Phantom Files Book 2: Rise Of The Monarchs

by sithlorde1988

The sequel to Persona 5-The Phantom Files. A few years after Ren returns home, the Phantom Thieves find themselves drawn back into the Metaverse once again out of nowhere after a mysterious app surfaces with the powers to access the Metaverse. Can the Phantom Thieves stop a mysterious new group of individuals called Monarchs? Better summary in chapter 1! BOTH STORY AND EDITS DONE!

6. Arc 1 Finale: Rabbits, RVs, and More

A/N: sithlorde1988 here, with another chapter of Phantom Files Book 2: Rise of the Monarchs! Well, we're only five chapters in as of this point, but here we are on the first Monarch fight already. Let that serve as proof that Strikers really is a faster-paced game than Royal, and a lot shorter than Royal too as a result. But in any case, rather than go on a super-long tangent about that, let's hit up the disclaimer for now, shall we?

Disclaimer: I, sithlorde1988, do not own the Persona series in any way, shape, or form (barring the OC Kusa/Draconis, along with any other OCs that might show up, all of which are made and thus owned by me), and the actual ownership credit for the Persona series belongs to Atlus, Sega, and to some extent Koei Tecmo (mainly insofar as it concerns the spinoff games, like Strikers, Phantom X, Tactica, the 'Arena' games, the 'Dancing' games, and the 'Q' games), so all credit to them!

Now, before we move on, let me throw down a warning that this chapter will have another M-rated scene in it, but said scene will be clearly marked so that those who don't like to read such things and/or those who aren't into girl/girl scenes can skip over it (yeah, this time around, the M-rated scene in question is a yuri scene. Imagine that!), and likely won't miss out on much if any plot development in the scene. So consider yourselves warned ahead of time!

OK, with that done and dusted, I don't have a lot else to say, so let's get on with the chapter for now, yeah? Here's chapter 6!

Chapter 6- Confronting the Rabbit of Lust! Battle of the Birdcage! The Crew Reunites part 6

(In the entryway of the Shibuya Jail, with Joker, Mona, Skull, Panther, Fox, Queen, Oracle, Noir, Violet, and Seeker)

As Joker looked at the gathered group of his fellow Phantom Thieves, he gave them a serious look and spoke up.

"Well, this is it, everyone. Time to go and change Alice's heart. Everyone ready?" Joker asked as the others nodded and Violet spoke up.

"Always ready, Joker. But refresh my memory. Did you already establish the front lines?" Violet asked as Joker nodded and spoke up.

"Good stuff, Violet. Also, to answer your question? No, I did not establish the front lines for this battle yet, but I will now. For this battle, I want the setup to be as thus. In the first wave, I want Violet, Fox, Skull, and Panther with me. Meanwhile, Queen will be leading the second wave, which will be herself, Noir, Mona, and Seeker, while Oracle alternates between the two inside of Al Azif as she performs her usual navigator duties. Any objections?" Joker asked firmly as the others shook their heads to signal there were no objections as Joker kept speaking with a nod.

"Good. Once we've set those groups up, let's get out there and change Alice's heart!" Joker said decisively as the others nodded and made the needed tagouts so that Violet, Panther, Fox, and Skull were up front with Joker while Mona, Seeker, and Noir were in the second wave of attackers with Queen. Oracle got into position inside of Al Azif as Joker spoke up.

"Good. Now that we're formed up, let's go get our target, everyone!" Joker said decisively as Mona spoke up.

"Right! You heard our leader! Let's go, everyone! Time to change Alice's heart!" Mona said as the group leapt into action to start the change of heart, Mona speaking up at that point.

"Man, it's times like these that I know I'm supposed to be a phantom thief." Mona said as Seeker tilted her head to the side and spoke up.

"Supposed to be a phantom thief? Were you not always a phantom thief, Mona?" Seeker asked as Mona winced and spoke up.

"Umm, not always? But we can talk about that more later. For now, let's focus on changing Alice's heart, yeah?" Mona said as Seeker nodded and the group kept moving. After making their way over towards 705, the group stopped short on noticing the giant chain laid out in their path, prompting Oracle to speak up in surprise.

"Hey, look! The chain goes all the way to the top!" Oracle said as the others looked, and sure enough, the chain led straight up to the birdcage. Seeker blinked at this and spoke up in surprise.

"Huh, imagine that. So it does. Perhaps it fell when we opened the lock." Seeker said as Mona spoke up.

"Right you are, Lady Seeker. Either way, it's a lucky break for us. If I'm right, climbing this should give us a straight shot to the birdcage of Desires." Mona said as Violet nodded and spoke up.

"Good point, Mona. Well, only one way to know for sure, I suppose." Violet said as Joker nodded and spoke up.

"Correct. Everyone, let's climb that chain and see if it leads to the top like Mona thinks it does." Joker said, as the others nodded and started climbing the chain. Sure enough, after climbing the chain, the group found themselves inside the birdcage of Desires, as Mona thought would happen. Mona looked up, only for his eyes to widen as he saw the massive reddish-pink gem hovering over the groups head, making him speak up in surprise.

"Whoa! That is one huge gem!" Mona said as Oracle spoke up, her eyes widened behind her visor as she spoke.

"Huge is an understatement, Mona! That thing is GINORMOUS! Why's it so big!?" Oracle asked as Violet spoke up warily.

"This is just a guess, but maybe it's that size because it's all the seized Desires clumped together into one massive Desire?" Violet guessed. Noir smiled and spoke up.

"That's as good a guess as any, Violet-chan. But at least it actually materialized for us, thank goodness." Noir said as Mona nodded his agreement and spoke up.

"Right you are, Noir! That IS a relief. I was worried that our standard Palace procedures wouldn't work." Mona said as Oracle turned to Skull and spoke up.

"All right, Skull. You know the drill! Get to haulin'!" Oracle said as Joker frowned and spoke up.

"Why Skull, specifically? You did happen to look up and actually take notice of the size of that thing, right Oracle?" Joker asked as Skull spoke up.

"Truth, Joker! Ain't no way any singular one of us could lift that! And Oracle? Uh, no. Look at the size of that thing!" Skull said as Panther frowned and spoke up.

"What do we do now? How do you steal something like that?" Panther asked as Queen spoke up with a frown.

"Good question, Panther. I admit, I don't know either, as frustrating as that is to admit." Queen said as Joker went to open his mouth to say something, only to be cut off by the sound of a door opening behind the group, prompting everyone to turn towards the elevated stage behind them as Fox spoke up.

"Hm? What's that!?" Fox said as a rumbling noise preceded a throne rising up out of the ground on the stage, and as it rose up, the group's eyes widened slightly on seeing Alice's Shadow sitting on the throne. Oracle frowned and spoke up.

"Here we go, everyone! It's her!" Oracle said as Panther's eyes widened and she spoke up.

"No way! You mean to tell me that THAT's Alice's Shadow!?" Panther said in shock, not having seen the Shadow in mention prior to this point. As Alice's Shadow stood up, Violet involuntarily cringed at how suggestively Alice's Shadow was dressed.

In lieu of the usual blue and white dress she wore, Alice's Shadow wore a very small frilly light pink miniskirt with purple lining at the top, black leather studded arm-length gloves that stopped short of her shoulders, a black leather outfit that barely qualified as an outfit since it was moreso a corset, what appeared to be suspenders, and a pair of panties, with what looked like a pink strapless bra seemingly attached on top of the front of the corset.

Other than the miniskirt, the only thing covering Alice's bottom half was a barely-decent pair of black leather panties. In addition, she had on a pair of black stiletto heels, purple and black striped knee-length leggings, a purple and gold crown, and where her usual headpieces were, were a pair of giant green and yellow eyes with pink and brown in the middle, and a white pupil. Joker frowned as he saw the familiar cane in Alice's lseft hand.

Violet shuddered a bit despite herself at how much Alice's Shadow was dressed like a dominatrix in that moment. When she chanced a look in Seeker's direction, Violet was relieved to see that Joker had instinctively positioned the group so that Fox, Skull, Queen, Panther, and Joker himself were all standing in front of Seeker, blocking her from seeing Alice's Shadow. Mona and Oracle happened to be standing with her and were both also blocked from seeing Alice's Shadow, but neither minded. Violet herself moved to stand in the open spot on Seeker's other side as Fox spoke up with a frown from in front of her.

"Ah, I see. So, it's a fight after all." Fox said bluntly as Alice's Shadow spoke up with a mocking smirk on her face, her voice taking on a mockingly musical quality as she spoke.

"Oh dear, you thought you'd just sneak in like that? And what exactly do you plan on doing with those Desires?" Alice's Shadow asked, before her eyes landed on Joker and she got a smug smile on her face as she kept speaking.

"Hey, you! Yeah, you in the black trench coat and red gloves! Joker, right? Did you come back to me so you could be mine?" Alice's Shadow asked as Joker cringed at the question before he and Violet spoke up in unison to answer her.

"HELL NO!" Joker and Violet said in unison as Joker kept speaking.

"First of all, why would I be with someone who abuses everyone around her? And another thing, this might be hard for you to accept, but I'm already quite happily spoken for by this sexy red-head right next to me." Joker said firmly, wrapping an arm possessively around Violet's waist as he spoke up, indicating who he meant with his previous 'sexy red-head' comment, making Violet happily smile as she leaned into Joker and spoke up in a voice that was a mix of an amused coo and a smug taunt.

"That's right, Joker. Try as that sluttily-dressed skank up there might, she could never even hope to ever take you from me! We're very much happy together." Violet said, leaning up to firmly steal a kiss from Joker to prove her point as Joker smirked and spoke up.

"That's right, Violet. You're the only woman for me." Joker said happily. Alice's Shadow smirked at this and spoke up.

"Aw, what a grump. And you have such bad taste in women if you'd rather be with that pitiful little wallflower of a girl instead of a real woman, like myself. But that's your loss. Also, you should try being a little nicer to girls." Alice's Shadow said with a smirk as Violet frowned at being insulted before she spoke up.

"WALLFLOWER!? Who're you calling a wallflower!? I'll have you know, I'm a very successful aspiring gymnast! So kindly do not insult me in such a way as to call me a wallflower! I don't care if you do have an impressive figure! When it comes to you, beauty only goes skin-deep. You lack any sort of inner beauty, in part due to how distorted and vengeful you've become!" Violet said as Mona nodded and spoke up.

"I agree, Lady Violet!" Mona said before turning to Alice's Shadow as he kept speaking.

"ALICE HIIRAGI! We know all about the terrible things you've done." Mona said as Fox nodded and spoke up.

"You seized people's Desires by force and turned them into your puppets." Fox said as Queen frowned and spoke up.

"Not only that, you toyed with people's emotions and made them mistreat one another." Queen said as Oracle frowned and spoke up.

"And even worse? You even opened up stores so you could bilk all the people you brainwashed!" Oracle said as Noir spoke up with a frown.

"They're right! We're sorry, but even with what you've been through, we can no longer overlook the wicked changes of heart you've forced on the people!" Noir said as Panther frowned and spoke up.

"What Noir said! The Phantom Thieves are about to beat the distortion out of you!" Panther said as Violet spoke up.

"More importantly? We're also about to make you open those eyes of yours to the truth of your errant ways! And with any luck, we can make you repent for what you've done, and even help you start the path to redemption!" Violet said as Seeker looked at Violet in awe, once more internally reaffirming her desire to be more like Violet. Alice's Shadow smirked at the Phantom Thieves, her attention turning firmly onto Panther as she spoke up.

"So you all say. But we'll see what happens once we fight. But first? Takamaki-san, assuming that's you behind that cougar mask rocking the sexy red leather bodysuit, you're so beautiful. As such, there's no way you could understand. You have no clue what I've been through." Alice's Shadow said as Panther frowned and spoke up.

"First of all, it's a PANTHER mask, not a cougar mask! Also, you say that we could never understand what you've been through. But by that, do you mean what happened to you at Shujin?" Panther asked, drawing a shocked gasp out of Alice's Shadow.

"Oh! That's-!? Where did-? How!?" Alice's Shadow asked in shock as Panther spoke up with a firm look on her face.

"We know all of it. How you were bullied. How it was torture for you. But I still can't overlook what you've done! I get you're lashing out to get revenge on your bullies, but you've chosen one of the worst possible ways to do that!" Panther said as Alice's Shadow frowned and spoke up.

"Oh, okay. I see what's going on here. You found out the truth of my past somehow. Ugh! No matter how much I hide it, the past still comes back to me!" Alice's Shadow said angrily as Violet spoke up, an unreadable look on her face behind her mask as she spoke up.

"I know it's probably very less than ideal for you, Alice. But here's a news flash for you! Whether you like your past or not, that's how the past works! You can't run away from it, no matter how much you might want to! I would know that better than most people! I felt that same way myself at one point in the past, but then my friends here, along with my beloved Joker, opened my eyes and helped me to realize that I can't run from my past, nor can I hide it!

I had to confront my past, make peace with it, and find the strength to move forward on my own two feet, instead of continuing to live under the actualized delusion that I was my dead sister! I can't imagine how many people I probably hurt when I did that, but I count myself grateful and blessed every day that I was able to come to my senses and live for myself! Live as Sumire Yoshizawa, instead of as her deceased twin sister Kasumi!

I was disrespecting Kasumi's memory while pretending to be her! And you're continuing to disrespect your past self by refusing to embrace and make peace with that past! Yes, I know it was painful, and probably downright traumatizing! But you can't turn away from it! You have to learn from it to be able to become the person you're truly meant to be? Or are you trying to say that this gaudily-dressed freak show in front of me is what you're meant to be, Alice?" Violet said firmly, shocking everyone present aside from Joker with her outburst and mention of her past. Alice's Shadow blinked at Violet and spoke up.

"Hm? Yoshizawa, you say? Wait, aren't you the girl whose twin sister gave up her own life to save their sister from an oncoming vehicle? I remember hearing about that on the news a couple of years ago. That was truly one of the saddest stories I've ever heard. But even so? To think you can stand there and lecture ME about running from my past! How pathetic you sound! Not to mention, what a mess this has turned into! Eh, but it doesn't matter what you say now. With this power, I can have everything. Everything I've always wanted? It can all be MINE!" Alice said before giving Joker a sly smile as she spoke up.

"And as for you, Joker? I don't care if you're happily committed to that red-headed trampy little loudmouth! Now I'm going to make you mine, do you hear me? ALL MINE!" Alice's Shadow said as she hefted her cane in hand, pointing it threateningly at Joker as she was engulfed in a burst of red and black energy as she grew rather massive.

And then, after the light show was over, Alice's Shadow was revealed as being a fair bit taller, and with giant bunny ears now protruding form the top of her head in place of the giant eyeballs that were previously on either side of her hairdo. In addition, her hands and feet were replaced with rabbit's paws and feet, complete with a tail that had the words 'EAT ME' in big lettering on it on top of the area where a pair of lips with a tongue sticking out were located. After the transformation ended, a battle started! As the fight started, Skull spoke up in horror.

"What in the hell!? She turned into some kinda rabbit!" Skull said as Joker winced and spoke up.

"Ugh! Is this supposed to be a twist on the White Rabbit!? I'm not sure if I should be morseo appalled at how much Alice managed to sexualize that character, or horrified at how ugly she looks right now!" Joker said, his eyes slightly widened in horror behind his mask while Violet spoke up. *1*

"Probably both, to be honest? But at the same time? I also feel a bit sorry for her, that she's got it that rough that she has to try and go after guys who already have girlfriends! We need to change her heart!" Violet said as Queen frowned and spoke up.

"Joker has a point. White Rabbit, eh? So this really is Alice in Wonderland, then. Weird way to theme one's Jail, but I suppose if it works, it works." Queen said with a frown as Alice's Shadow smirked at the group tauntingly before she spoke up.

"Oh my, I'm late for a very important date. Come along, come along! I have such wonders to show you!" Alice's Shadow said as a confused and slightly wide-eyed Seeker spoke up while both Joker and Skull looked like they wanted to be ill at the sight of the rabbit version of Alice's Shadow.

"Wonders, you say? What wonders?" Seeker asked as Oracle frowned and spoke up.

"Ignore her, Seeker. She just wants to torture us or something." Oracle said as Panther looked at Alice's Shadow and spoke up.

"Alice, I know you don't want to hear this, but you're hearing it anyways! I feel sorry for you, and for what you've been through. However, your recent behavior is entirely unacceptable! And that's why I'm gonna make you see the light!" Panther said resolutely as Violet nodded her agreement and spoke up.

"And I'll help you, Panther! I might be mad at her for what she's done and tried to do to Joker, but I can still empathize with her pain, since in some ways, she reminds me of how I used to be, back before I met Joker. If I wasn't being mocked and taunted for my honors student status, I was being belittled for pretending to be Kasumi! So I can empathize with her being bullied. And it's not a fun feeling. But at the same time? It's also no excuse for how she's been acting! It's time to give her a wake-up call and help her see the error of her ways!" Violet said resolutely as the group charged into battle with Alice's Shadow. As the fight proceeded, Alice's Shadow spoke up.

"Aww, how cute. You all seem like best buds. Not counting Joker and that red-headed twerp he calls a girlfriend, since they made their relationship very obvious, do any of the rest of you happen to be dating?" Alice's Shadow asked slyly as a red-faced Panther sputtered behind her mask and spoke up.

"Wh-What!? How is that any of your business? But to answer your question? Yes, most of us are dating within the team! For starters, Skull and Queen are dating. Also, as far as our navigator, Oracle, goes? He's not here now, but our teammate Draconis is her boyfriend. As far as myself and Fox? We're also dating, even if our girlfriends aren't on the team. I think the only currently single members of the group are Mona, Seeker, Noir, and our other absent teammate, Crow! What of it!?" Panther asked. Alice's Shadow giggled at this and spoke up.

"Oh? You've got a girlfriend, you say? I wonder what girl managed to land you, Takamaki-san?" Alice's Shadow asked slyly. Panther spoke up.

"A very amazing and beautiful girl, that's what girl managed to land me!" Panther said as Alice's Shadow giggled and spoke up.

"I see. Well, good for you. As for me? I've got a thing for Joker! I'm going to steal his heart, all for myself!" Alice's Shadow said as Joker and Violet both grimaced at the blunt honesty from Alice's Shadow as the former spoke up.

"Really? Ugh, excuse me while I try not to lose my lunch. Violet, this crazy broad saw us kiss earlier, did she not? What part of that makes her think she has any shot with me? Much less that I'd ever leave you for the likes of her?" Joker asked as Skull grimaced and spoke up.

"Truth, Joker! She's one crazy woman! Be careful!" Skull said as Alice's Shadow smirked and spoke up.

"You say you're all here to change my heart, but I wonder. Who's going to change whose heart? We'll find out soon enough!" Alice's Shadow said as the battle continued. As the group ran around attacking her with all their might, Queen grimaced and spoke up.

"Ugh, this thing has so much health! Oracle, any weaknesses you can detect for us to exploit!?" Queen called out as Oracle spoke up from inside of Al Azif.

"Hang on, scanning her now. Scanning...and done! Weaknesses to Fire and Wind confirmed! Burn that stupid smirk off her face, or failing that, blow her off her feet!" Oracle said as Joker and Panther nodded, teaming up to shoot their strongest Fire skills at Alice, knocking her backwards before she jumped on to the pole in the middle of the room and started spinning around on it, making Joker's eyes widen as he spoke up.

"Wait, what in the-!? Is this chick seriously trying to pole dance on us? Someone needs to get over there and put their hands over Seeker's eyes, since there's no way this is age-appropriate for her to be looking at!" Joker said as Mona, who was the closest to Seeker at the time, nodded and gently put his paws over Seeker's eyes, making her giggle cutely before she spoke up while she felt Mona's paws go over her eyes, blushing almost involuntarily at what she perceived to be her close proximity to Mona as she spoke.

"Mona, stop! Your paws tickle! Also, how am I supposed to be able to see the Shadows to fight them!?" Seeker said as Mona smiled at her and spoke up.

"That's what I'm here for, Lady Seeker. Let me be your eyes for now until Joker and Violet deem it safe for me to uncover your eyes." Mona said kindly as Seeker blushed a bit more despite herself at Mona's kindness as she nodded and spoke up.

"O-Okay, if you insist. I'll trust you to be my eyes for now, Mona." Seeker said as the two worked together to fight off Shadows. After Joker and Panther hit Alice's Shadow with another strong combo move to knock her off the pole, Skull spoke up at the same time that Mona got the signal from Violet that it was safe to uncover Seeker's eyes, which he did while sticking close to her as he kept fighting off Shadows.

"Hey, check out the party popper over there!" Skull said as Mona looked over and smirked as he spoke up.

"Ooh, nice! Well spotted, Skull! Joker! You, Panther, and Violet will have your chance when Alice goes for the pole again. That's when you blast her!" Mona said as Fox smirked and spoke up.

"Oh-ho, what's this? Raining confetti upon the stage, you say? I must admit, that would be quite pleasing, aesthetically speaking." Fox said as the others nodded and the battle continued. After trading back and forth blows with Alice's Shadow, who managed to knock Fox backwards with a particularly strong hit, the others forced Alice backwards, at which point she spoke up.

"Ugh, why are you being like this? I was finally able to find some happiness for myself, but you had to get in the way! Are you here to take everything I have? Just like she did? If so, then JUST TRY ME!" Alice's Shadow said as she then shook with rage before taking her cane and snapping it in half over her leg, throwing the pieces aside and getting down on all fours as she ran around and spoke up.

"Are you going to try and take everything from me? To make me suffer like they did? Just so you know, once I get a man locked in my sights, I don't stop until I turn him against you, no matter what it takes! So keep that in mind before you cross me!" Alice said as Violet frowned at the possessive remark and spoke up.

"You think so, you bitch? TRY IT! I might feel bad for you, but you're nuts if you think for one MOMENT that I'm not gonna fight for my man!" Violet said irately as Alice's Shadow giggled mockingly and spoke up.

"A wallflower like YOU? Defeating me!? Absurd! Just TRY and keep up, then!" Alice's Shadow said as she suddenly started rolling around in a ball, moving around the arena at high speeds. As Alice kept moving around, the group had to scatter to avoid the high-speed charging Alice's Shadow had taken to doing. While she charged around, she spoke up tauntingly.

"Are you gonna be the same as them? Everyone around was always so shitty to me! The higher up the social ladder they were, the shittier they got! How is that fair? I just wanted to have the same happiness they did!" Alice's Shadow said as Violet frowned and spoke up while dodging a charge aimed at her.

"You might be jaded, bitter, and angry now, but I don't think you're being sincere in your words right now." Violet said as Panther spoke up.

"She's right! I know that's not your real answer! You said you wanted to be a ray of light for people, Alice! So you tell me, right now! What's your REAL answer? What do you REALLY want, Alice!?" Panther asked as she and Violet had to dance past another charge attack aimed at them while Joker, Fox, and Skull had to provide cover fire/chip damage with their skills. Nearby, Mona, Queen, Seeker, and Oracle provided whatever support they could as the battle progressed. Alice's Shadow winced to answer Panther's question.

"I honestly don't know anymore...what do I want?" Alice's Shadow asked before charging forward rapidly, only barely missing Violet and Panther, and almost knocking Seeker off her feet, if not for Mona pushing her aside at the last moment to take the hit for her, with the hit in mention succeeding in throwing him sideways towards a wall where he collided painfully with the aforementioned wall and hit the ground with a groan. On seeing this, Violet, Panther, Seeker, Oracle, and Queen all gasped and spoke up at the same time.

"MONA!" Violet, Seeker, Panther, Seeker, Oracle, and Queen all shouted in unison as Noir frowned and started pelting Alice's Shadow with grenades from her grenade launcher as Alice's Shadow slowed to a halt, landing on her backside from the stun that Noir's grenades had caused her. On seeing this, Joker called Violet and Seeker over to him and spoke up.

"Let's finish this before anyone else gets hurt! READY?" Joker said as Violet and Seeker nodded, the three combining their strongest Fire/Bless moves together to create a small meteor of holy flame energy, which they fired as one into Alice's Shadow, making her skid to the side and groan, right as Panther spoke up.

"Perfect, you're down! Time to end this! This one's for Mona! SHOWTIME!" Panther said as she and Hecate did a graceful dance of sorts before Hecate twirled away, working with Panther to create a torrent of flame, which crashed down onto Alice's Shadow as Panther spoke up.

"YOUR HEART IS MINE!" Panther said sassily as Alice's Shadow crashed to the ground from the impact of the Showtime, groaning as she slumped over in defeat.

"How could this be? I lost!?" Alice's Shadow said as she slumped over to end the very difficult battle, signaling the victory for the Phantom Thieves. The ensuing EXP gains brought everyone other than Skull, Fox, and Violet up to level 16, the level gains giving Seeker the healing skill 'Media?' and the passive skill 'Bless Boost?', making her speak up with a smile.

"Ooh, I learned a new skill! Two of them, even! Impressive." Seeker said happily as Mona spoke up after slowly getting to his feet once Queen and Violet patched him up.

"Heh, good job. I knew you could do it, Lady Seeker. Looks like we won." Mona said with a smug smirk, doing the cat equivalent of a thumbs-up, before blinking as Seeker tackle-hugged him, patting him gratefully on the head as she spoke up while Pithos acquired both 'Media?' and 'Bless Boost'. But that wasn't all, as there were new skills to be had for Noir, Skull, Fox, and Queen. Firstly, Skull got the Elec skill 'Mazio', making him smirk as he spoke up.

"Hell yeah! A new move! Whaddya think?" Skull said as Queen smiled and spoke up while kissing Skull on the cheek.

"It's a great skill, Skull. Keep up the good work." Queen said as Seiten Taisei acquired 'Mazio'. Nextly, Fox gained two new skills in the Physical skills 'Giant Slice' and 'Vicious Slash', making him grin as he spoke up.

"Well, well. I gained some new skills. I must try these out soon!" Fox said as Violet sweatdropped and spoke up.

"Uhh, sure. If you say so, Fox. At least they're good skills, so good job on that." Violet said as Kamu Susano-o acquired 'Giant Slice' and 'Vicious Strike'. Next, Queen acquired the healing skill 'Media', making her smile as she spoke up.

"All right, I got a new move! And it looks strong!" Queen said as Skull smirked and spoke up.

"Truth, babe! That skill is solid! Good job." Skull said approvingly as Anat acquired 'Media'. Finally, Noir gained the healing skill 'Amrita Drop', making her smile as she spoke up.

"Oh! A new move! Now I can work even harder!" Noir said as Joker spoke up.

"Not bad, Noir. As I always say, it's a step forward." Joker said wisely as Astarte acquired 'Amrita Drop' before Seeker finally got to speak up, looking at Mona as she spoke, still hugging him close to her as she spoke without realizing it.

"Don't scare us like that anymore, Mona! We thought you were badly hurt from that impact you took! But at the same time? I'm glad you were willing to take that hit for me. So, umm, thank you." Seeker said shyly, looking around to see if anyone was looking, and when she confirmed that no one was looking, she quickly yet shyly kissed a surprised Mona on the cheek in gratitude before the two moved to join the others as the battle ended. After the fight, Alice's Shadow dropped to her knees and winced as she acknowledged her defeat. She then spoke up in frustration.

"No, how did I lose!? How can I still not be strong enough!? Dammit! Why can't I change!? I'm not the victim anymore!" Alice's Shadow said as Violet spoke up.

"No, you're right. You're not the victim anymore. I don't know if you can realize it yet, but you've effectively become the bully in this situation, instead of the victim." Violet said sympathetically as Panther sadly nodded and spoke up while staring down at Alice's Shadow.

"Violet's right. That's enough, Alice. If you keep going, then you'll just make yourself feel even worse." Panther said as Alice's Shadow frowned at Panther and spoke up.

"How would you know!?" Alice's Shadow said as Joker spoke up from next to Violet.

"You might not believe it, Alice, but you're not the only one here that's suffered in the past. If you think about it, all of us in this room have suffered to some degree in our past, some of us moreso than others. But of all of us here, Panther and Violet are the ones who've probably come the closest to what you've been through. So even if they don't agree with your actions, they can sympathize with your suffering to some extent.

Panther can relate to being bullied relentlessly, and Violet can relate to feeling the need to escape a painful past. So both of them really get you, because all three of you have suffered a great deal in your lives. Sure, Violet and Panther might not be suffering as much now, but they've still suffered as well, even if their suffering was moreso in the past." Joker said kindly to Alice's Shadow, who blinked at Joker's words in shock and started sobbing as Violet looked down guiltily before speaking up.

"Joker's right. Yes, a lot of what you've done is messed up beyond belief. But you've also been suffering too, even if you chose a terrible way to try to escape that suffering. As I said earlier, I can relate to that. But changing the hearts of others to try and force them to like your designs and/or be your friend is NOT the answer! If you can genuinely resonate with someone and be their friend legitimately, rather than using manipulation, you'd be surprised how substantial, deep, and long-lasting that sort of connection can be.

Believe it or not, that's how I met Joker here. Like you, I was hurting and felt like my life was going nowhere, and I wanted a way out of my suffering. Granted, at the time, I was actualized into thinking I was my sister Kasumi, but even so, the fact remains that I was running from the pain of her death and of all the pressures of what I viewed as unfair expectations put on me because of Kasumi's success as the elder sister. In the end, Joker and the others were able to get through to me and make me realize that I had to stop running from my pain and suffering and learn to make peace with it. And once I did that, I became so much stronger for coming to terms with my suffering.

So I know you can do the same, if you'd just let go of all that hate, misery, and anguish you're carrying around. And even despite what you've done, you're not without people who want to help you. Both myself and Panther want to help you change your ways, and put your life back on the right path. But it's up to you to make the first step and repent for what you've done." Violet said kindly as Panther nodded her agreement as both Panther and Violet stood over Alice's Shadow, who huffed and spoke up.

"So you say. But I just can't compare with someone like you, Takamaki-san, or even you, Yoshizawa-san. And to be honest with you, Yoshizawa-san? I can't believe you're so willing to reach out the hand of friendship to even a weak and miserable person like me, even after all I did to try and take your boyfriend from you. And I realize that all my life, I've been no match for the real winners around me." Alice's Shadow said as both Panther and Violet winced at the palpable suffering and pain in Alice's Shadow's voice. Panther spoke up.

"That is a good point. But I also don't think you're giving yourself enough credit, Alice! Sure, you're not perfect, but perfection's overrated anyways." Panther said as Alice's Shadow weakly chuckled and spoke up.

"Good one, Takamaki-san. But why? Why do I always come up short? I don't get it! I did everything I could to win! And I tried SO HARD to change! But I was still made fun of, still being bullied, despite my best efforts. In truth, I just wanted to stop being miserable. I poured my heart into fashion and worked to get so far! But then, out of nowhere, SHE showed up again, and started running her mouth about my past like the cold, cruel bitch she is. She told everyone what a pathetic little shit I was!" Alice's Shadow said as Skull winced at what he was hearing. Alice's Shadow spoke up.

"And that's why I did it. That's why I took all of it from her! Her boyfriend, her social circle, everything! And that STILL wasn't enough for me! And it wasn't just her. Everyone that talked behind my back, all the people who just stood there when I was getting bullied! I'll destroy every single one of them!" Alice's Shadow said, crying as she finished her rant. Noir sighed and spoke up.

"Alice, you've really had it rough, haven't you?" Noir said as Seeker frowned and spoke up.

"Ahh, so this is a wound in a heart, is it?" Seeker said as Mona spoke up with a frown.

"Yes, and no. It is a wound of the heart, but this is more of a deep-seeded psychological scarring, if that makes sense. But at least you're trying to empathize with her, so that's good, Lady Seeker." Mona said kindly to Seeker who smiled as Alice's Shadow spoke up.

"This power lets me get revenge on all of them. So I accepted it without hesitation or a thought for the consequences of my actions. And I..." Alice's Shadow said as Panther and Violet nodded understandingly as Panther spoke up.

"You became the bully, right?" Panther asked before walking forward and lightly backhanding Alice's Shadow across the face while she kept speaking.

"You idiot! What good does that do!? Now you're just as bad as the people who made YOU suffer!" Panther said as Violet spoke up.

"Easy, Panther. While it is true that she did stoop to the same level as the people who bullied her, I believe that Alice is realizing the error of her ways to some degree now." Violet said softly as Panther frowned and nodded before she spoke up.

"You have a point, Violet. But still, she needs to realize how wrong her actions were!" Panther said before turning to Alice's Shadow as she kept speaking.

"And you! Is that how you wanna live? Like one of those bullies? Didn't you wanna be something else? A ray of light for others! AND for yourself!" Panther said in a kind voice to Alice's Shadow, who looked up at Panther in surprise as she started crying. To the surprise of most of the others, both Violet and Panther walked forward and knelt down so that they could both look Alice's Shadow in the eyes as Panther started crying slightly while she kept speaking.

"Don't give up because of those selfish bastards!" Panther said as Violet spoke up.

"Panther's right. I know I was a bitch to you before while I was standing up for Joker, and I'm sorry for that. But to be fair, I'm like that for all of my friends, not just for Joker, even though I extra go to bat for him. But staying on topic, I know you're better than you've been acting. You just need to dig deep inside yourself and find the proof that you can rise up and change yourself to be a better person. But it's up to you to make that decision. Can you do it, Alice? Can you make the decision to stop being the bully you hated?" Violet asked Alice's Shadow, surprising not only Alice's Shadow, but most of the others as well, with the tears in her eyes as she spoke. Alice's Shadow blinked at Panther and Violet in surprise as she spoke up.

"Takamaki-san...Yoshizawa-san...why are you both being so nice to me now? I would think you'd hate me after everything I've put you and your friends through? Especially you, Yoshizawa-san. I was mean to your boyfriend and even put hands on him. How do you not hate me for that?" Alice's Shadow said in shock. Violet spoke up.

"I can't be mad at you for that when I was also a bitch to you as well. Yes, what you did was wrong, but I shouldn't have met that hostility by having hostility of my own." Violet said regretfully as Alice's Shadow spoke up, looking mostly at Panther as she spoke up.

"You're right, both of you. I wanted to escape my suffering and not have to live with it. But also, I wanted to rescue those who were also being bullied as well. All of the people like me in the world. Outcasts, who were going through the same thing I was. But I went about it entirely the wrong way." Alice said remorsefully as Joker spoke up.

"I can see you're remorseful. That's the first step. And so you know, Alice, even now? It's not too late to change." Joker said wisely. Alice's Shadow looked at Joker in shock as she spoke up.

"You really think so?" Alice's Shadow asked in shock before she reached up to remove her crown and look Panther in the eyes as she kept speaking.

"Takamaki-san, I don't know how I could ever thank you enough for believing in me, or apologize enough for what I've put you and your friends through. But even so, I will find a way! Moreover, I want to apologize to the people I hurt and start over!" Alice's Shadow said as Panther gave her a closed-eye smile and spoke up.

"Mmhm! I'm sure you can turn it around. Believe it or not, I've been through a lot of the same things you have, but worse in some ways, since unlike you, I don't really have that high of an opinion of men these days. I might have mentioned it earlier, but I'm moreso into women, to the point I have a girlfriend who is amazing and has my back no matter what.

And if someone like me can find a happy life, then so can you. I believe in you, Alice. But back on topic. But thanks to my best friend, who is now my girlfriend, and the Phantom Thieves, I was able to stand up for myself and get going. My point is that you're never alone. And, once you're back to your real self, let's be friends, okay?" Panther said as Violet spoke up, smiling at Alice's Shadow as she spoke.

"And it's not just Panther. I'd like to be your friend as well once you get back to your real self, if you'll let me. I can relate to wanting to escape those feelings of pain, suffering, and misery. And between myself and Panther, we can do our best to ensure you never have to feel that way again, Alice." Violet said kindly as Alice's Shadow looked at Violet and Panther in shock as she spoke up.

"You want to be friends with me? Really?" Alice's Shadow asked as both Violet and Panther gave Alice closed-eye smiles and spoke up.

"Uh-huh!" Panther said as Violet spoke up.

"Even after what you've done, I think I can speak for everyone here when I say that none of us hold any ill will towards you for what you did. And if we can help you get your life on track at all, we'll gladly do so." Violet said as the others nodded their agreement. Panther giggled as she spoke up.

"Violet's right! I mean, I totally love Alice! Hee-hee! We even share the same dream!" Panther said kindly as Alice's Shadow sniffled a bit at the kindness being shown to her by Violet and Panther. After a bit, Alice's Shadow spoke up in a mix of shock and gratitude.

"Thank you. All of you." Alice's Shadow said as Seeker quietly gasped, trying to commit what she was witnessing to memory. At that point, Alice's Shadow looked up at the group and spoke up once more.

"Thank you all. I'll go back now, where I belong. But this time, I'm gonna be the ray of light I always aspired to be. No more manipulation and bullying." Alice's Shadow said as she faded away to return to her real self, right as the building started rumbling, making Mona's eyes widen as he spoke up in a hurry.

"Oh, this is bad! It's coming down!" Mona said as the group gasped and started to flee, only for the giant gem of Desires to crash to the ground, shattering into the countless smaller Desires it was made up of. At that point, the scattered Desires all returned to the people they were seized from, making the people who got their Desires back vanish from the Jail in flashes of light. Back with the others, the Thieves all watched on in a mix of shock, joy, and triumph as they saw the scattered Desires returning to their owners. After getting back to the entrance, Skull spoke up in delight.

"That was effin' amazing, you guys!" Skull said as a wide-eyed Fox spoke up.

"Did we just witness the Desires returning back to their rightful owners?" Fox said as Panther nodded and spoke up.

"Yeah, that's what it looked like to me. Everyone who got a Desire disappeared afterward." Panther said as Queen spoke up with a nod.

"Agreed. I hope that means their real-life counterparts are returning to normal." Queen said as Joker spoke up from next to Violet, who was leaning contentedly into him as he spoke.

"I agree, Queen. But there's only one way to find out for sure." Joker said as Violet spoke up.

"Right. We'll have to go back to the real world and see for ourselves if the change of heart worked and if the people who got their Desires back returned to normal." Violet said as Queen gave Joker and Violet a closed-eye smile while she spoke up.

"Yes, you're both right." Queen said as a wide-eyed Mona spoke up in shock.

"Wait, what the hell!?" Mona asked as Noir spoke up in confusion.

"What is it, Mona?" Noir said as Mona frowned and spoke up.

"Something's wrong here. We beat the Monarch, but the Jail's not collapsing." Mona said as Oracle spoke up in confusion and shock.

"What? But the giant Desire blew up! Like, 'Pwaaaah!' Why is this place still standing?" Oracle asked as Mona spoke up.

"No, this makes no sense. Look around." Mona said as Queen frowned and spoke up.

"Now that you mention it, this is kind of odd." Queen said as Panther spoke up with a nod of her own.

"Right? Whenever we stole a Treasure, we'd have to leave the Metaverse entirely, right?" Panther asked as Skull nodded his agreement and spoke up.

"Yeah, that's right. We always had to haul ass outta there." Skull said as Fox spoke up with a frown.

"That's a good point, Skull. Yet, that is most assuredly not happening now. If anything, it's grown eerily quiet." Fox said as Mona spoke up in confusion.

"So if the Monarch is toppled and the Desires are all returned, the Jail still doesn't collapse?" Mona asked as Noir frowned and spoke up.

"So it would appear. Hm, it would appear that Palaces are different from this Jail after all." Noir said as Fox spoke up with a frown.

"True. Alternatively, there's a chance that we haven't actually solved the issue yet." Fox said as Queen frowned and spoke up.

"Good point. Still, I wonder how Alice will react to this in the real world." Queen said as Noir spoke up.

"Good question, Queen. Could we find out when we get back to the real world?" Noir said as Mona spoke up.

"It'd be nice if she could recall what happened here, but no one shares memories with their Shadows." Mona said as Violet frowned and spoke up.

"What about the situation with Doctor Maruki, where he had full awareness of his own Palace and of our infiltration of it? Pretty sure that contradicts your theory, Mona-senpai." Violet said after a moment. Joker spoke up at that point.

"True, but was that really a Shadow of Doctor Maruki that we fought before? After all, he was able to awaken to a Persona and everything, despite Mona's previous belief that it was impossible for a Palace to exist inside of a Persona-user, since it's apparently impossible for one to form. However, I recall that Oracle was also an exception to that rule as well, since she had a Palace AND awakened to a Persona inside of said Palace. Sure, she had help from Draconis, but that's largely irrelevant." Joker said sagely as Skull nodded and spoke up.

"Truth, Joker! Doc and Oracle are definitely both exceptions to what Mona said! That said, getting back to our original topic. Think Alice might talk to Panther and/or Violet?" Skull suggested as Panther blinked and spoke up in surprise.

"Huh? Me?" Panther said as Violet spoke up with an understanding nod to Skull.

"I can see why Skull would think that, since the two of us did extend the hand of friendship to Alice's Shadow near the end there. So it'd stand to reason that we have the best shots, therefore, of getting any real answers out of her." Violet said as Oracle excitedly nodded and spoke up.

"Yeah, yeah! You three could really hit it off!" Oracle said as Fox smirked and spoke up.

"True. And Panther did say to Alice's Shadow that she loves Alice, as I recall." Fox said as Panther winced, flushed in embarrassment behind her mask, and spoke up.

"Eheh, I did say that, didn't I? Yeah, that's a good point, Fox. I mean, it was worth going that far for her to come to her senses and all. Alice really is a one-of-a-kind talent. And her dream is definitely something worth fighting for." Panther said as Violet smiled and spoke up.

"You're right. But then, as long as it doesn't hurt anyone, all dreams are worth fighting for. And if I can rise up from my past to be able to chase aspirations of being a pro gymnast, she can make it in the fashion industry, provided her confession doesn't destroy her career first." Violet said as Panther smiled and spoke up.

"Yeah, you're right, Violet. Still, I just hope Alice can remember how that dream first made her feel, so she can bring that feeling to the people who need it." Panther said as Joker smiled and spoke up.

"Well said, both of you. I can see you two were truly able to empathize with her and reach out to her when she needed it most. I'm proud of you both. And of all of us, really. That was not an easy fight, and we managed to get through it mostly unscathed, other than Mona's little moment of masculine bravado where he took that attack for Seeker. I won't deny that it was gallant and noble of him, but Seeker could likely have dodged out of the way had she been warned it was coming." Joker said wisely. Panther smiled and spoke up.

"You're right, Joker. Thanks, bro. As far as Alice goes, though? I don't know if there's anything I can do to actually help her, but I at least want to be there for her if I can." Panther said as Violet smiled and spoke up.

"You and me both, Panther. Alice deserves all the friends she can get." Violet said kindly as Seeker spoke up in a voice that was a mix of awed and breathless.

"Fascinating." Seeker said as Panther blinked at Seeker and spoke up.

"Hm? What's up, Seeker?" Panther said as Seeker spoke up in surprise.

"Just as the Phantom Thieves predicted, Alice Hiiragi appeared to change her logic. This would not be possible had we simply defeated her. How did you predict the outcome?" Seeker asked as the group winced, wishing that Draconis was there right then, since he had a bit of a knack for explaining things so people could understand, given how often he had to explain stuff to Mona early in the Phantom Thieves' career. Queen then spoke up with a closed-eye smile.

"We didn't really predict it that much, Seeker. You see, being able to change is what makes someone human." Queen said as Seeker spoke up in confusion and surprise.

"Someone is human, simply because they can change, you say?" Seeker said with a frown as Noir spoke up with a smile.

"Exactly. The human heart is much more complicated than expected, isn't it, Seeker-chan? Just when you think you've grown beyond your pain, the smallest thing can bring you all the way back down again. That's something I think all of us here know full well, with the possible exceptions of Fox and Skull, since they didn't really go back down very much once we built them up. But out of us all, I think Joker, Violet, and both Crow and Draconis can empathize with that line of thinking the most." Noir said gently. Violet nodded and spoke up.

"Noir is right. The four of us have been both at our highest and our lowest points while working with the Phantom Thieves. But what Noir left out is that Mona can also relate to this, as he's also had both his highest and his lowest point while with our team." Violet said kindly as Seeker spoke up.

"I see. The human heart is indeed difficult to comprehend. Moreover, it's filled with mysteries." Seeker said as Oracle chuckled and spoke up nervously.

"Eheh, that's true. Well, you're pretty high up there on the mystery charts yourself, Seeker my dear!" Oracle said as Seeker blinked and spoke up.

"No, I'm-" Seeker said as Skull frowned and spoke up.

"You're 'Seeker, humanity's companion,' right? We get it." Skull said as Seeker cutely bounced up and down happily as she spoke up.

"Right. You got it, Skull." Seeker said happily as the others all laughed and both Mona and Panther spoke up.

"Heh, would you look at that? Great going, Skull! You're getting better." Mona said as Panther spoke up with a chuckle.

"Did he really get it, though? Or did he just hear her response enough times that he was able to guess what she was going to say?" Panther said as the others all laughed amicably as Joker smirked, noting that he could feel a strong bond with his friends, other than the absent Crow and Draconis, in that moment. At that point, Queen did a closed eye smile and chuckled as she spoke up.

"Heh, good one, Panther. Well, what do you say we head back now? I'd like to check on the real-world Alice." Queen said as Panther gave Queen a closed-eye smile and spoke up eagerly.

"Yeah! Let's get going!" Panther said as the group returned to the real world...

(That evening, at Leblanc, with Ren, Sumire, Morgana and Sophia)

After leaving the Metaverse, the group dispersed for the day, with Ren and Sumire returning to Leblanc while the others returned to their respective houses, aside from Mona, who went back to Leblanc with Ren and Sumire, and Sophia, who lived in Sumire's phone while in the real world. After taking time to get a meal, Ren and Sumire headed upstairs to get comfortable on the sofa, at which point a 'BIP!' came from Sumire's phone, preceding Sophia speaking up.

"Hey, Ren and Sumire. I recall that not only Ann, but also you, Sumire, were both rather angry with Shadow Alice earlier. By the end, though, they both appeared happy. Why is that? Weren't they both angry at Alice initially?" Sophia asked in confusion as Ren spoke up.

"The three of them were able to talk things out and reach out to each other's true feelings about one another. In other words, they understood one another." Ren said as Sumire nodded and spoke up while smiling at Sophia.

"Ren's right. We were able to reach an understanding with one another. That, and I was able to put my anger with her aside since I could empathize with how she felt. Everything I said to her in the Jail about my past? Every word of that was true.

But what I didn't mention was that if it wasn't for Ren here, who always picked me back up when I needed it, and even got through to me when I was ready to escape once again when offered a chance to live as Kasumi permanently in Doctor Maruki's Palace, by refusing to give up on me and being willing to beat some sense into me. I could tell by his expression afterwards that it killed him to do that to me, but he realized that Akechi-kun had a point in that moment by saying he needed to grow a pair and do what needed to be done.

And if he hadn't, I might still be trying to live as my dead sister right now. And it's very likely I wouldn't have joined the Phantom Thieves at all, either. So I owe a lot to Ren. And I feel like I'm just barely scratching the surface of making things square with Ren by being his girlfriend. Not that I mind it at all. He's such a kind and loving boyfriend. I don't think I could've found anyone better for me if I looked for my whole life. I love him so much as a result." Sumire said happily as she rested her head on Ren's shoulder as Sophia blinked and spoke up.

"Okay, if you say so? I trust you two. But is love truly so special that it can be precious to those who've found it?" Sophia asked as Morgana spoke up.

"You'll understand a bit more once you've been around a while, and maybe found some love of your own. Though, can AIs find love?" Morgana asked in confusion. Ren spoke up.

"I think they can. After all, you were created by Lady Lavenza to be the light of humanity, and thus aren't strictly human either. At first, your primary existence was as a Metaverse being, so in that respect, you're not that different from Sophia here. But my point is this. If you can find the heart to love Ann as deeply as you always say you do, it's not impossible for Sophia to also have a heart, and be able to find someone she loves as deeply as you claim to love Ann.

Granted, her appearance being that of a girl who is in her early teen years will make it tricky for her to find anyone who wants to be with her. But it's not impossible for it to happen if she is patient and keeps having faith." Ren said kindly as Sophia's cheeks pinked very slightly in embarrassment before she spoke up shyly.

"Y-You really think so, Ren? That's kind of you to say. But back onto my original point. I've learned that anger is not just for hurting people. It is also able to save people." Sophia said as Ren spoke up.

"It depends on the person involved. Sometimes it's not enough. And sometimes it can cause more harm than good. Take my younger brother Kusa, for instance. He's a level-headed man for the most part. But when he loses his temper, it can be a scary sight to behold. And once, that anger almost got him killed when he fell into a trap set by an enemy of ours in an attempt to eliminate us all. However, the enemy in question didn't count on Kusa's trap for Akechi managing to reach Akechi deeply enough to make him slightly question his beliefs and find the compassion and courage to risk it all to save us.

Even then, his plan to save us slightly backfired in that he accidentally trapped Kusa on the same side of the wall he was on when he dropped a giant wall down to cut him off from the rest of us when an angry cognitive clone of him tried to kill us all after we beat him in a battle. Granted, this was after Akechi lashed out and blasted Kusa into the room behind him prior to our second fight with him. As for Kusa, he ended up with a broken arm after using that arm to stop himself from flying backwards into a wall and seriously hurting himself.

From what he and Akechi told us when we rescued Kusa later, apparently the two then escaped the trap together and went into another Palace to settle their differences to some extent. And apparently it worked insofar as Akechi was at least open to considering renouncing his hateful and angry ways, and even giving thought to not being on an informal basis with Kusa.

However, before he could really agree to it, the two were jumped by Shadows, and Kusa had to give himself up to buy Akechi time to escape. Suffice it to say, Akechi didn't take that very well, and worked tirelessly to help us find our way to Maruki's Palace out of a sense of repaying what he viewed as a debt of honor that he owed Kusa for saving him from capture in Maruki's Palace, which turned out to be the Palace they'd chosen to settle their differences in.

In the end, though, we got them both back, and brought the entire team together for that final Palace. However, we didn't count on having to face down a distorted and inverted clone of Kusa that was created by Maruki himself to try and prevent us from interfering in his plans to give everyone what he felt was their ideal realities. And out of everyone in the world, only myself, Akechi, and Sumire here were unaffected by the actualizations, along with Kusa, who was not only Maruki's unwilling captive, but also had no ideal reality to speak of for Maruki to actualize, since despite how rough Kusa had it at times, deep down, Kusa was very content with the life he and I had built by that point in Yongen-Jaya with the rest of the Phantom Thieves.

However, this was also in part because Sumire still was actualized into thinking she was Kasumi at the time, but the point remains she was unaffected. And when all was said and done, we rallied together to defeat Doctor Maruki and change his heart so he didn't try to overwrite reality as we knew it with his actualized version of reality. But to be fair, some of us had to sacrifice a lot for it, but it was necessary to save the world. So while it depends on the person, sometimes it's just not enough." Ren said wisely. Sophia blinked at this and spoke up.

"Is that true? Consider: anger saved Alice. If someone is in the wrong, anger can be used to show them the error of their ways. Hmm, the human heart is such a mystery, isn't it? But thanks to you, I've gained valuable experience. Thank you, Ren. I hope to learn more from you." Sophia said as Ren nodded his agreement while Sumire smiled and spoke up.

"You're more than welcome, sweetie. We hope to learn more from you as well, Sophia. We're glad you're learning from us." Sumire said kindly as Sophia smiled and spoke up while she saw Sumire absently give Morgana some head pats, making him give off purrs that were both content, and at the same time, oddly adorable to Sophia.

"Praise received. And thank you for being so kind, Sumire." Sophia said happily as Sumire nodded as she and Ren got comfortable for the night with Morgana sprawled out across them, dozing cutely...

(Meanwhile, in Ann's apartment, with Ann and Shiho)

As Ann made it home following her escape from the Metaverse with the others, Ann sighed as she opened up her front door to go inside, unaware of the surprise guest waiting for her inside. However, she wouldn't remain unaware of her for long, as she heard a throat clear before a feminine voice spoke up.

"Well, well. Welcome home, Ann. You're home late, aren't you? Hee hee!" Ann heard, blinking, as she spun around and smiled on seeing Shiho sitting on the couch waiting for her, a smile on her face as she spoke up.

"Shiho!? How'd you get in here? I thought I had locked up when I left?" Ann said as Shiho smiled and spoke up.

"You did, but I had your landlord let me in. She was hesitant to do so at first, but when I said I was a friend of yours and wanted to surprise you, she agreed. So you have her to thank for this. But never mind that. I told you I'd make it over this way sooner than later to surprise you, and here I am. So, how was your day?" Shiho asked as Ann smiled and spoke up with a nod.

"It was eventful, to say the least. I assume you saw that broadcast of the Phantom Thieves calling out Alice Hiiragi last night?" Ann asked as Shiho nodded and spoke up.

"Yes, I saw the broadcast you and your friends sent out. And it's nice to see the Phantom Thieves back in action again. People might not realize it, but they need heroes like you out there fighting the good fight." Shiho said as Ann blinked and spoke up.

"U-Us!? I don't know what you're-" Ann said as Shiho smiled and gently put a finger to Ann's lips to shush her before she spoke up.

"It's okay, Ann. I know you guys are the Phantom Thieves. After all, as often as I used to see Amamiya-kun the elder walking around Shujin, I think I'd recognize his face with or without a mask. And considering there was the whole bit with the Phantom Thieves hijacking a broadcast the same way around three years prior, in an attempt to call out their current target of the time? I think that was when they were after Shido?

Either way, I recall that most, if not all, of them were on the screen in that broadcast. I might've only seen it on TV at my parents' house after transferring, but there was no way I wouldn't recognize your figure, even in disguise, Ann. Same with Amamiya-kun the elder. His figure is easily recognizable in or out of a disguise.

So from there, it was a matter of putting two and two together to figure out that the so-called 'Phantom Thieves' were in fact you, Amamiya-kun the elder, and I believe the others are Sakamoto-kun, Niijima-san, Yoshizawa-san, Amamiya-kun the younger, the Amamiya-kun brothers' cat, Amamiya-kun the younger's girlfriend, Okumura-san, and presumably Akechi-kun as well. But don't worry. I have no intentions of selling you guys out. Your secret is safe with me. I think it's awesome that my girlfriend is Panther, arguably the sexiest member of the Phantom Thieves. And no, I'm not biased in saying that." Shiho said as Ann smiled slyly and spoke up.

"Thanks, but you're just flattering me, Shiho. Also, you forgot about one. You never formally met him before you transferred, but Fox is our friend Yusuke Kitagawa, who was with us the night we all went to Crossroads together to play the King's Game for my 17th birthday." Ann said modestly as Shiho smiled and spoke up.

"No, I'm not. I'm being sincere and serious. Now stop being modest and c'mere." Shiho said before sliding over next to Ann and smiling as she looked into Ann's eyes before leaning in to capture Ann's lips in her own, making Ann blush in surprise, but ultimately smile as she returned the kiss for a bit before she pulled away for air and spoke up.

"Hee hee, I had a feeling you missed doing that to me, Shiho. To be honest, I missed that too. And I think if any night is a good night for it, tonight definitely is. After all, after helping to hopefully change Alice Hiiragi's heart for the better, I think I've earned some quality time with my girlfriend." Ann said coyly before gently pushing Shiho down onto the couch and straddling her as she proceeded to eagerly make out with her for a while, making Shiho blink at her in surprise before smiling happily as she returned the kiss with equal eagerness. After a few minutes of passionate making out, Shiho looked into Ann's eyes and spoke up.

"Ann? I understand that we're comfortable making out, but is that all that we're comfortable with doing? Or might we be comfortable taking things a bit further than that?" Shiho asked as Ann blinked and spoke up.

"Further? What do you mean by that?" Ann asked as Shiho smiled and spoke up coyly while looking seductively into Ann's eyes.

"I think you know what I mean. We've been together for over three years at this point. Yet, for the most part, all the further we've gone together is making out, and occasionally spooning and cuddling. I don't think we've ever done so much as talked about if we're ready to fool around together." Shiho said bluntly as Ann blushed and spoke up.

"I've been trying not to rush you into anything Shiho, that's all. If you think you're ready for us to take that next step, I won't argue with it." Ann said as Shiho smiled and spoke up.

"I've been ready for at least a year now, Ann. So c'mon, loosen up a little. You just won an epic battle with your target! Surely if there's a time where it's ever worth going a bit wild, it'd be now?" Shiho said as she suggestively ran her hands along Ann's arms, making her shudder a bit in a mix of surprise, intrigue, and desire. After blushing at Shiho's action, she spoke up.

"Fair enough. I suppose we can try a few things together, if you're sure you're ready." Ann said as Shiho nodded and spoke up.

**M-RATED CONTENT STARTS HERE. ANYONE UNCOMFORTABLE WITH GIRL/GIRL SCENES OR PSEUDO-LEMONS, FEEL FREE TO SKIP DOWN TO THE SECTION MARKED *END OF M-RATED CONTENT* TO CONTINUE READING, OTHERWISE READ ON AT YOUR OWN RISK IF YOU DON'T MIND THAT SORT OF THING. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED! M-RATED CONTENT STARTS NOW!**

"Of course I'm ready, Ann. Now quit being modest already." Shiho said as she once more aggressively captured Ann's lips in her own, deciding to up the ante a bit further by lightly nipping on Ann's lower lip suggestively, making Ann squeak cutely in shock as her mouth opened up slightly, allowing Shiho to eagerly shove her tongue inside, wrapping it around Ann's as she deepened the kiss between the two, making Ann blush prettily as she involuntarily moaned a bit into the kiss while she spoke up.

"Wow, I had no idea you had such a take-charge side to you, Shiho. Yet I find myself oddly here for it, at the same time. Go on, then. Dominate me. Make me your obedient plaything. If anyone's earned that, it's you." Ann said in a coy yet submissive tone, making Shiho almost purr as she spoke up.

"Good answer." Shiho said before leaning in to start trailing kisses sexily along Ann's neckline, making Ann shudder in a mix of excitement, anticipation, and desire as Shiho started trailing kisses down towards Ann's collarbone, making her reflexively raise her arms up as Shiho smirked before untying and tugging Ann's shirt up over her head, tossing it to the ground behind her as she started trailing kisses all along the exposed skin of Ann's stomach and trailing upwards towards her upper chest, stopping short of the two generously endowed mounds that were Ann's bra-clad breasts, smiling coyly up at Ann as she gave her a sly smile before Ann smiled and sat up, turning so her back was facing Shiho.

Doing so had the result of allowing Shiho to reach over and unhook, remove and discard Ann's bra, letting her impressively-developed mid-to-large D-cup breasts fall free for Shiho to admire, making her eagerly lick her lips before leaning up to wrap her mouth around the closest breast, sucking on it lovingly, and drawing husky yet breathless moans from Ann for her efforts.

After Shiho spent a while sucking lightly on her girlfriend's pert and perky breasts, Ann pushed Shiho down and reversed the positions so she was the one straddling Shiho, eagerly tugging Shiho's shirt over her head as Shiho eagerly removed her bra to give Ann access to her considerably less-endowed large B-cup breasts, allowing Ann to tenderly but lovingly suck on each of them in turn. From there, Shiho eventually started trailing kisses along her girlfriend's chest as she got some rather appreciative, if very throaty, moans from Shiho for her actions. Once Ann's mouth came off of Shiho's breast, she slyly smirked as she pulled Shiho into a heated kiss while rubbing her nipples sexily against Shiho's, making Shiho moan eagerly at the feeling of her and Ann's breasts rubbing together as they made out.

After a while of alternating between Ann and Shiho on top of one another while rubbing their breasts together and making out, Ann smiled as she lifted Shiho to her feet, before looking into her eyes as she spoke up.

"Well, now that we've spent a while basically worshipping each other's figures, shall we move our fun a bit further down, if you catch my drift?" Ann said, giving Shiho a sly wink that made Shiho's heart both skip a couple beats and beat faster as she spoke up.

"S-Sure. If you want to do that, I'm down for it." Shiho said as Ann slyly smiled and spoke up.

"Good answer. Now get those clothes off and follow me to the bed." Ann said as she wasted no time in removing her shoes and socks before unzipping, unbuttoning, and removing her shorts and panties, leaving herself naked as Shiho did the same, before the two moved into Ann's room, where Ann pushed her blushing girlfriend onto the bed, and smirked as she took in the pleasant view of her very naked girlfriend.

After seeing Shiho prettily blush as she saw Ann shamelessly ogling her naked body, Ann found herself smirking as she trailed kisses down Shiho's front, slowly trailing them downwards towards her stomach, eventually moving further downwards, towards Shiho's thighs, making Shiho blush as she slightly pushed her legs apart to give Ann better access to her lightly damp entrance.

This one gesture by Shiho was one which Ann smiled eagerly at before gently using two fingers to part the folds at Shiho's entrance so she could slide her tongue inside of her girlfriend's womanhood, taking time to run her tongue slowly along her girlfriend's inner walls in a slow, sexy circle, making Shiho pant eagerly and moan as she felt Ann's tongue inside of her, making her speak up in a husky tone.

"Ooh, wow. That feels amazing. Keep going, please! I don't think I've ever felt this great! I feel both incredibly aroused, and also super fucking horny." Shiho said huskily as Ann nodded, continuing to explore her girlfriend's inner walls, slyly smirking as she reached her hands up to gently but lovingly caress Shiho's bouncing breasts, making Shiho blush prettily at the feeling of Ann's hands on her breasts and her tongue inside of her. Shiho then slyly smirked and spoke up.

"Y'know, it seems rather unfair that I'm the only one getting herself eaten out, Ann. Why don't you turn that lower half of yours up this way, and let me do to you what you're doing to me?" Shiho asked as Ann smiled and nodded obediently.

However, rather than verbally respond, Ann merely shifted her position so she was effectively sitting on Shiho's face, making Shiho smile as she gently pushed Ann's legs slightly apart so she could easily part Ann's slightly damp folds with her fingers and slide her tongue into Ann. As the two girls busied themselves with feasting on one another's womanhood, Ann and Shiho blushed profusely and moaned into each other as they felt their breasts brushing together as they ate each other out. As they did this, Ann smirked before giving Shiho a sly grin and deftly reaching over to playfully spank Shiho hard.

Afterwards, Ann found herself smirking as she felt the impact of her palm on Shiho's ass, grinning at the visible handprint she'd left when spanking Shiho, who blushed prettily and moaned at the feeling of Ann spanking her, deciding to be a bit naughty and cup Ann's ass cheeks with her hands, gently caressing them before giving Ann a spank of her own, making Ann first yelp in surprise, before smiling sexily at Shiho as she slid a finger into Shiho as she licked her walls, making Shiho's moans get considerably louder as she did the same.

For a while, the only sounds that could be heard were Ann and Shiho eagerly having their way with one another, and the occasional husky moans each would give off. After some time, Shiho suddenly started shuddering as she felt herself arc a bit from Ann's loving, speaking up huskily.

"Ooh, yes! Keep going, baby! I think I'm about to release my juices all over that sexy face of yours!" Shiho said seductively as Ann smiled and spoke up, moaning as she did so from the feelings Shiho's tongue were creating in her as it teased her walls while she spoke.

"Funny. I was about to say the same thing. First one to cum is the other's sex slave for a week?" Ann suggested coyly as Shiho smirked and spoke up, moaning as Ann's tongue stimulated her walls as she spoke.

"Ooh. I love it! You're on! And if I lose, I look forward to seeing what you make me do to you." Shiho said as the two kept going. Ironically enough, it would in fact be Ann who was the first to cum after Shiho's gentle nuzzle of her nose against Ann's clit caused Ann to go over the edge and moan huskily as she spoke up.

"OHH, YES! FUCKING YES! I LOSE THE BET, BUT I DON'T CARE! I'M COMIN', SHIHO!" Ann practically screamed as she felt herself release into Shiho's mouth, as Shiho had pre-emptively wrapped her entire mouth over Ann's womanhood to contain the release to her mouth so she could taste her girlfriend's juices first-hand. And as she did so, Shiho smiled, as she found that, probably due to all the sweets she ate, Ann had a rather pleasant sweet aftertaste in her release, and even a hint of chocolate in her juices.

However, not long after that, Shiho shuddered as she felt her own release approach, making her scream as she spoke up.

"OH, SHIT! GET READY, ANN! I'M ABOUT TO EXPLODE ON YOU!" Shiho said euphorically as she felt her release shoot off into Ann's mouth, unaware that Ann had also wrapped her mouth around Shiho's womanhood to taste her juices, like Shiho herself had done to Ann. To Ann's surprise, she found that Shiho had a slightly tangy, yet pleasantly creamy taste to her release, and even just the smallest hint of a salty aftertaste.

This discovery had the result of making Ann giggle at the contrast between the two, before turning to lean up and kiss Shiho on the lips so the two could taste each other, smiling happily as she felt her breasts press into Shiho's as she kissed her. After a bit of eager kissing, Shiho sighed as she gently flopped down on Ann and spoke up after pulling a blanket over them to cover their bodies.

**M-RATED CONTENT ENDS HERE. CONTINUE READING AT THIS POINT IF YOU SKIPPED THE PRECEDING M-RATED SCENE. STORY RESUMES HERE!**

As Shiho smiled up at Ann, she spoke up.

"W-Wow. I don't know what I was expecting, but that? That was incredible. And think, that was just using our bodies to pleasure one another. I've heard of a lot of other crazy things some lesbian/bisexual girl/girl couples do to each other. But I don't think we're going to rush into too much, too quickly, if it's all the same to you. As it is, I'm quite satisfied with how glorious what we just did was. If I'd have known it would be that good, I'd have insisted on that way sooner." Shiho said happily as Ann spoke up.

"That's also partially my fault for thinking you weren't ready, so it's on both of us equally, I'd say. But just the same, I'm glad you enjoyed that. Maybe next time, we can be a bit naughtier and try it in the shower, or even in a bathhouse. Hee hee." Ann said as Shiho smiled and spoke up while laying her head on Ann's chest cutely.

"I think I'd like that, Ann. But you know what else I'd like?" Shiho asked as Ann blinked and spoke up.

"No, I don't. What else would you like, Shiho?" Ann asked as Shiho smiled and spoke up while looking into Ann's eyes.

"I'd like it if, maybe not right away, but eventually, you started trying to include me in more of your friends' gatherings, like that time you invited me to play the King's Game with all of you. That was so much fun, especially with how many times we went into that side room to make out and sneak gropes under each other's shirts to tease one another. Honestly, I'm surprised we didn't just peel each other's clothes off that night and do it then." Shiho said as Ann spoke up.

"There were two reasons for that, Shiho. One being that there were a ton of people in the next room over, and the other being that I don't think we're that brazen to rush into that in a public place. Also, I feel like it'd have been our luck that someone would try to come into our side room right as we're in the middle of having sex or something." Ann said with a giggle, blushing slightly at her own mention of sex. Shiho smirked and spoke up.

"Ah, I see that blush, Ann. You can be naughty and act like a sexy brat, but the mention of sex gets you hot under the collar? Interesting." Shiho said, making Ann giggle and spoke up.

"Not anymore so than you were that time we were changing and your towel fell off in front of me, exposing that sexy body of yours to me. Unfortunately, this was back before I had feelings for you, or else I might've been tempted to take you then and there. Or how about the other time when we were swimming and you got your bikini bottom snagged on a rock and had it fall off on you, leaving you bare naked from the waist down when we got out of the water?

I seem to recall you were really embarrassed that day, so as a show of solidarity, I shucked my own bikini bottom off so you wouldn't be so embarrassed about your misfortune. Good times, actually." Ann said as Shiho pouted and spoke up.

"You say that, but I know for a fact you didn't feel that way the time we were laid out tanning and someone walked past and untied the back of your bikini top and then snatched it off you and ran off when you turned over. I seem to recall your face was quite red that day as you laid there with your breasts hanging out for everyone to see.

Though come to think of it, I think that was also the day I accidentally went to pat you on the shoulder and accidentally touched your breast instead. In retrospect, I think that was the first time I started subtly catching feelings for you, even if I held back out of not wanting to unnerve you by coming out as lesbian. But it worked out in the end, given our current positioning." Shiho said as Ann nodded and spoke up.

"Good point. And to your request about including you in our gatherings? I'd have to run it by the others, since we have a sort of rule in place that we have to unanimously agree on any decisions we make, just to ensure we don't horrifically lose our way at some point. Granted, there has been a time or two that those decisions are gone against.

But if I recall right, both times it was Kusa's fault, and it was in defense of first his eventual girlfriend, and then Ren's. So he had a good reason for it. But I'll ask them the next time we're all together, and I'll let you know what they say. Then again, maybe I can just say I invited you to join us on our next group excursion, and I think they'll go for it for the most part? How does that sound?" Ann asked Shiho, who smiled shyly and spoke up.

"Sounds great, Ann. Thank you for being so understanding. I admire that so much about you." Shiho said happily as she leaned up to kiss Ann, who smiled as she returned the kiss before speaking up teasingly.

"Careful. Wouldn't want to tease your way into another round, Shiho." Ann teased Shiho, who blushed and spoke up.

"You say that like I'd be against going another round with you." Shiho said slyly before yawning and speaking up.

"But probably not tonight. I think we're both pretty beat after that glorious experience we just shared." Shiho said as Ann nodded and spoke up.

"Yeah, you're right. Well, see you in the morning. Love you, sexy." Ann said as Shiho smirked and spoke up.

"Love you too, tiger." Shiho said coyly, laying her head on Ann's shoulder and smiling contentedly as she dozed off, Ann smiling at the sight of her girlfriend's sleeping form, leaning down to press a kiss to Shiho's forehead before draping an arm around her waist as she leaned her head on the pillow and dozed off pretty quickly after...

(The next afternoon, at the same TV studio where Alice's ill-fated shoot had happened, with Alice)

"And now, for the 'Hottest Meet and Greet' segment of the show. Alice Hiiragi has returned as our special guest. Miss Alice, thank you so much for coming on today despite the way your last visit here concluded. From what I hear, there's something you wish to share?" The veteran newscaster who'd replaced the previous hosts after the shenanigans that had gone down that got Alice's shoot canceled on the spot asked Alice, who nodded and spoke up remorsefully.

"Yes, I need to confess something. The incident that occurred with the previous hosts when I was here last? That was not only unfortunate, but it was all my fault. I forced him to proclaim his love for me during a live broadcast. When I heard he was engaged to his co-host, I just wanted to ruin his relationship any way I could." Alice said honestly before the veteran newscaster gasped at Alice's confession and spoke up.

"What are you saying, Miss Alice!?" The veteran newscaster asked as Alice kept speaking as if she'd not been interrupted.

"And they're not the only ones I've hurt, either. Anytime I see a happy woman, I just get so jealous of them. And I do whatever it takes to ruin their lives." Alice said as the veteran newscaster winced and spoke up.

"Uh, are you serious? I don't know what to say. Umm, okay? Is this for real? Is this a prank or something?" The veteran newscaster asked as Alice shook her head and spoke up.

"No, it's no prank. All of my past managers tried so hard to stop me. But then I'd lash out at them too, and I often let my anger get the best of me. And I'd assault them until they'd back down, no matter how long it took. The only reason I've changed managers is because my last one had a total breakdown." Alice said as the veteran newscaster gasped and spoke up.

"Wait, are you being serious right now? Is this real?" The veteran newscaster said as Alice sadly nodded and spoke up.

"It's very real. Moreover, everything I've said here is the truth. I'm sure all of it is easy enough to prove now, anyways. I've lied, and I've cheated, and I've hurt so many people. And I'm just so sorry for it all!" Alice said tearfully as the veteran newscaster spoke up in shock.

"Is this a change of heart? Could this be the work of the revived Phantom Thieves!?" The veteran newscaster asked as Alice shook her head and spoke up.

"No, it was all me! I'M the one who did it all! No one but me did these horrible things! If anything, the Phantom Thieves saved me from myself. I'm sorry to all who I've hurt with my recent actions. I'm so sorry!" Alice said as she started sobbing and the Veteran AD ran up to block Alice from view as he frantically spoke up.

"CUT! CUT, RIGHT NOW! DUMP TO STANDBY!" The Veteran AD said as the last thing seen before the scene ended was a sobbing Alice, who was now openly weeping for what she'd confessed to...

(At the same time, in an isolated cabin on the outskirts of Yongen-Jaya, with a lone male)

As he watched the news broadcast of Alice's confession, the cabin's lone occupant, a man with shoulder-length dark blonde hair and a thin but distinct layer of facial hair stubble as well as piercing brown eyes smirked at the TV and spoke up.

"Well, well. It seems the first of the Monarchs has been disposed of. Well played, Phantom Thieves. However, that's only one victory. There are still many, many more Monarchs left. So do your best to hang in there on your own. If I'm right, you'll need my help soon enough, and probably his help as well, once he finally arrives to coax me back into action.

Still, I can't help but wonder if even with my help, if we'll be able to stop these Monarchs as we are now? I hate to admit this, but we might have to seek out new allies to bolster our numbers, as well as increase our chances at success in the wake of this new threat. Still, I do hope Joker keeps his word and doesn't lose to anyone before I get the chance to defeat him myself.

After all, he promised me a duel the last time we saw one another, and I intend to collect on that promise. Also, the time might well be at hand for Kusa and I to explain everything to him, as I promised him we would the night before we defeated Maruki. Still, I must say, I'm impressed that Kusa managed to keep my continued survival a secret for this long. I half expected he'd break down and at least tell his girlfriend by now. Truly, he's an exceptional individual to be able to keep that sort of secret for this long.

Well, no matter. I suppose I can't remain in hiding forever, can I? I guess it's time for Crow to make his grand re-appearance once again. Hopefully I can do so without those who would seek my death being any the wiser. And then, soon enough, I'll be able to get the fresh start I so desperately long for." The man said to himself as he leaned back to watch the rest of the broadcast, a smirk on his face as he focused on the TV, even as the camera panned over to a photo on the wall of the man at a younger age, with a pair of very familiar dark-haired males standing on either side of him, one of which had his brown hair pulled into a ponytail...

(At the same time, on the side of the road inside of a car, with another male)

As he listened to the broadcast of Alice's confession on the radio, a male with short brown hair smirked to himself as he spoke up.

"I see. Looks like Ren and the others are holding up pretty well on their own. That's a relief. Now to focus on getting up to that cabin and getting Goro to come back to the fray. I know he feels like he deserves to spend his days in isolated exile for what he did, but he really doesn't. He deserves to have a fresh start, and to be able to be happy and free of the weight of his crimes. Yes, many of them are unforgivable, but I can sense that he's remorseful and wants to repent.

Plus, he did go a long way in redeeming himself when he helped us defeat Doctor Maruki when he had reality all effed up. And well, it'd be messed up to deny him a fresh start when most of what he did was our father Masayoshi Shido's fault. But even so, we need him if we're to stand a full chance against these Monarchs. The others might have beaten this first one, but I have a feeling they're only going to get harder as they progress.

That's why I intend to hurry and get up to that cabin, coax Goro into returning to action as a Phantom Thief, and then get back in time to catch up to Ren and the others. If I can grab a new face or two for the group in the process? Great. If not, well, it is what it is." The male said, stroking his chin, where the faintest hint of a five-o-clock shadow was visible on his jawline. After thinking it over, he started up the car, which was a birthday gift to him from Sojiro for his seventeenth birthday when Sojiro got a new car, and started driving again, knowing the others were probably going to need the back up sooner rather than later...

(Meanwhile, back in the lower level of Leblanc, with Ren, Sumire, Sophia, Ann, Yusuke, Futaba, Makoto, Haru, Morgana, and Ryuji)

"Alice, I can't believe you actually confessed your crimes on live TV like that." Ann said in a mix of shock, awe, and disbelief. Futaba winced as she spoke up.

"Right? And this is gonna blow waaay up. That news lady even name-checked the Phantom Thieves." Futaba said as Morgana spoke up.

"Well, whatever may come, at least our job's done for now." Morgana said as Makoto nodded and spoke up.

"Right. We may have gone through something quite different from a Palace, but there's no mistaking that Alice had a change of heart." Makoto said as Ryuji spoke up.

"Truth, babe. The people with the stolen Desires seem to be normal again, too. It's all over the internet." Ryuji said as Yusuke pulled out his phone to check and spoke up.

"Ryuji's right. Here's a report I found. It reads as follows: 'My son was about to blow our savings on Alice merch, but the Phantom Thieves rescued him. Thank you, Phantom Thieves. You're our heroes.' Hm, how nice." Yusuke said as Futaba spoke up with a frown.

"Maybe on your end, Inari. But over here, I'm just seeing a lot of 'I want my money back.' Welp, we sure can't help them there. Best we can do would've been to have Kusa give a seminar on stretching a budget. But even then, I dunno if Kusa could've done much for all of these people either. He might be impressive, but he's not a miracle worker. None of us are, really. And Mona's transformation into a helicopter that one time doesn't count as working a miracle." Futaba said. Ann frowned and spoke up.

"That's a good point, Futaba. And moreover, I don't know if all of the people wanting their money back are actually victims here." Ann said with a frown as a 'BIP!' from Sumire's phone preceded Sophia speaking up.

"Perhaps. But nevertheless, I'd say that we can call this mission completed." Sophia said as Sumire frowned and spoke up.

"Maybe where it comes to Alice, yes. But somehow I doubt that we're already done with our work as Phantom Thieves. If nothing else, the fact that Alice's Jail didn't collapse when we beat her is proof that there's still another threat out there somewhere. After all, I seem to recall Kusa telling me once that he sensed another threat brewing on the horizon, potentially one that could require all of us to reunite in order to be able to stand up to it.

How he expects us to reunite with Crow when he's believed to be dead according to Ren, I have no idea. But apparently that's what he expects. And come to think of it, didn't you tell me that Kusa had several different colleges approach him with offers of scholarships for his martial arts prowess?" Sumire asked Futaba, who nodded and spoke up.

"I did. But I think if I recall correctly, he turned every one of them down since none of them would've let us go to the same college together, and he seemed rather adamant about us attending the same college, probably so he can stick close to me as often as possible. And if that's true, then I think that tells me a lot about how quickly he'll probably catch up to us. At the same time, though, I can't shake the feeling that when Kusa does show back up, he'll have at least two others with him. However, I think Kusa will waste little time linking back up with us once he finishes his mission, especially given he's driving Sojiro's old car now that he has a license." Futaba said as Ren spoke up.

"Have you considered that some of those offers were just trying to get on his good side so they could try to hire him as a bouncer or security guard later? After all, it's not a secret that he's got mad skills in the martial arts. Ask Ryuji, and he'll vouch for that." Ren said as Ryuji winced and spoke up.

"Heh, t-truth, RenRen. Kusa has a mean left hook on him, if nothing else." Ryuji said, subconsciously stroking his lower jawline, which had been knocked back a bit over three and a half years prior, when Kusa had hit him with a left hook and knocked him out in one hit. Haru spoke up with a nod.

"Well, we know that Kusa-kun can handle himself. And I believe we'll see him again sooner, rather than later. But back on topic for a moment, I can't help but wonder what'll happen to Alice next, now that she's confessed to her crimes?" Haru asked as Ann winced and spoke up.

"Good question. It's probably next to impossible for her to make it in the industry now that she's confessed to everything. Her scandal is big news." Ann said as Morgana nodded and spoke up with a frown.

"You have a good point, Lady Ann. No matter why she did it, there are still consequences for her actions." Morgana said as Ann spoke up with a nod.

"True. You have a point, Morgana. But if Alice really can find that feeling she had when she first discovered fashion, I think she'll be okay. And she can still be a ray of light for others, even if she has to find another way to shine." Ann said as Makoto spoke up with a nod.

"You raise an excellent point, Ann. Oh, that reminds me. We should still try to press her for info. After all, she might know something that we still don't." Makoto said as Haru spoke up with a frown.

"Good idea, Mako-chan. But do we actually have a chance of meeting her now? I imagine her day-to-day life has become quite the mess after her confession on live TV." Haru said as Ann winced and spoke up.

"Oh geez, that's a good point, Haru. Her agency isn't going to want anything to do with her now that she's confessed to everything she's done." Ann said, but before anyone could respond to her, the jingle of the door opening drew everyone's attention to the entrance of Leblanc, where a familiar face stood in the doorway, smirking as they spoke up.

"An enlightening conversation as always, I see." Hasegawa said as he walked up to the group, who turned to face him as he kept speaking.

"Sup? How's it hangin', folks?" Hasegawa said as Futaba frowned at Hasegawa and spoke up.

"Aw, you again, Gramps!?" Futaba said as Hasegawa winced at Futaba's words and spoke up.

"Hey, I won't deny that I'm older than you guys, but that still stings, y'know? But more importantly, you guys really hop to work when your minds are set, don'tcha?" Hasegawa said with an amused smirk as Makoto frowned and spoke up.

"To what are you referring?" Makoto asked primly as Hasegawa smirked and spoke up.

"Oh, c'mon. Don't play stupid. I gave you solid intel, yeah?" Hasegawa asked as Ann winced and spoke up.

"Yes, you did. But that's beside the point." Ann said as Hasegawa spoke up with a smirk.

"Is it really besides the point, though? Well, that's good news! Looks like I'll be getting my own in return." Hasegawa said as Makoto frowned and spoke up.

"Your own what?" Makoto asked in annoyance as Hasegawa spoke up.

"You know what I mean. I came today for your response to my offer. You know, the deal?" Hasegawa said as Ryuji spoke up with a huff.

"WHAT!? We already told you, we don't work with cops-" Ryuji started to say as Hasegawa smirked and spoke up.

"And what if I tossed in a lil' bonus? Such as, I don't know, running some questions by Alice for you?" Hasegawa said coyly as the others all looked him with wide eyes as he kept speaking.

"You were just saying how you wanted info from her, right?" Hasegawa asked as the others winced and Yusuke spoke up.

"That's both true, and very accurate, yes." Yusuke said as Ann frowned and spoke up angrily.

"But Alice already confessed to messing with people on live TV! Our names have already been cleared!" Ann said as Ryuji frowned at Hasegawa and spoke up.

"Yeah, what she said! We don't need you for shit!" Ryuji said as Hasegawa smiled a very dry but amused sort of smile as he spoke up.

"If only that were true!" Hasegawa said as Makoto frowned and spoke up angrily.

"What do you mean by that? How is the case not closed?" Makoto asked as Hasegawa smirked and spoke up.

"Closed? Oh, it is far from closed. This Change of Heart epidemic is happening aaaall over the country. And we know they can't all be Alice's victims. Therefore, you still have plenty to get pinned on you, don'tcha? Not only that, you already know how badly you've stirred the pot. That little calling card stunt you pulled fired up the public more than ever. 'These Change of Heart cases have to be the Phantom Thieves! It's the only thing I hear down at the station now. Do you really not realize how dangerous a position you're in right now?" Hasegawa asked as Ryuji sputtered and spoke up angrily.

"WHAT!? What bullshit! What the hell did WE do!?" Ryuji snapped irately as Hasegawa smiled and spoke up.

"Calm down! Why do you think I offered you that deal? Also, just so you know, Amamiya? If I really wanted to, I could cuff you and take you in right now. However, I don't deem such a thing necessary. And the reason I don't deem such a course of action to be necessary at this time is because I believe you are not the culprit." Hasegawa said as Sumire smirked and spoke up.

"Mm-hmm. Suuuure, that's totally the reason you've not arrested my boyfriend yet. And it has nothing at all to do with the fact that his younger brother Kusa is known by many as the 'Kung-Fu Dragon', and is so strong that he literally knocked a man out with just one punch before. But sure, you can tell yourself it's because you believe my boyfriend isn't the culprit if it'll make you feel better, Hasegawa-san." Sumire said coyly as Ryuji blanched at Sumire mentioning the time Kusa had punched him out back behind Leblanc before storming off angrily as Futaba smirked and spoke up.

"Yep, that sounds like my boyfriend, all right. Good observation, Sumire." Futaba said as Hasegawa cleared his throat and spoke up.

"Y-Yes, that was also a consideration of mine as well, truth be told. But I was serious when I said I believe that Amamiya the elder there isn't the real culprit. And as such, to catch the true perpetrator, I need your help." Hasegawa said as Ren spoke up, giving Hasegawa an unreadable look as he seemed to survey him over his glasses, intrigued by the bearded man's words.

"Oh? What makes you think that, Hasegawa-san? Do feel free to explain your reasoning to me, since you've got me curious about it now." Ren said conversationally as he looked squarely at Hasegawa, who blinked and spoke up.

"Eh, detective's intuition, maybe? I mean, I'm PubSec, but that's close enough, right? And also, the M.O. in this recent epidemic doesn't mesh with the Phantom Thieves' ideology. The motives also appear very different. These are two separate cases. At least this is what I believe." Hasegawa said as Makoto sighed and spoke up.

"Ugh. Good point. May we have a moment to ourselves? We'd like to discuss it first." Makoto said as Hasegawa nodded agreeably and spoke up.

"Sure thing. I'll be right outside. Just holler when you're ready for me." Hasegawa said as he left the building. After he was outside, Yusuke spoke up with a sigh.

"Now this is unexpected. We assumed Alice's confession would clear our names, but perhaps we were naive to think that." Yusuke said as Futaba winced and spoke up.

"Dammit, this sucks! So they really weren't just trolling online then." Futaba said as Ann looked at Futaba and spoke up.

"What is it?" Ann asked as Futaba spoke up with a serious look on her face.

"When I was searching the web, I noticed some people saying weird stuff was happening here and there, similar to what we've seen so far with the Jails and EMMA. Almost none of them made the news, and it seems like everyone's just trying to ignore it, but what if there's more to it than that?" Futaba said as Ryuji sighed and spoke up.

"Dammit. If that's the case, then what Gramps is sayin's prolly not bullshit after all." Ryuji said as Haru winced and spoke up.

"What should we do? If they decide to scapegoat us, we'll never be able to clear our names." Haru said as Futaba spoke up.

"I dunno. I know Kusa's out on a mission to try and scout reinforcements for us, though he wouldn't say who or what these reinforcements might be. And as for these other people changing hearts, they're not even changing hearts for the same reason as us!" Futaba said as Sumire looked at Ren and spoke up.

"Ren, didn't you tell me that Kusa called you at one point about a week before you came back here mentioning that he was off on a mission?" Sumire asked Ren, who spoke up.

"That's true. He wasn't speaking clearly, mostly speaking in cryptic hints, but if I read between the lines as well as I think I do, I think that he might have at least one surprise for us when he does catch up to us. And if so, it might explain why I've had Akechi-kun on my mind so much recently. To be honest, I'd just figured it was all the memories I had of our friendship here in Yongen, but maybe it's a sign?" Ren said uncertainly as Morgana spoke up.

"Hm. Could Akechi possibly be alive after all? And if so, why would he feel the need to go into hiding all this time? And more importantly, if there really are other brainwashing incidents out there, that would mean there are more Jails out there as well. Therefore, do you think there could be more Monarchs out there, too?" Morgana asked as Ren spoke up with a grim look on his face.

"Honestly? I think so. After all, if it was just Alice who had the powers of a Monarch, why would Kusa feel the need to go and gather reinforcements? She was tough, yes. But we were able to handle her on our own just fine. Granted, we did have the help of Sophia, but she mostly was there for moral support, and a little bit of healing and chip damage. But no, I think Kusa knew already that there were more Monarchs out there than just Alice, and each one is probably even more deadly than the one before it, with our luck." Ren said as Yusuke frowned and spoke up.

"That's unsettling. Let's assume for a moment that your guess is right, Ren. Then what would we do? Considering what we've gathered, going along with that man could be a viable option." Yusuke said as Ryuji frowned and spoke up.

"Are we seriously gonna trust that dude?" Ryuji asked as Sumire spoke up.

"I'm not a fan of it either, Ryuji. But we might not have much of any other choice at this point." Sumire said as Ann nodded and spoke up with a sigh.

"Unfortunately, Sumire's probably right. What other choice do we have? At the very least, his intel about Alice was useful to us, so we do owe him one for that." Ann said as Morgana nodded and spoke up.

"Agreed, Lady Ann." Morgana said before turning to face Ren as he kept speaking.

"Well, what do you say, Ren?" Morgana said as Ren spoke up with a thoughtful look on his face.

"I can see the pros and the cons of trusting him. But also, I looked into his eyes before. I didn't sense any real hints of falsehood or deception in his eyes. That's not to say he might not be using us, mind you. But I think that he was being sincere when he said he needs our help. So, while I'm not thrilled about trusting the equivalent of a cop, I don't see how there's much of any other choice here for us." Ren said reluctantly. Haru nodded and spoke up with a sigh.

"You're right, Ren-kun. All we can do now is accept his deal." Haru said as Futaba smirked and spoke up.

"And if he does double cross us? Assuming we've reunited with Kusa by then, and presumably Akechi as well, they'll deal with him for us, since I think we can all agree those two possess a scary level of bloodlust at times. Or did we not all see that Showtime they had together that evolved slightly once Kusa had his true Awakening in Maruki's Palace?" Futaba said wisely as Morgana frowned and spoke up.

"Good point, Futaba. No, wait, hold on! Even if we DO level with him, how would we explain it? If he's going to understand what we've been doing, he'll have to learn about the Metaverse. Do you think he'll even believe us?" Morgana said as Yusuke frowned and spoke up.

"Perhaps not. But if he doesn't, we have no choice but to make him believe. Otherwise, it's Ren's freedom on the line." Yusuke said as Ryuji sputtered and spoke up.

"But, but, the Metaverse! How do ya think we're gonna get some thickheaded cop to buy that!?" Ryuji said as Yusuke winced and spoke up.

"Ngh, I don't know. If Kusa were here, he might be able to convince Hasegawa of the truth of our story with that charisma and persuasion of his. After all, I do believe it was that same charm and charisma that drew Futaba to him so readily, was it not?" Yusuke said as Futaba blushed and spoke up.

"Th-That's-! Ugh, dammit! No fair bringing up how I fell for Kusa! Kindly shut up, Inari!" Futaba said in embarrassment as Sumire giggled and spoke up.

"Now you know how Ren and I felt when you teased us before, Futaba. Not fun, is it?" Sumire said coyly. Futaba stuck her tongue out childishly at Sumire in response. Makoto spoke up to get the conversation back on topic.

"Yes, well, as amusing as this banter between Futaba-chan and Sumire is, I think we were discussing how to convince Hasegawa-san of the validity of our story? If that's our aim, then it seems our only choice is to take him to the Jail with us." Makoto said as the others all looked at Makoto in shock before Ann spoke up in disbelief.

"Wait, really!?" Ann asked as Haru looked at Makoto in shock and spoke up.

"Mako-chan, are you sure?" Haru asked as Makoto spoke up with a firm look.

"Not really. But can you think of any other way for Ren to avoid getting arrested?" Makoto asked as the others frowned but said nothing as Makoto kept speaking.

"That's what I thought. Anyways, we have one playable card in our hand. We'll just have to go with it for the time being." Makoto said as Ren spoke up.

"That's a good point, Makoto. Granted, it'll be dangerous for Hasegawa in the Jail. But with our numbers, I think we can protect one man, right?" Ren said as Sumire spoke up.

"Yeah, I think so. If nothing else, we'll have Sophia to back us up once we get into the Jail, so we can lean on her for backup if needed." Sumire said as Ren spoke up.

"Right. I don't think that we have any other option right now. As such, it's in our best interest to accept this deal that Hasegawa is offering us. If nothing else, we can go along with it until Kusa catches up with us. At that point, we can re-assess our options, since he might have some insights that we don't. But for now, I say we should take the deal, just to keep Hasegawa happy with us." Ren said wisely. Morgana nodded and spoke up.

"All right, we'll do it. Besides, it's not like we have any alternative." Morgana said as Yusuke spoke up.

"This might be a bit pragmatic and grim, but as Kusa's not here, someone's gotta be the realist here. I agree we should take this deal, but let's also hope that it's not our undoing that we're taking it." Yusuke said warily as Ryuji frowned and spoke up.

"Ah, shit, that's true. We gotta stay prepared for the worst case. If he were here, Kusa would agree, I'm sure." Ryuji said. Makoto nodded and spoke up.

"Good point, sweetie. Well, if we're agreed, I'll go call him back in." Makoto said as she walked over and pushed the door open to call out to Hasegawa.

"Come on back! We're ready for you." Makoto said as Hasegawa nodded and spoke up.

"Huh, that was quicker than I expected. So, what say you all?" Hasegawa asked as Makoto spoke up.

"We've got an answer for you. But first, there's a place we need to show you. Follow us." Makoto said as she led Hasegawa to the accessway hideout with the others, where the group, excluding Morgana who Hasegawa still couldn't understand, took turns explaining the workings of the Metaverse and the Jail to Hasegawa, who gave them a weirded out look as he spoke up.

"I see, so that's how it is, huh? A Jail full of Shadows that you have to fight to change the Monarch's heart after making your way to a birdcage full of Desires that the Monarch has stolen from people? And with a Monarch seizing Desires, was it? All right, I believe you. But, just to be safe, what say we get you all tested for drugs now? If you're gonna cook up some fantasy to sell me, maybe try a little less spice next time." Hasegawa said as Makoto frowned and spoke up.

"Just save it for now. We're about to take you into the cognitive world." Makoto said as Hasegawa frowned and spoke up.

"Hm? 'Cognitive' world, you say?" Hasegawa asked as the group started walking off, excluding Makoto, who turned to Hasegawa and spoke up.

"You'll see soon enough. Now, please, follow us." Makoto said bluntly as she walked off after the others, leaving Hasegawa to speak up in confusion.

"Huh? Where am I following all of you to, exactly?" Hasegawa said in confusion as he was led into the Metaverse with the others...

(In the Metaverse, with Fox, Noir, Queen, Seeker, Violet, Joker, Skull, Mona, Panther, Oracle, and Hasegawa)

"So, are you gonna answer me orrrr-?" Hasegawa said, trailing off as he got a good look at the Jail, promptly freaking out as he spoke up with widened eyes.

"What in the hell? What? What is this place!? This is what you call a Jail!? This place isn't real!" Hasegawa said as Queen frowned and spoke up.

"On the contrary, Inspector Hasegawa. Everything here is real. Every last bit you can see." Queen said as Hasegawa blinked at this, and turned to face the others, only to gasp at the sight of their materialized Phantom Thief attire. Hasegawa's eyes widened as he spoke up.

"Whoa! What happened!? What're those outfits for!?" Hasegawa asked as Skull smirked and spoke up.

"Yep, just about what I expected." Skull said as Panther smiled at Hasegawa and spoke up.

"This is our Phantom Thief attire." Panther said as Hasegawa's eyes widened as he spoke up, looking freaked out.

"Ha! Hahaha, what even IS this!? Where AM I!?" Hasegawa asked in horror and shock. Seeker bounced up and down excitedly as she spoke up.

"Ooh, questions! This is what we call a Jail. You are currently located within what was once known as Alice Hiiragi's Jail." Seeker said as Hasegawa gasped at Seeker and spoke up.

"Wait, who're YOU!?" Hasegawa said as Seeker smiled and spoke up.

"My apologies. I'm Seeker, humanity's companion. Nice to meet you." Seeker said as Hasegawa blinked and spoke up.

"Oh. Nice to-WHAT!" Hasegawa said as Mona walked over and tried to calm Zenkichi down as he spoke up.

"Chill out, Zenkichi. You've gotta keep yourself together." Mona said as Hasegawa spoke up, ignoring the questioning looks Violet and Joker gave Mona for calling Hasegawa by his first name as he spoke.

"Yeah, yeah, good point. Right. I can't be losin' my shit like-MONSTER CAT!" Hasegawa said, making Joker and Violet both burst out laughing at Hasegawa's reaction, along with Mona's reaction when he spoke up a moment later.

"WHAT!? I am NOT a monster cat! I am Morgana!' Morgana said as Violet got her giggles under control long enough to speak up.

"Good thing Draconis wasn't here to hear that, eh Joker? We all know how little he tolerates people calling Mona a cat, even if he is basically one at this point." Violet said as Joker spoke up.

"True. But I'd like to believe that Draconis has mellowed out a bit over the past couple years, at least a little bit. And as such, Draconis should be slightly more understanding now." Joker said sagely as Queen looked at Hasegawa and spoke up.

"Now do you finally believe that we've been telling you the truth?" Queen said as Hasegawa spoke up, not hearing Queen since he was in the middle of a panic attack.

"The hell? How much did I drink last night at the pub? This just has to be a dream! I'm still passed out!" Hasegawa said as Skull smirked and spoke up.

"Riiiight, it's a dream. You holdin' up there, Gramps?" Skull said as Seeker turned to Skull and spoke up.

"No need to worry, Skull. He is merely having a meltdown." Seeker said as Violet frowned and spoke up.

"Umm, but wouldn't that be something to worry about if he's having a meltdown? What if he doesn't believe us and rescinds his offer?" Violet said uneasily. Noir nodded and spoke up.

"I agree with Violet-chan. That still sounds rather worrisome to me." Noir said as Oracle giggled and spoke up.

"Mweheheh, looks like we blew his mind! And rather quickly, too!" Oracle said as Violet spoke up.

"I'm not sure that's really a laughing matter, Oracle. And I'm pretty sure this isn't the first time someone has panicked on seeing the Metaverse." Violet said, not mentioning her own initial skeptical reaction to being shown the Metaverse by Mona and Joker when she first awoke to her Persona, the day Joker and Mona saved her from the Metaverse almost four years ago. Queen sighed as she spoke up.

"Oh, brother. This bantering is getting us nowhere. I suppose we may as well head back now." Queen said as the group exited the Metaverse at that point, a shocked Hasegawa in tow...

(Back in the real world, in the accessway hideout, with Hasegawa, Sumire, Sophia, Ren, Makoto, Futaba, Haru, Morgana, Yusuke, Ryuji, and Ann)

"How did this happen!? And what's happened to me? Did I drive myself crazy trying to crack this case?" Hasegawa said as Ryuji spoke up with a chuckle.

"Haha, it's pretty fun watchin' him lose it." Ryuji said as Futaba spoke up.

"Mm, true. His brain is probably overloaded, and it can't catch up." Futaba said as Sumire frowned at Futaba and Ryuji before she spoke up.

"Hey! I don't care if we do have our misgivings! He's at least trying to level with us! Surely that deserves at least some form of consideration, or tolerance? Not just mocking him like this?" Sumire said rebukingly as Ren spoke up.

"But that IS consideration for their standards, or at least for Ryuji's standards. Futaba's just wary of him." Ren said wisely as Ann growled and spoke up.

"Ugh, why'd we even bother explaining it all beforehand if he was going to react like that regardless?" Ann said as Yusuke gave off a closed-eye smile and spoke up.

"Ah, we all reacted similarly during our first time seeing the Metaverse, did we not? Such innocence." Yusuke said as Ren spoke up.

"I dunno about that one, Yusuke. I seem to recall that neither Futaba, Kusa, or Morgana had that reaction their first times seeing the Metaverse, to say nothing of Sophia's lack of reaction." Ren said gently but rebukingly to Yusuke before a 'BIP!' from Sumire's phone preceded Sophia speaking up, and when she did, both Ren and Sumire glared at Ryuji and Futaba both after they heard what Sophia had to say.

"Get ahold of yourself, Gramps." Sophia said as Sumire frowned at Sophia and spoke up.

"Sophia? You can't just go around being rude to people because you hear others doing it. That's not okay." Sumire gently chided Sophia, who gave Sumire an apologetic look and spoke up.

"Aww, okay. I'm sorry." Sophia said with a pout as Morgana sighed and spoke up.

"Sheesh, this is getting us nowhere!" Morgana huffed as he looked at Hasegawa and kept speaking.

"How long do you need to get it together, anyways? C'mon, Earth to Zenkichi, come in! Are you still alive there, Inspector Hasegawa!?" Morgana asked as Hasegawa looked at Morgana and spoke up.

"Huh? Oh, right, right. Get it together-WHAT!? This cat said my name! Wait, are you that monster cat from that place!? It's the monster cat!" Hasegawa said as Morgana glared at Hasegawa and spoke up, ignoring the laughs he heard from Ryuji and Futaba behind him as he spoke up angrily.

"HEY! I'm not a monster OR a cat! I told you, I am Morgana!" Morgana said irately. Makoto saw Hasegawa's confused look and spoke up.

"Since you're cognizant of Morgana speaking in the Metaverse, you can understand him here now too." Makoto said as Hasegawa started chuckling uneasily as he spoke up.

"Cats can talk if I'm cognizant of it? Haha, are you for real!? That's really something if it's true, hahaha!" Hasegawa said as Haru smiled and spoke up.

"Hee hee, I think he's going to need a little more time to process all of this." Haru said as the others nodded and gave Hasegawa a little time to get his head wrapped around things. After a bit, Hasegawa cleared his throat and spoke up.

"Right, first of all? Sorry for losing my cool like that. I think I get what's going on, though. Actually, none of it makes any sense to me at all. BUT! I'm going to strive to understand." Hasegawa said as Makoto gave Hasegawa a firm look and spoke up.

"Listen here! If we're going to make a deal, that will make us conspirators. Conspirators have to vow never to betray one another's trust." Makoto said as Hasegawa spoke up, ignoring Ryuji's muttered 'riiight, tell that to Crow' remark as he spoke.

"I see. So, you already know how all this works. All right, all right. Your trust is repaid with mine. Help me figure out this nationwide change of heart business and I'll make sure you're all protected. As long as you cooperate, I won't allow the police to lay a finger on you. That's my vow." Hasegawa said as Ren spoke up.

"Very well, we'll trust you on this, Hasegawa. But so help me, if you screw us on this, it's not our wrath you'll have to be worried about. There's still two more of us out there that might link up with us eventually. And they're the ones you'll really have to worry about. After all, the two of them are very bloodthirsty and vicious when they want to be. So I don't think you want to get on their bad side, Hasegawa-san." Ren said wisely, giving Hasegawa a deceptively friendly smirk as he spoke. Hasegawa smirked and spoke up.

"So basically, if I don't tow the line, you'll feed me to your pet Kung-Fu Dragon? Hmph, looks like it's not only your lives on the line here then. In that case, I'm gonna cut right down to it and ask for your help with a similar incident. PubSec has their eyes on Sapporo right now because of all the Change of Heart cases there. Plainly put? I need you in Sapporo Central City by August 8th." Hasegawa said as Makoto blinked and spoke up.

"Oh? Why does it need to be the 8th?" Makoto asked as Hasegawa smiled and spoke up.

"That's easy. Our suspect is out of the country on a business trip until then. We're kicking off the investigation within the hour of their arrival back home." Hasegawa said as Makoto sighed and spoke up.

"I see, that does make sense. Very well." Makoto said as Yusuke frowned and spoke up.

"Interesting. So it's likely this suspect in Sapporo is another Monarch, like Alice." Yusuke said as Hasegawa nodded and spoke up.

"That could be. If so, I'd have to ask you guys to handle it." Hasegawa said as Morgana smiled and spoke up.

"So, we're heading to Sapporo Central in Hokkaido, huh? It'll be quite the little trip for us." Morgana said as Hasegawa frowned and spoke up.

"Uh, word of caution? You'll definitely want to avoid any sort of public transportation. You're either gonna want to drive or hoof it." Hasegawa said as the group blinked and Makoto spoke up.

"Oh? And why is that?" Makoto asked as Hasegawa smirked and spoke up.

"Think about it. You revived the Phantom Thieves to deal with Alice! Any potential Monarch, along with any potential allies you might have scattered elsewhere, will have heard about it by now. And while I'm sure your allies will be pleased to hear the Thieves are back, I don't think the Monarchs will be so pleased. The way they see it, you're a real problem. Especially if you go after their own Desires." Hasegawa said as Futaba winced and spoke up with a nod.

"That's true. They're definitely all on high alert now. They may even try to get rid of us." Futaba said as Hasegawa nodded and spoke up.

"Good point, Sakura. There's no way to know who's brainwashed until after they act. What if one of 'em was the pilot of your plane?" Hasegawa pointed out as Ann frowned and spoke up.

"But, that's not fair! If we can't fly, how do we get to Sapporo?" Ann asked as Hasegawa smiled and spoke up.

"Find a car you can use. That'd be safest." Hasegawa said as Ryuji frowned and spoke up.

"Wait, what? You're not gonna set us up with one?" Ryuji asked in shock. Hasegawa frowned but shook his head as he spoke up.

"Sorry, but I've got to keep this investigation top secret. Any aid would just leave a trail back to this deal of ours. Oh, and one more thing? Don't worry about the Alice thing. I'll fill you in once I'm done grilling her. Well, here's to a solved case." Hasegawa said as Morgana smiled and spoke up.

"Heh, same here, Zenkichi." Morgana said as Hasegawa winced, recalling his previous outburst after hearing Morgana speak. He then spoke up while looking at Morgana.

"Ah! Right, I almost forgot about you! Umm, I'm sorry I called you a monster cat, Kitty." Hasegawa said as Futaba and Ryuji both sniggered quietly at Hasegawa referring to Morgana as 'Kitty'. Sumire frowned at the two and spoke up.

"Hey, don't laugh at Morgana! You know how he gets about being called 'Kitty' or any term related to cats. That's rude." Sumire reprimanded Futaba and Ryuji, who winced but nodded as Morgana frowned at Hasegawa and spoke up.

"Oh, yeah, you did do that, didn't you!? Oh, you'll BE sorry!" Morgana said as Hasegawa turned and walked off, though the group heard him talking to himself as he left.

"Okay, it's all right. You didn't go crazy or anything. This is all real, Zenkichi. Very much real." Hasegawa said to himself as the group shrugged and gathered back at Leblanc...

(That evening, in the attic of Leblanc, with Makoto, Haru, Futaba, Ann, Ryuji, Yusuke, Sumire, Ren, Sophia, and Morgana)

"Man, talk about an effin' buzzkill, am I right?" Ryuji said as Ann sighed and spoke up.

"True. I mean, Hokkaido? Really? There goes our summer vacation, down the drain." Ann said as Ryuji spoke up.

"Ain't this stuff happenin' all over Japan anyways? Even if we do solve this one, we're just gonna get sent off to some other city after that." Ryuji said as Yusuke nodded and spoke up.

"Good point, Ryuji. So, this has become a traveling venture in cooperation with Public Security, it seems. Even so, I admit it doesn't sound all bad. We should stop by Kyoto as well." Yusuke said as Futaba sighed and spoke up.

"That's just like you, isn't it? Find that silver lining, Inari. You know you will." Futaba said as Makoto frowned and spoke up.

"This trip isn't for our enjoyment. The case will still be our primary objective." Makoto said as Ann sighed and spoke up.

"Oh, come on! But, it's still summer vacation! Can't we have just a little fun?" Ann asked as Ryuji grinned and spoke up.

"Yeah, Ann's right! The 8th is way off from now! We can still do all kinds o' shit before then!" Ryuji said as Haru smiled and spoke up.

"Ooh! I'd like to experience some regional cuisines." Haru said as Morgana spoke up with his eyes going glinty with stars in them as he spoke.

"Yeah! Yeah! Sushi for me!" Morgana said as Ren spoke up.

"I agree that a bit of fun sounds nice, but we really should focus on the case for now. If nothing else, we should wait for Kusa to link back up with us before we have too much fun. After all, no sense in having a lot of fun without our whole team together, right?" Ren said wisely. Makoto turned to smile appreciatively at Ren before speaking up.

"Hearing that from you is a real relief." Makoto said as Sumire smiled, leaning her head cutely on Ren's shoulder as she spoke up.

"Of course it is. Ren's our leader, after all. So it stands to reason that you'd be relieved when he's the one killing the fun instead of you. Besides, we all know how to balance work and play, so to speak." Sumire said sagely as Morgana nodded and spoke up.

"Right! That being said, we should go over some things before we move on to the trip itself. First up is EMMA. It seems like an ordinary app at first, but now we know that it has a hidden function that can access Jails." Morgana said as Ren nodded and spoke up.

"I can't quite say yet that it's dangerous, but I think we can all definitively agree that EMMA seems to be similar to the Meta-Nav." Ren said as Ryuji nodded and spoke up.

"Yeah, RenRen's right! They're totally the same thing." Ryuji said as Makoto nodded and spoke up.

"Agreed, sweetie. To think something like that is being used nationwide, by who knows how many people? It sends a chill down my spine." Makoto said as Futaba spoke up.

"The app itself is fine though, right? I mean, you can just delete it if you want." Futaba said as Ren spoke up.

"As I recall, we could delete the Meta-Nav too. It just kept coming back afterwards, making it pointless to do so. But it was definitely possible." Ren said as Futaba spoke up.

"Fair enough, I stand corrected. Plus, regardless of that aspect, all the keyword and friend list functions work fine. If the app just let everybody slip into Jails, wouldn't the whole country basically be pure chaos already?" Futaba asked as Haru nodded and spoke up.

"Good point, Futaba-chan. We're all registered as friends on it, other than Kusa-kun, but that didn't do anything strange in and of itself that I've seen." Haru said as Sumire spoke up.

"Yes, well, as I recall, Kusa also doesn't have EMMA installed on his phone either. I think Futaba mentioned something about Kusa refusing to trust AIs or something like that?" Sumire said as Ren spoke up.

"Heh, that sounds like the paranoid sort of logic he'd use. But to be fair, I don't think Akechi would entirely have trusted EMMA either, so it might just be a trait that runs on Kusa's dad's side of the family." Ren said as Ann spoke up.

"Good point. But back on the topic of EMMA, where did this app come from, anyway?" Ann asked as Futaba spoke up.

"It's run by a Japanese company called Madicce. They're an international IT firm- we're talking about tens of thousands of employees." Futaba said as Haru smiled and spoke up.

"Wow, that's quite the large-scale operation. With those numbers, they have to be a top-tier international enterprise." Haru said as Ryuji frowned and spoke up.

"So, is this some evil mega-corporation makin' Jails, or somethin'?" Ryuji said as Makoto frowned and spoke up.

"But we can't use EMMA the same way Alice did." Makoto said as Ryuji grinned and spoke up.

"Truth, babe! Well, maybe that's 'cause we all got pure hearts or somethin'?" Ryuji said as Sumire giggled in spite of herself and spoke up.

"I'm sorry. But you seriously think that the likes of Morgana, Futaba, and possibly even Haru are remotely pure of heart? Not to mention how twisted both Kusa and Akechi are, to a point. And even Ren's got his demons. Truthfully, none of us are pure of heart that I can see." Sumire said as Ann frowned at Ryuji and spoke up.

"Sumire's right! You're a moron, Ryuji." Ann said as Futaba spoke up.

"There is the possibility that Alice had a special version of EMMA." Futaba said as Yusuke spoke up.

"Hm? What makes you say that?" Yusuke asked as Futaba spoke up with a shrug.

"Eh, just an idea. I'm graspin' at straws over here. Usually, I have Kusa to bounce ideas off most of the time, but as he's still out of town, I don't have that option available to me." Futaba said as Morgana spoke up.

"That's true. But it is a possibility that you're right, Futaba." Morgana said as Futaba nodded and spoke up.

"True. And if I got ahold of Alice's phone somehow, I should be able to see if her version of EMMA's anything special." Futaba said as Makoto blinked and spoke up.

"Really? We should ask Inspector Hasegawa if he could confiscate it for us. I'll reach out to him later over it." Makoto said as Morgana spoke up.

"All right. Next topic? The Jail. Each Palace collapsed after the Treasure inside was stolen. But the Jail? It's still in Shibuya. And not only that, but the Palaces are the manifestation of their rulers' cognitions in some way. But that's not true at all in Jails. Humans can have their Desires seized from their Shadows there." Morgana said as Makoto frowned and spoke up.

"And that would cause terrible things to occur to them in the real world." Makoto said as Ryuji spoke up.

"Yeesh. When you put it all together like that, don't it sound even worse than the Palaces?" Ryuji asked as Morgana spoke up.

"You're probably right, Ryuji. Therefore, if these other bizarre incidents across Japan are genuine changes of heart, that means there are probably more Jails out there." Morgana said as Haru frowned and spoke up.

"There could be quite a few of them, considering how impossible it is to report on every incident." Haru said as Ann winced and spoke up.

"Ugh." Ann said as Sumire blinked and spoke up, having had a thought occur to her that she turned to Morgana to voice.

"Um, Morgana? I know you said it's impossible for a Palace to form in a Persona-user, but do we know if the same holds true for Jails?" Sumire asked as Morgana spoke up with a wince.

"Honestly? I don't know, Sumire. It's not impossible, though I would say it's very unlikely to happen, especially given the fact that most Persona users have their Shadows become their Personas. But if it's a Persona-user with a sufficiently distorted desire, then it's possible that they could have a Jail form from those Desires. But I don't think that's something to worry about." Morgana said as Ann spoke up.

"Assuming there's not any other Persona users out there we don't know about, at any rate. So, back on topic. We're working with the police to try and clear our names, but can we trust them? And is that really enough?" Ann asked as Makoto frowned and spoke up.

"Oh? How do you mean?" Makoto asked as Ann spoke up.

"Think about it. If the Jails are as dangerous as we've seen, then wouldn't it be bad to just leave them alone? And if stuff as awful as what happened in Shibuya is happening all over, aren't we the only ones who can stop it?" Ann asked as Yusuke nodded and spoke up.

"That's right. You're absolutely right." Yusuke said as Makoto nodded and spoke up.

"Yes, that's true. It's our job to save people suffering helplessly wherever we find them." Makoto said as Haru smiled and spoke up.

"And give people courage." Haru said as Ren nodded and spoke up.

"Exactly. As Ann just said, this is what only we, as well as our missing allies, can do." Ren said as Morgana gave Ren a closed-eye grin and spoke up.

"Yeah, only the Phantom Thieves can do it! Great speech, Lady Ann! You've got us all fired up!" Morgana said as Sumire spoke up.

"Wasn't most of that speech done by Ren and Makoto, though? Also, I guarantee you she picked at least some of that up from listening to Kusa speak too." Sumire said sagely as Ann huffed and spoke up.

"You say that like I didn't speak from the heart, Sumire." Ann said with a pout as Makoto smiled and spoke up.

"Cheer up, Ann. It was a beautiful speech. Back on topic, if that's the plan? Then maybe travelling by car will actually work to our advantage." Makoto said as Haru smiled and spoke up.

"Right! We might find some more Jails on the way to Sapporo." Haru said as Ryuji grinned and spoke up.

"That works for me! After all, havin' a little bit of a Jailbreak spree along the way could be good trainin' to keep us in peak condition." Ryuji said with a grin. Ann blinked and spoke up.

"True. But, how do we actually find the other Jails?" Ann asked as Yusuke frowned and spoke up.

"Hmm. Good question." Yusuke said as Makoto spoke up.

"Hmm." Makoto said as Ryuji spoke up.

"Hmm. If we don't know we could just guess?" Ryuji said with a shrug. Futaba sighed as she spoke up.

"Ugh! We could, but it'll only take us about a million years." Futaba said huffily as a 'BIP!' from Sumire's phone preceded Sophia speaking up with a smile.

"I believe it may be time for the Sophia Show." Sophia said as Ren and Sumire exchanged confused looks with one another, both mouthing 'the WHAT!?' under their breaths as Futaba smiled and spoke up.

"Oooh, check the super-AI!" Futaba said as Sophia spoke up.

"I can detect any Jails in the vicinity by scent." Sophia said as Ryuji's eyes widened and he spoke up.

"For real!?" Ryuji asked as Ann frowned and spoke up.

"By what!? You can detect Jails by scent?" Ann asked skeptically. Sophia spoke up with a nod.

"Correct. A Jail emits a distinct signature. When I enter into a close enough proximity to a Jail, I can sense it." Sophia said as Ryuji grinned and spoke up.

"Sophia, that is nuts!" Ryuji said as Sophia smiled and spoke up happily.

"Praise accepted." Sophia said as she hummed her little tune again, making both Sumire and Morgana smile at this as the former spoke up.

"Seriously, am I the only one who thinks that's really adorable when she does that?" Sumire said as Morgana spoke up.

"Pretty sure that's just what makes Sophia who she is, Sumire." Morgana said as Yusuke spoke up.

"Indeed. Hm, I suppose that could work. There is still much we do not understand, but at least we now have a course of action." Yusuke said as Morgana spoke up with a smirk.

"Yeah, this is gonna be amazing!" Morgana said as Ren spoke up.

"Not only that, but it's also going to be a trip to reform all of society. The fact it's also bound to be a good time with you guys is icing on the cake, in my opinion." Ren said sagely. Ryuji grinned and spoke up.

"Hell yeah! I am psyched!" Ryuji said as Morgana spoke up.

"Agreed. All that's left is to secure our transportation." Morgana said wisely as Ann spoke up with a frown.

"True, but if it's going to fit all of us, plus whatever reinforcements Kusa might have gotten for us, won't it have to be pretty big?" Ann asked as Ryuji winced and spoke up with a frown.

"Truth. We'll just hafta rent something to suit our needs. Ugh, but who knows how much it'll cost us." Ryuji said as Ren smirked and spoke up.

"True, but if I recall correctly, I left a lockbox under the bed with some emergency cash stashed in it before I left here to return home about three years ago. Surely Kusa's added to that some since then, since I left the key in here for his use. Assuming he didn't take it with him, it should still be right where I left it." Ren said wisely as Yusuke spoke up.

"No need. Money is no object to us! The prize funds from my most recent contest entry have finally come!" Yusuke said as Futaba frowned and spoke up.

"Oh, keep your snack money to yourself, Inari. And Ren, I think we're outta luck on that front. I saw Kusa stuff a couple of keys into his wallet before he left. So odds are pretty good that the key you mentioned was one of them." Futaba said as Ren quietly swore under his breath while Sumire smiled and patted Ren on the shoulder as she spoke up.

"Cheer up, Ren. It was a good thought, if nothing else." Sumire said encouragingly as Ann spoke up nervously.

"Well, we cut a deal with someone in the police, so maybe they'll help pay for our investigation? Eheh. Ugh, nah. No way." Ann said as Futaba frowned and spoke up.

"Hmm. Some pretty big transportation, you say? Hmm, I'm getting this feeling that Sojiro mentioned something along those lines once if I recall correctly. Let's go ask him!" Futaba said as the others headed downstairs to ask Sojiro about a transport. After filling him in on the situation thus far, he frowned and spoke up.

"Huh? A ride big enough to fit all of you?" Sojiro asked as Futaba nodded and spoke up.

"Yeah. Weren't you talking to someone about 'big transportation' or something like that the other day?" Futaba asked Sojiro, who initially winced, thinking Futaba had overheard his discussion with Kusa when he'd given him his old car, but then sighing in relief when he realized what she actually meant, speaking up with a nod.

"Ohhh, you mean that guy I know with the camper. Yeah, he was whining about never having the time to use it and how it's just collecting dust." Sojiro said as Futaba blinked and spoke up with a smile.

"Oh! Sojiro! That's it! Please go borrow that camper for us! Pleeeeeeease!?" Futaba asked, practically begging Sojiro, who frowned at the question before speaking up.

"Mm. Does this have anything to do with what you guys are getting blamed for?" Sojiro asked as Makoto winced and spoke up.

"Yes, it does?" Makoto said uncertainly as Sumire spoke up.

"Basically, we need it to take a road trip to deal with some stuff that pertains to that. Apparently we're being blamed for that string of bizarre incidents happening all over the country." Sumire said bluntly as Ren spoke up.

"Exactly. We think something huge is brewing out there somewhere, and I suspect that Kusa thought the same thing, hence why he left town on that mission before I got here." Ren said wisely as Sojiro spoke up with a nod.

"I see. Welp, then I guess I don't have a choice. I'll give him a call. You guys just sit tight until tomorrow." Sojiro said as Morgana happily spoke up.

"Nya! Now there's our chief! So considerate." Morgana said as Sojiro spoke up with a frown as if Morgana hadn't spoken.

"But listen up! No getting too wild out there, all right? I get that some of you guys are dating each other, but that doesn't mean you get to go crazy with one another. And are you all set with travel funds and whatnot?" Sojiro asked as Makoto spoke up with a nod.

"Yes. We'd all been saving up for summer vacation. And in Ren's case, he's been stockpiling the small little payouts he gets from Kusa periodically." Makoto said as Ren nodded his agreement, glad that Kusa had managed to set aside some of his monthly funds to give a bit to Ren. Yusuke chuckled and spoke up.

"Heheh. Once art drove me to rags, but now it has propelled me to riches!" Yusuke said with a closed-eye smile. Ryuji sweatdropped and spoke up.

"Yeeah, we gotcha." Ryuji said, getting Yusuke's meaning. At that point, the group headed home for the night to pack up and prepare for the coming trip...

(The next day, in the lower level of Leblanc, with Morgana, Haru, Makoto, Ann, Ryuji, Futaba, Sumire, Sophia, Yusuke, Hasegawa, and Ren)

"A camper!? What the heck? This is turnin' into some kinda coming-of-age flick, isn't it? Wait, hold up. Are you guys and girls actually gonna sleep in that thing together?" Hasegawa asked as Sumire spoke up with a sly smirk.

"Not all of us are, no. But possibly those of us in couples might snuggle together every now and again." Sumire said coyly as Ren nodded his agreement before Futaba smiled and spoke up.

"No worries. The boys are all sleeping on the roof." Futaba said as Ann frowned and spoke up.

"And also, we've got Makoto and her fist of justice with us if someone tries anything funny!" Ann said as Haru spoke up with a deceptively cheerful smile.

"Oh, and I'm very handy with an axe!" Haru said as Ryuji winced and spoke up, having thought of all the times he saw Haru cut down Shadows with the axe in question during their trips through Palaces.

"Uhh, yeah. She's not wrong." Ryuji said warily as Ren spoke up fearfully, though he gave a wink to Sumire while he spoke to indicate that he was just playing it up for Hasegawa's sake.

"Please go easy on us, ladies. After all, most of us men are foolish fools who don't always know when to heed their better halves." Ren said coyly. Hasegawa winced and spoke up.

"I see. These sisters are really doing it for themselves, eh? Fine, whatever you gotta do." Hasegawa said as Makoto spoke up.

"So, about what I asked for last night." Makoto said as Hasegawa blinked and spoke up.

"Ah! Right, Alice's phone. Here you go." Hasegawa said as Futaba walked up and gently took the phone from Hasegawa's hand as she spoke up.

"Wow! Nice score, Zenkichi!" Futaba said as Hasegawa frowned and spoke up.

"Hey! That's important evidence! No breaking it, got that?" Hasegawa said as Futaba nodded and got to work analyzing it. At that point, Ann spoke up.

"So, how was Alice, anyway?" Ann asked as Hasegawa smiled and spoke up.

"Good, actually. She was pretty upfront about the whole heart-changing situation, as it turns out. When people registered her as a friend on EMMA, she noticed they'd suddenly grow obedient to her. At first, she was just curious what was going on with EMMA. But she says she got such a thrill from making people do her bidding, she couldn't stop herself." Hasegawa said as Yusuke frowned and spoke up.

"It began with the friend registration, hm?" Yusuke asked as Makoto spoke up.

"Was there anything else?" Makoto said as Hasegawa shook his head and spoke up.

"No. The only other thing she did was apologize. That's all we got, but it does seem like she was telling me the truth." Hasegawa said as Morgana spoke up.

"So she didn't actually know anything about the Jails or Desires, after all." Morgana said as Hasegawa frowned and spoke up.

"Well, I hafta say, I wouldn't have bought one bit of it if you hadn't shown me what you did." Hasegawa said as Futaba suddenly spoke up from where she was working.

"Hmmm? What in the hell is this?" Futaba said as the others turned to face Futaba as Ann spoke up.

"What is it? Did you find something?" Ann asked as Futaba shook her head and spoke up.

"No. I thought I'd find some unique aspect to Alice's version of EMMA if I analyzed her phone, but nope. This is just the standard commercialized version. It hasn't even been tampered with." Futaba said as Ryuji rubbed the back of his head before frowning as he spoke up.

"For real? So we got nuthin' outta all this?" Ryuji said with a frown. Futaba smirked and spoke up.

"I didn't say that! I DID find traces of some snooping in her phone." Futaba said as the others' eyes widened and Ann spoke up.

"What do you mean?" Ann asked as Futaba spoke up.

"Someone was monitoring Alice's activity, though I'm unsure if it was either her smartphone usage in general, or her EMMA usage specifically." Futaba said as Ann spoke up with a gasp.

"So, like, that could be our real culprit?" Ann asked. Ren blinked and spoke up.

"Someone's keeping tabs on her, perhaps?" Ren suggested after a moment. Yusuke spoke up with a nod.

"That does make sense. And if that's true, that would mean that there is still someone out there involved with this incident." Yusuke said as Makoto spoke up.

"Do you see anything revealing the monitor's origins?" Makoto asked as Futaba winced and spoke up.

"Not really? Somewhere within the country is the best estimate I got. And that's all I get from this." Futaba said as Hasegawa smiled and spoke up.

"Hey, getting even that's quite the feat. You're real good, kid!" Hasegawa said as Futaba smiled and spoke up.

"Heh, never underestimate the techie of the Phantom Thieves." Futaba said as Ren sweatdropped and spoke up while looking at Sumire.

"Do you want to be the one to tell Hasegawa-san he shouldn't call Futaba a kid like that, since she has a boyfriend, or should I do it?" Ren asked Sumire, who giggled and spoke up.

"Why should either one of us do it? We should let Kusa do that himself when he catches up to us." Sumire said slyly as Ren smirked and spoke up.

"Ooh, so let Kusa put the fear of God into him? Not bad. I do believe that I like the way you think, my dear Sumi." Ren said with a flirty wink to a now blushing Sumire. Ann smirked at Ren and Sumire as she spoke up.

"Hey, get a room if you two are going to do that." Ann teased Ren and Sumire as Makoto frowned and spoke up.

"Focus, you three! So someone was tracking Alice, Futaba-chan? Who could it be?" Makoto asked as Hasegawa spoke up with a frown.

"Ah, I like that enthusiasm, Niijima. But one thing at a time. After all, this isn't our only case to work. I'm sure we'll find more leads as we investigate these incidents." Hasegawa said as the others nodded as he kept speaking.

"Well, I'll see ya August 8th in Sapporo Central. Don't be late, got it? I'll reach out to you that day with the meetup location. But for now, it's time to return this phone to its rightful owner." Hasegawa said as he turned around and left. After he left, Ryuji frowned and spoke up.

"So, Alice could put people in her Jail 'cause she was a Monarch-is that about right?" Ryuji asked as Haru smiled and spoke up.

"Since it didn't seem to be her version of EMMA's doing, that seems correct, Ryuji." Haru said as Morgana nodded and spoke up.

"I get where you're coming from, but we still shouldn't jump to conclusions. Like Zenkichi said, there's still plenty to look into." Morgana said as Sumire frowned and spoke up.

"I'm all for treating people with respect just as much as the next person, but isn't it a bit soon to be calling Hasegawa-san by his first name, Morgana?" Sumire asked Morgana, who did the cat equivalent of a shrug as Makoto spoke up.

"That's true, Morgana. If we don't know enough about what's happening, we should gather more intel." Makoto said as Ren's phone chose that moment to ring, making him answer it.

"Hello? Ren Amamiya's phone. Ren speaking." Ren said before smiling as he heard Sojiro's voice on the other end.

"Hey, are you guys still together?" Sojiro asked as Ren spoke up.

"Yes, we're still together. We just got done discussing some stuff inside the cafe." Ren said as Sojiro spoke up.

"I see. Then come on outside-check out your wheels." Sojiro said as Ren nodded, hanging up the phone as he and the other hurried outside to look at the vehicle...

(Outside of Leblanc, with Yusuke, Haru, Ann, Ryuji, Futaba, Sumire, Sophia, Ren, Makoto, Morgana, and Sojiro)

"Yo. Well, here's your wheels." Sojiro said as the group took in the large vehicle in front of them, which was easily tall enough to be the size of a one-story house, but was mostly brown and cream colored on the outside, though you could see a lot of red and white on the inside of the vehicle. Furthermore, the vehicle had four rather large tires on it with silver rims. Ann's eyes widened as she spoke up.

"WHAT!? This is the camper!?" Ann asked as Ryuji gaped and spoke up in a mix of awe and shock.

"Whoa, it's like three times more badass than I expected it to be." Ryuji said as Yusuke spoke up.

"Beautiful! This retro design is glorious. It's so simple, yet so elegant!" Yusuke said as Futaba smiled at Sojiro and spoke up.

"Thanks, Sojiro!" Futaba said as Ren smiled and spoke up.

"It's awesome, Boss. Thank you." Ren said as Sumire spoke up.

"Don't worry, we'll do our best to get it back to you in one piece once the trip's over." Sumire said politely to Sojiro, who smirked and spoke up.

"Damn, didn't think you'd be so grateful for a camper. Heh, just make sure you don't wreck it." Sojiro said as a 'BIP!' from Sumire's phone preceded Sophia speaking up after Sumire pulled her phone out of her pocket.

"Mm-hm. I've found the make and model online. This is a Volgen Retrolife. It has five beds and a rooftop tent. There are enough power outlets for everyone, as well as cooking appliances for any culinary needs." Sophia said as Morgana smiled and spoke up.

"Ohhh! We couldn't have asked for anything better! That's our chief for ya!" Morgana said as Haru spoke up after looking at the interior of the camper.

"Wow, this is beautiful! I love the interior, too!" Haru said as Yusuke spoke up, and judging from his voice, it sounded like he and Haru were actually inside of the trailer with the door open.

"Yes, it reminds me of American diners in the 1950s." Yusuke said as Makoto spoke up.

"Hm. I hope I can actually drive something this big safely." Makoto said as Sojiro smirked and spoke up.

"I'm sure you'll be fine. It's got its little quirks, but I'm sure you'll get used to 'em quick enough. Until then, though, make sure you drive carefully, okay? Well, to be fair, I guess I can't really park this here, can I? I'll go move this to the nearest lot. As for you, you all go finish your packing." Sojiro said as Morgana spoke up.

"That's true. We aren't quite finished packing. All right, let's disband for now and regroup once we're ready to roll out!" Morgana said as Ren headed back inside with Sumire, where they quickly finished their packing for the trip, as Morgana spoke up.

"Well, good job getting packed up for the trip. Luckily for her, Sumire went home recently to grab everything she'd need, otherwise we'd have to stop off at her house on the way out of town so she could grab anything she forgot." Morgana said as Sumire spoke up with a blush.

"N-Not necessary. I packed everything I needed already." Sumire said slyly as she whispered into Ren's ear so only he could hear the next part.

"Including plenty of protection and birth control so we're covered if we end up fooling around." Sumire said as Ren blushed profusely at what Sumire had said as Morgana smirked and spoke up.

"Oh, what's this? Is your girlfriend getting you hot under the collar, Ren? Keep it in check for now, you two. Anyways, anything else you think we'll need? If so, we'd better go buy it now. And then once we're all set, we should go say our goodbyes to the chief before heading out." Morgana said as Ren nodded, right as his phone went off with a private chat from Ryuji, which he opened up to view.

"Yo, dude! There's somewhere I wanna go before we head out. You and Sumire should check it out too. I'll wait for you two outside, so just lemme know when you're ready!" Ryuji sent as Ren put his phone away as Sumire spoke up.

"Private chat?" Sumire asked as Ren spoke up with a nod and a smile.

"Correct. Ryuji apparently has somewhere he wants us to check out before we head out on our trip. Apparently he's waiting for us outside?" Ren said with a shrug. Sumire spoke up.

"Eh, we've got time. Maybe we should see what he wants us to see before we go? If nothing else, we can use the chance to hopefully show Sophia a few things before we head out on the trip." Sumire said as Ren nodded and spoke up.

"Good idea, beautiful." Ren said wisely as he and Sumire decided to humor Ryuji's request. As they had a seat in a booth seat to reflect on what they'd done so far, they knew that their long journey was likely only just beginning, not only for them, but for the rest of the Phantom Thieves, and even for the still-absent Crow and Draconis, wherever they might be...

END OF CHAPTER AND OF ARC 1- THE CREW REUNITES

A/N: And there we go! Arc 1 is officially in the books for Strikers! However, we're not going to immediately jump into Arc 2! The next chapter is one where I'm going to be attempting something a little bit different to what I usually do, in that I'm going to attempt to have between-arc interlude chapters!

Not every arc will get these, however. Some arcs, such as Arc 4, and probably Arc 8, won't get them since the gap between those arcs and the next arcs are too short to justify an interlude. However, some arcs, like Arc 1, Arc 2, Arc 3, Arc 5, Arc 6, and maybe Arc 7, will have interludes in them since there's a big enough gap between them to justify it. But we'll see how this first interlude chapter set plays out before making any further decisions on interludes going forward.

However, I think a lot of people will be excited for this first interlude, since it will have a lot of focus put on a certain pair of otherwise absent Phantom Thieves. But be aware that these two will have changed a fair bit since the end of Phantom Files. Whether or not they're connected to the cutaways I did in both chapter 5 and chapter 6 will remain an unsolved mystery for now. So yeah, that's the story on that.

Also, before I finish this A/N, one thing I should mention is that I recently put a new poll up on my profile for people to vote on. Suffice it to say, you can consider this your chance to help influence the story, since this particular poll is intended to help decide who at least one of the new Phantom Thieves joining up alongside Seeker, *REDACTED*, and *REDACTED* in Rise of The Monarchs.

Note that this poll will likely remain up until January 2nd, or maybe the 3rd. Either way, plenty of time to go and vote on the poll. Note that you can vote for up to two of the options on the list, so feel free to get your votes in while you can! Thought I'd put that out there for people to consider.

That being said, I hope people have been enjoying the story so far. If so, feel free to leave a review (or a PM if you don't feel comfortable with reviewing) with your thoughts/feedback/opinions/constructive criticism on the story thus far, as I enjoy hearing from my readers! So thanks for any support I get on this story, and until next chapter, sithlorde1988 out!

NOTES

*1* - Joker wasn't kidding when he noted this. Alice's Shadow seriously looks like a sexualized version of the White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland, almost so much so that she could be argued as straining the line between an M-rated story and an MA-rated story to an insane degree. Also, she very much is a psycho bunny. Just thought I'd put that out there.

PHANTOM THIEVES INFO AS OF THE END OF CHAPTER 6 AND ARC 1-THE CREW REUNITES

JOKER (Ren) - Level: 18 Current Personas: Raoul, Succubus, Pixie, Jack-O-Lantern, Hua Po, Slime, and Berith. Equipped Persona: Raoul

SKULL (Ryuji) - Level: 15 Equipped/Partner Persona: Seiten Taisei

MONA (Morgana) - Level: 16 Equipped/Partner Persona: Diego

PANTHER (Ann) - Level: 16 Equipped/Partner Persona: Hecate

FOX (Yusuke) - Level: 15 Equipped/Partner Persona: Kamu Susano-o

QUEEN (Makoto) - Level: 16 Equipped/Partner Persona: Anat

NOIR (Haru) - Level: 16 Equipped/Partner Persona: Astarte

ORACLE (Futaba) - Level: 18 Current Personas: Al Azif and *REDACTED*. Equipped Persona: Al Azif

SEEKER (Sophia) - Level: 16 Equipped/Partner 'Persona': Pithos

VIOLET (Sumire) - Level: 15 Equipped/Partner Persona: Ella

KNOWN BUT ABSENT PHANTOM THIEVES

CROW (Goro) - Level: 15 Equipped/Partner Persona: Hereward

DRACONIS (Kusa) - Level: 15 Equipped/Partner Persona: Malefor

ALLIES: Hasegawa, Shiho, Sojiro