Chapter Text
It was far too early in the morning when Ren woke to the sound of mechanical ringing. There was no way he already had to get up and face another day, he felt like he hadn't recovered any energy from sleeping. In a vague retaliation against this injustice, Ren slapped his hand in the general direction of the alarm clock on his bedside table until the noise stopped.
He didn't plan on budging, despite knowing he needed to get ready for school. He already had his reputation of deliquent at school, and if he showed up even a minute late there would be some comment floating around about how he'd probably been trying to ditch. No amount of perfect attendance would change anyones mind, so why not just take advantage of the expectation and let himself sleep?
Ren wasn't sure how serious he was about his consideratoins to ditch, but he didn't get a choice. Before he could decide either way, Morgana planted two feet on Ren's shoulder and began shaking him rigorosly.
"Ren!" He called. "Wake up!"
In response, Ren pulled the blanket up over his head while pushing Morgana off of him. He heard the gentle thunk of Morgana landing on his carpeted floor. "I'll be up in a minute," he mumbled, squeezing his eyes shut. Maybe if he could just get another minute or two of sleep, he could clear the exhasting weight that bore down on him.
Morgana did not let that slide. He jumped back onto Ren's bed and began pulling at the blanket Ren held over his head. Ren just held on tighter. He did not have the energy for this right now.
"Get up or I'll put a hairball on your pillow," Morgana said. "You know I'm serious."
Ren groaned at that. He did, unfortuneatly, know Morgana was not bluffing. As much as Morgana continued to insist he wasn't a cat, he sometimes sure acted like one. Ren gave a heavy sigh before tossing the blankets off himself and sitting up. He didn't even have time to adjust to the new level of effort before he felt Morgana's paws on his back trying to push him forward.
"Go answer the door!" He demanded.
"What?" Ren asked in confusion. He shook his head slightly, as if trying to disperse the heavy mental fog he had been experiencing recently.
"The front door!" Morgana emphasized. He gave one last shove to Ren before jumping off the bed and pacing in front of his door. Ren got up, shoving his feet into his slippers. He lingered sitting on the edge of his bed for a moment, as if gathering the resolve, before pushing himself out of bed. As soon as he pulled open his bedroom door, Morgana shot out into the hallway and halfway down the stairs.
"Come on!" He said. "They're waiting!"
"Who is waiting?" Ren asked, still trying to catch up with whatever it was that Morgana was going on about. Who would be waiting at his door this time of day? Both of his parents were already gone for work, they weren't expecting any visitors or packages, and Ren didn't have anyone in town that would come looking for him. Morgana scampered down to the door, waiting for Ren to open it.
Ren pulled the door open, ready to see who was there.
He was the immediatley greeted by the weight of someone throwing their body at him. He was pulled into a crushing hug.
"Ren!" Ann said, holding onto him.
"Ann?" Ren asked, confused. He looked up and it wasn't just her.
Ryuji was already pushing his way into the house, giving Ren a playful punch in the shoulder. Yusuke and Makoto were on the porch as well, and a car idled in the driveway. Haru was in the driving seat, leaning out to wave at Ren, and Futuba was crouched in the passenger seat with her tablet.
Ren rubbed at his eyes in disbelief. When he removed his hands, everyone was still there.
"Why are you guys here?" He asked, his thoughts scrambling trying to catch up with what was happening.
"We're here to pick you up!" Ryuji said. "Where's your room? I'll pack your things.”
"What?" Ren asked, confused. Maybe he was still dreaming.
"Morgana called us," Makoto explained. "He told us everything."
Ren looked at Morgana, brows furrowed. "How?" He asked. "You don't have thumbs."
Morgana pawed at his ear, trying to look non chalant. "I know, I'm impressive like that," he said. Then he looked up at Ren seriously. "You asked me if I could get to Yongen-Jaya if something ever happened. This is my answer. I'm not leaving you behind."
For the first time in longer than he could remember, Ren felt an intense wave of emotion break through the dull heavy exhaustion that had been plaguing him. Tears prickled at his eyes, threatening to fall, but he blinked them away.
"Thank you, Morgana," he said.
Morgana leapt up from the ground and climbed up on Ren's shoulder, affectionately head butting him in the side of the head. "Let's go get you packed," Morgana said. "Don't what Ryuji let loose up there too long!"
"I heard that!" Ryuji called from up the stairs where he had gone to find Ren's room and get started. There was then the thump of him dropping something, as if illustrating Morgana's point.
Everybody moved in fast. Haru got the car fully in park and all the Phantom Thieves piled into Ren's room to help him out. After letting him get changed out of pajamas, they actually sat him down on his bed and insisted on doing the heavy work for him. Morgana curled up on his lap and answered questions about where everything was. Makoto was going through the house getting all of Ren's important documents and collecting them in a folder she had brought herself. Haru went through his closet, nicely folding everything and stashing it away. Yusuke packed the shelf and desk items, and Ryuji took it upon himself to run the boxes down to the car and get them packed in as they went. Futuba sat beside Ren, tapping on her tablet as she calculated optimal routes back to avoid traffic, and maybe hit a spot for breakfast on the way.
"Where exactly are we going?" Ren asked her, allowing her to lean against his shoulder as she worked on her navigation.
"We've already talked to Sojiro," she said. "Your room is ready. He and Sae are talking about all the legal custody stuff, and told us not to worry, they'll figure it out."
Legal custody stuff…
Ren couldn't lie, this was something he'd thought a lot about. He'd never been able to get the courage to talk to Sojiro about it, and moved away without ever asking. This was honestly a dream come true.
"Alright, I think we've got everything," Haru said as Ryuji hauled away the last of the last of the boxes. "Anything else you want to grab?"
Ren had been overseeing the packing process and knew they had gotten everything he needed, except one thing. He turned to the side of the bed and reached inside his pillow case, his hiding spot. He pulled out a single black leather glove. He ignored everyone's looks on him as he folded it with care, sliding it into his pocket. "That's it," he said. "I'm ready."
"Then let's get out of here!" Futuba said, springing up from the bed. "Sojiro is going to have curry waiting for us, so let's get on it!"
Ren stomach growled at the mere mention of Sojiro's curry, a feeling of hunger coming over him, overpowering the lack of appetite he'd experienced recently.
"I feel you, man," Ryuji said with a laugh, giving Ren a playful slap on the back. "Let's get going!"
Everyone piled into the car. Haru was driving, Futuba in the back seat, and the rest of them squeezed into the two back rows of the van, the trunk filled with Ren's boxes.
"Where did you even get this car anyway?" Ren asked.
"I…borrowed it from one of the Okumura foods drivers," Haru said sweetly.
Ren couldn't help but laugh. It felt refreshing, like a breath of fresh air after so long. He didn't try to restrain it, and soon everyone was laughing with him.
They pulled out of the drive way, and as they went down the road Ren watched his childhood house disappear in the rear view mirror. He gave one last look back, watching it disappear over the horizon, before looking forward as they began the drive back home.