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The room was dark, too dark to see anything or anyone, but that didn’t stop those within whispering amongst themselves, “So, anyone know his deal yet?”
“I heard Mario mention that he was from a game called ‘Persona’.”
“Isn’t that the creepy thing he fights with?”
“Yeah!”
“I bet he’s a villain, but no one knows yet because he never talks to anyone.”
“He didn’t even talk to anyone at the welcome party we threw for him! He’s totally a villain!”
“I don’t know guys... I mean he looks pretty friendly to me…”
“Don’t chicken out Lucas, these are dark times ahead.”
“These are dark times now. I can’t see and you guys won’t let any of the Lumas join us because they ‘glow too much’,” Lucas mumbled back.
“I may not be able to see you, but I can hear the quotation in there! Dumb Blondie!”
“Hey! That was my arm!”
“Guys, don’t fight!”
“Villager started it!”
“No, Lucas did!”
Before the argument could continue, the room was suddenly filled with light from the door creaking open. The kids turned to see Luigi shyly poking his head through, along with the aforementioned Lumas, as the plumber chuckled, “I heard yelling, is everything alright? Do you need snacks?”
The kids nodded while Lucas sighed and got up from his seat, “I’m leaving, have fun… Scheming? Gossiping? What even is this?”
“Intel gathering,” Iggy chirped as she wrote something on a pad of paper. Blue leant over and laughed at whatever it was so Lucas figured it was a drawing.
“Cool… I’m gonna go then,” Lucas shuffled awkwardly past Luigi, who looked as confused as he felt. The Lumas bounced excitedly around him as he continued walking. A warm orange Luma danced ahead of him to ask, “Did Lulu have fun?”
“Not really, what about you guys?” Lucas asked tiredly.
“We played hide-and-seek with Pit and Angry Pit. Angry Pit kept saying that he wasn’t playing but still hid so we found him anyway,” a navy blue Luma answered from behind. Lucas sniggered at the nickname and imagined the angel’s reaction to their game.
He was so lost in thought that he missed the figure turning the corner until they collided. Both fell over each other with a familiar ‘poyo’ being yelped. The blonde hastily stood and offered Kirby a hand, which he took, before noticing all of the crafts material the pink ball had been holding, now scattered around them. He apologised quickly and started gathering the fallen supplies while questioning meekly, “Some big project or are you decorating Meta Knight’s side of the room again?”
“Poyo! Poyo poyo!” Kirby replied seriously then smiled brightly.
“You’re finding a friend? For who?” Lucas asked, feeling the Lumas crowd closer as well.
“Poyo,” Kirby answered.
“‘Joker’? As in the new guy?” Lucas wondered aloud. Kirby nodded making the blonde boy think, “I mean it has been a while since he joined, maybe he’s anti-social.”
“Poyo! Poyo,” Kirby argued, accidently dropping some of his supplies.
“I suppose you’re right…” After a moment of thought, Lucas offered, “Could I help? It would probably be easier with more people helping.”
“Poyo!” Kirby cheered then took Lucas’ hand to lead the blonde down the hall. The boy allowed himself to be dragged with a small smile and gestured for the Lumas to follow.
---
Phase 1: The Plan
Lucas cocked his head to the side as Kirby gestured wildly at the battle plan-like crayon drawing plastered on the board in front of him. The pink ball rambled while pointing at an area depicting the newest fighter as sad then to another showing a generic figure then ended his instructions on them all smiling.
It seemed simple enough, if the drawings were to be believed.
Glancing behind him, Lucas found a few of the Lumas paying attention while the rest were using their time in the library to find a book to read at bedtime. Part of said ‘paying attention’ involved the Lumas making drawings of their own to put on the board, like a boat or a cake.
Sighing, the blonde put his focus back onto the board. Lucas kind of admired Kirby’s naive overoptimism about making people happy. Then again, Kirby did seem to know more about Joker than the rest of the kids combined. Everyone, no matter how evil, liked the pink sphere of joy so Kirby was usually the first to approach unknown newcomers.
The blonde figured it couldn’t hurt to try.
Kirby smiled brightly and did a small dance when Lucas nodded. He then asked, “So, who is going to be Joker’s ‘super special friend’?”
“...” Kirby stopped dancing abruptly then thoughtfully scanned over his plan.
“Did you forget to add that to the plan?” Lucas questioned. Kirby turned to his friend and puffed his cheeks. He took a blank piece of paper and a crayon before scribbling something down without showing the other. When it was done, he pinned it to the board above the present. It was a crudely illustrated pair of binoculars.
“So, we’re going to stalk him to find out what he’s like?” Lucas asked, giving Kirby an unsure look.
Kirby ignored the look and nodded surely, “Poyo!”
---
“Why do you want to borrow my box?” Snake asked the group who were looking at him expectantly.
“Reconnaissance?” Lucas answered unsurely. Kirby stood beside him radiating positive, almost oblivious, optimism as they stood in front of the adults at the table. Bayonetta and Samus sat watching them curiously from their side of the table, making Lucas even more nervous about the whole situation.
Snake narrowed his eyes at them for a silent minute, watching as Lucas gulped audibly, before shrugging, “Fair enough.”
“Poyo!” Kirby cheered and patted Snake’s knee. He waddled over to said box then lifted it over his head. It started moving slowly across the ground making Lucas rethink his decision to help with the entire plan. The Lumas giggled at him and went to sit on the box, laughing when it kept moving. Lucas sighed with a small smile at them.
Someone cleared their throat at the table making Lucas turn around to find Bayonetta lowering her hand from her face. She smiled at him then asked, “Recon on who exactly?”
“Um…” Lucas mumbled as he looked away and shuffled from foot to foot.
“Poyo…” came the muffled answer from the box.
“Joker?” Samus muttered as Bayonetta’s smile brightened.
“Oh wonderful, good to see the boy making friends,” Bayonetta commented warmly. The adults raised a questioning eyebrow at her. She scoffed at them and waved them off, “What? Can’t I express concern for a fellow Smash member making friends?”
“Coming from you, it sounds suspicious,” Snake muttered with a flat look while Samus nodded.
“I’ll have you know that I am a warm and considerate person,” Bayonetta countered dryly.
“I once heard you call Pikachu a ‘zap rat’,” Samus pointed out.
“That’s because he ate the last slice of that cake Peach made, everyone knows I like having the last piece,” Bayonetta countered under her breath. Lucas gave her a sympathetic look making her smile, “See Lu gets it, that’s why he’s the best out of the children.”
“I thought Kirby was…” Lucas muttered, glancing at the shuffling box.
“Sweetie, we all know Kirby doesn’t count because he’s everyone’s favourite,” Bayonetta chuckled while everyone nodded sagely. After a moment of silence, Lucas coughed into his hand before shuffling away muttering, “Thank you for the box, we’ll be going now…” He sped over to the box then lifted it off Kirby and a few Lumas before leading the group out of the room.
“Have fun!” Bayonetta waved cheerily.
“Remember, if the target spots you neutralize them immediately,” Snake called. Samus smacked him lightly on the arm causing him to wince and ask in offense, “What?”
“They’re not going to kill anyone. Don’t tell them things like that,” Samus chastised.
Bayonetta laughed at them then pointed out, “Well they didn’t mention why they are doing recon on Joker, maybe they are planning on killing him.” They shared a moment of realisation before the trio looked at where the group had just been.
Snake coughed awkwardly then asked, “So, who’s going to explain to Rosalina that there’s a chance her children are planning to murder someone?”
---
Phase 2: Intel
“I’m not sure what to do at this point,” Akira complained at his screen. He was sat in one of the empty communal rooms inside the mansion, the lack of people meant he could walk around in casual clothes without freaking anyone out. The laptop resting on his lap being used to video-chat with his friends. The present members of the Phantom Thieves (Ryuji, Futaba and Ann) gave him mixed reactions.
“Oh no, the amazing Joker is having trouble making friends. The world is ending,” Ann sassed back making Futaba and Ryuji laugh. Akira pouted as they mocked his predicament.
“Come on, it is a little funny. You made friends so easily over here, but your charm stats don’t work over there,” Futaba commented with fake pity as she suppressed a smile.
“Don’t remind me,” Akira muttered as he sank into the chair underneath him. He scowled when another round of laughter came from his friends, “That’s it, friendship cancelled with all of you.”
“No! Just chill dude,” Ryuji pleaded through giggling. He gave a few shaky breaths before continuing, “You became my friend without any charm. You’re the best, even without them.”
“You’re not what I’d call an A-class friend,” Ann countered quietly.
“Hey! I heard that!” Ryuji yelled through the chat. The pair began bickering with each other, throwing half-hearted insults between them.
“Let’s be honest, Akira’s just annoyed because Morgana made friends before him,” Futaba cut through the argument, smirking when Akira scowled, “Looks like I hit a nerve.”
“He keeps rubbing it in my face, ‘looks like I’ve got maxed charm now’,” Akira muttered, voice changing halfway through to a whiny impression. “He’s lucky Isabelle is so nice, otherwise I would have locked him out of our room. But if he thinks that-” He cut himself off. The trio onscreen cast him questioning looks as he placed a silencing finger in front of his lips. The quiet that took over the room allowed a small scratching sound to be heard.
Akira looked across the room. The sound stopped.
Smirking, he turned his gaze back to his friends. The sound started again. Without fully looking up, he caught sight of the edge of a familiar cardboard box.
What is he doing here?
The thought passed through his mind before he noticed a small group of Lumas trying to hide behind said box. This only furthered his confusion…
Is Snake babysitting?
He was about to call out, hopefully startling the older man, but was stopped when another Luma came along and tapped the top of the box, “Knock, knock.”
A familiar voice asked, “Who’s there?”
“It’s me,” the Luma giggled in response. Akira chuckled, startling whoever was inside the box.
“We’ve been spotted,” the voice announced. The box began scooting away, “Retreat.” It travelled towards the doorway before hitting the frame. The Lumas trailed behind it, jumping minutely at the thump the box made on contact, then helped it shuffle around the frame to escape.
After watching in an amused silence throughout that series of events, Akira laughed to himself. The present Phantom Thieves looked between themselves until Ryuji shrugged and asked, “Dude, what’s so funny?”
“Nothing…” Akira answered still chuckling, the smile never left his face as he focused his attention back onto his friends. “But I feel like something interesting is about to happen…”
---
Phase 3: Supplies
“So, that failed. Got any other ideas on the board?” Lucas asked as the group, still with their borrowed box, sat in front of the pin board as Kirby waddled back and forth in front of it thoughtfully.
“Poyo…” Kirby mumbled before stopping and turning his full attention to his drawings. He took a few down and tried moving them into another order, only to move them again when they made no sense. Lucas simply sat and watched. The Lumas watched with him, between playing in the box and drawing.
This went on for a while.
Then someone sat down beside Lucas, startling the boy. He looked up to find Shulk gazing thoughtfully at the board in front of them. Shulk noticed him staring and turned to greet him, “Hi there, hope I’m not interrupting you all.”
“No, it’s fine,” Lucas assured. Shulk grinned then looked back at the board. Lucas joined him to find Kirby still rearranging the pictures then he asked his new companion, “What are you doing here? Did something happen?”
“Nothing that I can think of,” Shulk admitted. He shrugged, “I just saw you all following our newest member and thought you were up to something interesting.”
“You saw that, huh?” Lucas asked meekly.
“It was hard not to, your entourage is kind of noticeable,” Shulk joked while leaning back to wave at the Lumas. They waved back, “What are you up to anyway? Other than stalking someone.”
“Poyo! Poyo po-yo,” Kirby explained as he dropped all his pictures to come over and talk instead.
“A special friend, huh? Sounds important,” Shulk mused half-seriously. He looked at the pictures, “And you need to find someone who Joker will like, so you’re following him to gather more information.”
“That was the plan… But he spotted us,” Lucas sighed. Shulk watched him sulk slightly then moved to pat his head.
When Lucas gazed up at him he chuckled and offered, “Why not me?”
“Huh?”
“Poyo?”
“What?” Shulk asked somewhat confused, “Am I not what you expected?”
“Not really, Joker seems all dark and mysterious and you’re…” Lucas trailed off while gesturing at the teen.
“Go on,” Shulk encouraged.
“Kind of a nerd,” Lucas finished, cringing when Shulk threw his head back and laughed.
“Okay, I’ll admit that you’re right… That was a low blow though,” Shulk said in between chuckles. He wiped a tear from his eyes, “But I was serious, I’m curious about our new friend, especially since he’s the best person to ask about modern human culture out of everyone here.”
“You sure do like humans, don’t you?” One of the Lumas asked cheekily.
“The Homs lacked a written history and the High Entia’s was lost so I was never able to learn about my home’s cultures. Humans recorded so much and they only seem to be getting better at it, so much information…” Shulk explained with a tone swimming with both positive and negative emotions. He nodded, “It would be nice to get some firsthand accounts while I’m at it.”
“Makes sense,” Lucas agreed.
“Thanks kid,” Shulk chuckled. “So, I’m in right?” He asked Kirby who smiled widely and ran our to shake his hand.
“Poyo!” He nodded and gestured to the still messy board, “Poyo poyo po-yo poyopoyo.”
“I see…” Shulk muttered. Lucas looked up at the teen and found him taking in all the information. He seemed excited almost.
---
Phase 4: Execution
“Joker, you need to go to sleep,” Morgana said as the two were making their way down the hallway.
“I’ll go to sleep later, it’s not like I have school in the morning,” Joker argued. He looked down at the crudely written note in his hand and asked, “Who do you think wrote this?”
Morgana jumped up and snatched the note from his hands before skimming over it, “Someone with terrible penmanship, bad spelling and writes in crayon. If he were here, I’d say Ryuji did this, but since he’s not… I have no idea.”
Joker hummed thoughtfully and his mind went back to earlier that day. “Maybe…”
“Joker?”
“It’s nothing,” Joker dismissed his friend when they reached the main entrance. At the bottom of the staircase there was a pair of Lumas struggling to hold up a sign. Just as they were about to tip over Joker dashed over to help. He picked up the somewhat heavy piece of layered card and asked with a smirk, “Need some help with that?”
“Yes please,” one of the Lumas replied patting his leg. They pointed at the sign, “Mr Joker needs to read it, but we can’t hold it very long.”
“Me?” Joker asked. He then read the piece of card in his hands, ‘big surprise, this way’. His gaze trailed to the slightly open door to the dining hall, “Looks like you won’t have to hold it anymore.”
“Really? Yay!” The other Luma cheered, doing a little spin.
“Let’s go tell Lulu we did it,” the first suggested. They raced off.
“Lulu?” Joker questioned, receiving a shrug from Morgana. He glanced at the sign again, “Maybe we should find out what this ‘big surprise’ is.”
“I hope it’s fish,” Morgana mused and Joker laughed, “What? It could be.” The teen laughed harder and the cat tried to swat him in the leg. Joker dodged the attack and gracefully flipped in the direction of the door. He landed and gave a small bow and Morgana huffed, “Show off.”
“Believe me, I know,” Joker agreed smugly before turning to enter the room. Whatever he had expected was certainly not what was in front of him. He stopped dead in the doorway. He only felt Morgana brush past his leg as he too entered the room and went still.
Most of the room had been cleared of tables except one which was covered in multicoloured paper decorations and streamers. At said table sat Shulk in a paper hat, looking embarrassed more than anything despite the smile on his face. He stood up when he realised they can entered the room and greeted, “Hey there, you’re Joker, right?”
“Yeah…” Joker answered as he took in the other’s appearance. It was normal apart from a large name tag stuck to his jacket. He could make out the words ‘super special best friend’ written on it in neat handwriting. Without realising, he sniggered.
“What? It’s the hat, isn’t it? I told Kirby you’d find it cheesy,” Shulk admitted as he moved to take it off.
“No, wait, what? What is happening right now?” Joker asked before falling into laughter.
“Oh yeah, Kirby and Lucas thought you could use a friend since you’ve been kind of a loner since getting here and I volunteered,” Shulk explained.
“Really? You want to be friends with me?” Joker questioned jokingly.
“Sure, why not?” Shulk asked with a shrug.
“Okay then, Shulk,” Joker replied with a grin.
“How do you know my name? I don’t think we met at your welcome party,” Shulk voiced as he sat back down. Joker took the other chair and went on to explain how all their games existed within his own universe and that he was a fan of many of them, Shulk all the while listening intently at the information he was being given.
Morgana shook his head and turned to leave them alone. On his way out, he noticed the group peeking in through the gap in the open doors. He stopped outside and asked, “So it was you guys that did this?”
“Poyo!” Kirby confirmed, puffing himself up slightly in pride. Lucas chuckled nervously and nodded beside him.
“Nice idea, not that Joker needed help making friends. He has his charm stat maxed out,” Morgana joked.
“Game stats don’t work outside of battles and our own universes,” another voice joined the conversation. The trio jumped and turned to Rosalina smiling sweetly down at them. She tilted her head to the side and asked, “Now, what’s this I hear about my children planning a murder?”
---
Some days later…
“You’re telling us that you’re friends with Shulk? As in the super cool video game character with the power to see the future-” Futaba started skeptically.
“And an awesome sword!” Ryuji cut in.
“That we have the in-game option to see in his underwear,” she finished with a sly grin.
“Pretty much,” Akira answered. Once again, he was sat alone on his laptop talking with the Phantom Thieves while Morgana was taking a nap on a seat near him.
“Pictures or it didn’t happen,” Ann commented and the rest of the group nodded.
“Not that we don’t believe you Akira, but it does seem somewhat far fetched. He is from an older game, he’s bound to have loads of other, closer friends,” Haru added softly.
“Wow, way to hit me where it hurts,” Akira muttered.
“And that is?” Yusuke asked with a small smirk.
“His low self-esteem and manly pride,” Makoto answered seriously.
Akira spluttered for a moment then yelled, “That’s it, friendship cancelled with all of you. I’m sure Shulk will appreciate my company.”
“That’s so sad, Ryuji will be all alone,” Futaba fake sniffled and Ryuji called out at the comment.
“As much as I love pointing out that we’re Ryuji’s only friends,” Ann interrupted, once again drawing out a sound from the other teen, as she pointed at her camera. “Pictures or it didn’t happen.”
“Okay then…” Akira relents before grabbing his phone to search through his camera. He stopped and grinned, “Here’s one.” On their own sides of the chat, each of the Phantom Thieves opened their messaging app to see a new photo.
It was of Joker and Shulk sat beside Kirby and Lucas. All four of them were looking at the camera and smiling as they held ice creams for the picture. After explaining everything to Joker, Shulk had insisted that they all go out and do something that humans did to ‘hang out’. It had been nice, they’d have to do it again sometime soon.
Almost immediately the Thieves reacted with questions and calls of congratulations. Above everyone else, Futaba asked, “So, when are you bringing them to visit?”
Maybe sometime sooner than they had expected...