Chapter 39: The Justice
Ω • Ω • Ω
•Akira•
"I feel like I'm gonna puke… For real, my stomach's churnin'..."
"This is why I spoke against it."
Ryuji glared at the not-cat. "Dude… It's not fair… Usin' your cathood as an excuse… Only at times like this…"
"Maybe you shouldn't have eaten so many snacks before we hopped onboard," he snickered.
"Anyway, are you guys feeling hungry? How about some pancakes?"
He met her eyes and chuckled while Mona just purred from his spot in his bag. "Let's go home. We have another full day ahead of us tomorrow." It was unfortunate, but he was right. They had spent the entire afternoon all the way until the sun set wandering Dome Town, and the time he'd spent with his teammates was great fun. It was just too bad Yusuke couldn't join them.
They split up and went their separate ways, and upon returning to Leblanc he ascended to his room and pulled out his phone, searching for a picture he'd taken earlier in the day of him holding up a peace sign in front of the Tokyo Dome.
It had been one of the places Dad had wanted to take them on their vacation before it had been cut short. He could only chuckle at how his old man would react to him visiting the Dome without him.
He then set his chair up and began his usual exercises, grabbing the rafters and pulling himself up. "One, two, three…"
Shall we discuss the incident?
'Not much to discuss right now… we noticed that slip-up, so now we keep our eyes out. It's a red flag certainly, but…'
He continued his discussion with his Other Self and his Personas late into the night, only stopping when Morgana got sick of his counting and told him to go to sleep.
Ω • Ω • Ω
6/10, Friday
The second day of their trip had come, and he sat with his friends in the audience as they got ready to watch the interview live, his eyes narrowed, legs and arms crossed. Do try not to look so suspicious.
'Shush.'
Ryuji sat to his right and Ann next to the faux-blond, while Morgana sat in his bag on his lap. On the stage were the two hosts, a young man and woman, while the AD's worked the cameras and other equipment. "Akechi-san's coming on!"
Bursts of chatter came from their fellow students as Akechi walked onto the set, a pleasant smile on his face. "Ain't that the guy from yesterday?" Ryuji whispered.
"Yep," Ann nodded.
"Coming back from commercial! Seven, six, five seconds 'till start, four, three…" he made the motion for two and one silently and the woman announcer smiled towards the cameras.
"And now, onto the 'Hottest Meet-and-Greet' segment of our show… After his last appearance was so well-received, we decided to bring back this fine gentleman today. It's the high school detective, Goro Akechi!"
Several students cheered and clapped, causing more to follow suit. Akechi just nodded politely, his smile growing wider. "Hello there."
"Thank you for taking the time to join us today, Akechi-kun," the man spoke. "Your popularity is stunning."
"Even I've found it to be quite a surprise. It is a bit embarrassing though."
"Moving along, we've been told there's a case on your mind right now. Care to share, detective?"
"Ah yes. That would be the scandal involving the master artist Madarame."
Akira's eyes narrowed. So he was investigating Madarame? Was he specifically investigating the link between the former artist and the Phantom Thieves? Or just Madarame's crimes?
"There it is! All of this phantom thief excitement has caught your attention too, Akechi-kun? Allow me to be blunt for just a second. What do you think of these justice-oriented Phantom Thieves?"
"If they truly are heroes of Justice, I sincerely hope they exist."
The man grinned and leaned forward. "Ohhh, so you don't deny the possibility that they're real?"
"I may not seem like it, but I sometimes wish that Santa Claus existed. Although, if he did, I'd have to arrest him for breaking and entering."
"…" Ryuji huffed, glaring at Akechi.
"But, hypothetically speaking, if these Phantom Thieves are real… I believe they should be tried in a court of law."
All four Phantom Thieves in the audience felt themselves stiffen up.
"That's quite the statement. Are they committing crimes? Some people even say that the Thieves are actually helping their victims abandon their evil ways."
Akechi interlocked his fingers as his face grew serious. "What the artist Madarame did truly was an unforgivable crime. However, they are taking the law into their own hands by judging him. It is far from justice. More importantly, you should never forcefully change a person's heart."
"You have a point. These people are calling themselves the Phantom Thieves, after all. Amazing as always, Akechi-kun! I could listen to you for days! You have the most radiant charisma!"
Akechi chuckled at the praise, adjusting one of his gloves. "I have to say though, I would be embarrassed if it turns out these Phantom Thieves don't exist. If that were the case, I'd summarize it into a report as a school project."
The female announcer giggled, then turned to them. "Now then, let's try asking some students the same age as Akechi-kun about the Phantom Thieves Thieves! First, please press your button now if you think the Phantom Thieves exist!"
"Of course they do!" Ryuji hissed, slamming his button. He and Ann cracked grins at each other while pressing theirs as well. The screen waiting by the announcers began rolling through numbers, before settling on seventeen.
"About thirty percent or so? What are your thoughts, Akechi-kun?"
"I'm… a bit surprised. That's higher than I was expecting. I'd love to hear some more detailed opinions on the Phantom Thieves' actions." Hearing that, the cute announcer got up and began walking down the aisle, looking back and forth through the students.
As she got closer, he leaned back but didn't worry. There were sixty students there for the trip, and the chances that any of the three of them would be chosen— "All right, let's try asking this student here."
'MotherFUCKER!'
My. What are the odds?
It'sss better than Ryuji getting chosssen.
"Hypothetically speaking, what are your thoughts on these Phantom Thieves, if they were real?"
"Uh, well…" he pretended to think about it, looking up, before turning back to the newscaster sheepishly with a smile. "I guess… they're kind of necessary?"
Akechi's eyebrows rose, and a smile spread across his face. "Haha, I wasn't expecting that!"
"How interesting!" The male announcer grinned at the opportunity. "This completely goes against the opinion you had about them being tried by law, Akechi-kun."
"Indeed. It's rather intriguing to hear such a strong acknowledgment. In that case, there's one more question I'd like to ask. If someone close to you, for example, your friend next to you… if his heart suddenly changed… wouldn't you think it was the work of the Phantom Thieves?"
"Well… I don't think so. 'Cause, both people they've changed were monsters that no one was trying to stop, right? I mean, Kamoshida was abusing his whole team, and even the people who knew didn't do anything about it. I don't know about Madarame, but if nobody was listening to the students who tried to say anything, then he was untouchable."
He shrugged. "If they stick to the pattern, then they're only gonna change people that the police haven't done anything about, or just can't touch. Besides, my friend's an asshole, so maybe he could benefit from a change of heart."
"Oh shut up, man!" Ryuji's outburst got a couple of peels of laughter, and even Akechi burst into chuckles.
After his laughter died, Akechi grinned and leaned forward. "Well, you certainly have some good reasoning for your beliefs. However, there is a flaw… whether the Thieves' actions are good or not, whether they are targeting villains or not, there is a more important issue at hand."
"Hm? What do you mean?" The male host asked.
"The matter of how they change people's hearts." Akechi grew somber and held his chin with one hand. "If they honestly possess that ability, it could be used for more than extracting confessions. It could be that what seem to be ordinary crimes are actually being perpetrated by these methods…"
"You know, you're absolutely right."
Akechi waved a hand and shook his head. "Oh, please don't misunderstand. This is all purely hypothetical. It is only if people who can use such a power truly exist. Either way though, this cannot be ignored. The existence of the Phantom Thieves would be nothing but a threat to our everyday lives. To be honest, I'm already working alongside the police to help sort out this matter."
Akira crossed his arms as he watched Akechi speak with the announcers, but thankfully the rest of the interview didn't involve any more audience interactions. When it finally ended they all stood up and breathed sighs of relief that Ryuji hadn't been called up to talk. As they walked, Ann had a conflicted look on her face. "So. What's on your mind?"
"Well… It just kinda seemed like he might be right."
Ryuji scoffed and glared at the ground. "He made it sound like we're the baddies. I don't like it."
He sighed as he looked between the two, lowering his voice. "I agree. We are NOT the bad guys in this situation. But some of what he was saying had merit, I'll give him that. Remember our talk over the phone on the twentieth? Psychotic Breakdowns and Mental Shutdowns are similar to a change of heart. Then, the Black Mask that Madarame talked about…"
"So… yeah, maybe there is someone using it for the wrong reason, but we ain't!" Ryuji protested.
"But that stuff about the police… do you think it's for real?"
"He can say whatever he wants," Morgana interrupted. "The justice of it all is something we can decide for ourselves."
The four of them were silent a moment, mulling over their conversation. "Oh sorry, I gotta go take a leak. Can you guys wait here? I'll be right back." Ryuji ran off, and Akira couldn't help the laugh that escaped him.
"Always breaks the air in a… unique way."
"Ugh, seriously. I'm gonna keep going, okay?"
Ann walked away and he leaned against the wall to wait for Ryuji to get back, before he stiffened up and Morgana hid in his bag as a familiar person walked up. "Oh, it's you!"
"Akechi-san."
"I'm glad I found you," he smiled, "I wanted to thank you in person."
"Oh?"
"To paraphrase Hegel, advancement cannot occur without thesis and antithesis." He immediately frowned at Akechi's statement. Hegel… those terms weren't used by Hegel, were they? If he was correct, they were from his contemporary, and even then, the contemporary had used the third term Synthesis as the resolution of a newer proposition… Mistaking his confusion on his incorrect paraphrasing as Akira simply not knowing who Hegel was, Akechi smiled. "My apologies. What I mean is that our discussion was quite meaningful. Few people around me are so willing to speak their minds as freely as you did earlier."
"Not even in the police force? Having someone with an opposing viewpoint, even just a devil's advocate can be useful to a detective, right?"
"Hmph. I'm a high-school detective, as you know. And adults… well, they're only interested in using the young, while the young simply do as they say. They don't truly take me seriously unless absolutely necessary. There are too many irresponsible people in these modern times. I can understand why you'd support the Phantom Thieves."
Hm, did thou sense that resentment as well?
"I didn't expect someone working with the police force to think that."
"Well, it's possible that this group is just as you believe and they are truly acting with good intentions. Since they have special talents, I assume their hearts must be burning with a sense of justice and duty… But that justice is merely a facade concealing their lack of true strength."
"I see. Well, if you lack true strength, why not pursue justice in a way that your strength does allow?"
"While your point has merit, what happens when they come upon a truly powerful opponent who could corner them? I believe they would flee without a second thought."
"Without knowing their methods, what would a 'truly powerful opponent' look like? One they couldn't get to confess their crimes? If we don't know how they 'steal desires' and 'change hearts' then there might not be an opponent powerful enough to corner them." He paused and eyed Akechi. "But even if there were… I believe they would fight to the very end."
"Oh?" Akechi laughed softly, a genuine smile spread across his face. "You really are intriguing. I bet you'd make for a worthwhile debate partner on the subject. If it's all right with you, would you continue sharing your thoughts with me?" Akechi put his hand— left hand, he took note— out.
He smiled back and grasped it with his own left hand. He hadn't said anything about Akechi's incorrect paraphrasing to stay amicable, since being on good terms with a detective could be useful, but he just couldn't help it. "Well, if I were to paraphrase Fichte as well as you paraphrased Hegel, if you wish to achieve synthesis over our thesis and antithesis, I happily accept."
Something in Akechi's face twitched while he kept his smile up, silver eyes staring right back at the brown-eyed boy. "Thank you, that's great news. I sense something different in you that's quite different from other people. I guess you can call it my detective's intuition? Haha, kidding, of course."
"Heh. Of course."
Having an 'in' with the police force could prove invaluable, Arsène murmured within his mind, all as chains shattered.
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 Justice Persona,
I have obtained the winds of blessing that
shall lead to freedom and new power…
Justice Arcana, Goro Akechi: Rank One.
"Ah, yes— we should exchange contact info. I don't even have your name." He chuckled at Akechi's words as he pulled his phone out.
"Akira Starr."
"And… registered. Well, I hope to see you again sometime soon." After nodding his head towards him Akechi turned and walked away. Akira watched him go, and after a minute passed Morgana popped up out of his bag.
"A detective's intuition, huh? We shouldn't underestimate that. On the other hand, there's an awful lot we could learn from him. If he contacts you, try hanging out with him."
"I'll certainly try."
"Yo, sorry for takin' so long! But, uh, was that Akechi? I can't stand that high an' mighty attitude! Just breathin' the same air as him makes me sick. Ugh, let's get out of here."
Ω • Ω • Ω
Chat Room: The Phantom Thieves
Ann— I mean is it really OK to be doing this to people just cause they're criminals?
Ann— Doesn't it seem a little selfish?
Yusuke— We are Phantom Thieves, Ann.
Yusuke— I doubt everyone would forgive us for what we did to Madarame.
Yusuke— Yet I still decided it was a necessary act.
Ryuji— Kamoshita 2 we aint gonna do shit 2 him through any kind of normal way
Ann— That's true but…
Ann— What do you think Akira? Are we being selfish?
He looked over at his phone as he waited for Kawakami to arrive, thinking over the question.
You— Perhaps we are. But where's the harm in that? Plenty of people are selfish, for good or bad reasons. Our selfishness has allowed us to stop a rapist sexual and physical abuser, and a plagiarizer who also abused his pupils and caused one to commit suicide. Our selfishness has helped and saved people. I can live with that.
Nobody responded for a few minutes.
Ryuji— damn
You— Was it really necessary to respond to my speech with the equivalent of a 'K'? Burn in hell, Ryu.
Ann— I guess you're right. And I can't think of any other way.
Yusuke— Hm, I believe our best path forward is sticking to our justice, not that of the law.
Yusuke— Shouldn't that be enough?
Yusuke— And with the unanimous decision rule in place, I doubt we'll lose our way.
Ann— Thanks guys, you're right. Sorry for bringing that up.
Ann— Don't worry, I'm not thinking about quitting the Phantom Thieves or anything.
You— Glad to hear it, Kitty Woman.
Ryuji— just u watch Akechi someday ur totally gonna c who was right!
Ann— I think that's our cue to stop talking about this…
"You know, Akechi seems to have a lot of influence with the media. I'm aware I said to try and hang out with him, but it might be dangerous to get too close."
"Obviously. We could easily play ourselves in this case."
"Hello? Master, your favorite maid is here! ❤️"
Hoo boy...
"Cool it, Becky, or I'll kick you out without paying!" He yelled down the stairs as Morgana rolled his eyes and jumped up to the rafters.
"Won't even play along…" He heard Kawakami grumble to herself as she walked up the stairs. When she reached the attic she looked around before doing a small curtsy. "Welcome home, Master! ❤️"
He didn't bother telling her that she was the one who had just come in, not him, instead turning back to his homework. "Thanks for coming. Ushimaru-sensei had assigned an essay for the social studies trip today without bothering to realize that it'd take us the whole evening after the trip to even complete it. If you could clean the room while I focus on this, that'd be great."
"Of course, Master! ❤️ I'll get it done lickety-split!" He did a double take at the term 'lickety-split', sighing and focusing on writing his essay after letting her know where they kept the cleaning supplies.
He heard her working behind him as he wrote his essay, dusting the windowsill and curtains, sweeping the floor, and he was pretty sure he even heard her feed his plant by pouring some fertilizer into the pot. After some time had passed he heard Kawakami sweep closer to his desk, humming to herself. He finished a paragraph and looked over the back of his chair to see her… just kind of swiping away at an already cleared spot. He raised an eyebrow at her. "...Working hard?"
She just closed her eyes and smiled at him. "Of course! I love cleaning shabby… I mean, sophisticated rooms like this. It gives me a great sense of accomplishment! If it's for you, Master, I'll happily be covered in dust! But then, doesn't it pain your heart to see such a cute maid all dirty?"
"You know, if I was some creepy guy I could take the opportunity to say 'I'll make you even dirtier'," he pointed out dryly. She waved the broom at him threateningly, and he grinned as he leaned back in his chair, away from the bristles, speaking in a more deadpan tone. "My heart truly aches at the sight."
"Awww, Master! ❤️ Even though your room is messy, your heart is so clean! I'll go ahead and get this over with then!" Some more time passed and he refocused on his essay, finishing it about the same time he heard her speak again. "Alright, this'll do, yeah? Keeping it a little messy for that shabby chic feel, you know? And now, cleaning is complete!"
He turned around just in time to see her drop the broom and then collapse face-first onto his bed, before rolling over, one arm and leg hanging off the side. "Ugh… I'm exhausted… I'm not allowed to work overtime during weekdays, so I rush to my part-time job after class ends. On my off days, I have to prepare pop quizzes and homework assignments. And today I had to clean bathtubs and walk dogs before coming here. There's no time to rest…"
"Are people really hiring a maid just to walk their dogs? You'd figure they'd get an actual dog walker for that. I'm sure it must be cheaper than hiring from a maid service…"
Kawakami scoffed at his words. "Oh, speaking of pets, this room smells like a cat… I feed a lot of strays around my house…" She was silent for some time, before looking at him, upside down thanks to her position. "I was surprised that you requested me. I didn't think you actually would. …You weren't expecting to do anything weird with me, were you?"
Sssay yesss.
Bad snake, Leanan Sidhe chastised.
"No. Absolutely not." He said nothing about how he had a clear view down her cleavage window thanks to her lying down.
"As long as you understand," she muttered. "I know I'm in a maid outfit, but I'm still your teacher, so don't get any funny ideas. Besides, I try not to get too close to any of my students, so…" She cut herself off as she yawned loudly. "...I need a nap. Sorry, just five minutes… maybe ten…"
"Go ahead. My blanket's folded on the windowsill next to you." She mumbled something before grabbing the blanket and throwing it over herself haphazardly. He was pretty sure she was out like a light the second it was.
He shook his head and turned back to his finished essay, now editing it to make sure it was perfect. More than ten minutes passed but he didn't say anything, only waiting until the end of Kawakami's shift before he turned to wake her up. She jolted up in a daze, nearly falling to the ground, then standing up proudly. "And before you know it, time's up! Thank you very much! ❤️"
"Thank you for your service," he chuckled.
"Ah, by the way, do you know of any part-time jobs that pay well? I assume you make a lot since you can afford a maid service… Well, let me know if you do." He raised an eyebrow. Well, he guessed that was about right. The beef bowl shop, flower shop, convenience store… Even then, there was Uncle Anthony's company, but she… would have some questions on how he could get her a position there. If they even had any part-time work. She was already working as a maid, so working as a handmaiden in Uncle Noct's kingdom could work… if it wasn't so far away that it'd take more time to get there and back then actually working part-time. As for Mom's school or assisting Dad on the team? Eagleland was even farther!
"Well, there is this flower shop…"
"I went there, too little."
"Why do you need so much money in the first place?" He decided to ask straight out.
"Well, uh… It's for my little sister!" She looked to the side, not meeting his eyes, which was probably for the best since she would have seen his deadpan, disbelieving face. "She's sick, so I need money to pay for her medical expenses." Her phone rang and she pulled it out of her pocket. "Hello? …Yes, I made the transfer. Not enough?! But it was the same amount as last week! I— N-No… Yes. Yes, I understand. Okay, goodbye."
He stared at her silently as she put her phone away. "...All good?"
"Oh… it was, uh, a wrong number…" She cleared her throat and stepped closer. "Hey, sorry to ask you this out of the blue, but… Do you happen to have one hundred thousand yen I could borrow?"
Calculate that to dollars…
Around nine hundred bucks? Seriously?
Seeing the incredulity on his face, she shook her head rapidly. "W-Wait, never mind! Owing one of my students money would be the worst."
"You're already acting as a maid for me, so…"
"Hey, you may have some money, but be mindful of how you spend it. You shouldn't be wasting it on services like this."
"I don't regret requesting you."
She looked down, brow furrowed. "...I do need the money, so I appreciate you requesting me. However, you're my student, so if we were to get involved further, things would get complicated." She looked back up at him and nodded. "I did warn you! The rest is your responsibility! You're a high schooler after all!"
"Right. So if I want to spend my money on cute maids, it's my responsibility and my prerogative."
She huffed but nodded, and he could feel her trust in him all while chains crashed through his mind.
RANK UP!
Termperance Arcana, Sadayo Kawakami: Rank 2
"Three more to go…" She sighed and tried to pep herself up, throwing him a weak smile. "Well, I'll see you later, Master!" She curtsied and descended the stairs, causing him to sigh as he followed her down, grabbing his wallet as he went. He paid her and locked the door, returned to his room, then collapsed into his chair. Another visit by Becky, and another exhausting evening.
Nice view though, eh, Trickster?
'Stop.'
Some time later he got a call, a familiar peppy voice on the other end. "Is this Master? Thank you for using our service today! ❤️ I really wanna do a lot more cleaning for you… Is that okay, Master?"
"So this is the hard sell, huh?"
"What?! Noooo! I just wanted to hear your voice, Master! ❤️…No, you've got the right idea. Still gotta hit my quotas for the week. ❤️" There was silence for several seconds. "...Ugh, sorry. Part of the job. Alright, this is driving me insane, so enough of the sales talk— Aw crap, my manager's coming! Um, well, hope you request me againsoonsometimebyebyeeeee!❤️" He snorted as she suddenly hung up, before throwing himself on his bed.
'Becky' was lying right there, thou does know that, correct?
'STOP.'
Ω • Ω • Ω
6/11, Saturday
For most of the journey to school, he heard, usually from other classmates from Shujin, praise for Akechi. Even in their classroom during lessons, people were whispering about the second detective prince. It really was no surprise when he got a text from Ryuji to come down to the courtyard. It was even less of a surprise to see Ryuji fuming when he finally reached the courtyard.
"Yo, Ryu."
"Man, that detective really pissed me off! We're some kinda threat?! Let's see him do it then!"
He rolled his eyes at Ryuji. "'Hey, Aki, how ya doin'?' Oh, I'm doing quite alright, Ryu, what did you call me down here to talk about?"
Ignoring his sarcastic response, Ryuji kicked a vending machine. "If someone else could help 'em, we wouldn't be doin' shit as the Phantom—"
Through the use of PSI, within a single instant Akira had transformed into shadow, burst forward the four feet that had been between him and Ryuji, rematerialized, and put the faux-blond into a headlock as a snarl grew on his face. "The hell have we said about shouting that shit out, Ryuji?! Apologize! Apologize now!"
"Kch…" Ryuji choked, slapping his arm. "S-Sorry, I g-give, I give! Uncle! Kkch… ach…"
Don't accidentally break his neck, Ame-No-Uzume giggled.
"What exactly is happening here?" Ann asked as she walked up.
"Ryuji nearly pulled a Ryuji."
"I see." She turned and flicked the still choking boy on the forehead. After another moment, he let Ryuji go, and he rubbed his neck as he stumbled.
"Ow…"
"Honestly, Ryuji…" Ann sighed and leaned against the small table that sat in the courtyard, nibbling on some snack that he didn't look too closely at, too focused on glaring at Ryuji in disappointment.
"Come on, it's not like everybody else ain't talking about this stuff anyways. It'd just be more suspicious if we were whisperin'!"
"Not when you say we're members of a certain elite squadron, you dumbass."
"Man…" Ryuji kicked the ground and grumbled, before looking at Ann's snack. "…So, you just gonna keep eatin' an' eatin' an' eatin' those things all by yourself?! Gimmie some!"
"Sorry, just ate the last one."
Morgana just sighed. "You guys are too laid back. The police are getting involved now, you know."
Ann winked at him and passed him the last of her snacks, which he quickly munched on before she looked between them. "So you think it's true? We'll be okay if we keep doing this… right?"
"We can't let the cops scare us outta doin' what we know is right," Ryuji said, carefully watching his words.
"But what about that weird guy from the Palace? Isn't there a lot we don't know?"
Before anyone could answer the click of a shutter and flash of a camera filled the courtyard. "The hell?"
Standing there was Makoto Niijima, holding her phone up innocently. "You three seem to be having so much fun. I'm a little jealous."
"The first step is admitting the problem, Niijima-senpai," he spoke with a condescending smile. "The next step is solving it. Maybe learn some goddamn empathy and stop worshiping the ground that egg-shaped principal walks on and you'll actually get people to want to be around you! Good luck, Senpai!"
She glared back at him. "…I'll take that under consideration, Starr-kun."
"Aki, come on. Are you snoopin' on us again, Prez?" For some reason he didn't hear much anger in Ryuji's voice, more… disappointment than anything. "We said before, we don't know nothin'."
My my, how interesting.
"…Why do you think I'm here to question you? It's not as though you're hiding anything, right, Sakamoto-kun?" She breathed in, folding her hands together. "My ears are always open to the troubles of my peers."
Ann cut in, stepping forward with a glare. "You're really that hungry for a good letter of recommendation? Of course you are. Nobody would take on your annoying job if they weren't."
Niijima's red eyes zipped to Ann's cyan. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"You're student council President, right? Wouldn't you have known about Kamoshida?"
"Of course not! He honestly was a good teacher until that day—"
"Until that day?!" He snarled. "You pompous bi—!"
Ann cut him off, her own anger forcing her forward. "Oh, but you always take the teacher's side! That's what a good council President does, right?"
Niijima bit her lip, before stepping forward to match Ann. "Then… how about you? What did you do for your friend? You were much closer to her than I was, so how did you help?"
"There wasn't any way to help! By myself… I couldn't do ANYTHING for her!"
"There's no need to shout."
"Ann." Ryuji waved her back, before rolling his shoulders and staring Niijima in the eyes. "If those Phantom Thieves are out there helpin' people… I'd root for 'em. No questions asked. They're doin' their best, no matter what others think of 'em. They're dependable. They're people we can count on."
Niijima didn't respond, she just looked back at Ryuji. He and Ann exchanged glances as the faux-blonde stared uncharacteristically silently at the student council president. "Alright. Just… make sure you show up to your classes, all right?"
When she finally walked away they silently watched her go. Ann's hands trembled as she clenched them and whirled towards them. "You know what I asked earlier about whether we'll be okay if we keep this up? I take it back. I'd be ashamed to let it end now."
"Yeah. It's about time we find the next target, too."
Ann stormed out of the courtyard and back to their classroom, while he turned to Ryuji. "So. Feeling a bit of compassion for everyone's favorite Prez?"
"Not compassion, uh…" Ryuji sighed and leaned against the vending machine. "It's just, uh… she said that she didn't know about Kamoshida. Maybe she knew about the rumors, but Wednesday she, uh, pretty clearly said that she didn't know."
He frowned at Ryuji. "And you believe her?"
"She… wasn't really soundin' like she was lyin'. She was sayin' some other stuff 'bout Shibuya and blackmail or somethin'? I dunno, but I really don't think she was in on it with Kamoshita and Kobayakawa."
"Alright… alright, that's…" he sighed. "Well… she's still a pain in our asses, but maybe she didn't just let Kamoshita do whatever he wanted without even trying to help, since she apparently didn't even know. For now, we should still be careful. Whether she knew or not, she's still after the Thieves." He frowned. "But... Blackmail? Shibuya? Now that sounds interesting..."
As the two boys walked away, Niijima stood in the corridor between the Practice and Classroom buildings, gripping the railing. "If only I could…"
Ω • Ω • Ω
The end of the day had arrived, and so the Phantom Thieves convened in Shibuya Square. They all stood around by the entrance to the station, Yusuke carting a suitcase with paint supplies on it for some reason. "Comments are coming in at an alarming rate. However, negative ones seem to be more prominent. 'A criminal group with unknown goals that does whatever it wants in the name of justice.' Huh…"
Ryuji scoffed as Yusuke continued scrolling through comments on the Phan-site. "It's prolly 'cause of Akechi… TV's got some crazy sway."
"He's free to deny our actions, but being cursed by his influence is another thing entirely," the artist replied.
Ann sighed. "Just when we were starting to get people to believe in us too…"
"All we gotta do is take down another hot shot, yeah?"
"…Well, do you have any ideas who this next 'hot shot' could be?"
"We didn't find one at the TV station, rather unfortunately."
"I ain't got a thing yet… Damnit, this is real irritatin'. By the way, what's up with that luggage?"
"Oh, I decided to leave the school dorms. They were not only filthy, but too noisy as well… no true art could come from such a place."
"What're you gonna do then? You can't go back to that shack, right?"
"I was planning on staying at Ann's house." Ann was visibly baffled as Yusuke continued talking with a carefree smile on his face. "I've even prepared a thank-you gift. I hope it's to your parents' liking."
His lips twitched into a half-smile. "If her parents are anything like her, if you've gotten sweets then they'll certainly like it."
"WHAT?! There's no way that's gonna happen!"
Yusuke seemed… truly devastated. "Impossible…"
"You're the impossible one!"
"But I spent everything I had on those delectable Japanese sweets…"
"That's not the issue here!" She groaned and held her head. "Seriously though… what're we gonna do about him?"
"Ryuji, what about your place?"
"Nah, we don't got the room there…"
Morgana popped out of his bag with a smirk. "We'll, seeing as Yusuke is an important member of our team… I'll lend a hand! Come stay at our place! It's dirty, but at least you'll have somewhere to sleep!"
Akira blinked as he turned his head to raise an eyebrow at the not-cat. "Excuse me?"
Ryuji snorted. "Why're you the one calling the shots?"
"Don't you two live in a café? I've been wondering about that for a while. Yongen's not too far, is it?" Ann questioned with a thoughtful look on her face.
Morgana once again spoke for him. "Nope! And the café's only a minute's walk from the station."
"How about we go there now? We can have a party to celebrate Madarame's change of heart!
Ryuji gasped. "Ooh, good idea! We can make it a welcome party for Yusuke too!"
"Well… that part should be fine, at least," he acquiesced.
"All right, it's decided!" Ann cheered and Ryuji wandered after her while Yusuke smiled at him.
"Sorry to cause you trouble. Ah, by the way, I prefer sleeping on a futon." He took his luggage and walked after Ryuji and Ann, while he watched him go.
"It'll be up to you to convince the chief," Morgana announced.
He didn't say anything back and just whipped his bag around, causing Morgana to yowl in panic.
Ω • Ω • Ω
•Sojiro•
"Wow, what a nice smell…"
"The place kinda looks outdated… I can't say I hate it though."
"People refer to that as 'retro', Ryuji."
He turned around at all the young-sounding voices, spotted Starr-san standing next to three other teenagers, and raised an eyebrow. "So who're they?"
"Hello!" A girl with long blonde hair and blue eyes smiled and waved.
"A girl, too?"
"What's that supposed to mean?" He heard Starr-san mutter to himself.
The blonde just continued as if neither of them had said anything.
"Akira's really helped us a lot lately, so we wanted to see where he's staying!"
He chuckled. "I bet you're the ones doing all the helping."
"No, really, he's been great."
Another blond, this one a more… thuggish-looking boy, grinned widely. "Yeah, Aki's a lifesaver."
The final boy, a dignified one with dark blue hair, nodded. "We truly owe him a great deal."
Sakura just smirked at them all, one hand coming up to his beard. What a colorful crew. "Huh… Well, sit down. This round'll be on the house."
"Surprisingly generous, Sakura-san…" Starr-san spoke with narrowed eyes.
"You're helping."
"There it is." He just huffed at Starr-san's response and threw him an apron, which he quickly wrapped around his school uniform as he dumped the bag holding Morgana onto a booth seat. "Ryu's getting a coke though, no way in hell is he the type of guy who likes coffee."
"You know me so well, Aki!" The blond boy, 'Ryu', apparently, slapped him on the back as he walked past, ducking back as Starr-san tried to flick him on the ear in retaliation. It was probably his first name, and a nickname at that, seeing as how he was referring to Starr-san as 'Aki'.
Several minutes later Starr-san was washing out the equipment while he watched the blue-haired boy and blonde girl enjoy their coffees, and 'Ryu' sipped at his soda. "Wow… It's delicious."
He noticed Starr-san preen at the girl's praise, and he shot the boy a smug grin as he calmed himself down. Looked like his ward was interested in her, huh? "What'd I say about the ladies and coffee?" The older man whispered.
His ward just huffed in what was definitely embarrassment. "Oh, whatever." Yeah, he was definitely holding this one over his head.
Yusuke, having not heard the whispers, smiled down at his cup. "Indeed. There's great depth to its acidity."
"Oh yeah, I remember now! I think I've seen Leblanc mentioned in a magazine before…"
He smiled at the memory. "That was a long time ago."
"For real? Maybe I should try this… hey, gimmie a taste." 'Ryu' snatched the girl's cup and took a sip from it, then immediately recoiled. Everyone laughed as he stuck his tongue out in disgust. "Blech! It's so bitter! This has gotta be cruel and unusual punishment!"
His laughter petered out into a chuckle as 'Ryu' drained his glass. "Eh, I didn't drink coffee when I was a kid either." He looked them over, before turning to Starr-san. "So these're your friends, yeah? Go on and take them up to your room. No need to stay down here."
"Ooh, I wanna see!"
"It's only an attic."
"Man, that bitter taste just won't leave my mouth…"
"Come on, you big baby.. What kind of pirate can't handle his ale, let alone some coffee?"
"Hey, I could be a great pirate without liking any of that crap! Oh, and thanks for the soda!" Starr-san and 'Ryu' argued as they walked upstairs, and the other boy finished his drink to follow them up.
"Thank you very much for the drink." The… artist, apparently, took his supplies and struggled to roll up the stairs, bumping up each one.
As the girl emptied her cup and stood up, Sakura hummed to himself. "So you're, uh…"
"Ann. Ann Takamaki."
"Ann-chan, huh… That's a nice name. You got a boyfriend?"
"Nope. Never have, either."
Their conversation was interrupted by 'Ryu' shouting down at them. "Hey, you gotta get up here! This place's freakin' insane!"
"Go on," he chuckled.
"Oh, right. Thank you for the coffee!" She began walking upstairs, before remembering her bag sitting on the booth, and spotting Starr-san's with Morgana still inside. "Sheesh, they had to leave the Mona bag here?"
"Huh. Sweet girl." He watched her go, a grin spreading on his face. So, Starr-san was interested in her, and she was single… Maybe he should give his ward a couple more tips on picking up ladies when his friends left later.
He chuckled and picked up the empty cups and glasses, getting to washing them as the laughter of the teenagers drifted down from above into the peacefully empty café.
Yup, too much time on my hands, so another chapter out. Sojiro trying to set you up with each Phantom Thief lady that joins the team is never not hilarious. He truly is the greatest coffee dad. I think it's pretty funny that a lot of P5 fic's I've read points out that Akechi paraphrased the wrong dude. How they have Joker respond does change it up, some don't have Joker point it out to and some do. But yeah, Justice Arcana is a go.
Another rank of the Temperance Arcana, and the interaction between Makoto and the Thieves at the courtyard changed very slightly because of Ryuji's interactions with her. That'll probably snowball.
So yeah, let me know what you think of the chapter, or just leave a 'nice,' both are always great to read. See y'all next time!