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It wasn’t supposed to turn out this way. This was just supposed to be an ordinary Mementos target and yet they came across something they never encountered before. As the leader, Akira always felt he had to make sure his teammates were safe and yet it was his negligence that led to this.
Akira paced back and forth as he awaited the news from his teammates except for Futaba. She was looking up a possible solution online. He was outside a room as he wondered how she was doing. Would Futaba find some results? Would his friends looking outside for a cure find something? Something that could cure Ann?
“Futaba!? Are you done yet?” Akira said as he was waiting for an answer behind the closed door.
“Hold on! Hold on!.... Just about…” A couple moments of silence later. “Done! You can come in now, Akira.” A tired voice came from behind the closed door as Futaba finished.
Akira rushed in the door as if there was something inside that he desperately wanted to see. He saw Futaba on sitting on a chair with her laptop on the desk nearby. Next to her was a bed that had Ann tucked underneath the covers. Akira looked at Futaba for confirmation.
“So she’s changed?”
Futaba nodded as she was still focused on her computer. “Yup! I changed her into her PJ’s with success! Though, lemme tell you, I was in awe of her size.” Futaba nodded her head in amazement, the sight still firmly vivid in her mind.
Akira grew puzzled at Futaba’s odd statement. “Size? I’d figure Ann to be slim, so was there that much a problem?”
Futaba gave her trademark smirk and giggled at Akira’s obliviousness. “I’m not talking about her body figure…..well, I guess I am, but…” Futaba gave Ann’s upper torso a glance. “I’m sure you’ve seen those fun bags Ann is packing at the beach! They were very distracting when I-
Akira started panickily waving his hands to stop Futaba from speaking more. “Okay! Okay! I get it, you don’t have to say more!” Akira sighed as he brought one his hands to his face to cover half of his face in slight embarrassment over Futaba’s evaluation of Ann’s chest.
Futaba kept on grinning as she saw her “composed” leader’s reaction to her showy description of Ann’s breasts. She was the only one in the Phantom Thieves that knew about his crush on Ann, and she abused that fact by teasing him a lot about Ann. Though, it's not like Akira was the only one she knew secrets about. Futaba gave a crafty glance at Ann, who was sleeping peacefully through all this.
Akira also glanced at Ann and kneeled down beside her bed. Resting his elbows right next to Ann as she lay sleeping. His embarrassment was quickly replaced by a guilt-ridden frown as he remembered the events in Mementos. Futaba sighed as she saw Akira’s mood change so quickly.
“It’s not your fault this happened. Ann willingly put herself on the line to save you.”
Scenes of Ann pushing him out of the way of an oncoming attack flashed before Akira’s eyes. Akira’s clenched his hands tightly.
“Yeah. Well, I wish it didn’t have to be her like this….. We don’t even know how to deal with this….”
A rarity they never encounter. Some kind of “ailment” or “condition” that put Ann into a deep sleep. At first, they just thought it was some kind of skill that inflicted “Sleep” onto Ann. They’d encountered this before and tried to cure it using all the methods they had, but for some reason, they proved useless. Even bringing her outside the metaverse did nothing and that fact worried them greatly. They knew then that this was no ordinary condition. Akira found it to be more of a curse. Futaba got off her laptop and rested her hand on Akira’s shoulder.
“She’ll be fine.” Futaba also kneeled down next to Ann’s bed and looked at the girl who slept peacefully. “I’m sure Ann wouldn’t want to see you be so down in the dumps about this. She’d probably feel at ease if you were just your regular self and get her out of this.”
Futaba reached under the covers and pulled out Ann’s hand and grabbed Akira’s hand with her other free hand. Joining the two together, Futaba hoped it would put Akira to ease feeling Ann’s soft hand, and it did.
Akira started caressing Ann’s hand for a while. Those few minutes eased the worry he had as he found a small amount of bliss in Ann’s soft gentle hand and that was enough to get him moving again.. “You’re right, Futaba. I can’t sit here moping about it and expect anything to be done.” As Akira was about to go out again and try and figure out something, three phones rang in the room. Akira’s, Futaba’s, and Ann’s phone rang, indicating a message to the whole group was sent out.
RS: I got nothing. What about you guys?
YK: Apologies, My findings are also fruitless
MN: I’ve got nothing on my end as well.
HO: I’m sorry. I couldn’t find anything as well. I hope Mona-chan finds something.
RS: Little furball’s in Mementos huh? I hope this is the one time he shows me up.
Reading the conversations let Akira knew his friends were having trouble as well.
MN: Futaba? Anything on your end?
FS: Zip. Nada. I’m empty as well.
HO: Akira-kun? Do you have anything?
Akira paused as he wondered about what to say. It was his fault this happened so he had to fix this mess himself.
AK: I don’t….But I’ll keep trying. I think it’d be best if we group up now. Maybe we could find something out together.
Everyone agreed with Akira’s plan and started heading for Ann’s apartment. Akira and Futaba waited for their arrival. Futaba looked at Ann again and wondered what she would be dreaming about right now. Was it a normal dream Ann was going through? Was she even aware of the fact she had this curse placed on her?
“What…what is this place?” Ann said as she walked through an empty black void.
All Ann could remember was the fact she took a blow for Akira and afterward nothing. She did it out of pure instinct. She saw the attack coming for Akira and her brain immediately made her run out to protect him. Ann suddenly started panicking as she assumed she’d actually died.
Ann held her face as the reality of that could be a possibility. “Am I…actually dead?” She looked down to find herself in her school uniform than rather her Metaverse outfit.
No one knew what happened after death, so Ann’s worries were sound as she walked an empty void without knowing where to go. To Ann, it sounded symbolic as a soul traveled the unknown until nothing remained. The sudden thought made Ann panic.
“I-I can’t have died !!!!! there’s still so much I want to do!!!!! So much I need to do!!!! Like, we haven’t even finished changing Okumura’s heart! How can I just die when Haru needs my help!!”
All of a sudden, Ann’s vision changed to her memories with Haru. Confused by the change, Ann was suddenly thrust into the memories of her time with the Phantom Thieves.
Everyone crowded around the sleeping Ann. Haru was gently caressing Ann’s hair as they further discussed a possible cure.
Ryuji rubbed the back of his neck. “Do you think we should take her to a hospital?”
Makoto shook her head. “They’d definitely question us as to what happened. This isn’t ordinary in the first place, so we would be placed under heavy questioning…and considering our work as Phantom Thieves. That isn’t good.” Makoto cupped her chin as she tried thinking of a solution.
“True…. But we simply cannot allow this to continue. Eventually, people will question as to where Ann is if she doesn’t attend school.” Yusuke knew they couldn’t simply wait and find the perfect solution.
“Perhaps, Ryuji and Yusuke have a point. We simply can’t allow Ann-chan to stay like this.” Haru looked at Ann sleeping right next to her and felt some guilt for not being more aware. Perhaps if she was more experienced, this wouldn’t have happened.
“Would a hospital even know what to do? This isn’t some known medical sickness, it’s some kind of curse from a shadow in Mementos. I mean, seriously! We beat some guy who thought he was invincible, only to learn from some kid on how to beat him using video game tactics! Mementos conditions don’t simply follow logic!” Futaba brought up another reasonable point. The real world possibly couldn’t cure something from the cognitive one.
Haru glanced at Akira who sat in a chair all quiet. She could tell he was thinking very hard about this as well. “Do you have anything? Akira.”
Everyone glanced at their leader. Akira always seemed to have some kind of idea of the direction they should head in. Akira glanced at everyone and carefully thought over everyone’s ideas. Some of them thought they should seek medical help, but the other half were against it because of the possibility of them being discovered as Phantom Thieves. Both were sound options and they both carried their own risks, but sadly neither option had a sure-fire chance of Ann being cured.
As Akira wracked his brain to search for a solution, he suddenly got a text. He glanced at his phone to see who it was before getting back to the more pressing matter, but the person who just texted him suddenly gave him an idea. He looked at everyone who were still waiting for an answer.
“I need to make a call, so I’ll be right back.”
Akira gave no chances for response before leaving the room, leaving them all wondering who messaged him for him to have that reaction.
Ann continued to wander through her memories unwillingly. First, it was her memories of Haru until eventually going to Futaba and then to Makoto. The other girls in the team were good friends to Ann and while she couldn’t say with confidence that she could place them on the same level of friendship she had with Shiho, they were still people she trusted. Haru felt like the kind older sister she never had while Makoto, who contrasted Haru greatly, felt like the responsible older sister she’d look up to. Futaba came across as a little sister to Ann as Futaba seemed to be close-minded to many things in the world regarding people in general. As someone who understood knew the joys of exploring the outside world, Ann knew she wanted to help Futaba.
Eventually, Ann arrived at the memories of Yusuke, Ryuji, and Morgana. For the longest time, Ann was the only girl in the group until Makoto came along. So, she had to deal with the unruly boys for a long while. Yusuke wasn’t too bad, he was only an eccentric person who confused Ann at times and other times, he’d offer some good insight due to his eloquent thinking. Ryuji might have a hard time keeping his mouth shut when he needed to, but Ann knew his heart was always in the right place. Ann knew about Morgana’s crush on her, but she’d never be able to return these feelings to him. He placed her on a pedestal too much, he reminded her too much of a child in some ways, and the big fact was…. he was a cat. There were too many things placed against Morgana and Ann knew she’d never be able to harbor those feelings for him.
“There’s also the fact……” Ann’s cheeks had a slight tint of pink to them. She started thinking of someone’s figure.
Suddenly her memories shifted again. To the two she regarded the most important people she met during her time in Tokyo.
Silence filled the room as the Phantom Thieves watched a dark blue-haired woman in a white lab coat examine Ann, who was still sleeping soundly. After a couple of routine checkups, Tae Takemi stood up and looked at the group of worried teens.
“It seems that everything is in order. She’s not showing any symptoms of any serious illness and she only seems to be sleeping. Do you happen to know if she’s been sleeping too little?” Takemi asked as she put her tools back in her bag.
Takemi would normally never do this sort of thing such as making a house visit, but when her precious guinea pig said it was an emergency. She did owe a lot to him and decided to accept the request. Still, it seemed she didn’t need to do much as the girl she examined seemed to be as healthy as healthy can be. She assumed Akira just overreacted to the lack of sleep his friend had.
Everyone secretly sighed hopelessly as their wish was quickly rejected. It seemed Futaba was right, an ordinary doctor probably couldn’t see the ailment Ann was in. While everyone’s mood dropped, Akira went right up to Takemi.
“Takemi-sensei…..Is there nothing you could do to wake her up?” Noting the worry in Akira’s eyes and voice, Takemi gave a second glance at the foreigner who slept soundly.
She recalled when she happened to meet Akira and this girl at the Meiji Shrine. Next time she met Akira afterward, she asked if the girl was his girlfriend, Takemi remembered the blush Akira had on his face as he quickly denied it. She felt he wouldn’t lie to her about something like this and assumed it to be the truth. Though, that didn’t erase the fact that Akira clearly harbored affection for the girl.
Coupled with his current state and the suddenness of his request, Takemi knew there was something more to this that she didn’t know.
Takemi looked back at Akira. “Is there something more you haven’t told me?”
Everyone became silent. This was the one worry that everyone had and now it had become a reality. Still, they looked towards their leader as they knew he’d have some idea.
Akira paused for a second, ruminating what he should say. He looked back at the doctor who helped him immensely in acquiring medicine for their escapades as Phantom Thieves. In return, he gave services of his own and in the end, he even helped settle a problem that bothered her for years. She was someone that he knew…and someone he trusted.
“It’s….in relation to my other work.”
Everyone thought Akira was giving an excuse, but a knowing light flashed in Takemi’s eyes. She’d said he didn’t need to tell her about his identity as a Phantom Thief, but here he was revealing it. It made her take a second glance at the lady in her bed. The girl in bed was clearly someone important to him to where he’d tell her about his identity willingly.
Takemi found a seat to sit on and looked at Akira. “Tell me the full story.”
Akira sat down as well in his own seat and started speaking, his response shocking all the other Phantom Thieves.
“There’s this world….it’s called the Metaverse…..”
Ann’s best friend. Shiho Suzui. A girl who didn’t deserve the fate she was given. Ann went through those two years she spent with Shiho and cried at how innocent those times were. Why didn’t she treasure her more? Why didn’t she trust in Shiho’s ability?
Ann dropped her knee’s in frustration. “Why….. Did I not do something about him? Why did I allow that bastard to get inside my head?!!!!”
Despite the fact Shiho never blamed her, Ann knew she had to accomplish what she promised to Shiho. It was her only way of repaying her best friend. If Shiho wanted to see her succeed in her modeling career, she was going to be the best darn model in the world.
“This must really be the afterlife…. Going through all these memories…it must be…” Ann despondently said. The feelings of regret settled in her stomach.
Ann now felt she would never be able to live up Shiho’s expectations. This was the end of the line for her. As Ann lamented the mistakes in her past that could no longer be fixed. She suddenly started seeing memories of the person who helped her out of her predicament. The one who occupied her thoughts as much as Shiho did.
“And….that’s why Ann’s currently like this…..”
Akira finished his story and explained the basic knowledge of their operations. Everyone around listened as well, even though they were surprised at the fact Akira was telling someone of their identity’s as Phantom Thieves, after he assured them Takemi could be trusted, they simply followed his orders. Takemi simply sat down taking the story in. Akira wondered if she would even believe his story in the first place.
“The metaverse…..the realm of the collective unconscious ….” Takemi softly said as she crossed her legs. She looked at the sleeping girl with a different perspective now.
Ryuji suddenly noticed that this doctor had some nice legs and was enjoying the view. Futaba also noticed this and brought her hand to her chin as she wondered if she did this in front of her clients. Akira had grown used to it and only had his attention on Takemi’s expression.
“So…if it’s sickness is more related to something unknown….A ‘curse’ as you put it…. We must look at the origin of this 'curse’. This ‘shadow’ you spoke of.” Takemi urged Futaba to bring her laptop over, which Futaba obliged. She knew now wasn't the time to be possessive of her things.
“Well, It’s the first time we’ve seen this shadow, so I don’t know. I usually attempt to learn the names until I’ve captured the shadow completely. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to capture the shadow this time since it was a target.” Akira sighed in frustration.
Takemi shook her head, wanting to let Akira know it wasn’t his fault. “If we don’t know the name of this shadow, perhaps we can learn it from the target’s name,” Takemi said as she used Futaba’s laptop. Akira noted how quickly Takemi was rolling with his story.
“The name of the target was someone named Noëlle Tourneur,” Makoto said as the name was something she noted about their target.
“Oh? A foreigner?” Takemi said as she started searching the eccentric name.
“The name to me, sounded like it has French origins,” Haru said as she did dabble a bit in the French language.
The moment Haru said “French”, suddenly a flash of realization came to Takemi. She recalled a story, one of her colleagues in medical school had told her. It was an interesting fairytale with an odd premise, but it currently matched the story here somewhat. Takemi suddenly looked up the story on the internet, and after a few more clicks, she found what she was looking for.
“This shadow…. Did it have a cane with it?” Takemi said as she started describing the photo in front of her.
Akira stood up from his seat. “I-It did!!!!”
Surprise was reflected in everyone’s eyes. They didn’t describe the appearance of the shadow at all to Takemi and yet she already pointed out one of the characteristics it had.
Takemi smiled as she felt she’d hit the mark. “Did it have a long orange robe dragging behind her with black spots on it?”
“It did have a robe like that!” Futaba said as she jumped in excitement. “This old witch had a black dress with white spots underneath it as well!”
Takemi chuckled as the description matched as well. “It looks like we have a hit, but one last detail. Did she have a Hennin?”
Everyone went silent as they didn’t know what that was. Takemi noticed the reason immediately and laughed at their clueless expressions.
Takemi pointed at her head. “It’s like this pointy hat with a long streamer trailing at the top. Did she have something like that?”
“Ohhhh…….” Everyone said as they all nodded their heads in confirmation. Takemi had an amused smile on her face as she watched the child-like reaction. She was starting to like these kids.
“Well, the shadow’s name, if it is the same one, is called Carabosse.” Takemi delivered the name of the shadow that they were currently struck helpless with.
Akira wanted to see the photo of shadow itself to confirm, but oddly, Takemi stopped him. “Sorry my little Guinea pig, I want to just keep it from you for just a little bit.”
“Huh?” Akira said as confusion took over.
Takemi smiled as a crafty idea took over. Akira had helped her a lot during this year and she just found a way she could give him a reward. She gave a glance at the sleeping beauty right next to her.
“Carabosse is from an old French fairytale. She’s also known as the wicked fairy godmother.” Takemi said as she recounted the story to everyone. “In the story, she placed a curse on a woman and it put her to sleep for a set period of time.”
“That’s just like Ann!!!” Ryuji said loudly. “How long was she asleep for?!” Maybe they didn't need to wait that long.
Takemi glanced at Ryuji. “The curse was said to have her be asleep for 100 years…possibly dying as soon as she awoke from old age.”
Everyone took in a cold breath of air. 100 years? That could be two peoples lifetime combined. A century of sleep…they couldn’t allow Ann to stay like this?!!!!
“How do we rescue her?! She can’t simply be allowed to stay like this!” Yusuke said as Ann was a good friend of his and he didn’t want her to miss out on her entire life.
“This…this isn’t one of those fairytales that have no happy ending. Right?….” Haru said as she knew that these fairytales weren’t all sunshine and rainbows.
The sudden question made everyone panic, but Takemi soon quelled the chaos that was about to happen.
Takemi raised her hand in a completely calm-like manner. “There is a method to save her.” Everyone sighed in relief after Takemi stated that.
“So how do we do it? Is it something we can do or manage?” Makoto said as this was a fairytale they were talking about. Perhaps the method was also magical in a sense.
Takemi shook her head with a calm smile. “It’s nothing so grand, we can even do it right here and now.”
Everyone grew happy in anticipation. Ever since Ann went into this state, they were all worried that she’d never wake up. It was different for Futaba since it’d happened before, but this was caused by something in the metaverse. They didn’t even know the depths to the place itself, so how could they know what was fatal and what isn’t.
Takemi saw their relief and knew they were a good group of kids. Nothing like the skepticism she’d heard from others about their goals.
“It really is quite simple. We just need a special person.” Takemi glanced at Akira to which he noticed. “This person must be strong-willed, considerate, kind, and above all else. It must be a boy the woman knows very well, and the boy must know the woman as well.”
As Takemi said “boy”, they all crossed out the girls in their mind. Ryuji counted himself out as he didn’t think he knew Ann well enough as someone else in this room. Yusuke had the same thought and they both looked at Akira. The girls did the same as they thought he was the first candidate to match the description. Akira looked at Takemi with a hardened resolve.
“It was my fault this happened, so I’m willing to do whatever it takes.” Akira glanced at Ann, he hoped he would see those blue eyes he loved very soon.
Takemi noticed the glance that was filled with affection and smiled knowing she was doing him a huge favor right now. “So, there’s a bit of a process we need to do. One. The only one allowed to speak will be my Guinea pig.”
“You ever going to explain to us why she calls you that, dude?” Ryuji said as he called out the elephant in the room.
Everyone wondered the same thing, but Takemi didn’t want to trail off too much so she shushed Ryuji.
“Second. You must commit to this, Alright? No hesitation.” Takemi said while looking at Akira.
Akira eyes shook before calming down. No hesitation, Ann’s life is on the line. Yes!” Akira saw Takemi smiled at his words, but there was this odd feeling, that it was for a different reason than what he assumed.
“Alright.” Takemi closed the laptop and stood up to give it back to Futaba. She also took the chance to stand next to everyone besides Akira. “We are all to be silent until I say otherwise, okay?”
Everyone nodded their heads. They wanted Ann to be cured as well. After ensuring everyone was following along, Takemi looked at her guinea pig, anticipating his reaction.
“In order to cure Ann-chan…..You’ll need to,” Takemi paused for a bit to let the moment build up, “give her a kiss on those fair lips.”
Akira….Akira Kurusu. He was someone that made Ann wonder why he took the actions he did. They never benefited him personally. Someone else always benefited, so why was he selfless like that? After Ann rejected his concern, why did he continue to pursue her that day? Was it because he found her attractive? That’s what Ann thought at first when she found him chasing after her. It what all the boys did. They try to show they cared, but all they wanted was to have some one-night stand with a foreigner girl like her most likely, but Ann knew immediately that Akira was different the moment she saw his worried expression. Genuine concern much like what she felt for Shiho. So…why did he show her, a complete stranger such kindness?
Ann remembered her asking Akira this and his response was….
“A reason for kindness? Do I need one? Maybe I couldn’t bear to see you like that, or maybe it was something else. Still, my body moved on its own and my brain started to work on how I could make you feel better. Maybe it’s just who I am…or maybe it’s because it was you, but I knew you needed help and I wanted to give you that help.”
Ann watched the memories flood in as she saw the moments she spent with Akira. A feeling growing in her heart. Something she always kept suppressed because she always thought she couldn’t reveal them to him. The fear of ruining what they already have. Still…. wasn’t this the afterlife? She was witnessing these moments because her life had come to an end.
“The end of my life……” Ann fell to her knees. “I’ll never see Akira again?.....” The thought struck severely into Ann’s mind.
Endless amounts of regret streamed into Ann as she watched even more memories that she spent with Akira. The fun times between the two of them and the sad ones as well. She watched them all as the feeling she kept suppressed finally burst out in these final moments in her life. She loved Akira. She could openly admit it, but it was too late now.
Suddenly, Ann felt she was crying in his arms. It was the memory of when Shiho left Tokyo. They were up on the school rooftop and Akira was soothing her because she broke down over the departure of her best friend. Before it was the feelings of Shiho’s departure that Ann cried, but now it was different. She looked up at Akira and saw that kind smile that always warmed her heart.
“Akira! I love you.” Ann could suddenly speak for herself in this memory and Akira reacted differently then what she remembered.
A bit of shock went through his eyes before finally showing a calm, a happy expression. “I love you too…Ann.” Those words struck deeply into Ann’s heart.
They were words she wanted to hear, but because she never said anything, they were never going to be said. Still, Ann felt this was her last wish, and she was glad she was able to act it out. In this blissful state, Ann closed her eyes and carried out another wish of hers, she kissed Akira immediately. He thankfully didn’t push her away.
Ann started freely experimenting with this new sensation she currently felt. She’d never kissed someone before and with the love she never fulfilled, she wanted to go all out. Akira seemed to be enraptured in the feeling of her lips as much as she was and she suddenly started going a bit more intense. Ann started sticking her tongue in Akira’s mouth as she started french kissing Akira in the middle of their first kiss. It was her final moments before never seeing him again, so she wanted to make the memory a special one.
Akira seemed a bit surprised as Ann could feel him pause a bit in his kissing, but she didn’t mind that. Ann was definitely doing something she wouldn’t have done if this was actually their first kiss, but she knew this wasn’t real. None of it was real.
After the slight pause, Akira started returning her affection in the same way. Ann felt Akira’s own tongue dance with her’s to which she returned with much enthusiasm. This was quite intense for a first kiss and she enjoyed it so much she let out a little moan of joy. She opened one of her eyes and suddenly she saw that Akira, eyes closed, was on top of her for some reason. It looked like she was laying down.
“Odd….We were standing up a couple of moments ago?” Ann slowly closed her eye as she wanted to focus on this sensation alone. Ignoring the odd change in their position.
Maybe this was another instance where she was experiencing the joys of life she never experienced. Since she was laying down, Ann got her hands out of her covers and wrapped them around Akira’s back.
Akira’s eyes opened as he was now sure Ann was completely awake now. “Should I stop here?” Though Takemi’s instructions rang in his head. “ ‘No hesitation’. Does stopping mean I’m hesitating?” In the end, Akira decided to continue until Ann stopped kissing him. He couldn’t risk it and if Akira was going to be honest, he was currently taking pleasure in kissing his crush, regardless of the circumstances.
While the two continued to make out, everyone else was watching, eyes bulging as they saw two of their previous platonic friends making out like lovers. The girls had blushes on their faces while the guys watched with great interest. Takemi simply had a slight grin on her face as she watched her guinea pig enjoy himself with the blond beauty.
“Wha-wha-wha-wha-WHAT ARE THESE TWO DOING?!!!!” Makoto had a crimson blush as she wondered if she should say something, but Takemi did warn them to say nothing. So, like the good girl she was, Makoto stayed silent.
“Oh my…” Haru watched while she covered her mouth with one hand. She had a pinkish tint to her cheeks as she watched with half surprise and half curiosity glittering in her eyes.
“Ugh…..A shame I didn’t bring my tools to capture this intimate scene." Yusuke wanted to burn this intimacy to memory as it would prove to be a great muse for a new piece. He brought his hands up to frame the scene, making sure to be silent.
“AW YEAH, AKIRA!!!! GET IN THERE, OWE!!!!” Ryuji cheered his best friend on in his mind.
“Holy cow…Ann is really going in there.” Futaba assumed Akira would be the one to make the moves, but Ann was clearly in the lead, in the beginning, Ann was the one that started French kissing. In fact, even now, Ann was clearly the one that was craving Akira as she put her arms around his back, wanting their make out session to be closer and intimate.
Takemi was glad to see Akira was enjoying himself to the fullest. She believed he deserves this much.
Takemi knew that they would eventually stop this charade, but she didn’t expect another member of the Phantom Thieves to interrupt her guinea pig’s enjoyment. The door that was slightly opened suddenly opened fully and a cat rushed in.
“I’m sorry everyone!!! I couldn't find anything about that dastardly shadow that-THAT-THAT-THAT-(^(&*^%%*&^*^^^*(&” Morgana started making a ton of noise that was incoherent, but it succeeded in ruining the moment. The scene before him was the worst thing he could ever witness.
Ann heard Morgana and stopped kissing as she turned to her left. She became confused as to why her friends and a lady were in her room while she was kissing Akira. They seemed to be watching her and Akira, which caused her to blush immensely. “Were they always there?!”
Akira looked at Ann with relief. “Ann!! You’re okay!!!” Still, he saw her look back at him with a beet red face. Eye wide in shock.
“A-ki-ki-kira?!!!! What’s going on?!!!!!” Suddenly a possibility came to Ann’s mind. She wasn’t dead, and this was reality. Ann grabbed her cheeks in embarrassment.
Takemi looked at the cat that clearly ruined her guinea pig’s moment. “I don’t recall a cat being here when I entered. It ruined my guinea pig’s reward.”
Everyone looked at Takemi after she said that. Ann looked at the stranger with confusion all over her face. “Wha-What do you mean??!!! Wait?!! What’s going on?!!!”
“You had a curse on you, Ann!!!” Futaba explained hurriedly.
“A curse????” Ann didn’t know what happened during the time she was in that dream.
“The curse put you into a deep slumber, one which you wouldn’t awake from until a century later,” Yusuke added on.
“A century?!!” Ann exclaimed.
“100 years.” Ryuji clarified.
“I know what a century is!!!! I’m surprised by that fact!!! Wait?! Why is Akira kissing me then!!!! Are you taking advantage of me because I wouldn’t wake up?!!! Ann glared at Akira as she grabbed his shirt. Pulling him closer, just so she could show her anger at the thought. She didn't expect Akira to do something so lowly.
“Akira!!!! I won’t forgive for laying your hands Lady Ann while she was so defenseless!!!!! As Morgana was about to pounce on Akira, Futaba grabbed him and prevented from doing so.
“No! No! Ann!!! I wouldn’t do that!!” Akira said as he tried to hurriedly defend himself.
“Then why-
“I can explain that.” Takemi cut Ann off. “It’s nice to see you’re finally awake, Ann-chan.”
Ann looked back at the women in a white lab coat. “You are?”
“Doctor Takemi. I’m the one this little guinea pig goes to for the medicines you use for your Phantom Thief escapades.” Takemi casually delivered the surprise to Ann.
Ann quickly turned to Akira. “Akira!!! She-
“She knows. I was the one who told her…… We needed to get this curse off you and we needed her help….” Akira told her his reason to which Ann felt touched Akira did so. It was one of their greatest secrets and yet Akira told someone. It showed her he valued her greatly.
Takemi lightly laughed at their conversation. They were already trying to show their obvious affection for each other. “Yes, I was the one who had Akira-kun kiss you and for good reason. It was the only way to remove the curse.”
“The only way….” Ann took the news in. She was slightly shocked, but she didn’t mind the kiss if that was the case. Still, somewhere in her heart, Ann wondered if that was the only reason Akira would ever kiss her.
“but…. There was some deception in this somewhere. So, I must apologize.” Takemi revealed which surprised everyone. Was there no need for the kiss in the first place? “the person who had to kiss Ann-chan….the description I gave was merely a fabrication to give my guinea pig this chance to kiss you, Ann-chan.” As Takemi was about to speak more……
“Takemi -sensei!!! How could you do that?!!! Akira quickly said. He didn’t want to kiss Ann like this! With trickery and deception.
“Is-Is that a bad thing for you?” Ann said quickly as she thought Akira didn’t want to kiss a girl like her.
“Wha- No- I mean-yeah- no wait-I-“
“Akira-kun. Please calm down and let me finish.” Takemi interrupted Akira. She didn’t want the boy digging himself into a hole he couldn’t get out of. “ I did indeed lie about the description, but the kiss was entirely true. You needed to kiss her to release Ann-chan from her curse.”
“….So a kiss was all that’s needed. It could have been anyone here then.” Akira glanced at everyone who looked at Ann. Thinking about the fact they could have been the one to kiss her, Ann shivered as she saw their eyes on her. What was she? Some delicacy they had to try?
“No, No…It could only have been you and the fact Ann-chan awoke is proof enough.” Everyone became puzzled by her response. She said she lied about the needed description, but in the end, it had to be Akira?
“What do you mean, Takemi-sensei?” Futaba asked excitedly as she wanted this mystery to be over.
Takemi smiled at Futaba’s curiosity. “There are many versions to this fairytale and if this didn’t work we would have had to try the next method. Luckily we got it on the first try.” Takemi glanced at Ann and Akira. “In the story, the woman who was inflicted by the same curse Ann-chan was under…. was cured by a kiss…more specifically…true loves first kiss.” Takemi let the words settle into everyone’s ears.
All eyes were on Akira and Ann as they froze upon listening to Takemi’s words. Ann and Akira didn’t take their eyes off Takemi because their brains basically shut down the moment those words were said.
Takemi walked up to Akira, while he was still overwhelmed by the fact she just said. “In the end, it could only have been you my little guinea pig. It seems you never realized your little crush had the same feelings for you as well.” Akira’s eyes flickered out of the frozen state from Takemi’s observation. Takemi placed something in Akira’s hand and started walking towards the door. “I wish you the greatest happiness with your new lover, my little guinea pig.” After saying that, Takemi left the room with her medical bag.
A stunning silence was all that was left. Ryuji coughed nervously as Haru twiddle her fingers. No one knew what to say in this sort of situation. Takemi just left saying that Akira and Ann were each other’s true love? Was it true? The kiss did work in waking Ann up so what else could be said? Their reactions to the situation didn’t deny this either. Everyone could see the red starting to form on Ann’s cheeks and Akira didn’t refuse the reveal so what more could be said about the situation.
Being the only one to genuinely know the feelings Akira and Ann had for each other, Futaba was the first one to move out of everyone. “Well…..I just got a message from Sojiro to go back home….so I’ll leave you with that. I’ll take Mona back with me, so see ya!” Futaba covered Morgana’s mouth, so he couldn’t say anything and bolted out the door. Setting off the domino effect.
“Oh yeah! I got to go do something for my mom! So I-uhhh- I’ll get going too!” Ryuji gave a thumbs up to the confused and embarrassed duo as he left out the door.
“I must make haste. The intimacy you’ve shown has given me an idea for a new piece! I must not allow it to go to waste!” Yusuke didn’t make an excuse and even mentioned the thing Ryuji and Futaba avoided talking about, but still seemed to somehow managed to get the message it was time to depart.
Ann’s felt all the blood in her body was going to her cheeks. It felt that hot. Akira coughed as he couldn’t escape blushing as well now.
Haru giggled at the two and grabbed Makoto’s hand. Haru noticed Makoto was confused about the whole situation altogether. “Mako-chan, let's leave these two alone. I think they have some things to settle in private.” Makoto simply nodded as the events so far were beyond her understanding.
“Umm…Congratulations you two.” Makoto left those parting words as she felt needed to say something. After that, no one was left in the room except Akira and Ann.
Akira coughed as he was flabbergasted at everything that happened. One moment it was Ann’s life being in jeopardy and now….he had to explain his current feelings with his crush. Ann felt no different especially considering the kiss they shared earlier. She wanted to crawl in a hole and die of embarrassment. To Akira, she probably seemed so horny at that moment and if Ann was going to be honest, she wouldn’t have minded things heading in that direction if she still had her old mindset. Now she knew she wasn’t dead, and she had to face the music.
“Aki-Akira…I know you kissed me just because you had to save me and-
“That’s true…But it’s not like I didn’t want to do it before this all happened.” Akira cut Ann off. Ann wondered if she was dreaming again hearing that.
“ I don’t know if it’s true love like Takemi-sensei said….but I know I feel something for you, Ann…..Something more than the friendship we have.” Akira finished his confession.
Akira decided to use this situation to his advantage than go back to the way things were. If he didn’t make things clear now, Ann might assume he’d never have feelings for her if he just ignored the kiss they shared. There was also the fact that he couldn’t ignore such a thing either.
“So…I guess I’m asking you that question, Ann. Will you be my girlfriend?” Akira delivered the line he practiced in front of a mirror so many times. Luckily, he didn’t just stop midway and say he was an idiot for the millionth time. He was fumbling, but he managed to do it this time….and when it counted too. Still, the fact he actually said it made him glance downward it a bit as the response that Ann might say made him filled with anxiety.
If this was the old Ann, she might have gotten flustered and started spewing gibberish, but after that dream, that regret she felt, she already knew the answer she wanted to say. She never knew when her life would end, and she never wanted to experience that kind of regret again. Once was already enough.
“Akira.” Akira looked at Ann who called his name and found her lips on his own. After a couple seconds of sucking on each other’s lips, Ann separated and looked at Akira with a smile. “Does that answer your question?”
Akira showed slight surprise before eventually smiling. “Can…Can you do that again? didn't quite catch that.” Ann giggled in response.
“Oh? Greedy, aren’t we?” Still, Ann didn’t refuse and started kissing Akira again. Ann found out she liked being the initiator. As Akira laid down on his back and Ann right over him, they started making out on Ann’s bed. It would have been a nice result from the successful confession, sadly something came and ruined the moment. The door to Ann’s room opened again.
“Hey guys, I forgot my-AHHH!!!!” Makoto opened the door to find her bag that she left behind but was surprised to see Ann on top of Akira while they were making out. The insinuations quickly filled her mind. “Excuse me! Sorryforbotheringyoutwo!!!!!” Makoto quickly grabbed her bag and left the room. Akira and Ann could see Makoto shaking her head, eyes closed, with a crimson blush as she left the room in a panicky fashion. Slamming the door behind her.
The suddenness of Makoto’s entrance and her departure made Ann and Akira smile wearily. “Maybe we should stop for today,” Ann said as she got off Akira.
“Yeah, I guess so.” Akira sighed as he felt a bit disappointed.
“You don’t have to be so bummed out. We’re together now so they’ll be plenty times we can do that…” Ann just realized how quickly they progressed from friends to lovers. It felt like it was at the snap of a finger. “Maybe we can tone down on the kissing actually…. We just got together after all.”
“Yeah…that makes sense.” Akira also saw some truth in that. He was just happy Ann was his girlfriend right now. That was all he could ask for at the moment.
Ann looked at Akira’s closed hand and remembered that Takemi had given him something. “Hey, so, what did Takemi-sensei give you?” The question made Akira look at his closed hand as well.
“You know, I didn’t check because I was so…..” Akira opened his hand to see a plastic square wrapper with an iconic circular bulge. “………. shocked.”
Ann and Akira both stared at the condom wrapper in shock and silence.
“WHAT IS SHE GIVING ME?!!!!” Akira quickly threw the condom in Ann’s room, which made her panic.
“WHAT ARE YOU DOING???!!! YOU CAN’T JUST LEAVE THAT IN MY ROOM!!!!” Hearing Ann’s reasonable worry made Akira go pick up the unopened condom he just threw. “Make sure no one knows about this okay!!!” Ann told Akira to which he nodded his head.
“Don’t worry, Ann. I’m gonna throw this away as soon as I get out of here.” Akira thought he made the right choice right now by saying that, but Ann wasn’t so on board with that idea.
“Ummm…Don’t do that…Look, just save it, okay?……” Ann blushed as the suggestion was obvious, but she left Akira’s imagination to himself. “So….can we call it a day…even though I’ve apparently been sleeping all day, I feel so tired now.”
“Yeah….I guess so….” Akira thought about their relationship now and that made him smile again.” Let’s meet up tomorrow, after school…..you know like a date….” Ann looked at Akira and smiled as she readily approved the date. It would be the first to many.