABCs sometime soon." A smirk grew on Sakura's face. "Besides, ladies love a guy who knows his coffee. This isn't such a bad deal for you."
"I'm not exactly interested in getting a lover anytime soon," he rolled his eyes, "though maybe far in the future it could come in handy."
Like with—
'Don't finish that name, Pixie.'
"If only you were this obedient all the time," Sakura chuckled. "Either way, I'm going to teach you right. That way I'll be able to sit back and relax while you work."
"At least you're admitting it out loud." The man just laughed again, and he felt their bond grow a tad deeper along with the noise of crashing chains.
RANK UP!
Hierophant Arcana, Sojiro Sakura: Rank Two
A chime went off, and Sakura nodded. "Looks like it's time already. Let's start closing up. And no slacking off, you got it?"
"Of course, right." They began tidying up the shop for the night before Sakura grabbed his clothes and began leaving. He put away his apron as Sakura locked the front door, walking upstairs and grabbing his sweatpants and sweater that he slept in, finding Morgana asleep on his bed. Now, he would finish his homework and maybe get started on that 'Gentleman Thief' book, if he had time before it got too late and he needed to sleep.
Yes…
He rolled his eyes and sat down at his desk before his cell phone rang. He grabbed it and frowned at the unknown number, before answering and putting it against his ear. "Hello?"
"Hey, it's me. Guess this number works." He blinked at Sakura's voice, grabbing his pencil and eraser. "I forgot to ask for your cell number, so I had to dig it out of your papers. A real hassle, let me tell you."
"What did you need my number for?"
"I just wanted to ask if you finished closing up. Turned off the lights, finished the dishes, you know."
"Don't worry, everything downstairs is in order."
"Good. I'll be having you handle that from now on, so you better learn. But, it seems like you're a quick study, so I hope you got the hang of it."
"I can handle that, easily enough."
"Oh yeah?" He heard the man chuckle on the other end as he penciled in an answer. "Well, once you're a little more settled in, I'm going to be having you do more chores. But man… Not sure how I feel calling up a guy's phone."
He rolled his eyes. "Uh-huh."
"Anyhow, we'll get the routine ground into you. That way, I might be able to take it easy. Alright, don't go to bed too late."
"Tomorrow isn't a school day, you know. Well, maybe I'll see my friends…" He heard Sakura hang up, so he placed his phone down and began writing. Without school taking up most of the day, they could probably get pretty far into the Palace… assuming there wasn't anything else like the Heavenly Punisher that could kill them if they made a single misstep.
Thou wouldst definitely 'be boned' should thy team encounter another enemy of similar caliber.
"Please, for the love of god, stop inserting modern lingo into your speech."
Arsène just laughed lowly in response, along with the rest of his Personas. He sighed and re-focused on his work before he got a notification from the chat room that someone had sent a message.
Chat Room: Akira, Ryuji, Ann
Ryuji— Yo we headin in2 kamos palace 2morrow?
Akira— You truly have a way with words, Ryuji. Yes, we're heading in tomorrow. If everyone is free, that is.
Ryuji— Well im totally free so don't worry bout that
Ryuji— What about ann tho?
You— You're always free.
Ann— Hey.
Ann— I was planning on seeing Shiho tomorrow but if we're planning to go back in then it can wait.
He bit his lip and leaned back in his chair. He knew that visiting Shiho was important to Ann, but they had only a little more than a week to steal Kamoshida's desires.
You— We can put it off for one more day, but as tomorrow is Sunday, we would have had much more time to explore and make our way through the Palace. I won't force you to join us, but Ryuji, Morgana, and I will be entering and doing some exploration of the deeper parts ourselves.
Ryuji— That was a chore 2 read thru
Ryuji— W8 by ourselves?
You— Yes. As long as we're careful we should be able to handle it. We can also use the time to expand my stock of Personas. We'll obviously avoid any Savage Enemies, and any battles with excessive enemies of higher skill we'd run from, but we have to make sure we finish this before our deadline.
Ann— Yeah, I get it
Ann— Okay, I'm going to visit Shiho and then hurry over after.
You— My apologies for having to make you choose between spending time with Shiho or exploring the Palace.
Ann— No it's fine. Don't worry I totally get it. I'll see you guys tomorrow. :)
Ryuji— C u 2morrow
You— We'll return to the entrance around halfway through the day. We'll see you there.
Ryuji— W8 how erly r we going?
Ann— Bye.
You— Early, Ryuji. We need to use our time efficiently, so wake up and meet me at the school by nine.
Ryuji— Ah eff.
He chuckled slightly at Ryuji's response, before closing the app and finally focused all his attention on the weekend's homework. He'd make sure they didn't go too deep into the Palace, since firstly it would be dangerous without the whole team, and secondly, he'd be using more energy to pick up the slack for Ann not being there with her fire-wielding Persona.
Barely more than a week left…
We will make it.
He nodded, smiling at the words of his true self. "Yeah. We can do this."
Ω • Ω • Ω
•Ann•
4/24, Sunday
DEADLINE: MAY 2ND
DAYS UNTIL EXPULSION: 8
Steal Kamoshida's heart
Entering Shiho's room, she felt her heart clench when she saw her best friend's body lying still in her hospital bed. She breathed out and sat in the chair by her bed, reaching out and grasping Shiho's hand.
"Hey, Shiho. I won't be able to stay long today, I'm going to go meet the friends I told you about the other day, Akira Starr and Ryuji Sakamoto, plus Morgana's there too. We're really trying our best to get back at Kamoshida for what he did to you… because he will pay. I promise you that." Her eyes darkened and she squeezed Shiho's hand. "He'll pray for death by the time I'm done with him…"
She shook her head, refocusing. While Shiho probably did want to know that they were going to avenge her, she wouldn't let her anger fill their discussion. "So yeah. I'm going to go meet with the guys a little later today. I haven't told you about the metaverse yet, right? It's really weird… It's like a whole other world made by, um… I think Akira described it as someone's desires? So, since Kamoshida really wants to be seen as a king, or because he thinks of himself as a king? The whole school is changed into a castle, with himself at the center."
Shiho didn't respond, didn't move, but she continued anyway. "The first time I entered was by accident. I was standing too close to Akira and Ryuji when they entered and they accidentally me in. After I panicked for a bit I tried to get them to explain where we were, before they threw me out." She laughed quietly, remembering the events that led to her being thrown from the metaverse.
She continued recounting their adventures, from her Awakening of Carmen after Akira and the rest had rushed to her aide like knights in shining armor, to the formation of their team and buying weapons, to the dangerous battles they had inside of the castle. The sun steadily rose higher outside the window as they talked, and the clock in the room ticked onwards as she recalled their treks through the castle, before she glanced at the clock one last time and sighed.
"Well, Shiho, I've got to get going. I promise to visit again soon…"
"..."
Shaking her head, she grabbed her bag and walked out of the room, sadness filling her, along with a determination that bubbled up within her like magma, Carmen's flames flickering inside her mind. She knew that only Akira could speak to his Persona after he Awakened to or recruited them, but right now it felt like Carmen was whispering into her ears to take that son of a bitch Kamoshida down. When she got to the elevator she pressed the button hard enough that a small spark jumped from it, but she paid that no mind.
That bastard was going to get what was coming for him, today.
Ω • Ω • Ω
"Lady Ann!"
"There you are, Panther." She nodded at Joker, as Skull and Mona turning towards her as she approached.
"Sorry, were you waiting long?"
"Nah, not really." Skull got up from where he was squatting against a couple of crates, stretching his back out. "I mean, Joker told you we'd be here, like, at the middle of the day, yeah?"
"Correct. Since she's arrived at eleven-thirty she's technically early." He chuckled and uncrossed his arms, tilting his head towards the castle. "Ready to get going?"
"Yeah." They walked towards their entrance into the Palace, and she noticed that distracted look he had when he spoke with his Personas. Or at least, that's what she assumed it meant. It was just a slight unfocusing of his eyes as he looked at nothing but still was aware of his surroundings. She wasn't sure if anyone else noticed it, but she still nudged him. "So, get any new friends?"
"Hmph!"
She raised an eyebrow as Mona pouted, causing Joker to chuckle as he refocused on the real world. Cognitive world? "He's just jealous that he's not the only cute talking cat on the team."
"I'm not jealous! Wait, and I'm not a cat either!"
"Uh…"
"One of the new Personas I have, Cait Sith, is of Scottish folklore, a fairy that takes the form of a cat." He removed his mask calmly, letting the Persona manifest. It was small, if it were on the ground it would be the height of Joker's waist, but it had formed standing upright on Joker's shoulder. Its fur was purple in color and eyes green, with a large red hat, cape, and boots, plus a white feather on the cap. It had a belt around its waist and held a curved sword in its paw, which it waved around above its head.
"Good dah, Lassie!" Its voice was high and squeaky, with a Scottish accent. "Urr ye mah freish master's companion that they've spoken ferr gey aboot?"
"Aye, lad, She's th' stoatin' lassie who's captured mony a man's hart, aren't ye?
She blushed and punched Joker on the shoulder as he began chuckling. "Shut up!"
"Whoa, that was a really good accent," Skull muttered.
"Aye. It comes wi' th' territory o' bein' a guid liar. Plus, a'm juist guid wi' languages 'n' dialects in general," he finished with a wink.
"I-I can do a cool accent too!" Mona added.
"Kin ye? cuid it staun up tae mai'n?"
"Ah ower think we're gaun a bawherr aff topic, lads."
"What the eff are you guys saying?" She shook her head as Skull questioned Joker. As fun as that little diversion had been, she needed to focus.
"How much further did you go?"
Joker shrugged as he turned Cait Sith back into his mask. "Not especially far. When we returned to the Chapel we spent most of our time picking off enemies one by one to clear the way. The place was still swarming with guards so getting through stealthy wasn't very easy. Though now that most of them are dead, we should be able to continue past them."
"Sounds good."
The path through the castle was especially easy to sneak through, with much fewer guards than usual thanks to the rest of the team taking them out when they first snuck through. And upon finally reaching the chapel, they began sneaking through the pews and avoiding the few guards that were in the area, before Joker stopped them and pointed up. "There, get ready to grapple up… Now!" When no guards were looking, they shot their grappling hooks up, with Joker grabbing Mona, and latched onto a ledge high above them.
After climbing up, Skull looked back down to make sure they weren't spotted before looking around the area. "Yeah, this is where Mona gave us that Go Home thing, right?"
"Goho-M!"
"That's what I just said…"
"Can we get going before you two begin another argument?" She interrupted.
"Panther's right. Let's move." Cautiously moving forward, Joker quietly opened a door into the next hallway, motioning them forward. Reaching a T-intersection, Skull pointed down one of the halls in confusion.
"Hey, the hell is that?" The hall ended in a balcony, with a massive chasm beneath it that seemed to go on forever, and across was another balcony with a door covered in darkness and vines.
"Looks like we may have found something! Should we check it out?"
"Is that the way forward?"
Joker shook his head at her question. "No, that way is," he answered while pointing towards a spiral staircase, "but we can still check it out. It might have something useful." She bit the inside of her cheek in frustration, wanting to explore further on so that they could finally take Kamoshida down, but followed along anyway.
Joker leaned over the edge of the balcony, looking down, before looking across the gap. "Okay… make sure your grappling hooks are attached correctly, we don't want to risk anyone falling." He stepped back and whipped his arm forward, launching the hook forward and wrapping it around a carved goat-head across the chasm and letting it pull him over.
Skull followed afterward and slammed into the wall next to Joker. She stumbled slightly as she landed, Joker catching her by the bicep and looking at Skull. "Nicely done, Numbskull," Mona snickered.
"Zip it," he snapped back.
Sighing at them, she watched as Joker walked towards the door and ran his hands over the frame, frowning. "It doesn't even have a lock, just the vines… It's almost like something that Kamoshida doesn't want to acknowledge about himself."
"Hahaha…"
Everyone froze when distorted laughter rang out softly, and they all huddled up while pulling out their guns. "Was that Kamoshida?"
"I think so!"
"I don't see him."
"I think… it came from inside the doors?"
"Gosh, you're such a hottie…"
She felt her skin crawl at the voice, snarling slightly. "Are we hearing his thoughts?"
Morgana nodded at Joker's question. "Yes. If what I think is beyond this door is really there, then it'd be why we can hear these things."
Joker turned back to the door and drew his knife, slashing at the vines and pushing the doors open. Within was a dark room, covered in more vines, while in the center of the room was some kind of skull-shaped object, held up on an altar of vines that pulsated red, like veins. As they walked into the room the dark laughter started up again, quietly echoing around them.
"What… is this, exactly?"
Mona answered her, observing the thing. "This is a Will Seed."
"That being?"
"You already know that Palaces are places coalesced into reality thanks to the distorted desires of their owners, but Will Seeds are objects that hold the deepest feelings of the Palace Ruler, what led to them becoming distorted, whether these feelings were spawned days before the distortion took place, or years before. So these locations holding the Will Seeds are even more distorted than anywhere else, hidden deep inside the Ruler's mind."
"I see… so it's as though—"
"Agh, enough!" Skull interrupted as he shook his hands. "This is way too complicated! They're Will Seeds, and we're movin' on!"
"What are we supposed to do with it?"
"Well, they're not as rare as a treasure, but they're still a good find. Taking them could do us some good. I think."
"I'm all for it, as long as no bullshit traps go off…"
"Stealing from Kamoshida is always good in my eyes," she growled. Joker raised an eyebrow at her, before turning back to the Seed and grabbing it. It didn't tear away from its throne of vines, coming easily, and Joker turned it over in his hands before slipping it into his bottomless coat pockets as they all felt a slight rush of energy.
"So uh… nothin' happened? No traps?"
"No, the traps will obviously go off once we let our guards all the way down," Joker smirked at his teammate before looking at Mona as he began speaking again.
"There are more of those around here somewhere, I think I can sense… two of them left."
"You can sense them?"
"Oh, maybe he smells them!"
"What, like a dog would?" She questioned. "Wait, no, but you're a—"
"Don't even think about saying it!"
"Let's move," Joker finally cut in, leading them back towards the staircase he'd pointed out before.
Ω • Ω • Ω
The staircase had led two ways, down and up. At the bottom had been another Savage Enemy, which everyone agreed would be too risky to fight in such a small area, while the staircase up led to the castle rooftop.
The moon was hanging high in the sky, sort of weird considering it was probably around one in the afternoon, and the moon looked way too big, but they ignored that to focus on the multitude of Shadows roaming the rooftop.
"Is there some way past them without fighting? We could grapple onto that gazebo then further up, maybe?"
"Whatever we decide, it's safe to say that the tower there is our target, considering how it matches up with our map."
"So that's where the Treasure is?"
"It's very likely, yes."
"Hell yeah! We did it! So we just hafta get into that tower!"
"Considering how tall that tower is, I wouldn't assume that we're near the end just yet."
"So let's go, then," she cut in. "we just have to fight past them, right?" Once again, Joker looked at her with an unreadable expression.
"I don't exactly want to fight past three different Savage Enemies at once." Joker's eyes began glowing slightly, a sign that his Third Eye was in effect, and shook his head. "All of them are above our pay grade. Let's avoid them at all costs. First, we'll grapple up onto that gazebo, then use that flag there to fly past and land on that roof closer to the tower. No risking our lives against any enemies that could kill us in a single lucky hit."
"Lead the way, Joker." Waiting for an opening, Joker grappled up, followed by her and Skull onto the gazebo, before watching as Joker launched his hook dozens of feet, where it latched onto a flagpole and pulled him along. He did a flip in front of the moon, then landed in a crouch atop another roof. He waved them over, and Skull grinned as he tried to copy Joker, firing his grappling hook towards the pole, before tumbling through the air and landing awkwardly next to Joker.
"Ha! I stuck the landing!"
"Yes, congratulations, you're almost as cool as me."
"Oh shut up!" She landed next to them as Skull slapped Joker on the arm, causing the silver-eyed boy to smirk.
"Come on, let's go." They approached the side of the tower, finding a window that they could use to enter it. Inside they prepared to walk further in before Mona held up a hand. Paw?
"Wait, I sense another Will Seed! It's a bit back, and… really high up?"
"On the outside of the tower, maybe?"
"Uh, I didn't see any shit on the side of it…"
"Can't we just ignore them and focus on the Treasure?" She asked, frustrated.
"I'm sure you felt that burst of energy when we retrieved the first Will Seed. You may not be tired, but Skull, Mona, and I have been battling since this morning, and could use it." She huffed but nodded, and watched as joker eventually found a vent that he could crawl through, leading to a series of platforms outside the tower that he grappled up to grab a green-colored Will Seed.
"I'm the king...! No one can stop me..."
She snarled silently as Kamoshida's voice whispered from the darkness of the room, gripping her whip to tightly that her gloves began to creak.
Finally, they could enter the main tower proper, and immediately everyone stopped in their tracks. The checkered floor was covered in purplish goo here and there, as platforms holding pillars and chunks of the ground rose and fell at random. "W-What the heck is going on here?"
"The distortion is getting stronger… We're definitely getting closer to the Treasure!" They turned down one corridor, which had decorations that caused Skull, Mona, and Joker to blush in embarrassment, while she flushed with anger. Along the walls were busts of women, while several pillars were instead stone statues fashioned to look like the bodies of the volleyball team members.
"Sick, twisted bastard…"
"This guy better just have a real good imagination, or else I'm gonna kick his ass even harder than I would've already," Skull snarled.
Sneaking through the rooms to avoid the rare Shadow, Mona eventually spotted a small room with what almost looked like an elevator. "Let's check it out, it could be another shortcut to help us get around easier!"
"Or some secret goodies we can steal." Getting on the platform, Joker pulled the lever and sent them down, where after about a minute, they stopped in a small hall with a painting at the end of it.
"Where'd we end up?"
Joker said nothing and she saw him use his Third Eye before he walked forward and kicked the painting, causing it to spin around the center and reveal the castle's entrance hall, the Shadow guards that had been infesting it in the previous days gone, spread out through the rest of the castle. "Nice, now we have a way to go straight from the courtyard directly to the tower!"
"Correct. What used to be several hours of work can now be condensed into just a few minutes of sneaking." He pulled a chain and caused several bars blocking an entranceway to retract, and open the path.
Turning to return to the elevator, Skull spotted a small room that they hadn't entered, and pointed it out. "Hey, check that out, think that might have any treasure?"
"Don't turn into another Mona who only wants to steal shit."
"Hey!"
"I'm not that bad!"
She shook her head as Mona and Skull began bickering with Joker, trying to say they weren't as bad as each other, before arguing with each other, as Joker snickered and led them back. The small room only held a lever, which caused several gears to begin turning, though nothing else seemed to happen.
"So that did… nothing?"
Mona shrugged at her words. "Something must have happened." Walking past the painting they returned to the elevator, only to see that they had missed a second elevator, to the left of the one they had descended on. "Want to see where it goes?"
"Might as well." He pulled the lever and they began lowering a second time, eventually stopping in a dank, dark dungeon area with several waterfalls and a small, slippery stone pathway that went past several cages and led to another vine door hiding the last Will Seed. Unlike the others, however, a golden Shadow Knight stood before it, keeping watch.
"Think we should try fighting it?"
"It might be pretty tough if it's guarding a Will Seed…"
Joker's eyes flashed as he scanned it with his Third Eye, and shook his head. "It looks like it'll be about as tough as a Savage Enemy… but that doesn't make sense, why would it be weaker than the other Shadows garbed in gold?"
"Well, if it's on their level, then we can take 'em! Come on!"
"Skull, wait! Ugh, you idiot!"
"Come on, Mona, Panther!"
The guard noticed them as they ran towards it, grabbing its sword and pointing it towards them. "You! I don't know how you found this place, but you won't be taking another step, intruders!"
"Then we'll just have to step all over yo—" She was cut off when the guard exploded into ooze and reformed into a slimy form. However, unlike Joker's Slime Persona, which just looked like a blob with red eyes, this slime had a much more suggestive form. Its head was tapered, and covered its eyes, causing her to jump back and shriek. "Ah, ew, ew, ew!"
"Dude, is that a dick?!"
"Watch out, it's coming!"
"PHRASING! Skull, Tarukaja on me! Mona, Garu! Panther, Agi! Arsène, ravage them!" Their Personas all began forming around them, Captain Kidd launching a beam of red energy at Joker that powered him up, while Arsène launched an Eiha, Zorro unleashed a Garu, and she commanded Carmen to throw two Agis at the dick… slime… Shadow… thing! It took the attacks easily, before lunging forward at Joker.
He dodged to the side, and Skull roared as he jumped forward and slammed his mace into its head, causing it to groan and deform slightly. Suddenly it tightened then expanded, punching Skull in the gut at full force and causing him to cough up spittle as he was thrown back off the side of the pathway and Captain Kidd turned back into his mask from the shock of the attack.
"Panther!"
"Carmen, grab him!" He was too far for even her whip to reach, but thankfully one of Carmen's love slaves had a leash long enough that he could reach out and grab Skull's hand. The boy shook his head, before pulling himself back up as the rest of them focused on the Shadow.
Even after summoning Saki Mitama and using Bufu the Shadow hadn't slowed, in fact, the only thing that had even gotten it to flinch was the direct blow Skull had given it. She immediately grimaced at the thought of having to get up close and personal, but Joker voiced her fears.
"We'll need to use close combat! Skull, let's go! Panther, Mona, neither of you are suited for it so stay on healing duty, but be ready to get some hits in while you can! It's still standing strong!"
"Ha! I get it! Nice one!"
"Yes, I'm a comedy genius, now focus!" Both boys charged in, dodging another strike, and beginning their assault, hitting it again and again with blade and mace. It wiggled around, trying to smack them aside, only for Arsène to grab Joker by the collar and throw him into the air, and Skull simply jumped back. "Yeah, I ain't into being cock-slapped thank you very much, Mona, Garu under it!"
Though the wind attack was weaker than just hitting it, with how off-balance the Shadow was it managed to toss the thing high into the air, towards Joker. Turning Arsène back into his mask and then into Cait Sith, who used Cleave to slash at and launch the Shadow down at Skull. "Batter up!" The blond grinned and wound up, slamming the head of his mace into the squidgy body that was flying towards him.
The impact sent it bouncing along the pathway, though unfortunately, it was towards her and Mona. It rolled with the impact, and upon noticing them focused solely on her. It stood a little more rigidly and seemed to drool slightly, causing her to dry-heave. "Gross, gross, gross! Kill it already!" She grabbed her whip and began smacking it, while Mona grabbed his sword and began slashing it.
"How dare you look at Panther like— Nya!" Mona had to jump aside as it surged forward, aiming to slam into her. She shrieked and had Carmen hold her love-slaves in front of them as human shields, and the Shadow bounced away after hitting them. She grunted as the pain of her Persona being attacked transferred to her, but a quick Dia fixed that easily.
It began staring at her lustily again, but Captain Kidd soaring in and slamming his boat into it to knock it back distracted it, and Joker had Saki Mitama freeze the damp stone beneath it, causing it to lose hold of the ground and begin slipping. One final Garu from Mona thrust it off the path, sending it plummeting into the depths below. She watched it go, squatting down and groaning as she buried her head in her arms. "I am SO done with this place…"
Joker just shook his head, reforming his mask as he sheathed his dagger. "Proof that size doesn't matter, it all comes down to skill."
"The only dudes who actually say that are dudes with small dicks."
"Alright, let's grab that Will Seed!" Mona began running ahead and trying to cut off their conversation, causning both boys to roll their eyes as they followed, with her trailing behind everyone. After cutting up the vines covering the door, Joker pushed open the door and revealed the third Will Seed, this one colored a deep blue.
As he grabbed it, the previous two suddenly floated out of Joker's pockets, and he dropped the blue one in shock. The three skull-like seeds began orbiting each other, before combining in a flash of bright light. As it died down their new form was revealed, the darker coloring on their outsides having changed to a silver color, while the glowing insides had changed from red, green, and blue to pale pink.
"The hell was that?! It got all… I dunno, but it's weird! C'mon Mona, you didn't tell us they could do this!"
"Oh, so that's what happens… I never expected—" Mona began coughing, puffing himself up. "I mean, I never expected anything less to happen!"
"So you also had no clue," Joker replied deadpan.
"Oh, semantics! What really matters is the energy I can feel emanating from it! This'll definitely be useful in the future!"
"So we're just… taking it? I'm not totally sure that's a good idea."
"Phantom Thieves make use of all available tools to complete their missions! And who knows what we'll find next? If we find ourselves in a situation where this could be useful, let's see what it can do!"
"Shake it for me, Suzui, huehehehaha..."
White hot rage flooded her system, and she grit her teeth. "So we can finally get going, then?"
Joker looked at her, before turning back to Mona and Skull. "Monamona, Numbskull, head back to the elevator, make sure that dick-thing or any other Shadows aren't waiting for us."
"What about you?"
"I want to see what exactly this thing can do, and Panther's going to assist me."
"Rightio, leader-guy. Come on, Monamona."
"Stop calling me that!"
As they left the room, Joker turned towards her. "What's wrong?"
She blinked, having expected him to hand her the Will Seed for testing like he'd said. "What do you…?"
"I like how focused you are today, but you're being just a bit too aggressive, meaning something's up. So. What's wrong?"
She sighed, crossing her arms. "It's nothing, I'm just…" Shaking her head, and with her tail swishing, which she still wasn't sure if she was making it do that or if it was automatic, she turned towards the door. "I'm just really frustrated. Every day that goes by without Kamoshida groveling on his knees for forgiveness for what he did to Shiho… for what he did to everybody… He has to pay."
"I completely agree. I'm very much looking forward to seeing Kamoshida beg for his life. But rushing through this place won't help. Attracting every Shadow to our position by plowing through every obstacle we find will either slow us down or stop us completely by causing us to get overwhelmed and killed. Plus, thoroughly exploring this castle nets us useful items. Taking our time is for the best."
"Right…"
"Don't think I forgot how you wanted to try and fight three Savage Enemies at once." She blushed slightly and Joker chuckled. "Sneaking around may generally be slower, but I think that you can agree that avoiding those three was much faster and easier than fighting them."
"Um… yeah…" She rubbed her arm. "Sorry about that."
"I'm not trying to chastise you, Panther. Just be a bit more patient. This was triggered by your visit to Shiho today, am I correct?"
"It was. Seeing her in that coma… She's still not responding to anything, not making any sounds, and when I saw her like that I just… I needed to take Kamoshida down today."
"Well, I don't know if we'll be able to finish him today, or even tomorrow, but trust me when I say he will go down. We'll all make sure of it."
She smiled as he placed his hand on her shoulder, gazing at her kindly, with a hint of mischievousness dancing in his eyes. "Right."
"Huh. That's good. I didn't even need to reveal a life-threatening secret like I did last time to get you to trust me on this."
"Yeah, as if fake glasses are the end of the world."
"Are you kidding me? The glasses community would rip me to shreds if they ever found out," he smirked. "Come on, Panther. Let's move." She laughed, following behind him, her rage having calmed drastically, and focused on their goal. Joker… was a good leader. Her mouth settled into a smile as she followed him, ready for whatever else was waiting for them within the tower.
Did I wait to have the Death Confidant start on the 13th chapter on purpose? Maybe. Maybe not. But in the end, the Arcana is the means by which all is revealed.
I'll admit, one of my favorite Confidants in P5 is Mishima. He's an insecure kid who tries to take advantage of the Phantom Thieves to make himself feel like he's actually useful, but you help him realize that just hanging on to your coattails won't make him happy. But I do get why so many people don't like the character, though. He can be pretty annoying.
Besides that, there isn't much to say about his chapter. I'm trying to make sure these chapters are on the longer side considering they come out once a month. Also, I know I said there would be more adult jokes considering these characters are older teens, but I still found myself holding back slightly when making dick jokes and stuff in the 'Torn King Of Desire' fight on instinct from writing my other T-rated stories.
Ah well. I'll have more fun making those kinds of jokes when Oracle joins. And Mara shows up. And all of the Third Semester's tentacles do their tentacling.
Fucking Japan and its tentacles.
Lol alright, leave a review on everything you liked in the chapter or just a 'nice,' both are always great to read. See y'all next time!