As the team waits for Okumura's heart to change, they decide to take on a mementos request.
[10/09, The Present Day - Late Afternoon]
The team met up as discussed and swiftly entered Mementos.
Futaba watched gleefully as the prosecutor lady got taken aback by the fucked up and twisted appearance of Mementos.
"Mwehehe, welcome to Mementos, the palace of all humanity." She declared with a dramatic tone of voice, sounding eerily similar to a goblin.
Ace turned to her with one hand casually resting her hip and the other holding her ridiculously large and sharp sword as if it weighed nothing.
'Damn If only I had the energy to do some exercises. I wonder if I could lift Inari with my arms!' She thought while chuckling to herself.
"So this is Mementos huh? How exactly does this work?"
"Well, I'm sure Mona told you what Mementos is all about, but the tl;dr here is: We're here to change the hearts of the people that don't have a large enough distortion to form a palace on their own. The shadows of most people live here, after all." Futaba supplied to the prosecutor.
She saw the ace attorney put a hand on her chin.
"So at one point, my shadow lived here." The woman spoke.
It wasn't a question.
Oracle confirmed nonetheless. "Ayup."
Ace sighed. "I see. Thank you."
Joker strode out purposefully to the front of the group and clicked his fingers to get the attention of the team. Mostly Inari, to be honest, since he was busy framing the walls with his hands.
"Alright gang. With the explanations for our new member out of the way, today we only have one request: Mitsuyo Togo, the Mother of Hifumi Togo."
Morgana hopped up to the front of the group as well.
"She has forced her daughter to become an idol against her will, ruining all of her Shogi career. She controls every single aspect of her life and is planning on fixing her next match. We must stop her."
Oracle noticed the prosecutor lady look away, likely in shame as she remembered her own mistreatment of Makoto.
Futaba nodded in approval, both because of Morgana's declaration but also upon seeing Ace's visible regrets.
"Tch. Hifumi doesn't deserve this. We will help her." Makoto said with forceful conviction as she cracked her knuckles, making the rest of the team except Oracle, Noir and Ace a little nervous.
Badass.
"Oooh our Queenie is angry mwahaha." She chuckled with chaotic energy.
Oracle then stepped forward and poked her surrogate big brother on the ribs. "Alright fam, lead the way!"
He just gave her a light head pat in response. "Let 's go!"
Morgana transformed, and she saw the prosecutor gasp. "You've gotta be kidding me."
"Yup. Apparently, the collective unconscious believes cats can transform into buses!" Panther said while chuckling.
"Is this because of my Neighbor Totoro?" Ace asked with childlike wonder in her voice.
"I think so? Wait, how do you even know stuff like that, ma'am?" Skull asked.
"Sis is a huge Ghibli fan." Makoto told them nonchalantly.
Behind her mask, Oracle was sure that Ace was glaring at Queen down for ruining her tough girl image in front of the others.
Joker chuckled. "No way, that is way too wholesome for someone like you, Satan."
"Shut up, Clown." Ace grumbled.
"Come on man, admit it, that is kind of cute." Skull said while grinning.
Ace groaned. Everyone minus Queen just snickered at her.
"Alright, leave my sister alone and let's get going." Queen commanded with no room for arguments.
They all instantly complied.
The car seating arrangements were hilarious. Queen didn't wait for anyone's approval and hopped in the front, sitting beside Joker, her face on a firm scowl.
Skull was next and got himself in the middle row. No way was she going to sit next to him, he was going to spill his drinks it all over everyone when the Monabus eventually bumped across a train track.
She almost lost her spare DS Lite to that bullshit last time.
She waited until Inari didn't pay attention to the arrangements and sat beside Skull. Hehehe, scrub.
Panther sighed and sat next to Inari.
That left her, Noir and Ace in the back, which was fine in her books. Since she was sat in the middle, she could poke fun at the prosecutor while they drove down the depths.
"Sooo Pokémon and now Ghibli movies? Whoa, does that mean you are secretly a softie?" Futaba whispered her questions to her.
Ace sighed. "You're not gonna leave it alone, are you?"
"Nope."
Ace stayed quiet for a bit.
"My mother…" The woman reluctantly started a few minutes later.
"Hm?"
"It's all thanks to my mother. I had pestered her to give me my sibling right away for Christmas in 97, but Makoto wouldn't be born until April the next year. So instead, she got my first and only gameboy and told me to make friends with Charmander for the time being." Ace told her with a nostalgic tone of voice.
Oh…
"As for the movies…. She had a VHS tape collection of Ghibli classics. She was a huge fan. And I grew to love them." She concluded sadly.
Oracle felt her gremlin spirit drain away from her body. "A-ah... I'm sorry."
Ace shook her head. "It's okay. It's not a bad thing."
Oracle felt incredibly sad as it reminded her of her own mother. She also saw Noir avert her own gaze, probably also thinking of her late mother.
"U-um I get it… M-my own mother, she… You know, she invented the curry recipe for Leblanc. So that's why I like Sojiro's curry so much… I…"
"Does it remind you of her?" Ace prompted gently when Futaba fell short of words.
"Uh, yeah. Something like that…"
"I see. Thanks for sharing that with me." Ace thanked her with a small smile.
Oracle nodded furiously. Noir gave them both a sympathetic smile.
She cleared her throat a few minutes later. "Um, you know, when we have some time, I should Introduce you to the new gens in pokémon. It's way different from the old school stuff."
"Is that so?" Ace asked with a tone of genuine interest.
"Yeah. Well, only if you want to." She said timidly.
"I'd love to, Oracle." She responded gently, with a kind smile.
Futaba felt her spirits lift up a little. Heh, maybe the woman wasn't that bad after all.
"So, I assume that you guys know this Hifumi Togo?" Ace asked the others, curious about the girl they were helping out.
"Indeed. She is a classmate of mine." Fox responded.
"She is my friend and shogi buddy." Amamiya told her. "And I introduced her and Makoto."
"We're good friends." Makoto said simply.
Panther clapped her hands. "Hifumi is great! I had a shooting in the same venue with her a while ago. She was super nice to me, way better than Mika."
"Mika?" Ace questioned.
Panther groaned. "My rival in modeling."
"I see. Well, it's nice that you kids seem to be helping out a friend. So from what I gather, her mother is abusive. Is that it?"
"Yes. She is a control freak, and she wants to use Hifumi's love for shogi to elevate herself through her daughter. And if things continue the way they are, she might end up hurting her in an irreversible way." Makoto hissed. "I won't let her."
Sae frowned. Makoto sounded off even to her own ears.
She was prevented from asking more when a couple of shadows ambushed the bus. They all got out and Morgana transformed back.
"Let's go guys! Morgana, Skull, Queen, to me!" Joker commanded.
Makoto gritted her teeth.
"Mona, pay attention!" She spoke out harshly.
"Whoa, calm down Queen! I'm doing what I can!" He complained and rushed to hit a shadow with his weapon.
They were ambushed from time to time with several shadows. Most of them were weak and pathetic.
She had made short work of the shadow she was currently fighting, giving it no mercy. She ignored all the concerned looks her friends sent her way.
What? did they want her to continue cowering and bumbling around forever? She was putting all her head in the game now, wasn't she?
What more could they want from her?
"Queen, slow down! You're gonna run out of energy at this rate." Joker scolded.
She ignored her boyfriend. "I'm fine. Let's do it."
She rushed and punched the next shadow with massive strength, making it fly away and dissolve in a puddle of black tar. Her own fists were greasy and smeared with the disgusting shadow blood. She smirked.
"Queen, watch out!" Panther's panicked voice rang out.
Before she could register, she got dealt a massive blow on her left rib, and she felt something crack.
"Queen!" Her sister's voice shouted horrified and she rushed to get closer to her.
But Queen wasn't paying attention to her sister's cries of concern, nor did she register the pain in her body.
She saw red and immediately summoned Anat. She casted an out of proportion Mafreila, almost hitting her friends in the radius.
"Whoa dammit watch out dude!" Skull screamed while massaging his butt.
The shadows were all obliterated.
"Sorry." She said, a tinge of regret hitting her as she saw she almost hit Skull. She clutched her midriff and grimaced, as the pain finally registered.
However, she soon felt a wave of relief wash upon her, with all the pain disappearing in the blink of an eye. She glanced to the side and saw that Joker had summoned Cybelle and cast a healing spell on her.
"Thanks." She whispered with a small smile.
He said nothing as he just looked visibly irritated.
"Queen, Skull, you're both on backup. Ace, Noir, you're with me and Morgana now." He spat out.
She ignored the dirty looks he threw in her direction. What is his problem? She is just doing what she needs to, isn't she?
"Joker. I want to be at the front."
He shook his head. "You have done more than enough."
"Keep me at the front instead of Morgana. Hifumi is my friend too, I want to fight for her." She hissed.
She and Hifumi weren't as close as she and Ann, but she was still a nice person and they would often exchange chats about strategy and historical romances. She was a kind girl, and Makoto wanted to protect her.
He softened at her words, even though he still looked a bit annoyed. "Fine. Come on."
They got into the Monabus, and Makoto ignored the gazes of her teammates, especially the laser focused questioning stare her sister kept leveling at her.
In no time, they approached the path of Akzeriyyuth. Makoto shivered involuntarily as they drove through a particularly dark section of Mementos.
God, she hated the dark.
Eventually they reached their destination. The thieves exited the bus and Joker adjusted his gloves. "Alright, just ahead is the shadow of Mitsuyo Togo."
"She's using her just like a pawn, from what I hear." Fox said, his voice full of disgust.
Makoto just cracked her knuckles.
"I don't know much about shogi, but I do know she's a bad person!" Ann declared just as angry.
"Don't let your guard down." Joker cautioned and they approached the shadow.
"Hifumi is my daughter. I am Hifumi's mother." The shadow of the arrogant woman in a blue dress spoke. "I gave birth to her. I raised her! My child should be devoted to serving me! I can finally be happy once Hifumi becomes a famous shogi player!"
"Tch. What a shitty mother you are!" Skull cried out angrily.
The shadow scoffed. "Hmph. She thinks she rose in rank on her own skill, but most of those matches were fixed."
Then she looked Makoto right in the eye and smirked. "I'm the one who's been building Hifumi's commercial value! If I didn't get rid of all her rivals, she wouldn't be where she is now! I enlisted private investigators and even criminals to find their weaknesses and destroy them! I paid off anyone who might have complained or spoken out."
The shadow laughed maliciously. "Oh, and I even sold stories to those weekly magazines. Heroines and tragedies go hand in hand!"
Noir scoffed. "How very despicable. We will stop you!"
Makoto gritted her own teeth. She was going to pummel Mitsuyo Togo's shadow to the ground when she got her hands on her.
"One more step, and my vision for Hifumi will be realized. I'm so close to victory! I won't let anyone get in the way!"
Shadow Togo had transformed into an incredibly powerful Lilim.
Noir and Ace were holding on quite well all things considered, but it was Queen of all people to make Joker worried: She constantly charged recklessly and tried to stop Shadow Togo head on. However, the shadow was strong and would only result in Queen getting knocked down, then getting up and trying again.
It was horrifyingly ineffective, and Ren knew she knew it.
Noir did a surprising amount of attacks and that helped, but it was not enough. They needed to create an opening for him and Ace to hit the shadow with bless spells, the only real effective weakness they could hit it with.
"Queen, fall back and let us fight! You're getting in the way." Joker spat out urgently.
"What!?" She said, looking taken aback.
He chose to not respond, since time was pressing. He knew he was being harsh with her, but they were in the middle of a fight and they needed that opening.
"Noir, switch out with Skull!" He commanded.
Noir, who was already worse for wear, immediately complied. Skull advanced ahead and Joker immediately did a baton pass.
"Go for it Skull!" Joker said as they high fived.
"Hell yeah, leave it to me!" He shouted with a winning grin.
Skull then swiftly performed an Assault Dive against Togo's shadow. It dealt a considerable amount of damage to it, and gave them that opening that both him and Ace needed.
"Let's go Satan!"
"On it, Clown!"
Both of them summoned their personas and cast Makouha at the same time, hurting the shadow massively, and finally knocking it down.
They finished it with an all out attack, and finally defeated it.
Joker heaved, tired and a bit irritated. He needed to have a serious talk with Makoto later.
Shadow Mitsuyo Togo was down on her knees. "I was always a loser… Even if it was just once, I wanted to taste success."
Makoto felt angry and frustrated. Not just with the shadow, but also with Joker's earlier verbal jab.
You're getting in the way.
She sneered.
The shadow, meanwhile, started crying. "I could never win on my own. I had to use Hifumi, I had to…"
"You're a pathetic excuse for a woman. Your child doesn't deserve to have a mother like you." Ace spat out venomously.
Like you're one to talk.' Makoto thought intrusively. 'You treated me like dirt for months.'
Then she frowned, realizing how unfair that was considering everything that happened.
'My priestess. She has changed.' Her persona pleaded with her.
She clenched her fists, ignoring Anat's whispers.
"I never meant to make Hifumi unhappy. Never. But when she won that grade school competition… She started being called a 'genius girl'. and I could never get that out of my head… I turned out to be such a horrible mother. I'm sorry, Hifumi, I'm sorry…" The shadow cried out.
"Then you must make things right with your daughter… You need to tell her the truth and change, for her sake. People like you… No, people like us, we need to own our fucking mistakes. Now go and change. If I can do that after having a palace, you can surely do the same." Ace told the shadow firmly.
The others looked on approvingly but Makoto couldn't help but feel ambivalent.
She should be proud that Sae is being a better person already, but deep down, she felt a little bitter. Why did it have to take Makoto fumbling into a palace for her sister to change?
Why wasn't she like this several months ago in the first place?
Anat had no more answers for her, and Makoto felt an indescribable amount of bitterness for no reason.
After the whole debacle with Mitsuyo Togo's mother, they found a safe room.
Sae felt regretful and out of sorts as she remembered the woman's pathetic stance on her own daughter's life and wellbeing.
She could draw horrifying parallels between Madarame, Okumura, Togo, Futaba's uncle and herself.
'A little more and I would start to be just as monstrous towards Makoto.'
She felt a terrible wave of disgust at them and at herself, but she knew that instead of drowning in self loathing, she had to keep going, and fix things by being better for Makoto's sake.
She hoped she did well earlier today. The remnants of her conversation with Makoto sometimes still came to mind, and she would feel a little melancholic remembering sensei and what happened to him.
Sae shivered.
Kitagawa-kun appeared in front of her like a wraith and spoke out of nowhere. "Pardon me madam. Would it trouble you if I sat here?"
"Not at all, Fox."
"You have my thanks." He said as he sat down.
They stayed in companionable silence as the others minded their own business. She admitted she barely knew anything about Madarame's former pupil, other than his eccentricities in the last few metaverse trips.
"Forgive me, I couldn't help but overhear your conversation with Oracle earlier." He spoke.
She waved him away. "It's fine."
"Very well. However, I believe I might have misjudged you."
"Is that so?"
"Indeed. I had thought that most of your motives were quite ulterior. Such as only joining the group to reap the benefits for your investigation, not exactly caring about the core values and spirit of Phantom Thieving." He said bluntly.
Sae frowned. "You are not entirely wrong there, Kitagawa-kun. That is indeed why I joined."
"Ah. Thank you for being honest at the very least. A disappointing response, but not an unexpected one." He said while frowning.
"Well, I'm not entirely finished." She said, sending him a pointed look. "While it is true that I am here for my own and Makoto's benefit, it doesn't mean that I don't care about doing the right thing."
"Hm." He grunted.
"We are all in the middle of a terrible conspiracy where the metaverse plays a fundamental role. We can't fully guarantee our safety and that of people we care about, so excuse me if I feel like I need to take advantage of every tool at my disposal." She said firmly.
Kitagawa-kun put a hand on his chin and seemed to take in her words.
She continued. "Being in this team grants me an opportunity and a new perspective that will be invaluable to uncover the people behind this. I would be a fool to not make use of it especially when you kids are also looking into this conspiracy for your own reasons. Wouldn't you say that this is a just cause?"
"Depends. Do you do this truly because of a strong sense of justice? Or are you eager to uncover these villains for mere petty gain and frivolous prestige?" He asked her with a serious look on his face.
Sae shook her head. "I understand I was corrupt until about a week ago, so your skepticism is warranted. But I am doing this because I owe it to myself and my family to no longer be a disgrace. This is me regaining what was once lost: My sense of justice and my passion for it." She said with conviction.
She stared him in the eye, trying to convey how sincere she really was.
"And I… Also have to protect Makoto at all costs. I made a promise, after all." She whispered sorrowfully.
"A promise?" He prompted her, curious.
"Yes. To watch over Makoto and take care of her. Mother begged me to do so on her deathbed.'
Kitagawa-kun went deathly silent at that.
He cleared his throat a few minutes later. "Very well. I believe I have a wider understanding of your convictions now, Ace. I thank you for your time."
She just nodded. "Anytime, Fox. But I want you to know this: I cannot turn back time. I can only keep going forward and keep owning my mistakes, and work towards redeeming myself. That is a vow that I will now die for."
"I see…" Yusuke said, his gaze far away."
"Anyways, can you tell me more about your art? I don't believe I had the chance to see your work yet, and I'd like to."
His demeanor instantly changed from distant to a bit more receptive.
"Of course!" He said ecstatically.
"Queen, a word." Joker whispered in a stern voice.
Makoto crossed her arms, but followed him.
When they were far away enough from the others, he turned to her. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine." She said, her voice full of annoyance.
"Why are you charging ahead recklessly? This isn't like you." He questioned her, his words laced with worry.
"I thought I was supposed to do that? You know, fight?" She responded sarcastically.
He didn't like her tone. "Not like that. What is going on?"
She rolled her eyes. "Nothing."
Ren stared at her incredulously. What was with that attitude? Queen was always very calm and collected. When they were together, she would relax and be her usual dorky self that he loved so much. She was just fine this morning.
This wasn't his girl.
"Alright, if that's the case, then you're indefinitely on backup until I say so."
That should give her some time to cool down.
"How am I supposed to give advice from the back!?" She questioned, looking taken aback.
He maintained his calm and composure. "You can return as advisor as soon as your mind is rested and refreshed. I'm not gonna risk one of my most valuable allies by letting you push yourself in the wrong direction."
There, reason should work with her, right?
"I am perfectly fine." She hissed.
"Are you, really? I know you want to prove yourself, but you don't have to. I am well aware of your abilities."
Ren stared at her beautiful crimson eyes beneath the mask. They shined with the glint of something ugly.
Sae's own discussion with Kitagawa-kun was interrupted as soon as they both noticed her sister having an intense argument with Amamiya off to the side. Her curiosity was further piqued as she saw Makoto clench her fists then push her mask up, showing her crimson eyes full of anger and disbelief.
"I am absolutely not trying to prove myself! I'm just thinking of maximum efficiency." Makoto spoke angrily.
Looking around, Sae saw that the others were also aware of their two leaders airing out their dirty laundry in front of the whole team. In her own mind, Sae grabbed the popcorn and chose a seat for the drama.
"No you are not. You have anger and frustration clouding your judgment. And that is fine, we all get worked up from time to time, but what you're doing is not healthy and I refuse to let the missions become this kind of outlet. You need to work out these issues the proper way."
Makoto's expression hardened and she looked like she was ready to murder him.
Mount Niijima was about to erupt, and Amamiya was about to experience the family's trademark unfailing stubbornness.
"What is that supposed to mean!? You don't trust me anymore, is that it!?" Said Makoto, her voice cold.
Joker saw the trap she laid. "Mak- Queen, this has nothing to do with trust. I am just looking out for the wellbeing of my teammate."
"And I told you, I am. Perfectly. Fine!"
"And I will tell you, again, that you have been too reckless every time I have given you the opening in the team. It's not up for discussion, you remain on backup for now. Ace or Fox will stand in your place. Keep on the rear with Skull and Mona." He said, voice firm.
"That's-"
"Queen, we are done discussing this. These are my orders."
Makoto looked as if she was slapped by his words.
Sae decided that enough was enough, and as much fun it was to see Makoto and Amamiya arguing, she knew she had to stop her sister before she said something she'd regret. She swiftly approached the couple.
"Well you heard the leader, Queen. Best to go with his recommendation. Besides, I think the expedition is done for today?" Ace asked calmly, her arms crossed.
Ren nodded, seeming relieved at her interruption. "Yes. Let's get into the Monabus and return to the top."
Makoto, looking livid, ignored them both and stomped ahead, bumping her shoulders aggressively against Ren and Sae both as she left the safe room.
Quietly, everyone else followed on her trail, tossing apprehensive looks back at Joker and Ace.
Ren sighed and started walking ahead. "Thanks for the help there, Satan."
Sae walked with him as she smirked. "You're welcome, Clown. And for what it's worth, I fully agree with you."
Ren snorted but threw her a grateful look.
Queen felt absolutely livid as she stormed ahead, the others following in her wake.
How dare Ren tell her off like that in front of the others?
She told them all. If they asked her to step down as the advisor and co-leader, she would have done so without a single complaint. She'd even quit as a Phantom Thief if that is what they wished.
But they told her she should stay. And that her advice and co-leading skills were invaluable.
So she was doing as asked. Co-leading. Advising. Fighting. Showing their enemies no mercy.
She would never let the shadows do to her what they did back at her sister's palace. She would never be overwhelmed and helpless again.
And yet, her boyfriend, sister and teammates seemed to take issue with that approach.
From the corner of her eyes she saw Noir frowning and shaking her head when their gazes met.
That made her incensed. "What now, Noir? Do you have a problem with me as well?"
Noir scoffed. "You need to drop that ridiculous attitude of yours. It's petty."
Makoto just crossed her arms. "Me, petty? You've been provoking me the entire time after we returned to your father's palace, and nobody called you petty. How is that fair?"
"Guys…" Morgana, who had just freshly transformed into the bus rumbled with concern. Nobody made a move to get in, and Noir and Makoto both ignored his plea.
"You're being incredibly selective with your recollections, Makoto. I wasn't provoking you. I was picking up your slack since you seemed too busy pitying yourself."
Makoto heard Ann gasp. "Noir!"
The younger Niijima let out a humorless chuckle. "How very generous of you, Haru. Are you going to hire a therapist for me as well?"
Noir clicked her tongue in annoyance. "No need for a therapist, I can spell it out for you: Not everything is about you. And you have all you could ever want in the palm of your hands, but you're too busy flip-flopping between hating yourself and being a hasty hothead to notice it!"
"I have all I want!? That's rich coming from a spoiled, entitled little princess like yourself"
"Queen!" She heard her blonde best friend whisper, likely shocked at her provocation.
Noir bristled. "Makoto. You are crossing a line. Stop it or else..."
"Or else what? Are you gonna follow your stupid family motto if I don't?"
Noir was furious. "Take that back!"
"Make me." Makoto challenged.
Queen didn't know who moved first, but the next thing she knew, she and Noir were rolling on the ground and fighting each other.
It didn't last long. Both Sae and Ren-kun pulled them apart.
Ren-kun held Queen back while Noir herself clutched her own face. Sae was beside the Okumura heiress, checking her over.
It made a bitter sense of jealousy boil in Queen's blood seeing her sister comforting Noir instead of her.
"Let go!" She seethed in her boyfriend's arms.
"Mako, you need to calm down. What is happening to you? This isn't like you!" He whispered harshly, voice incredibly hurt at her actions.
She held back the urge to cry. "Then you don't know me as well as you think you do, Joker."
She shrugged Ren off and stormed away, summoning Anat as she transformed into a bike.
She revved her persona and drove away.
"Noir, are you alright?" Sae asked, still shellshocked at Makoto's viciousness.
It wasn't the first time her baby sister resorted to violence when she had enough, since she beat up and maimed two boys who bullied her back in elementary school, but it was disappointing that she had done that to a friend of all people.
Okumura just bent down to pick up her hat and then shook her head. "I am fine. You better go after your sister." She said, her voice sounding strained.
It was then that she noticed Amamiya was staring at an empty spot, looking desolate like a dog that was kicked to the curb.
"Where did she go?" She asked him.
"She left. She is probably on her way to the real world by now." He said, looking sad.
She then did something that she thought she would never do: She clapped him on his shoulder supportively.
"Don't look so down. I'll talk to her and get to the bottom of this." She spoke reassuringly.
He glared at her. "You're not going to be harsh to her like you used to, are you?"
She rolled her eyes, offended at his insinuations. "Of course not."
"Fine. Let's gather the others and get away from here." He said, sounding utterly defeated.
They returned to reality. The elder Niijima saw the others look awkwardly at each other, especially Amamiya-kun, who pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Don't worry, kids. I'll handle it." She said, reassuring the other teens.
Haru looked down. "I am sorry for provoking Makoto, It's just… She pushed all my buttons as well." She said regretfully as she wrung her hands in front of her, nervous and ashamed.
Sae just sighed tiredly. "What is done is done, Okumura-chan. I will have a proper talk with her."
Haru nodded uncomfortably, and gave her a strained smile. "Alright."
Morgana's tail flickered. "Hey Haru, do you want me to give you some company tonight?"
The Okumura's heiress looked surprised. "You'd do that, Mona-chan?"
The not-cat purred and headbutted her legs. "Of course!"
"Thank you Mona-chan. I'd love the company!"
Sae saw Ren smile fondly at Morgana and she herself sent an approving look his way.
The little rascal puffed his chest out.
Nodding to her teammates as they left, Sae considered her sister's predicament.
'She'll probably be in her room, seething alone.'
Knowing that her little sister would need some time to cool down, She stalled and took a detour to a nice family diner, picking up some takeout. She made sure to get some of Makoto's favorites.
When she finally arrived home, she correctly deduced that her sister was locked up in her room.
"Mako, it's me. I picked up some dinner."
No response.
"Well, it's Chicken Udon. You sure you don't want to eat?"
Still nothing.
"All right then, I guess I'll have to eat all of this food on my own."
Suddenly the door opened and Makoto strode out, face blank with a cold mask on.
Her eyes were furious though. Sae raised an eyebrow but decided to not poke at the hornet's nest for the time being.
Dinner was the most hilarious Sae had in months. It felt like a mirror of one of the oppressively quiet dinners they had back when Sae was corrupted, but with the roles now reversed.
She had to give it to Makoto, she was good at seething in silence.
However, Sae was used to dealing with passive aggressive assholes on a 24/7 basis at work, so an angry teenager was nothing she couldn't deal with.
Besides, Makoto looked so much like their mother when she was angry. She remembers when her dad would do something stupid and receive her mother's cold looks, and it was like a mirror reflection seeing her sister throwing her those same daggers with her eyes now.
She held back her nostalgic smile, knowing that Makoto would take offense and feel even more irritated.
"Hey, you know you can talk to me, right?" Sae started, tentatively.
Makoto glared at her food and ignored her sister.
Sae stayed quiet for a few more moments, then tried again. "That thing with Okumura-chan was entirely uncalled for."
Makoto huffed. "She asked for it."
Sae's eyebrows furrowed. "Makoto, this isn't how you treat a friend."
"And how would you know? According to yourself, you don't have any friends." She spat out.
Shit, that actually hurt.
"I'm going to pretend you didn't just throw that back at my face." Sae spoke coldly.
Makoto chuckled darkly. "What a bigger person you are, sis. I'm going to follow your stellar example and pretend you haven't told me how much of a useless burden I am."
Jesus Christ, and Sae thought Amamiya was petty.
"Are you really going to do this?"
"Do what?"
"Let your anger cloud your judgment."
"So what if I do? It's better than being a simpering, useless, whiny mess, don't you think?"
"Alright then Makoto. Let's do this. Go on. Why are you so angry then?"
Makoto didn't respond and just stabbed her food with excessive force. Sae had a hunch that not even Makoto understood where her own rage was coming from.
Sae took a deep breath and tried a more sympathetic approach. "Is this because Amamiya put you on backup after you acted recklessly?"
Her sister glared at her furiously. That was enough response.
Sae looked at her for a long time. "I truly don't understand why you are so pissed off, then. That was the expected responsible thing to do."
"Tch. So you agree with him." Makoto grunted angrily.
The silver haired prosecutor ran a hand through her hair in frustration. "Of course I do. I don't want you to put yourself through unnecessary risks."
Makoto threw her a dirty look. "I can take care of myself. I am no longer a child."
"I never said you couldn't. I'm just saying he is the leader, and therefore, exercised his rights to decide how his team works."
"You don't even like Ren that much. You're just agreeing to be a contrarian."
The older sister rolled her eyes. "Makoto, you are absolutely missing the point."
"No, I'm not. My takeaway is that neither of you trust me anymore." She gritted out.
"You're letting your insecurity speak. Stop projecting." Sae said firmly.
That was the wrong thing to say, apparently.
"And you're being the same as always. You think you know better, that I am stupid and that I am overreacting."
Sae was taken aback but soon recovered. "Stop putting words into my mouth, nobody is calling you stupid. But yes, you certainly are overreacting."
"Then go on ahead, call me reckless, childish and useless while we're at it!"
Sae's eyebrow rose. Was this how her father felt whenever Sae herself would pick up fights and look to start something with him?
"I'm not falling for your bait Makoto. I'm not letting you use me to belittle yourself any longer. Stop. Projecting."
Makoto got up and slammed her hands on the table. "So now you're gonna pretend that you are the reasonable one, that you haven't been petty for months, and didn't take all your anger out on me!?"
"Watch your tone. And stop trying to start something, I'm at peace with you." Sae warned.
Makoto exploded. "But I am not at peace with you! Everyone is walking on eggshells with me! None of you can clearly not see past what happened! I am tired, TIRED of being babied!"
Sae stood her ground. "Nobody is doing that. We're just genuinely concerned for your wellbeing."
"Then stop treating me like I am going to break! I just want things to be normal!" She screeched.
The older sister was taken aback at the sudden volume. "Mako, maybe just calm down first-"
"Stop patronizing me! You never change! You still treat me like a kid!"
"Makoto, lower your voice!" Sae commanded, noting that she had to stop her sister's nervous breakdown.
Makoto didn't back down, however.
"No! Go fuck yourself Sae, you are not my mother!" The younger girl spat out furiously.
Then she swiftly left the room and went to her own bedroom, slamming the door viciously.
Sae stared shellshocked at the empty spot her sister left.
What the hell just happened?
To be continued…