Things were no easier upon coming home than they had been before for his probation.

Ren Amamiya had thought, perhaps foolishly, that after some time apart from his parents and peers— along with his case being overturned and the change of heart from Shido— that things might have settled down somewhat. They had not. In fact, had Ren not checked his phone's calendar and felt Morgana's reassuring weight in his bag, he might believe that no time had passed at all. Everything from Kakamigahara's sleepy bedroom town vibe to the disapproving frowns on his parents' faces were just as he had left them.

In the weeks that followed, his parents left him to his own devices, save for the day they had first found Morgana curled up on Ren's bed. That had led to a long argument and threats to toss the poor not-cat out, followed by Ren loudly threatening to follow him on his own accord. Needless to say, Morgana was allowed to stay, if only to save Ren's parents from any more embarrassment or uncomfortable questions, though his living expenses would come from Ren's own pockets.

Then there was the matter of school.

His old school refused to take him back and many of the other schools close to Gifu station were hesitant. His parents briefly debated sending him to a neighboring prefecture— going so far as to enquire at schools in Nagoya— for his final year, before calculating the costs and scrapping the idea altogether.

"It's just that we can't really afford it. Besides, does it really matter? Are you really planning to attend university… with your record?" his mother had asked one evening after dinner, as Ren had been scrolling through schools on his phone.

That night Ren started looking into alternative options.

That November, Ren snuck out to take the Upper Secondary School Equivalency Examination and managed to pass. As soon as the certificate was delivered, he called Sojiro and started applying to schools in Tokyo. At least one adult was proud of him.

He was out of Gifu by mid-January.

Walking through the frigid back alleys leading to Leblanc truly felt like coming home in the best of ways. He had sent most of his belongings ahead, so with Morgana safely tucked into his old Shujin school bag against his back, he only needed to worry about the small overnight bag containing his essentials. The glow of the cafe's lights warmed him from meters away.

"Oh, good. Welcome back," Sojiro offered, laying a plate of curry on the counter, at Ren's usual place.

"Yeah, about time. What took you so long?" Futaba groused from one of the booths, not even looking up from her laptop. Her fringe, which looked to have grown in their time apart, was clipped back and out of her face leaving only the glare from her glasses to obscure her, "You did follow the instructions I sent you, right? Just 'cause I might not be able to navigate you Noobs through Mementos at the moment doesn't mean—"

"Futaba, let the kid put his things down first. Speaking of," Sojiro put a hot cup of coffee down next to the curry and motioned to the seat to the right of Ren's with a tilt of his head.

Ren hesitated for a second, before placing the bag with Morgana in it into the seat and placing his other bag on the floor. As soon as the bag was settled on the seat, Morgana was popping out of the bag and beelining for Futaba.

"I've been thinking— don't give me that look— and I talked it over with Futaba, and we've decided that we'd like for you to come live with us. We were able to turn one of the storage rooms into something approaching a bedroom. At least, more of a bedroom than…" he continued, motioning to the attic above with an upwards nod.

"I… don't know what to say," Ren replied after a moment, putting down his spoon.

"Yes, obviously!" Futaba scoffed, scratching Morgana under the chin. "Right, Mona?"

"Yeah, I mean, if Boss is okay with it!"

"See, even he agrees. Look, I know it wasn't easy last year and I should've offered sooner, especially after you helped Futaba. Hell, I should've made more of an effort from the beginning. And that's on me…"

"I get it. You… were dealing with a lot… and taking me on like you did…" Ren picked up his spoon, stirring a carrot around his plate, "A lot of people wouldn't've."

"Still."

The moment dragged on until it was cut through by Futaba's loud two-finger slap to the enter key, "Wow, you know: that's pro'lly the most I've ever heard you say, Leader."

"Oh, hush, you."

And that was that.

For a while, at least. It was easy living in the Sakura household. True to his word, Sojiro carved out a space Ren could call his own— well, his and Morgana's, when the not-cat wasn't busy spending time with Futaba— asking only that Ren helped around the house and cafe when he had time. Instead, Ren was to be a good role-model and focus on his future. That meant continuing to apply to universities.

"You know," Futaba had said one late evening, as they hung out in her room, "I could totally hack their systems and put you on their roster. Easy as pie."

She turned her desk chair in a circle one way and then the other, stopping to face her bed, where Ren was sprawled half against the wall, "Could even give you the best grades in the class, if you want."

Ren didn't bother to look up from his phone, "Thanks, but I want to do this on my own merit. You understand, right?"

"Prove to them that you belong there?"

"Yeah," he opened the latest email in his inbox. It was from the university he had applied to the previous week, this one a vocational school two hours commute away. He scrolled through the greeting and usual spiel thanking him for his interest in their school until he got to the final paragraph:

However, we regret to inform you that we are currently not accepting into the culinary department. Perhaps, you could apply closer to home or again at a future time. We wish you the best in your future endeavors.

"Well, the offer still stands. Just say the word," Futaba snapped her fingers and spun her chair around again, this time narrowly missing hitting her Featherman display with a wayward foot.

Ren deleted the email.

And the one after that and the one after that one too.

When April rolled around and Ren had still not been accepted into any school, he really began to worry. Both Ryuji and Yusuke had been accepted into programs, with Ryuji starting his studies to become a PE teacher at a small vocational school in Saitama and Yusuke taking a scholarship position at a major art school in Shibuya. Ann was still in Europe, focusing on her career, though she had mentioned taking some online classes between shoots. Not to mention that Makoto and Haru were both in their second year of university. Yet, Ren had little luck, save for a couple of smaller schools that promised to admit him so long as he was willing to pay a truly exorbitant amount of money.

Money he did not have.

He had managed to save a bit before returning to Tokyo. While he and his parents had searched for a school willing to take him aboard, Ren used his time wisely, taking a couple of part-time jobs— mainly to get himself out of the house. Although they paid nowhere as well as a place such as Crossroads, he did manage to snag a spot at the Triple 7s because his previous manager was willing to put in a good word. However, it was barely enough to cover more than a modest tuition and the necessities. And that was without paying rent to Sojiro, who refused to accept any money for his hospitality. Hell, he had on occasion offered to pay Ren for his work on especially busy days– by which on days they had more than two or three customers— at the cafe. Ren didn't feel comfortable accepting that money.

God, I miss the days we could pop down to Mementos…

That May, feeling tired of giving little back to his found family, he began hitting up his old contacts to see if they had work for him. While Takemi and Iwai couldn't offer much, Lala was ecstatic to have her assistant back to help during busy weekends. That helped a bit, but…

"Hey 'taba. Been wondering. I never really see many customers in Leblanc," Ren stared at the glow in the dark stars on Futaba's ceiling from his place on her bed, as she typed almost manically on her keyboard.

"Now that you mention it," Morgana added from his place on Ren's stomach.

"Your feet had better not be on my pillow or I swear I will end you," she didn't look away from the screen, but she didn't have to. The rustling of cloth told her all she needed to know. "But to answer your question, like the all knowing one that I am, Sojiro's main income isn't from the cafe. He told you he had a government job before, right? Well, let's just say that to his knowledge, they still have him on the books for all his hard work. Or as hush-money. I'm not entirely sure what he believes. Mind you, it isn't that much. It'd be pretty sus, otherwise."

"So, you're saying…" Morgana raised his head and locked eyes with Futaba's reflection in the monitor. His whispered voice had a twinge of awe in it.

"I'm not saying anything, mwhehehehe."

"Wow, she's scary," Morgana whispered, to which Ren could only nod, "Glad she's on our side. Or should I say, Boss' side?"

"I can hear you, you know?"

Still, Ren tried to take as many shifts as he could at Crossroads. And the occasional evening at the gun shop or afternoon at the Triple 7s, while still helping out at the cafe and looking into his educational prospects. Whether or not Sojiro had money coming in from avenues other than the cafe, Ren couldn't take advantage of the Sakuras kindness forever. And besides, if it made Ren feel less lonely, who was to say that was a bad thing?

Halfway through June, Ren received a call from Takemi, asking for his assistance and promising a decent sum for his troubles. Expecting to be put through another clinical trial, Ren was surprised when he was handed a roll of packing tape and pointed towards a stack of empty cardboard boxes.

"Oh, and make sure to write what's actually inside," she said, tossing him a thin marker, and walking out of the office. It took him the better part of two days to get everything packed up and prepared for the move to her new office.

"Well done, my guinea pig. Now, all we need to do is get it into the truck and lug it to the new place. You can drive, right?" She propped an old medical textbook against the door to keep it open before glancing at a nearby box and motioning Ren towards the exit.

"Hmmn, is my answer protected by patient confidentiality?" he shot back, picking up a box and following the doctor through the door and down the stairs to the street. A small covered truck was parked haphazardly in front of the clinic.

"I'll take that as a 'yes, but'," Takemi balanced on the toes of her shoes, pulling herself up slightly onto the back of the truck and reached inside to undo the latch inside. She pulled the back open and moved out of the way.

Ren placed the box inside, followed by a dozen others. Once the last one that would fit was in, he shut the back, and made his way back to the front of the vehicle. He rubbed his arms, feeling a pleasant soreness he hadn't felt in a while.

"Otherside, flyboy."

It took several trips over that day and the next to move everything, as well as another three to set up the new office. After everything was said and done, Ren walked away with forty-thousand yen in his pocket, some strong painkillers for his arms, and a better mood than he had in a while.

"Ah, you're back. And in a good mood," Sojiro was putting down a cup of coffee in front of a young office lady sitting primly at the counter. In his seat. "...you okay, kid?"

Ren shook his head to dislodge the thought and smiled at his guardian. "Yeah, just… give me a minute to wash up and grab my apron."

"Oh kay. Take your time. It's not like this place is bustling or anything. No offense to you, ma'am. We are very glad to have you."

Ren rolled his eyes, washing his hands. He threw on his apron and approached the counter. Giving the lady a once-over, he could acknowledge that she was pretty in a delicate sort of way— in a way that reminded him vaguely of Haru. Her hair was shoulder length and she was wearing a summer uniform with a short-sleeved white button up shirt and a thin black ribbon tied to her collar.

I haven't thought about Akechi for ages… it must've been the uniform.

"Seems like. Though I should warn you, I do have a boyfriend and he is the jealous type," she said with a laugh, coyly covering her mouth with a hand.

Ren wasn't one hundred percent sure to whom that comment was directed towards, so he smiled politely and turned to the shelf of beans behind him to give himself something to do.

"Well, you are a bit young for me anyhow. Can I get you anything else?" Sojiro replied, while Ren shifted one of the jars a few millimeters to the right and then back again.

She didn't end up staying much longer after that.

August eventually came and with it summer vacation. Ren cut back on his part-time work to spend more time with the other phantom thieves, though he did still have to do occasional shifts at Leblanc. That was fine with everyone though, as Sojiro let them turn on the air conditioning and stay as long as they like, provided they didn't disrupt the other customers— provided there were any to begin with.

The first few days were spent catching up. Ryuji was excelling in his program and making tons of friends with both upperclassmen and those in his own year. Ann could only stay a week at most, but while she was there she told them of her travels and showed them pictures from places they could only dream of. Yusuke had filled out slightly since his scholarship included three meals at the school canteen, though he still sometimes forgot to eat while working on a piece. Makoto seemed to have it the hardest, with her workload nearly doubling in her second year. However, her sister took a more active role in helping her when she could. Haru was in good spirits, studying agriculture, claiming that it would help her run her family's business in the future, although everyone knew it was more out of interest than anything else. Sumire and Futaba, on the other hand, were navigating their way through Shujin Academy. Everyone was living rich, fulfilling, exciting lives.

And Ren was happy for them. Really.

As the former thieves chatted amongst themselves, Ren busied himself in the kitchen, putting together a pot of curry. The meat had been sauteed to a rich brown— Ren had bought the beef along with the other ingredients at the local market, feeling uncomfortable with Sojiro footing the bill— so he added the chopped onion and let them brown. He added the rest of the vegetables and the necessary water to let them cook. Covering the pot, he made his way back to the counter, "How are we on coffee? Anyone need a top up?"

"Oh, perfect timing, I could use one," Haru answered, sliding out of the booth to bring her cup over. She also grabbed Makoto's on her way and placed them both on the counter in a row. "Anyone else?"

A few 'me!'s rang out and Ren grabbed a few more cups from their place under the counter and started on making the coffee while they waited on the curry. The motions of making coffee had become muscle memory for Ren: heat the cups with hot water, grind the coffee, put it in the filter, empty the cup of hot water, start the pour over, let steep then pour again, repeat as necessary. Soon enough the cups were filled.

He handed Haru her and Makoto's cups. Then, one by one, the other thieves came to retrieve theirs. The final person to grab a cup was Ann, "Hmmn? There's one left. Who didn't get?"

"Uh, don't look at me, you know I don't drink coffee," Ryuji shot back after everyone else raised their cups at Ann's question.

"It isn't mine," Morgana added from Futaba's lap.

"That's weird," Sumire murmured, looking at the cup.

"Maybe he forgot that Ryuji doesn't like coffee?" Haru asked softly, bringing her cup up to her lips. She, however, didn't seem convinced. She shared a look with Makoto and Sumire, whose eyes slid to the side, towards the empty chair at the counter.

"I-it's mine," Ren quickly picked up the cup and brought it back into the kitchen with him. He put it next to his other, mostly full, cup. It was almost time to add the curry rox anyway.

That evening, after the others had left, Futaba helped Ren with the clean up by bringing the used dishes and cups to the sink. Once everything was submerged in hot soapy water, she picked up a towel for drying duty at his side. For a while the only sounds were of running water, the clink of occasional dishes hitting one another, and the squeak of cotton on ceramic.

"You okay? You were quiet. Even for you," Futaba asked, putting down a dried spoon on top of a pile of equally dried dishes to put away later.

"Yeah, I'm… fine," responded, handing her another spoon.

"That's what people who aren't fine say," she shot back. "When they want you to think they are fine."

"True. But I am fine. Promise." His glasses were fogging up. He used the back of his wrist to push them up to sit atop his head. "I was just listening to everyone else. It was nice to have everyone together again."

"...not everyone," she mumbled, looking at the cloth in her hands.

"Besides," he handed her the last item; the ladle. Then he emptied the sink and turned to grab the empty pot off the stove, putting it into the sink and filling it with water and soap to soak, "I don't have any cool stories to tell anyway."

"Sure you do. What about that guy that comes into 7s on Fridays. The cigarette guy!"

"That's… not exactly the most exciting story in the world. It's worth a chuckle, at most. Here, put these away for me, will you?" Ren turned off the tap and grabbed the towel from his apron string to dry his hands.

"Okaay, what about that time at the bar with Ohya, when she tried to switch out your water with rice wine while you were chatting up that regular who likes to hit on you. That was pretty funny." Futaba retorted, bringing the stack of dishes and cutlery to their places behind the counter. "Or that time you and the scary gun store guy went shopping for pet supplies? Didn't he pump you for information after his son brought home that stray?"

"Yeah, he thought all cats were supposed to be as well behaved as Morgana. Still can't believe he never made a fuss about me bringing a cat to work all those times," he mused, coming behind the counter and ruffling Futaba's hair.

"Guy looks ready to take on a level 99 mob, but he really is a big ol'softy inside, huh. Kinda like you in a way. Without your glasses, you look ready to wreck someone's day," She replied, shoving Ren's hands away from her hair with a huff, "Funny how someone's face and real self can be so totally different…"

The rest of August was spent working, spending time with friends both as a group and one-on-one. Towards the end of the month, the former Phantom Thieves took over the cafe again to crank out the rest of their summer homework, with Ren playing host by supplying them with refills of coffee and a dinner of curry. On their final night as a group, a combination of a fancy decoration cake and fresh fruit— brough by Ann and Haru respectively— was shared over coffee.

"So, it's back to school in a couple of days, huh. Can't say I'm looking forward to it, but well, you know," Ryuji shrugged, shoving a forkful of cake into his mouth.

Haru took a sip of coffee, "I am looking forward to this term because we will be helping at a real vineyard for a week in October. It will be grape-season in Yamanashi prefecture so we will be helping harvest and learn more about the various applications of grapes in a live setting. It should prove delightful."

"Isn't Yamanashi famous for its wine, senpai?" Sumire asked, raising her fork to look at a grape speared on its tongs.

"Err, I think so?"

"Wait, you work in a bar. How do you not know these things?" Futaba exclaimed.

"I don't actually get to drink any of it. I'm still underage. Lala watches me like a hawk and you do not want to get on the bad side of that woman," Ren replied, shaking his head.

"Doesn't stop Ohya,"Futaba shot back.

"No, it does not."

"Spill! There's a story here and we need to hear it," Ryuji pointed his fork at Ren.

"Indeed. This sounds like a most interesting tale," Yusuke said, not looking up from his artfully arranged plate of fruit. A slice of melon was bracketed by a small bunch of purple grapes and a couple of cherries tied together via stem. His fork was untouched, prongs down, at the forefront of his plate.

Ren looked at the expectant faces of his friends— and the self-satisfied smirk of Futaba— and felt he had no choice but tell them of his exploits while working at Crossroads. He even told them about some of his more unique customers at his other jobs and the episode with Iwai. By the end of it, Ren's throat was sore from talking, and he felt pleasantly buzzed regardless of the lack of alcohol in his veins. He could feel the ache in his cheeks from smiling.

"Wow, you've been working your ass off. But you've probably saved enough to pay for any school you want now," said Ryuji, wiping a dab of frosting off his chin with the back of his hand.

"Ryuji!" several voices shouted at once.

"What?!"

"Read the room," Morgana hissed.

"What's that supposed to mean, fur ball? Seriously, why is everyone looking at me like that?" Ryuji's eyes snapped to Ren with uncertainty, "Ren-Ren?"

"I didn't get in. Anywhere," Ren replied simply.

"Oh, my." Haru.

"That certainly is…" Makoto.

"Unfortunate." Yusuke.

A beat of silence from the thieves. All Ren heard was the blood pounding in his ears.

"I told you I could—"

"You could come work for me. If you want." Haru cut across. "I believe I mentioned wanting to start a subdivision of my father's company dedicated to coffee and other cafe products. You certainly have the experience, regardless of education, and I can not imagine that Boss would be too displeased."

"I…"

"If that's the case, why don't you just work here then? I'm sure Sojiro'd give you a job. Like a proper job-job. I could talk to him if you want. Turn on the sad puppy dog eyes. He won't know what hit him. It's got a one hundred percent crit-rate. Unblockable too!"

"That's not…"

"I'm sure that if you continue applying to schools, one of them will let you in. Otherwise, that would be discrimination. Do you want me to ask my sister—"

"That's ENOUGH!" Ann, sweet, beautiful Ann. "Stop acting like it's the end of the world. It's not. Plenty of people don't go to Uni and still do just fine. Why are we making such a big deal out of this?"

"She's right. This doesn't change anything, Senpai. We'll support you, no matter what. You were there for us when we needed it and we'll be here for you too. Regardless of what you decide…" Ren noticed she pointedly did not say 'regardless of what happens', "we'll have your back. Right?"

A chorus of agreement sprung up around the room. Ren could do nothing but nod.

Later that evening, after most of the thieves had said their goodnights, Ren was pulled aside by his best friend, "Look man, I'm sorry for before. Didn't mean to put you on the spot like that. I feel like such an ass."

"It's… fine."

"No, it's not. I really eff-ed up and I'm sorry." Ryuji nudged Ren's shoulder with his own. He then turned and looked Ren in the eye, "I'll do better. For real."