Chapter Text
Mr. Inui stepped up to the chalkboard and wrote the name Bathala . Chalk in hand, he scraped a bold underline beneath the word as he turned on his heel and faced the class of 2-D.
“Amamiya-kun!” Ren Amamiya, the new transfer student — the one rumored to have a criminal record — lifted his head up to pay attention to the teacher. “Bathala is the supreme god of which brand of mythology?”
“Phillipine.” Amamiya responded effortlessly.
“Correct!” Mr. Inui clapped his hands together and resumed his lecture. “Phillipine mythology, or more specifically, Tagalog mythology is centered around the god Bathala. He is an all-mighty deity who created the universe. He had three offspring with a mortal woman; Hanan, deity of the morning, Tala, deity of the stars, and Mayari, deity of the moon. Now…”
As his lecture resumed, the students paid different degrees of attention. Soon enough, lunchtime rolled around and Mishima pulled a bento box out of his bag and decided to eat at his desk. He glanced down at the bandages and wrappings around his arms and hands, then shut his eyes tight. After a deep breath in and then out, he opened his eyes and tried to enjoy his meal.
Ryuji Sakamoto walked through the doorway into the classroom and breezed right past Mishima, heading towards his friend on the other side of the room. Ren smiled at Ryuji and started laughing over some dumb joke Ryuji probably made.
Mishima tilted his head a bit to listen in on them, but he couldn’t make out what they were saying exactly. All he heard was laughter and general pleasantness among them. He glared down at his lunch and, no longer having an appetite, put the top back on the box and slid it into his bag.
Ren’s gaze shifted a bit towards Mishima and his smile subsided. “Hey Ryuji, I’ve been wondering. Is he one of them?”
Ryuji turned. “Who? Mishima?” He looked over at him and was reminded of the severity of the wounds and bruises. He frowned a bit and quickly looked away again. “Yeah. He’s on the boys’ volleyball team.”
“So Kamoshida ‘coaches’ him, too?”
"Yeah.” Ryuji nodded. “That guy always has bruises on him. He says that they’re from practice, but we know that’s bullshit now.”
“I didn’t see him in the palace...” Ren said under his breath.
Ryuji shrugged. “Me neither. He doesn’t play in a lot of the games, either. He’s usually on the bench, but he still has to be at all the practices.”
Ren gripped tightly onto the loose fabric of his uniform pants. “We need to go back...”
“Go back? You mean to the palace?” Ryuji asked.
“Yeah. There’s gotta be something we can do. Maybe Morgana knows something?”
“You wanna ask that cat for advice?”
Ren was silent and they both dropped the subject for the time being.
x x x x x
Mishima was on the court during volleyball practice, standing in a line made up of the other players. They were practicing their routine drills of receiving the ball when it was set. One after another, each boy in line would hit the ball back over the net when it came towards them, then go to the back of the line.
Coach Kamoshida told everyone that practice would not end until they were able to do a perfect run of receives. If anyone missed the ball or failed to get it over the net, they’d all have to start again.
Practice was wearing on and Kamoshida forbade any breaks for rest or water until they got it right.
“Alright, last one!” Kamoshida shouted so his voice could fill the whole gymnasium. “You’re up, Mishima!”
Mishima was tired. His arms and the palms of his hands were red and sore from the leather of the ball hitting against his skin over and over. Still, he stepped forward and did his best to assume the optimal form that Kamoshida had drilled into him.
The ball soared towards him and he knocked it just high and far enough for it to hit the top of the net. It fell onto the court and rolled towards him. The other players groaned, knowing they’d have to try again for a perfect round of receives. Mishima simply sighed and went to the back of the line. Kamoshida blew his whistle and shouted at everyone to start once again.
Practice continued and Kamoshida relentlessly berated the players throughout their drills. When it was finally over, Mishima made his way to the bench and grasped at his water bottle. He tightened his grip around it and drank as if he had been denied water for days. Exhausted, he fell down onto the bench and leaned back to rest. He closed his eyes to try and erase the pain inflicted on him over the past hour or so.
As his eyes were still closed, Shiho Suzui, a player on the girls’ volleyball team, walked over to Mishima and sat down next to him. “Are you okay, Mishima-kun?” She asked quietly.
“Hn…” Mishima struggled to speak. “N-No… I’m… It’s fine.”
“You don’t look fine… You have a cut right there.” Shiho reached to touch right below the cut across Mishima’s cheek. He flinched at her touch. “Oh. Sorry.”
“It’s okay.” He sighed. “I’m just a little… sensitive right now, I guess…”
“I understand.” Shiho retracted her hand and glanced down at the floor. “Kamoshida was really rough on you today.”
“Hm, yeah… no more than usual, though.” An uncomfortable silence filled the air. “Ah, but… I, uh, I heard you might be getting a starting position soon? That’s incredible, Suzui-san.”
A small smile appeared on Shiho’s face. “Oh. Yeah, maybe!”
"You’ve worked really hard for it. I hope you get it.”
“What about you? Do you think Coach Kamoshida will make you a regular soon?”
Mishima shook his head. “I doubt it. I’m… not very good.” He chuckled pathetically.
"Well, you never know!” Shiho tried forcing some positivity to make Mishima feel better. “If you work really hard, then maybe—”
"He’s not going to stop, is he?” Mishima spat out the words with a hint of anger behind his voice. “Kamoshida, I mean.” He looked around to make sure the coast was clear and saw that he and Shiho were the only two people left in the gym. “He’s not going to stop… hurting me. Us.”
Shiho said nothing. All she did was nod and then silently depart, leaving Mishima to sit alone with his thoughts and wounds.
After some time Mishima changed back into his school uniform and started leaving to go back home. On his way out, he walked past the PE faculty office when he heard a loud thud and then a shout. Something must’ve angered Kamoshida and he didn’t want to stick around to learn what it was.
Mishima’s pace quickened and he almost turned the corner when Kamoshida’s voice stopped him in his tracks.
“Mishima!”
He froze, then meekly turned around. “Yes, sir?”
“Aren’t you friends with… what’s her name?” He walked up to him, with a more calm demeanor now, but no less intimidating. “On the girls’ team. I’ve seen you two talk. She your girlfriend?”
The only girl that Mishima ever spoke to was Shiho. She wasn’t really his friend, and she definitely wasn’t his girlfriend, but he figured that’s who Kamoshida must’ve been referring to.
“Umm. Suzui-san?”
“That’s the one.” He smiled his signature threatening smile and Mishima’s stomach turned. “Tell her I need to see her, will you?”
“Wh-Why?”
“Doesn’t concern you. I’ll be in my office.”
Kamoshida turned to walk back and Mishima felt sick thinking about sending Shiho to a special coaching session. He spoke again, voice small and weak. “I-I think Suzui-san has already gone home…”
“Mishima!” He walked back and towered over Mishima. “I’m not going to ask again! Unless you’re looking for additional coaching yourself?”
“N-No. No, sir.” He looked down, trying to keep any part of his coach out of his line of sight.
“Hurry up! If you haven’t brought her here in five minutes, I won’t be happy.”
Mishima nodded and with a swift slam of the door, Kamoshida sealed himself in the PE faculty office once more.
x x x x x
The next morning, Mishima ran into Shiho on his way to class. They usually smiled or waved at each other when they saw one another in the halls, but today, Shiho just walked past him without any acknowledgment.
“Suzui?” Mishima turned to walk alongside her. “How are you?”
“Hm? Oh… Hi…”
“Hey. Are you okay?” Shiho stopped walking and Mishima did the same.
Shiho was holding her textbooks close to her chest, and as he glanced down, Mishima saw new bruises on her wrists. Intense feelings of nausea and guilt overwhelmed him as he realized that Kamoshida was the reason behind those bruises. Even worse, Mishima himself was the reason Shiho even saw him yesterday in the first place.
“S-Suzui… did he…?” He didn’t want to say it. He didn’t know if he even could say it.
She nodded silently, her now lifeless eyes filling with tears. “Sorry. I… I have to go. I’m sorry you had to see me like this.”
“No. No, it’s okay. I—”
She was gone before he could say anything more. There wasn’t anything he could say anyway.
x x x x x
Shiho stopped going to practice. Mishima hadn’t seen her all week and the guilt he felt was weighing on him more and more. Along with feeling responsible for putting Shiho through something undoubtedly traumatic, he was concerned for her wellbeing. He kept thinking about asking Ann Takamaki if she knew anything. Maybe she knew what happened and whether or not Shiho was at least holding it together. Ann was in his class, so he had plenty of opportunities to just walk up and ask her, but he couldn’t get the courage to.
After class one day, he saw Ann leaving and tried to catch up to her to finally talk to her. He almost did until he saw her walk into an alleyway to meet up with Ren and Ryuji.
He knew Ryuji had become friends with the transfer student, but he hadn’t noticed Ann hanging out with them before.
Mishima was about to just go home and wait until tomorrow, but something compelled him to approach her now. The thought that maybe he was interrupting an important conversation didn’t cross his mind.
He hurried across the street and just as he made it over to them, he heard a robot-like voice coming out of a phone.
Beginning navigation.
Reality started to twist and warp and Mishima suddenly found himself in a world completely foreign to him. He saw an enormous castle standing before him. The sight alone was difficult for him to comprehend. He knew he was just at the school and then suddenly he was somewhere completely different. His brain tried to make sense of what was going on. Maybe he passed out or was hallucinating?
Ren and the others were further ahead, still unaware of Mishima’s presence. They were wearing leather outfits and, after closer inspection, seemed to be conversing with a cat-like creature. He cautiously stepped towards them, hoping they were real and he could ask them what was going on. Mostly, he was hoping he could wake himself from whatever fugue state he might’ve been in.
Immediately after Mishima followed the others into the castle, he was apprehended by several huge shadow knights. “Ah! Agh, let go!” Mishima pleaded.
The others were hidden behind various busts and pillars, trying to figure out why Mishima was there and how best to save him.
“Joker!” Skull whisper-shouted. “What’s Mishima doing here?”
“Is that really him?” Panther asked. “What if it’s just a cognition?”
Joker lunged to go after Mishima, but Mona pulled him back. “Stop! You might attract more shadows!”
Mishima continued to struggle until a golden-eyed Kamoshida entered. “K-Kamoshida?”
The shadow chuckled maniacally, “Well, well, if it isn’t the talentless Mishima… Intruding on my castle grounds?”
“N-No! Let me go!” Mishima struggled to break free, but it was hopeless.
“Struggling, eh? You? You know it’s no use. I should just kill you right here.”
He shut his eyes tight and frantically tried to escape, the knights’ grips only getting tighter. “No! Not like this! I need to s-stop you!”
“Stop me? Yeah right. Guards! Execute him.”
“N-No…” Mishima whimpered and stopped struggling.
Kamoshida’s shadow laughed as a cognitive version of Shiho walked up to it. “Master~!” She giggled.
Hearing Shiho’s voice, Mishima immediately looked up, “S-Suzui?”
As she laughed, she cozied up to it more, “You’re so cool, Kamoshida~!”
“After I execute this intruder, I’m going to have some fun with you.” The shadow put its arm around Shiho and brought her closer against its body.
Mishima shouted out helplessly. “Don’t you dare touch her!”
“Oh?” It mused playfully. “Does this upset you?” It laughed as it ran its hand along Shiho’s back.
"Stop it!”
“Well, well, well… looks like someone’s got the hots for Suzui!”
“Shut up! Y-You… You… bastard!”
Kamoshida’s shadow chuckled, “Maybe before I execute you… I’ll make you watch as I have my way with Suzui over here…”
“No!” Mishima fought back as hard as he could to release himself from the shadow knights’ grasp, but to no avail. He untensed his muscles, ready to give up. “No…”
Suddenly, Joker revealed himself from behind the bust. “Mishima! Don’t give in!”
“Amamiya?” He turned to his classmate and just then, more knights shuffled over to Ren and seized him as well.
“Two intruders, eh? Well, that just means one more audience member for this little show.”
“Oh, Kamoshida~!” Shiho laughed brightly. “You’re so bad~!”
“Suzui…” Mishima spoke under his breath.
Just then, a mysterious and mystical voice rang in his head.
“Well, well, are you still holding back?
Will you merely watch as she suffers at his hand?
Don’t you want to take a stand against injustice?”
“Yes…” Mishima fought to speak.
“Excellent. Now we must commence with the contract.
I am thou, thou art I.
Thou hast found strength buried amongst weakness.
The spirit of revolution has sparked anew inside yourself.
Revolt against the strong and embolden the meek!”
Mishima grasped onto the mask that appeared on him and ripped it off furiously. An elegant and beautiful demigoddess with a bright aura surrounding her manifested inside the castle. “I’m ready!” Mishima shouted as he finally broke free. “Mayari!”
The name of his newly born Persona shot out of Mishima naturally and powerfully. He ripped off his mask, a rounded crescent-shaped cover that was tinted midnight blue with golden accents along it. As blood dripped from the area that the mask was covering, Mayari swirled around him and Mishima’s outfit changed from his Shujin uniform, to an elegant and sharp pinstriped suit with pointed shoes. The dark blue tones of his suit were complemented with a leather trench coat draped over his shoulders. Mishima placed one hand on top of the fedora that was casually resting on his head and pointed forward at the shadow king. “Chastise them, Mayari!”
Mayari spun around as Mishima summoned her. She was an extravagant demigoddess with warm, reddish-brown skin and wavy dark hair that was lengthy and flowed in an entrancing way. Her right eye shone a light grey similar to moonlight, while her left eye had a scar across it. Bright golden jewelry such as earrings and bracelets adorned her body and contributed to her luminous aura. She raised her arms up, harnessing a light gravity spell and aiming it directly at the knights who apprehended Joker. The knights fell to the ground and released their grip around him. He fell to his knees but smiled slowly, ripping off his own mask and summoning Arsène.
“Persona!” Joker shouted as Arsène appeared. He cast a curse spell on the remaining guards and they fell as well. Kamoshida’s shadow stepped backwards, frightened. Joker shot his gaze towards Mishima, who was struggling to steady his breath. He had a passionate resolve, however, to fight. Mishima gave Joker an affirmative nod and he smiled. They both jumped forward simultaneously, away from the guards and toward the lecherous king.
It laughed a bit to keep up its façade. “You really think you two can stop me? Tch, pathetic.” It turned towards the cognitive Shiho and brought her in closer.
Mishima stamped his foot down on the ground and screamed. “No! You get your hands off her!”
“Mishima…” Joker put his arm in front of him to stop him from approaching further. “That’s not the real Shiho… stay calm.”
"Not the real Shiho…?” He groaned, frustrated.
Another boisterous laugh radiated throughout the castle hall. “Nice try, kids, but you’ll have to work a hell of a lot harder to beat me!” With that, it snapped its fingers and more shadow knights rushed into the room. They were bigger and even stronger. Mishima was a little intimidated but he still stepped forward towards them. “Amamiya… let’s go for it.”
"No.”
“What?”
“You just awakened to your persona and we’re outnumbered. Let’s retreat for now.”
Reluctantly, Mishima nodded and stepped back. The two turned around and headed back towards the entrance, reconvening with the others before leaving the palace.
x x x x x
As the sun began to set, Mishima followed Ren on the train to Yongen. Ren relayed all the information he had learned about the metaverse through Morgana and his own experiences there.
“So… it’s like cognitive psience?” Mishima looked down at his shoes, lost in thought.
"Cognitive science?” Ren mused.
“Ah!” Mishima laughed a bit. “Cognitive psience. P-S-I-E-N-C-E. A mix of the psyche and regular science. So, it’s the study of the mind’s conscious and unconscious and these “palaces” are a manifestation of an individual’s distorted desires. We were literally in Kamoshida’s heart, then…” He saw Ren nod. “And anyone can have a palace if their desires become distorted enough?”
“Yep.”
“And the treasure? That’s the root of those desires? So stealing it is kind of like stealing the desires themselves… Interesting.”
The train made its way to the Yongen-Jaya station and the two students got off the train and started walking towards Café Leblanc. Ren led the way around the backstreets and Mishima obediently followed. Ren turned his head towards Mishima. “You have a better grasp of this stuff than Ryuji does.”
Mishima chuckled lightly. “Sakamoto tries his best, I’m sure! But still, that’s a lot to take in. I’m exhausted, too. I can’t wait to steal that treasure, though!”
Ren stopped short. “Oh.”
“Oh?” Mishima stopped, too. “What is it? What did I say?”
“I… I don’t know if you should go back there.”
“But we have to stop Kamoshida, don’t we?”
“Listen, Mishima—”
“What? We can’t just let Kamoshida do those things anymore!”
A deep sigh came out of Ren. “I know, and we won’t. But it seems dangerous to let you go back in there. We’re already in the middle of the infiltration. We know how it works, but you don’t.”
“Then I’ll learn! I have a persona, too…”
“Mishima…” Ren placed a sympathetic hand on his shoulder, but Mishima quickly knocked it off.
“No! I… I don’t care what you say, but I’m going back there! Even if I have to all by myself!”
"You can’t. It’s too dangerous.”
His breath hitched, and he shut his eyes tight, clenching his fist. “I… I don’t care!”
“Mishima.” Ren pleaded, but Mishima had already turned away from him and started running back towards the train station.
Ren exhaled, exhausted from his trip in the metaverse and told himself he’d try to talk some sense into Mishima the next day. He turned back and walked into Café Leblanc.
x x x x x
The next morning, Ren met up with Ann and Ryuji in the courtyard. Ryuji slammed his fist against one of the vending machines. “Dammit. That idiot! He’s just gonna go running into that palace all by himself? He’ll get killed!”
Ren nodded. “I know.”
Morgana poked his head out of Ren’s bag. “He hasn’t had the same training the rest of us have. He’ll slow us down at best, and get himself killed at worst.”
Ann stood up, determined. “We have to stop him!”
Ryuji scoffed. “Like it’ll really be that easy.”
“I agree.” Ren put his hands in his pockets and leaned against the vending machine. “He seemed very determined.”
“Still…” Ann turned to Ren. “We can’t just let him do this.”
“I’ll talk to him again after class.”
Ryuji and Ann nodded, then the three dispersed to head towards their respective classrooms.
As Ren walked across the threshold of class 2-D, he noticed Mishima was not at his desk. He stopped for a second, but then continued on to his seat, convincing himself that Mishima would show up to class soon.
Ms. Kawakami stepped to the front of the class and hushed everyone to begin the lecture. “Okay, everyone. Settle down. Let’s start homeroom.”
Ren’s gaze drifted towards Mishima’s still empty desk and he felt his stomach drop. He sat through all of the day’s lectures while worry kept piling up in his mind. Mishima could’ve already been in the metaverse by now. If he went in alone, he wouldn’t make it back out. He secretly took out his phone and texted in the group chat he had with Ann and Ryuji.
Ren: Mishima isn’t in class.
Ryuji: Say what? Where’s he at?
Ann: He probably went into the metaverse.
Ryuji: That guy is too reckless.
Ren: Let’s go in after him.
Ann: Are you sure?
Ren: Once class is over.
Ryuji: You got it, man.
Ann: Roger.
The minute the last lecture of the day was over and class had ended, Ann and Ren met Ryuji at the front of the school.
Ryuji rushed towards them. “Hey. I’m here. What’s the plan? We goin’ in there after him?”
“Yup!” Morgana mewed.
“Let’s go.” Ren pulled out his phone.
Ann bit her lip. “Let’s just be careful, alright? We’re just going to find Mishima and get him out of there, okay?”
“Okay, okay!” Ryuji groaned. “Now enough yappin’ and let’s go!”
With that, Ren started up the nav app.
Beginning navigation.
The four stormed the castle, navigating through the halls of the building and defeating all the shadows they came across. After a long while, they all became exhausted and still saw no sign of Mishima.
“It’s no use, man.” Skull panted, looking at Joker. “We’ve looked all over this castle and he’s not here. I hate it to say it, but…”
Just then, they all heard a voice coming from the next room. “Punish them, Mayari!”
Joker stood up straight. “Mayari… that’s Mishima’s persona, right?”
“Dude!” Skull patted his hand on Joker’s shoulder. “We found him! Let’s get in there!”
They ran through the doors and caught up to Mishima standing up against several shadows.
“Mishima!” Panther shouted after him.
Mishima turned to Panther briefly and then back at the shadows. “What are you all doing here? This is my fight. Not yours.”
“You’re wrong!”
“I’ve got this. Just leave.”
“Mishima.” Joker stepped forward. “I’m sorry about not letting you join us. But please, let us help now. You’re not alone in this.”
Skull joined him. “He’s right, man! You gotta chill. We all have something against that asshole. But you can’t just come in here alone to stop him!’
Mayari attacked several of the guard shadows at once and they fell to their knees, weak. Mishima scoffed lightly. “I got this.”
Panther yelled. “Mishima! Let us help you!”
“Do what you want.”
Joker, Panther, Skull, and Mona all rushed behind Mishima and summoned their personas. With all of their efforts combined, they defeated all of the shadows in the room. They all tried to catch their breath as Mishima’s knees buckled and he collapsed. Joker rushed to his side and lifted him up to a sitting position, letting Mishima rest his weight on him. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine…” Mishima spat, a little ashamed.
Mona walked up to him. “Hey, rookie. You’re a good fighter.”
“Thanks.”
Panther knelt down next to them. “You really are. We could really use you on our team.”
“Yeah, dude.” Skull agreed. “You’d be a huge help. I don’t know if we can steal Kamoshida’s treasure without you.”
“He’s right.” Joker helped Mishima up to standing. “We need you.”
Mishima was silent for a moment, then smiled. “I’d be honored to work alongside you all.”
“Yeah!” Skull enthusiastically hit Mishima on his back, a little too hard perhaps. “Hey, now that we got a breather, I have to ask…” He scanned Mishima’s outfit. “What the hell is with that getup?”
“Oh! You like it? It’s reminiscent of the Yakuza, no?”
“No.”
“I think it’s kinda cool!” Panther smiled. “It… suits you?”
Mishima smiled back. “Thanks!”
Mona informed the rest of the group. “His outfit is supposed to be a reflection of his idea of a rebel.”
“Ah! That makes sense. After all, the Yakuza are the most feared organization in Japan. Can you imagine going up against a member of such a large organized crime syndicate?”
Skull sighed deeply. “Jesus, man, you’re pretty lame.”
“Am I supposed to be offended by a pirate ?” Mishima teased.
Panther stepped between the two. “No fighting! We’re a team now!”
“Oh, that’s right!” Mona bounced up and down. “Now that you’re part of the team, shouldn’t you have a codename?”
“Codename?” Mishima repeated.
“Yeah! If we want to conceal our identities, we shouldn’t use our real names.” Morgana pointed at Ren. “Like, our wildcard over here is Joker!”
"What’s everyone else’s?”
“I’m Skull.”
“Panther!”
Mona smiled. “And mine’s Mona!”
Mishima looked at all of them, committing their codenames to memory. “Joker, Skull, Panther, and Mona.”
“Any ideas on what you want to be called?”
Skull excitedly offered the first suggestion. “Oh! Oh! Moonboy!”
“Uh, no thank you.” Mishima touched his mask. “Maybe Luna?”
“Luna? Ain’t that kinda girly?”
“Well, my persona is feminine, right? I think it’s fitting.”
Panther smiled. “Luna! It’s pretty.”
“Thank you, Takamaki-san!”
She laughed. “Mishima, you can call me Ann.”
"Oh, okay. Then, please, call me Yuuki.”
Skull interjected. “Ain’t we supposed to be using codenames?”
“Ah! Right! Thank you, Panther. Skull.”
Mona laughed. “All right. Panther, Skull, Joker, Luna… are you ready to start this mission?” They all nodded and gave affirmative responses. “Then it’s decided! Let’s take the King’s treasure!”