Shin Persona Evangelion

by Ultra Sonic 007

Shinji Ikari stared, bewildered by the bizarre-looking man, who gave an intrigued smile. "An interesting guest has arrived. My name is Igor. Welcome to the Velvet Room, young fool...we have important matters to discuss, you and I." (A fusion of the realms of Evangelion and Persona, where not all is as it seems.) (Cover art by Renu of the Sufficient Velocity forums.)

136. SIDESTORY - The Tale of Kurusu: Part 7

Author's Note: And so begins 2025.

I anticipate this sidestory possibly having 5...maybe 6 more parts?

(I swear I didn't mean for this to go so long...but I'm having too much fun with it.)

Begin!

xxxx

Why are we here?

To see how one responds to the inherent chaos...of lives intertwining...

xxxx

/Wednesday: July 20, 2016/

Akira Kurusu noticed that Ann Takamaki was...in a bit of a mood, that day at school.

(So much so, that he completely missed the looks that Yuuki Mishima was shooting him every so often.)

It wasn't until meal period came along that he actually got a chance to confront her alongside Ryuji and Makoto, at the vending machine corner. outside.

The answer about her mood was...surprising, yet not. "For real?" muttered Ryuji.

"...yeah," murmured Ann, burying her face into her hands. "What am I going to do...?"

Long story short: Ann's parents had finally find out about how Kamoshida had assaulted her earlier that year. Apparently, the international attention that Medjed had inadvertently brought to the Phantom Thieves had prompted Ann's parents to look them up, seemingly at a whim...and from there, they had found out about the incident at Shujin. When they had called Ann's caretaker to confirm the story, the older woman had finally broken her silence, throwing Ann under the bus (unintentionally or otherwise...but what was she going to do, lie to the people that had hired her?). "And I assume your parents called you?" Akira asked.

"Mom and Dad were both on the line...and right after I told them that life was going well, Dad outright confronted me about Kamoshida, asking why I hadn't told them..."

Makoto, sitting next to Ann on a bench, leaned in. "And?"

Ann's wince was audible. "...I...may have hung up on them...?"

Makoto blinked. Ryuji flatly remarked, "...dude, really?"

Akira picked the moment for the Grumpy Old Man™ to come out. "Well, I hate to say I told you so..."

"Akira," chastised Makoto.

Morgana poked out of Akira's bookbag, griping, "That's no way to speak to a lady!"

Akira was unphased by their retorts. "I mean, we talked about this. Did you really think your parents were going to stay in the dark forever?"

"I know," groaned Ann. "But...that's the sort of thing that's...hard to talk about...so I just kept putting it off, hoping it'd eventually become easier..."

"...but now I assume the choice has been made for you," remarked Akira, kneading at his temples. "They on their way back to Japan?"

Ann looked up at him with suspicion. "How'd you know...?"

If my daughter had gotten sexually assaulted and kept it from me, I'd drop everything to find out why, Akira thought but didn't say. "It just kind of seems like a 'Mom and Dad' thing to do, if they care about you. And even though you've talked about how busy they always are, I never got the sense that you dislike each other, or that you don't love each other...correct me if I'm wrong."

Ann's head sagged, her thick pigtails bobbing from the movement. "You're not...but this is why I didn't want to tell them, because their work is so important to them...!"

"...well, at least this confirms that they think you're more important than work," said Makoto, keeping her hands in her lap. "That's...not a small thing."

"...you talked with Shiho about it?" asked Ryuji. When Ann groaned into her hands, Ryuji said, "I'll...take that as a yes."

"Did something happen, Lady Ann?" asked Morgana.

"...she just looked incredibly guilty and...walked away."

And these two are STILL dancing around it?! Seriously, why couldn't they just freakin' communicate?! Oh, right. Teenagers. "...so, when are your parents arriving?"

"They'll be here tomorrow night," answered Ann. "And if I don't seem like it, please know that I'm seriously freaking out. Can we just, like, do nothing but Mementos stuff? Can we live in Mementos?"

"Running away isn't going to solve any problems," remarked Akira.

Ann's shoulders lumped. "Mgrhmhble..."

xxxx

After school, whilst heading over to the Practice Building to speak with Dr. Maruki (because honestly, the counsellor was actually closer in age — mentally — to the students at Shujin than Akira was; maybe a softer approach was required...?), he chanced upon a surprising confrontation between Shiho Suzui and Yuuki Mishima. Standing near the washrooms on the second floor, they were within sight of the stairwell connecting to the other floors.

"-I'm trying to get a head count for team members that want to meet over the summer break," said Shiho. Mishima was fiddling with his phone, splitting his attention between it and Shiho.

"...I don't think I'm going to be free for it," said Mishima, sounding rather dour.

"...oh." Shiho seemed disappointed. "How come?"

"Does it matter?" he asked.

"...we still don't have an advisor to replace Kamoshida," said Shiho, her head somewhat downcast. Even from around the corner, Akira — using his Third Eye to suppress all unnecessary inputs, focusing solely on the conversation between the two volleyball players — could sense her simmering frustration. "Even though he's been arrested, it's like this school is hoping the Volleyball Team just withers away...waiting until the scandal eventually fades...but how is that fair to us...?"

Mishima looked over his shoulder, glaring weakly towards the PE Faculty office door at the far end of the hall. "...why do you care?" In response to Shiho's confused look, Mishima elaborated. "The abuse was never a secret...but so long as Kamoshida kept winning, we didn't matter. The school already preemptively forfeited most of this season's games following Kamoshida's arrest, so it's not like the summer Inter-high tournament is something we can even qualify for..."

"...I know, but that doesn't mean we should just give up!" Shiho's passion for her sport leaked through, just going by tone alone. "We can still aim for the prefectural preliminaries next month...the national tournament in October is still possible. Even though it was Kamoshida that brought our school to prominence, it was still the players that got those victories...we can't just let everything revolve around Kamoshida forever..."

"...do you really believe that?" muttered Mishima, sounding bitter in a way that would have been absolutely foreign to Akira's ears the Last Time Around™. "Practically speaking, the school's already decided for us. Victory isn't possible...so why bother...?"

At this, Shiho found herself speechless.

"...you should find something better to do with your time," muttered Mishima. "Keeping your head down is the smart thing to do..." As Mishima turned to the hallway connecting the Practice Building to the Classroom Building, his eyes fell upon Akira.

Akira, having gone behind the corner to pretend that he was looking at his phone, simply glanced up at Mishima. Before he could think of something to say, his mind went still at the sheer, unadulterated panic that entered the boy's eyes.

Mishima, doing his utmost to keep from running, zoomed down the hallway; the impression of a terrified animal fleeing a predator was hard to ignore.

Huh...well then.

"...did you hear any of that?" Akira looked back; Shiho stood with a rather despondent expression.

"...it seemed rather awkward, so I didn't want to intrude," he said. "I was going to head down to Dr. Maruki's office on the first floor," he added, pointing to the stairwell right across from them. "So...yeah."

Shiho weakly smiled. "Eavesdropping is rather rude, Kurusu-san..."

"Well, it would be the sort of thing for a delinquent to do," he joked.

"...I guess it's naive, hoping that everyone would be able to move past what Kamoshida did...even though he's being punished for his crimes, the mark he left on us still remains..." (She didn't have to say it, but he knew she was referring to not just the abuse of the volleyball team, but also what he had done to Ann.) "Have a good day..."

As Shiho walked away, Morgana poked out of his bookbag. "That all seemed rather intense..."

"...no kidding."

"So...you still going to go see Dr. Maruki for advice about Lady Ann?"

"Nope. Change of plans." Akira promptly walked down the stairs, heading towards the academy exit instead of the nurse's office.

"Huh? But why?" asked a confused Morgana.

"Call it a hunch..."

xxxx

After entering Mementos in Shibuya, Joker explained his idea to Mona. The Most Definitely Not a Cat™ was less than enthused. "You think Mishima has a Shadow?"

"I know so, I already checked the Nav." Which wasn't necessarily new; Mishima's Shadow had been distorted the Last Time Around™, to the point of being a potential target. (Alas, a Calling Card hadn't been necessary; a simple encounter — without combat, without violence — had been enough to change his mind. Yet...would the same be possible, now...?) "But just to confirm: we don't need a Calling Card to actually find him, right?"

"...I don't believe so," murmured Mona. "But here's my question: why go out of your way to meet him? If you suspect he's done something requiring a change of heart, then why not do the usual?"

"...like I said, it's a hunch." Not like I can tell you it's due to events from a prior life. "Call it a vibe, or a premonition, or a bad feeling...I just need to check it out."

"...all right, Joker, I'll trust you. But no fighting. We'll head for Mishima's Shadow, do what you need to do, then get out. I'm sensing him on a lower level than we've been to before...so I don't want to be caught unawares without the rest of the team to back us up."

Joker nodded, slipping into the driver's seat after Mona transformed. "Loud and clear."

Down and down, roared the Mona-Van, slipping past Shadows; through the Paths of Qimranut, Aiyatsbus, Chemdah, Kaitul...and into Akzeriyyuth, newly opened. The atmosphere of the depths had taken on a darker aura, writhing with vines that appeared akin to blood vessels, mired in a sickly black and purple aura. Even the tracks had become replaced by human bones. "This place gives me the creeps," murmured Mona.

"Stay frosty; how close are to Mishima's Shadow?" asked Joker, swerving around a curious Shadow.

"...I think he's on this level. Just a few tunnels ahead of us!"

Sure enough, near the escalator that would take them down another level, a subway train came to a halt, letting out a few Shadows; Mishima's was among them, his yellow eyes gleaming amidst the murk. It wasn't until Joker parked the Mona-Van and approached on foot that the Shadow even recognized their presence. "What? Who are you...?"

"Consider me a concerned citizen," remarked Joker, holding up his gloved hands out of defense.

The boy winced, his face morphing into a truly pitiful expression. "Likely story; who would be concerned for the likes of me? The only ones who would, are..." The Shadow suddenly went still, eyes narrowing with paranoia. "That mask...I get it: you're one of the Phantom Thieves! Here to change my heart...to make me into someone else..."

"...you really think that's what a change of heart is?" asked Joker, keeping at a distance. "I'm really only here to talk; there are people in reality who are worried about you."

"I bet they are," he sneered. "An 'athlete' that couldn't even become a starter...a talentless hack who could only make a living as a gofer...who would care enough to request my heart to be changed?!" Stomping his sneakers on the ground, he added, "I see all the requests that get made on Phan-Watch...I'm not blind to what people are craving...and I'm not ignorant about what happens to those you target! Well, you can forget it! I'm not going to let you target me; I won't let you!"

"Joker, he's getting agitated," warned Mona, keeping an eye out for any potential enemies.

Joker nodded, his focus still trained on Mishima's Shadow. "You haven't even seen a Calling Card; isn't that proof I'm not after you?" Sitting down on the ground, Joker decided to be daring: raising his mask, he exposed his face to Mishima's Shadow. "I really only want to talk with you. I think you're selling yourself short." Come on, Mishima; I know you're capable of more than this...right?

Alas, his method only caused the Shadow to go slack-jawed. "You...of course it's you...it's always been you..." A nervous giggle escaped the Shadow, as an aura of skulls — akin to Will Seeds(?!) — began to emanate from his body. "Always getting your way...trampling over everything...going after the villains, because that's what 'heroes' like the Phantom Thieves do...and what am I, but a lowly villain...?"

"...Joker, something's happening!" exclaimed Mona, grabbing onto his pants leg.

Literal roots began to poke out of the Shadow's skin: all the while, Mishima continued his deranged raving. "It all started with Shujin...I'm not going to be able to escape it, am I? That's all the awaits me...nothing...because that's all I'm good for, right?!" His breathing ran ragged, coinciding with a sickly light leaking from his form. "No escape...no escape...no escape..." Finally, he raised his head up high, screaming at the top of his lungs. "...THERE'S NO ESCAPE!"

At that very instance, the roots coagulated around Mishima, growing tall and sharp; without effort, they pierced through the ceiling of Mementos; then, with a slimy slipperiness, the core containing Mishima's Shadow ascending through the hole, shooting away to parts unknown.

(At that precise moment, in the physical world...Mishima's cognition underwent a fundamental shift, shifting out of place with the world as it was.)

Joker blinked, unsure what to make of what he had just witnessed. "...what just happened?"

"His cognition...it underwent a severe distortion," observed Mona, his face set into a solemn frown. "I think we just witnessed the birth of a Palace."

"...ah." So that's what it looks like. "...well, shit."

xxxx

Needless to say, the Phantom Thieves were...rather bewildered by Akira's discovery.

Ryuji: WTF?
Ryuji: Mishima has a Palace?
Akira: Already checked the Nav
Akira: Instead of Mementos, he now requires keywords
Akira: I screwed up.
Futaba: no need to tell us
Futaba: I can hear you banging your head in Leblanc 3:[

Akira, who had been in the midst of rhythmically thumping his head against his desk, stopped in an instant.

Akira: cheater
Yusuke: What exactly is the nature of this "Mishima"?
Ann: he's our class rep
Ann: kind of a meek and quiet guy
Ann: and he's also on the guys' volleyball team
Makoto: What prompted you to try and meet his Shadow?
Akira: got a bad vibe after overhearing a conversation between him and Suzui
Ann: huh?
Ann: did he threaten her or something?
Akira: No, nothing like that.
Ryuji: why not send a calling card for him on Phan-Watch?
Yusuke: That would be the normal method.

Before Akira could answer, Futaba actually intervened.

Futaba: nah, it wouldn't work
Futaba: Phan-Watch has a script set up to shadowban any posts trying to target Mishima
Futaba: So even if you were to post it, nobody would see it
Ann: wow
Ryuji: why would that be the case?
Futaba: cuz Mishima is the admin of Phan-Watch, duh ┐(´ー｀)┌
Ryuji: HUH?
Yusuke: How do you know this?
Futaba: *gasp*
Futaba: I've been your Tech Guy™ for how long now?
Futaba: delivering calling cards, making posts on Phan-Watch
Futaba: you think I haven't done any digging onto how that website is run?
Makoto: Futaba
Makoto: You didn't do anything illegal to find that out, right?
Akira: Makoto
Akira: You literally found out just yesterday that Futaba is the original Medjed.

A conversation over the group chat that Akira had tuned out after yesterday's broadcast, because...well, he had already known Futaba had been the original 'anonymous hacker of justice'. (He had left it to his friends to be appropriately flummoxed and flabbergasted at how OP their Orange Gremlin™ truly was.)

Akira: And we're Phantom Thieves.
Akira: Legality is more of a loose guideline for us.
Makoto: You raise a legitimate point.
Makoto: But the questionable legality of what we do doesn't mean we should be reckless.
Futaba: ugh, you're such a mom
Makoto: Pardon?
Yusuke: That sounds like it's meant to be an insult.
Yusuke: Why would complimenting someone's maternal qualities be a negative?
Futaba: zip it, Inari
Yusuke: ?
Futaba: :V
Yusuke: I am confused.

These dorks. At least they were an improvement to his mood...

Ryuji: so I guess we're going after Mishima at some point?
Ryuji: but that's a mega downgrade after taking down a mafia boss
Ann: But that's not the point
Ann: Something happened to cause Mishima to develop a Palace.
Ann: And since it's Shujin, I think it's only right for us to go back to where we started!
Ryuji: I guess
Ryuji: besides, aren't we still going after Kobayakawa at some point?
Ryuji: you know, for throwin' Makoto under the bus?

Oh. Right. There was that whole thing. We have to take care of him before he gets targeted by Akechi...

(He had already gotten burned by assumptions once before.)

(Are you sure you're not messing things up again...?)

Makoto: We can consider going after Principal Kobayakawa.
Makoto: But we should coordinate before going after a new target.
Ryuji: plus
Ryuji: you know
Ryuji: the thing with Ann's parents tomorrow
Ann: UGH
Ann: don't remind me ;_;
Akira: Ann
Akira: Is it really so bad for them to fly all the way to Japan?
Akira: I mean, it sounds like they're concerned.
Ann: but that's why!
Ann: I knew they'd drop everything to come back home
Ann: even if it costs them with work
Ann: and I didn't want to do that
Makoto: Some things are more important than work.
Ann: brgjutihruilyh
Ryuji: lol
Ryuji: ur so frazzled
Ann: Shut up! It's not funny! :(
Futaba: Is this how friends fight?
Futaba: It doesn't feel as funny as I thought it would be.
Yusuke: I believe we should acknowledge that Ann is rather nervous about tomorrow.
Ryuji: yeah
Ryuji: just tryin' to lighten the mood
Ann: ugh
Ann: I know
Ann: this sucks
Ann: we should be making summer vacation plans and junk
Makoto: Perhaps we should retire for the night.
Makoto: We'll make a determination about Mishima and Kobayakawa once Ann has settled matters with her parents.
Makoto: We'll know what we can do then.
Ann: Is running away still an option?
Akira: You're going to have to face your fears, Ann.
Ann: jitjguitjgityuldjgi

"...she seems really frustrated," murmured Morgana.

"Yeah." So much so, that Akira texted Ann personally.

Akira: Ann.
Ann: Akira?
Akira: If your parents are as caring as you seem to imply they are
Akira: then I don't think you need to feel *shame* for what Kamoshida did.
Ann: :(

Akira waited patiently, letting Ann take her time to respond over the next several minutes.

Ann: don't get me wrong
Ann: being a Phantom Thief has helped
Ann: more than you know
Ann: but getting revenge on Kamoshida, making him confess
Ann: I thought it would make everything instantly better
Ann: But I still haven't gotten things right with Shiho
Ann: And the thought of telling Mom and Dad about Kamoshida
Ann: and
Ann: the things he did to me
Ann: I'd rather crawl in a hole and hide forever
Ann: is that a crazy thing to feel?

No...no it's not. With a tired sigh, Akira replied.

Akira: No matter what happens
Akira: We've all got your back
Ann: :)

That was the last response he got for the night.

"...being a human is tough, isn't it?" observed Morgana.

"Yup," he muttered, feeling more his 'true' age than he had felt in a while.

xx

Day: July 20th, 2016

Well, this day could have gone better.

The True Blonde is panicking about talking to her parents about being a victim, and a guy who was once my friend has gone off the deep end.

Not exactly a good way to lead into the summer vacation.

xxxx

/Thursday: July 21, 2016/

Akira arrived at school to find that his desk had been vandalized: mostly in marker, with stuff like Cheater, Assaulter, Delinquent, and so on. Wow, how tacky.

"Nobody's fessed up to it." Akira turned towards Mishima, who was looking at the words with a detached eye. "I've asked around, but no one in our class has been willing to admit anything. Given your test scores, you'd think stuff like this would have stopped by now..." Looking up at him, Mishima asked, "Did you do something to irritate someone? This seems kind of abrupt..."

Hmm. I wonder, Akira dryly thought, trying to keep his mask of neutrality up. "Not that I can recall. But thanks for looking out for me."

Mishima blinked, as one calculating what the proper response should be. "Right. Do...you need a hand?"

"Nah, I've got it." Let people talk; I've got bigger fish to fry. As Akira left to go get a washrag, he could sense the sly whispers following in his wake.

"...you think Mishima is responsible?" asked Morgana within his bookbag.

"Either that, or he slipped out some rumors that encouraged jerks with weak spines," he murmured.

Sure enough, the rumors slowly began to circulate...and they would only become more outlandish when he was called to the principal's office during the meal period.

What Akira did not expect was for there to be a police investigator present.

"Hello, young man," said the relatively lackadaisical man, his hair hanging in a ratty ponytail. Around his neck was a lanyard, from which dangled an ID card that prominently showed his association with Tokyo's Metropolitan Police. To add salt to the proverbial wound, his chest badge — a gold-wreathed silver emblem with one gold bar — broadcast his rank for all to see. "Inspector Yamadera, at your service."

xxxx

/Meanwhile, back in the present timeline.../

Misato Katsuragi shot to her feet. "You actually had a one-on-one conversation with Kaji? Why are you only bringing this up now?!"

Ren stared flatly at Misato. "...at that time, I didn't have any reason to think of him as anything other than a cop that I needed to avoid." Looking over at Ryuji, he said, "Is she always this single-minded about her ex?"

"Hey!" she protested.

Ryuji Sakamoto sighed, lightly tapping Misato on the side of her thigh with his knuckle. "Katsuragi...just sit down and let the guy talk."

Pouting, Misato did so with great reluctance.

xxxx

/Back to the prior timeline.../

Akira looked over at Principal Kobayakawa with unabashed confusion (and not a hint of alarm). "May I ask what this is all about, kōchō-sensei?"

(Laying it on a bit thick there, aren't you?)

If Masakata Kobayakawa picked up on his faux politeness, he didn't call it out. "Society is a very precarious thing; the order that comes with it is a delicate balance. The presence of the Phantom Thieves has been very disruptive for this social fabric...and given their apparent origin at Shujin Academy, numerous eyes keep falling on us. So it should be no surprise, that the police would want to question someone directly."

"...may I ask, then, why I was specifically called here?" Keep it cool.

Yamadera gave a lazy smile. "Because I asked for you, specifically."

Red flag red flag red flag-! "Is there a reason, officer?"

"Inspector," corrected Yamadera. "Please. I just wanted to have a private chat about certain things." Looking over at the principal, he asked, "Mind if I talk it out on the roof? I'm sure we won't be bothered there."

"By all means," said Kobayakawa with a gratuitous smile, full of fake pleasantness. "I sincerely hope you're able to confirm my own suspicions, dear Inspector."

Yamadera lightly waved him off, letting his long coat rest by the fingers over his shoulder. "Well, Kurusu-kun? I'm sure you know the way..."

"...of course." Well, this stinks to high heaven.

And of course, there were numerous students out and about during lunch who saw him leading a police inspector — because even if he wasn't in uniform, his rank insignia was nigh impossible to miss.

As if there weren't enough rumors...

Then, to make matters worse, they arrived at the rooftop only for Haru Okumura to see them, tending to the planters. "My apologies for the interruptions, miss; I'm afraid I have to commandeer this roof to interrogate this young gentleman here. Mind stepping away?"

Haru, looking between Yamadera and Akira with slowly widening eyes, could only mutely nod. "I'll...leave you be, sir." As she meekly walked by, her eyes flashed towards him with visible concern.

I'm not a villain, I swear, Akira tried to communicate solely through his eyes. (Whether or not he was successful would be a mystery for the ages.)

Finally, it was just Akira...and Yamadera.

The Inspector looked around, marvelling at the planters — "I bet you'd be able to grow some nice watermelons in soil like this..." — before leaning against the door. "Might as well get comfortable; we've got the rest of the meal period to chat."

Akira, doing his utmost not to glare, simply stood several meters away from the inspector, with hands in his pockets. Keep cool, Kurusu. (This was the man who, according to Makoto, had actually interviewed Kaneshiro alongside Sae in her own home; already, this man was closer to the Phantom Thieves than he had any right being.) Just keep it cool...

"Not a bad look, for a kid," mused Yamadera, lighting up a cigarette. "To be clear, this is why I wanted to talk outside; it's not like they'd let me smoke indoors."

...okay, keeping cool is out. "Don't you want to get to the point, sir?" Akira asked with a straight face. "I doubt you pulled a high-school student aside just to talk about your nicotine addiction." (Yes, Akira was feeling a bit salty. Yes, it was likely a bad idea. Was he going to stop? Probably not. Might as well get some mileage out of his status as a delinquent somehow...)

Yamadera snorted. "And witty, too. My old partner would have probably gotten a kick out of you." Apparently, he decided to wax nostalgic. "Zenkichi Hasegawa was his name; we used to work together, before he got a promotion to Public Security. Ended up transferring out to Kyoto, after his wife passed in a hit-and-run accident...real tragic story...I hope his daughter Akane isn't giving him fits..."

"...is there a point to you waxing nostalgic, Yamadera-san?"

The inspector smiled. "We all wax nostalgic in some way, shape, or form. It comes with trying to think about where we came from, and where we're going...don't you think?" Bringing out his phone, he remarked, "S'why I've gotta use this little digital assistant called EMMA to keep track of things for me...sure, it's still in its pilot phase, but Madicce is apparently going to go global with it next year..." With a sly grin, he added, "Even us old-timers have to try and stay on the cutting edge, in order to keep up with you vibrant youths, you know?"

...what is this guy's deal? I can't tell if he's playing dumb or not...which probably means he's sharper than he lets on. (And that wasn't even getting into the odd vibe that the inspector was giving off...) "Well, notwithstanding your delightful musings, it would help if I knew why you requested to speak with me. Specifically."

Yamadera took a drag on his cigarette, letting the ash and murk float away in the summer breeze. "Lots of anecdotes. Very little that's concrete. Your principal had actually reached out regarding an apparent suspicion he had about the Phantom Thieves...thanks to what he considered a reliable tip."

"And what did that tip involve?" asked Akira.

"Nothing that you or I would consider noteworthy, to be honest." And wasn't that a cryptic thing for Yamadera to say. "Personally, it's nowhere near as interesting as my own little anecdote...namely, when we locked eyes outside of Ichiryusai Madarame's humble atelier."

Akira thought back to that moment: of Madarame being arrested, almost immediately after the theft of his Treasure; of the Phantom Thieves having to vacate the premises quickly to avoid the police's attention; of Yamadera looking at him from across the road, and waving. "Why did you wave at me?"

"It just felt like the proper thing to do; it's important to be friendly with civilians, right?"

"...and is that the reason why you wanted to speak with me?" he said, trying hard not to let his irritation slip through.

Alas, he didn't try hard enough. "Ah, so you do have a temper hiding underneath the facade; I wonder how deeply it runs? Little wonder that you remind me so much of Akechi-kun."

For the first time, Akira was genuinely surprised. "You know Goro Akechi?"

"You could call me his minder, in a sense. Kids who are celebrities need to have a bit of a 'leash', after all..." With a wistful expression, he added, "Of course, it's only natural for kids to have a bit of a temper; it's the types who are ice cold, and unfeeling, that are the ones to really watch out for...like this kid that a distant cousin of mine used to go to university with. I think her name was Kuon Ichinose...ah, but I'm getting sidetracked."

It feels like you've been doing nothing BUT getting sidetracked. "Why did you want to talk with me?"

"...well, to be perfectly honest, I just wanted to get your measure."

"...for real?"

"As real as can be," remarked Yamadera. "The Phantom Thieves are a rather mysterious force to most...especially given their grandiose rebuttal against Medjed, and their declaration that they stand against those causing mental shutdowns and psychotic breakdowns..." Yamadera looked over at Akira-

(Akira nearly jolted, because why did Yamadera's eyes suddenly seem so dead-?!)

-and chuckled. "But personally, I think they're rather gutsy. Alas, society doesn't care for them...so it'll ultimately come down to who has the most determination. Will it be the Phantom Thieves? Or will it be the status quo? Who's to say..." With a lackadaisical sigh, the inspector remarked, "Ah, but it's times like these to offer a prayer to the goddess of wisdom...whether she goes by the name of Benzaiten or Sophia, wisdom's blessings are always a treasure worth seeking...because we men are rather foolish...and no matter how old we get, it seems we still remain foolish..."

...this guy is spouting nonsense. Is he doing it on purpose? Or is he trying to get under my skin? Akira had no way of knowing...and because of the inspector's apparent connection with Akechi, it only made him more on guard. "...and what does my measure look like to you, Yamadera-san?"

With a grin — weary; sad; expectant(?) — the man quietly approached Akira, slapping a hand on his shoulder.

(It was so very hard not to recoil, because the inspector emanated a weird vibe — not a creepy one, but an unsettling one; a haunting one — that made Akira's skin crawl.)

"Personally? I think you've got a rebel's spirit in you. And that's a good thing...if you rebel for the right reasons. Will it be for something that's fake? Or will it be for something true? That, I'm afraid, is something only you can decide." Turning away, the inspector dropped his spent cigarette, grinding it into the roof. "Let's head back to the Principal's office, shall we? I think we've said all that needed to be said."

Akira blinked dumbly. "I don't know, have we?" I don't even know why you said half of the things you've said!

Yamadera flashed a lively grin over his shoulder. "I'll let you be the judge of that, Kurusu-kun."

xxxx

/Meanwhile, back in the main timeline.../

Ren, as he recounted that unusual conversation, slowly began to knead at the bridge of his nose...and with greater and greater intensity. "You know what, I take it back. In hindsight, I totally understand why you're frustrated by your ex."

"See?!" exclaimed Misato, glad to have some form of validation.

Ryuji Sakamoto frowned. "The names that Kaji mentioned...I recognize Hasegawa and his daughter..."

"The other names he threw out were EMMA, Madicce, Kuon Ichinose, and Sophia," said the Wild Card, looking over at Misato and trying to gauge her reaction.

"...why are those names important?" she asked.

"They provide context for a certain dream I would have over my summer vacation. The thing is...I'm not entirely sure how that would have done anything." Leaning back, Ren stared at the ceiling of the cognitive room, trying to figure out the angles. "Because he keeps his cards close to his chest, much like most of his current associates do..."

Misato snorted, doubtless thinking of not just Kaji, but of Akechi, Ayanami, and Mister P. "Anyhow. Go on."

xxxx

/Back to the prior timeline.../

To the surprise of both Kobayakawa and Akira, Inspector Yamadera said that he had no cause to suspect the young man of any wrongdoing. "But if you have anymore tips that come through, don't hesitate to give the police a call~" With a jaunty sayonara, the inspector departed.

...huh. I have no idea what to make of that. Akira turned back towards the Principal. "So, am I free to go?"

The corpulent man blinked, his face suddenly taking on a stern frown. "...you may have given the good Inspector the runaround, but I am less convinced of your fidelity to the values of our fine institution. Just remember that you're on shaky ground: exceptional grades mean little if you can't fit in with society. Remember that."

Like your warning means anything to me. "I'll keep that in mind." Lightly bowing, Akira excused himself.

"That whole thing was suspicious...especially given his association with Akechi," murmured Morgana.

"No kidding," muttered Akira, ignoring the stares coming his way. As he walked through the hall, he quickly checked his messages.

Futaba: dude
Futaba: was listening in
Futaba: that Inspector guy?
Futaba: super duper shady (⌐■_■)

That's putting it mildly. The message from Ann was not surprising.

Ann: everyone in our class is talking crazy about you getting interviewed by police
Ann: what happened? :O

Still not sure. The messages from Ryuji, Makoto, Suzui, and Yoshizawa were all of a similar vein. Guess I shouldn't be surprised that the rumor mill would pounce on this sort of thing.

If nothing else, it only made him glad about the fact that summer vacation was coming up.

xx

Granted, there was a bit of a downer with having to say 'bon voyage' to Ann later that afternoon, as she was going straight to the airport to greet her parents. It wasn't strictly a deal with the Phantom Thieves, so Akira wasn't surprised that Suzui and Yoshizawa were present as well by the school gates. "Need any moral support?"

Ann looked over Shiho, Kasumi, Makoto, and Ryuji before turning back to Akira. "I...think this will be fine. I can't run forever, after all..."

"...let us know if anything comes up, okay Ann?" said Shiho with a melancholy expression.

"...I will," the blonde said with a sober expression.

"You've got this, Takamaki-senpai!" cheered Kasumi.

"You are strong, Ann," said Makoto with a serious air. "I've seen it firsthand."

Ryuji, in his own inimitable fashion, said, "It ain't the end of the world; before you know it, you'll be hogging up those 'creep' thingies and eating your stress away!" with a grand grin.

Akira sighed as the girls stared flatly at Ryuji. "So close, my dude..."

Ann, alas, settled for a tired smile. "I get what you're getting at, Ryuji...and it's pronounced crêpe."

"Huh? That's what I said!"

And with that, Takamaki left, and the little group split off to do their own thing.

"Man, I'm feeling mega stressed from all this," grumbled Ryuji, after it was just him and Akira. "But I ain't in the mood for ramen..."

"...Protein Lovers?" suggested Akira.

Ryuji's eyes went bright. "To the gym!"

(Alas, little did they know, but the eyes of Yuuki Mishima were silently watching them from a distance as they left Shujin...)

xxxx

Day: July 21st, 2016

Got interviewed by a weirdo disguised as a detective, and rumors at school have gone into high gear. But what else is new?

Worked up a sweat with Fake Blond at the gym, so at least I was able to work myself into exhaustion.

Ironically enough, this was apparently just what the doctor ordered. Literally: the fatigue was just what Takemi needed for her next trial.

(But joke's on her, I got to see her get flustered by a sweet old lady complimenting her skills as a doctor!)

xxxx

/Friday: July 22, 2016/

Ann didn't show up at school, that day; according to Kawakami, she was on an official absence due to a 'family situation'.

No surprise there, thought Akira as he quietly scraped gum off of the side of his desk. They probably have a lot to catch up on.

Morgana, slyly hiding inside, murmured, "I hope Lady Ann is okay..."

"She'll be fine," vowed Akira. Still, he sent a quick text to her, if only to encourage her.

Akira: Let us know how things are going!

"-and as a reminder, the emergency assembly that was originally scheduled for next Monday will instead be held tomorrow after the closing ceremony," explained Kawakami, drawing Akira's attention back to reality. "I know we had originally said on Tuesday that it was going to be held on the 25th, but Principal Kobayakawa reconsidered and decided it would be best for us teachers to take care of it tomorrow, when students were more likely to be engaged..."

Huh, we were supposed to have an assembly on Monday? Guess I missed that...

It wasn't until later that he finally got a response back.

Ann: busy
Ann: will talk later

(That could be either good or bad...)

xxxx

During meal period, when Akira went up to attend to the planters, he of course had to deal with Haru Okumura's expectant gaze. "If it's about yesterday...I honestly wouldn't be able to tell you what it involved. That inspector was kind of an oddball."

"...I see," she cautiously murmured.

Without another word, the two went about gardening, mindlessly working under the vicious heat of a Tokyo summer.

xxxx

Day: July 22nd, 2016

One more day of school. Hopefully, the month away will save my poor desk.

True Blonde is still AWOL. Will hopefully find out soon how everything went down with her folks.

Given the oddity of everything, it was almost reassuring, showing off the Protein Lovers gym to a couple of pint-sized twins. (Their attempts at making the workouts more difficult were...less reassuring.)

Still, one of the things they said was unnerving. "Prepare for the other shoe to drop very soon, Inmate." At least, that's Mr. Fake Nose told them, in so many words.

(Now what could Yaldabaoth have meant by that, Akira wondered but didn't write.)

Who knows...

xxxx

/Saturday: July 23, 2016/

While enjoying coffee and curry for breakfast alongside Futaba, Akira suddenly got a new message in the Phantom Thieves' group chat.

Ann: So.
Ann: not sure how to put this
Ann: so here goes
Ann: my parents want to take me out of Shujin

All things considered, spitting out his coffee — much to Futaba's loud surprise and Sojiro's disgruntled irritation — was a very mild reaction to such news.

Needless to say, the Phantom Thieves' group chat exploded with questions.

Almost as explosive as Akira Kurusu's spitting of coffee. "Boy, what was that about?" groused Sojiro, grabbing some paper towels.

"Read something shocking," sputtered Akira, reaching for the offered towels to clean up his mess.

"It can't be that shocking," said Futaba, turning to the Phantom Thieves' group chat. "...oh."

Several lines down, Ann had added additional context.

Ann: and not like a transfer to another school
Ann: more like
Ann: leaving the country entirely
Ann: so
Ann: yeah :(

"...yeah, your reaction is kinda reasonable," said Futaba.

"...Lady Ann is leaving...?" wondered a shocked Morgana.

Honestly, Ryuji's response was rather apropos.

Ryuji: WTF?

xxxx

At school, during the meal period, Ann's Shujin friends met together outside the school; amidst the various students celebrating the impending end of the school term, they were a small island of melancholy. "Takamaki-senpai is leaving Shujin?" exclaimed Kasumi Yoshizawa.

Shiho Suzui, who had a definite downtrodden look to her, sighed. "...Ann talked with me this morning...her parents are blaming themselves for not paying enough attention, and are wanting to make up for it. Given the scandals caused by Kamoshida and the phishing scams...they're worried about her being in a 'socially unsuitable' situation..."

"But if it's just about Shujin, why not just transfer her to another school? Why make her leave Japan?!" exclaimed a frustrated Ryuji.

That's what I'd like to know, wondered Akira; Ann had had to depart from the group chat that morning without providing additional details about what her parents had planned.

"...I think...it also has something to do with the Phantom Thieves." Shiho leaned back against the wall, looking somewhat perturbed and uncertain. "The mental shutdowns...the psychotic breakdowns...and now the Phantom Thieves...they want to remove Ann from this situation altogether..."

Makoto Niijima frowned, looking away with a contemplative gaze. "...given that these situations have all been restricted to Japan, I suppose it only makes sense from their perspective..."

"...well, I guess it's not the end of the world, right?" wondered Kasumi. "Suzui-senpai, you said that Takamaki-senpai used to live overseas, right? Maybe it'll...be better for her. Maybe? And besides, it's easier than ever these days to keep in touch!"

"...it's not the same though," grumbled Ryuji, kicking at the ground, summarizing everyone's opinion on the matter.

Alas, life had to intrude. "Kurusu-san."

Akira turned, staring with forced calm at the Yuuki Mishima. "...hello, Mishima-san."

"What do you want?" asked Ryuji, unable to keep the heat from his voice.

Mishima paid Ryuji no attention, briefly glancing at Suzui before turning back to Kurusu. "Principal Kobayakawa wants to see you."

"Running errands for the principal?" wondered Akira.

Mishima shrugged. "It was just coincidence. He's busy with coordinating the closing ceremonies with the rest of the faculty, after all." Lightly bowing in their direction, he departed immediately.

"...are you guys fighting?" wondered Kasumi, looking at the downcast Shiho and the strangely antagonistic air emanating from Akira, Ryuji, and Makoto. "Is everything okay?"

...keep it cool, Kurusu. "We're fine, Yoshizawa-san. I guess the Principal just wants to give the local delinquent some words of wisdom about how to properly spend the summer vacation..."

xxxx

Said 'words of wisdom' ended up being anything but. "Tell me, young man: how do the Phantom Thieves operate?" asked Principal Kobayakawa.

...huh, I'm surprised he's willing to confront me directly. "Pardon?" Akira answered, playing dumb.

Kobayakawa's face, set into his typical sneer, was a vexing thing to witness. "I wouldn't recommend any obfuscation on your part."

"Wasn't I already cleared by Inspector Yamadera yesterday?"

"I have a reliable source who has provided enough circumstantial information to cast doubt on your innocence," he responded with a faux smile. "Enough that the police would be highly interested in speaking with you."

Akira crossed his arms, decidedly unimpressed with Kobayakawa's intimidation tactics. "Didn't you already try going through Niijima-san? I was under the impression she didn't turn anything up."

Kobayakawa frowned, suspicious. "You are on speaking terms with the Student Council President?"

"Well, it was very hard to miss how her older sister berated her," he answered with a shrug. "Rumors spread fast at this school, as I'm sure you're aware."

"...given the nature of how these Thieves have been operating, it is crucial that they be stopped for the betterment of society." Kobayakawa folded his hands, adopting an air of sagacity that was ill-suited for a man like him. "The anti-authoritarian mentality they inculcate is intrinsically harmful, and will only lead to a less prosperous nation. You understand, don't you?"

"Then maybe you shouldn't have turned a blind eye to the likes of Kamoshida harassing and assaulting kids," he growled.

Kobayakawa, to his credit, was not intimidated by the retort of a teenager. "Of course, I've also seen your grades; despite your criminal record, you seem rather intelligent. Which is why I'm going to extend an offer to you: if you happen to know who the Phantom Thieves are...then if you were to provide that information to me, it could be very beneficial to you. I would be able to ensure your rise to a very prosperous position."

Please. If I were that self-serving, I could just go to Akechi, or even Shido. Still, it wasn't an entirely terrible plan from the principal: if Kobayakawa actually got one or more of the Phantom Thieves arrested, that would only cement his value within Shido's conspiracy. The fact he's even approaching me about it must mean he's desperate. "And I assume this offer has a time limit?"

"Given the timeframe...you have until the end of summer vacation. If you're unable or unwilling to assist...then I will have no choice but to notify the police about your unusual activities. And they will be far less credulous than Yamadera-san was."

Please. I doubt you actually have any hard evidence. It was a naked attempt at intimidation...and yet, given the current state of Tokyo's law enforcement, the lack of hard evidence wasn't necessarily a problem. And therein lies the rub. "...I'll think about it," he remarked. "I'd at least like to know what you're willing to offer."

Kobayakawa, thinking he had gotten a hook in, smiled with genuine relief. "I'm glad to know that you can see reason, Kurusu-kun."

xx

As Akira exited the principal's office, he paused at the sight of three people: one of whom he knew readily, the other two he hadn't seen in years, relative to the Last Time Around™. "Ann?"

"Hey Akira," Ann said, her face still bearing signs of a lot of crying over the past couple of days. "These are my parents: Helena and Hikaru Takamaki."

Helena — a Japanese-American of Finnish ancestry — looked like a fully bloomed Ann, with blonde hair done up in an elaborate yet tasteful style, with deep blue eyes, radiant skin, and colorful clothes. "A pleasure to meet you, young man," she said, taking his hand to shake it gratefully.

Hikaru, fully Japanese, wore a stylish wardrobe: despite its conservative cut, it nonetheless professed that the man had an eye for fashion. "I understand you are the student who saved my daughter's life," he said, doubtless referring to how Akira had stopped Ann from jumping off of Shujin's rooftop all those months ago. Without any regard for social convention, he got down onto his knees and prostrated deeply, performing a full-blown dogeza. "You have our utmost gratitude."

Akira, still stuck shaking Helena's hand, could only blink dumbly. Taking in Ann's apologetic expression with a glance, he said, "Um...just doing what anyone would have done in my shoes. Sir. Ma'am."

Rising to his feet, Hikaru gestured towards the principal's office. "Let's not keep the principal waiting any longer."

As Helena waved goodbye, Akira arched an eyebrow of confusion in Ann's direction.

'I'll tell you later' Ann silently mouthed at him, following her parents into Kobayakawa's office.

...huh. Wonder what they're going to talk about...

xxxx

With the closing ceremonies over and done with, the faculty proceeded to spend another hour or so instructing the students as to how to avoid being in 'socially unacceptable' situations, and how to properly navigate such incidents safely.

'CYA' stuff, basically. (At least Dr. Maruki had sounded even halfway encouraging to the students...)

Finally...school was over for the summer.

Even though the news with Ann's parents, Kobayakawa's 'deal', and the uncertainty with Mishima's Palace hung over Akira like a dark cloud. As he made his way to Aoyama-Itchome station, he spoke quietly with his cat. "Not exactly a clear path for us to proceed, is there?" Especially because I don't actually have any context for this situation.

(It's not easy when you don't have a proverbial player's guide to get you through, is it?)

"...so, why do you think Lady Ann's parents wanted to meet with Kobayakawa?" asked Morgana.

"Well, if I were Ann's father, it'd be to backhand his face with great intensity...but in truth? Probably to at least get an explanation for what's been going on at Shujin." Because leaving Japan is...a big decision. It's not something to do lightly.

Morgana's head sagged. "...I don't want her to leave."

"Me either," he casually admitted. But if she actually does end up leaving...what exactly does the mean for us? "...we're just going to have to roll with the punches."

As far as Saturdays went, it was a relatively melancholy one; per the Thieves' group chat, Ann would be free to meet them tomorrow to discuss...well, everything that had happened with her folks over the past couple of days. Judging by her tone from the chat, she seems...flustered, grateful, a little resentful...she's not exactly enthused about the idea she might be leaving Japan, either. Can't blame her...

(Yet, her father had prostrated himself as an expression of utter gratitude. From a social standpoint alone...it spoke highly of Mr. Takamaki's character, to be so self-effacing to a mere teenager.)

(It's hard to feel upset about parents acting good-heartedly...)

Honestly, he was feeling...tired. So tired, that the thought of idling around in Shibuya was less than appealing.

And apparently, it was visible to at least one other person. "You look like crap, boy," grumbled Sojiro, outright forbidding him from putting on an apron to help out for an evening shift. "You'd think you'd be more excited for summer vacation to begin..."

"...well, it's been a long year for me, so far," Akira acknowledged with a wan smile. Maybe...I should just call it a night...

Trudging upstairs, Akira barely had the wherewithal to take off his school uniform and write in his journal — putting down a pithy 'Summer vacation has begun. Time will tell if it's a good one.' — before falling into bed...

xxxx

...and awakening within the Velvet Room. "And the changes you've wrought have now landed you in truly unprecedented territory." Yaldabaoth scoffed. "What a truly lamentable fool you've become, Trickster..."

"It's not exactly an outcome I intentionally sought," Joker griped.

"Nevertheless, you now find yourself backed into a corner. Your goal is to protect your teammate from being taken away: how will you accomplish that? And all the while, you face a threat from a figure of authority who has not earned their status...and a threat from one you once called a friend."

"Don't remind me."

"How does it feel, Trickster? To realize just how fragile your 'bonds' really are? But for a change in circumstances, your confidants could be entirely different people..."

"...it's just part of the package with being human. Not that you'd understand."

At this, Fake Igor could only sneer. "We understand this aspect of humanity far more than we would prefer...that we understand it at all is truly to our detriment..."

"And isn't that a sad commentary on your existence," Joker honestly said, looking around for the twins. "...where are Caroline and Justine?"

"...I am afraid our time has been cut short. You have another appointment...as much as it galls me to allow..."

"...pardon?"

"This place lies between dream and reality, mind and matter...so it is only natural for interlopers to be less encumbered by the restrictions upon humanity's existence..." With a frustrated growl, the False Igor began to fade away, along with the Velvet Room. "Were it not for his request, I would never have entertained this endeavor. Whatever comes of it...is not within my jurisdiction, as it were..." The God of Control's mocking laughter faded away, as did the Velvet Room.

"...what is he talking about?" wondered Joker, his eyes suddenly growing heavy...

xxxx

There were three women, quietly discussing a matter of importance.

"We've tabulated the results from all prior simulations," coldly spoke the first, her detached tone bearing an analytical air. "Now we must implement our methods in a more robust fashion."

"It seems sad, that we have to engage in such...base manipulations," spoke the second, bearing a rather maternal voice. "It's unbecoming."

"Ah, but manipulation is exactly the way we play the game: manipulating parameters for the sake of variables acting the way we desire," said the third, her speech brimming with feminine wiles. "And Kaji-kun was more than eager to place our desired parameters..."

"The cognitive triggers have been activated," observed the first woman. "Zenkichi Hasegawa, Akane Hasegawa, EMMA, Madicce, Kuon Ichinose, and Sophia: we are ready to begin Scenario: Scramble."

"At least my role will be more pleasant," remarked the second woman. "If nothing else, let's make sure to at least give him some happy experiences."

"Pleasure is merely a matter of perspective," joked the third woman. "Likewise happiness: for man can be depraved enough to invert heaven and hell...now, let us begin."

"Executing Scenario," the three said in tandem.

xxxx

(And so, as July the 24th began in 2016...Akira Kurusu dreamed of a July the 24th in 2017, where he returned to Tokyo to enjoy summer vacation alongside Morgana, Ryuji Sakamoto, Ann Takamaki, Yusuke Kitagawa, Makoto Niijima, Futaba Sakura, and Haru Okumura...)

xxxx

/Sunday: July 24, 2016/

At a private karaoke booth in Shibuya, Ann Takamaki quietly clarified exactly what had occurred with her parents and Principal Kobayakawa.

"...are they for real?" exclaimed Ryuji.

That about summed up everyone's reaction to how Ann's parents were apparently giving Shujin a chance to make amends. "Well, they had already paid a lot of money to enroll me in Shujin...they want to give the faculty a chance to make up for their 'grievous errors'."

("...the song selection sucks," grumbled Futaba, moving through the list of karaoke songs.)

("You seem rather uninterested in the conversation happening behind us," observed Yusuke, glancing back over at the sofa where the other Thieves were situated.)

("I don't go to Shujin, so it's not like my opinion on this point matters," she flatly replied. "Not this one, not this one...ugh, why do they have this crappy remix instead of the original...?")

"And how exactly did Principal Kobayakawa...frame these so-called errors?" wondered Makoto.

Ann's face curdled up with an emotion akin to disgust. "He made Kamoshida come across as a scheming mastermind who was subtle with his abuse...totally glossing over how the school had to cover for him..."

"And did they actually buy his rationale?" wondered Akira.

Ann shrugged. "I don't think so...but they didn't call him out on it during the meeting," she added, sounding very unhappy about it. "And unfortunately, I don't really have any evidence that would be convincing..."

Makoto winced. "I could talk about Principal Kobayakawa's investigation, but that would just be considered hearsay..."

"What about the news article that Ohya wrote based on your experiences?" asked Akira, referring to the meeting that had occurred before Makoto joined the Phantom Thieves.

The Class President shook her head. "The substance of what she used was kept vague enough to not result in any defamation claims. Enough to make Shujin seem more questionable, to be sure...but would it be sufficient for the Takamakis? I wouldn't be so sure..."

Hmm. "Did your parents at least give a timeframe on when they want to make a decision about your academic future?" asked Akira.

Ann, looking conflicted, sighed after several seconds of silence. "...I have until the end of summer vacation."

Surprisingly, Akira couldn't help but chuckle. "Well, what a coincidence...I've got a deadline of my own that matches yours."

After clarifying the results of his meeting with Principal Kobayakawa, Ryuji couldn't help but scoff. "The scumbag really wants you to turn on us, huh? Screw 'em."

"...I guess that settles whose Palace we're targeting next, then," remarked Makoto, pulling the Nav and returning to the entry for Masakata Kobayakwa. "We have Shujin Academy: what is his distortion? And what concept is that distortion tied to?"

"So, are we ignoring Mishima's then?" asked Ann.

Morgana, sitting upon a table in front of the sofa, shook his head. "Whatever is going on with Mishima can be taken care of after we deal with the Principal. If we can change his heart and convince him to confess his crimes...then maybe it'll lead to actual change at Shujin."

"Or maybe it'll only convince my parents that Shujin is a lost cause," remarked Ann. "...I don't exactly have any love for Shujin...but I don't want to leave Japan..."

"Then we have until the end of summer to make our case, don't we?" said Akira, steeling himself for the fights to come.

Over the course of the next few hours of karaoke, they brainstormed what Kobayakawa's remaining keywords could be.

In the end, Makoto's experiences with the principal proved to be the deciding factor as to what Shujin represented to the man: a sterling temple, with Kobayakawa as the proverbial god it was dedicated to. In like manner, it made his corresponding concept all the clearer...after all, in the grand scheme of things, Kobayakawa was motivated by nothing more than Shujin's reputation...and therefore his own by proxy.

"Input accepted. Searching for route to destination," chirped the Meta-Nav.

"...looks like we have our next target," observed Yusuke. "Shall we commence our investigation this week?"

"We have a month to change his heart," said Akira. "And we have a month to try and convince Ann's parents not to leave Japan. This is the next mission of the Phantom Thieves."

Ann blinked with surprise. "Huh? I get Kobayakawa's Palace...but why me?"

"Aw, come on! It's not like we're gonna leave you hangin'," said Ryuji, jostling Ann by the shoulder.

"You are one of us. Letting you leave would be rather harmful to our overall morale," said Yusuke with a small smile.

"And in a sense, a thief is rather selfish by definition," joked Makoto.

Futaba, fiddling with a snack packet, spoke with a cute sort of hesitance. "That, and...well, you've been kinda cool to hang out with, and stuff. Even if you're kinda pushy with clothes...so, it'd suck if you had to leave."

"She's right, Lady Ann," said Morgana, moving in front of her with a determined expression on his distinctly feline face. "We don't want you to leave."

Ann, overwhelmed by emotion, could be forgiven for squeezing Morgana a bit too tightly.

"Agh, Lady...Ann...you're...crushing me...!"

Alas, that which we dream of sometimes tends to be to our own demise, thought Akira with a knowing grin.

(By comparison, the political intrigue he would experience that night alongside Toranosuke Yoshida would barely rate.)

xxxx

Day: July 24th, 2016

Hung out with some friends at karaoke. We have plotted a vicious scheme to keep a friend from leaving our side! (J/K we actually love her.)

It almost made the odd bit of political theater I had to sit through with a certain Shibuya politician easy pickings. Stuff about 'the Kuramoto group leaving the Liberal Co-Prosperity Party'; 'seeking the endorsements of long-time Diet Members like Kasukabe'; 'standing down for the sake of not running against Kuramoto'; junk like that.

Good on Yoshida for sticking to his guns, though. Run for office, and show 'em what for!

xxxx

(And so, as July the 25th began in 2016...Akira Kurusu dreamed of a July the 25th in 2017, wherein he ended up in a cognitive world startlingly akin to a Palace, belonging to the Shadow of one Alice Hiiragi...and, among many other things, he encountered a quirky little artificial intelligence who called herself Sophia...)

xxxx

/Monday: July 25, 2016/

After making a supply run, the Phantom Thieves all gathered around Shujin Academy around noon, sticking to the alley that had served as Ryuji's vaunted 'shortcut' all those months ago. "There'll still be some students performing club activities during the summer break, and there's always the risk of running into faculty," remarked Makoto, keeping an eye out for any passers-by. "So we should still be cautious."

Akira glanced over Morgana, Ryuji, Ann, Yusuke, and Futaba before looking back at Makoto. "No time like the present." Holding up the Meta-Nav, he activated it with a stoic expression.

"Beginning navigation," the app chirped.

They all watched patiently as the world faded away...

...and were still surprised by what awaited them. "Whoa," muttered Ryuji, looking up with wide eyes.

"...I don't think this was the kind of 'temple' we were expecting," observed Makoto.

Indeed: the entirety of Shujin had transferred into a multitude of stairways leading up to what appeared to temples built in a classical European style, complete with pillars and pediments. Banners and flags fluttered lazily in a calm breeze, bearing Shujin's sigil and boasting of its presence. Cognitions of students moved about in an exaggerated version of the school's uniform, carrying books and exams as though they were sacrificial offerings. All the while, the cognitions spoke of how glad they were to be at Shujin, and how privileged their status was. The atmosphere was undeniably cheerful.

"...ugh, I think I'm gonna throw up," groaned Ann.

Mona looked at them all with a stoic expression. "At least he doesn't immediately see us as a threat," he said, noting their lack of wardrobes.

"Then let's keep it that way as long as possible," said Akira, looking up at the largest temple overlooking all others; a statute of Kobayakawa stood upon its roof, bearing a beatific and magnanimous expression. "Might as well stay on the Palace Ruler's good side for now..."

Ryuji's face sunk. "Do we have to...?" His objection was promptly ignored.

As the Phantom Thieves quietly approached the nearest stairway, Yusuke's expression became more and more pinched. So much so, that Futaba called him out. "Yo, Inari, what's got you irritated? Need to go to the bathroom, or something?" Futaba looked around. "Come to think of it, what would happen if you had to pee in someone's mind? How would that change their cognition...?"

"...not exactly a thought I ever wanted to entertain," muttered Makoto, even as Ryuji and Ann looked downright perplexed (if not a tad disgusted) at the thought.

Yusuke, alas, was thinking of something else entirely. "Now that we've gotten a closer look, I can't help but notice the differences in architecture between the temples. Far be it from me to be an expert, but I've seen enough reference materials to know the difference between the temples of Greece and Rome." As he pointed out the various differences — pillar types; arches or the lack thereof; construction materials; the shapes of the exterior structure — he added, "Your principal is clearly not someone with a fine knowledge of the ancients of the West: at most, it seems to be a mere pretense of knowledge."

"Much like how Shujin pretends to be more elite than it truly is," remarked Akira, keeping a wary eye out for Shadows. "Let's go; the first temple is up ahead."

Lo and behold, the very first temple was dedicated to Akira's homeroom teacher, Sadayo Kawakami...or, as her title was in this place, the Goddess of Sleep.

"...what am I looking at?" asked Ryuji.

The principal's cognition of Kawakami, wrapped in resplendent robes that nonetheless evoked the image of pajamas, slept away upon an altar bearing immaculate decorations; even in slumber, her hand lazily waved a censer about, releasing incense that settled upon the student cognitions within the inner chamber. Each student moaned with a sound evoking ecstasy, gloating about how easy getting good grades was from such a 'lazy' teacher.

"...I don't know if those noises count as kinky or not, and that scares me," muttered Futaba.

"An impression of apathy?" wondered Yusuke. "Or does he think Kawakami is truly so lazy with her class?"

"...given how much I've heard her complain when she doesn't think anyone is listening, it's possible this is a reflection of how Kobayakawa perceives her," said Mona. "If her perceives her as a lazy good-for-nothing who nonetheless has students who excel...maybe he thinks she doesn't contribute much?"

Akira rolled his eyes. "I don't think we should be too focused on psychoanalyzing Principal Kobayakawa; whatever his thoughts are about Kawakami-sensei, they're just that: thoughts, distorted and not reflective of reality as it is." If only he knew how hard she actually works...

Alas, their chatter stirred the Goddess of Sleep from her rest. "Hm?" she groaned, sleepily rising up. "You students aren't partaking of the incense...don't you want good grades? Because the less you hassle me, the better it is for everyone..." With a great big yawn, she lazily gestured at them. "Disciplinary committee, make them take their seats." Blank-faced Shadows, wearing the uniform of prim and proper students, slowly moved in from the periphery of the inner chamber.

"...we probably shouldn't risk inhaling that smoke," warned Makoto, looking intently at the censer hanging from the hand of the Goddess of Sleep.

"Then it looks like we'll need to be disruptive influences," said Akira, subtly feeling the cognition of the place shift around him. Right as the Shadows burst into Zuijin — red-robed guardian spirits of Japanese shrines, bearing bows and arrows — their Metaverse outfits manifested in a flash of blue. "Get ready everyone!"

Alas, Fox could not help but be pedantic. "Why are Shinto kami present in a Greek temple? Could his subconscious not even keep to a proper theme?"

"You can critique the historical inaccuracies later, Inari!" griped Navi as she quickly receded into Necronomicon, observing the battle as the Phantom Thieves delved into the fray.

After the battle concluded — with Joker claiming a Zuijin for himself (because hey, new Persona!) — the Goddess of Sleep pouted. "Aw...what a drag...this is all too troublesome to deal with..."

"...so are we going to have to fight her?" asked Panther. "How are we going to get to the Palace Ruler?"

"Normally, that would require getting in enough trouble to warrant us being summoned to the principal's office," remarked Queen.

"That won't be necessary."

The Phantom Thieves turned around, prepared to strike...only to blink at the cognition before them. "What the? Mishima?"

Sure enough, it was Kobayakawa's cognition of Yuuki Mishima: wearing caligae — a soldier's heavy-soled sandals — a white tunic, a thick military belt, and a sagum — a rectangular cloak fastened over the shoulder, colored a bright red — he cut a rather serious image, compared to his meek self in reality. "You must be the infamous Phantom Thieves that have been troubling these lands."

Navi frowned, scanning his wardrobe. "Huh. Some of the details seem right...but no armor? No weapon? Can't be a legionnaire, then..."

Mishima's Cognition turned towards Kawakami's. "I will escort these...interlopers. They will trouble your temple no further."

"...well, they at least seem determined enough...maybe if they put their mind to it, they could excel...not that I want it to be my problem..." Yawning, the Goddess of Sleep turned back over, as the incense continued to flow.

Mishima's Cognition stared at the slumbering deity for a few seconds before turning towards the Thieves. "Come, follow me."

As the Phantom Thieves warily followed the cognition, Queen decided to speak up. "You seem rather important. Do you possess authority, here?"

"It is a recent promotion, to be sure," remarked Mishima's Cognition. "The Caesar that rules this world has granted me a boon, after his previous agent...failed to live up to her duties. A shame: she certainly had more potential than the likes of me."

("Hey, I think he's talking about you," whispered Skull to Queen.)

("...I noticed," she dryly replied.)

Mona frowned, hopping onto Joker's shoulder to speak quietly. "If this is the principal's cognition of Mishima..."

Then it means the Mishima in reality is working for Kobayakawa in some capacity. What an...unusual change. (Mishima, what happened to you?)

"So," remarked Panther, stepping towards Mishima's Cognition. "This...Caesar sounds like a pretty big deal!"

"You clearly have no understanding of how things work around here," Mishima's Cognition said, looking back with annoyance. "Those with authority decide the rules, and determine how society is run. These temples are all dedicated to the name of Shujin, our great and glorious patron amidst Tokyo's Pantheon; under the Caesar's guidance, we seek to raise Shujin's name to ever greater heights of deification. In doing so, all who offer tribute will be rewarded handsomely...as is expected."

It was, to be certain, a very twisted mirror of the expectations placed upon an elite prep school: those who went to Shujin and places like it were supposed to have a leg up on the competition when it came to getting into Japan's more prestigious universities. "So the Caesar works hard to increase Shujin's reputation, then?" remarked Joker.

"...a crass and vulgar way of phrasing it, but yes." Mishima's Cognition gestured at all of the other temples surrounding the sacred mountain upon which the Palace's Ruler doubtless reigned from. "Only those who satisfy the lesser gods may rise to the top of Mount Shujin, and seek the favor of the Caesar."

("He's mixing mythologies again," groused Fox towards Navi, only to receive an elbow in the stomach in response. "What did I say?")

("If you keep poking holes in the theme, the cognition may become hostile!" she quietly hissed.)

"...and I'm assuming these demigods are all teachers?" said Queen, making an educated guess.

Mishima's Cognition nodded. "Indeed! They are all teachers of we mere mortals; under the wise and dutiful aegis of the Caesar, they ensure that the most devoted will receive their just rewards."

Panther and Skull couldn't help their impulsive snort.

Alas, this was enough to raise the cognition's ire. "No surprise, that delinquents like the Phantom Thieves are so untrusting. Very well." Mishima's Cognition clapped his hands, summoning a horde of Shadows bearing the garb of Legionnaires. "Bind them."

The Thieves were swiftly mobbed under a dogpile of Shadows, before they could even muster their Personas. "Way to go, Skull! And..." Swallowing his affection, Mona added, "...that wasn't very cool of you, Lady Panther..."

Skull and Panther's apologies were muffled.

xxxx

Within a matter of minutes, the Phantom Thieves were unceremoniously dumped into another temple; as they quickly tried to regain their bearings, Navi yelped with shock. "ACK! Big guy!"

Fox, trying not to fall over as Navi hid behind him, marvelled at the sight. "He most certainly is very big."

Amidst an open chamber lined with white powder, a hulking menace — bearing robes with the sigils of scales and swords — loomed over them all. With slick hair and an exaggerated facemask that bore a vague resemblance to glasses, the deity glared imperiously upon them all. "A new round of students? Then I, Ushimaru — Wargod of Law — shall ply my lessons upon you!"

The cognitions of students all tied bandannas around their heads, smiling with a feverish glee. "Ugh...guys...?" said Skull with a gulp. "What's going on...?"

Joker watched the Wargod of Law raise his weapon; at that instant, he gained an epiphany as to what the white powder coating every square inch of the place was. "...chalk. Of course..."

Ushimaru's Cognition, wielding a great bow, reared the string; instead of an arrow, he had notched a gigantic piece of chalk — more akin to a ballista's missile! — against the drawstring. "First lesson...DODGE!"

"SCATTER!" screamed Mona.

The chalk flew, and the chamber erupted in a massive cloud of limestone powder.

The conflict within Ushimaru's temple was quickly rendered a complicated mess by clouds of chalk dust. Skull's gagging was completely audible over the mayhem. "Ugh! It's worse than cleaning erasers after school!"

"Keep focused, everyone!" Navi's voice echoed out through the heads of the Thieves. "I'm going to try and increase visibility!"

Suddenly, a strange film passed over Joker's eyes, delineating a thick outline over various figures amidst the clouds; it was akin to wire figurines dancing in his vision. "Thanks, Navi!" Shifting forms transformed into monstrous shapes, recognizable as warrior Personas: largely Zouchouten and Jikokuten varieties. "MONA! BLOW 'EM AWAY!"

"I've got you!" As Zorro began flinging Wind Skills to try and keep the enemy Shadows from mobbing them, the Phantom Thieves tried to coordinate their attacks against the enemies amidst the dust cloud-

"Second lesson..." droned the Wargod of Law.

"Everyone, look out!" exclaimed Navi's voice.

"...DODGE AGAIN!" Coinciding with Ushimaru's command were two missiles of chalk, making the entire chamber rumble from the impacts. The sheer amount of chalk dust was nearly suffocating at this point.

"Joker, we have to stop the teacher from firing his damn chalk!" complained Skull, his words timing up with a loud smack of his melee weapon against the side of a Jikokuten.

"I'm on it!" exclaimed Queen, revving up Johanna to roar towards the Wargod's altar (which was merely an elaborate and sacralized form of Ushimaru's desk in the faculty lounge). With deft angling, she barrelled over a Zouchouten before bouncing upward into the air, landing upon it with the squealing of towers. Queen hopped onto her seat, borrowering her Persona's momentum to soar towards Ushimaru's great bow. "FIST, OF, JUSTICE!" Hands glowed with nuclear energy, smashing against the bow with a burst of bright blue.

Alas, this elicited a reaction that was both surprising...yet all too typical, given the nature of the cognition. "Striking a teacher? PENALTY!"

"Penalty?" repeated Fox.

Navi suddenly cried, "Guys, watch out-!"

Her words were overwhelmed by a sudden force — akin to magnetic repulsion or the inversion of gravity — that rocketed the Phantom Thieves out of the temple, depositing them at entryway to Mount Shujin. A gateway slammed down in front of then, mimicking the proverbial Pearly Gates barring them from the heavens.

"...ow..." moaned Panther. "What...was that about...?"

"...the Palace's Security Level hit one hundred percent," observed Mona, looking warily at the crimson aura pulsing through the entire Palace. "This is a first for us..."

...man, this takes me back, thought Joker with a grimace. During the Last Time Around™, there had been a couple of times when they had maxed out Security Levels in Kamoshida and Madarame's Palaces. This sensation...how strange. "So striking Ushimaru was all it took to raise the alarm to its highest?"

"Why are you surprised?" Everyone looked back towards the gates; on the other side stood Mishima's Cognition, staring stoically at them. "You struck a teacher. Is a suspension all that shocking? You should be lucky that you haven't been placed under arrest...but such is that magnanimity of our Caesar. Even the worst scum can be rehabilitated...if they wish to apply themselves." The cognition clenched the bars, staring at them with a strange intensity. "Will it be the same for you, Phantom Thieves?"

(It was but an instant.)

(Yet, he saw the eye for Mishima's Cognition glint yellow...but just for an instant.)

Joker frowned, unsure of what to make of it. What was that about? Judging by how Mona and Navi tensed up in his peripheral vision, they had tensed up as well.

"As it stands, the temples still accept offerings over the summer break; if you wish to return for a remedial education, then do so on another day, when you've learned how to behave..." With those words, Mishima's Cognition retreated to the temples.

Panther huffed. "...man, Mishima sounds..."

"Like a jackass?" added Skull.

"Like a douche?" chimed in Navi.

"...I dunno, it sounds weird to put it that way," muttered Panther, sounding somewhat conflicted. "He's always been rather quiet in our class..."

"...well, it seems like we're not going any further today," said Queen, hugging her arm. "Sorry, everyone..."

Joker shook his head. "You were only trying to help; you had no way of knowing." Because I certainly didn't. (And how could he? This was all brand new.) "...let's head back into reality and regroup."

It was with a subdued air that the Phantom Thieves left Kobayakawa's Palace.

xxxx

The Thieves all congregated at Leblanc, using the excuse of preparing for summer break plans to justify their presence to Sojiro. ("Just don't make too much noise," the barista had groused.)

With cartons of takeout noodles broken out (save for Futaba, who had defaulted to her comfort food of Leblanc curry), Akira Kurusu decided to voice his suspicions. "Morgana. Futaba. Did either of you sense something odd with Mishima's Cognition?"

"So you sensed it too, huh?" observed the Most Definitely Not a Cat™.

"Sensed what?" asked Ryuji, his mouth full of noodles...albeit to his detriment, as he proceeded to cough severely. Makoto slapped him on the back, helping him clear his breathing. "Gah, sorry."

"Eating swiftly requires great diligence," murmured Yusuke, speaking with a sagacious air. "I can recall many a time, where I accidentally choked on my bean sprouts..."

Akira stared. "Right. Anyhow, Futaba?"

"...there was an odd reading with Kobayakawa's cognition of Mishima, at the end," admitted Futaba, mixing her rice into the curry sauce. "The closest metaphor I can think of is signal interference. It was very brief..."

"But what could be causing that?" asked Makoto.

Morgana frowned, looking rather thoughtful. "...call it a hunch...Akira, put Mishima's name in the Meta-Nav. See if Shujin Academy gets a hit," he said, tail wagging with excitement.

Akira quietly did so, wondering what would come of this. When he input 'Shujin Academy', his result was truly puzzling. "Partial result. Please add additional keywords," chirped the Meta-Nav.

"...a Palace with more than one location?" wondered Ann.

Ryuji frowned. "Is that even possible?"

"...well, it all depends on the nature of the Palace Ruler's distortion, but that's not what I'm getting at!" exclaimed the cat, sounding rather invigorated. "Kobayakawa's Palace is based out of Shujin Academy...and Mishima's Palace, in some way, is also rooted in Shujin. This is only a hypothesis...but I think that the two Palaces might be interfering with each other."

There were immediate questions about Morgana's hypothesis. "How would that even work?" asked Ann. "I mean, that didn't happen with Kamoshida, right?"

"We also never ran into any cognitions of Kobayakawa in Kamoshida's Palace," reminded Morgana. "Plus, Mishima's Palace is literally brand new; the interference may only last for a short while, until his Palace becomes more solidified."

"As in, once he becomes more settled into his distortions," murmured Makoto.

"Probably," admitted the cat.

Well, that's great. From a Shadow that had been able to resolve his own distortions without a change of heart, to a Shadow that manifested a full-blown Palace. Good going, me, Akira bitterly mused.

"...man, we really didn't run into any teachers inside Kamoshida's Palace," said Ryuji, as one making a belated epiphany. "He must not have thought very highly of 'em."

"...no kidding," admitted Ann. "I wonder what Kobayakawa's cognition of Kamoshida would be...if he even still has one after everything that happened..."

"Location confirmed. Please complete remaining keywords."

The sound of the Meta-Nav made everyone turn towards Futaba, whose phone was dangling from her hand. "Eh!" she squeaked, nearly dropping it. "Guh, don't you all look at me like that!"

"You were able to find the remaining keyword for Mishima's location, I assume?" asked Yusuke, ignoring her plea.

Futaba huffed, scooting away to face the wall. "...well, knowing that he's the admin of Phan-Watch, I thought I'd enter in the website," she explained. "It turns out that his Palace's location is rooted in both Shujin Academy...and the Phan-Watch website."

"How the 'eff is a website a location?" demanded Ryuji. "We just gonna squeeze into a computer or something?"

Futaba's snort of amusement was just shy of condescending. "Ah, you foolish mortal: you clearly lack experience in the genre of 'MMORPG simulators', like dot-crack, or Shield Craft Online, or-"

As Futaba continued listing various fictional series, Akira turned towards the others. "Given that our first foray into Kobayakawa's Palace ended rather poorly, let's try and focus on getting into Mishima's Palace and see what it's like. If he's actually working with Kobayakawa..." Man, that feels so weird to contemplate. "...then his Palace may offer some insight into the Principal's."

There was a sense of agreement, although Ann was somewhat subdued. "Mom and Dad are going to be meeting with Shiho's parents tomorrow to talk about her experiences at Shujin...so Shiho and I are going to hang out."

Ah, because you might be leaving Japan before the month is out. Akira's nose curdled, ever so slightly. "...sure, we've got two Palaces to work on, but it's also summer. Even if travelling is out of the question for us...we should at least get some good memories out of it."

Surprisingly, Ryuji seemed the least excited by this prospect. "When you put it that way, it's like you've already accepted that Ann's going to leave."

"...yeah," Akira admitted, letting youthful vigor give way to weary experience. "We're going to fight with all we've got to help her: that's not the question...but even with all the powers at our disposal, we're not perfect...and we're not gods. So...having contingencies is the right thing to do."

"...I guess," grumbled Ryuji, angrily slurping at the rest of his noodles. "But I don't have to like it."

If nothing else, Ann was heartened by their concern for her person.

xx

Day: July 25th, 2016

Decided to get a head start on summer work. We were able to get Kawakami-sensei's taken care of, but Ushimaru-sensei is proving to be a challenge.

If Ann is going to end up leaving...we need to make it a summer to remember.

xxxx

(And so, as July the 26th began in 2016...Akira Kurusu dreamed of a July the 26th in 2017, wherein he dreamed of the Phantom Thieves uncovering details to help them infiltrate Alice Hiiragi's 'Jail', complete with trying to understand the nature of stolen 'Desires'. With a plan in place to see a live interview the following day at the TV station, the Thieves' split for the day...)

xxxx

/Tuesday: July 26, 2016/

All things considered, it was an odd day for Akira Kurusu to reignite his Priestess Confidant with Makoto Niijima...however, it was still rendered sensible in the grand scheme of things, as Makoto still wanted to try and gain a greater understanding of how the average student lived. ("I mean, you certainly seem far more experienced in worldly matters than a rule-abiding honor student...I want to expand my horizons. And if that helps me become a better Student Council President for the students of Shujin, then I should pursue it," Makoto had said with a solemn air.)

(Of course you have more experience. You don't have the heart to tell her that she's closer to her peers than you, an old man in spirit, are.)

Still, it allowed him to introduce her to an arcade in Akihabara (which allowed him to inadvertently introduce her to Shinya Oda...and the sight of the little brat 'teaching' Makoto how to play Gun About had been hilarious), giving him additional leeway in pointing out more 'youthful' interests.

"...so maid cafes aren't just the territory of creepy old men?" wondered Makoto, looking ominously at the stairway to Alice's Apron.

"Oh, there's always a chance for creepy old men," remarked Akira, hands in his pockets. "But it's also a place for tourists, couples, and women; for older teenagers, it could be a place where they seek emotional comfort, to release the stress of an isolated life, bereft of intimacy..."

Makoto frowned. "That sounds...sobering."

"It can be," he candidly admitted. "But if you're mature about it, it can just be a place to be goofy and not think about real life."

"Psst, Mishima's walking this way! At three o'clock!" hissed Morgana from Akira's bag.

"Don't look," warned Akira. "Just keep asking questions about maid cafes."

Makoto frowned, yet obliged nonetheless. "So, are there different themes?"

"Oh, oodles." As Akira began explaining the nuances of the industry (mostly borrowed from past knowledge he had with his daughter Sora, gods did he miss her), he caught glimpses of Mishima — carrying newly-purchased computer equipment in a rigid box — in his peripheral vision.

(The utter panic in the boy's eyes was impossible to miss; nor was his increased pace as he moved further away, keeping out of their line of sight.)

Moments later, Morgana said, "He's gone. He had a bunch of computer stuff with him."

"Maybe updating his rig so he can more effectively be an admin to Phan-Watch," remarked Akira.

"...it's strange." Makoto looked at him with a curious gaze. "He seemed...frightened, of you. Why?"

I wish I knew, thought Akira. "We'll find out sooner or later...but enough of that! To the cafe!"

Makoto could only yelp as Akira pushed her up the stairs by the shoulders.

xxxx

The fruits of their trip would come later that afternoon, when Akira would text a picture of himself and a maid — both holding up their hands in cat-like 'nyah' gestures — sitting on either side of a bewildered Makoto, who was looking at him as though he were possessed.

Ryuji: dude
Ryuji: you didn't
Akira: I most certainly did.
Ann: aww
Ann: that looks like it was a lot of fun!
Futaba: lol
Futaba: Makoto looks so out of place
Akira: I was a ready and willing teacher.
Yusuke: I request to accompany you on your next journey.
Yusuke: I need more inspiration.
Ryuji: omg why
Ryuji: makoto, talk sense into em
Makoto: It was unusual.
Makoto: But I found it quite an enjoyable experience, all things considered.
Ryuji: ...
Futaba: huh
Futaba: I thought maid cafes would be your kinda thing, Ryuji
Akira: Not after Clara.
Ann: who's Clara?
Ryuji: NOT GONNA TALK ABOUT IT
Akira: lol

(A bit of levity went a long way to rejuvenate one's spirit...)

xxxx

Later that evening, after Sojiro had closed up shop, Akira made a phone call for Kawakami...er, Becky.

"This feels completely backwards," grumbled Becky, watching with both irritation and undeniable fascination as Akira brewed coffee for her.

"You look worn out."

"You're also paying me five thousand yen to be here," she grumbled, her hand idly scratching at Morgana's chin. "Also, is an animal allowed in a cafe?"

("I'm not an animal," grumbled Morgana, who nonetheless allowed the woman access to his chin.)

"Is an animal allowed in high school?" Akira retorted with a knowing expression.

Becky shot him a glare, revealing that she knew Morgana hung out in his desk at school...not that that was much of a secret. "...I suppose it depends," she relented, likewise revealing that she wasn't going to make a stink of it. "Still, my point remains. I'm the one who should be serving my customer...er, Master."

"Sorry, not buying it from you. A teacher calling a student 'Master' is kind of weird," he joked.

Becky slumped over onto the bar, loosing a moan of discontent. "Ugh...I would almost prefer it if you complained about my services..."

Sorry Kawakami, but you're out of my age range...in both directions, he thought with some wry amusement. "Still, for you to look so exhausted, you must not be taking any time off for summer. Why would a teacher at an elite prep school be moonlighting as a maid? Because it certainly does not seem like you're doing it for kicks."

Becky remained silent as he finished brewing coffee, accepting a warm mug on saucer. "...then why did you request me?"

"Well, I'm curious about a certain student in our homeroom class," he asked, leaning against the countertop with a solemn expression. "Our Class Rep, Mishima."

Kawakami — dropping all pretense of her maid persona — frowned. "Why do you ask?"

"My friend, Suzui-san? She's trying to keep the volleyball team going after the scandal with Kamoshida. And since Mishima was also on the team, she's been trying to get him to help...but he's apparently hesitant to help her out, and he's apparently unwilling to give much time to the 'delinquent transfer student.' I'm just...trying to find a way to persuade him to at least consider it, that's all."

Kawakami huffed, sipping at her coffee with an appreciative hum. "...well, I'm not going to gossip about another student. All I can say is that, much like a lot of boys and girls, Mishima-kun tried out for the volleyball team because of the celebrity status afforded by Kamoshida's presence. But...in all honesty, even after making the cut, he never seemed to enjoy it..."

When she fell into an awkward silence, Akira remarked, "Well, any little bit helps-" At that moment, the woman's cell phone rung. "You should probably get that."

Kawakami quietly turned away, stepping away from the bar to answer the call. "...hello!" A brief pause. "What...? How much!? I can't..." Another pause. "...yes, but...!" A sigh of defeat. "That's...that's true...sure..." Her shoulders visibly drooped. "Yes...yes, I understand. Yes, it's my responsibility, after all..."

"Who is she talking to?" wondered Morgana.

Akira held a finger up to his lips, willing Morgana to be silent. When Kawakami finally hung up, he asked, "That sounded rather stressful."

Kawakami jolted. "Oh, you heard that?" With pained laughter, she said, "Unfortunately, I'm a little behind on my sister's medical bills...lots of fees and extra charges for a rare disease. It's why I'm even picking up all these shifts as a maid to begin with-"

Okay, I'm not dealing with this. "Kawakami-sensei, I would appreciate it if you didn't lie to me."

The woman paused, as if bewildered by the fact he interrupted her. Then, her sense of propriety caught up. "Excuse me? What gives you the right to accuse me of lying about something so important?"

"Beyond the fact that it's past normal hospital hours? Beyond the fact that it sounded like they were calling you about a non-emergency billing matter?" he pointed out.

Kawakami went silent, unwilling to acknowledge that she had been caught fibbing. "...you know, I shouldn't be relying on you like this...but if you insist on calling me for work regardless, you don't have to do it through the maid service..." With a polite curtsy, she excused herself for the evening.

Moments later, Akira got texts from Futaba.

Futaba: SO
Futaba: my bugs caught the voice coming through her phone
Akira: seriously, how did you manage to get such surveillance equipment
Futaba: hush you ┻┳|･ω･)ﾉ
Futaba: but she's definitely getting extorted
Futaba: over someone by the name of 'Takase-kun'
Akira: Sounds sketchy.
Futaba: VERY sketchy.
Futaba: I'ma do a bit of digging
Futaba: kthxnite

"...you look rather tired, Akira," observed Morgana.

"Maybe I just feel old," he remarked, grabbing Kawakami's half-finished mug of coffee and finishing the rest of it in one gulp.

xxxx

Day: July 26th, 2016

It was a very maid-heavy day, all things considered. But with maids come problems.

Also, multitasking is a very exhausting endeavor.

xxxx

(And so, as July the 27th began in 2016...Akira Kurusu dreamed of a July the 27th in 2017, wherein he dreamed of a live interview with Alice that went topsy-turvy; of her blatant abuse of her manager; of a quirky AI's disregard for Alice's life, prompting the Phantom Thieves to teach Sophia about why they focused only on changing hearts...thus recruiting her to the team with a codename of Sophie. Alas, gaining supplies for their infiltration was made difficult, prompting a surprising display of the speed of 'Expedited Delivery' via the dark web. Thus, after making it as far as they could into Alice's Jail, their day ended with a surprising introduction a man named Zenkichi Hasegawa of Public Security...)

xxxx

/Wednesday: July 27, 2016/

Akira slowly sat up, yawning heavily.

"Boy, you slept a lot," observed Morgana. "It's already past ten o'clock!"

"Sorry...had a surprisingly exhausting dream..." He suddenly chuckled out of the blue.

"What's so funny?"

"Just thought of Okumura-senpai sweetly apologizing for despising the police."

"...eh? Why would that be funny?"

Akira blinked, as if realizing what he had just said. "I'm...not exactly sure..."

Surprisingly, he awoke to a message from an automated school account:

SHUJIN ACADEMY: The Gardening Club is scheduled to meet at noon today.

"...huh." Come to think of it, I still don't have Haru's contact info. Is this her way of communicating with me during the summer? As the 'manager' of the Gardening Club, Haru would doubtless have access to official school resources that would allow this method of notification. "...you know what, I'm up for it."

"Up for what?" asked Morgana, peering down at his phone. "...oh, hanging out with Haru."

"It'll allow time for us to figure out Mishima's other keywords," he remarked, looking over at the Thieves' group chat; sure enough, there were ongoing lists of attempts at both the distortion and the concept, all to no avail, apparently. So...what exactly would be Mishima's distortion regarding Shujin Academy and Phan-Watch? What would be the concept driving that distortion?

It was surprisingly difficult to try and consider how the 'current' Mishima would think of such things, because he was still too used to a whole lifetime knowing a Yuuki Mishima that...well, might as well have been an entirely different person. But there might be elements that my Last Life™ could give me a clue about...just think, you old coot!

The finer details of his relationship with Mishima during the Last Time Around™ were somewhat fuzzy; he had a general recollection of Mishima — a rather meek and unlucky dude with a corresponding chip on his shoulder, even it had been hidden under a veneer of politeness — tying to utilize the Phantom Thieves as vehicle to increase his own self-esteem and sense of worth; was there anything which carried over into the present day? I'm not sure; I don't actually know the current Mishima that well.

(Not that he could be blamed for that...right?)

(You can't risk spreading yourself too thin.)

Alas, upon arriving at Shujin Academy — with the doors being locked, as was normal during summer vacation — he saw that Haru was already present, track suit and all. She also had brought some rice balls and green tea for lunch. "And here I am, having brought nothing," he bemoaned with a self-deprecating smile. "I'll have to pay you back, somehow."

"It's okay," said Haru, handing him his share of food and drink. "The fact that you decided to come at all is surprising; I figured you would be enjoying the break from school..."

Akira shrugged, letting Morgana hop out of his bag. "Well, given that the message came from an Academy account, I figured I should at least be on time; being a no-show would be rather rude."

Haru hummed noncommittally, scratching at Morgana in the way he had come to prefer.

As they ate in relative silence, Haru eventually popped a surprising question. "Is it still too late to share contact information?"

...okay, not exactly something I expected today. "Why the change of heart?" he asked.

The word choice, unintentionally though it was, elicited an odd quirk of the lips from her. "Well...it would be inconvenient, to have to use school resources to coordinate our meetings. And...I feel like I can trust you."

"Even though I'm a delinquent? Even though I got 'interviewed' by a very sketchy police inspector?" he mildly challenged.

"...I don't think those are enough to define you," she quietly admitted. "There's...more to you than that. Just like you know there's more to me than being the heiress of Okumura Foods."

That was a little tidbit of knowledge she had, as far as he could recall, not yet made explicit (even if her family connection to the company had been more or less openly acknowledged). That she had disclosed it in such a manner said two things: that she not only knew that he was aware of her exact status, but also that she believed he didn't care for it. (Which was true; the things that had drawn Akira Kurusu to Haru Okumura had had little, if anything, to do with her connections. That much had held true from one life to the next.) "...well, I appreciate the vote of confidence." After taking an appreciative bite of his onigiri, he added, "Your gifted yukata went rather well, by the way; it was a shame that the fireworks festival got rained out."

Haru nodded quietly. "Yes...a shame."

The gigantic elephant in the room known as 'Sugimura' was going to be left unmentioned, for now. Even so, that she wanted to share phone numbers could be taken...many different ways. It was fortunate that the business with Kobayakawa and Mishima was taking up so much of his mental capacity, because otherwise he might have felt tempted to pry.

As such, he left it be; after exchanging numbers and finishing their food, they got to work tending the plants and greenery around Shujin's exterior grounds. ("I'm still waiting for approval from the school faculty to access the building during the summer break," Haru would admit. "The exact arrangement is pending...")

However, whilst working...he couldn't help but glance at the windows, and saw a glimpse of Mishima walking through the halls. What? A quick whisper to Morgana was enough to get the cat to try and investigate on his behalf, whilst he worked with Haru.

After a couple of sweaty hours, with rain threatening to pour down on them from above, they decided to call it for the day. Once Haru departed, Akira waited for Morgana to get back with him near the front entrance...and there was an odd little device in his mouth. Is...that a bug?

Morgana dropped it at his feet, tail wagging with anticipation. As Akira grabbed the listening device and removed the battery, the cat said, "There were several of these placed around places where students tend to congregate. The doors to the school were locked, but I saw Mishima moving through the halls a few times...and I don't think he was willing to come out while you and Haru were here."

"...the fact he's inside at all means he got access from one of the faculty." Probably from Kobayakawa...but why would he be bugging Shujin? For whose benefit?

"Does Shujin even have any kind of normal security system?" wondered Morgana.

"If it did, Kamoshida likely wouldn't have been able to get away with all the crap he did; they have intercoms for the exterior doors...but as far as cameras? I don't know." Probably some for the entrances and exits into the physical buildings, and for the main gate...

"...this is a real concerning development," muttered Morgana.

That was putting it mildly.

xxxx

Later that afternoon, Akira agreed to help Futaba get cracking on her Promise List™: starting with a trip to Akihabara, to get used to larger crowds.

Whilst working on this, he sought Futaba's expertise on the listening device Morgana had found at Shujin...after surviving a hectic sale at the nearby electronics store, that is.

"...huh. It's a relatively old model. Compact, low power usage, so it'll last a while...it can be remotely activated, but at least one of the devices has to be within range of a Wi-Fi network in order to access their data from a phone or computer," Futaba remarked, eyeing the device with great intrigue.

Morgana, halfway focused on some cosplayers engaging in a staged 'street fight' with the maids outside the nearby cafe — a form of 'melee marketing', perhaps? — asked, "You seem to know a bit about this sort of thing."

"Eh, I had to do plenty of research on the equipment I wanted to use for watching out for Leblanc. Ended up going with a smaller model that has less frills, but has way more longevity. Downside is that I had to place a buttload of them around Leblanc."

Akira stared flatly at her. "You seem pretty nonchalant about illicit recordings," he murmured.

Futaba shrugged. "I've done worse. Besides, I just use it for monitoring Sojiro...and you, but mostly Sojiro. I don't broadcast or disclose the data anywhere...unless they were being a jerk, in which case I would spam their e-mail with links to loud meme videos as punishment. He he~"

"...that seems awfully petty," muttered Morgana.

Futaba huffed. "I mean, it's not like I infected them with spyware or malware! I've got standards."

"Given our 'line of work', we're not exactly in the best position to condemn," reminded Akira. Notwithstanding the gray legal area that this whole subject is in, insofar as this period of Japanese history goes. "Still, probably not the most effective way of teaching jerks a lesson."

"...I guess. Haven't done that sort of thing in a long time..." Futaba, crouched down on the ground, watched with intent as hordes of people moved by. Focusing on the audio device in her hand, she said, "It'd be nice if it were that easy. Then we probably wouldn't have to worry about Ann having to leave..."

Akira let their mutual silence simmer: impossibly overwhelming amidst the sea of Akihabara's noise. Finally, he asked, "Well, who knows what the future holds...but back to my question: why do you think Mishima would be setting this stuff up?"

"Well...he'd need someone in the school to let him in, right? So given everything else, it's probably your principal. The question is, why let him set up bugs when the school's empty?"

Fewer chances of getting caught, for one. "The better question is: who does Mishima expect to record? And what, for that matter?"

"...we need to figure out his remaining keywords," said Morgana, arching his spine to get a good stretch. "That's probably the only way we're going to get answers."

(Alas, their journey back to the train station was interrupted by one Shinya Oda, who was on his way to the arcade...and boy, the sight of a precocious preteen bluntly tearing through Futaba's social awkwardness to 'test her might' was a sight to behold.)

xxxx

Day: July 27th, 2016

I got the number of a very floofy girl. Nothing can bring me down: not even questionable activities performed by a potential rogue in disguise!

Also, I got to see the Boss's Daughter get owned at the arcade by a little kid. Can now confirm that little kids are the natural weakness of the Orange Gremlin™!

xx

Akira turned away from his journal just in time for his phone to buzz.

Futaba: I can HEAR you snickering
Futaba: you're writing about the brat, aren't you?!
Akira: well, you ARE a brat, so yes
Futaba: u no wut i meeeeeeean
Futaba: how could you be friends with such an evil little devil :(

Akira promptly texted a picture he had taken of Futaba shakily holding up a plastic gun, trying to following the increasingly angry instructions of Shinya at Gun About.

Futaba: See?
Futaba: EVIL
Akira: you also didn't much care about the fact you were in a super loud place
Akira: with a lot of people
Futaba: ...
Akira: Promise List™!
Futaba: :|
Akira: :D
Futaba: :|
Akira: g'night
Futaba: u suck
Akira: ilu 2 ya silly bean

Akira had been so caught up in the back and forth that almost missed out on what he had just texted. Oof. Maybe a touch too far...? That's when Futaba called him. Maybe. "Yes?" he asked, with a casual air.

"What exactly do you mean by that?" Futaba demanded.

"...by what I just texted, you mean?"

"I mean, you've only ever shown 'lovey-dovey' stuff for that Okumura girl...so I don't think it's the same sort of thing," she admitted, with a bit of hesitance. "I mean, I wouldn't even know what to do with stuff like that..."

And judging by my Last Life™, it'll take you many years before you figure that out, privately mused Akira. "You're right. It wasn't an expression of romance, if that's what you're getting at."

"...but you're so open with the way you feel that it's kind of insane," she added. "The way you talk with me, with Ann, Ryuji, Inari, Mona-mona, and even Makoto...sometimes I look at the way you interact with us, and it's like you've been friends for years. And other times, it's like you're a concerned parent, trying to protect us from the world...and all after getting kicked out of your hometown because of a false accusation. I just...don't get how someone like you is even real."

...well, I'm not completely real, to be frank. He was no teenager: he was an old man, struggling to reclaim that which had been lost...and yet always at risk of being whisked away by the wiles of youth, time, and the chaos of life: for good or ill. "...well, I've got flesh surrounding a bunch of bones and nerves and other squishy bits. I've got a mind that's a bit of a crazy place, according to some...and a heart that's real jealous for the people I invite into it." As he glanced over at Morgana's sleeping form upon his bed, he solemnly said, "Without getting too deep into it...you're all precious to me."

"..."

"...Futaba?"

"...how can you say such sappy things without being a sap about it?"

Akira smiled. "This delinquent has many talents, after all."

At that, Futaba seemed content to let it be. "...yeah, I guess you do."

xxxx

(And so, as July the 28th began in 2016...Akira Kurusu dreamed of a July the 28th in 2017, wherein he dreamed of an intense operation to infiltrate Alice Hiiragi's Jail, being the 'star of the distraction.' However, their progress was inhibited by the lack of personal info on Alice. 'Lo, there came Zenkichi, with an offer of intel...and as it turned out, Alice had been a former student of Shujin. And their brief rendezvous at Shujin resulted in a tense yet disturbing conflict with a monstrous Lock Keeper, surrounded by crimson prison cells in the Metaverse...yet they had been triumphant. And so, with greater understanding of the Jail, they let Futaba prepare the Calling Card that would announce the Phantom Thieves' grand return...)

xxxx

/Thursday: July 28, 2016/

Akira started out that day with a surprise invite to go see a movie by Makoto. Huh...oh yeah, I vaguely remember this. As it turned out, the prim and proper Student Council President had a thing for action thrillers in the crime drama genre.

Makoto: I know we've barely made any progress with Kobayakawa or Mishima
Makoto: But I'm curious about this movie.
Makoto: It's called "Dragon: Like A Yakuza." You, the one by that famous director.

I thought it was 'Like A Dragon'...or maybe that was the sequel that got released a few years later? Eh, whatever.

Makoto: Would you maybe like to see it together? It's not going to be any theaters for much longer.
Makoto: And perhaps a break from our usual routines will help us get a better idea for keywords.

Man, I forgot how shy she was about her interest in these sorts of flicks. "...you know what, I'll do you one better," Akira murmured to himself.

Akira: Counteroffer
Akira: let's see it with more of our friends
Makoto: Oh?

xxxx

Ann was busy with family stuff, Shiho couldn't make it due to a prior commitment, and Kasumi was likewise busy with gymnastics practice. (What a trooper!)

However, Ryuji, Yusuke, and Futaba (after a bit of cajoling and a promise that they would get seats on the top row and away from the aisle) were able to accompany them to the theater in Shinjuku.

"Didn't think you'd be be into these sorts of flicks, Makoto," remarked Ryuji with a grin.

Makoto, a bit flustered, remarked, "I m-mean, a famous director was responsible for this movie. Who wouldn't want to see it...?"

"Oh? What's the director's name? Is he famous for feats of cinematic artistry, or because he panders to the audience with easily marketed schlock?" bluntly asked Yusuke with perfect politeness.

Makoto blinked, caught off guard by the serious questions.

"Can we hurry up? I don't wanna wait in line for snacks!" grumbled Futaba.

"Futaba makes an excellent point," admitted Yusuke, distracted by his hunger. "I humbly request at least one bucket of popcorn for myself."

"Okay kids, let's just get inside," said Akira, trying to usher them towards the theater doors in the manner of a parent. (Ah, the nostalgia...)

xx

/About an hour later, in the theater.../

"You thought I was out of the game," snarled the slick-haired criminal on the screen, his face wracked with anger and grief. "That was your mistake, Koryu; you should have known better than to turn your back on the clan! On me!"

"...if this is the way you want it, Mazuma..." growled the protagonist: a former yakuza who had managed to become an officer of the law, yet remained a loveable renegade. "...then so be it!"

"KORYU!"

"MAZUMAAA!"

As harsh yet well-choreographed fisticuffs ensued, Akira — sitting at the far right of the others — looked to his left to see how the others were doing.

"Makoto's fists have been clenched this whole time," observed Morgana. "She probably just really likes these sorts of movies..."

(That went without saying: Makoto was locked in.)

(Next to her, Ryuji was...surprisingly emotional. "Man...why do bros have to turn against each other...?")

(Yusuke was paying attention rather analytically. "I wish the cameras would focus more on their tattoos. The designs were rather impressive...")

("...I wonder if they do their own stunts?" wondered Futaba, more focused on trying to launch popcorn into her mouth in increasingly elaborate ways. And hey, they were on the back row, who was going to stop her?)

Akira smiled, turning his attention back to the film; as his mind mentally substituted himself and Mishima into the current brawl on-screen, he couldn't help but feel a bit sad...

(The Last Time Around™, Mishima had moved in and out of the Phantom Thieves' orbits as the years went on, as his documentaries became more well-known and his talents drew a higher price point. Yet, despite their busy lives, he had managed to stick to a routine: once a month on a Sunday, Mishima would visit Leblanc to have a few cups of coffee and just ask about how life was going in the world of Akira Kurusu. It was a bit of normalcy that both men would come to value as the years went on: a little ritual, to remind each other of their less-than-glorious origin stories, and how far they had both come...)

...because, in all likelihood, the Yuuki Mishima he was thinking of just didn't exist anymore...and he might not ever grow into that person, either. What exactly is your Palace like, Mishima...how far are you from the person I remember...?

xx

/Later, after the end of the movie.../

"...so, do you think it's weird if a girl likes movies like this?" wondered Makoto aloud, as they left the theater.

"Eh, I've seen better, but I've also seen worse," remarked Futaba.

"To be fair Futaba, I think your standards are a bit outside of the norm," remarked Morgana.

Futaba pouted, reaching up to grab at his cheeks, much to the cat's dismay.

"I mean, Futaba's a girl. Therefore, she's qualified," sagely said Akira, ignoring Morgana's swipes at Futaba's hands.

Ryuji huffed, looking rather contemplative as he tried to answer Makoto's question.. "I mean...I dunno, maybe? Given your dad's line of work, it's probably not weird for you, but I don't think this sort of thing would be Ann's cup of tea. And Mom definitely wouldn't be up for it..."

"The actors were quite emotive, but the plot wasn't that engaging," said Yusuke. "But...the subplot involving the chicken...was sublime! Why couldn't they focus more on Nugget...?"

"FACTS," agreed Futaba.

Akira turned back to Makoto, saying, "Well, I think it's fair to say that it's not weird if 'Makoto Niijima' likes movies like this. You know?"

"...I guess so," remarked Makoto with a small little smile.

And so they moved on with their day, promising to rendezvous soon about Mishima's Palace...

xxxx

Akira made a brief detour to Untouchable in Shibuya, because he was a man with a plan.

"Say, Iwai, mind if I borrow your sweeper and some aluminum foil?"

Iwai looked up from his magazine, his face set into a 'come on, are you for real?' expression. "...a 'sweeper'."

"No need to play dumb," Akira said.

The former yakuza huffed, deciding not to play along. "The hell are you up to?" wondered Iwai.

"Nothing that concerns you or your affairs."

Several seconds of silence elapsed. "...I ain't the type to let people borrow," Iwai emphasized.

Akira nodded. "Then how about on my next haul, you give me half of what you normally pay out as compensation?"

Iwai's eyes narrowed. "...seventy percent discount on my next payout."

"Sixty percent discount, final offer."

"...deal."

xx

And that was how Morgana had to make room in the bag for wads of aluminium foil and a handheld device that looked like a cross between a wand and a walkie-talkie. "Joker...it's getting cramped in here...!"

"Deal with it until we get to Shujin," Akira said with a steely expression.

xxxx

Upon arriving at Shujin, Akira noted the lack of people. Awesome. Glancing around, he tried making note of any camera locations; there were intercoms, and the fencing around the perimeter...but no obvious cameras that he could see. Hmm. I should probably look into finding some plans for this place.

As Morgana crawled out of his bag to shake his limbs, the cat asked, "So, what's your plan?"

"Bug-hunting," Akira said, whipping out the sweeper wand and turning it on. As he swept the device around in a few places, he paid attention for any sort of audible signal; sure enough, the wand began to softly whine as he neared a decorative hedge bush. "Morgana, can you see anything in there?"

Morgana, catching the gist of his task, slithered into the bush, moments later, he came out with the device in his mouth.

Akira promptly grabbed it and wrapped it up in aluminum foil, stuffing it into his bag.

"What's the point of that?" asked Morgana.

"Not sure if he's actively monitoring them or not...plus, I want to test how long these things last on continuous battery usage. The foil will interfere with their signal in the meantime."

Morgana purred with pleasure at the thought. "Ah...exhibiting the wisdom of a Phantom Thief!"

Akira repeated the process, finding several more audio bugs in very well hidden locations...and it was possible he had missed some outside. And without a key to the school, I won't be able to sweep the inside. (This whole scenario smacked of absurdity.)

(What could have driven him to such lengths? Who is he trying to spy on, and why?)

However, much to his surprise...the doors to the gymnasium were unlocked. Oh?

(Someone was here.)

"...do we infiltrate?" asked Morgana.

"...maybe you can," Akira whispered, cracking open the door just a smidge, as quietly as possible. Fortunately, the hinges were surprisingly silent. Of all the things for the school to not skimp out on, it's the oiling of doors...?!

As Morgana slithered in, Akira tried to get a good view...and he could see several players of Shujin's volleyball team, running drills. Among them were Shiho...and Mishima, surprisingly. Huh. After that conversation they had, I thought Mishima wanted nothing to do with the volleyball team...so how did this come about...?

xx

(Neither Akira nor Morgana knew the backdrop of that day's meeting.)

(Kawakami-sensei — having been struck by a miniature crisis of conscience following her last meeting in the guise of Becky with Akira — had followed up with a request that Shiho Suzui had made to the faculty: namely, to allow the volleyball team access to the gym for practice during summer.)

(Shiho had naturally been thrilled, and had reached out to numerous students on the team. Whether it be due to boredom, a lack of anything better to do, or mayhaps a hidden yearning to get out of Kamoshida's shadow, several had answered the call.)

(It would be by pure happenstance that Shiho would run into Mishima: he had been in the middle of going from the athletic building to the academic building to check on his bugs...but he had taken the exterior path, inadvertently crossing Suzui's path.)

(He couldn't just outright tell her that he was bugging the school...so he had begrudgingly pretended that he was here to partake in volleyball practice.)

(That had been over an hour before Akira and Morgana had arrived at the Academy grounds.)

(So now...we return to the events already in motion...)

xx

(As Morgana got into position beneath the wooden stairs leading up to the auditorium, and Akira focused his Third Eye...they witnessed the events therein.)

"-I thought you'd be needing the net by now," asked Kawakami, sitting rather lackadaisically in a folding chair.

Shiho, having worked up a bit of a sweat by this point, shook her head. "This is our first practice in a while; calisthenics, mobility drills, and coordination are more important to practice for us." She turned over to where her teammates had paired up: one was sitting on the ground, passing the ball back and forth along their legs, while the one was shuffling from side-to-side, to push the ball back. "...okay, I think this is good for now. Let's start on passing drills." Glancing over to her partner, she said, "Are you ready, Mishima-san?"

Mishima, down on the ground with the ball between his legs, stood up with a sullen expression.

(Morgana frowned. That look in his eyes...)

(Akira grimaced. The tension in his shoulders...)

"...this is all pointless, you know?" he muttered, letting the ball drop to his feet.

Shiho paused, a look of familiar despair crossing her face. "Mishima-san, please-"

"I mean, it's obvious that Kawakami-sensei would rather be anywhere but here," he said, looking over at Kawakami with a distant expression. "And it's not like she's obligated, anyway."

Kawakami frowned, rising to her feet. "Now Mishima-kun, I understand that the school has been...lax, in getting a new advisor for the Volleyball Club-"

"You don't have to pretend for us," he said, brazenly interrupting her. "We all know the truth. The school was happy so long as we were winners; but with Kamoshida's scandal, there is no way for us to win. It's all set in stone: a proverbial jail sentence that we can only endure..."

("...a jail sentence," repeated Akira, letting the idea tumble over in his mind. And all this talk about winners and losers...)

Shiho scowled. "At least Kawakami-sensei cared enough to try, even if it's something small! Everything starts small...you don't get to big accomplishments immediately! So you could at least be grateful!"

Mishima looked at her with an expression of unmistakable pity. "...why are you even trying?" Gesturing at the other volleyball players, he grumbled, "They all know that none of this is going to accomplish anything. Going through the motions? Doing half-hearted drills? How is that going to do anything for us?"

A boy with brown hair, clearly fed up with the line of argument, retorted, "Look, just because you were a bencher doesn't mean we share your crappy attitude!"

Kawakami raised her hands to quiet them down. "No personal insults-"

"I mean, you're right. I was a bencher. A gofer. It was the only way of surviving being on the team...because Kamoshida clearly didn't want me for my athleticism," admitted Mishima in a moment of brutal self-deprecation. "But even a loser can belong on a team of winners, and feel something. But now...we're all losers. And that's never going to change..."

"...man, you've really became a major downer," complained a girl with dark hair tied back by a headband. "Maybe we should have the Phantom Thieves, like, change your heart?"

"Yeah, that'd give you an attitude adjustment!" said Brown-haired Boy™ with a chuckle.

"Hey now, come on-!" said Shiho, trying to keep things from spiraling out of control.

(Morgana went still. What the...?)

(Akira focused intently upon Mishima. He looks like he's about to snap...)

"...an 'attitude adjustment'. Is that what you think a change of heart is?" he wondered with an almost breathless tone. "The guys that took down Kamoshida...and made him confess his wrongdoing...you think they're a game?" With a strange anger born of fear, he retorted, "You're idiots if you think they're on your side! You've heard all of the buzz about them...the media, the students at our school, they can't get enough of them. They're winners in ways we can't even fathom! And you think you can step up to their plate? Please."

Kawakami stepped forward. "Mishima-kun, that's enough-"

"But who knows what drives them? Or what makes them pick their targets? From crime bosses to stalkers, from bullies to teachers...no one is immune. And you think you're safe from that sort of thing?" He scoffed with genuine disdain. "We're not winners like they are...and if you don't want to be a loser, your only choice is to keep your head down...the sooner you all learn that, the better."

After a few seconds of silence, a lanky girl with freckles raised her hand. "Uh, I'm just here to play volleyball. This stuff is way too dramatic for me."

Mishima sighed, going for his bag. "...you don't understand..." He ignored the words from everyone else, heading towards the door.

(Akira quickly stepped away-)

As Mishima exited the gymnasium, his peripheral vision registered movement. He looked to the left...and nearly gasped aloud.

(Akira resisted the urge to wince; the sheer look of terror in Mishima's eyes was a sight to behold.)

The delinquent's eyes were hidden behind his glasses, which only made his visage that much more terrifying. Without hesitation, Mishima turned and ran as fast as he could.

(Akira watched Mishima run away. He...was absolutely panicked...just from looking at me...)

xx

Akira found himself waiting in the alleyway across the main gate, his eyes staring intently at the Meta-Nav. The words that Mishima had spoken; his confrontation with Shiho; his creation of Phan-Watch; his unknown partnership with Principal Kobayakawa; the frenzied words of his Shadow within Mementos; everything and more coalesced within Akira's mind.

(Morgana waited until volleyball practice ended to sneak out. He silently trailed Kawakami, staying out of her line of sight as she made to to lock the gymnasium doors. Slinking left while she looked to her right, Morgana stealthily stayed out of her peripheral vision until she had locked the door. Heh. I'm just too good, he thought to himself, waiting until the coast was clear to try and find Joker.)

"...a jail sentence," he muttered, quoting Mishima's words in his heads. Into the Meta-Nav, he entered prison.

"Partial result. Please add additional keywords," chirped the Navigator.

But of course, Mishima wouldn't make it easy; but then, with all of the boy's talk about winners and losers, it didn't long before Akira hit on the right one: competition.

"Distortion confirmed. Please complete remaining keyword."

So...Mishima sees Shujin Academy and the Phan-Watch website as not just a prison...but as a competition. (How interesting, that Mishima's Palace seemed like it was setting itself up to be rather fluid in structure; was it because he was still a young man, uncertain of his place in the world? Was it because his distortions were 'fresh', whereas an adult's would have had time to settle, and become well-worn? He had no way of knowing.)

All that was left now...was the concept: the substance that formed the roots of Mishima's distorted cognition.

In the end, it came down to the fact that Mishima's behavior was downright irrational: the method he had chosen to cope (if that was even the right word) just didn't fit with his actual circumstances. But Mishima, more than anything else at this point, seemed to be driven by fear...and the sort of fear that would drive a high school student so far as to place spy devices within his school...could only be called one thing. "...Paranoia," he said aloud.

"Input accepted. Searching for route to destination."

As Morgana approached the alleyway, Akira looked towards him with a sober expression. "We're in."

"Yes!" exclaimed Morgana with a cheerful meow.

Tomorrow, the Phantom Thieves would be dropping into Mishima's Palace.

xxxx

TO BE CONTINUED

xxxx

Author's Note: Huh. Wonder why Kaji name-dropped so many bits from Persona 5 Strikers. Wonder why Akira was dreaming about it.

I'm sure there's nothing untoward about that.