Disclaimer: Fate and Persona are owned by different companies and I hold no ownership and all that jazz.
8/26
Warping back into reality the Thieves split up, Hakuno wasn't too sure how they all felt more refreshed after a day of terminating Shadows but the drain of her Soul and Od was minimal compared to her grueling days in the Arena.
Ann dragged both Yusuke and Futaba away for some reason, which surely would be an interesting thing to hear about afterward. Still, the trio sped off before Hakuno could ask, and Akira left Morgana with Makoto to join Ryuji at the gym.
"Just me, Queen and Magus! Three of the four brains of our little operation!" Morgana mewled from Makoto's arms. The Not-a-cat did things occasionally that made Hakuno doubt he wasn't a cat, like how comfortable he looked being carried in people's arms.
"Morgana… the others are… uniquely smart." Makoto sighed as she shifted Morgana into a more comfortable position, "Hakuno, would you mind going over some plans with me?" Makoto glanced at their surroundings, "Also… Eiko wants me to visit her at her new job to show it's not as bad as her previous one and I would like some backup, she said it was a small cafe called 'Alice's Apron'."
Hakuno tilted her head, Eiko was still Makoto's friend after she slapped her? At least that slap seemed to knock some sense into her. She wonders why she didn't bring Akira, but she doesn't mind helping out a friend. However, she had never heard of that cafe before.
"Alright, lead the way."
Sometimes, Futaba wondered what life would be like if she were more confident and had the possibility of being the bigger person. Someone who wouldn't taunt a sort of friend or knowingly press the buttons that would tick him off.
But in times like this? She just knew that it was not to be.
Case in point, "GIVE IT BACK!" She jumped with all of her 2 Strength points while the lanky boy kept her phone out of reach.
"I… don't know why I did this." She ignored Ann's muttering, the model was the one who set this up and honestly, Futaba was all for it, "I should've just had them help separately…"
"How could you!" Her eyes looked madly for a chance to gain the advantage, "Leonardo Da Vinci was not a 'well-endowed bishojo!' I will remove this insult to one of the most influential artists in history!"
She might have saved the weird works that Hakuno's dad wrote, but they were amazing. The dude could've made a killing if he sold that stuff, but wanted to be a science nerd like his wife. She had dozens of copies saved but the one on her phone was the easiest to use and the only one with commissioned art!
"Say's you! Hakuno agreed that some of the things lined up with actual history! Like Nero being a big-breasted short chick!" There! One of Ann's many piles of clothing was hiding her bed, she just had to use it and jump!
Her nose hurts now.
"Are you ok Futaba?" Ann helped her up, thank god for her help she didn't think she could escape from the sweater that clung to her legs, Ann's bed hid so many clothes underneath.
"Bleh. I'm going to topple the twig." She will do it, and she will make dozens of requests for commissions despite this! "I will commission the biggest and most awesome artist to do commissions for them and will rub your face in them!"
Yusuke rolled his eyes, "As if any artist would pick that up… and as Ryuji has informed me of this saying, 'you and what army?'" Yusuke stood tall, a daunting task that she had before her.
Her physical stats might be low, but her intelligence stat was the highest there is!
"Ann, I'll write all your essays for the year." Futaba's glasses gleamed, she knew the model would take her up.
Ann only hesitated for a moment, "Sorry Yusuke, but a girl's grades are on the line…"
"Welcome Home Master!"
Hakuno… had not expected to ever walk into a maid cafe. She had a feeling Futaba would definitely go into one once she could handle larger crowds and the ability to order her food without relying on others, but Hakuno personally never intended to go into one.
Hakuno did notice that Makoto's brain broke slightly as she began to walk more robotically to their seat, and her face was completely red.
"You alright Queen?" Morgana's furry little head poked out of Hakuno's bag, "Your face is a little red…"
"Thank you." Hakuno nodded as Eiko handed her a menu, hmm… the prices are a bit… much. And Hakuno wasn't too confident about what she was ordering, for the first time the menu didn't actually list what the items were which was incredibly weird.
"Man, I thought Prez would bring her BF, not you mini-Prez!" Eiko's smile was infectious, and Hakuno didn't know what to say to be called 'mini-Prez', but she guessed there were worse nicknames the girl could pick, "But see Prez? This ain't too bad, perfectly above board not showing any skin or anything! All I gotta do is dress all nice and give the customers my award-winning smile."
"Wha?" Makoto muttered and Hakuno lightly shook her arms, the crimson-eyed girl locked eyes with Hakuno before glancing up at Eiko. "Huh? Yes… This isn't what you described Eiko…"
Eiko frowned, "But Master, this totally is a normal restaurant~." She said with a wink, "Now, do my two lovely Masters have any special requests?" It was strange how her voice changed from normal to a more high pitch, but Hakuno didn't know the reason behind it and chose to ignore it.
"How about some Oo-hot Tea?" Hakuno wasn't much of a tea person, but that was the second cheapest item on the menu next to the coffee. She could not drink another place's coffee, Sojiro's coffee was amazing and he knew exactly how to make it so it wasn't too bitter for her without being overly sweet.
Eiko flashed her a smile, "Of course Master! Two orders of Oo-Hot Tea!" She quickly disappeared faster than Hakuno could even fathom in that uniform.
"Queen answer me!" Morgana yowled loud enough for Hakuno to frown, "Are you sick?"
"Huh… no." Makoto's face became serious, "I'm not sick just…" Makoto was at a loss for words, maybe this place was a bit too much for the prim and proper School President…
"Awestruck?" At least that is what Hakuno is feeling, seeing people fully confident in who they are always made her glad that she got a second chance at life.
"Maybe? I think I've got to think about this now…" Makoto mumbled, "Anyway… this place is certainly… pink?"
"You mean overwhelming… all this pink is hurting my eyes…" Morgana mumbled, "Can I get some sushi?"
"Sorry, this place doesn't have any." At least Hakuno didn't see any on the menu, "We can go afterward and pick up some?" Convenience store sushi isn't that expensive, as long as he doesn't need his usual…
"FATTY TUNAAAaaaa." Morgana sang, "One of my two loves." Two? Ah, wait she forgot he loves being a Phantom Thief.
Hakuno rolled her eyes as Makoto frowned, "You know… is it even healthy for us to feed Morgana so much human food? He is in the body of a cat…"
"...Queen?"
"It should be fine? Although he is getting heavier…" Hakuno wasn't too sure, maybe they should put him on a diet? Although she couldn't imagine being forced to be a cat and having to eat cat food.
She felt pity for the not-a-cat.
"We should get him checked out by a Vet." Makoto nodded to herself, "I'll make sure Akira takes him to one, we don't want him getting sick..."
"NOooooo!"
Morgana's yowl had caught a lot of the maids' attention, including their manager who reluctantly asked them to leave. Apparently, animals are not allowed in their cafe, and because they didn't actually get their tea yet, the bill was waived.
Even if Eiko managed to sneak it out in to-go cups.
The Tea wasn't half bad though, maybe she will come back one day.
8/27
Hakuno was confident they should at least be able to get most of the way through the remaining part of the Palace today as long as they weren't stopped by a cognitive block that is.
"Sorry I'm late!" the fluffy-haired girl said as she arrived and Hakuno smiled at seeing her friend so full of energy again.
"You're early, it's just me, Futaba, and Morgana." Futaba had even arrived first! Hakuno was so proud that the girl was able to go on the train by herself… well mostly by herself. The four of them were near the only tree that had a small bench, they had to squeeze in while they waited for everyone else.
"While we wait code name!" Morgana yowled from Futaba's clutches. "We need a code name for you Haru!" Ah yes, something that may or may not work, Hakuno wanted to test if it affected anything, but Morgana was fairly adamant about it, it made some sense, but Hakuno wasn't sure…
"Oh my!" Haru covered her mouth, "Isn't that a bit too late though? You were all calling me my normal name in Mementos?"
"Never too late to start!" Morgana nodded, "I had a few thoughts! How about Beauty Thief!"
"Rejected," Futaba said as she began to squeeze Morgana's cheeks, the not-a-cat instantly mewled indignations. "Doesn't work with our naming schemes." They had a naming scheme?
"I um…" Haru looked slightly bashful, "Already have one? Hearing you all talk about them in those depths… I would like to pick Noir."
The French word for black? "Why?" Hakuno couldn't help but ask.
"I would like to be a heroine of justice, but the Phantom Thieves are on the darker side of the law, I chose the name to remind myself of that." Huh.. that. Was honestly a better reason than any of their Code-Names sans Futaba and Oracle and an actual reason behind it other than just a basic description…
"Sounds fine." Hakuno shrugged, "More thought into it than the rest of us." Honestly, her code name was the name of Mages in her previous world, before the World's Mana died out and they all had to become Wizards.
"Thank you!" Haru's smile was infectious.
"So Haru…" Futaba's face scrunched, "How's your dad?"
Hakuno focussed on Haru's face as she frowned lightly, "He is getting better… He hasn't talked about me being married off again, but he has taken to staying overnight at headquarters the last few days. He has one of the maids to ensure I am home at a 'proper' time, and he had someone take away my axe again."
Her what.
"Axe?" Morgana tilted his little kitty head at her, "You bought a model already?" Hakuno wasn't sure if anyone even explained the usefulness of models to her yet.
"A model?" Haru was now the one who glanced at Morgana in confusion, "A model couldn't chop firewood silly."
"Huh… the heiress has a real axe to cut firewood… I didn't have that on my bingo card for the weirdness of our group." Futaba hit the nail on the head. Hakuno had no idea what to say in response to it.
"Firewood was the main way we kept the abode warm during the winter months," A soft voice echoed that caused Hakuno to momentarily freeze, "While I never had the chance to fall a tree myself, I have heard the moment it falls the branches that spring forth can create a scenic view for a few moments."
Haru didn't even flinch as Yusuke appeared behind her as the fluffy-haired girl picked Morgana from Futaba's lap. "Is that so? Sadly my Father has never allowed me to fall any, I have a gardener do it for me and prepare the logs. We do have a small cabin in the woods, perhaps when I head there next we should all go?"
Futaba leaned in close, "Those two… scare me sometimes."
Hakuno could only reply with a small shrug.
Warping into the safe room felt somehow off to Hakuno, but she couldn't place her finger on it. The reds and blacks of the Metaverse clouded her vision perhaps a few seconds longer than before, or perhaps it was the distant sound of a metal grinding on metal, she wasn't sure.
Haru's thief outfit was something interesting to behold, it reminded her of an old Victorian outfit of sorts, the cavalier hat even had a purple feather in it, but what was perhaps strangest was the lack of a Mask. Now, they could dismiss their Mask at any time without difficulty, however… they always initiated a Palace with their Masks on.
"Hm… Noir, your Persona might be a bit too weak for this Palace." Futaba mentioned, "Weirdly I'm not picking up any elemental affinity either…"
Akira frowned, "Strange, didn't you use telekinesis?" At least some form of Psychokinesis, maybe it could be an Earth Spell? Did Personas even have earth elemental attacks? If so then they've never encountered one…
The fluffy brunette frowned, "I believe so yes. It was all such a rush, to be honest, I hardly recall most of it, I just remember being so angry."
Hakuno nodded, strong emotions did seem to be a motivating factor for most of their awakenings. "Maybe you did more damage to yourself than we realized?" If so then she would have to try and do an in-depth analysis of her Soul. "Haru would you mind if I touched your Soul?"
Haru tilted her head at Hakuno's question, "That sounds fine?"
"You're not talking about the Circuit stuff right?" Ryuji scratched the back of his head, "I don't think this is the place for that…"
"No, no pain… probably." Hakuno grasped Haru's hand and concentrated, a quick glance through her body did confirm a core but…
Why was it stone cold like hers?
Why did they have similar cold cores?
And why did she not detect Haru's Persona?
"I… I'm not sure what's wrong." Hakuno gave a light shrug, "You aren't in danger but… I'm not sure why your awakening is weird." Hakuno didn't think it would be the best time to mention her own core she was able to fight normally enough.
"Well, if Noir's Persona is weak, then how bout she stays in the back?" Ryuji shrugged, "Someone sticks by and she gets a chance to learn how we do our thing."
"What's that you got there?" Ann was looking strangely at Haru having walked behind the heiress.
"Oh, this?" Haru smiled brightly as she held an overly large gun in her hands like it was her baby, "It's the gun I found!" Hakuno had to take a moment to figure out she was looking at a grenade launcher.
With how often Hakuno lost/forgot about her gun, it honestly made her happy that at least someone in their group had a strong gun. Although she did find it strange when they resisted physical damage but was weak to guns… Weakness and Resistance were a weird concept that Hakuno fully believed came from the public opinion of role-playing games that Futaba and everyone else played.
"For now let's play it safe, Panther, Queen, and Skull stick with me, everyone else hang out in the reserve."
Author's Notes: Well, originally I was just going to double the length of this chapter and go into the Palace more but well, yeah holidays are kicking my butt so I figured I'll release what I got as a standalone for now lol.
Anyways, Haru's joined the expedition and stuff is wonk with her awakening like usual. And yes, Haru sadly doesn't have her Axe yet, she will obtain that when her awakening finalizes and stuff and it will be bloodthirsty.