Work Text:
Akechi was a weird person, Sumire thought.
Outside the Metaverse he was rude and abrasive; and it didn’t really seem like he had time for anyone other than Ren. He was nothing like the person she had known before, although she had only known him briefly. None of the Thieves seemed surprised at how unpleasant he acted, but Sumire couldn’t help but feel a little put out when he would dismiss her attempts to talk to him.
Inside the Metaverse, he was still rude and dismissive. He was just also terrifying. She couldn’t understand why her teammates had no reaction to it, especially Ren. During the short time he had navigated for them Akechi had had some interesting things to say about him to say the least, yet Ren hadn’t batted an eyelid. Not even at the comments that had been, well…uncomfortable was the best word for it. Everyone had their own fighting styles, she supposed, but Akechi was downright brutal. She almost found herself feeling sorry for some of the poor shadows he would manically hack and slash at.
But it wasn’t like he made exploring the Metaverse with him difficult. Despite his attitude, he deferred to Ren just like the rest of them and didn’t really pick fights with the other thieves. Well, he didn’t pick too many fights anyway- things were a little tense, but it didn’t really go further than offhand remarks. He was mostly quiet really, only really talking to Ren, or piping up to fill awkward silences now and again. He stopped talking to her much, once the other thieves joined them, but he still spoke to her more than he did the others. Once or twice he had even taken a hit for her- though he had kind of soured the gesture by calling her an idiot right after.
He didn’t seem to take hits for the rest of the team, on the whole. He took a lot of hits for Ren, but he didn’t really seem interested in protecting anyone else. Maybe the fact he pushed her out of the way meant he liked her? She really couldn’t tell. She didn’t really know what to make of him at all if she was honest.
She had the horrible feeling he pitied her.
She didn’t really have a basis for the feeling; he didn’t seem like the type to waste time with feeling sorry for people. He was honestly more likely to just think she was pathetic; and even more likely to just not care about her at all. She would prefer that, honestly. But he had been there when she was at her weakest; when she was just the scared little girl with the dead sister who would do anything to stay in her little fantasy land, even if it meant fighting her Senpai who had been nothing but kind to her. He had probably known who she was the whole time; he must have been rolling his eyes as she acted so determined to fix reality when she was unknowingly caught up in the very illusion they were trying to push back against. Who wouldn’t pity someone so delusional? She wouldn’t be able to blame him if he did. After all, his conviction was real; he was ready to stop Maruki at any cost, and she had given in the second her dream was threatened.
Ren never pitied her. Even after she fought him, he never once gave off that impression. He was understanding, and supportive, and kind to her; and he never seemed to look down on her. Ren was wonderful like that; even at her worst he would never make her feel ashamed. When Ren looked at her, he looked proud. When Akechi looked at her…well she couldn’t really figure it out, but it made her feel small; like she had disappointed him in some way. She didn’t really know why she cared. Akechi was a mean person, who said mean things, and she wasn’t sure why she should want anything to do with him at all. But…he was her teammate, and that made her feel like she should at least try to understand him, and if they could somehow become friends then that could only be a good thing, right?
He didn’t really seem like he had many friends. He had Ren, maybe Ann too? She seemed to give him the time of day more than the others did at least, but Ann just appeared to be a naturally friendly person. Maybe he would appreciate someone reaching out to him; so long as he didn’t bite her for getting too close, which was honestly starting to seem increasingly more likely to actually happen than she might have thought it would be.
It was by chance that she ran into him in Kichijoji. Ren was busy and staying at home was reminding her too much of…everything, so she decided to run some errands. She spotted him lingering around outside the darts place Ren had taken her to a few times, staring at his phone. He didn’t look like he was in a bad mood (maybe? She wasn’t sure he wasn’t just always in a bad mood now.) so she decided it was probably okay to say hello. It would be rude not to anyway; they might not be friends yet but that doesn’t mean she shouldn’t be polite!
He didn’t acknowledge her as she approached him, but that was okay! He was always abrasive; she wasn’t going to let it deter her.
“Akechi-senpai, hello! I wasn’t expecting to run into you today!”
Akechi looked up from his phone and down at her. She offered him a friendly smile. He didn’t look particularly impressed.
“Ah, Yoshizawa-san. What a pleasant surprise.”
Neither his face, nor voice, gave the impression that he was actually pleased to see her. She gulped; why was he so intimidating? She was sure she remembered him being perfectly friendly just a few months ago!
He raised an eyebrow, probably in response to her nervous expression.
“Did you…want something from me?”
Sumire blinked, suddenly feeling flustered. She really should have thought about this, Akechi didn’t seem like someone who liked to be bothered for no reason.
“Oh, well, I,” she stuttered, before quickly regaining her composure. “I was just wondering if you were busy?”
Akechi’s eyes narrowed, and he looked down at his phone. After a few seconds he sighed.
“…No, it seems I am not busy.” He paused, then furrowed his eyebrows. “…If you’re planning on asking me to “hang out” then please save us both the embarrassment.”
She wilted slightly, which he seemed to notice because the look in his eyes turned judgemental. But she wasn’t going to let him shut her down like that! She had been looking for a chance to talk to him, and she wasn’t just going to pass this one up. She grinned nervously, grasping her hands together behind her back.
“Oh, don’t be like that, Senpai! We’re on a team, we should get to know each other a little better!”
Akechi stared at her, but she looked at him determinedly. After a short staring contest, he sighed.
“You aren’t going to just leave me alone, are you?”
She shook her head. He pinched the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath.
“Alright,” he said, but he didn’t sound too thrilled. “Fine. I was thinking I might pay one of the cafes around here a visit, anyway. Come on then.”
Sumire couldn’t help but feel a little accomplished as she skipped after him.
Hanging out with Akechi, as it turned out, was really awkward. She had gotten herself into this situation expecting to actually talk to him, but so far they had mostly just been sitting in an uncomfortable silence drinking coffee, while Akechi scrolled though his phone.
God, why did she have to be like this? Why couldn’t she just talk? She never had this problem when she was Kasumi. Kasumi was always confident when talking to people; Kasumi was always good at making friends; Kasumi wouldn’t be too scared to start a conversation with a guy she had already been sort of friends with once! This shouldn’t even be hard, why was she so anxious?
“So…” she forced herself to say. “When Senpai said he was busy, I kind of assumed he was with you!”
Akechi rolled his eyes. For a second, she thought he was going to ignore her entirely, but he placed his phone face-down on the table.
“Did you now?” he drawled sarcastically, then took a sip of his coffee. Sumire was sure he said his sweet tooth was a lie, but he had ordered what Boss would describe as a “sugary abomination”, topped with whipped cream. “Well, clearly he isn’t. Which is good, that means he has finally got it into his thick head that bothering me is a fruitless effort.”
Sumire visibly shied at that, but he waved his hand dismissively.
“Oh, don’t be so sensitive. I agreed to spend time with you, did I not? That applies purely to Joker, and his foolish penchant for sentimentality.”
That was true, she supposed. He could have just brushed her off completely, it isn’t like she would have followed him if he did walk off. Actually, it had been remarkably easy to convince him to let her join him. It was almost as if he-
“Actually, I wanted to discuss something with you. It seems like we have the opportunity for that now, correct?”
-wanted something.
Right, that made sense. Why else would he subject himself to this awkward situation? Of course, he was expecting to get something out of it.
“Oh-“ she replied, her eyes widening slightly. “Of course, ask away!”
“Well,” He began, smiling as he spoke. It was a little menacing, if Sumire was honest. “I was wondering how you were feeling about the… Maruki situation?”
Sumire blinked.
“Senpai…Are you asking if I’m okay?”
Akechi scoffed incredulously but seemed to no longer be able to look her in the eye. He stared off to the side instead.
“I’m doing nothing of the sort. I’m just curious about your opinion on the situation, considering you were his victim in this case.”
Sumire shook her head and laughed awkwardly. She hadn’t been expecting him to phrase it like that; though she supposed she should have. He hadn’t said a single positive thing about Doctor Maruki since they started exploring his palace.
“Oh, I don’t think of myself as a victim Senpai. I know what Doctor Maruki is doing is wrong, but he wanted to help me. I think he did help me, honestly. I don’t think I would be where I am right now without him!”
Akechi’s eyebrow quirked up, and he gestured vaguely for her to continue.
“Well- I think I might want to thank him, if I’m honest? Because of him, I got to live as my sister for a little while, and that meant I could meet Ren-senpai, and all the others. If Doctor Maruki hadn’t done anything, I think I would have been too depressed to do anything! So, I don’t really think I’m a victim at all.”
She waited for Akechi to respond, since you know he had asked, but he just grunted noncommittally and sipped his coffee. For some reason, that made her feel nervous. Did she say something wrong? Usually he had something to say about these sorts of things.
“Um…” She squeaked. “Is that…all?”
“What, do you want me to say something?” he retorted, taking another sip of his coffee. His words lost a little bit of their bite when she noticed a little bit of whipped cream smeared on the top of his lip.
“It’s just… Normally when you ask these sorts of things, you have an opinion on them too?”
“Oh, I do. I think you’re an idiot. In fact, I think what you said proves that you are still brainwashed by that madman, even if not literally anymore.” He placed his cup down on the table with a harsh clink. “But you are entitled to your own opinion on the matter, so I didn’t see any point in saying mine.”
Well…that was about what she was expecting. She was smart enough not to think that Akechi would be anything other than rude. Still though, she kind of wanted to hear what he had to say. She wasn’t one to shy away from her own opinions, but she did also value other people’s input. And anyway, she wanted to talk to him in the first place, and he definitely looked like he had more to say.
“No, I think it would be interesting to hear your opinion, Akechi-san! I know our opinions on Doctor Maruki are quite different; I think it would be good to hear your take on it too.”
“I have no interest in forming your opinions for you, Yoshizawa-san.”
She shook her head.
“I don’t want that. I just think it would be interesting to know…how would you feel if you were me?”
“If I were you?” He asked, tapping his chin as he thought about his answer. “Well... I wouldn’t be thankful, let’s start with that. I would be angry.”
His lip curled downwards into a nasty frown.
“If Maruki had used my grief to manipulate my mind; if he had killed everything I was and replaced it because of a comment I made in confidence, then I wouldn’t have anything positive to say about him. If anyone took advantage of me like that, then I would want nothing more than to ruin them.”
He sounded oddly passionate, Sumire thought. More passionate than would make sense if he was simply angry on her behalf. She honestly didn’t think he cared about her enough to be that angry over her situation, so she felt his reaction was kind of weird. Maybe there was something more to it? She knew that something had gone on with Akechi involving being manipulated; he was quite vocal about that much! But, she didn’t know the full story, and what she did know didn’t seem to have much to do with Doctor Maruki.
It made her think though. She had never thought of it as Doctor Maruki killing her, because it wasn’t that. All he had done was make her believe she was Kasumi. Although…
If Doctor Maruki succeeded in his plans, then she would actually become Kasumi, wouldn’t she? And Sumire would be dead instead of her.
It was right, it was what she deserved for killing her sister, but… was it Doctor Maruki’s decision to make? Did that mean he really was willing to kill her, because he thought that was what would make her happy?
“You look troubled.” Akechi commented, wiping his mouth as he spoke. “Have I struck a nerve? Like I said, I have no intention of influencing your opinion on the matter. I can judge you, but I quite frankly don’t really give a shit what you think about your own situation.”
He waved his hand and quirked his lip up.
“That being said, you did ask. So, I don’t feel particularly bad about speaking my mind. I find it difficult to understand your sympathy for the man. He took a moment of weakness and took it as an opportunity to use you as an experiment. He dared to use you as a bargaining chip in his palace, then used your grief to try and take us down. He’s nothing more than a monster wearing the skin of a kindly doctor.”
Sumire winced at that. She didn’t like remembering how she had attacked them in the palace. She had just been so shocked and scared, and she felt like she couldn’t go back to how she was before she was Kasumi, it really had felt like her only option at the time. Now it just felt like a stupid tantrum. Ren was just trying to do the right thing and she had…
She opened her mouth to apologize but Akechi cut her off with a scoff and an eyeroll.
“Don’t you dare apologise.”
“But I,” she stammered, but he cut her off again.
“I am the last person you should be apologising to for that. It’s honestly insulting that you think I would appreciate it. God knows I have no right to question you for fighting for what you wanted. You lost anyway, so it hardly matters.”
She furrowed her eyebrows as he took another long sip of his coffee.
“I don’t know Senpai… I could have-“
“You know what I did to Joker, correct?”
She did. Ren had explained everything to her after they got her out of the palace. Well- not everything everything, but she knew what Akechi did. Ren had told her that there was more to it, and that it wasn’t really his story to tell, but that Akechi wasn’t a danger anymore. She hadn’t been sure how to feel about it, but Ren trusted Akechi, and she trusted Ren, so she decided to give Akechi the benefit of the doubt.
She nodded slowly.
“Good,” he responded. “Then you know that those idiots still allow me to parade around with them, even despite what I have done. You are in no way on my level, I promise you none of them give a single fuck that you tried to fight them once. Especially, given the fact you were being manipulated by Maruki.”
Was he…comforting her? He looked a little uncomfortable, so maybe?
“Thank you for saying that I really appreciate it…” She trailed off for a second, biting her lip anxiously. “But I still don’t think I agree with you. He might have gone about it the wrong way, but Doctor Maruki was just trying to help me! I don’t think he was manipulating me, not really.”
Akechi sighed and put a hand to his face for a moment. He took a deep breath, then leant forward.
“I’m not trying to convince you. I don’t care, remember that okay? But do you want to hear what Maruki thinks of you? From the perspective of someone…less under his influence.”
There was something intense in Akechi’s eyes; something that made her nod her head, even though she wasn’t sure she wanted to know.
“Good. Then first I have to ask: you love your sister, right? You miss her?”
She nodded without thinking, a little offended that he needed to ask.
“Of course I do! Kasumi was my best friend in the world, how could I not miss her?”
He nodded thoughtfully and tapped his cheek.
“And you regret causing her death?”
She winced, and slumped down into her seat a little, but nodded anyway. It wasn’t like he was wrong, it just still hurt to hear be said so bluntly.
Akechi was still smiling, but his expression turned dark. There was an edge of cruelty to it that made Sumire shrink further down into her seat.
“So then,” He said, baring his teeth slightly through his smile. “Why then, did she not return when Isshiki and Okumura did?”
Something broke.
“Maruki could have easily brought your sister back too. But he didn’t.”
Her head hurt.
“Instead he took one comment you made out of grief and weakness, and decided he knew what was best for you. He doesn’t give a shit about making you happy, he just wants to fix you, and if killing you so a fake version of your sister can live will do that-“
“Shut up!”
To his credit, Akechi shut up. His eyes widened slightly, before his expression settled into a neutral frown, but he stopped talking.
“Shut up okay, I know. I know you’re right, I get it, but what am I supposed to do with that? It doesn’t change anything! I still killed Kasumi; it just means the one person I thought was trying to help me was-“
She sniffled, and the rest of her words got caught in her throat. It was mortifying. She didn’t know why she thought this was a good idea, why would Akechi act like anything but the selfish, mean person he always did. She was a fool to think she could try to-
“It’s good that you’re angry, you know. Keep a hold of that; sometimes anger is the only thing that will get you anywhere.”
He said it so nonchalantly, like he was just continuing a conversation, although he looked off to the side. Clearly, he felt as uncomfortable as she did, which was good because it was his fault, so he deserved it. She shot him a watery glare, though it probably came across as more pathetic than intimidating.
“That’s stupid, Senpai. I don’t want to spend my life miserable and angry.”
“It may be. It’s how I’ve always lived, but I am aware I am not a…rational person.” He gritted out, pulling at the end of his glove as he spoke. “But I think, this time, you’re right to be angry. You want to know what you’re supposed to do?”
He leant forward again and clasped his hands together. That intense look in his eyes was back, and Sumire couldn’t help but worry about what he was going to say.
“You use that anger. Keep it close and make sure nobody ever uses you like that again. You deserve better than being manipulated, Yoshizawa-san. You are not some madman’s experiment. Never let anyone treat you like that again; and when we fight Maruki, you can punch him in his stupid face.”
…Oh? Well that was kind of…
“Senpai…” She mumbled, sniffling again. “That was…weirdly nice of you to say.”
Akechi scowled and quickly looked away from her again, his expression morphing into something between disgust and embarrassment.
“Nice?”
“Yeah… I- well…I think you’re right. Maybe not about all of it but- I don’t want anyone to treat me like that again. I’m done being used like that!” A grin spread across Akechi’s face, which she matched with equal intensity. “And yes, I think I will punch Doctor Maruki in his stupid face!”
“Good. Make it a good one, Yoshizawa-san. He deserves it.”
“Oh, I will make sure to!” She clenched her hand into a fist as proof, then her smile softened. “Thank you, Akechi-san. I appreciate it.”
“Yes, well. Don’t get used to it.” He mumbled, then coughed into his hand awkwardly.
Sumire laughed softly and wiped her eyes. She couldn’t quite believe it, but all the facts pointed to the whole conversation just being Akechi’s weird way of giving her a pep talk. She had never met anyone quite this bad at comforting someone before, but it was weirdly endearing in its own way. Even if she had honestly thought he just wanted to upset her for the fun of it for a minute, she did kind of feel better.
“I know Senpai. You’re only nice to Ren-senpai right?” She teased, which made him pull a face that she couldn’t quite decipher. It didn’t escape her how his face seemed to redden slightly at her words.
“I am not nice to Joker.” He replied shortly.
“Okay, maybe you’re not nice, but you’re nicer to him than you are to everyone else.”
He rolled his eyes at that.
“Oh yeah? Well, I’m sure you know Joker has that effect on people; they flock to him like bees to honey. Don’t think I haven’t seen the doe eyes you give him when you think no one’s looking. It’s disgusting.”
He sounded a little irritated with her for some reason, but the shame from that was by far overshadowed by the embarrassment from him noticing her crush on her Senpai. She could feel the heat creeping up her cheeks, hearing him point it out. She thought she was being subtle! Compared to some people she was being subtle; she couldn’t believe she was hearing this from Mr “Daaamn Joker” himself- Oh.
Oh, that was why he was annoyed.
“Senpai…” she said carefully, “Do you…”
“Oh please, Yoshizawa-san, it hardly matters.” He scoffed, his shoulders hunching slightly. He tried to look annoyed, but there was something sad in his eyes. Sumire made the tactical decision to avoid bringing that up again. “Anyway, I don’t doubt that you two will make a good match; you’re clearly both as ridiculously sentimental as each other.”
She blushed deeper at that and only barely managed to stammer out:
“That’s far too quick, I haven’t thought about- I haven’t even- I haven’t even told him yet-“ She twirled the ends of her hair around her finger anxiously. “And anyway…are um- are you…”
“Don’t even think about asking me if I’m okay with it. I don’t give a shit about what you and Amamiya do. My opinion isn’t going to matter once we take Maruki down.”
Right…because he would be in jail again. Ren had told her about that too.
She thought about apologising, but he definitely would not have appreciated it, so she stayed quiet.
Their conversation lulled into kind of an awkward silence after that. Akechi attempted to go back to drinking his coffee, but he pulled a face when he took a sip. Seemed like it had gone cold. After a minute of silence, he sighed and began to stand up.
“I should go. This was…interesting, but I think we’ve taken up enough of each other’s time.”
He pulled out his wallet and left a fair amount of cash on the table; more than the cost of the two drinks they ordered, she was sure of it. She looked at him with wide eyes and he sighed again.
“What? It isn’t like I’m going to need it. That’ll cover both our orders, either way. I will see you when we next head to the palace, Yoshizawa-san.”
“Wait-“ She blurted out, just as he was turning to leave. He turned back around and folded his arms looking at her impatiently. “Call me Sumire. Please. It feels weird that you’re the only one who calls me by my last name.”
He looked at her neutrally for a moment, then nodded slowly.
“Alright, fine…Sumire-san. But you may not call me Goro.”
She nodded enthusiastically.
“That’s fine! Well- Thank you for talking with me Akechi-san!”
He nodded, gave her a short wave, and then he was gone, leaving Sumire alone at the table.
Even after talking with him, she still wasn’t sure what to make of Akechi. It was a good thing that she didn’t get her hopes up about becoming friends after one short conversation, because they definitely were not friends. She gathered that much from his general…everything.
But, at the very least after talking to him, she could see a little bit of what Ren saw. She got a glimpse of a Goro Akechi who wasn’t just rude and bloodthirsty, and that was more than she had hoped for out of this. She wouldn’t claim to understand him now; she might understand him less actually, but she saw what Ren meant. There was something more going on with him. It was a shame that she got the feeling that she would never find out what. Not from Akechi himself, anyway.
Well, she had tried anyway. And she did sort of feel better now, even if Akechi’s attempt comfort had been a little…unconventional. Still, the fact he had tried to comfort her at all meant he couldn’t be all bad.
Maybe one day they could be friends after all.
…She would just need to keep bothering him until that day came!