Sae Niijima clashes once more with Mitsuru Kirijo.
[10/29, The Present Day - Evening]
Maya parked her car, listening to some guy grumbling behind her. Huh? Did she drive too fast?
'One of those days, we shall meet the Master Persona in the sea of souls once more. Sooner, rather than later.' Artemis told her.
"That's an exaggeration, I won't die that soon. I guess I was just slightly over the speed limit, that is all." Maya said nonchalantly.
'I am thou.' Artemis said in response as if that explained everything.
Maya paid her guardian angel no heed and entered the hotel. They were going to meet at one of the expensive hotel's restaurants, a reservation under Katsu's name.
A part of her was dreading being near Tatsuya again. Philemon had come and gone through the years, always watching over her, so she had no doubt he did the same to him. She was so used to it that she stopped trying to make sense of things whenever the pesky butterfly appeared, and just proceeded to ignore his presence as he was likely just making sure she didn't try to break the fabric of reality or something.
Maya was ushered into the restaurant, and directed by the waiter to her friend's table. She brightened up as soon as she spotted the handsome duo, her heart skipping up a little beat upon seeing Tatsuya.
"Hello there boys. It's been a while." She said in greeting, a small smile on her face.
Katsuya smiled and got up to greet her warmly. "Hello, Maya."
"Hi, Maya. You look well." Tatsuya said, running a hand through his hair as if a little self-conscious.
He was too damn cute.
"Thanks. You boys don't look too shabby either, eh?"
They sat down and used the time to catch up with each other. Maya talked about her editorial adventures at Kismet Tokyo, and the boys explained they were in Town to try to help Sae with her investigation.
"And you got assistance from Nanjo?" She asked, raising an eyebrow in surprise.
"Yes. One of Sae's suspects was Mitsuru Kirijo. We needed Nanjo's help to contact her and interrogate her. She ended up cooperating with us, and brought us here to perform a private investigation alongside another detective of her trust." The elder brother replied.
She immediately crossed her arms and sent Katsuya a pointed look. "Okay. What did she ask you two to look into?"
"The Phantom Thieves."
Maya blinked. "...What for?"
This time, it was Katsuya who narrowed his eyes on her. "What do you think?"
To get the bounty!? Well, then again Kirijo is dirty rich...
Obviously, it was to figure out how the mental shutdowns happen. Maya immediately sighed. "...Figures."
Katsu snorted. "Come on Maya. You know this must have something to do with Personas."
Maya widened her eyes, surprised that Katsuya would speak of this in front of his brother.
She looked expectantly at the younger Suou. "Tatsuya, you...?"
The younger brother shook his head. "I don't remember anything... All I can hear is my Persona."
"Oh. I see..." She said helplessly, not sure how to feel about that. Was he supposed to be able to do this, after all that happened?
Maybe she does need to pay attention to Philemon after all.
Turning to Katsuya again, Maya covered her face with her hands and sighed. "Yes. I have known this was Persona business since the very first mental shutdown."
Katsuya crossed his arms sternly. "Why didn't you contact us?"
"Because It was sudden? I had no idea what was going on in those early days. Took me a while to figure it out, and when I did, it was too dangerous to involve anyone openly. The girls would never forgive me if I put the two of you at risk. We already lost Mi-chan and Masa." Her eyes dimmed, thinking of her friends. Wakaba's face also came to mind, unbidden. "And I lost another friend too... I couldn't bear to lose any more people..."
Sensing her distress, Tatsuya reached out and touched her hand, squeezing it. She looked up at him, surprised, but smiled slightly at the honesty in his eyes.
"I understand." He said with sincerity. "I might not remember the full extent of what is going on... But I would have done the same to protect those I care for."
"Thanks, Tatsu." She said sincerely. He released her hand and then scratched his chin as if realizing his bold move. She resisted the urge to chuckle.
Beside his little brother, Katsuya softened. "I guess I can see where you were coming from as well, but Maya... you can't take all the burdens of the world upon your shoulders alone."
She winced. "I know... I promise I will tell you all I can once we are at a better place and time."
Both brothers nodded in agreement.
The trio remained in a contemplative silence after that exchange, until Maya cleared her throat again. "...Are you guys going to tell Sae about Personas?"
"I'm not entirely sure. You know how much of a skeptic that girl is." Katsuya replied with a sigh.
Maya snorted. Should she tell them that their niece was already, most likely, a Persona user as well?
Then again... She promised Sae and Amamiya-kun that she would keep her mouth shut about what she saw that day at the subway station entrance.
"Well... Why not give it a try? At worst, she'll just laugh it off." She said more neutrally.
"We'll see," Katsuya said cryptically.
Maya now faced a conundrum. After she theorized about Makoto's situation and all the clues that she collected, she was pretty sure that Makoto, Sae, Amamiya-kun, and Okumura-chan were members of the Phantom Thieves.
But with the brothers now investigating the Phantom Thieves at Nanjo and Kirijo's behest, Maya was torn on what to do. She was more inclined to protect the Thieves than to out them, but she also trusted Katsuya and Tatsuya with her life.
What to do, what to do?
Maybe she should lock all the known parties in a room and have them all clear up the air? That way, Maya could finally show everyone that amazing conspiracy mural she has worked on for years now.
Somewhere in her mind, she swore she heard Artemis sigh at that thought.
"So, remind me again... Why exactly am I coming with you?" Ren asked Sae as she drove them through the highway that would lead them to downtown Shibuya.
The silver-haired prosecutor resisted the urge to sigh. "Because my sister is distorted, and I need reinforcements. Your presence should make her a lot more docile."
"Alright, that's understandable but... Isn't this a family gathering? I don't want to intrude." He asked with an odd tone of voice.
Sae snorted. "Since when are you this self-conscious about butting in on anything? Besides, you're her boyfriend. We can always just use that excuse to introduce you to the rest of the family."
He grinned and then batted his eyelashes like a cute little princess, putting a fist against his mouth to cover it in fake shyness. "Awww, does that mean you consider me family, Sis?"
She felt the corner of her mouth lift at his silly antics. Sae didn't want to laugh, so she gritted her teeth and sent him a glare instead.
Motherfucker, he almost caught her off guard with that one.
"Call me Sis again, and I'll send you back to Juvie." She grumbled, to mask her mirth.
Ren gasped and wobbled his lips as if he was on the verge of crying. "If you do that, you're going to leave my children fatherless... Who is going to feed Yusuke in my absence?"
"He has a job now." She quipped. "Also, shouldn't that be Morgana?"
Ren sighed dramatically. "Morgana can hunt his food in the wild. But fair point. Alright, no Sis for you then! Just Satan for now."
Sae rolled her eyes, but she felt a lot less on edge than before.
They remained in silence for a little while, until Ren ran a hand through his fluffy hair. "I hate that this is happening to Makoto."
She pursed her lips, her eyes firmly on a traffic light, waiting for it to turn green. "I know. I loathe it too. But, at least she seems to still be loyal to you guys."
He stayed quiet for a time, then removed his fake glasses, staring at her piercingly with his dark gray eyes. "I don't know if it's loyalty, or something else. I'm more concerned than anything."
She had no response to that. She had noticed Makoto's possessiveness too.
"It feels so empty without our bond." He confessed with some rawness behind his voice. "She had come along so far, and yet... I don't know what to think. I don't even know if she still has her Persona. And I'm afraid to ask and make things worse."
Sae let out an almost pained breath. "There is nothing we can do if she doesn't. We're surrounded by adversity on multiple fronts. A part of me wants to despair and fall on my knees because I truly feel responsible for all the trauma that broke her."
The traffic opened, and she drove again. Ren remained quiet, likely awaiting to see if she would give her speech any sort of conclusion.
She did so, not long after, her voice coming out almost strangled by the clear pain she had in her heart. "It hurts me every time she looks at me with hatred and disgust when she reminds me that I did this to her with my own words and actions."
He shook his head and huffed. "Sae, you can't beat yourself up forever. I told you before. Yes, you were wrong. But you were also just as much of a victim of circumstances as she was."
"I know this now. In the end, the only thing I can do to remedy those mistakes is to own them and take responsibility for her wellbeing. Makoto is my sister, but I also sort of cherish her as if she were my child." She told him with sincerity, her heart tearing apart and her voice cracking with some agony. "I love her. I can't lose her."
"You won't. We'll save her together." He told her firmly. "You're not alone. We got your back. You're one of us now."
She glanced at him, and gauged the sincerity in his eyes and his conviction, then looked ahead once more, paying attention to the roads.
You're one of us now.
Her chest tightened. There was so much she wished she could say to that...
Ren waited.
He knew it was going to come eventually. He could feel it.
"...Thank you," Sae whispered, her voice shaky and vulnerable.
The young barista turned his head to stare at his girlfriend's sister. Her eyes might've been glued to the roads, but the depth of emotion in them was enough to tell him she had more to say. He just had to wait.
It didn't take long. Sae cleared her throat. "All these years since I lost my mother... I've always isolated myself from others. I never felt like I needed allies... Friends. I told myself that my father, uncles, Maya, and Makoto were enough. But that's not true at all..." She whispered, her voice taking a sad quality. "Recently, I've discovered that walking alone hurts. A lot more than I expected."
He gave her a reassuring smile. Sae sighed, slowing down on her driving, and parking the car. They had arrived at their destination.
But neither of them moved to get out of the car. He saw her squeezing the steering wheel tightly.
"...I've wasted so much time of my youth worrying about the future and trying to grow up fast. But now that I'm finally an independent adult... It feels like I don't have a life that I can say I truly enjoy. As you've told me yourself... I didn't have room to be a child. And now, I don't have room to be anything other than an adult."
His heart went out to hers.
"I've never had this before, not properly. The willingness, and openness to forge experiences and bonds with other people my age... Unless you count Takemi Senpai, that is. But even that was fleeting. Soon enough she graduated, and I was on my own once more."
"I'm sorry." He said, feeling genuinely bad for her.
"Don't be, I just... I'm fine with that because I found her again, and It made me realize how important she was to me, even if we were friends for such a short time back then..."
"I'm glad that is the case. The doctor could use a friend like you, believe me." Ren spoke with a kind smile.
She smiled back, likely thinking of Tae. Then her smile turned a little bitter, self-deprecating.
"In any case, what I mean to say is that... I just feel like it's a shame that I've missed out." She confessed.
He disagreed. "You didn't miss out. To wait is not always a waste of time. Sometimes, it's also an opportunity. And now that you took it, here you are, with more friends than you know what to do with. Even if they are just some rowdy teenagers and one silly talking cat."
Sae laughed, a couple of tears that were ok the corner of her eyes escaping as she did so. "Not-cat. Don't forget it."
He grinned in response. She was already getting the spirit of things.
She wiped away the stray tears and sighed. "It's just been a month, but it feels like my life has changed radically on so many fronts. There are so many things I'm discovering... You know. Sometimes, it's too much, even for me."
"It's okay to be overwhelmed and vulnerable, sometimes, you know?"
She chuckled a little. "I suppose... I guess this whole thing has just been incredibly draining, is all."
"You know what this means, right?" Ren asked with a teasing, challenging tone.
Sae merely leveraged a curious eyebrow at him.
"When this whole mess is over... We should all go on vacation. A road trip. We'll get Madam Sae Niijima to sightsee the homeland, and enjoy herself without thinking too hard. That's a Phantom promise."
He saw her blink at him several times, then started to chuckle fondly. "You mean, we'll become an itinerary circus if we carry you across Japan."
"That too. But it's still going to be the best vacation ever, or God help me." He said, emulating both her and Makoto's sternness.
She finally laughed. Ren grinned with a sense of accomplishment.
After she recovered from her mirth, Sae's eyes had something almost like a hint of admiration and pride in them. "Sounds like a plan."
'I can sense the great serpent of hell's gratitude for me.'
JUDGEMENT ARCANA: RANK 4
"Now, come on. Let's get this over with, I'm eager to see my uncles."
Ren tensed. The silver-haired woman looked at him, then seemed to realize his problem.
"Don't worry. They might be cops, but they are fine gentlemen. I promise you they won't be the same as whatever those bastards that arrested you were."
He relaxed. "Okay. Thanks. Let's do this, then."
Tatsuya smiled fondly at the scene in front of him.
Maya was now chatting both his and Katsuya's ears off, and he found that he enjoyed her conversation very much. After their somewhat heavy talk about Personas and investigations, the trio needed a respite. Fortunately, Maya was just the right person for that, as she recounted the day she spent with their nieces hunting a dress for Makoto.
"I think we almost broke Mako-chan. Poor thing." She said with a bright laugh. "We ended up having lunch at a butler and maid café. Where one of Makoto's friends works at."
Katsu snorted. "You all seemed to have a lot of fun."
Tatsuya was about to let out a quip too, when he spotted his oldest niece walking into the restaurant, followed by a young man.
"Look who is here." He spoke, drawing Maya and Katsu's attention to the new arrivals.
"Sae-chan! And... Amamiya-kun?" Maya spoke, half in greeting and half in surprise.
"Hey, auntie." Sae greeted Maya with a small smile, and it only widened when she saw both of her uncles. "Tatsu, Katsu. I'm really glad you're finally here."
"We're glad as well, honey," Tatsuya said as he fondly squeezed his niece's shoulder, while Katsu also greeted her happily
"Amano-san. It's nice to see you again." The young man spoke to Maya with some familiarity.
"Likewise!" Maya said with a small grin in response. Tatsuya and Katsu took that opportunity to greet the boy as well.
"And who do we have here?" His big brother asked with a raised eyebrow. Tatsuya observed with amusement as the young man's body language seemed a little out of sorts, even though his game face was impeccable.
"This is Makoto's boyfriend, Ren Amamiya." Sae introduced with a small, devious smirk on her lips. The boy squirmed ever so slightly.
"Is that so?" Katsu said, likely remembering the conversation they had about the boy back when they came to visit Sumaru.
"...I'm her future husband, yes," Amamiya-kun replied with a deadpan.
Maya snickered immediately, while Sae had a scowl on her face. "What the f… I don't appreciate that kind of Joke!"
Tatsu blinked, then chuckled. "He is bold, I'll give him that."
Katsuya looked torn between amused and exasperated. "...So I get that you're a bit of a jokester?"
"I try, Suou-san."
"He is a little clown, alright," Sae grumbled, almost fondly. Amamiya-kun just let out a little grin in response.
They spent some time making small talk after they ordered some drinks, including something non-alcoholic for Amamiya-kun. Tatsuya observed his eldest niece, catching on to the evident stress and tiredness on her face. He was concerned, especially since Sae had all of Mi-chan's tendencies of overworking.
"Not that I'm complaining that the two of you are here, but... Where is the Little Panda?" Katsuya asked with curiosity.
Something dark crossed Sae's features. She glanced ever so slightly at Amamiya-kun, whose own face seemed full of worry.
"...Makoto is at her friend's house. She'll arrive in a bit, I'm sure of it." Sae replied, hesitating a little.
There was an odd lull in the conversation after, with nobody sure of what to say, until Katsuya elbowed him ever so slightly about ten minutes after, and Tatsuya looked up.
Makoto entered the hotel's restaurant, with a confident swagger and a smirk on her lips. Tatsuya's eyebrows rose in surprise, not necessarily judging his niece, just a little taken aback at her body language and new sense of fashion.
Then, as she approached and met his gaze, he sensed something heavy in the air. Beside him, Katsu didn't seem to register it.
'The girl... She is not the same as the one from this side.' Apollo spoke in his mind, his whisper almost tormented.
'What do you mean?' He questioned.
Apollo remained quiet, and Tatsuya frowned. His persona rarely said anything and truth to be told, Tatsuya couldn't even tell what he looked like. He just knew he was there.
Why would he speak out now, of all times?
He was startled out of his thoughts by Makoto finally approaching their table and greeting everyone.
"Sorry, did I make all of you wait too long?" She said teasingly.
Sae blinked a few times and looked her sister up and down while the girl was greeting their uncles.
Makoto looked quite punkish.
"Wow, Mako-chan! You're rocking that look, honey!" Maya said with a happy laugh when Makoto moved to greet her next. Her sister grinned at their auntie and turned around to show the older woman her complete outfit.
"Hm, really? I'm glad..." Makoto said with a smug, proud smirk until she did a double take when she spotted her boyfriend. "Whoa, Ren-kun? What are you doing here, baby?"
Baby? What the fuck, Makoto.
Beside her, Amamiya gaped like a complete buffoon, his eyes wide as saucers and his cheeks red as he seemed to take in Makoto's new appearance. Sae resisted the urge to bash her head against the table.
"Erm, your sister invited me to meet your uncles..." Ren said awkwardly as Makoto sat down by him and immediately glued herself to his side, almost snuggling with him in front of the others, shamelessly.
"How nice of her," Makoto responded with a purr and a menacing little grin.
Katsuya was sharp, and he seemed to notice the ridiculous, stark contrast between the girl they had always known and this distorted version of her. "...Is everything alright, girls?"
"Hm? Of course, sir." Makoto replied, feigning innocence. Sae resisted the urge to scoff at her sister's good-girl act.
Katsuya observed them, turning his head to wait for confirmation from Sae herself. Sae just shrugged. What was she supposed to say? 'Makoto is not okay because her shadow is distorted'?
"So, SaeSae... Not gonna say anything about my new looks?" Makoto provoked, using her own childhood assigned nickname for Sae.
But instead of getting angry, Sae just snorted. It was cute that Makoto thought she could provoke her with such childish things such as a nickname and her new choice of wardrobe. Did she forget Sae's shadow's sense of risqué fashion?
Sae smirked. "You look gorgeous. I'll buy you some studded earrings to go with the look later."
Makoto looked taken aback, and then her eyes glinted with something dangerous. Ren put a hand on her arm to dissuade her, and it worked.
"You look wonderful, my Queen," Amamiya said while dorkily adjusting his glasses.
Makoto's attention was instantly taken away. Sae crossed gazes with Maya, who seemed to catch on that there was some weird thing going on.
Katsuya cleared his throat. " It suits you, honey."
Tatsuya just gave her a thumbs up.
"Thanks, uncles!"
Dinner was an experience. Amamiya was torn between drooling when looking at Makoto as well as despairing whenever Makoto opened her mouth to say something unhinged. Sae wanted to strangle someone, Maya looked both amused and concerned, and the uncles were amused and confused.
Makoto seemed to be the most relaxed out of everyone.
This continued for a time. Fortunately, her wonderful uncles focused on engaging Ren in normal conversation while Maya distracted Makoto as much as she could.
Sae just sat there, thinking that karma was a bitch.
Maya knew this was coming. Sae had excused herself from the others so she could go to the restroom, and pointedly tossed her sharp looks. The woman sighed and accompanied her niece.
In reality, her niece took her to a secluded corridor in the hotel, and her facial expressions darkened. "Listen, auntie... I'm sure you've noticed Makoto is out of sorts."
"I did," Maya replied. "I'm not going to ask too many questions, but I will assume this has something to do with what happened the other day between you two?"
"In a way, yes. But it goes much deeper... I just wanted to get some answers from you, though. And before you shut me out again, I know about Shido."
Maya paled, and grabbed Sae by the arm, whispering close to her in alarm. "What!? How did you find out!?"
"Damn it. So you knew. Is that why you are so paranoid and cagey about Isshiki?" Sae questioned, also whispering furiously.
"What do you think? He had Wakaba killed" She retorted.
Maya saw a myriad of conflicting emotions cross Sae's face at her response. The older woman released her surrogate niece's shoulder and shook her head. "You know this is not the place, nor the time to talk about this."
Sae seemed frustrated with her. "When will it be? You're always dodging the subject!"
Maya lost her patience, and let out a gamble. "For a good reason. You know what a Persona is, don't you?"
Sae's look of quiet shock was enough. Maya shook her head at the confirmation.
Maya closed her eyes, and let her senses expand. This was similar to reaching the Kadath Mandala on your own, but not quite. This special space was something she developed as a way to manifest her Persona in reality without fully materializing it, something she and Wakaba perfected together in her friend's experiments.
She grabbed Sae's hand, and let her watch the world through the lens of her third eye.
"Auntie, that's..." Sae whispered in amazement. "Is that... Is that your Persona?"
"Yes. Meet Artemis." Maya said with a tiny grin as Artemis mimicked her hand movements behind her.
"I am Artemis... The moon goddess who illuminates my other self's twilight virtue... And keep her terrible driving skills in check." The Persona greeted.
Maya rolled her eyes. This was Wakaba's fault. She got her persona to learn jokes!
Artemis was hard to describe. She looked, shall we say it, quite abstract yet futuristic. Well, Maya personally thought she was the very definition of COOLEST.
...Okay, maybe the poor jokes weren't Wakaba's fault after all.
It was quite endearing to see the wonder in Sae's eyes. "How are you able to do this in reality? I thought the metaverse was a requirement..."
Maya blinked and released her powers, as well as Sae's hand. "Metaverse? What is that? "
The silver-haired woman looked puzzled. "...You don't know?"
Maya shook her head. "No. I just summon it at will. The power of beliefs, hopes, and dreams... They become real and manifest in the real world as my Persona."
Sae's gaze was calculating. "I see... So cognition, but manifested outwards?"
"Precisely. This is what Wakaba and I have been working on for so long. Do you understand why I can't just go around telling everyone about this?"
"...I see your point. As for the Metaverse... It's how I can manifest my own Persona."
Maya nodded. "I figured as much. I assume this is what happened in the subway, the other day?"
"Yes. And I hope you won't speak out about this to anyone else."
"I promised, didn't I?"
Sae nodded reluctantly.
"Man, we sure are in a pickle..." Maya mumbled, tiredness coloring her voice. "Listen hon, our time is running out, your uncles and the kids might start to wonder why we're taking so long. We should go back."
"Fine. But just one more thing..."
"Yes?"
"My uncles... Do they know about this? Are they Persona users, too?"
It wasn't Maya's place to tell, so she resorted to a deflection. "...Just talk to your uncles later."
Sae looked right through her soul. It was as good as a confirmation, but at least Maya could say she didn't openly say anything.
"...I see," Sae replied in the end, her eyes dawning with realization.
They returned to the table after, both quiet and contemplative, and the rest of the night proceeded more calmly until it was time for everyone to part.
Still, as she returned to her car, Maya's mind only had one thought: Things just kept getting more and more complicated.
[10/30, The Present Day - Morning]
Her uncles called her early in the morning, telling her that Kirijo-san was finally interested in meeting her in person. While Sae was still reeling from the fact that Maya was a persona user and that her uncles might be potential users as well, Kirijo was another can of worms that she felt like she had to open right away and get dealt with.
Especially since her uncles seemed adamant about cooperating with the woman, for whatever reason.
Sae had barely crossed the door's threshold, but she already hated the conference room. There was something incredibly prepotent to this whole setup.
Maybe it was the extravagance and excessive display of wealth and resources. Or perhaps, not so much the materiality of it, but the message it was trying to deliver: She might be an agent of a (debatable) prestigious government institution, but the truth is, this was Kirijo's turf and territory, not hers.
Sae detested it. Sure, she was impressed by the woman's audacity to posture. But she still detested it vehemently.
The prosecutor and her dearest uncles fully entered the room, and Sae was immediately taken aback at the woman lounging on the luxurious couch, wine glass in hand and a bored, almost arrogant expression on her face.
What the fuck. Sae forgot how stunning this woman looked. And her newfound bisexuality didn't help. At all.
"We meet again, Niijima-san." Said the velvety, smooth voice of one Mitsuru Kirijo, the air of superiority immediately irritating the hell out of Sae.
"Indeed, we do, Kirijo-san. Hopefully, this meeting will be a lot more amicable than the last one." She opted to respond instead.
She was going to play nice enough for the sake of her uncles. But she wasn't planning on letting the head of the Kirijo group treat her like some shitty pushover the other woman could toy around with.
Mitsuru's lips lifted into a small, sardonic smile. "Please, Niijima-san, detectives, take a seat."
Sae gracefully sat down on the ridiculously luxurious couch opposite the one Kirijo and her allies were seated at. Her uncles followed suit, Tatsu on her left, and Katsu on her right, giving the prosecutor an extra sense of security.
"Allow me to introduce you to my colleagues and friends." The redhead started with a drawl. "On my left is Kei Nanjo, head of the Nanjo group."
The prosecutor lifted an elegant eyebrow. She heard of Nanjo-san as a small child but never had any contact with the man whatsoever. "A pleasure to meet you, Nanjo-san."
The man smiled politely and dipped his head ever so slightly. "Well met, Niijima-san. I knew your mother, you somewhat remind me of her."
She relaxed a bit. "Thank you, Nanjo-san. Hearing that is a personal honor for me."
The man nodded.
Kirijo then introduced her to another companion."This is Detective Naoto Shirogane. I'm sure you need no further introduction, having worked with another aspiring detective who takes after her moniker, and all."
Sae resisted the urge to roll her eyes at the unnecessary jab. It's not like she is willing to advocate for or defend Akechi of all people any longer. Especially not if their theories on him being the perpetrator turn out to be true.
"It's a pleasure to meet you as well, Shirogane-san. I admire your work." She opted to reply.
"Thank you, Niijima-san. And Likewise, I heard much about your work at the SIU." The detective confirmed politely, her gaze analytical.
The prosecutor almost snorted. Her absurdly corrupt cases at the SIU, huh? The only decent record Sae had, was back when Sensei was still alive.
Kirijo raised an eyebrow at Sae's shifting expression of contemplation but didn't seem to dwell on it for too long. "Now that the introductions are out of the way... I'm sure you have many questions."
"Yes." Sae said, narrowing her eyes. " I do wonder. What made you change your mind, Kirijo-san? I remember being quite rudely turned down multiple times when trying to inquire with you."
Kirijo's mouth curled in a faint, condescending smile. "Well, I did wait for you to return with your judicial order. It's just that you never did."
Sae almost gritted her teeth in irritation but kept her composure, so as to not give the other woman the pleasure of seeing her affected. "You have my Boss to thank for that."
"Naturally," Kirijo replied. "Now, why don't we stop running around in circles, and be more frank and forthcoming?"
The silver-haired prosecutor crossed her arms in front of her. "That would be my preference as well."
"Excellent. In that case... Are you working solely for the SIU's interests? Last I heard, you are now the woman in charge of finding and capturing the Phantom Thieves, after all."
Sae scoffed. "What is this now, are YOU interrogating me?"
Kirijo's smile was sardonic. "Is genuine curiosity a crime now, Madam prosecutor?"
The audacity of this woman to taunt her!
"If you must know, no. But I do have a personal stake in finding the perpetrator of the mental shutdowns, so I don't rule out everything that might be a potential problem. "
Kirijo touched her cheek with a finger, her face full of taunting speculation. "Interesting, so I'm a suspect? Well, I must disappoint you and tell you that I don't happen to be them. There are no connections there."
Sae knew this now and had known for a long time. Akechi and Masayoshi Shido were her top leads, even though she couldn't fathom a single reason why Akechi would work for a man such as Shido.
Still, she decided to not give her game away to Kirijo of all people.
"Really? What about your interest in Wakaba Isshiki, for example." Sae questioned, even though she knew the answer.
"Mere scientific curiosity," Kirijo said. "It's no secret that the Kirijo group has a scientific branch dedicated to medical, psychological, and military research. Cognitive Psience just happens to be one of our study areas."
"That's quite the coincidence," Sae growled out. So, researching Personas.
Awfully convenient.
"Sae." Her uncle Katsuya started, sensing Sae's agitation with the woman. "Please hear Kirijo-san out. You have more interests in common than you think."
The silver-haired woman turned to look at her uncle, and his stern, pleading gaze, made the pettiness bleed out of her a little.
"Fine, let's hear you out then. What are our common interests?"
"Finding out the truth, what else?" Kirijo said as if it was obvious, irking Sae in the process once again. "We are more than happy to assist in your ongoing investigation so long as it helps prove our group's innocence. Naturally, you are a part of the SIU, which means you have the power to prosecute and investigate powerful people. The problem is, I fear I do not trust the institution to do a clean job of it."
Sae considered her words. Then sighed. "...You are not alone there, Kirijo-san. I fear the director is compromised."
"Oh?"
Might as well lay some of her cards on the table. "He is the middleman between the contracted assassin and Masayoshi Shido."
Kirijo's eyes finally widened in shock, and even her companions seemed surprised at this revelation. "...How did you find that out?"
Sae almost smirked openly, but instead, tossed the USB drive in the table in front of them. "Kunikazu Okumura told me so."
Kirijo, still a little taken aback, leaned in and picked up the storage device. "That's unexpected... So you know of Shido's involvement."
"I know now, and I'm not stupid. One wrong move and I'm dead. "
"I see... Well, this changes things. Are you willing to double-cross the SIU for the sake of the truth and find justice for all the victims?" Kirijo asked sharply.
"Of course I am. Must I remind you, madam, that I kickstarted the very chain of events that led us here today? I was the one to ask my uncles for assistance. I wouldn't do that if I was in bed with the corruption at the SIU."
The other woman smirked. "I see. Well, that is very good news, Niijima-san. Consider us your new friends now. "
Sae resisted the urge to scoff. Friends, her ass . Kirijo might not be the perpetrator or a part of Shido's schemes, but she must have an angle, an agenda here.
"And with that in mind...Are you familiar with the term 'Persona'?" Kirijo asked, her eyes narrowing.
...There we have it.
Should she lie? Be forthcoming? Play dumb?
She might be trying to garner strong alliances with this woman to combat Shido, yes, but she had to protect the kids' identities first. She didn't fully trust Kirijo's intentions quite yet.
"...I'm afraid not." She said with her most practiced and perfect poker face possible, going as far as affecting some cluelessness.
"Really? That is surprising." It was Nanjo who interrupted, his gaze analytical.
'What the hell is that supposed to mean?'
Sae looked at her uncles for an answer, but Tatsu was pensive and Katsu, clearly stressed out. She narrowed her eyes at their reticence. So were they Persona users too, after all?
"...What do you mean, Nanjo-san?" Sae inquired, compartmentalizing her thoughts for now.
The rich man adjusted the glasses on the bridge of his nose and hummed to himself. "Personas are... A phenomenon that Cognitive Pscience was trying to explain and prove to the general public. It might be directly linked to the cause of all these incidents in the past two years or so. That is exactly what we are trying to pinpoint as of this moment: The source of the mental shutdowns, and how exactly it relates to this phenomenon in question."
"I see... So that is what Wakaba Isshiki was looking into." She said to feign up ignorance. She felt Detective Shirogane's calculating gaze on her but ignored it. "Did you have any progress on that front?"
Nanjo shook his head in a negative gesture and nodded to Kirijo, who took over the conversation once more. "We're working on it. We'll discuss this effectively once we have solid methods to prove the correlation. For now, I'd say we all lay low and continue to quietly work our way through this crisis and do our best to not alert Shido and his faction of the existence of our efforts."
"I see." Sae said dryly. "Well, thank you for finally cooperating at least. Do not hesitate to contact me if your group finds any new leads, I wish to be apprised of any progress on that front."
In response, Kirijo smirked lazily. "Do not worry, Niijima-san. We'll honor our agreement. I thank you for letting us know about Okumura's involvement and knowledge on the matter as well."
"You're welcome. Now, excuse me, but I must be on my way, Kirijo-san." She said, trying to hold back on her urge to be hostile. She turned to Kirijo's companions. "Shirogane-san, Nanjo-san. It was a pleasure meeting you."
Later, when her uncles offered to accompany her to her car, Sae turned to both of them and crossed her arms in front of her. "I do not fully trust Kirijo."
Katsuya sighed. "And I have a hunch she doesn't trust you very much, either. Let's work on building a rapport between the two of you. Slowly. Is that alright?"
"Fine. But please, don't keep me in the dark." She pleaded.
Katsuya stared at her face, his tinted glasses not hiding the calculating gaze he held. "So long as you don't do the same. Or try to do anything reckless when we're not looking. This is all to help you."
Sae shared looks with Tatsu, then turned back to stare at her oldest uncle. "I know."
He relaxed and squeezed her shoulder supportively. "Atta girl."
[10/31, The Present Day - Morning]
Makoto sat quietly in class, making doodles of Buchimaru, completely absentminded, when a large piece of chalk hit her forehead, taking her and the entire class aback.
This has never happened before.
"Pay attention, Niijima!" Ushimaru-sensei barked. "Your grades are already slipping, we don't want it to go any lower before I have to throw my entire box's worth of chalk at you!"
The entire class burst into laughter, except Haru, who looked horrified. Everyone broke into nasty whispers.
"Heh, look at her. Looks like a delinquent now. I bet it's because she is dating that criminal second-year guy!" One boy gossiped with a snicker.
A girl giggled. "Totally. I always knew that Prez was fake. She always tried to suck up to teachers, but once it stopped working, she shows her true colors!"
Not far from her, the useless vice president of her shit council, Nagata, stared at her with contempt. She glared at him until he averted his gaze.
Makoto gritted her teeth. Who the hell did this teacher think he was, to humiliate her so openly and allow these cockroaches to talk about her that way!?
She was about to get the chalk and throw it back, but the class bell rang right at the moment. Dammit. He got lucky.
She gathered her book bag and made her way to exit the classroom. Makoto was about to cross the door threshold when she saw Eiko throw her a smirk and giggle at her.
"Wow, it looks like you aren't so sharp anymore, huh Prez? Next thing we know, you'll become the school's greatest bitch. What a hypocrite… " Eiko said loudly, making the other gaggle of idiot classmates laugh at Makoto's expense.
Makoto's eyes lit up in fury, and she turned around, ready to go back to Eiko's desk and start trashing it, until she got to the cow sitting behind it. She almost made it but a firm hand reached out to her arm and held her firmly.
"Let go." She hissed venomously to the person who stopped her.
Haru looked her in the eye. "No. It's not worth it."
For a split second, she considered shoving Haru roughly off her, but she remembered that she liked Haru very very much. She earned her respect the last time they fought.
"You're very lucky I like you. Or else..." She growled out.
"Or else what? I can do this all day." Haru told her, tone firm.
Makoto relaxed, then chuckled, putting her hands up. "Alright. Alright. I guess we can't mess with Madam Okumura now, can we?"
Haru relaxed ever so slightly at her joking tone. "Promise me you won't do anything Mako-chan, and I'll release you."
"Okay." Makoto said casually.
"I'm being serious, Makoto."
She grinned innocently. "Pinky-promise."
Haru released her...
...And all hell broke loose.
Makoto leaped across one desk like an animal, just to get to Eiko.
"Makoto! No!" Haru said, but her friend's pleas fell on deaf ears.
It was time to get her prey!
Just as she was advancing on Eiko, she felt someone restrain her from behind.
It was that shitty wimp Nagata, of all people.
"You think you're a clever bitch, huh, Prez!? I'm done with you shitting on me and the others!" The boy said, voice full of resentment.
Makoto laughed harshly. "You're so dead when I get out, you dipshit! I'm going to kill you, Nagata!"
"Makoto! Stop this!" Haru pleaded. "You promised!"
She stopped struggling at the tone of disappointment on her friend's voice. Makoto looked to the side and saw Eiko cowering on her desk, terrified.
"I'm gonna make you pay, you fake bitch! Some friend you are!" She screeched at Eiko, shrugging Nagata off until she finally succeeded. The boy yelped as he fell to the ground.
Makoto didn't care. She didn't give a single shit anymore. It was time for divine retribution.
She slowly thundered in the direction of Eiko. Haru stepped in front of the other girl, looking terrified but determined to not let Makoto get to the stupid bitch behind her.
"Maybe I should have let Tsukasa scam you until you had to sell yourself into prostitution, you worthless piece of trash!"
Eiko looked at her, wide-eyed, not fully realizing her words. "W-what? Makoto…"
"I wasted my time on you! You're worthless, nobody loves you, not even your family. I went out of my way for you, when I should have let you just ruin your life out of your own stupidity!" She growled out. "People like you are a waste of space. I hate the fact that I worried sick over you, and thought you were my friend."
Eiko's big hazel eyes widened and filled with tears, and she burst out crying in front of the entire class. Everyone looked at Makoto as if she was an animal.
Even Haru.
Her chest, for some reason, constricted painfully. Why? She shouldn't care. She got rid of the weak parts of her.
So why? Why? Why does it hurt, why?
Makoto left a weeping Eiko, a disappointed Haru, several disgusted classmates, and the classroom behind her, walking hastily through the corridors of the school, until she was out in the streets.
She started to run, directionless, motionless, stagnating rage simmering deep into her body even though she was moving nonstop.
Why does it hurt? Why?
She was right. She was right. She was right!
Eiko didn't deserve her friendship. She is just like Sae. Just another person to backstab her. To exploit her until she was discarded.
Traitors.
All the people she ever loved or cared for, left her eventually.
Makoto sank to her knees, clutching the ground as her vision grew hazy and she saw a floating city in front of her. The look on Haru's face perturbed her. She wouldn't let the Thieves abandon her too. She would force them to accept her as she was, no matter the cost. They were her first and only real friends...
Ann. Ryuji. Yusuke. Haru. Futaba. Morgana. Ren.
Her very own, precious Masked Circle.
A golden butterfly flew in front of her, and Makoto crushed it.
"Hm... Oh? No way... Niijima, is that you?" Said a curious voice, startling her out of her spiral.
Makoto looked up, staring right at the smug, arrogant face of Goro Akechi, his eyes glinting with danger.
To be continued...