Author's Note: It's good to be back! I've been blown away by all the support so far, whether it be comment, work on the T.V Tropes page, or just people reading the fic in general. Thank you all so much!
5/27 Friday
As soon as woke up, she walked into the kitchen to make herself breakfast… only to find Sae there, a stern expression on her face.
"Oh, sis, why are you-"
"Sit." Sae commanded, pointing to a nearby chair. "We need to talk."
Nervously, she did as she was told, sitting down at the table.
"I got a call from your school." Sae told her. "They told me that you were spending time with some 'delinquents', one of which was convicted of assault...Ren Amamiya."
"Sis, I-"
"Is it true, Makoto?" Sae cut her off, her eyes narrowing.
"He's not a criminal! He was framed." she insisted. "He's a really nice and caring person."
"Don't be naive, Makoto." her sister warned. "He's just trying to lure you in with some ridiculous sob story he made up. If you keep spending time with him, you'll only end up hurt."
"How can you say that without knowing him?!" she argued.
"I've dealt with hundreds of criminals before, and I was in high school too." Sae pointed out. "Criminals don't care about hurting people, and the only thing that highschool boys care about is sex."
"I'm telling you… he's not a criminal." she whispered.
Sae sighed. "What's with you all of a sudden? You've been acting strangely recently."
She said nothing, not sure how to explain.
"Makoto, it doesn't matter whether he was framed or not." Sae pointed out. "What matters is that now that he has that stigma attached to him, people will start talking if they see you spending time with someone like that. That would be horrible for your reputation."
Reputation… was that all anyone cared about?! The principal, her sister…
"It's your last year of high school, Makoto." Sae reminded her. "You know what you have to do, right?"
"Keep studying hard, get good grades, and get into a good college." she said.
It was stiff. Forced. A response that had been drilled into her.
"Good girl." Sae smiled. "Just do as I ask, and don't let me hear about you spending time with delinquents again, alright?"
"...Yes, sis." she mumbled.
Frowning, she quietly ate her breakfast and got ready for school.
When she walked up to school, she saw Ren and Ryuji whispering to themselves in front of the school.
"What the hell were you thinkin', man?" Ryuji hissed. "There was no way she was going to believe you were a dad."
"I was panicking, ok?" Ren grumbled. "And what about you? You and Mishima dragged me into this and then ended up ditching me."
"What are you two talking about?" Makoto asked, walking up to them.
"M-Makoto!" Ryuji stammered. "I-It's nothing! Just some, uh… guy talk! Yeah, right Ren?"
"H-Huh, o-oh, yeah." Ren nodded.
A part of her was curious about what happened during 'guy talk', but she figured it was more important to tell them about her predicament.
"About what I told you guys yesterday…" she trailed off.
She explained the situation with the principal, and everything that he had told her, while keeping her conversation with her sister private.
"What the hell?!" Ryuji shouted. "That's effin' bullshit!"
"Quiet down, bonehead!" Morgana hissed. "We can't let anyone catch us together!"
"Guess we can't really meet up at school, then." Ren muttered. "Sorry about this, guys. It's because of me that they're suspicious."
"No, don't blame yourself, Ren." Makoto said, shaking her head. "I'm the one that the principal's ordering around. I just… I wish I knew what to do. I'm supposed to be the leader, but I don't know what to do. I'm so sorry, everyone…"
"Alright, alright, let's all stop playin' the blame game, alright?" Ryuji asked. "It ain't none of our faults."
"H-Huh?" she mumbled.
"Don't worry, Makoto." Ren comforted, offering a gentle smile. "We'll all get through this together. We're a team, after all."
"Yeah… you're right." she smiled. "Thanks, you two."
"So… what's stopping us from takin' the principal's heart?" Ryuji asked.
"What?!" she exclaimed. "I don't know… he's trying to discover our identities, but I don't think that alone warrants us going after him."
"Well, it ain't just that. He's also blackmailing you with a letter of recommendation." Ryuji argued.
"That's true." she admitted. "Well, either way, she should wait for Yusuke. We can't choose a target without everyone's consent."
"Oh, yeah, I forgot." Ryuji admitted.
"So, we'll meet up soon to discuss. Sound good?" Makoto asked.
Everyone nodded.
"Alright." she said. "Now, let's split up and enter the school at different times. We don't want to make anyone suspicious."
They each made their way into the school a ways apart from each other.
After classes had ended, she thought about simply heading home to relax.
Fate had other plans for her, however.
"Hey, inmate!" Caroline snapped.
She looked into an alley by her house, seeing the twin wardens waiting at a door to the velvet room.
"Did you bring the persona we wanted?!" Caroline yelled.
"The Ame-no-Uzume with Frei, correct?" she asked. "I have it with me."
"Then could you show it to us?" Justine asked.
She nodded, walking into the Velvet Room with them, showing the twins her persona before heading back out.
"Excuse me…" Justine trailed off.
"Was there something else?" she asked.
"We request that you bring us to another area so that we can evaluate your rehabilitation." Justine explained.
"Like the toy store from before?" she asked.
Both of the twins nodded.
"Well, what did you have in mind?" she asked.
"The place that we wish to evaluate for your rehabilitation is somehow able to simulate the feeling of being in the ocean, despite being indoors." Justine explained.
"Rumor has it that sea creatures from all over the world have gathered there." Caroline added.
"Are you… talking about an aquarium?" she asked.
"Is that what it's called?" Justine asked.
"Bring us there right now!" Caroline demanded.
She pinched the bridge of her nose, suppressing the urge to sigh as she led them to the aquarium.
"Hmm… the glass walls certainly make it seem like walking on the floor of the ocean." Justine observed.
"It does seem a bit familiar…" Caroline added.
"Does it remind you of the Velvet Room?" she asked.
"A bit." Justine nodded. "But that room represents a different type of sea. The sea of human souls. But I suppose there's still a bit of a connection there."
"This is interesting! Let's start checking out the other exhibits!" Caroline ordered.
She led them through the aquarium, thankfully not getting too many odd looks from the other visitors.
"There are so many different kinds of fish." Caroline observed.
"Indeed. The semi-transparent, floating invertebrates were very quite fascinating." Justine smiled.
"The jellyfish?" she asked.
Justine nodded, although Caroline frowned.
"Those seemed rather creepy." Caroline muttered. "I thought that that really big killer whale was much better."
She couldn't help but smile when she saw the twins' reaction. I reminded her of when she was a little girl, and her father first brought her to the aquarium.
"Creepy?" Justine scoffed. "What nonsense. The jellyfish were far more appling."
"No, the killer whale is clearly superior!" Caroline argued.
As the two twins continued to argue, she couldn't help but shake her head.
"They really are just like children." she mused.
Suddenly, both of them turned to her.
"Inmate…" Justine trailed off.
"Settle this!" Caroline finished.
"M-Me?" she stammered, wondering what to say. "Well, I think that they have their merits, and there's nothing wrong with liking either of the-"
"That wasn't one of the options available to you!" Justine cut her off.
"Can't you do anything right, Inmate…" Caroline sighed.
"It's like getting told off by elementary schoolers…" she thought, internally sighing.
"Regardless, I believe we've finished our inspection." Justine noted. "However, I am still curious as to why humans go through the trouble of capturing other creatures and putting them on display."
"I suppose… it's to observe nature." she told them.
"How arrogant… imprisoning them as if they were nothing but playthings to them." Justine frowned.
"Even the adorabl- I-I mean aquatic sea otters?!" Caroline gasped.
Justine sadly nodded.
"How deprived! If humans admire nature so much, they should go move to a rainforest." Caroline scoffed.
"These two… really don't have many good things to say about humans…" she mused, frowning.
"I still don't really understand you humans." Caroline grumbled.
"Regardless, the assignment is complete." Justine acknowledged.
"All right, then it's time to go back." Caroline nodded.
"You have our thanks for showing us this place." Justine said.
They could be a handful at times, but he had a lot of fun.
STRENGTH CONFIDANT: RANK 2
Before they could even take a step to leave, however…
"A free penguin show will begin shortly at the exhibition room. Please come and enjoy the performance."
A voice came from a nearby loudspeaker.
"...What is a penguin?" Caroline asked.
"It's a black and white flightless bird that typically lives in very cold places." Makoto explained. "It's also super cute! Not as cute as pandas, but they're up there."
"Hmm…" Justine trailed off.
Justine and Caroline quickly huddled together, whispering amongst themselves for a while before turning back to her.
"W-Well, neither of us have any desire to see this exhibit." Justine insisted. "Absolutely none at all!"
"B-But since you look like you're just dying to see this, inmate, then I guess we'll tag along." Caroline grinned.
She suppressed a giggle at their obvious excitement. Maybe she could have some fun with this…
"I don't know… maybe I've been out for too long. Perhaps I should head home…" Makoto trailed off.
"H-Hold on, inmate?! We- I mean you want to see the show, don't you?" Caroline stammered.
"I-I'm sure that this could help with your rehabilitation, inmate!" Justine quickly added.
This time, she couldn't suppress her giggle. "Well, alright, I suppose I'll go."
She went with the twins to the penguin show, smiling as she saw their eyes light up while they watched.
After the show ended, they returned to the Velvet Room, and she went home for the day.
5/28 Saturday
After classes ended for the day, she quickly made her way out of the school.
A part of her wanted to meet up with Ren and Ryuji, but with people keeping a close eye on them both in and out of the school, they would have to be very careful.
So instead, she opted to visit Shiho in the hospital instead.
She made her way to Shiho's hospital room, gently knocking on the door.
"Come in." Shiho said.
She walked inside, seeing Shiho sitting up in bed with a small smile.
"Makoto. It's good to see you." Shiho said.
"Good to see you too, Shiho." Makoto greeted. "Sorry that I haven't been able to visit much."
"It's alright." Shiho insisted. "I've had a lot of other visitors as well."
"Oh, you have?" she asked. "It must be… Takamaki-san, right?
Shiho nodded. "She's been here a few times, but also… there have been members of the volleyball team too."
"Oh, that's nice." she smiled. "I'm glad that they're giving you support."
"Y-Yeah…" Shiho trailed off.
"Is something wrong?" she wondered.
"Well… most of them have been supportive, but…" Shiho trailed off.
"But what?"
"I guess… I feel a little guilty." Shiho admitted. "This was their dream. So many of them lived for volleyball, and were hoping to get scholarships. And now it's all ruined…"
"That's not your fault, Shiho." Makoto insisted. "The blame lies solely on Kamoshida. Isn't that… what you told me earlier?"
Shiho let out a small smile. "Yes, I suppose you're right, Makoto."
"How's everything been, Shiho?" Makoto asked. "Have you been healing alright?"
Shiho nodded. "My legs are much better now. I can move them around a bit, but I can't quite stand on them yet."
Shiho demonstrated this by moving her leg up and down a bit.
"I think… that I'm going to be discharged from the hospital soon." Shiho said. "I'm expected to make a full recovery."
"That's wonderful, Shiho." Makoto beamed. "I'm so happy to hear that."
"I am too, but… it's just… I think it'll be a little intimidating to readjust to normal life again." Shiho confessed.
"I guess you're right." Makoto acknowledged. "You'll be going to a new school too. Well, if there's anything that you're having trouble with, I'll be happy to help."
"Thank you, Makoto." Shiho said, her smile widening. "I don't know what I'd do without you or Ann."
"Anytime." Makoto promised. "I am still your friend and sempai, after all."
SUN CONFIDANT: RANK 3
After speaking with Shiho for a little longer, she said goodbye before heading out of the room… and finding herself face to face with another visitor.
"N-Nijima-san?"
"What the hell are you doing here?!" Ann snapped.
"I came here to see Shiho." she answered.
Ann scowled. "After everything you've done, you want to see her?! What the hell is wrong with you?!"
"What are you talking about?!" Makoto yelled back. "What do you mean, 'after everything I've done'?"
"You knew all about Kamoshida's crimes, but you didn't do anything about it!" Ann accused. "You always take the teacher's side!"
"No, that's wrong!" Makoto insisted. "I heard rumors, but I hadn't heard or seen anything concrete. Where did you even hear something like that…?"
"From other students!" Ann replied. "Other students that know that you don't care about them!"
Makoto clenched her fists in anger. "I do care about them!"
"The only thing you care about is a letter of recommendation!" Ann snapped. "That's why you do whatever the teachers ask you to do! You didn't do anything for Shiho!"
"And what did you do?!" Makoto exclaimed, before immediately regretting her words.
Ann… was a victim too. It would be horrible to blame her for anything.
"Takamaki-san, I'm so sorr-"
"You're right."
"Huh?"
"You're right… I couldn't do anything to help Shiho back then." Ann admitted. "But even if I couldn't help her deal with Kamoshida, I can help her deal with you! A-And, if not me, then the Phantom Thieves! They'll stop you, just like they stopped Kamoshida!"
"Both of you, stop it!"
Both girls turned into the hospital room, where Shiho was looking at them with tears in her eyes.
"Shiho!" Ann exclaimed. "Don't worry, I'll deal with-"
"Makoto is my friend!" Shiho exclaimed.
"W-What?" Ann stammered. "Shiho, don't you realize? Niijima-"
"Didn't know what was going on!" Shiho cut her off. "But… the day Kamoshida bruised me, she tried asking me if I was all right. I… was too scared to tell her what happened, but I knew she cared."
"Is that really ture?" Ann asked.
Shiho nodded. "She's visited me several times to keep me company. And Kamoshida… tried to abuse her too. I don't think she's to blame here."
"Shiho…" Ann trailed off.
"Takamaki-san, I'm so sorry about what I said." Makoto expressed. "I know that you were a victim too."
"I… I need to go." Ann muttered.
"W-Wait, Ann!" Shiho called, but Ann had already ran off.
"I'll try to talk to her at school." Makoto offered.
"Thank you." Shiho replied. "I'm sorry about what she said. Please try not to hold it against her. Ann's been through so much too."
"I know." she nodded. "I'll see what I can do."
She exited the hospital, heading home and crawling into bed early.
First the principal, then her sister, now Ann…
"Why is everyone getting on my case…?" she muttered.
Morgana curled up next to her, trying to comfort her as she felt the stress beginning to get to her...
5/29 Sunday
With it not being a school day, the Thieves decided to meet up at Leblanc, to discuss recent events and their next course of action.
"So, Ann confronted you at the hospital, right?" Ryuji asked.
"The two of you seem to know each other." Yusuke observed. "Could you perhaps convince her to stop her spying."
"I don't know her that well." Ryuji shrugged. "We both went to the same middle school, but that's it, really."
"From what you've said about your encounter at the hospital, she does seem to believe in the Phantom Thieves, however." Yusuke noted.
"Maybe we could use that to our advantage." Ren brought up.
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"If we reveal ourselves as the Phantom Thieves… Do you think that she would become our ally?" Ren asked.
"She has to! Someone with such an angelic appearance can't be bad!" Morgana insisted. "Ahh… Lady Ann…"
"What on Earth has gotten into you?" she wondered.
"Is this like… the cat version of puppy love?" Ryuji asked.
"Bah! You just don't understand." Morgana muttered.
"Well… this actually gives me an idea." Ren mentioned. "The past few days, I've spied Takamaki-san following me around at school. If I could sneak a message to her that she wouldn't see until later..."
"You could arrange a meeting between us!" she realized.
"That does seem risky, even if she does support the Phantom Thieves." Yusuke pointed out.
"That's true." she acknowledged. "Let's discuss to see if we can make this plan a little safer."
After talking about it for a while, they managed to make several small adjustments to the plan, although she was still unsure if they would go through with it.
After they finished discussing, she saw Ren grabbing a portable stove from the corner of the room.
"You gonna make something?" Ryuji asked.
"Things have been pretty stressful lately…" Ren trailed off. "I thought that we could have a small celebration to get our minds off of everything for a bit. Who wants hot pot?"
"That sounds amazing!" Morgana exclaimed.
"Heh, anything with meat's good with me!" Ryuji grinned.
"As long as we finish it off with porridge." Yusuke requested. "With extra parsley, of course."
"Let's not spend too much money." she cautioned. "But that does seem like a nice idea."
"Great. I'll ask Boss for to borrow a pot, and I'll whip something up." Ren offered. "We can split the costs on the ingredients five ways."
"Actually…" Yusuke trailed off. "I saw these wonderful paintbrushes for sale, so I regrettably-"
"Four ways." Ren corrected.
Yusuke nodded his thanks.
"I could help you with the cooking, Ren." Makoto offered.
"Thanks! Can you get the ingredients while I set the table and everything?"
She nodded, leaving to grab the food with Yusuke and Ryuji.
After everything was prepared, Ren and Makoto made a nice lunch for the group.
"Oh, man, I couldn't eat another bite." Ryuji moaned, laying back in his seat.
"That was delicious!" Morgana complemented. "So, you can cook other things besides curry!"
"I've been learning." Ren grinned. "Thanks for helping out, Makoto."
"Oh, it's no trouble." she insisted. "I prepare meals for my sister all the time, and besides, you did most of the work."
"For your sister?" Yusuke inquired.
"It's just the two of us." Makoto told him. "She's often busy at work, but I try to do what I can to be useful to her."
"And your parents?" Yusuke asked.
Ren winced at Yusuke bringing up such a sensitive topic. "Ah, Yusuke, that's a-"
"No, it's alright." she said. "We know a lot about you, Yusuke, but you don't really know much about us."
"That is true." Yusuke nodded. "You know everything about my past. It's only fair that you share yours."
Ryuji shrugged. "Alright, I'll tell you. It's nothin' special, though. My dad left when I was young, so it was just me and my mom. I… wanted to get a track scholarship to help her out, but I screwed that up when I hit Kamoshida. Guess I'm just a really bad son…"
"Ryuji… don't say that." Makoto said.
"It's alright." Ryuji muttered. "I haven't gone through nearly as much shit as you too."
"What does he mean?" Yusuke wondered.
She explained what had happened to her family, while Ren explained the situation with his probation.
"Goddammit!" Ryuji yelled. "Just listenin' to it pisses me off! You seriously got an assault on your record for that?"
Ren nodded. "No one believed a word I said…"
"That woman seems awful as well." Yusuke pointed out. "You saved her, but she kept quiet about the truth."
"I think that man was pressuring her." Ren figured. "That might be why she didn't tell the truth."
"Do you remember who that man was?!" Morgana asked. "They seem like exactly the type of person whose heart we'd steal!"
"I can't remember…" Ren admitted. "It was so dark, and I was in shock..."
"That's understandable." Morgana sympathized. "I know all about forgetting important events in life…"
"Whoever that man was, he'll be hard to track down if he was able to keep his identity secret." Yusuke brought up. "Especially if they were able to get the police to do his bidding."
She frowned, wondering who could possess that kind of power, and why would the police follow them.
"It's fine." Ren insisted.
"No, it's not, man!" Ryuji argued. "It's bullshit how assholes like that guy can just get away with what he did, and people in the position to do something about these problems just pretend they don't exist!"
"Fixing these problems is quite the daunting task…" she trailed off. "But we can't give up! If we continue to fight for justice, we might just inspire more people to act!"
"Hell yeah!" Ryuji grinned.
"Sounds good to me!" Morgana added. "The more missions we do, the better!"
Yusuke nodded, and Ren gave a smirk.
She could feel the determination from the group. It seemed that sharing stories had brought them all a little closer.
FORTUNE CONFIDANT: RANK 2
After helping put everything away and cleaning up, she said her goodbyes and moved to leave Leblanc and head home.
However, Yusuke stopped her at the door.
"Makoto, I need your help with something!" Yusuke exclaimed.
"If this is about the nude modeling, I'm afraid the answer is still no." she sighed.
Yusuke paused for a moment.
"I'll see you tomorrow, Yu-"
"Makoto, there's a second thing I need your help with!" Yusuke exclaimed.
"And what would that be?" she asked.
"Do you remember the first time you brought me into the Metaverse?" Yusuke asked.
She nodded.
"The first time that Ren brought me into the Metaverse, I was absolutely mesmerized by its aesthetic." Yusuke explained. "But finding out that was a manifestation of sen- of Madarame's distorted desires prevented me from enjoying it."
"That's understandable." she nodded. "Were you having artist's block, and needed help finding inspiration?"
"Actually, I was hoping to go to Mementos again, but I'd like your assistance." Yusuke stated. "If I could go there without having to focus on changing hearts… I might be able to focus on capturing distortion on canvas."
"And you wanted me to join you in case any enemy shadows show up." she assumed.
Yusuke nodded. "Would you be able to help me with this, leader?"
"Well… alright." she relented. "But we shouldn't stay too long, and we should stick to the upper floors."
Yusuke nodded, the two Thieves heading into the Metaverse.
"Human desires…" Yusuke muttered as he glanced around the Metaverse. "To think that the same thing that produced the beauty of Sayuri can also create such morbid fabrications…"
"It's certainly a complex and mysterious topic." Makoto added.
"Perhaps that's why I find it so fascinating…" Yusuke trailed off. "And yet, it is this very place that is responsible for my current slump."
"How so?" she wondered.
"I held so much faith in the art world before." Yusuke told her. "But discovering the greed and unchecked desires hidden within has soured my view of it."
"That must be rather demoralizing…" she replied.
"It is." Yusuke admitted. "I… I realized that this world can be a twisted place. This world is proof of that. Knowing this, I can't help but wonder if true beauty can even exist in this world. And even if it can, can it be captured by someone like me? Someone who was tainted by Madarame's depravity?"
"I think you're being too hard on yourself." Makoto comforted. "You aren't Madarame. You were a victim."
Yusuke said nothing, instead continuing to sketch in his notepad.
It was a while before he spoke again.
"It was a while before I could work up the motivation to pick up a brush again." Yusuke admitted. "I thought that confronting the source of my issues head on might help."
"That might be it!" she encouraged. "That might just be what you need to break out of your-
"AH!" Yusuke suddenly shouted. "Inspiration has struck! This must be it! Such brilliant composition! My heart races!"
She wasn't sure what changed, but she was happy for him.
Before she could congratulate him, however, several shadows formed in front of them.
"Shadows…" she muttered.
"How unfortunate… for them." Yusuke stated. "I'm brimming with energy."
"Are you?" she asked.
Yusuke nodded. "Indeed. I ate today."
Yusuke called for Goemon, who blew chilling winds through his pipe at the shadows, knocking them all to the ground.
"Fox, now!" she commanded.
She swiftly dispatched the majority of their foes with her fists, while Fox went after the last one.
"Goemon, now!" Yusuke yelled.
With a mighty slice from his weapon, Goemon cut all of the shadows in two.
"Hrmp… once again, I have cut a worthless object." Yusuke muttered.
"Perhaps it's best that we leave for now." she suggested.
Yusuke nodded. "I suppose so. I'm thankful that you came with me. You're much like Theo."
"Theo?" she wondered.
"Van Gogh's brother." Yusuke explained. "Even if Van Gogh did not achieve fame in his lifetime, he found an admirer and supporter in his brother. Not only did you assist me with Madarame, but you continue to assist me now."
"O-Oh, thank you." she stammered, a tad embarrassed from the praise.
"I'll be sure to work as hard as I can to support the Phantom Thieves." Yusuke promised. "It's the least I can do for everything you've for me."
As Yusuke expressed his gratitude, she could hear a voice in her head.
I am thou, thou art I… thou hast acquired a new vow. It shall become the wings of rebellion that carry you to thy future. With the birth of the Emperor Persona, I have obtained the winds of blessing that shall lead to freedom and new power…
EMPEROR CONFIDANT: RANK 1
"I'll let you know when I finish the painting." Yusuke said. "Now let's leave."
After exiting the Metaverse, she said goodbye to Yusuke, and went home for the day.
Makoto's Confidant Progress:
THE FOOL - Ren Amamiya: Rank 4
THE HUNGER - Igor: Rank 4
THE CHARIOT - Ryuji Sakamoto: Rank 2
THE MAGICIAN - Morgana: Rank 3
THE FAITH - Eiko Takao: Rank 2
THE TOWER - Chiaki Yasui: Rank 3
THE SUN - Shiho Suzui: Rank 3
THE MOON - Takayo Tachibana: Rank 2
THE HIEROPHANT - Sojiro Sakura: Rank 3
THE TEMPERANCE - Naoya Makigami: Rank 2
THE EMPEROR - Yusuke Kitagawa: Rank 1
THE STRENGTH - Caroline and Justine: Rank 1
THE JUSTICE - Goro Akechi: Rank 1
THE FORTUNE - Phantom Thieves of Heart: Rank 2
THE JUDGEMENT - Sae Niijima: Rank 2
THE COUNCILLOR - Takuto Maruki: Rank 3
Do you believe in the Phantom Thieves? Yes 15.6%