Chapter Text
April 11, Morning
“Heyy, you’re gonna be late to school if you keep spacing out like that!” Morgana chided from his perch on the kitchen counter.
“Huh? Oh… yeah.” Ren said quietly, poking at his rice and continuing to eat. He missed Sojiro’s curry, but rice and miso soup wasn’t an awful breakfast either. From her place by the sink, his mom smiled and shook her head.
“That cat follows you everywhere, doesn’t it? It’s so noisy too. What’s its name again?” his mom asked, making idle conversation while she washed dishes. She found the black and white cat Ren had brought home from Tokyo to be a funny little creature. It followed him everywhere, constantly meowing at him. Her son greatly enjoyed its company, often playing games with it and telling it things, even taking it out on the town in his bag.
“I am Morgana!!” Morgana declared haughtily, leaping over to the kitchen table to steal a sardine out of the miso soup. Ren handed one to him before he could put a paw in his breakfast. “I can’t believe she forgot my name again.”
“His name’s Morgana,” Ren translated. Sometimes Morgana forgot that most people couldn’t understand him. After all, he’d spent the last year running around Tokyo and a world beyond with high-schoolers who all knew he was a bit more than a cat. With him and Ren in Inaba now, only Ren knew what he was saying. He still never shut up.
“Ah, Morgana. What an unusual name for a cat. Well, finish up soon, you don’t want to be late on your first day back. It’d make a bad impression.” his mom said. Ren nodded and scarfed down the rest of his food, then went to the entryway, inspecting his high-collared uniform in the mirror. He adjusted his glasses and patted at his unruly black hair, which did absolutely nothing to it; his hair did what it wanted. Morgana followed, hopping into his schoolbag and getting comfortable as Ren slipped on his shoes. Mrs. Amamiya spotted Morgana’s ploy and walked over, gently picking him up. He meowed in response, no doubt uttering obscenities. “Why don’t you leave Ren-kun alone for his first day back, hmm?” she suggested as she pet him.
“Mom, he always comes with.” Ren protested, standing up and reaching for his feline friend.
“Yeah! How else would he answer questions in class? I’m the brains of this operation!” Morgana insisted, wriggling. He found such gestures demeaning and had only ever let Sojiro and Ren pick him up. Mrs. Amamiya considered her son’s protests for a moment. You weren’t supposed to bring animals to school, but it seemed like her son had been through a lot the past year, and having Morgana with him always put him at ease.
“Just for today, alright? I want you to be able to have lunch with your old classmates and catch up,” she said, finally putting Morgana down. Ren nodded, shouldering his schoolbag. Morgana nodded back and sat down primly. Ren was sure his old classmates wouldn’t want to talk to him. His criminal record may have been erased, but his reputation remained.
“If you insist. Mona, look after the folks for me.” Ren said, waving as he closed the front door. On the long walk to school, he took the much needed time to contemplate life. He hadn’t been able to begin explaining the last year to his parents. He’d been shipped off to Tokyo on probation for (false) assault charges and gotten much more than he’d bargained for. He’d spent the past year acting as the leader of the mysterious group known as the phantom thieves. A group whose goal was to change the hearts of the wicked to reform society via the use of a mysterious otherworld called the metaverse. He’d made friends he’d never forget in places high and low. He’d been framed for murder and survived an assassination attempt. He’d killed the god humanity had wished for and then reformed the man who rose up to fill that position and ‘end suffering’ by creating a new reality piece by piece; Ren had done this even after Dr. Maruki had revealed to him that his own slice of heaven was his rival being alive. As a result, he’d had to deal with the loss of someone he held dear not once, but twice. Meanwhile, his parents thought he’d had a normal school year, and gotten a cat to keep him company in Tokyo.
Now he was back home in Inaba, a sleepy riverside town where nothing interesting happened. Well, there was that time when he was in middle school, with those murders, but nothing like that had happened since or before. That was fine by Ren, last year had been enough adventure for a lifetime. In the week he’d been back, he’d explored the town with Morgana in hopes of something having changed (nothing had, except the sale racks at Junes), and avoided telling his parents anything substantial about his year in Tokyo. He did not like the thought of how they might react, no matter how many laws he absolutely hadn’t broken. His personal worst-case scenario was therapy, which he and Morgana had decided would have been the end of them.
Before he realized it, Ren was at school. He stared past the gate at the front door, huffed, and waltzed in. He found himself pausing at his classroom door. Since when did he get nervous?
Ren shook off the odd feeling, dismissing it as a result of being back at Yasogami instead of in the halls of Shujin. He pulled open the classroom door, scanning the room for familiar faces; he spotted a few kids who’d been in his class back in first year. In the front of the room, some people were gathered around one desk, chatting with someone who was strangely familiar. Light brown, shaggy hair, a pleasant tone of voice, gloved hands. It couldn’t be; Akechi was dead.
Red eyes looked up at Ren’s black ones, a pleasant smile frozen momentarily before the other boy’s expression turned sour. It was, undoubtedly, his greatest rival, Goro Akechi. Someone Ren thought had died for the phantom thieves’ cause. Someone he’d had to lose twice.
“You.” Akechi’s clear voice took on a snarling, accusatory quality to it as he shot up, staring daggers into Ren. ”What the hell are you doing here?” His hangers-ons scattered, spooked by his sudden change in demeanor. Ren blinked, unsure if this was real. He couldn’t ask now, he was in class. People were watching, whispering about what the criminal Amamiya might do.
“I could ask you the same thing. This is my school,” Ren said, his voice hard with the emotions he was holding back. “But I guess it’s yours too now,” he added as he sat down next to Akechi, in what he presumed was his assigned seat.
“Yes... I suppose it is,” Akechi said loftily, looking askance at his rival as he sat back down. The chatter in the classroom changed tone. Maybe they were relieved that a fight hadn’t broken out. “I wasn’t aware you were from Inaba.”
“Clearly. You should have done your research,” Ren shot back as he got his books out. Akechi fumed; Ren was right. He made a point of being well-informed, but he’d overlooked such an important detail like where his greatest rival was from.
“Perhaps. Where’s Morgana? Did you have to leave him in Tokyo?” Akechi asked, taking the opportunity to make small talk. He also knew they couldn’t have the conversation that was so desperately needed right now.
“No, detective extraordinaire. Morgana’s at home,” Ren said impatiently.
“Oh. in that case, say hello to him for me,” Akechi requested. Ren was relieved when their homeroom teacher walked in, imposing order and quiet. After she got to lecturing, Ren snuck out his phone, which was an impressive feat for someone who sat in the front row.
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Joker: Akechi’s in my class.
Fox: Beg pardon?
Skull: yeah dude, uncool
Queen: I know you miss him, but…
Joker: I’m serious.
Noir: Oh dear
Joker: IMG_00384.jpg
Panther: what the fuck??
Skull: THAT CHEEKY BASTARD
Fox: This is...
Queen: Oh my god
Alibaba: WHAT
Alibaba: Enough with the plot twists!!
Noir: I’m glad he’s alright!
Violet: me too
Violet: Is this a good thing?
Joker: don’t know yet.
Alibaba: you had better ask him everything!!
Alibaba: Like, how the hell he gave me the slip!
Violet: Why did he never message us?
Fox: Perhaps he did not want to be found.
Joker: That’s what my money’s on.
Queen: So… if he really is alive, and in hiding like Yusuke said, why is he in Inaba of all places?
Panther: wouldn’t he know you’re from there? he’s like, a detective and all
Joker: Apparently not. He was surprised.
Skull: what a dumbass
Joker: I know
Joker: I’m going to talk to him at lunch.
Violet: good luck!
---------------
April 11, Lunchtime
Saying the morning classes were awkward was an understatement. Being in the front row, all Ren could do was pretend to be a good student, and ignore Akechi’s occasional contemptuous and somewhat guilty looks. The gossiping of the kids in the back didn’t help his case. As soon as the lunch bell rang and their Japanese Literature teacher left, Akechi turned to him.
“Meet me on the roof in ten.” He hissed, then got up and left before Ren could say something. Ren frowned and packed up his books as the whispers of the remaining students grew. Questions like ‘how do they know each other?’ and ‘I wonder if they’re going to fight’ flew around the room. He ignored it; the whispers had been the exact same way at Shujin all year long, so it wasn’t anything new to him. After buying some lunch, he huffed and high-tailed it up to the roof, jogging up the flights of stairs and pushing open the heavy door. Akechi stood waiting for him, looking more sheepish than he had been expecting. Ren walked to stand in front of him, waiting for Akechi to say whatever half-baked explanation he might have.
“Miss me?” Akechi joked. Ren felt a surge of anger, something he realized he’d been holding back all morning.
“We mourned you! ” He cried, reaching for Akechi’s collar. Akechi panicked and launched a sloppy punch; this did almost nothing to slow his assailant. Ren took the blow and then shoved him against the wall of the stairwell, black eyes blazing with fury behind his glasses. “Futaba and Maruki told me you died! You told me you were dead! To let you die! And for what? For you to just show up in my hometown by complete accident?!” he continued, his voice uncharacteristically harsh and loud.
“You’d accepted it!” Akechi growled, straining to get out of his grip. Ren held onto him fast, not budging.
“Do you think I liked that option? Did you think it was funny, letting that conversation be our last?”
“At the time I had honestly believed-”
“Then why didn’t you tell me after? Why didn’t you call me? ” Ren asked, the rest of the fury draining out of his voice and turning to sorrow. He seemed to realize he had Akechi pinned against the wall and let go, stepping back. Akechi cleared his throat and straightened his jacket, trying to appear unbothered. In reality, he’d never seen Ren get truly pissed before and was thoroughly rattled.
“I found myself in Inaba after Doctor Maruki’s palace collapsed,” He started. Ren just stared at him, waiting for the rest of the answer. “and, well, it was the perfect chance to start over..” Akechi almost sounded embarrassed.
“Futaba’s readings..” Ren said, making good on her earlier request. “She said you were gone.”
“I... still have gaps in my memory. I don’t know.”
“Same here,” Ren admitted, nodding sagely. “Still. Inaba?”
“It is quite far from Tokyo. Why don’t we have lunch? I believe our break is nearly over.” Akechi said loftily, changing the subject to avoid further conflict. Ren suspected he was lying about the details, but left it alone. Akechi was alive and well, and here in Inaba with him. After what Dr. Maruki had done, he felt foolish trusting it, but the metaverse was gone, and so were any effects of his powers; Maruki had reassured him personally. Couldn’t he just enjoy this?
April 11, After School
“I’m home!” Ren called out as he came inside, shucking off his shoes. Akechi had said something about the library and promptly disappeared after classes were over, so Ren had come straight home after school. Morgana came racing down the stairs, then stopped and strutted over in a more dignified manner when he saw Ren was watching with quiet bemusement.
“Welcome back,” Morgana said as he flicked his tail, then tilted his head. “Did something happen at school?” He asked.
Ren touched the blooming bruise on his cheek absent-mindedly as he stepped up out of the entryway. “You could say that. Where are my folks?”
“Your mom’s out shopping and your father’s still at work. I heard something about a fish dinner.” Morgana reported dutifully, trotting at Ren's heels as he made his way to the kitchen to find ice for his bruise. “But seriously! Who punched you?! I’ll give ‘em hell!” he demanded, leaping up onto the kitchen table. Ren smiled as he pressed some frozen vegetables to his cheek and obtained a fizzy drink.
“You’re a cat, Mona.” he reminded his friend.
“Yeah, and? Who was it?” Morgana pressed.
“You might want to sit down for this,” Ren said as he sat down at the table himself. Morgana followed suit, plopping down where he was in the center of the table and scratching his ear. “Akechi punched me,” Ren said simply.
“What an asshole- wait- Akechi’s alive?!”
“Yep. He says hi.”
“He’s. he’s here in Inaba. And he’s alive…” Ren could hear the frown in Morgana's voice. “I uh... I’m gonna go for a walk.” Ren nodded, and followed Morgana to the back door, opening it for him. It wasn’t unusual for Morgana to keep quiet about his feelings or to want to be alone for a bit. Ren watched his friend slink off through a hole in the backyard fence, then went back to the kitchen to return the vegetables and collect an extra juice box and chips before retreating to his room. Maybe he should ask his mom about getting a cat door. As he was entertaining that thought, his phone went off.
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Alibaba: Ren!!
Alibaba: what did Akechi say?
Joker: He doesn’t remember how he escaped. He said he's got memory issues.
Fox: well, that is thoroughly disappointing.
Skull: I’m gonna call bullshit right now
Queen: we've all got some gaps in our memory though, don't we?
Noir: that has been bothering me for some time now
Alibaba: it's because the 'true events' that maruki overwrote technically didn't happen to us.
Alibaba: we weren't in reality when things were reset, so our cognition couldn't be altered to us remembering them easily.
Alibaba: but it is disappointing that I'll never know how he got past my sensors.
Skull: futaba, you know that shit just confuses me!
Alibaba: then don't read it
Queen: what she means is that changing the past didn't change our memories.
Skull: ooohhh, I get it now.
Noir: did akechi say anything else?
Joker: nope
Queen: I wonder how long he's been in Inaba...
Fox: More importantly, was my theory correct?
Joker: yeah, basically.
Skull: so, he just gets to run away from his crimes
Queen: well, they don't need his confession anymore.
Alibaba: he could turn himself in anyways.
Noir: I would much prefer it if he did...
-----------------
April 11, Evening
Morgana still hadn’t come back by the time Ren was called downstairs for dinner. As he got to the bottom landing, he spotted his mom opening the back door.
“Hello, kitty. What were you doing outside?” she asked Morgana, closing the door after him as he raced inside.
“Your mother’s going to be the end of me,” Morgana said to Ren as he wound around his ankles and then headed to his favorite perch in the kitchen.
“Sorry,” Ren said quietly, then, to his mom, “He wanted to go out earlier. I left the door open.”
“Oh, I see. Sorry for locking you out, Morgana,” she said, addressing the feline in the same way Ren often did. Ren frowned, but Morgana seemed pleased with the apology. When Mrs. Amamiya looked up at her son, it was her turn to frown. “You have a bruise..” she said, her voice soft with concern.
“So, a year on probation didn't teach you anything, then? You still picking fights?” Ren’s father chimed in from his seat at the table, without even having seen his son's face. Mr. Amamiya was a severe-looking man, with a too-tidy haircut and square glasses. He was still wearing his suit from work, minus the jacket, which was draped over the back of his chair.
“No, I tripped. It’s nothing.” Ren lied, sitting down at the table and picking up his chopsticks.
"And fell on your face?" Mr. Amamiya asked, now that he could see the bruise on Ren's cheek.
"It was a nasty fall," he asserted, starting to eat. His mother looked nervously between her son and her husband but didn't say anything. Mr. Amamiya huffed, not totally believing Ren, but not pushing it any further either. His son had always been stubborn.
"How was school, Ren-kun?" his mother asked after a prolonged and uncomfortable silence at the dinner table.
"Okay. I saw an old friend. We had lunch together," Ren said. He didn't really want to have to tell his father where he knew Akechi from, but his mom had been worried about him making friends.
"Oh, how nice. Who was it?" She asked.
"You still have friends?" His father asked. His mother gave him a disapproving look but still didn't say anything.
"Yes," Ren said sourly. "His name's Akechi."
"Hmm. That name sounds familiar for some reason." His mom commented. Morgana, at his perch on the counter, rolled his eyes and snorted. Ren smiled slightly, but quickly sobered when his father started talking again.
"Is he a transfer? I haven't heard that name around here."
"Yeah. I met him in Tokyo," Ren said.
"Hmph." Mr. Amamiya said, succinctly conveying his thoughts. He disapproved because Akechi wasn't a local, and in his mind, probably trouble since Ren had met him after gaining a criminal record. The rest of the dinner was had in silence; Ren left as quickly as possible when it was over. Morgana went with him upstairs, bounding up the stairs ahead of him.
"So, do the others know about him too?" Morgana asked. Ren nodded. "So I was the last to know, huh?" Ren nodded again, and Morgana sighed. "Is he really going to school here? I thought he was a third year. Though, I guess he must have missed a lot of school last semester."
"He's in my class. He sits next to me." Ren said, closing the door to his bedroom.
"Oh. Well, that's awkward." Morgana said as he leaped up onto Ren's bed. Ren just nodded again as he sat down next to Morgana. Morgana tilted his head, studying Ren's face. It was blanker than his usual passive facade. Realization dawned on Morgana, and he gently put a paw on Ren's lap. “Your father?” Another nod. “He’s an asshole. Don’t let it get to you.”
“But I did pick a fight,” Ren admitted, rubbing his face and removing his glasses.
“O-oh. well, still, that doesn’t give him the right to be so rude to you! You don’t even have a criminal record anymore. Your father’s wrong. You’re the best! You did so much for this world. It’s not fair that he gets to treat you like that.” Morgana said, giving his best pep talk. Ren sighed and flopped back on his bed, grabbing a pillow on his way down.
“Thanks, Mona,” he said. “What are we gonna do, then?”
“How should I know?” Morgana asked, padding over to curl up next to his friend. Ren snorted; that was exactly like Morgana, and it was comforting in its own way. Ren stared up at the ceiling, lost in thought. He wanted to just enjoy it, spend time with Akechi, maybe find a way to have that second duel. His biggest regret had been his inability to save Akechi in that engine room in Shido’s palace. It was the one thing he’d desperately wished had gone different about his entire ordeal in Tokyo. But what Maruki had done, believing Akechi had died and ‘resurrecting’ him... Ren wasn’t sure what was worse. The fact that Maruki’s misguided ‘help’ had led him and Akechi both to believe he was dead, or that Akechi had failed to inform him otherwise. Ultimately, now that it really had gone differently, and he knew it was real, he doubted it. Morgana watched him, ears pricked up. “What’re you thinking?” he asked.
“That I’m not sure if this is my reward or some kind of cosmic joke,” Ren said flatly.