Chapter 2
The Mafia
Tuesday, June 14th, 2016
Ren stifled a yawn, as he slowly trudged to school. He could really go for a cup of coffee right now. He skipped out on breakfast that Sojiro normally offered because he would be running late. Now he regretted he didn't at least take a cup of coffee to-go.
He couldn't afford to pass out in class. He'd never hear the end of it, especially from Morgana. Knowing him, he'd probably climb out of his hiding place and claw at Ren's face to wake him up, consequences be damned.
Morgana stuck his head out of his bag. Ren already knew what he was going to say.
"See, this is why you have to get more sleep!" he chided.
"Not now, Morgana..." he muttered, before setting a hand on Morgana's head to push him back into the bag despite Morgana's protests. "You can lecture me another time."
Especially since he had been staying up to make tools last night. He was getting better at it, but it went so slow.
Morgana grumbled, sticking his nose in the air. "I'm just saying, this is why I'm always having you get sleep when you can! Especially with Miss President's deadline coming up!"
Why did the cat have to remind him? The deadline was just… rather slim. And they needed time to gather intel, not to mention the actual runs in the Palace. The clock was ticking and Ren was afraid that they wouldn't make it. It just seemed impossible.
"I know, I know, you don't have to lecture me."
Ren was careful to keep his voice low, speaking from the corner of his mouth. People already thought he was a violent delinquent. He didn't want to add crazy cat whisperer to the list.
He could still feel people's stares sometimes. Ren stifled a sigh. It was really tiring. He had hoped that the rumors would have died down after Kamoshida was gone but of course they didn't, it was just his luck.
"Whatever… the people who matter know the truth," he thought to himself.
Ren fought back another yawn. Maybe he could scrounge around for some kind of soda in one of the vending machines. Or maybe grab something from the student store. He should have really eaten breakfast even if it did make him late.
"Ren—!" Morgana began to warn, but to no avail.
He smacked right into something, and the next thing he knew, he was lying flat on his back. Morgana squirmed underneath him, popping out of his bag.
"I told you to pay attention!" Morgana huffed.
"Are you okay?" a voice interrupted, before Morgana could continue.
Ren blinked, looking up. He had bumped into someone.
"More or less..." he said, pulling off his glasses to rub his face.
Sometimes he wondered if he should just toss his fake glasses away. The unassuming look they gave him didn't even help.
"It gave me a wake-up call at least," he joked.
The speaker's lips twitched into a half-smile at his quip, before extending a hand to help Ren up. Ren took it and they pulled him up with ease. He was… surprisingly strong, given that he had a more slender build. His hands were calloused too.
They were nearly eye level, with the stranger being slightly taller than him. He seemed to follow the school uniform to a T, with the white collared dress shirt, the slacks, and even the dress shoes. He had light-brown hair styled in that messy-neat fashion, but his bangs curled in a ridiculous flyaway style that had to use gel.
At first, he was reminded of Akechi. But then he mentally frowned at that comparison. This guy had a completely different hairstyle and eye color. Maybe the fact they both were kinda pretty boys?
"I'm Ken Amada," he introduced himself after a moment of silence.
Wait, wasn't that the new transfer student? He had already heard some gossip about him, since Amada had apparently confirmed knowing the CEO of the Kirijo Group during his time on Port Island. Though that news had been drowned out by Niijima busting them.
"I'm Ren Amamiya," he said, bracing himself for the usual reaction all while sliding his glasses onto his face. "Transferred here in April."
But curiosity, not fear, flickered in his eyes.
"It's nice to meet you," he said courteously.
Ren blinked. That was a first. The only person who had greeted him kindly had been Anne, but that had been thrown out of the window when he had to lie why he was late on his first day. Luckily, they had become friends afterwards but still.
He could tell Amada felt a bit awkward as his hand hung in the air. There was confusion in his eyes. Ren sighed and decided to stop leaving him hanging. He quickly shook the third-year's hand before shoving it back into it back into his pocket.
"Sorry..." Ren apologized to dissolve the awkward tension. "I'm not used to a friendly greeting."
Amada raised an eyebrow. "Do people hate you that much?"
Ren just grimaced. "You have no idea."
Though he had heard a few rumors during lunch yesterday… more positive than what Ren had to put up with, but still. Amada's face suddenly clouded over with confusion.
"Ah…"
Ren followed his line of sight and… he spotted Morgana peeking out of his bag.
"Oh crap! Please don't ask, please don't ask—" he mentally begged.
"Is there a reason why you're carrying a cat in your schoolbag?" his senpai asked, eyebrow raised.
"Ah, dammit all!" he mentally grumbled.
What was even a good excuse for that?
"He's… er…"
Ren combed through his mind for a good excuse. And… he really had nothing. Nothing of substance. He scrambled on the spot as he blurted out the first thing that came to mind.
"He's my therapy cat. You know, for emotional support."
Morgana yowled, "I'm your what?!"
Amada looked at Morgana quizzically, eyebrow raised.
"He doesn't exactly sound calm."
"He's just grumpy that I had to feed him kibble this morning. He's kinda spoiled," Ren said, holding back a smirk.
"I'M WHAT?!" Morgana glared daggers at him, "Why are you feeding him this drivel?!"
That was when Amada laughed.
"Mm, I can understand spoiled pets. My guardian always feeds the best cuts to our dog," he stated.
His expression turned wistful for some reason. Maybe the dog was dead?
Out of the corner of Ren's eye, he could see other students staring. They were whispering, pointing at the two of them. Ren fought the urge to sigh.
Amada followed his line of sight, his expression immediately souring.
He then muttered, "Seems like people just can't keep to themselves."
Ren winced, before adjusting his glasses.
"It's nothing I'm not used to," he admitted.
Okay, so Mishima had spread the rumors, but Ren couldn't blame his friend. He was just another victim of Kamoshida's.
Though he had no idea why Amada was taking him so calmly. Most people steered clear of him or they barely dared to look at him in the eye. Sometimes people were just afraid like Ren would deck them in the face if they breathed at him or something.
Like… yeah, he was a transfer but… He had to have heard of the rumors already.
But still… Amada looked studious. A bit of a prep. So why was he actually talking to Ren?
"Is there something wrong?"
Ren rubbed the back of the neck.
"I was just thinking… you do know about my rep, don't you? The Shujin rumor mill is always running."
Amada laughed again. "I think most of the student population needs to get their eyes checked if they find you intimidating. The glasses make you very… unassuming."
Ren raised an eyebrow at that.
"Thanks?"
At least it worked on someone. If only Kamoshida hadn't decided he hated Ren's guts for some reason before he even got there and turned him into a pariah.
The warning bell suddenly rang, causing the two of them to look up.
"Well… that's my cue to pick up the pace," Amada muttered. "It was nice meeting you, Amamiya-san."
Morgana popped out of Ren's bag; his blue eyes were filled with curiosity as he stared after Amada.
"There's something about him," he said, his tone suspicious.
"What do you mean?" Ren asked.
Morgana scrunched up his nose. "I don't know."
"Well, that's very helpful." Ren rolled his eyes. "Thanks, Morgana."
"I'm saying that so you can keep an eye on him!" he protested.
"If you say so, Morgana." Ren shrugged.
During their preparations for the move to Tokyo, Mitsuru-san had taken Ken's old spear. She returned it to him the day before the move. She had tripped it out so it had a portable mode. As much of a marvel it was, Ken had found that it was too light for him. Minato-san and Minako-san had always been careful to select lighter spears so that it was more manageable for him.
But when Ken had started to practice a few of his katas last night, he found his old spear nearly slipping out of his hands. Several times.
So, hunting down a new spear was necessary—very necessary.
Especially since he was rusty with using his Persona. He couldn't control that, until he finally found the Shadow nest. But he could control using his weapon.
When he had mentioned this to Shinjiro-san this morning, his guardian had suggested looking for a weapons shop in Shibuya. After all, Shibuya was the central point of Tokyo.
So here he was, exploring Central Street. A part of him hoped to be able to catch wind of some kind of hint on the target Niijima-san wanted the Phantom Thieves to go after.
"But I'm probably not that lucky," he lamented to himself.
After asking around, he was pointed in the direction of an airsoft shop. Maybe they sold weapons here too?
His eyes swept through the shop. The guns… looked oddly realistic.
A grizzled older man was lounging on a seat, reading a newspaper rather intently. He looked up when the bell attached to the door rang. He raised an eyebrow.
"What's a kid like you doin' here? You get lost?"
Ken frowned. It's bad enough when his friends treat him like a kid, but strangers too? He was not going to have it.
"I know where I'm going. And I know what this kind of shop this is."
The man let out a bark of laughter, "Kid, you just look too clean. Are you seriously looking to buy a gun?"
If only he knew about the Evoker in Ken's schoolbag.
"Not a gun," Ken said, folding his arms over his chest. "I was wondering if you carry other weapons."
The man frowned. "This isn't a convenience store."
"Then perhaps you could point me to one that carries weapons," Ken deadpanned.
The man laughed again, before he smirked. "Sorry, kid, but I don't think I know of such a place."
"No surprise there," Ken muttered, before his eyes swept over the stock.
Maybe he could buy a gun. It was better than nothing. But Shinjiro-san would kill him if he brought home a gun. Even if it was just a model gun. He better not.
"But sorry for bothering you," Ken said with a frown. "You obviously don't have what I'm looking for."
Ken bowed his head, before leaving the airsoft shop.
Well, that was a no-go… maybe he could try to look in another district. Though… it'd be the skeevier districts. And Shinjiro-san would not be happy if he wandered there.
"Hey, kid."
Ken nearly jumped out of his skin at the sudden voice.
Ken immediately backed up, reaching into his satchel. His fingers immediately wrapped around his Evoker. It may not be a gun, but maybe pointing it at him would cause this man to panic and run off. What kind of student would be randomly carrying a gun, after all?
"Whoa!"
The strange man held his hands up in a placating manner. Ken relaxed his stance, kept his hands on his evoker but not removing it from the bag.
"Take it easy… I just noticed you coming out of the airsoft shop. Iwai's got the goods, but it's not cheap. I just thought… I'd offer you a proposition."
"Not interested," Ken said flatly.
Warning bells were ringing clearly in his ears. The man just screamed bad vibes. There was no way that he had good intentions.
"Hear me out," the man pressed, taking a step closer to Ken.
Ken immediately took a step back, his stance becoming tense again.
"Do you need a job?" he coaxed. "It's really easy and the pay is good."
He took out an envelope. It was small, rather innocuous looking.
"What's this about…?" he thought.
"We just need you to deliver this to a place. And we'll pay you fifty thousand yen for the job. Sounds like a great deal, right?"
Ken narrowed his eyes. This was just too suspicious. Just what was in that envelope? This just had all sorts of red flags. Especially with the promise of good money. This was a common tactic for trafficking, after all.
"What's in the envelope?" Ken asked suspiciously.
"Excuse me?"
"What's in the envelope?" Ken repeated.
When the man wouldn't respond, his face growing pale, Ken crossed his arms over his chest.
"Yeah, that's what I thought. That's a definite no. I'm not an idiot," Ken hissed out.
But when he moved to walk past him, the man suddenly grabbed Ken's upper arm, squeezing hard.
"Can't have you running to the police. Gotta shut you up."
The man was clenching onto the arm that was holding onto his evoker he still had concealed. That was gonna make using it as a threat a bit difficult.
Ken scowled, clenching his left hand into a fist. He may not have Akihiko-san's boxing abilities or Shinjiro-san's upper body strength, but Akihiko-san did say that he had a good left hook.
But a tanned hand suddenly grasped the man's shoulder, yanking him away from Ken. He heard a small crunch and then the man yowling in pain.
"You keep your hands off of him," Shinjiro-san growled, his glare hard as steel.
"You mind your own business!"
The man scowled, staggering to his feet. Ken could already see a black-eye forming. The man's hands then clenched into fists.
"I'm not leaving until I shut that kid's mouth! Guess I'll have to shut yours too!"
Shinjiro-san began cracking his knuckles.
"Fine, we'll do this the hard way."
He lunged at Shinjiro-san, but he quickly sidestepped the man. He grabbed the man's wrist, yanking him forward before slamming his head into the man's face in a headbutt. The man stumbled back with a yelp, blood dripping from his nose.
"And I can do much worse," Shinjiro-san threatened, all while casually wiping off the blood. "So, what's it gonna be?"
"You're crazy!" he shouted, but he fled from them.
"Tch… stupid bastard," Shinjiro-san muttered, before looking at Ken.
Ken couldn't help but cringe. Shinjiro-san looked ticked off. Really ticked off.
"Okay Ken, what the fuck are you even doing here?"
Ken quickly defended, "I was just looking around for a weapon shop! When I walked out, he came up to me, offering me this skeevy job about delivering an envelope."
Shinjiro-san's brow furrowed at that.
"That's…" Shinjiro-san trailed off for a moment, before he frowned. "That sounds like drug trafficking to me."
Ken's eyes widened.
"Do you think they're… mafia or something?"
Shinjiro-san sighed, rubbing at his face. "I dunno, Ken. All I know is that he's up to no good."
He then shook his head, before he glanced up at the shop sign.
"But you came out of that? And you didn't buy anything?" He pointed to the airsoft shop with his thumb.
"He was only selling guns..."
Shinjiro-san huffed, "I've been askin' around… and this shop apparently sells a shit ton of weapons."
"The store owner lied to me then," Ken grumbled.
"Probably because you got a baby-face," Shinjiro-san teased before ordering, "Wait here."
Ken glared at the baby-face comment. Shinjiro-san rolled his eyes and turned around. Then he paused, narrowing his eyes. He gestured to the window.
"Actually, wait right here."
"Yeah, yeah…" he grumbled as Shinjiro-san opened the door to the shop.
Ken watched through Several minutes later, Shinjiro-san came out, carrying a long, slender box.
"Why do you have to use spears? They're heavy," he grumbled.
"How much do I owe you?" Ken asked, before raising an eyebrow, "And besides, it's not like axes are lightweight."
"Nothing," Shinjiro-san said, ignoring Ken's second comment. "It's fine."
Ken made a mental note to sneak some money into Shinjiro-san's wallet when he wasn't looking. He didn't care what Shinjiro-san said… it wasn't cheap. He remembered overhearing Minako-san complaining to Minato-san once that weapons were a huge drain on their funds. And besides that, Mitsuru-san promised him that she'd put him back on the Shadow Operatives payroll.
"How come you complain when Mitsuru-san pays for everything but I'm not allowed to pay for this? It's not cheap," he complained.
Shinjiro-san retorted, "Shut up and help me carry this damn thing. I can't fucking believe you just went and looked for trouble like that..."
"That wasn't the case," Ken grumbled.
It's not his fault that trouble went looking for him.
Wednesday, June 15th, 2016
"Come on, Iida…"
Anne looked up at him pleadingly, twirling one of her pigtails with a finger. Ren had to stifle a laugh, watching Iida sweat.
"Won't you tell me about that awesome job you got? I really need a job that brings in money fast."
Iida winced, rubbing the back of his neck. "Don't you model, Takamaki-san?"
Morgana poked his head out of Ren's bag.
He commented, "She's doing a little better than she was with Yusuke."
"Shh, Morgana!" Ren hushed. "And she's been practicing."
She wasn't stellar by any means, but Anne was improving. At least it wasn't embarrassing to watch, like how she apparently was from what Morgana had relayed to him.
"Yeah, but I don't get paid as much as most people do!" Anne said hastily.
She then stuck out her bottom lip in a pout, before batting her eyes at him. Ren had to stifle another laugh. Iida's discomfort was palpable.
"Come on, pleaseeee?"
Iida shook his head, "Sorry, but I… I can't. I... sorry I gotta go!"
He then turned on his heel, fleeing from the classroom.
"Darn!" Anne stamped her foot, pouting at her failure.
Ren laughed, before walking over to her. Some would think of it just as immature, but he found it adorable. He playfully tugged at one of Anne's pigtails.
"Hey, at least you put up a decent act?" he asked.
"That's not the point, Ren." Anne scowled at him, before lightly swatting at his hand, "We don't have any leads now. Maybe we should check with Ryuji. He may have found something."
"Amamiya!" Ren turned at the sound of Mishima's voice. Mishima was standing at the doorway, "Amamiya, I think I may have something you'd like to hear."
Anne's eyes lit up. "Really?!"
"Shh!"
Mishima's eyes went wide with panic. "Come on, let's talk somewhere more private."
Mishima managed to lead them to a somewhat secluded corridor. It wasn't completely abandoned, but it was only twenty minutes after school ended.
"You know the new transfer student, Ken Amada?" Mishima asked.
"I've heard of him…" Anne said slowly, only for her to frown. "But it's kinda unfair how the students have such a positive reaction to him, but still treat Ren like dirt."
At that last part, Anne looked sorrowfully at him.
Ren smiled at her, a little touched how worried she was still for him. She was always so thoughtful. It was one of the things he most admired about Anne.
"It's okay, Anne." He reached forward, laying a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "I've learned to deal with it. But as for Amada-senpai… I met him yesterday morning actually. He was pretty nice to me."
She sighed but gave him a nod, seemingly pacified.
Mishima nodded firmly. "Okay, good, you know of him at the very least. But anyways, I heard that Amada-senpai got into a street fight! He went into a back alley or something and this guy came running out with a black eye and a broken nose!"
Ren's eyes slightly widened.
Amada had really done that? That was kind of odd. A guy from a back alley… maybe he tried to ambush Amada, get him to do the mafia leader's work. But Amada resisted and the guy tried to shut him up… then Amada managed to pull up on top. Though he could be jumping to conclusions... it could just have been a regular mugger.
Anne's eyes went as wide as saucers.
"Are you serious?" she squeaked out.
"What have you even heard about him?" Ren couldn't help but be curious.
"From what I've heard… Amada-senpai doesn't sound like he'd do that. He's like, an honor student. I heard that he was on partial scholarship while attending Gekkoukan and Gekkoukan is a pretty highly ranked school. I've also heard that he used to be on student council," Mishima chimed in.
He had heard something similar. The Kirijo Group only chose to help people who had potential... or something to that effect. Though he had heard that the current CEO was pushing for that to be changed. So that poorer students could receive the education Gekkoukan offered. However, Ren had to wonder why Amada left his position.
But... he couldn't help but feel a little bad for Amada. It sucked to have rumors surrounding you.
Mishima tilted his head. "It's true what they say, you shouldn't really judge a book by its cover."
Anne eyed Ren. "Sounds like a certain someone I know."
Ren tugged on her pigtail, unable to stifle a smirk.
"I don't know, he sounds awesome to me," Ren said teasingly.
Anne rolled her eyes at him, but this time she just shifted out of Ren's grasp instead of smacking him. She turned to Mishima.
"Do you know if he's still on campus?" she asked.
Mishima nodded.
"Yeah, I saw him enter the library earlier."
Anne's eyes lit up, before an excited giggle bubbled from her lips.
"Awesome! Come on, Ren, we need to talk to him!"
Without waiting for Ren to respond, she grabbed his hand and began to drag him off.
"Thanks, Mishima!" he managed to shout even as Anne dragged him up the stairs.
Anne didn't release him until they reached the library, sliding the door open.
"Welcome to the—oh it's you."
The librarian locked eyes with Anne, a glare forming. The girl was actually not that bad, sure she was scared of him at first, but after coming to the library to return a book, she started to lighten up, and apologized for misjudging him. But while she was willing to give Ren a second chance, the same couldn't be said for Anne. Though that may have to do with the fact that she didn't forgive Anne for returning a book that was covered in dried chocolate syrup.
"Hello to you too," Anne muttered, scowling for a moment.
They walked away from the librarian as they scanned the library. Anne obviously was annoyed—though Ren couldn't help but find it cute, with how she grumbled to herself.
"I said I was sorry about that, when will she let that go? I even paid the fine for the damages!" Anne griped.
"She does take her job seriously. Besides… if memory serves me, didn't you admit to me that Shiho said it was her favorite book?"
"Yeah! Well, that was still a year ago! She needs to let that go!" Anne pouted.
Ren just quietly chuckled. "Ah, but you desecrated the precious books with your evil chocolate, some crimes can never be forgiven."
Anne flushed slightly as she glowered at him. "Shut up."
Anne crossed her arms, ignoring him as she went back to scanning the library, her lips pursed together.
She paused, before she tugged on his sleeve.
"Hey, is that him?"
She pointed in the direction of the tables. Bent over one of the desks was Amada, scribbling away in a notebook.
"Yeah, that's him. Come on." Ren nodded.
Amada looked up when he heard them approach. Wait, he was wearing glasses now? Reading glasses, maybe?
"Hello, Amamiya-san." Then he blinked. "And… you are?"
"This is my friend, Anne Takamaki," Ren introduced, gesturing to her; Anne just gave him a little wave, giving him a friendly smile. "But I was wondering if we could talk to you about something…"
Amada sighed and removed the glasses.
"If this is about the street fight, I didn't beat the guy up. It's a… long story."
Ren raised an eyebrow.
"Well, you're not denying it. So... you're going to actually tell us?"
Amada shrugged.
"Well, it's obvious you sought me out for a reason," he said simply.
Amada then pinched the bridge of his nose before looking back down at his homework.
"Give me a second. We can talk outside."
They waited for him to pack up, before taking him up to the roof. Niijima had told them it was off limits to students, but somehow Ren doubted that she'd object to this.
"What do you want to know?" Amada broke the silence.
Anne began, "Well... we were wondering what exactly happened. Like, this sounds like a guy from a mafia! That's pretty scary, especially with the rumors."
Amada scrutinized Anne's face, looking quite suspicious.
"Why do you want to know?" he demanded.
"Um, well…!" Anne looked at Ren, desperately trying to mask her panic.
She really was not good at this on-the-spot acting. Though he supposed he should count his blessings that it wasn't as bad as it once was.
"We just want to know what to avoid," Ren cut in smoothly. "I've heard some terrifying things about the victims. We just want to be safe; you know?"
"I see."
Their senpai didn't look fully convinced, but then he spoke again. Ren was just thankful that he was open to talking about it. Finally, some good luck.
"Well, I was looking through the airsoft shop. I was… looking for a gift for a friend. She collects gun models. But the stock wasn't what I was looking for. So, I left and a man approached me. He offered a job to me. Claimed that it was very easy and the pay was excellent. He held out an envelope to me, and claimed that all I had to do was deliver it to a specific place."
"Sounds like smuggling drugs to me," Morgana piped up.
"And you said no?" Anne said in disbelief.
Amada nodded. "It seemed off to me from the very beginning."
Their senpai pressed his fingers against his chin, looking thoughtful.
"I started hearing rumors today, all over the school, about classmates being blackmailed by thugs. If you want my opinion… I think they specifically target students who look like they need money. Like they can't afford something. They swoop in with this offer, so it's irresistible to the victims."
That made a lot of sense. High school students didn't exactly have a good selection of jobs. And said jobs didn't exactly pay well. That's why he was grateful that Shadows dropped money. They would probably be in trouble if that wasn't the case.
"That's despicable!" Anne hissed, her hands clenching into fists.
Without a doubt, if they were in the Metaverse, Anne would have set something on fire. The mental image of Anne lighting the mafia's asses on fire made Ren chuckle to himself.
"Lady Anne's right!" Morgana exclaimed. "We can't let this go unpunished."
Ren just nodded, digesting the information they obtained from Amada.
"Thanks, Amada-senpai. We really appreciate you telling us this," Ren said.
"Right..." Amada said, all while studying Ren's face. "Try to keep out of trouble."
"We will, and it was nice meeting you, Senpai!" Anne chirped.
She then grabbed his wrist, dragging Ren away without another word. Though Ren noticed that Amada was shaking his head as Anne continued to pull him away.
Once they were pretty much alone, Anne let out a happy giggle. Her eyes were sparkling with excitement.
"I'm glad we found a lead! Mishima got us a good one!" she enthused.
"Yeah, it's great..." Ren said slowly.
Then Anne frowned, tilting her head at him.
"Hey, what's wrong?" She asked.
"Yeah, Ren!" Morgana frowned at him as well. "This is great news! This puts us one step closer to discovering the palace!"
"It's nothing..." Ren lied, waving it off and forcing a smile on his face. "I'm just tired. And worried about the deadline."
He couldn't explain it but… something nagged at him about Amada. He was perfectly nice. He actually treated Ren like he wasn't a violent delinquent, which was a rarity at this school.
But why did he get the feeling that Amada knew more than he was letting on?
"I'm home," Ken announced as he stepped through the door.
He paused when he saw that Shinjiro-san had his laptop set up on the table.
He was video chatting with Akihiko-san.
"Hey." Shinjiro-san turned slightly to look at him.
Akihiko-san grinned at him, giving him a small wave.
"Hey, Ken! How's everything?"
Ken shrugged. "Okay, I guess."
Akihiko-san frowned, a concerned look on his face. "Have you even asked about joining any clubs?"
"I can't get distracted," Ken said, walking over to the fridge and opening it.
He pulled one of the chilled water bottles and shut the door.
He was glad that Shinjiro-san had kept that habit ever since he had gotten custody of Ken. He had done it especially when he attended soccer club almost every meeting back in junior high. Tokyo was just so… hot. He was honestly glad that he had transferred when it was time for summer uniforms. He'd probably die of heatstroke wearing a turtleneck in May.
"Mitsuru's not looking for this to be done in a month, you know. She knows it'll take time," Shinjiro-san said.
"Yeah, I really don't know why you decided not to run for student council president," Akihiko-san added.
"It's not any different from me deciding to concentrate on my studies for entrance exams," Ken defended as he twisted the bottle cap off. "Besides, it's a weird time to join clubs…"
"I guess that's true." Akihiko-san said with a nod. "But still, you shouldn't just focus all of your time on your mission… you'll just run yourself to the ground."
Then he glanced back at Shinjiro-san.
"Oh yeah… Shinji, didn't you say you found a job?"
"Already?" Ken turned to look at his guardian, before taking a drink of water.
Shinjiro-san shrugged. "It's just being a bartender at this place in Shinjuku. Called Crossroads."
"Shinjuku?" Ken repeated, before lowering the water bottle from his mouth. "Isn't that… the entertainment district?"
Akihiko-san said slowly, "Er... well, it's not just like Shirakawa Boulevard. It's like clubs and bars. Party life."
"But it also has a lot of adult stores," Shinjiro-san added helpfully.
Of course it did. He really didn't get the obsession with sex, even now.
Contrary to what Junpei-san claimed, Ken did notice girls. But attraction had always been… fleeting for him. Didn't help that the girls were so… shallow about their interest in him.
"Shinji!" Akihiko-san exclaimed, looking vaguely horrified.
"What?" Shinjiro-san scowled at him. "Ken ain't a kid anymore. Besides, don't you remember the crap boys said in the locker room?"
He really wished Shinjiro-san hadn't reminded him. He was scarred for life from those conversations.
Although Ken wasn't sure he was glad this was the subject Shinjiro-san chose to stop treating him like a kid over.
Akihiko-san just huffed, before rolling his eyes at his best friend. "You don't have to be so blunt about it."
Ken coughed awkwardly.
"How's Minako-san, by the way?" Ken inquired, looking to change the subject, "I hope she's not having it so rough."
After Yukari-san had discovered her pregnancy shortly after the whole fiasco with the Abyss of Time, Mitsuru-san had decided to reopen the dorm, so everyone could help her through it. And Yukari-san was a bit of a monster while expecting. She had mood swings like crazy, had really strange cravings, and she had morning sickness for the first four months. He couldn't imagine what Minako-san would be like.
Akihiko-san groaned, before smacking his head.
"She's worse than Yukari, if you ask me. At least in the food department. She's been waking me up for the past two nights at like one in the morning, begging me for weird stuff like fried grasshoppers. And just this morning, I found her trying to make cheese ice cream."
Shinjiro-san grimaced. "Have fun with that, Aki."
Akihiko-san dragged his fingers through his hair. "Yeah, well, I'm hoping that it passes soon…"
He then huffed.
"At least she's not too moody… although it probably helps that Mina's excited that Yukari's coming to visit with the twins soon."
Shinjiro-san just winced.
"Have fun with the Terror Twins."
"They're not that bad," Akihiko-san defended.
"You keep telling yourself that, Aki."
"Do they even know that they're getting a new cousin in like… six months?" Ken asked.
"No idea." Akihiko-san shrugged. "I think they're more excited about Mina spoiling them…"
Shinjiro-san just snorted, "No surprise there. Minako always showers them with toys and sweets."
Akihiko-san made a face.
"Well, I guess we could get in some practice while we can. Babysitting them and all."
"We?" Ken raised an eyebrow. "Minako-san has always been pretty good with kids."
"Meanwhile you'll clam up and give one-word answers when they try and talk to you." Shinjiro-san smirked, folding his arms over his chest.
"Oh, shut up, Shinji!"
Thursday, June 16th, 2016
Makoto had counted a total of eight students who have approached her today, pleading for help with the mafia. And Makoto didn't doubt that it would increase before the end of the day.
She hated it. That she was powerless to do anything. And that principal wouldn't raise a finger to help.
Makoto sighed deeply, her eyes lingering on her pencil case. It had been a gift from her father, over ten years ago.
Her father would have been able to chase down the criminals. He would have them brought to justice. But then some gang of scumbags had to murder him to stop her father chasing after them.
But what was she doing? Forcing the Phantom Thieves to help so the mafia would get off of everyone's backs. She felt so helpless. Sae was never around, none of the staff at school wanted to help out of fear, and the principal kept pushing this onto her along with the investigation of the Phantom Thieves.
Her father would be so ashamed… she should be better at handling all of this. He probably could have. Sae probably could have too—she was always juggling a lot. And what was she doing? Falling apart at the seams.
But what else could she do? The mafia were eluding the police. She needed to do something, to help her classmates. Especially since Principal Kobayakawa wouldn't do a thing to help them.
But… was she any better? She felt something was off about Kamoshida but seemed pacified every time she ever spoke with him. He did always treat her nicely. How could she believe rumors? After all people made up rumors about her too and... she sighed to herself.
Why didn't she follow her instincts and looked more into that? She should have pressured her students to speak up more, maybe look into it more. She had been so... naive. She just believed everything the adults told her that things were fine—go back to her studies and duties.
She was so foolish.
How could she allow for Kamoshida to torture the volleyball team? Allow for Kamoshida to harass Takamaki-san? For him to ruin Sakamoto-kun's future by breaking his leg? And have Suzui-san feel that the only way for her to escape was to commit suicide?
And here she was, allowing the principal to push her around. And everyone else, the staff, the teachers… everyone telling her how she should act. Her father and her sister were never a doormat—when did she become one?
"What am I doing?" she whispered to herself.
"Staring off into space."
Makoto nearly fell out of her chair at the sudden voice. She whipped her head to stare at her neighbor.
"D-Don't do that!" she sputtered out, clutching a hand to her chest. "You nearly gave me a heart attack…"
"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," he admitted with an apologetic smile.
But the smile quickly disappeared as Amada-kun studied her carefully.
"Niijima-san… have you been getting enough sleep?" he asked with genuine concern.
"Of course I have." she said defensively.
Amada-kun just sighed. "You really shouldn't run yourself to the ground, Niijima-san…"
"I'm not," Makoto grumbled. "I just have a lot of duties to take care of."
Something flickered in Amada-kun's eyes. He wasn't easily readable. She supposed that's why some of the girls were so interested in him. Because he held himself aloof.
"You look like you were a thousand kilometers away."
Makoto sighed, "I'm sorry, I have a lot on my mind. People are just… scared with what's been going on with the rumors about the mafia."
"I don't blame them," he said quietly, "Taking advantage of people like that… is just despicable."
Amada-kun certainly carried himself differently compared to his peers. Like he had seen more than he should have. And well… he had a thousand-meter stare. But perhaps she was imagining things.
"Amada-kun?"
"Something wrong, Niijima-san?"
Makoto winced. Why was she about to ask him this? He'd probably think she'd be strange for this too.
"I was just wondering… what is justice to you?"
She took a deep breath, ready for a questioning look from him at her random question.
"That's an… interesting question, Niijima-san."
To her surprise, he looked more thoughtful, and wasn't looking as if he found her peculiar. He then closed his eyes, a faint smile appearing on his face.
"To me… justice is standing up for the right thing no matter what. Even if your senses tell you that it's safer to look away… pretend that it never happened."
His face just clouded over at that last part. What was that about?
"Keep your head low… and focus on your studies."
Her sister's voice echoed in her mind. But was she wrong in that matter?
"I see," she murmured.
"You know, Niijima-san…"
Makoto looked to him in surprise while he looked at her calmly.
"You should form your own opinions. You can listen to others' stances, but you shouldn't let them define it for you. And well, that includes me too. I had to find my own answers. I don't know what's going on, but trust in yourself. You'll be sure to find out what's right path for you."
Her own path… if only she knew what that was.
Saturday, June 18th, 2016
"Lala-chan, another drink!"
Shinjiro eyed the dark haired woman warily. "Shouldn't you cut her off?"
And he thought Amagi was loud when she was drunk. But Ichiko Ohya could definitely give her a run for her money.
"Ichiko only gets louder when I cut her off this early." His boss let out an exasperated sigh.
He didn't expect to be working for a drag queen, but he liked her. She didn't put up with any crap.
"Or better yet, have your new bartender join me!" she continued, winking at him. "There aren't too many handsome faces around here."
"I'm taken," Shinjiro said flatly, shooting Ohya an unamused look.
He really should call Fuuka on his nights off. He had started working on Friday, but it kept slipping his mind.
"Bah." She scowled. "The good ones always are. Or they're gay."
She took a swig of her drink.
Shinjiro rolled his eyes before grabbing a clean rag to start wiping down the glasses.
"Didn't you say you had a lead, Ichiko?" Lala asked, with a frown.
"Oh yeah, it was some kid I met like a month ago?"
She waved a hand almost dismissively, but her bright smile ruined the nonchalant attitude.
"Ran into him skulking around Madarame's place. I think he'd be a good source about the Phantom Thieves. He goes to that school where the first target of theirs was—that lecherous coach."
Shinjiro frowned, his motions slowing down. A kid, who seemed to know of the Phantom Thieves?
"Why did you tell him to meet you at a bar?" Shinjiro demanded. "If he's a high school student, he's underage."
"Well, where else would I meet him?" she asked as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
Shinjiro groaned. There was no arguing with her.
Lala just laughed. "Just make sure she doesn't give him any booze, alright, Aragaki?"
"Why do I have to babysit her?" Shinjiro complained with a huff.
He did enough babysitting with Aki.
The door suddenly opened, revealing a kid with messy dark hair. And was that… a cat in his bag?
"Hey!" Ohya's eyes lit up with excitement, as she gave a wave in greeting. "Amamiya, right?"
Shinjiro sucked in a breath.
"Wait, didn't Ken say that was the name of the Phantom Thieves' leader?" Shinjiro thought to himself.
"That's me." Amamiya nodded.
She pointed to the seat next to her. "Come on, take a seat!"
"Uh… can we sit at a table?"
The kid's eyes flickered to Lala and then Shinjiro. He looked wary.
"I'd prefer some privacy," he explained.
The cat started to meow. Like crazy. It had been fairly quiet, so why the hell did it suddenly start to meow? At least it was cute.
"Kid, is there a reason why you're carting around a cat?"
Amamiya just gave him a sardonic smile. "He's my therapy cat."
The cat hissed loudly.
"Hush, Morgana. You know it's true," Amamiya teased, with that little shit grin Minako often sported.
If it was male, why was his name Morgana? Last time he checked, Morgana was a female name.
Ohya stood up, ushering the kid to one of the back tables, promising him to buy him a drink. After a quick glare from Lala, she corrected it to being a soda.
"Aragaki, clean the tables after you bring Ichiko her drinks," Lala muttered. "I don't know if Ichiko will slip him some booze or not."
"Got it."
Lala poured him the drinks and he carried them to the pair.
"Hey, thanks!" Ohya grinned at him, before grabbing her drink.
She quickly turned to Amamiya.
"But anyways…"
Up close, Amamiya didn't look anything special. Dark hair, dark gray eyes hidden by a big pair of glasses. But there was something intense about his gaze. Shinjiro also couldn't help but notice that the cat was surprisingly alert.
What was he doing? He couldn't be obvious about how he was listening in on them. Shinjiro focused on mopping up the spills on the table next to them, all while listening to them with one ear.
He could hear snips of their conversation.
"I want some intel on Kamoshida's case before I give you any info."
"Fine. I'll… get you an exclusive interview with a guy I know. He was a frequent victim of Kamoshida's."
"Perfect! You're a real-life saver, you have no idea how annoying my boss is being about getting more intel on the Phantom Thieves. Oh... but if I'm right about the man you're looking for… his name is Junya Kaneshiro. He's the one who controls Shibuya."
Junya Kaneshiro… controls Shibuya? Ken mentioned the school was ablaze with rumors of the mafia extorting students, and that student council girl said she wanted the Thieves to target a criminal. This couldn't be a coincidence.
So, they were really gonna go after this Kaneshiro guy? They needed more intel. All of these were still unconfirmed theories, he was strongly suspecting he was right but they needed confirmation.
Shinjiro's lips formed a thin line. He knew that Ken would be following the Phantom Thieves, but he really hoped that Ken wouldn't dragged into the mess. If it actually is the mafia, then they were playing with fire. Especially given how good they were at hiding their tracks.
"Hey, Aragaki! I need a refill!"
Shinjiro couldn't hold back a groan. This was going to be a long night. He could feel it already.
A bit of a bridge until the Phantom Thieves find Kaneshiro's Palace! Next chapter will feature Ken's first trip to the Metaverse and his reawakening to Kala-Nemi.
Please review! I'd love to hear what you think of this chapter.
Edited: 6/14/2020
Edit Notes: As Chapter 1 changed the fact that Makoto didn't reveal the identity of the criminal she wanted the PTs to target, the chapter has been edited to reflect that. Additionally, Makoto's inner monologue has been altered greatly by my beta to fit her character arc more. Many thanks to angelrin89 for betaing the chapter!