Author's note:
Actually managed to write and edit a chapter in five days. Probably been more than a year since I last did that... Likely because this is more of the second part of last chapter than anything else.
Kind of short, but I think it turned out well.
Enjoy :)
Chapter 38: Unanimous disagreement
Thursday, September 1st, 20XX After school
Growing more nervous with every step, Ren entered LeBlanc followed by most of the phantom thieves. Just upstairs was a mystery that Ren had grown increasingly hesitant about as the day had proceeding.
"Well?" Makoto asked.
Realizing that he had stopped in the doorway, blocking everyone else; Ren made his legs move. Waving at Sojiro behind the counter, Ren received only a raised eyebrow from his guardian. Powering on past the counter, Ren ascended the staircase at the back of the café and up to his bedroom.
Fearful of what he would find, Ren stopped and gaped, the worry fleeing as disbelief took hold instead. His couch was moved out to face the television upon which three women were sitting. In the middle was Futaba, feet on he couch as she leaned forward with Ren's controller in her hands. On either side of her were Lily and Orchid. Both girls were leaning forward intently.
"Watch out!"
"Huh, that hole did not kill you?"
Ren would have never believed that the Owada girls would be sitting with Futaba and playing video games. Not just passively, but actively engaging with it. Ren stood there for about five seconds in a stupor before Makoto shoved him, sending Ren stumbling to a halt in front of the couch.
"Oh, done with school? Man am I glad to be out of that hell hole," Orchid commented. That was it before she looked back at the screen.
Since he was being ignored, Ren stepped to the side and examined the girls. By the time they had returned from the bath last night, he was on the couch pretending to sleep. In the dark he had not been able to look at them. It was clear now that they had washed thoroughly and done laundry. That did not stop Lily from dawning one of Ren's hoodies.
"Facts," Lily agreed with her sister not even bothering a glance at Ren. "Oi, Futs, you missed the star!"
"It was too fast!" Futaba replied instantly.
"Oh, we gaming?" In moments Ryuji was behind the couch and leaning over Futaba. "Damn, you got some skills. I was stuck on this level forever and you're breezing through it."
"Hehe, yes, praise me more!"
"Ah hmm," Haru coughed loudly. "While this is not exactly what I expected, I believe that we are here for important reasons?"
Lily and Orchid froze, their gazes growing hard as they both turned to stare at Ren. "You mentioned people would be coming. You did not say anything about this."
Ren raised his hands in surrender. There was no good way for this to come out. Probably the only good thing was that Sumire had made an excuse to not come. No one really tried to get her to come to avoid anything sensitive from being exposed.
"I thought you said that they were filled in," Makoto accused Ren.
"No, I said that they were more knowledgeable about things than we are…"
Now everyone was staring Ren with accusatory eyes. With only Sumire missing from their team, Ren hoped that the daughters would not murder him in cold blood and bowed deeply to them. "I am very sorry about what happened to your father. It was not our intention."
"…Eh?"
"That was not the clearest apology, Ren." Yusuke added on. Walking over to Ren's side, he declared in a loud voice, "this is how you apologize."
Going down on one knee, Yusuke raised his right hand to the daughters and put his left on his heart. "Lily, Orchid, I offer you our most humble apologies. Because of our actions, you no longer have a father. We know that there is nothing we can do to correct this."
With a smile, Yusuke rose to his feet, running a hand through his hair. "See Ren? Now they have no questions, and our mistake is clearly laid out."
"No… questions?" Lily asked quietly, rising to her feet. "What the hell are you talking about? It was the phantom thieves that hurt our father! You… You all can't…"
Orchid balled up her fists but did not move. "Is that why you helped us? Guilt from your crimes?"
"No." Ren answered truthfully. "I helped because I wanted to."
Orchid bit her lip and exchanged a look with Lily. Her slightly younger sister did not have the same composure, however. The woman was staring at Ren like he was a demon with horns and a tail. Horror in her eyes she backed up until she hit the wall between his bed and desk. When there was nowhere further to go she sunk to the ground. Ren was only glad that she had not fled LeBlanc.
"…I want to help you find your sister," Ren continued when no one spoke. "But I understand if you do not trust us and leave."
"Explain what happened," Orchid demanded. "If I believe you, I will explain our side."
"…Very well." Ren said. It was a large decision and could potentially ruin his teammates lives. "Anyone worried about being sold out should leave now."
No one did, although Haru did shift in place, examining the girls with a critical look. When she did not say anything, Ren continued and spoke quickly.
"We are the phantom thieves, yes. Around one month ago, we received information that your father had committed a murder and pinned it on his secretary. Therefore, we set out to change his heart and make him confess his crimes. In the process it went wrong, and we caused a mental collapse instead."
"…Is that all." Orchid asked softly.
"Yes."
Locking gazes with her blue eyes, Ren could only wonder what emotions, what feelings were behind those reflective pools. After a long, tense moment as Ren's heart hammered against his chest from the tension, she eventually nodded.
"I am glad to know that there was a mistake made."
"…What?" Ren gasped in confusion; his outburst copied in various ways by the others.
"I had started to believe the rumours online. That my father was so twisted that his heart could not be healed… I-I started to believe…" Sniffling, Orchid wiped her eyes. "I started to believe that what we had together was wrong. Just because society does not accept it, why is it so bad!?"
"I… I cannot comment on it. We targeted him for the murder. That was all."
Orchid nodded sadly. "It does have a certain karma, doesn't it? He covered up a murder and ruined four lives. Now, he suffered from an accidental killing and four lives were ruined…"
Ren flinched. He did not think Orchid meant to say that they were as bad as Owada, but it came off that way. It made him exceptionally glad once again that Sumire was not here.
Slowly, Lily rose from her position on the ground and approached Ren, her hand in the pocket of Ren's oversized hoodie that she wore. As she grew closer, Morgana paced closer and Ryuji took a half step toward him. Their protection proved unnecessary as she drew out her hand, documents clenches within.
"You should read this."
Ren stared at her, not taking the few slightly crumpled and dirty pieces of paper. There was no forgiveness in her eyes, but she did have determination. They've lost everything… Reverently taking the paper, Ren wished he could do more for the women. Their father in a coma with no chance of recovery, their sister gone, themselves on the run from the police. Most people would have simply given up and let the police have them.
"I will but can you two explain what happened to your sister first. Rose, right?"
As Lily sat back on the couch, Orchid put an arm around her sister and began to talk. "I don't know where you learned our nicknames, but yes, that is what our father called you. Her real name is Bara, in the Japanese fashion."
"Then your names are…" Ann asked.
"Suzuran," Lily spoke dully.
"Ran," Orchid supplied the rather obvious conclusion. "Our father was not exactly the best name giver in the world."
Ren wanted to press about their life and how they were adopted, but now what not the time. "Bara?"
"We came home one night from the hospital to our Father's Tokyo apartment. Because of the notes that he left us, we were already wary of the police. We noticed the patrol cars and officers in front of the entrance to the complex. She offered to check it out and talk to the police. We were worried, but figured it was just more questioning about the calling card and whatnot…"
"If it is too painful…"
Orchid glared at him. "I don't need soothing from a child. She talked to them for a moment, it was too far for us to hear but she seemed to be arguing with them. After another minute or so, she eventually got into the car, and they all drove off."
"That was the last evidence we needed that something was wrong." Lily picked up the story. Despite the flawless transition, she spoke as if only half present. A vagueness permeating her every action and word. "If it had been about the phantom thieves she would have come and talked to us first. She never even glance in our direction."
"So you waited in your apartment for her to return," Ren assumed, trying to prompt out the rest of the story.
"Of course not." Orchid said harshly. "We went to the agreed upon bar and waited for our sister to show up. She left with the police at around nine at night. It was nearly two in the morning when the police showed up to the bar. We locked eyes and I knew. I knew that the bastard had done something to Rose… The way he smiled, the predatory look…"
"How did you escape?" Ann asked sympathetically. Ren could see her desire to rush over and comfort them. She probably hesitated because the age difference and the matter-of-fact tone that they were delivering the tale with.
"The bar has an emergency exit with a fire alarm. We pulled it and dashed out while people panicked from the sudden sound. We managed to get on the final train and leave the police behind. We ended up sleeping in a random alley somewhere. Before we left the station we threw our phones under the tracks.
"The next morning, we tried an ATM and found that all of our cards had been deactivated. We used what little cash we had to pay for breakfast at a café and watch the morning news. That was when the police announced that we had fled and that they were paying for information relating to our whereabouts."
"You were out there for weeks…" Makoto gasped an expression of horror on her face. "How did you survive?"
The girls shrugged. "We quickly learned how hungry you can get. We started stealing small things from convenience stores, pawned off our jewelry."
"Can they stay with you Ann?" Ren asked.
"Of course. …Is what I would like to say. My parents are returning in a week or so which will make it hard to explain."
"We appreciate the offer," Orchid said genuinely, "but now that we have handed those writings off to someone, we will be going to the police department."
"You can't!" Futaba spoke up for the first time since she had stopped playing her game.
"We can," Orchid assured her. "We have no lives if we do not face them down. We will never be able to get a job, to buy a house. Our lives will either consist of leeching of off people or turning to crime. Neither of which I want to do."
"You don't need to be so hasty though," Ren added on quickly. "I understand what you mean but there is no telling what will happen to you if you go to the police in their current condition."
"And when is it going to change?" Orchid demanded. "We are standing on top of a cliff hoping the plunge will get better the longer we wait!"
"But what if someone removed the rocks at the bottom…" Yusuke spoke up, voice contemplative. "Yes, I do see what you mean Ren. If we were to change the right heart…"
Both girls gasped as if the prospect had not occurred to them. "Shido!" They exclaimed in unison.
"Huh?"
Both turned to Ren, "read!"
Intimidated by the synchronized actions and words, Ren unfurled the letter and began to read out loud to everyone present. Before he could even start, Ren was taken back the large, hastily scrawled text across the top of the document.
DO NOT TRUST THE POLICE!
Clearing his throat, Ren began. "Do no trust the police. They are in the pocket of the politician Masayoshi Shido. The man slated to be our next prime minister is currently selling favours to induce mental shutdowns. I do not know how I went so long without seeing the utter depravity in his actions. What man would destroy the mind of a train driver killing hundreds of innocents?
"I sit here now in fear that his black masked phantom has destroyed me. Is this how a change of heart should feel? I did feel the soul-crushing guilt, but it now leaves me. It its place, I feel nothing. Like an abyss slowing eating my mind. Or maybe I have sinned too much for my hart to recover. Oh, my dear daughters… I have sullied them with my disgusting body and lustful ways. They should have been beautiful flowers in this corrupt world, protected from the flood that comes. Now, as my mind slips to nothing I am terrified that they will be left adrift, subject to the whims of an iron-fisted man that will crush them underfoot."
Ren took a brief pause, pushing his glasses up. It had seemed so easy when they formed the phantom thieves. Find evil people, change their hearts. Instead of the black and white goal, Ren found a world of greys that he struggled to interpret. How swiftly his judgement of a murderer could shift from nearly black to a tinted white.
"My daughters, these words are for your eyes only and for anyone that you trust with your lives. On a separate sheet I have already written out a letter that you can send to a journalist friend of mine to publish my crimes. I have included some of the political corruption but cannot in good faith name-drop Masayoshi Shido to him or he would turn on me to gain traction with the abovementioned scoundrel.
"I do not want to end this letter here, but I also do not want to drag this out. So, to bring this letter to the end, let me end it with an apology. Rose, Orchid, Lily, the three of you are the lights of my life and I did not deserve you. Unfortunately, while you may have figured it out, I only adopted you all initially as a smokescreen to hide my political corruption. For this, like many other things, I am deeply sorry. No words can describe how much I regret not acting like a true father to you all during those early years. Next, I wish I could apologize to that young girl and her father that I stole their mother from them. If only I had owned up to my mistake at the time perhaps we could be living a normal life as a happy family right now. But instead, I made the biggest mistake of my life that has led to what is likely my imminent death: I pinned it on my secretary. The fact that I laughed when they killed themselves sickens me to my core.
"Now, as I write my final letter of this long life that was somehow still too short, I find traitorous tears marring my cheeks that I can not spend my final moments with the three of you. If upon reading this letter you feel anger and hate towards me. If my betrayals are too much for you to take then decide what actions you wish to take on your own. Burn it all or only give my friend my confession to the murder. Either way, as my soul moves to the afterlife, know that I wish you all happiness for the rest of your life.
"Your doting Father, Owada Jun."
In the following silence, no one spoke. What was there to say? Ren felt completely deflated. Leaning against the wall, Ren stared numbly into space, remembering his own experiences. The fake sympathy from the probation officer, the sneers and degrading remarks of the police officers.
"Shit!" Ryuji swore loudly, slamming his fist against the banister. "This is exactly what happened to Ren! How can the police be so fucking stupid and corrupt!?"
Ren was speechless, shocked that Ryuji had brought up the exact thing that he had been thinking.
"This has got to be the result of that Shido bastard that the note mentions. I say we—"
Beep beep beep!
The alarm going off broke Ryuji's tirade flawlessly. "Oh sorry," Lily apologized. It was actually Ren's alarm clock that had gone off. "That's the laundry."
"Can you two get it and maybe bring back some drinks?" Futaba asked meaningly.
"Yeah yeah," Orchid stood up, waving her hand. When she got to the stairs she gave Ren a meaningful look. "What is up with all those disgusting garments anyway? I mean, seriously, even our clothes weren't that dirty. Did you steal them from a dumpster?"
"Ahaha…" Those must be the dungeon armours… Ren was not sure if the girls found the box of clothes by themselves or if Futaba had suggested they do it. Either way, the timing was extremely fortunate.
"We're agreed, yeah?" Ryuji growled as their heads disappeared down the stairs. "We need to change this bastard's heart."
"Calm down, Ryuji," Morgana said harshly. "We know nothing about this guy except what Owada wrote down!"
"So, we leave this alone? You serious!?" Ryuji growled, sparks in his eyes.
Before another row could start between them, Ann spoke. "Ryuji, calm down and consider what Morgana is saying. This guy could just be another minion. Even if we do change his heart, there is no guarantee that we will solve their issues."
Ryuji did no bite back at Ann surprisingly. He did nod and slowly considered her words.
"But Ryuji is right," Yusuke spoke up, his eyes distant as he leaned against the banister near the staircase. "We need to act quickly to solve this."
"Well, there is a new target that has started popping up this last week." Futaba mentioned. "If we change the heart that the public wants most, we can get them on our side and pressure the police to release Rose and leave the others alone."
"Who is it?" Makoto asked.
"Okumura Kunikazu, CEO of Okumura foods and creator of the popular restaurant Big Bang Burger."
Ren's eyes flicked to Haru immediately. Slowly, everyone else's did as well. While the people in the room figured it out, Ren looked back at Yusuke and Futaba. They planned this together… Ren had no evidence, but he did not think it was a coincidence.
"No." Haru replied simply.
"Are you sure?" Futaba frowned. "He tried to marry you off. Reading these comments…"
"No!" Haru said again, even more forcefully. "I can deal with my father."
"Haru…"
"No, Mako-chan."
Wincing, Makoto took a deep breath and strode forward. "I think I may have a way to save Rose."
"How?" Ryuji asked.
"My sister," Makoto answered plainly, her tone matter of fact. One-by-one, she met their eyes, trying to demonstrate her conviction. "She works as a prosecutor, she can find out what happened, press charges against the people responsible."
"That is incredibly dangerous for both her and us," Ann countered. "I thought the two of you did not get along. How are you going to tell her that we are the phantom thieves and get her help?"
"We change her heart," Makoto declared. "We do it like Futaba's, quick and private. When Sis is better, I know she will help."
Risky… Ren thought weighing the options. All of them had their downsides. There was no certainty that any of the targets would fulfill their goal and bring about the outcome that they needed.
Ryuji snorted loudly. "Y'all worried that my guy is not important enough and now suggest these roundabout plans? Nah, both of them avoid the real problem. I say we go straight after Shitdo."
"We are already riding a popularity wave!" Futaba countered. "Now is the time to win the public over and invoke real change! Okumura is the obvious answer."
Makoto stomped her foot. "Neither of those are guaranteed to save the captive girl! We need an insider; we need to save my sister!"
What is happening… Those feelings from the meeting after Kyoto welled up again. With how inactive they had been through the end of summer; Ren had been able to forget. Now, in their first important meeting since… it was chaos. They had divided into roughly three equal groups. Ryuji and despite their previous protests Ann and Morgana targeting Shido, Futaba and Yusuke targeting Okumura, and then Makoto and Haru targeting Sae.
Forcing himself to do something, Ren raised a hand. It was the same motion that Yoshida made when pleading with the crowds. "Everyone, I doubt that our problems will be solved tonight. Why don't we part for today and think about the points brought forth. We will reconvene tomorrow with Sumire."
Haru without another word turned around and stomped down the stairs. There had been an anger in her eyes that Ren had not remembered seeing before. As others gathered themselves to leave, the laundry returned in the arms of the two sisters who Ann collected and took to her place.
In a matter of moments, only three were left. Ren, Futaba, and Morgana. "You didn't say anything," Futaba accused him. "You have to agree that—"
Ren stopped her with another hand. Walking over to pat her on the head once, Ren made for his desk. "I have school material to study. We will talk about it tomorrow."
"…Whatever."
And then there were two.
"But seriously Ren, Ryuji may be an idiot but at least targeting the big bad—"
"Tomorrow!" Temper frayed; Ren spoke louder than he had meant to. Still, he could not bring himself to apologize.
"…Yeah, sure."
That will likely be my last day as leader of the phantom thieves… For some reason, that thought wasn't as painful as Ren expected it to be.
Thursday, September 1st, 20XX Night
Nodding to the guard, Akechi walked into the now familiar underground room. As per the last few times he had come, the room was empty of everything except for a table, two chairs, and a prisoner.
When that prisoner looked up at him, Akechi felt a rush of equal disgust and glee. Her bearing was a horrid pallor that possessed a mere shadow of her original beauty. Rose's eyes were sunken with massive bags framing them. Her cheeks were sallow, and her hair was a dirty tangle reminiscent of a mangy dog. Even from the other side of the room, Akechi could smell the grime and human waste that had coated her over the weeks.
The way she looked at him however… Oh yes, there was hope in there. A glimmer in those dead hopeless eyes as she stared at him. From her corner in the floor, she looked like a zombie rising back to life as she staggered toward him.
"Detective, please…"
There was nothing attractive or sexy in her broken voice. Akechi took a step back to avoid her disgusting fingers that reached for his pristine suit. "Please show some decorum, Ms. Owada. You may be a prisoner, but you are still a politician's daughter and a grown woman."
"A-As you wish…" She replied demurely, recoiling. "W-Would you like to sit?"
Akechi took the chair that she had proffered and waved at the chair across from him. "Sit for awhile, would you?"
"Y-Yes, as you wish Detective." She was barely in the chair before she was leaning over it. Already she had forgotten about decency. Wearing those same ripped clothes that she had been on the first day, she no longer cared about the gash in the front and now exposed her emancipated torso. If she ever escaped from this place, she would need to buy smaller bras. "You're here to release me, right?"
No complaining about her treatment, good she remembered.
Smiling at her, Akechi spread his hands helplessly. "That is, unfortunately, not up to me. Tell me Rose, are you coming with me when I leave this cell in ten minutes?"
"Yes!" She said frantically, half rising to try and touch him.
A single raised finger from Akechi had her falling back down, fear plain on her face. "Now then, you say you are coming with me."
A frantic nod.
"Then tell me, where are your sisters?"
"I don't know!" She whined desperately, eyes pleading. "I already told you about the bar and the apartment in Tokyo! Maybe they returned to our main residence in Kyoto?"
Akechi did not press the matter, he believed her. After interrogating the police officer that had gone to the bar, Akechi knew that the girls had fled into the wild. It was either they had a friend that was hiding them, or they had joined the homeless population.
"And what was in the writings your father left?"
"Nothing of import. We revealed it all to the media as he asked."
There it was, a shadow crossed her eyes. A little bit of resistance as her core refused to sell out her father's final secret or whatever it was. Sighing, Akechi stood up and gave the girl a pitying look. "I thought you wanted to leave with me…"
"I do! I will!" She cried, falling out of the chair and crawling toward him. She barely looked human.
Frowning, Akechi shook his head as he leaned hard into his act of helpful detective. "Then why are you lying to me? We both know that is not true. Goodbye Ms. Owada, I will talk to you in a week… If I can make time. I am very busy, you understand?"
"NO!" She screamed; her voice hoarse. Rose tried to run but her legs lost the strength and she fell sprawling, her fingers bare moments from his polished shoes.
"Goodbye," Akechi said, voice sorrowful. Shielding his eyes as if on the verge of tears, he opened the door and stepped out.
"…Masayoshi… Shido."
Akechi froze. Turning around to look at her, Akechi took a moment to formulate his words and restrain the joy that threatened to well up. "Who is that supposed to be?"
"I… I don't know."
"I will talk to you next week then." The scream was muted when Akechi shut the door. The guard that was standing there looked uncomfortable, his face contorted with terror upon hearing his master's name.
Leaning in, Akechi kept their eyes locked as he whispered. "Not a word of this. I will be back tomorrow for the girl."
"Yes sir!"
Glaring for another moment to make sure the guard would not betray him; Akechi left the underground jail.
Friday, September 2nd, 20XX After school
Sumire listened in a daze from her position on the roof. She had gotten separate messages from Ann and Makoto as well as a general update on the group chat from Senpai. That did not prepare her for the absolute absurdity of what was being discussed.
"Why won't you two listen to me?" Haru threw her hands up, "I said I can handle him."
From the phone that Ren had laying on the central planter, Yusuke's simulated voice emerged. "Collapsed from exhaustion on the last day of my 80-hour workweek. Still showed up the next day and was told that I was fired for being unable to fulfill my job requirements. How am I supposed to feed my family now?"
"W-What is that?" Haru spluttered back angrily.
"I understand your anger. I approached my branch manager and complained about the hours being demanded from us. The girl started crying, barely a year out of high school. This problem is not contained to individual stores, it goes to the top. We need a new owner, a new CEO."
"Stop that!" Haru yelled at the piece of silicon. "What are you getting at!?"
"Yusuke is simply reading people's experiences from working at Big Bang Burger," Futaba's voice came through the same phone. "Those are totally normal conditions for you, right? I mean, there is no problem according to you."
"Cool, working retail is a garbage gig, we get it," Ryuji interjected, drawling his words. "None of this changes the fact that both of your plans are simply delaying what we have to do! I looked more into him, Shido is definitely our guy!"
"We can go for him after," Makoto sighed as if it was obvious. "Targeting a politician is too slow. It could take years for the ramifications to truly trickle down, if he isn't simply replaced by someone even worse. We need instant action and for that we need my sister. Targeting Haru's father is clearly out because Haru doesn't want to. So leave it alone."
"Makoto is right about that, you two." Ann spoke into the phone. "Our decision needs to unanimous. We simply to need to decide which of Shido or Sae we target first to give Rose the best chance of getting freed."
"But this is our only chance to show the public that we are on their side!" Futaba said desperately, her voice distorted with urgency. "You don't understand how much traffic the site is getting right now! The world's eye is tracking our movements. If we don't show—and quickly—our benevolence and desire for justice then we will lose both people's interest and more importantly, their trust."
"That doesn't matter right now!" Haru spoke, her voice on the edge of a yell. "Public opinion? Justice? Don't you see the hypocrisy in your own words!? We need to save a single girl, not reform society."
"How?" Sumire could stay silent no longer. "How do you all stand here less than a month after our greatest sin and show no guilt, no hesitancy to wield this power?" Of those present in person, only Senpai averted his gaze, guilt and sorrow flashing through his gaze for a moment.
"Calm down, Sumire," Morgana said dismissively. "We have learned from Kyoto the proper steps; nothing will go wrong this time."
"Nothing… Nothing will go wrong!?" Her voice cracked. "Don't you see that that is the problem! It has nothing to do whose heart you want to change; the problem is that you want to change hearts at all!"
"Sumi?" Ann spoke softly. "You aren't making sense. It's like you think we break up the group and—"
"Stop?" Sumire closed her eyes, trying to think through her feelings. Unfortunately, all she found was a knot of pain and disgust. She wanted to move on, she was trying to move on… "I think that would be best. We—I—killed a man and none of you care! You know why you don't care!? It's because you didn't receive any punishment for it. You're like children that can't learn without a parent spanking you for mistakes!"
Once more, only Senpai had the decency to look contemplative. Everyone else just had a mildly baffled expression.
Unable to stop now, Sumire felt hot tears begin to leak onto her cheeks. "I practically worshiped you guys after you changed Kamoshida's heart. I loved how you exposed his crimes and did it only to help the victims…"
Heart torn in half, Sumire took one step to the stairs and then began to run. She needed to be somewhere else before she broke in ways that would not heal.
Friday, September 2nd, 20XX Night
"You came back!"
The whimpering mess of a girl crashed into Akechi clutching desperately at his clothes. Forcing down the disgust, he wrapped an arm around her and stroked her head gently. "The thought of you in here all alone… how could I stomach that? Please Rose… Please let me rescue you."
Her body shivered once and then the words came. It was less than Akechi had been hoping for, but still good enough. She would be another pawn that Akechi could use to his advantage at the correct time. A small piece, but not inconsequential.
"Alright, let's go."
She was so light that Akechi had no issues scooping her up in his arms. She could not have weighed even forty kilograms. Her captivity had made her borderline anorexic. Shooting a look at the guard that promised retribution if her breathed a word, Akechi brought her to the room that he had prepared ahead of time.
"Can you bathe yourself?" Akechi asked.
"I… I don't mind if you help."
It was the straightforward seduction that only attractive people could get away with. Unfortunately for the girl, she no longer counted as being so. Still, Akechi could not have her grow apart from him.
So, restraining his emotions, Akechi proceeded to peel her ruined clothes off. These would go in a bag bound for an incinerator. Drawing the bath, Akechi double checked the temperature before lowering the almost immobile girl into it. As per his instructions, she had gotten even less food the last day.
With gentle motions, he scrubbed away the layers of dirt from her skin and began to untangle her hair. More than a few of the soiled red fibers fell from her head. The lack of nutrition had done horrible things to her body.
"T-Thank you detective. Thank you."
"Call me Akechi. I'll be relying on you when you're healed up."
"Anything…" She whispered. "Anything to not go back to that cell and those monsters."
"Good, good…" Soothing his new toy, Akechi did his best to begin making it presentable.
Sunday, September 4th, 20XX Morning
"Are you… alright?"
Kasumi was embarrassed by the weak question. There was a gap between her and Sumire now that she struggled to cross. No longer did they comfort each other. No more did they complain about homework together or help each other with problems. Kasumi had gone shopping yesterday for clothes by herself for the first time in her life.
Even so, she could not ignore the expressions that Sumire was making. It's probably the rejection finally setting in…
"Kasumi…" Sumire said, ignoring the question. "Do you still hate the phantom thieves?"
"Hate?" Deciding to roll with the questioning, she shrugged her shoulders. "Not really. I think the phantom thieves and their popularity is born from a defect in society. If our government had done a better job, they would have had no reason to exist."
"I don't understand what you mean."
Didn't you get first in our class? Kasumi did not say the judgemental words. Sumire's posture was still hostile, her expression unreadable. "That the phantom thieves are a symptom, not a cause. So no, I do not hate them. Now, why are you asking?"
"I… I feel sick when I hear about the politician they killed." Sumire said faintly. "How could anyone pursuing justice do that?"
Kasumi shrugged. "Is it really all that different from the normal change of hearts? Their latest target lost himself and was not replaced by someone else. As far as I can tell, the others were changed into different people against their wills. So, to me, the phantom thieves have always killed their victims."
Sumire gasped, her eyes bulging.
Smiling, Kasumi stepped forward and slapped her sister on the shoulder. "No need to think on such dreary topics though. We got a trip to Hawaii coming up! You'll have time to shop in American stores, practice some English and stare at attractive western men to take your mind off of Ren."
"Yeah, Hawaii… Thanks sis. I think I need a trip."
"Anytime…" Kasumi could not bring herself to say the words, but she prayed them as she stared at her sister's bent back. I would do anything for you… So please, please get better.
Sunday, September 3rd, 20XX After school
"I am afraid that this is the last game I will be able to play against you for awhile."
Ren jerked his head up from the carved wooden board to stare at the gorgeous girl across from him. They were the exact same age, but in Ren's opinion lived in completely different worlds. Flashing her a half smile, he made a move as he spoke self-deprecatingly. "Is that because of the quality of my play."
"Not at all," she answered with a small laugh. "If I wanted an opponent on my level, I never would have agreed to continue after the first game."
"Harsh," Ren replied, "then why?"
She shrugged. "I'm going on a school trip. L.A. for four days. My mother doesn't think I should go, but I want to see America. Although even I must admit that the flight time and jet lag will probably not be worth the time there…"
Ren laughed. "I'm actually going to Hawaii this week as all."
"Oh, Hawaii, that sounds so much better! It's a lot closer than L.A."
"Hmm, well maybe if you use your shogi moves, you can call a storm to divert your plane to Hawaii."
"Do you think that will work?"
"…No, Hifumi, I am afraid it will not."
She pouted but quickly smiled again. It was an expression that Ren was getting to see more and more as he came here more often. The simple act of playing shogi against a high-rated amateur in a quiet church was extremely therapeutic. From the chaos of the phantom thieves and the problems they were facing, Hifumi and her shogi lessons were an oasis to him. A guiding angel that sheltered him from the storm for a few hours.
The only price that Ren paid was…
"Hehehe, you have fallen into my trap! Go, raging lion strike! Destroy the enemy and bring victory to your queen!"
It was not until after Hifumi had pushed her horse to its new square that Ren realized his strategy did not work. Sighing, he leaned back in defeat. "So, is this the point where I resign, or should I play it out?"
"This is the last game I can play today…" Hifumi raised her eyes from the board to stare at him. "So… I would not be upset to play it out."
Ren nodded and made a move. It was a simple shift of his gold general to avoid the horse now attacking it. He was by no means a master, but even he could sense his position collapsing in the next few moves. "You know…" Ren said as Hifumi slammed down her response. "If you want to just talk for awhile, we can do that instead."
Blushing, Hifumi ran a nervous hand through her beautiful straight black hair. "You are so perceptive sometimes its terrifying. I often feel like you can read my mind…"
"I've just had the chance to interact with a lot of people hiding things recently." Ren answered truthfully. He knew that he should be more guarded with his tongue, but that grew harder by the day. The pressures and strains wore at him in ways that Ren had not expected when they officially formed the thieves.
"I see…" Hifumi sat up a little straighter. "Are you resigning then?"
"Ah," Ren conceded the match. "Thank you for the lesson, master."
"P-Please don't…" Hifumi blushed again. Then, when she had cooled down, she turned back to face Ren as she packed the board away in her bag. "My mother booked another photo shoot for me… It is getting out of hand."
"I see," Ren nodded as if he had any idea about what it was like. "I won't say your mother is correct, but she is taking a pragmatic approach to this all, isn't she?"
"What do you mean?" Hifumi grumbled. "I want to play shogi not blush demurely for cameras!"
"I understand that," Ren shrugged, "but there is more money in the entertainment industry than shogi."
"…A lot of shogi pros need to take other jobs to support themselves," Hifumi said softly, as if speaking a forbidden secret. "If I focus on my image and becoming an idol or whatever… isn't that the same as admitting that I'm not good enough?"
I have no idea… And just like that, the oasis collapsed around Ren, the real world rushing back in and threatening to crush him. Even his guardian angel had problems and a life that she was struggling to sort out. The hypocrisy of him trying to help anyone contorted Ren's face.
"I'm sorry… I'm in no position to give advice."
"But I want your opinion!" Hifumi pled. Unable to look at her Ren rose to his feet and moved to leave. "Please!"
Ren could not work up the strength to rip his hand from her grip. Turning back to her, Ren let Hifumi see his helpless face. "I would tell you to choose what won't you regret. The problem is… there is no way to know."
Her hand slowly slipped from his wrist. Mouthing an apology, Ren fled from the church. His last sanctuary stolen from him. Left to the storm, Ren had to find an answer and quick.