Rating: T (language, suggestive/heavy themes). Will go up to M in future chapters.
Genres: Romance/Drama
Pairing: Ren Amamiya/Shiho Suzui
A/N: This fic was inspired by, and named after, a Beth Orton song from her 2012 album Sugaring Season. (Don't worry, this is not one of those old-school songfics.) I'd thought about making a Ren x Shiho fic for a while, but actual inspiration and a concrete plot eluded me until I first heard the song last summer.
This is a post-canon fic that ignores Persona 5 Strikers completely, and also assumes Ren didn't romance anyone in P5 proper. Otherwise, there wouldn't be much to build on for the emotional rollercoaster you're all in store for here, would there?
I've always believed that, narratively, Shiho got a raw deal in the game as a character. She deserved so much more than to be a sacrificial lamb, and I want justice for her. #FreeShiho
I hope you will enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!
Chapter 1: Unexpected Reunion
Shiho Suzui slid open her bedroom window, letting in a cool April breeze that carried the faint scent of damp earth. Across the yard, a neighbor's wind chime tinkled, gentle and distant. Blocks away, another's dog barked at something. She paused, catching a glimpse of her reflection in the glass. Outside, the early sunrise cast gentle light on the quiet streets below. She inhaled slowly, trying to steady the flutter in her chest.
The town of Midoriyama stirred quietly outside, streets still mostly empty save for a few early risers. She inhaled, trying to ground herself in the slow rhythm of this place—so different from the steady buzz of Tokyo she'd grown up with. A gentle breeze ruffled the lace curtains, carrying the faint scent of new leaves and distant chimney smoke—a reminder that this really wasn't Tokyo anymore.
She had moved here with her mother last August, after her association with a scandal involving her former volleyball coach Suguru Kamoshida that almost resulted in tragedy for her. The physical and emotional turmoil she'd endured convinced her mother that she needed a fresh start far away from Tokyo. Despite having had several months since then to settle and lay down her roots, she still felt like a guest, a transient on the way to somewhere else. Even if the townspeople were nice and friendly, she would always let her mother do the talking when they were out together.
This morning, although it wasn't her very first day at Kagetsu High School, the uniform still felt foreign—crisp fabric for her dark emerald blazer and burgundy skirt, a neat collar that somehow pressed too tightly against her throat. A uniform was a uniform like any other, but she still found it odd to see herself in one that wasn't her old one from Shujin Academy. That, she kept tucked away at the bottom of her dresser, a memento of both the best and of the worst she'd experienced there.
She glanced at the mirror, smoothing her collar. She reminded herself that this new life was supposed to be a step forward. She exhaled, turned away, and grabbed her schoolbag.
Downstairs, the low murmur of the TV mingled with the aroma of breakfast on the stove. Her mother stood at the counter, carefully tying off a bento with practiced fingers.
"Morning," Shiho said, reaching for a slice of toast.
"Morning, Shiho," she said, offering a gentle smile. "Ready for your first full year at Kagetsu?"
Shiho returned the smile, albeit shakily. "I think so." She placed the bento in her school bag.
Her mother paused, hand resting lightly on Shiho's shoulder. "If it ever feels like too much…"
Shiho nodded, a warm flush of gratitude and impatience mingling in her chest. "I know, mom. Thank you." The two didn't exchange many more words as they ate breakfast.
After finishing her plate and her mother taking it to wash, she slipped on her shoes in the entryway, when her phone vibrated and chimed in her pocket. When she glanced at the screen, a tiny burst of relief lit her chest when she saw the name glowed on the display.
Ann [7:02 AM]
Hey, Shiho! First day of the new term, huh? You've got this! I miss you tons already. Let's meet up soon, okay?
Shiho's throat tightened, a sweet kind of ache. Even from so far away, Ann Takamaki still found a way to shine her usual optimism. Her best friend was hours by train back in Tokyo, yet felt somehow right beside her. Leaving her behind had been the worst part of moving away, so they'd promised each other to stay in contact as often as possible. Sure enough, they'd talked on the phone or video chatted multiple times a week, and texted each other at their convenience. It wasn't the same as having her right next to her, but Ann was the one anchor Shiho had to her old life, and she made damn sure she cherished it.
She typed a hasty reply—Thanks, Ann. I miss you too, let's try to find time to meet up next month.—and tucked her phone away. Before stepping out, she gave her mom a quick wave and forced a steady breath. New beginnings, she reminded herself.
Outside, Midoriyama's streets were still waking up. A lone bicycle rattled past on the uneven pavement, its rider offering a polite nod. Shiho returned a faint smile, her steps echoing between old wooden fences and stone walls overgrown with spring moss. The rhythm of her gait felt slightly off, each stride reminding her of hospital corridors and the clack of crutches—it hadn't felt quite right since last spring. She adjusted her grip on the schoolbag, forcing her pace to stay steady.
The walk to Kagetsu High was lined with cherry trees, their branches speckled in tender pink blossoms. A few petals spiraled in the breeze, reminding Shiho of the time she'd once marveled at them through the windows of Shujin Academy. Thoughts of the old school spurred a flood of memories: how she used to race Ann to school in the morning; how she looked forward to spiking the volleyball over the net in the gym; how that same gym had become a place of dread under Kamoshida's predatory tyranny; how she'd stood on that rooftop last April, the world spinning beneath her, until she plunged into darkness.
Her footfalls slowed as the afterimage of the fall flickered in her mind—the terror of weightlessness, the sickening impact, her body breaking under the strain. She remembered the sterile taste of hospital air, the beep of monitors, the numbness and later excruciating pain in her broken legs, and the worried faces of those who visited. Rehab had been just as harrowing, each day a grind of repetitive exercises and shattered pride. But her mother and Ann had never stopped encouraging her—without them, she wasn't sure she would have found the strength to walk again, much less go back to school and try to live a normal life moving forward.
She remembered the ordeal like it was still yesterday. Spending almost three weeks in a coma after she jumped from the rooftop, the next thing she knew was seeing Ann at her bedside, tearfully hugging her, telling her that Kamoshida had confessed to all of his terrible crimes in front of the entire school and turned himself in to the police. In that moment, all that mattered to the weary Shiho was not so much that her tormentor had been brought to overdue justice, but simply that her best friend was there. Even in her coma, even unable to perceive any outside stimulus, she believed that her connection to Ann was what anchored her to life, keeping her from slipping into oblivion.
Ann was Shiho's reason to stay alive.
And though she didn't know it, Shiho would become Ann's reason to fight back against such horrific acts of injustice over the rest of the year.
What really broke her heart at the time was her mother's reaction when she emerged from her coma. When she first saw her daughter awake again, with Ann already at her bedside, she broke down onto the floor, utterly inconsolable:
"My baby," she managed to mutter through heaving sobs, "I thought I'd lost you! The doctors said you might not wake up again!"
"Mom… I…"
Mrs. Suzui slowly climbed back to her feet, with Ann helping her up. "I'm… I'm a horrible mother," she began, sniffling, gasping for breath. "I couldn't protect you from… from that monster… I didn't know he caused you so much pain, and then you—you jumped… and…"
Ann put her hand on the woman's shoulder, knowing she'd most likely said the same thing during her previous visits and was now able to tell her in person. "Suzui-san, you can't blame yourself. The only thing that matters now is that Shiho is still alive, and Kamoshida is going to be put behind bars with the key thrown away. He can't hurt anyone anymore."
"But I…" Mrs. Suzui choked. "I'm supposed to protect her from all the bad things in the world, and I couldn't even do that! And he… he said he was going to do the same thing to you, Ann-chan."
Ann knew that better than anyone. "But he didn't," she said. "And Shiho is still here even after all that. I think what we all need to do is count the blessings we have now, and move forward from here."
Mrs. Suzui looked at Ann with her wet, puffy eyes. She'd always liked the blonde girl for being an outspoken sweetheart, for loving Shiho like the sister she never had. And she was exactly right—Shiho was indeed still alive, and the bad guy was now gone. Maybe it was her imagination, but she didn't remember seeing this kind of resolve, that conviction, in Ann's eyes before.
"Shiho is really strong to pull through like she has," Ann continued. "Now we have to be strong for her too, okay?"
Mrs. Suzui sniffled again, and took a deep breath. "Okay, Ann-chan."
"She's right, mom—I am still here," said Shiho, weakly, "lying in this bed having people talk about me like I'm already dead and buried." Her mother and Ann couldn't help but softly laugh at her comment, glad to see her sense of humor had survived with her. Shiho lifted her hand to reach out to them, and they took it in theirs.
"I promise you, Shiho," said her mother, eyes still welled up, "Things are going to be different from now on. I'll never let anything hurt you ever again."
Ahead, Kagetsu High's gates rose in simple welcome. Students streamed in, greeting each other after spring break. Shiho greeted a few familiar faces with a nod but kept mostly to herself. She still felt like an observer, waiting for her true place to reveal itself. She'd hoped that her class didn't have some nosy girls, or some clueless boys trying to ask her out. Last year, after starting here at the beginning of the fall term in September, she wanted nothing more than to keep her head down and not make a fuss, and nothing less than everyone to mind their own business—it was hard enough having to move to a new town for the first time, much less for the reasons she had.
By the time she reached the school, the sun had risen above the surrounding hills, painting the courtyard in soft gold. Students clustered around the bulletin board on the first floor, chatting about new homerooms and club sign-ups. She wove through the crowd, trying not to bump anyone's shoulder, eyes drifting over unfamiliar faces.
"Let's see, where am I on here…?" she muttered to herself, checking the third-year class rosters. There she was, in 3-C on the third floor. She glanced at the other classes, and one name listed in 3-B stood out to her once she caught it—
Ren Amamiya… Wait—Ren Amamiya?!
She'd known him mostly through Ann's stories, and from the few moments they'd shared at Shujin. Ann had always gushed on the phone about how wonderful a friend he was to her, how reliable and supportive he was, and how he'd helped her make new friends both at Shujin and around Tokyo. As she listened to her best friend talk him up, Shiho would say she wished she'd have had a chance to get to know him herself.
But to see him in Midoriyama, at Kagetsu High—here, now—was something she had not expected in a million years.
As the bulk of the crowd dispersed, she looked to her immediate right and caught sight of a third-year boy standing alone, checking the rosters himself. He was tall, lean, and had a mop of messy black hair on his head. But when he turned his head, and the sunlight caught the edge of his glasses, her breath snagged in her throat, and she finally pieced it together.
There he was.
Ren Amamiya was her schoolmate again, Ann would get to hear all about it later tonight, and perhaps her idle wish was going to come true after all.
A/N: Since I could find neither hide nor hair of canonical information about Ren's hometown, other than the fact that it's somewhere rural which I would assume is similar to Inaba from Persona 4, I had to make up the names and features of his town and old high school myself. Even if future official material contradicts these, which I'm sure it will, Midoriyama and Kagetsu High School are here to stay for the sake of this fic.
Next time, Shiho and Ren reintroduce themselves, and then settle into their adjacent homeroom classes.
Peace.