Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Lulled nearly into a stupor by the rattling of the train, Akira Kurusu adjusted his glasses for the umpteenth time and sighed. He still wasn’t used to wearing them. Back home, he’d only ever worn contacts, and he’d even preferred the slight blurriness of the chalkboard to wearing his glasses. Truth be told, he’d wanted to be cool, and television and manga had told him that glasses would not help in this regard. But Akira wasn’t back home anymore, and if he was going to wear a mask, it wouldn’t be “cool.” 

“Average,” maybe. “Unassuming.” As far from “dangerous criminal” as he could manage. 

”Yongen-Jaya. This is Yongen-Jaya.”

Akira hadn’t been sure he’d make it here in one piece. Between the absolutely insane number of people bustling around Shibuya, the confusing underground walkway, and the unhelpful railway guides, it had taken hours to find his way to Yongen-Jaya, where he was informed he’d be staying for the next year. Not that his parents had told him much, if anything, about his living situation. 

This should have angered him, but even when he dug deep, Akira could only muster a sort of defeated indifference. The anger was still in there somewhere, but it felt as if a glass wall separated it from him. He could see it, but it couldn’t touch him anymore. Akira hadn’t felt truly angry since his conviction, when he realized he was truly powerless against the people who had decided, seemingly on a whim, that he deserved to be punished. 

His feet carried him out of the station and into a winding neighborhood that he assumed to be Yongen-Jaya. It was unlike any neighborhood he’d ever seen; the crooked paths were marked off by cones in some places, and the people passing by walked with a purpose, eyes straight ahead. Yet it all felt familiar, somehow — warm, even. Akira couldn’t recall the last time he felt warm . 

Without thinking, Akira found himself leaving the residential area where he assumed Sakura lived and heading toward the small businesses in the heart of the district, glancing at the signs as he passed. A closed-up movie theater, a small supermarket… A lit green sign advertising batting cages caught Akira’s interest, but he kept walking until he came to a small cafe. 

The awning read “Leblanc,” and above that, “curry & coffee.” An objectively odd combination, but it made Akira’s mouth water, even as his head began to ache. His hand was already on the door handle before he returned to his senses.

Wait. What am I doing here?

He couldn’t answer the question. Something had drawn him to this cafe, and he had no idea what it was. Sure, he was getting hungry, but there was no way he’d smelled the curry from all the way down the street. 

He needed to find Sakura-san; it was getting late, and he had no idea when -- or where -- the man was expecting him. With one last look at the cafe, Akira turned around and wandered into a secondhand store across the street that looked more like someone’s garage than a place of business. The old man inside looked kind. 

“Welcome,” the shopkeeper said with a weary smile. “What can I do for you?” 

“I’m sorry to trouble you.” Akira shifted his bag on his shoulder. “I’m looking for Sojiro Sakura. Do you know him?” 

“Oh, yes, yes. Sakura-san lives down the street, but you won’t find him there. Most of the time, he’s at his coffee shop, Leblanc.” 

Akira blinked.

“Leblanc.”

“Yes, right over there.” The old man pointed in the direction of the cafe. “You were almost there already.” 

Akira forced a smile. 

“Must have been a lucky guess.” 

He thanked the old man politely and turned back to the cafe, his mind swarming with questions. 

After a moment’s thought, he decided that his parents must have mentioned the cafe to him, and it had merely slipped his mind. He ignored the fact that his parents had hardly said a word to him since they informed him he was moving to Tokyo. Surely he’d just forgotten about it. And he’d looked up Yongen-Jaya on the train, so that would explain this feeling of familiarity. Feeling a bit less off-balance with these answers in mind, Akira took a deep breath and entered the shop. 

The door jingled pleasantly when he entered, but no one looked at him. The scent of curry and coffee hit him like a blow to the face, and Akira nearly gasped aloud at the way it made him feel. Home? He supposed both curry and coffee were comfort foods, but could that account for this feeling? 

He steadied himself and tuned in to the conversation happening in front of him. An elderly couple was discussing the news with the man who appeared to be the owner. The man in question seemed to be ignoring them entirely, in favor of his crossword puzzle. 

“Vertical is… The name of a shellfish used for farming pearls…” 

“Oyster,” Akira blurted before he could stop himself. He immediately felt like smacking his hand over his mouth, though he kept his face blank. This was not the first impression he wanted to make on his temporary guardian. Akira was quiet. He was controlled. He was— 

He was looking directly into Sakura-san’s eyes. The man’s bemused expression probably mirrored his own. 

“Sorry,” Akira muttered, quickly looking away. His hand tightened on the strap of his bag, a sharp pain spiking in the middle of his forehead. Making eye contact with the man had caused a feeling to rise up in him that he couldn’t name. His chest felt tight. “I’m looking for Sakura-san?” 

“Right,” the man grumbled. “They did say that was today.” 

Perhaps sensing the tension in the room, the elderly couple paid for their coffee and left. The owner barely waited for the door to shut behind them before letting out a long-suffering sigh, muttering, “four hours for just one cup of joe,” before glancing up again. 

“So, you’re Akira, huh? I was wondering what kind of troublemaker was going to show up here.” Akira swallowed, but kept his mouth shut. “The name’s Sojiro Sakura, if you didn’t know. I’m the guy who’s supposed to keep an eye on you for the next year.”

“Nice to meet you.”

The man had long, black hair that was receding at the forehead, and his face was wrinkled with frown lines. Despite his cold reception so far, Akira felt a strange desire to make a wry joke — to get rid of the surly expression on his face. 

Sojiro raised an eyebrow, and Akira blinked, quickly looking away. He hadn’t realized he’d been staring again. The silence stretched on uncomfortably, and it felt jarring, though Akira wasn’t sure why.  

“Sorry, but… have we met before?” he finally asked. 

“Ever been to Tokyo before?” Akira shook his head. “Then probably not. I guess maybe no one explained it to you, but one of my regulars is a friend of your parents’. I don’t know them personally.” 

“Oh.” So his parents had sent him to live with a complete stranger. Great. At least what he’d seen of Sakura-san so far made him seem like a decent man. A little rough around the edges, but Akira felt deep down that this was just a facade. And although he was scowling now, Akira could picture him smirking. A voice tickled the back of his mind.

“Besides, ladies love a guy who knows his coffee. This isn’t such a bad deal for you.”

Akira shook his head to clear it, and his new guardian gave him a suspicious glance. 

“Geez, kid, are you listening? I said follow me. I’ll show you where you’ll be sleeping.”

Akira blinked. Sleeping sounded pretty good right about now. 

He hurried after Sakura-san, who led him to the back of the shop instead of out the door. A rickety staircase took them to an attic that looked like it hadn’t been touched in years. Dust was visibly floating in the air, even in the low light of the evening. Junk was scattered carelessly throughout the room, and only an uncomfortable-looking bed in the corner betrayed its intended purpose. 

“This is your room,” said Sakura. And of course it was. How could Akira have expected anything more, given the sudden turn his life had taken a few months ago? Sakura promised to provide sheets for the sorry excuse for a bed, and Akira nodded mutely. “Hm?” Sakura raised a challenging eyebrow. “You look like you got something to say.” 

Akira really didn’t. 

“It’s…big,” he said finally. Sakura snorted.

“Yeah. It’s on you to clean up the rest.”

Sakura-san proceeded to lay down some ground rules. Some very judgmental ground rules that, despite their vagueness, only served to make Akira feel less at home and more like a prisoner again. 

“I’ll be leaving after I lock up each night.”

“I’ll throw you out if you cause any trouble.”

Akira knew this already. He also knew why he was here, though Sakura seemed to think he might not. He summed up what he’d heard about Akira’s case. Apparently, he’d been told Akira’s side of the story — that he’d been trying to protect a woman from assault — but that didn’t change Sakura’s opinion of him much. 

“That’s what you get for sticking your nose in a matter between two adults. You did injure him, yeah?” 

He hadn’t, but Akira didn’t say anything. He knew he didn’t need to. Sakura went on to explain why Akira’s parents had sent him here. How he’d been kicked out of school, how no one would take him in, how his parents had become desperate for someone to pawn him off on. 

“Basically, they got rid of you for being a pain in the ass,” he concluded wryly. 

Akira knew this, but it hurt nonetheless. It hurt more coming from this man — this stranger who didn’t feel like a stranger — than it had from anyone else. This man may be his guardian, but he had made one thing crystal clear: Akira was completely and totally alone. He locked up the pain before it could show on his face, but something must have leaked into his expression, because Sakura-san scowled. 

“I hope you appreciate how lucky you are. You could be in juvie right now, but instead you got away with just probation. Most schools wouldn’t take in a criminal like you, let alone one with an assault on his record.”

Akira kept his gaze firmly on the floorboards. “I know.” 

“Hmph. Well. We’ll be visiting Shujin Academy tomorrow, so don’t sleep in too late. I’m not your alarm clock.” 

With that, Sakura left, muttering about wasting his Sunday. Akira waited until he heard the man puttering around downstairs before finally relaxing, taking another look at his “room.” He wanted nothing more than to go to bed, but the pitiful state of the attic was such that he didn’t think he’d be able to sleep. Rolling up his sleeves, Akira sighed and got to work. 

When Sakura-san returned, he did a double-take. Akira had been cleaning for hours, moving junk and scrubbing surfaces until his arms trembled with fatigue, and it had clearly paid off. 

“I heard you banging around up here, but I didn’t expect—” Sakura cut himself off. “Well, it’s only natural that you’d want to keep your room clean.” He sounded as if he didn’t quite believe that. Perhaps because he’d seen another teenager’s room recently? Though, that actually didn’t make much sense; Akira doubted he had many dealings with teens. He watched as his new guardian ran a finger along the banister, seeming surprised when it came up clean. “Hmph. Anyway, I’m closing up for the night. You should probably go to bed. I won’t be the one looking after you if you get sick from staying up too late, you got that?” 

Akira nodded. The older man turned to leave, but for the second time that day, Akira’s mouth felt compelled to speak before his brain could stop it.

“Sakura-san?” He waited until the man turned to face him, the picture of impatience. Akira cleared his throat. “Thank you.” 

The man raised an eyebrow.

“For what?” 

For what indeed? Akira didn’t know. Sakura-san huffed. 

“Just stay out of trouble.” He sighed. “And there’s no need to call me ‘Sakura-san.’” 

Akira furrowed his brow. What was he supposed to call him, then? Surely not “Sojiro,” and “Sakura” felt a bit disrespectful, too. 

But Sojiro left as abruptly as he’d come, leaving Akira once again reeling from emotional whiplash. He could not for the life of him tell if he’d made a good impression or not, and he really wanted Sakura-san to like him. It hadn’t mattered to him before, but it did now. He just…seemed like someone he wanted in his corner. Strange.  

Abandoning that line of thought, Akira took the opportunity to survey his hard work. With the room freshly cleaned, it seemed full of possibility, and it was almost enough to put a smile on his face. Unfortunately, his headache chose that moment to spike once again — this time much worse — and it was all he could do to remain upright. He was glad that his new guardian wasn't there to hear his loud groan as he gripped the center of his forehead, fingers digging into his bangs.

Suddenly, Akira’s vision dimmed, and he caught a blue-tinted glimpse of the room transformed — the book-strewn shelf now covered in knickknacks, the desk strewn with supplies, the dying houseplant lively again. 

He stumbled back onto the mattress and knocked his glasses off in his haste to rub his eyes. By the time he’d blinked them open again, the room was back to normal. 

He sat in place for a moment, just breathing and blinking to clear his blurry vision. 

“I’m just tired,” Akira whispered to himself, slowly picking up his glasses and replacing them on his face with shaking hands. He straightened out the too-short blanket and began to remove his shoes. “This is just exhaustion. And stress. When I wake up, everything will be back to normal.” 

Well, as normal as things could be, under the circumstances. 

Akira did not wake up feeling back-to-normal. 

Akira woke up feeling very confused, lying on a hard cot in a prison cell with two little girls staring at him. Twin girls in blue uniforms, and the most twisted-looking man Akira had ever seen.

“Trickster… welcome to my Velvet Room.” 

Igor's explanations passed in a haze of harsh words and vague riddles that made Akira’s head ache. His heavy chains clanked whenever he moved, and his breaths came sharply through clenched teeth.

“I summoned you to speak of important matters. It involves your life as well.”

He wasn’t wearing his glasses, but he could see everything perfectly. 

“You truly are a prisoner of fate.”

Pulling at the bars was fruitless, and only seemed to make one of the twins angry. He was trapped here in this nightmare.

“Do you have the resolve to challenge the distortion of the world?” 

When he found his voice, it sounded like someone else was speaking with his mouth. 

He knew that he was asleep, but Akira was certain this was not a dream. 

“Now, then,” said the man with the bulging, lidless eyes. “It seems the night is waning. It is almost time. However…” He steepled his fingers under his beaklike nose. “I have a parting gift to you. You may have already experienced its effects.” 

Akira jumped as one of the twins smacked the bars near his hand with her baton, the resulting clang drowning out his yelp of surprise. 

“Pay attention, Inmate! Our master has given you a gift!”

“You should be very grateful,” said the other. 

“As I said before, you are a prisoner to fate. And yet that fate is in constant flux. Perhaps this may seem like a paradox to you, but it is not.” 

Clang.

“Are you listening , Inmate?” 

“I have granted you use of the Third Eye ability. It may manifest in various ways. Only time will tell whether you use it to your advantage…or to your ruin.” 

Third Eye? Akira rubbed at his forehead, as if expecting an eye to sprout there. Like clairvoyance or something? 

As if reading his thoughts, Igor’s grotesque grin stretched his face even further.

“Your Third Eye ability will show you a path. A path that perhaps you would follow in one world, but not necessarily this one. As I said, nothing is certain.” 

Akira felt as if his hold on this reality was slowly slackening. His vision had grown foggy around the edges, and Igor’s voice began to echo as if from far away.

“Take your time to slowly come to understand this place… We will surely meet again, eventually.” 

A prison alarm rang out behind him, and Akira’s eyes fell shut once more. 

Chapter Text

The morning of Akira’s first day at Shujin, he awoke far too early and couldn’t get back to sleep. He’d been having strange dreams — nightmares, mostly, but of a different variety than he was accustomed to. They felt both realistic and disjointed: despite how strange and confusing the images were, he felt as though they were things that might actually happen. Most frightening was the recurring theme of running away from shadowy figures. He saw flashes of himself hiding behind furniture, and even leaping onto the figures with an acrobatic agility that he knew he didn’t possess. 

Even stranger was the head of blonde hair that kept cropping up, which Akira did not recognize in the slightest. 

Akira had read once that it was impossible to dream about a face one hadn’t seen before. But Akira couldn’t recall seeing the blonde’s face, so he had to assume that he’d seen the haircut on TV. 

In any case, his nightmares weren’t the only thing that kept Akira from a restful sleep. He was also thinking about what had happened when he and Sojiro had visited Shujin yesterday. 

His expectations hadn’t been high; they really hadn’t. Yet somehow the way Principal Kobayakawa had spoken to him was even worse than he’d predicted.

“Honestly, I hesitated accepting someone like you…” 

“In my opinion, you’re nothing but a liability, but we had our circumstances to consider…”

“If you are thrown out from our school, there will be no place for you to go.”

It wasn’t just his dismissive words that had set Akira on edge. It was the feeling he’d gotten when they’d first made eye contact. Where Sojiro had made him feel warm and safe, Kobayakawa felt slimy — maybe even dangerous. A cold-blooded creature who would sacrifice anyone as long as he came out on top. 

His teacher, Kawakami-sensei, had been just as rude to him when they spoke. But for some reason he hadn’t minded it as much. He found himself noticing the dark circles under her eyes with an unexpected level of concern, worrying that she was working herself too hard. That didn’t really make sense, though, given what he’d seen of her; she seemed lazy and resentful of her duties as a teacher. But Akira couldn’t escape the feeling that there was more to her — just as he knew there was more to Sojiro. 

And like it had with Sojiro, her aloofness hurt him more than it should have. 

As the sun began to rise outside his window and he slowly rolled out of bed to get dressed, Akira couldn’t help but think that these “feelings” he’d been getting were a part of what Igor had mentioned — this “Third Eye” ability that Akira had supposedly been granted. He still wasn’t sure he believed it. He’d have to be insane to believe it. But he couldn’t deny that strange things seemed to be happening to him. He only hoped that this wasn’t a sign that he’d finally cracked under the pressure. 

Akira sighed. That did seem like the most likely explanation. 

He took his time changing into his uniform, wanting to look as put-together as he possibly could. The pants were still quite stiff, but the turtleneck was rather comfortable. According to the handbook, which he had taken the time to look over, the blazer wasn’t technically required, but Akira liked the way it looked. 

After checking his appearance in the bathroom mirror, Akira returned upstairs. It was still far too early to leave, so he passed the time by checking the train schedules for the fifth time, just to make sure he knew where he was going. He’d heard horror stories back home of people getting lost in Tokyo, and he did not plan on letting something like that make him late on his first day. 

His eyes had started to glaze over by the time the cafe door jingled, signaling Sojiro’s arrival. Akira gave him a moment, listening to his guardian go through his morning routine. He still wasn’t sure what to make of the man. 

He’d seemed sympathetic at the school. Yet he still insisted on constantly reminding Akira that he was a criminal who could be thrown out at any time. His words the night before had particularly stung: “Don’t mess up my store. If something goes missing, I’ll hand you right over to the cops.” Not only was this insulting on the basis that Akira was not a thief; it also made him nervous. If Sojiro misplaced his wallet, or Akira accidentally broke a plate, would Akira be on the next train home? He didn’t think that would be the case. But “warm feelings” aside, what did Akira actually know about the man? 

The smell of curry began to waft up into the attic, and Akira sighed. He might as well leave now, even if it meant waiting around outside the school when he arrived. 

Sojiro looked up when the stairs creaked, and seemed genuinely surprised to see him ready for school. 

“Huh. So you’re actually going to school, then.” 

As opposed to what? Did Sojiro really think that he was going to skip on the first day? Before Akira had the time to feel properly indignant, however, a plate was slid across the counter.

“Here,” said Sojiro. “You can have this for breakfast.” 

Akira’s mouth was already watering; he could taste it just by looking at it. The gesture was confusing, given his guardian’s attitude, but certainly not unwelcome.

“Thanks,” he said quietly. 

“Oh, so you do have some manners.” 

Akira’s shoulders slumped again. He really couldn’t win. It was not an unfamiliar feeling. 

Akira was rather proud of himself for making it all the way to Aoyama-Itchome without getting lost for more than a few minutes. He was right on track to make it to school with time to spare, until it started raining. 

With a quiet sigh, he took shelter under an awning, mentally cursing himself for not remembering an umbrella. He checked the time on his phone. He was still a bit early, so perhaps it would be better to wait a moment, rather than let his new uniform get soaked. “Drowned rat” was not the first impression he was hoping to make at Shujin Academy. 

As he glanced at his map again, Akira frowned. The app from a few days ago — the one with the unsettling red icon — was back again. He lifted a finger to delete it, but the icon seemed to grow instead, covering the map on his screen. Before he could do anything else, however, he was distracted by the arrival of another student. 

A girl with her white hood pulled up stepped beneath the awning next to him. When she tugged the hood down, Akira had to fight the urge to gasp. The hair underneath was light blonde — either natural, or a very impressive dye job. When she turned her blue eyes on him, he decided it was probably her natural color. But as arresting as her appearance was, the thing that really stood out to Akira was the feeling in his gut when he saw her.

He felt just as warm as when he’d met Sojiro. For a moment, he could picture her laughing with him over sweets. Crepes? A voice was echoing in his mind — most of the words unintelligible, but a few floated to the forefront, loud and clear. 

“I won’t hold back!”

“I’ll turn my failure today into positive energy going forward!” 

Akira couldn’t help but gasp as the words entered his mind, almost as if the girl had spoken them herself. The sound must have caught her attention, because her blue eyes quickly found his. After a moment’s inspection, she smiled. 

Under normal circumstances, Akira might have been rendered somewhat speechless under such a striking gaze. But the warm, friendly feeling didn’t leave, and instead he found himself smiling back, a startled “hi” leaving him before he could stop it. 

“Are you…going to Shujin, too?” he asked, glancing at the plaid of her skirt, which seemed to match his pants. 

“Yeah! I see you’re a second year, too? That’s weird. I don’t recognize you.” She tilted her head. “Are you new or something?” 

“I’m a transfer student,” Akira said quickly, hoping she wouldn’t ask for details. “Today’s supposed to be my first day. But I forgot my umbrella.” 

“Me too.” She laughed. “Oh, well, it’s just a little rain, right? Hey, I’m Ann Takamaki. I can show you the best way to get to school from here. Um, if you want, I mean! Obviously you don’t have to—!”

“That would be great.” Akira smiled, and Ann Takamaki smiled back. “I’m Akira Kurusu. It’s nice to meet you, Takamaki-san.” 

“Nice to meet you, too! I don’t think this rain is gonna get any better, so maybe we should just start walking, huh?” 

She started to pull the hood back over her head, but she froze when a white car slowed to a halt in front of them. The window rolled down, and an adult man with a prominent chin leaned out to speak. 

“Good morning,” he called. “You want me to give you a ride to school? You’re gonna be late.” 

It felt as if all the blood in Akira’s veins had frozen solid. He couldn’t move. He couldn’t think . For a split second that felt much longer, he was more afraid than he’d been since the night of his arrest, and he had no explanation for this sudden fear other than the man who was looking at Takamaki-san with eyes that held more than just friendly concern. Akira felt like he was going to be sick. The man was just being nice, but all he could hear was—

“Just get in the car!”

There were virtually zero similarities between this moment and that night. Yet somehow he felt that this was just as dire. 

“Um, sure. Thank you,” Takamaki-san said quietly. Akira clenched his fist around the strap of his bag. Every instinct in his body was telling him to do something. 

“Do you need a lift, too?” 

Thinking fast, Akira smiled shakily. 

“A-Actually, Takamaki-san was going to show me how to get there on foot,” he said quickly. 

“Oh, that’s right!” Takamaki-san stepped back from the car. “Um, thank you for the offer, Sensei, but I did promise to walk with him. And I don’t mind getting rained on. It’s kind of nice this time of year!” She laughed nervously, and the man — a teacher, apparently — glanced quickly from Takamaki-san to Akira.

“If you say so.” His voice was light, but there was a hard edge to it. “Just be careful who you talk to, okay, Takamaki? Some people aren’t worth your time.” He smiled again before rolling up the window and speeding off. 

“I’m sorry.” Akira shuffled back under the awning. “I hope I’m not inconveniencing you.” 

“No, not at all.” Takamaki’s smile seemed forced. “Actually, I’m…a bit relieved.”

“HEY!”

Both students turned around just in time to see a blonde boy barrelling toward them. When he saw them standing there, he slowed down before splashing to a halt in a nearby puddle, spraying a bit of water onto Takamaki’s red tights. 

“Watch where you’re going, Sakamoto!” she cried, but the boy wasn’t listening, too busy staring after the white car that had just pulled away. 

“Damn it! Screw that pervy teacher!” he grit out. He turned around, but seemed to deflate at the sight of Takamaki. “He didn’t get you into his car, though, huh? That’s good at least.” 

“Pervy teacher?” Akira asked hesitantly, not wishing to draw the other boy’s ire. The boy spun to glare at Akira, and suddenly the warm feeling he’d gotten from Takamaki was back in full force. 

He had blonde hair, too, but it looked much less natural than Takamaki’s. The scowl on his face didn’t look threatening. Instead, Akira saw true righteousness behind the anger — like he wanted justice, and was denied it at every turn. He felt like… a friend. 

“I guess bein’ free is… it’s like how I feel when I’m talkin’ to you, man.” 

Was this going to happen with every new person he met? Akira’s head was beginning to ache again, but he felt good, being here. For the first time in a while, everything felt like it was coming together. He must have stared for too long, though, because Sakamoto looked even angrier. 

“What do you want?” he spat. “You plannin’ on rattin’ me out to Kamoshida?”

“Kamoshida?” The moment he asked, Akira knew he must be the man in the car. Just saying the name left a bad taste in his mouth. “Oh. You mean…?”

“Yeah, that Kamoshida,” Sakamoto said, as if Akira were the dumbest person on the planet. 

“ Sakamoto! ” Takamaki said again, tapping her foot impatiently. “Don’t be so rude! He’s new!” 

“Oh. No wonder I don’t recognize you.” The boy looked Akira up and down. “A second-year, huh? Well, since we’re in the same grade, lemme give you some advice. Don’t talk to Kamoshida any more than you have to. He’s a real bastard. Walkin’ around like he’s king of the damn castle all the time.” 

“Don’t put all that on him on his first day,” Takamaki snapped. 

“What? Don’t you agree?” 

“I— That’s not the point! Kamoshida-sensei is a teacher. We have to show him some respect.” She turned to Akira. “I’m sorry, Kurusu-kun. You’ll have to forgive Sakamoto’s big mouth.” 

“It’s alright,” Akira said, before Sakamoto could protest the description. “I’m not trying to start anything, but… that guy gave me the creeps.” 

Why was he telling them this? He should be keeping his head down, and here he was, already talking more to these strangers than he had to any of his so-called friends after his arrest. Already trying to reveal his true self to them. 

The truth was something he’d learned not to take lightly. Few would believe it, and many would lash out at hearing it, so it was best to just keep quiet until he knew more about the person he was talking to. But something deep in his chest was telling Akira that these two were truth-seekers. 

“Ha! You got great instincts, Dude!” said Sakamoto brightly. “Hey, I’m Ryuji Sakamoto. Maybe we’ll see more of each other at school!”

“Let’s focus on getting there first,” said Takamaki-san. 

“Yeah, come on! I know a shortcut that’ll keep us from gettin’ too soaked.” 

Takamaki rolled her eyes, but nonetheless turned as if to follow him, when all of a sudden something shifted. The world seemed to tilt and pitch forward like a ship in rough waters, and the air grew so thick that for a moment, Akira couldn’t breathe. He thrust out a hand to catch himself on the brick wall behind him, and he vaguely registered Takamaki faltering ahead of him. Akira’s head throbbed, his vision blurring like a watercolor painting. 

“Agh,” Sakamoto muttered, turning back to them. “Man. My head hurts.” 

“Mine too,” groaned Takamaki-san. “It must be this weather. The air pressure or whatever.” 

“Ugh. This sucks,” the boy huffed. Akira heard his shoe scuff at the pavement. “I wanna go home.” 

“That’s not gonna help your reputation, Sakamoto. Or your grades.” 

“Yeah, yeah... Hey, you okay, Man?” 

Akira finally straightened up, still holding onto the wall for balance. 

“Yeah. Sorry.” He cleared his throat. “Just a headache. We should get going. I really don’t want to be late.” 

“Oh, right, it’s your first day. That’d look pretty bad, huh?” Sakamoto sighed. “Aight, c’mon. This way.” 

Still feeling a bit unsteady, Akira followed the blonde around the storefront and into an alley. Immediately, he saw a flaw in Sakamoto’s plan: although the back alleys were marginally more sheltered from the rain, they were also a bit flooded. Akira instantly felt his socks become soaked with rainwater. Still, he was grateful that he’d met two people willing to help him, so he’d take it. 

“What the Hell —?!”

Akira halted and looked up. 

In front of him was a castle . An honest-to-God castle with towers and defensive walls, and a drawbridge over a ditch leading up to a castle gate. 

“What?” Ann whispered next to him. “What… is this?”

“I take it that’s not usually here?” Akira could hear his voice saying those words, but he was scarcely aware of speaking them. He already knew that this was no film set, or renaissance fair, or whatever other paltry explanation he could come up with. This was something else entirely. 

“We came the right way,” Sakamoto mumbled, shaking his head. “This is where the school is. What’s goin’ on?” 

“I don’t like this,” said Takamaki-san, and Akira shook his head in agreement. 

“Me neither,” said Sakamoto, “but what else can we do? That’s the school.” They all looked up at the stone building and knew this to be true. “So… Guess we’ll just have to go in and ask what’s up.”

“I-I guess,” Ann said with no small amount of trepidation. Akira felt the same. The warmth he’d felt earlier, meeting the two of them, had been replaced with cold dread. But as much as he feared it, he also knew that the castle was where they were meant to go, for better or worse. 

“Let’s go, then,” he said firmly. 

The other two looked at him in faint surprise, then nodded. After a moment’s hesitation, Akira took the first step forward toward the looming walls. 

“O-Okay… Seriously. What is going on? ” 

Ann — Takamaki-san — echoed Akira’s sentiments exactly, right down to the slight tremor in her voice. Some part of him had believed that the outside of Shujin Academy had been redecorated with some sort of elaborate illusion. But the inside of the castle quickly proved otherwise. 

“It’s…It’s gotta be some kind of weird event, right?” Sakamoto had pulled his hands out of his pockets and folded his arms across his chest. “Like, some crappy publicity stunt. Or, like. I dunno.”

“I don’t think so,” said Akira quietly. The unease he’d felt outside had skyrocketed the moment he’d stepped through the door. The whole interior seemed to be lit with a reddish tint. It had the effect of making the walls themselves look evil.  

A loud clanging noise made all three of them jump. A hulking man in a suit of armor was stomping toward them, armed with a long sword and a heavy-looking metal shield. Akira’s heart was pounding in his chest. After a brief moment of hesitation, Ryuji chuckled nervously. 

“Dude, that costume is insane. Is that armor for real?” He stepped forward as if to knock his fist against the metal shield, but stopped himself. “Hey, are you a student? The Hell is goin’ on today?” 

The guard said nothing. 

“C’mon, Man. Is this some sort of method acting thing? Just answer the question!” 

Akira reached out to grab the other boy’s arm and pull him back, but it did no good. Another guard appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, and Ann gasped in alarm. Ryuji scowled. 

“H-Hey, c’mon, Guys! You’re scarin’ Takamaki! Just…Just chill out for a sec, okay?” 

“ Ryuji ,” Ann pleaded. “Let’s just go .” 

“Yeah.” Ryuji took another step back, staring at the vacant, armored faces in front of him. “Yeah, let’s get outta here.” 

Akira’s fight-or-flight response was kicking in. Some part of him — a part he did not recognize — was clamoring for a confrontation. But he knew that he had no means to fight these things, whatever they were; he was completely defenseless. 

“Run,” he said instead, and the others quickly tried to obey, but their path was blocked by two more identical guards. 

“W-Wait,” Ryuji gasped. “This… This shit’s real! ” 

One of the guards swung his shield forward, slamming the blonde boy to the ground. Ann yelled his name, and Akira lurched forward to help. He knelt to hoist Ryuji up just as guards closed in around them. 

Akira barely had time to feel the metal crashing into the back of his head. He collapsed in a boneless heap, unconscious before he hit the ground. 

“Kurusu-kun?”

“Hey. C’mon, wake up, Man.”

“Don’t shake him, Sakamoto!” 

“Well, what else am I supposed to do?”

“Hey, Kurusu? Akira?” 

His eyes fluttered open and caught sight of a very blurry ceiling. A ceiling made of stone. 

“Hey, you with us, Dude?” 

Akira groaned. He was lying horizontally on what felt like a table. Gripping the rough wood beneath him, he made an attempt to push himself upright.

“Ow.” 

“Oh, good.” Ann’s voice sounded relieved, but her face revealed only fear. “I was worried we were gonna have to drag you out of here or something.” 

“S’not like we have a way outta here anyway,” Ryuji muttered. 

“Where…?” Akira trailed off, taking in his surroundings. They appeared to be in a cell of some sort. The walls were hung with chains, and when Akira looked closer, he could see that they were attached to manacles. 

“Those guys knocked you out, and they dragged us all in here,” Ann explained. “You didn’t wake up for a few minutes. Are you okay?” 

“Think so.” His head was pounding harder than ever, but that was to be expected. Considering the fact that he’d been unconscious just now, Akira thought he was doing pretty well. “You?”

“Been better.”

Suddenly, a scream echoed down the halls that made Akira’s blood freeze. Ann and Ryuji ran to the bars, Akira stumbling after them, but there was no one in sight.

“Wh-What was that?!” Ann almost-whispered. Her eyes were glassy.

“I don’t—”

Another scream snapped Ryuji’s mouth shut. For once, there was no trace of anger in his expression — only terror.

“This is bad ,” he said. “This is really bad. We gotta find a way out, now! ” 

Akira looked around frantically, hoping to find something useful, but there was nothing. Only a few wooden barrels near the door, which turned out to be empty. Ryuji suggested hiding inside the barrels to trick the guards, but Ann quickly shot down that idea. 

“I know it’s dumb, but what else is there?” Ryuji yelled, gripping his hair. “I don’t see anyone else coming up with suggestions! Kurusu, you got anything?” 

Akira shook his head slowly. There was nothing in the cell to help them. The only way they were getting out was if someone came to get them. They would have to resign themselves to waiting. 

After only a few moments, however, Akira found himself wishing that they had a little more time left in the cell. 

“Be glad that your punishment has been decided upon.” The distorted voice was accompanied by the loud clanking of metal armor. “Your charge is ‘unlawful entry.’ Thus, you have been sentenced to death.” 

“Death?!”

“For real ?!” 

Only Akira was unsurprised. He could feel the lethal intent radiating from this place. They were never supposed to leave alive. Besides, it seemed fitting that after everything else that had happened to him, Akira would be executed just for trying to go to school. 

“We don’t even know where we are,” he tried anyway. “Let us go. We won’t bother you again.” 

“Ha!” A new voice sounded from behind the guards, and they stepped aside to let the man through. “There are no exceptions or excuses here! Not in my castle.” 

All three of them took a step back. The man’s face was familiar, but his outfit — a cape, a speedo, and seemingly nothing else — made Akira want to retch. 

“No way,” Ryuji whispered next to him. “Kamoshida?!” 

“Huh. I expected a couple of miscreants. But I didn’t expect one to be you, Sakamoto.” This revelation made the yellow-eyed Kamoshida grin. “I’ll enjoy your punishment far more than if you had been a stranger.” 

Ann made a strangled squeak, partially hidden by the barrels, and Kamoshida turned to look at her. His smirk melted into confusion, and then fury. 

“What is she doing in the cells? Who locked my Ann up like some kind of criminal?” 

“W-We’re sorry, Your Majesty,” one of the guards said quickly, the panic sounding strange in its horrible voice. “We didn’t recognize the Princess! We were focused on those two thieves.” 

“My Ann shouldn’t be associating with these ruffians!”

“Wh-What?” Ann scrambled backwards under his disgusting gaze, but there was nowhere to go. “ Your Ann?”

“Wait a second…” Kamoshida squinted into the darkness of the cell. “Those clothes… My Ann would never wear something like that. Why don’t you make yourself comfortable, Sweetheart? Aren’t you warm in all those frumpy layers?” 

“Hey!” Ryuji snapped, kicking the bar closest to Kamoshida. “Back off, you disgusting piece of—!” 

“We’ll get to you later , Sakamoto,” Kamoshida interrupted with a scowl. “Now be quiet. I’m trying to figure this out. Guards!” He gestured to the cell door, and one of the suits of armor (Akira was no longer sure they actually had people inside them) fumbled for its keys. Once the door was open, Kamoshida stepped towards Ann, the guards shuffling in after him. He put a hand on her cheek, and she flinched back. “I want to know what’s going on here. She may not be my Ann after all. Either way, this is going to be fun.” 

“Don’t touch her! ” Ryuji yelled, even louder than before. Kamoshida didn’t have to say anything; one of the guards rammed a shield into Ryuji’s back, knocking the wind out of him and temporarily shutting him up. Akira moved to help him, but another guard blocked his path. Ryuji gasped in pain, glancing from the open cell door to Kamoshida. “Ann, run! Get out of here!” 

Kamoshida laughed darkly. 

“There’s no escaping what you deserve,” he said. “And what I deserve is whatever I want .” 

He suddenly spun around, slamming a fist into Ryuji’s ribs. Before the boy was finished crying out in pain, another fist followed, and then another. 

“I was right,” Kamoshida grunted. “This is fun. But I have other things to take care of.” He glanced back at Ann. “Guards! Execute him right away.” 

“ Stop! ” 

All eyes turned to Akira, having temporarily forgotten he was there. Kamoshida snarled, releasing Ann to approach him. 

“Who do you think you are, punk?” A slippered foot struck Akira’s chest with inexplicable force, sending him stumbling back into the stone wall. “You dare to speak out against me? Don’t tell me you don’t know who I am!” He pointed at Akira. “Hold this one there! Here’s what we’ll do. First, we’ll execute that peasant, Sakamoto. Then this punk here. And then —” He spun toward Ann with a feral grin. “—we’ll finally be alone.” 

“No!” Ann screamed, and a primal fear made her try for the door although she knew it was impossible. It took mere seconds for a guard to grab each of her arms, holding her against the wall. Another guard held Akira against the opposite wall with its huge arm pressing into his neck. 

“If there are no more interruptions… Sakamoto!” Ryuji let out a strangled sob. “Any last words? Oh, actually, I don’t care if you do. Let’s just put an end to your yapping.” 

A blue butterfly passed in front of Akira’s face.

“What’s the matter? Are you simply going to watch?

“...Are you forsaking them to save yourself?

“Death awaits them if you do nothing. Perhaps even worse for the girl.

“Was your previous decision a mistake, then?”

Akira thought of the woman who had testified against him. He remembered her squirming in that man’s grip, just like Ann was squirming now. 

“No. It wasn’t.” 

One of the guards was lifting Ryuji by the neck, a sword aimed at his throat. 

“Very well. I have heeded your resolve.” 

A pain like nothing he’d ever felt lanced through his skull. Akira sucked in a breath. Sweat or tears were rolling down his face, and the cell seemed to disappear around him. 

“Vow to me!”

Akira screamed.

“I am thou. Thou art I…” 

He could barely hear the voice anymore as it told him what to do. He mindlessly thrashed in the guard’s hold, his hands gripping fistfulls of his own hair in agony. Finally, his mind seemed to clear, and he saw Kamoshida point at Ryuji. 

“Execute him!”

“That’s enough!” 

Rage. Blinding rage coursed through Akira’s veins, but it didn’t burn. It was as cool as ice. 

“What was that…?” Kamoshida was facing him, and Ryuji dropped to the floor with a grunt. “You really want to go first? Fine.”

A shield bashed the side of Akira’s face, and his glasses flew off, clattering to the stone floor. His vision blurred, more from the force of the blow than the loss of his lenses, and he was scarcely aware of the lances crisscrossing threateningly under his throat. When he felt steady again, he met Kamoshida’s gaze without flinching. He had no weapon, he was completely surrounded, and two lances and a sword were ready to slice him open if he tried anything. 

He smirked.

“What are you smiling about? Execute—”

A sudden gust of wind knocked the guards back. There was a familiar-feeling weight against Akira’s face, but it wasn’t his glasses. He had to take it off. He knew he did. 

Akira howled as he ripped the mask from his face, but the pain was quickly burned away — consumed by the cool blue fire that was thrumming in his heart. There were chains on his wrists, and he flung his arms out, freeing himself. 

“Wh-What?!” 

He couldn’t tell which horrified voice had said it, but it made Akira smile as he felt a new presence take shape behind him.

“I am the pillager of twilight — Arsène!

“I am the rebel soul that resides within you.”

Arsène spread his wings. Their span was longer than even the tallest of the guards, and when they unfurled they unleashed another gust of wind that knocked the rest of the guards off their feet. The whole cell was lit with his blue light.

“If you so desire, I shall consider granting you the power to break through this crisis.” 

“Lend me your power,” Akira said firmly. 

“Very well…”

“Who—what is this?” Kamoshida demanded. “Guards! Kill that one first!” 

The suits of armor melted, and two strange figures with glowing eyes burst out of them. Akira knew exactly what to do. 

“Persona!” 

Arsène was giving him instructions, but Akira didn’t need them. He reached for all of the pent-up rage that had been building up inside him for the last month — maybe for his whole life — and he released it. 

“ Eiha! ” 

The first Shadow disintegrated before his eyes. Akira felt a blade in his hand, and he swung it on instinct, slashing at the other creature. It threw some sort of spell at him, but Akira leapt out of the way and swung again, this time destroying it completely. 

Then, as suddenly as he had appeared, Arsène was gone. Akira didn’t feel his absence, though; he knew he could call him again, when he needed to. The blue light was gone, too, and it took a minute for his eyes to adjust to the darkness of the cell.

Ann and Ryuji were staring at him in undisguised terror. The guards had all vanished, and the cell seemed to hold its breath for a moment as its four remaining occupants processed what had just happened. 

“What… What was that?” Ryuji muttered. 

“You saved us,” added Ann, a bit breathless. “Th-They were going to…” 

Kamoshida levered himself back to his feet, and Ann stopped talking immediately. He took a step toward Akira, a snarl contorting his face, when Ryuji sprung into action. He shoved Kamoshida to the ground, grabbed Ann by the sleeve, and booked it out of the cell. Akira followed quickly behind, grabbing a key ring from the floor. 

“Lock it, lock it!” Ann cried as Ryuji slammed the door. Akira fumbled with the keys for a moment, getting the lock secure right as Kamoshida reached them. Ann and Ryuji both yelped as the half-naked monster yanked at the bars with a resounding clang . 

“You bastards!” His voice sounded even more distorted than before. “You think you can get away with doing this to me?! I am King Kamoshida! ” 

Akira put the keys in his pocket and Ryuji grabbed his arm. 

“Dude, what was that back there?! And what happened to your clothes?” Glancing down, Akira saw that his Shujin uniform had been replaced by a long, black coat. Then, as if startled away, the coat shimmered and transformed back into his blazer. “What?! It’s back to normal!” 

“Guys, let’s get away from here!” Ann cried. 

“R-Right. Yeah. You lead the way, Kurusu.” 

Him? Akira didn’t know the way out any better than they did. But he supposed being the leader didn’t sound too bad. He shoved the keys into his pocket, picked a direction, and started running. 

Finding the way out turned out to be far more difficult than Akira had thought. They were in some sort of underground dungeon with a stream running through it. Most of the bridges were out, and only more jail cells lined the walls. 

“Do you know where you’re goin’?” Ryuji had groused at one point, to which Akira had replied with an immediate “no.” Of course he didn’t know where they were going. He barely knew how to navigate the Tokyo train system, and those were normal places that everyone used. This place shouldn’t even exist . 

He thought about his first day in Tokyo, and how he had inexplicably known where to find Leblanc. What he wouldn’t give to be able to do that now. With everything else that had happened in the last few days, he now assumed that it had been part of his “Third Eye” ability. 

What had Igor said about it, exactly?

“Your Third Eye ability will show you a path. A path that perhaps you would follow in one world, but not necessarily this one.” 

A path, huh? Well, he was pretty sure Igor was speaking metaphorically, but… 

Akira stopped, stumbled a bit when Ryuji nearly bowled him over, and closed his eyes. 

Show me a path out of here , he thought. I need to get back to Shibuya.

He opened his eyes. Nothing. 

“Dude, what are you doing? Let’s go!” 

“Sorry.” Akira sighed. He was about to turn around and try another direction when he felt it: a stabbing pain behind his eyes, just like he’d felt in his room at Leblanc. He gasped, grabbing at the sides of his head as he stumbled forward, but he forced his eyes to stay open. 

Everything was tinted with blue again. Akira focused again on finding a path… There!  

A set of glowing blue footprints leading away from them. Akira smiled through the aching in his head. 

“This way,” he said, charging forward. The others followed him. 

The footprints led to an open cell door — one they had passed by earlier. But what they hadn’t seen before was the hole in the wall. Akira got on his hands and knees and began to crawl, glancing back to make sure Ann and Ryuji were still behind him. 

Once they had emerged, he continued to follow the blue footprints out of the cell and into a new hallway, almost identical to the first. They hurried across a drawbridge and down another row of cells, hiding briefly when they saw a team of guards running down the way they’d just come from. Finally, they came to a winding staircase, and when they made it to the top, huffing and puffing from exertion, they found…

Another, nearly-identical hallway. 

“What?!” said Ann. “How is that even possible?!” 

Akira sighed, took a deep breath, and concentrated again. When the footsteps reappeared, he followed them. Right up until they reached a wall, and the prints abruptly stopped. 

“A dead end?” Ryuji groaned.

Akira fell to his knees, the blue fizzling out of his vision. His head was throbbing worse than ever, probably not helped by the two heavy blows he’d received, and he felt like he could pass out right here and sleep for days. All of that energy he’d expended, and it had led them nowhere. 

“Hey! You three!” 

Akira jerked back, nearly falling over at the sound of the unfamiliar voice. It seemed like it had come from the cell to his left, but there was no one—

“Down here, Frizzy Hair!” 

Akira blinked. 

Standing at less than two feet tall, a black-and-white catlike…thing was staring back at him. 

“Gah!” cried Ryuji. “What is that?!” 

“You’re not Shadows, right?” said the creature, tugging at the bars. “Get me out of here!” 

The thing was like nothing Akira had ever seen before, so he was unimaginably surprised when he found himself feeling warm again. This time it was a comforting warmth, a gentle weight on his chest. The feeling of quiet companionship. 

“I’ll make sure to work hard to pay my dues. It’s too late to cancel our deal, got it?” 

Before Akira could speak, Ryuji beat him to it.

“Let you out?!” he cried. “You’re obviously an enemy! Like, some sort of… of… monster cat! ” 

“He’s not a cat,” Akira said quickly, though he had no idea how he knew. 

“Yeah!” the thing yowled. “At least one of you has some brains! Now help me out!” 

“Maybe he’s not a cat,” said Ann, “but how do we know he won’t attack us?” 

The creature looked up at Ann, and Akira swore his eyes started to glow. Little red patches appeared on his cheeks, somehow, like he was blushing. 

“I-I would never hurt someone so beautiful!” he said. 

Ryuji scoffed, but all four of them froze when they heard a noise nearby. The guards must be close by. Ryuji swore under his breath and pulled out his phone, trying once again to get a signal. It was no use, of course. 

“I think we should help him,” Akira said firmly. 

“Are you sure?” said Ann. “I-I mean, what if…?” 

“Look!” said the not-cat. “You’re lost, right? I know a way out! Open this door and I’ll show you the exit!” 

They heard the distinctive sound of clanging metal boots, but Akira was already pulling out the key ring in his pocket. In a flash, the creature had been released and was stretching its paws contentedly. 

“Okay, we let you out,” said Ryuji. “Now where’s the exit, you monster cat?” 

“Don’t call me a cat! I am Morgana!” 

“Morgana,” Ann whispered as the clanging drew closer, “please, can you get us out of here?” 

“For you, my lady? Anything!”

“Shut up and get on with it!” Ryuji groaned.

“Okay, okay! Come on, follow me!”

After a whole lot of running, as well as a run-in with a few guards — and the revelation that Morgana had a “Persona” of his own — they came to a second drawbridge. But a low moan from the cell next to them drew them to a halt. 

“Wait!” Ryuji limped closer to the bars. There was a boy lying on the floor just inside, wearing a red sweatsuit. “I feel like I’ve seen this guy before…”

“That’s Daichi Ishikawa!” Ann exclaimed, kneeling down near his face. “He’s on the boys’ volleyball team! ...Ishikawa-kun? Can you hear me?”

The boy groaned again, but he didn’t move from his prone position on the floor, nor did he seem to register their presence. 

“Kurusu!” Ryuji urged. “Don’t you still have the keys?” 

Akira dug them out of his pocket again, but Morgana huffed loudly. 

“You don’t get it. There’s nothing we can do for him here.” 

Akira was able to unlock the door, but when it swung open, Ishikawa just lay there. 

“Come on, Ishikawa-kun,” Ann pleaded. “We’re gonna get you out of here!” 

“Lady Ann,” Morgana said sadly. “Your compassion does you credit. But I’m afraid it’s misplaced.” 

Ryuji bristled, clearly at the end of his rope. 

“What’s that supposed to mean? We can’t just leave him here!”

“That’s not really him! Look, I don’t have time to explain this stuff to you right now. This ‘Ishikawa’ guy is probably just fine in the real world; this is just Kamoshida’s cognition of him. We’re the only real people in this palace!” 

“Aghhh! You just said so many words I didn’t get, and it’s pissin’ me off!” 

“I think Morgana’s right,” Akira cut in before the not-cat could retaliate. “He seems to know what he’s talking about, so if he says this guy isn’t a real person, I believe him.” 

“Thanks, Frizzy Hair.”

“It’s Akira.” 

“Whatever! We need to get going!”

“I guess if you’re sure that’s not him,” Ann said tentatively.

“I’m sure, Lady Ann. Now, everyone, follow me!” 

They finally made it to a room near the entrance hall, where Morgana told them to exit via the ventilation shaft. But when Akira looked back, he saw that the not-cat wasn’t following. 

“Morgana?” he called quietly. “Are you leaving with us?” 

“No. I have…other business to take care of here. Just be careful on your way out, okay?” 

“But…” Ann turned back to look at their guide. “What if something else happens? You’re the only one who seems to know what’s going on!” She bit her lip. “Are you sure you won’t come?” 

Morgana’s eyes went wide, and his cheeks glowed pink again. 

“I…Well, I suppose… Agh! How can I say no to someone like you, Lady Ann? I’ll come with you.” 

“Great,” said Akira. He sprung up onto the shelf and held out a hand to Ann. “Let’s get out of here.” 

Chapter Text

The sensation of leaving Kamoshida’s castle was one of the strangest Akira had ever experienced. One moment, they were crawling through a dark ventilation shaft; the next, they were squinting against the afternoon sun in the middle of Shibuya. They had reappeared in the empty side alley, but they were so anxious to put the castle behind them that all three of them had immediately sprinted into the open, dazed and out-of-breath. 

“Are we safe now?” Ann gasped, bent over and gripping her knees. “Did we make it?” 

Akira’s phone buzzed, and a pleasant voice declared, “You have returned to the real world. Welcome back.” 

“Huh? Returned?” Ryuji asked, a bit less winded than the others. “Does that mean we got away?” 

“Of course it does, you idiot!” came the high-pitched voice Akira now associated with the not-cat, Morgana. “Do you see any shadows around here?” 

All three of them spun towards the alley, Ryuji intending to snap back at the creature, when a decidedly catlike Morgana trotted into view. The strange, bipedal being was gone, and in its place was an ordinary-looking house cat, mostly black but with white markings and unusually-blue eyes. 

“Wha— dude! I thought you said you weren’t a cat!” Ryuji yelled, far too loudly. 

“I’m not! ” Morgana insisted, the hair on his back standing on end. 

“Um, no offense,” said Ann, “but you look just like one now. If you’re not a cat, then what…?”

“I’m a human! I don’t remember how, but I must have been transformed into a cat at some point!”

“Dude, ya know that sounds kinda crazy, right?” Ryuji froze. “Hey, wait a sec! You’re a talking cat?! How are we gonna explain that?!” 

“Be quiet,” Morgana hissed. “You’re drawing too much attention! Get in here!” 

The three of them ducked into the alley, and a few moments later, a pair of policemen hurried past. They held their breath until they were sure the men were out of earshot. 

“Some thieves you are,” Morgana scoffed. “You almost got caught just now!”

Before Akira could argue that they were not , in fact, thieves, Ann brought up a second point.

“Maybe that wouldn’t be so bad,” she said hesitantly. “I mean, we have to tell someone what just happened. We barely got out of there alive! What if someone else gets trapped in there, or those things try to follow us out? We should call the police!” 

“They’d never believe us,” said Akira, somewhat startling the other two with his vehemence. 

Ryuji shifted uncomfortably. “I mean, I don’t really trust adults either, Man, but like… this is pretty serious. What if we showed it to ‘em or somethin’?” 

“Impossible,” said Morgana, shaking his head. “And even if you could, that would be a terrible idea. Imagine if the whole world knew about this stuff.” 

“But—” 

“Wait, what ‘stuff’ are you talking about?” Ann said quickly. “Because you haven’t really told us anything yet.”

“Yeah, like what the hell was that castle, and why is it where the school’s s’posed to be?!” 

“It’s hard to explain,” Morgana hedged.

“How about a quick rundown, then?” Akira suggested. His head hurt worse than ever, but he needed to know what was going on. He didn’t feel as if he was still in danger, but he wouldn’t be able to let his guard down until he knew those things weren’t coming back. 

“Alright,” said Morgana slowly. “The important thing to know is that the castle doesn’t exist in this world. That guy can’t be arrested for trying to execute you, because it didn’t really happen — at least, not here . You understand?”

“Sort of,” said Ann. “But isn’t it still something they should investigate? The castle showed up completely without warning!”

“They won’t be able to find it,” Morgana insisted. “I don’t really get how you guys ended up there, but no ordinary human is going to stumble into it. Like I said, it doesn’t really exist.”

“The police rarely listen to kids anyway,” said Akira. “They’d probably just try to arrest us for making up such a crazy story. And for not being in school right now.”  

It was a depressing fact, but none of the others could argue with it. 

“You guys better get your stories straight, then,” said Morgana, after a brief moment of silence. Before Akira could make a suggestion, Ryuji let out a string of curses loud enough that Ann actually slapped a hand over his mouth.

“Ryuji, shut up! ” she whispered furiously. “What is it?” 

“Look!” he exclaimed, albeit much quieter this time. He shoved his phone at Ann, and Akira saw her eyes widen before the phone was shoved into his own face. He squinted at the bright screen, vision a bit too blurry to make out what Ryuji was showing him. “It’s twelve thirty! We were in there for like five hours!” 

Akira’s heart plummeted into his stomach. 

This was not how today was supposed to go.

“I’m going to be in so much trouble,” he said in a near-whisper. He leaned despairingly against the brick wall behind him and slowly slid down. Could they expel him for this? He didn’t think so, but they were very clear about not giving him any leeway. 

“Aw, man, it’s your first day,” Ryuji said bracingly. “They’ll have to cut you some slack.”

“Doubtful.” 

“Anyway, Morgana’s right,” Ann interrupted. “We should get our stories straight. Since we’re not going to tell anyone about the castle yet.” 

“Just say we were lost,” Ryuji suggested.

“We’ve gone to Shujin for over a year , Sakamoto.” Ann sighed. “Besides, Kamoshida saw Kurusu-kun and me earlier, and we were almost to the school. They’d never believe we took five hours to find our way from there.”

Akira groaned softly, and Ann and Ryuji glanced at him, finally getting a decent look at his face. He probably looked awful, judging from how clammy and drained he felt.

“Whoa, Dude. You look like shit,” said Ryuji, startling a quiet chuckle out of Akira. “You still hurt from what happened in there? I think my injuries from Kamoshida are gone, but I can tell I’m gonna be real sore for a while.” 

“I don’t think I’m injured,” said Akira. “Head just hurts.” 

Ann brightened.

“Hey, that’s an idea! We can say that we were showing Kurusu-kun around, and he suddenly started feeling really sick. So we took him to sit down and get some food or something, and we lost track of time!” 

“That’s not bad,” said Ryuji, grinning. 

“I would expect no less from someone as talented as you, Lady Ann!” Morgana added, which Ann tactfully ignored. 

“We should get going, then. Are you good to start walking, Kurusu-kun?” 

“Sure.” Akira looked up from his spot on the floor, and he couldn’t suppress a tiny smile when he saw two hands extended to help him to his feet. He allowed them to pull him up and nodded gratefully. “Thanks, Takamaki-san, Sakamoto—” 

“Dude, you just saved my life from a buncha monsters and a half-naked gym teacher. Call me Ryuji.” 

“And you can call me Ann.” 

Akira smiled and stuck out his hand again. For a moment, as he shook with both of them, his headache dissipated, leaving him with a deep feeling of rightness. 

“Call me Akira.” 

After a brief argument over whether Morgana could come to school with them or not (he eventually agreed to meet them on the roof), the trio finally arrived at Shujin Academy — this time without any architectural surprises. 

(“I just don’t get it,” Ryuji had said, shaking his head, “it was there and now it’s just normal , what the hell —”)

They made it inside without incident; it seemed that lunchtime was already underway, so there were enough students milling about to provide a small amount of cover. However, they had no delusions that they would be safe for long. Already, a few students had spotted them and begun to whisper excitedly to each other. After the dark, red-tinted hallways of the castle, the school’s bright fluorescents made everything feel surreal and out-of-place. Akira walked through the chattering students as if in a dream. 

“There’s Ushimaru,” muttered Ryuji, pointedly turning his back on the portly man who was glaring at them from across the hall. “If he doesn’t straight-up murder me by the end of the day, I’ll meet you guys up on the roof?” 

Ann and Akira both nodded, and Ushimaru yelled Ryuji’s surname loudly enough to make a nearby student flinch into the wall. Ryuji groaned and headed toward his doom. 

“Who’s your homeroom teacher?” asked Ann. “I can help you find your classroom.”

“Oh, it’s Kawakami-sensei. I was supposed to meet her this morning.”

“No way!” Ann smiled. “We’re in the same class! Let’s check the Faculty Office, and then—” 

“Takamaki!” 

The familiar voice made both of them freeze. Striding toward them was the very man who had ordered their execution only a few short hours ago. He had an easy smile on his face, and it made Akira’s whole body tense up like he was seconds away from an impact. 

“I heard you didn’t show up to class this morning,” Kamoshida said, stopping a little too close to Ann. “And neither did the new transfer student. After you turned down my offer this morning, I was worried something… untoward might have happened.” 

“N-No, nothing like that, Kamoshida-sensei,” Ann stuttered nervously. “Kurusu-kun started to feel sick, and I-I was helping him.” 

Kamoshida turned his gaze on Akira. Unlike the Kamoshida in the castle, his eyes were coal-black. 

“I see…” 

Akira did his best to look disinterested, but it was hard not to shiver under his glare — a glare that, to anyone else, might have looked like nothing more than an appraising glance. But Akira had met his true self. 

“Takamaki-san was kind enough to help me out,” Akira confirmed. “We were just on our way to see our homeroom teacher.” 

“Yes, Ms. Kawakami has been waiting impatiently in the Faculty Office, in case you decided to show up.” Kamoshida turned to Ann again. “Remember what I said, Takamaki. Be careful who you associate yourself with.” 

With one final, disgusting sweep over Ann with his eyes, Kamoshida turned on his heel and left them alone again. Ann blew out a slow puff of air next to Akira.

“That was…”

“Horrible,” Akira agreed. It took a moment for both of them to regain their composure enough to resume their journey to the Faculty Office. 

“Unbelievable,” Kawakami sighed, as if Akira had personally ruined her life. “I suppose I shouldn’t be too surprised that you skipped on your first day. But did you really have to drag other students into it?” 

“It wasn’t his fault!” Ann insisted. Akira was touched by the genuine indignation in her voice. “He, um, wasn’t feeling well. So I stayed with him until he felt okay enough to walk, and we got some food and water to help him make it through the rest of the day.” 

“It’s been hours,” Kawakami argued. “Why didn’t you call the school? Or even just go home, if you were that sick?”

Akira could see that Ann’s improvisation skills were wearing thin, so he decided to jump in with something like the truth. 

“I’m sorry, Kawakami-sensei,” he said respectfully. “I just didn’t think about it. We didn’t realize so much time had passed.”

Kawakami glanced from Akira to Ann in disbelief, before finally shaking her head with another resigned sigh. 

“I don’t get paid enough to care whether you’re telling the truth. You do look pale, so let’s just say I buy your story and call it a day.” She rubbed her forehead wearily. “Anyway, classes will end a bit early today due to the subway accident. I’ll show you to your classroom and have you introduce yourself to the class.”

She stood up and abruptly left the room. After a relieved glance between the two, Ann and Akira followed. But they barely made it into the hall before they were interrupted once more. 

“Ann!” 

A girl with dark hair pulled into a ponytail limped hurriedly toward them, and Ann’s eyes widened. 

“Shiho! What—”

“I’m so glad you’re safe,” the girl interrupted, looking Ann up and down before glancing quickly at Akira. “I asked around when you weren’t at lunch, and there were all sorts of rumors about how you didn’t come to school and how Kamoshida-sensei had given you a ride, and—” The girl suddenly seemed to remember that Akira and Kawakami were listening, and her mouth snapped shut. 

“I decided to walk instead,” Ann said quickly. “I was helping Akira— uh, Kurusu-kun find his way to school, and…um, well, it’s kind of a long story, but we’re here now.”

Shiho blinked and gave Akira another appraising look, a slight blush on her face. 

“You’re the new transfer student?” she asked quietly. Akira nodded, and the girl winced. “Um. You might want to avoid the rumor mill for a bit…” 

“Already?” Ann rolled her eyes. “This school. Seriously. Are they saying we’re dating or something?” 

“I’m afraid it’s a bit more serious than that.” The trio glanced at Kawakami, who looked strangely uncomfortable. “Takamaki, Suzui, why don’t you two head to class?” 

Ann glanced sympathetically at Akira, but did as she was told. When they were alone, Kawakami folded her arms and groaned. 

“Today really is the worst… Anyway, I have some bad news. The students already seem to know about your criminal record.”

“My—?” Akira couldn’t even get the word out. He closed his eyes against a rush of vertigo. His last wisp of hope that Tokyo might be a fresh start for him was fluttering away and leaving him cold and empty. 

“I didn’t tell them,” Kawakami said quickly. “I honestly don’t know how they found out so quickly. Rumors spread fast around here, but this was pretty unusual.” She sighed. “Just…keep your head down, okay? Don’t say anything unnecessary.”

She didn’t try to tell him that everything would be fine, which Akira distantly appreciated. All the pointing and whispering they’d endured on their way to the Faculty Office suddenly made much more sense. The hallway was feeling much more oppressive than it had a minute ago. 

“Geez, you look awful. Maybe you really are sick.” She put a bit more distance between them. “If you’d rather just go home, I won’t say anything.” 

“No,” Akira said quietly. “I’m here. I might as well finish the day.” 

“If you say so. Follow me.” 

The rumors were already worse than Akira could have possibly imagined. Not only did they seem to know that he was arrested for assault; they had no qualms speculating on what kind of person Akira must be while class was in session. They didn’t even bother to lower their voices half the time.

“Can you believe they’re letting a criminal into our class? My parents are gonna be pissed. I wonder what he did.” 

“He was arrested for assault, but who knows what else he’s done that they didn’t charge him with…” 

“Assault is bad enough on its own! Do you think the person he hurt is okay?”

The only bright spot of his school day, as shortened as it was, was the fact that he was sitting behind the one person in his class who didn’t hate him. However, even that had a downside.

“Do you think he and Takamaki knew each other before today?”

“I heard he showed up late with her and that no-good Sakamoto.” 

“Sounds like a bad joke! Two dumb blondes and a delinquent walk into a bar…”

“I’ll bet they did go to a bar! Do you think they got wasted?”

“He looks normal. But maybe he’s just a good actor.”

As awful as he felt hearing strangers talk about him, he felt even worse knowing that he’d brought the same heat down on his new friends. Akira was growing accustomed to baseless accusations, but Ann and Ryuji didn’t deserve that. 

“Ugh, this whole side of the room is, like, cursed or something!” 

“Shh! Don’t look at him! He might get mad and slug you!” 

“Is she cheating on Kamoshida with that criminal?”

That was the one that really made him want to flip his desk. The idea that these students thought Kamoshida was a more appropriate choice for a boyfriend— no , the idea that a high school teacher was an appropriate choice at all — 

Akira had no delusions about life with a criminal record. He knew that people would instinctively shy away from him, whether he was guilty or not. He had more-or-less accepted that fact. But here, on the other hand, was a gym teacher who was openly pursuing a relationship with an underage girl, and the rumors were somehow in his favor? It made the rage that Akira had been suppressing for so long burn in his chest like Arsene’s blue fire. 

“He looks mad! Do you think he heard me?”

“That’s probably just how he looks.” 

“He’s really freaking me out. Will you walk me to the subway?” 

It took him a moment to realize class had ended. Ann had turned to face him and was giving him a worried look. 

“If you’re still not feeling well, we can meet on the roof some other time,” she said awkwardly. Akira winced minutely. 

“I don’t know if we should be seen together at all,” he said. 

“Oh.” Ann’s face fell. “I mean… I guess I get it. You don’t want your reputation to get any worse.”

“What? No.” Akira sat up straight. “I didn’t mean— I’m worried about your reputation. Yours and Sakamoto’s. In case you didn’t notice, everyone in the school thinks I’m a psychopath.”

“In case you didn’t notice, they don’t think much better of me,” Ann said with a frown. “Or Ryuji, for that matter. We’re already outcasts, so why not add one more to the group?” She laughed nervously. “Besides, you don’t really look like much of a criminal to me.”

Akira had nothing to say in reply. 

“Anyway,” Ann continued, “If you want me to leave you alone, I will. But we did promise Ryuji and that cat — um, Morgana — that we’d meet them on the roof. Are you coming?” 

“Sure,” Akira said softly. “Thanks.” 

“No problem. Let’s get going.” 

They gathered their things and exited into the hallway. A lot of the students had gone to their clubs already, but there were still plenty remaining to stare and whisper as they walked toward the stairs. 

“Wait,” Akira hissed, ducking into a small alcove and gesturing for Ann to join him.

“What—? Oh.” Ann’s eyes widened as she caught sight of what Akira had seen: Kamoshida and Principal Kobayakawa were both walking in their direction. 

“I just don’t see why Shujin would take in a criminal like him,” Kamoshida was saying. “The volleyball team has earned this school its reputation. This delinquent could undo all my hard work…” 

They could hear Kobayakawa hurrying to assuage Kamoshida’s worries as the two teachers rounded another corner and passed out of hearing. Ann sighed. 

“That was close. I really didn’t want to talk to him again.” 

“Me neither.”

“That’s actually one of the things I wanted to talk about with the others…” 

Akira nodded and followed her up the stairs. 

They found Ryuji already slouching over one of the spare desks on the roof, fiddling with his phone. When he saw them, he grinned and sat up.

“‘Sup! You guys came, huh?” 

“I can’t just go home after what happened this morning,” Ann said, rolling her eyes. 

“So you remember that too? It was so effin’ weird, I was startin’ to think it was just a dream.” 

“We remember it too,” said Akira. Ryuji glanced at Akira as if suddenly reminded of his presence, then folded his arms a bit too casually. 

“Heard you got a criminal record,” he said, lazily sizing him up. “Everyone’s talkin’ about it.” 

“ Ryuji ,” Ann hissed. 

“What?! I didn’t say I believed ‘em! We all know about Shujin and its rumors!” He took a breath, glancing back at Akira. “But, for real, are they true?” 

Ann rolled her eyes again, but she couldn’t hide her interest when Akira shifted uncomfortably. 

“They’re… based in some truth, I guess,” he finally said. “I do have a record. But I obviously haven’t done the things people are talking about.” 

“Whatever, Man,” Ryuji said with a shrug. “As long as you didn’t really — what was it they said? ‘Murder a mobster with an icepick?’”

Akira’s eyebrows rose.

“I…did not do that, no.” 

“Man. Not gonna lie, that’s a little disappointing.” 

Ann’s eyes were going to fall out of her head if she kept rolling them at Ryuji, so Akira decided to take control of the conversation. 

“So, we’re here to talk about Kamoshida, right?” 

The other two sobered immediately. 

“Bastard came to talk to me after Ushimaru was done chewin’ me out,” Ryuji muttered darkly. “All condescending and…ugh. He didn’t say nothin’ about the castle, though!” 

“We talked to him too,” Ann said with a shudder. “He didn’t seem to know anything about our…failed execution.” 

“How can he not remember?” Ryuji snarled. “I know that cat said it didn’t happen in ‘our world’ or whatever, but, like… He tried to straight-up murder us, an’ he’s actin’ like everything’s normal!” 

“Of course he is, you dunce!” 

Ann and Ryuji both jumped at the voice that suddenly rang out behind them. A black cat sauntered up to them, leaping onto the desk next to Ann. 

“H-Hey! Monamona?!” Ryuji’s eyes bugged out at his sudden appearance. “The hell did you come from?!” 

“It’s Morgana! And a phantom thief never reveals his secrets!” 

“Isn’t that saying about magicians?” Akira asked, deadpan. Morgana’s fur bristled along his back. 

“Phantom thief?” Ann asked, before Morgana could retort. “What’s that mean exactly?” 

Apparently this was exactly the question Morgana had been looking for, because his fur smoothed out instantly and a pleased grin appeared on his face. 

“An excellent question! It’s a name I coined myself!” He stood up straight, as if striking a pose. “A Phantom Thief waits in the shadows! He delivers swift justice in the dead of night! He steals the distorted hearts of the corrupt and protects the innocent!” 

“O…kay,” Ann said, after a moment. 

“For real, what’s that s’posed to mean?” 

“Ugh! Just… It means I sneak around palaces trying to get information!”

“Palaces?” Akira finally spoke up. “You used that word earlier. What does that mean?”

“A palace is a manifestation of a person’s distorted desires,” said Morgana. “Most people only have minor distortions — not nearly enough to form a palace. But for people like this Kamoshida guy, their desires are so twisted and removed from reality that it forms a palace. That castle we were in is how Kamoshida views the school.” 

The three of them were silent for a moment, trying to process Morgana’s explanation.

“I…think I get it,” said Ann, who did not, in fact, get it. 

“Well, good for you, but I’m lost!” said Ryuji. “But at the same time, that stuff about Kamoshida seeing Shujin as his castle, with him as the king?” He scoffed. “That’s spot-on. But, wait… If people have these weird palace things, how come nobody else is gettin’ caught up in crazy castles and stuff?” 

“It’s like I said before: the palaces don’t exist in our world,” said Morgana. “I don’t know how you guys got there, but most people can’t.”

“How do we get back, then?” 

All three of them stared at Ryuji.

“You… You want to go back? ” Ann was looking at him like he’d suggested they join the circus. “We almost died in there!” 

“Yeah, but what about the screamin’ we heard in there?” Ryuji demanded. “Kamoshida could be hurtin’ other people in that castle! Like that volleyball player, Ishikawa!” 

“I told you already!” Morgana yelled irritably. “That guy you saw wasn’t the real Ishikawa. He didn’t enter the palace from reality like you guys did. He only exists in Kamoshida’s cognition.”

“His…His cog— What?!” 

Morgana groaned.

“It’s part of the distortion. He’s like an extremely realistic puppet. He may look and act the way Kamoshida remembers him acting, but he’s not the real thing. The real Ishikawa can’t get hurt by something that happens to his cognition in there.”

“But why’s he locked up in the first place? I get that he’s not real, but like, what’s the point of having him there?” 

“The real Kamoshida must see him as his prisoner for some reason. You said he’s on the volleyball team, right? Maybe he messed up in practice and Kamoshida is punishing him.” 

“So he is getting hurt in real life!” Ryuji slammed his fist on the desk behind him. “Ugh! I knew it! That bastard…”  

“It’s just a guess,” Morgana said, rolling his eyes. “I have no idea what Kamoshida is doing in the real world. All I can tell you is that the cognition in there represents his distorted view of that guy. If we went back in, we could get a better idea of what that distortion is.” 

“Again,” said Ann, “ why would we go back in?” 

“To get the dirt on Kamoshida!” Ryuji turned to more fully face Ann, his scowl belying his earnestness. “There have been rumors for a long time about him physically abusin’ the volleyball team. He does whatever the Hell he wants in this school, and nobody calls him out on it! But if we could get some evidence… maybe we could finally get rid of him!” 

“I could help you,” Morgana added. “I’m an expert on this stuff, you know! If you guys want to go back to the Metaverse, you’re gonna need me on your side! Otherwise, I’m going back in on my own. I have my own information to gather…” 

Ann still hadn’t said anything. 

“I agree that Kamoshida sounds like he’s out of control,” said Akira. “I can’t just ignore the stuff we saw in there. And there’s no way I can do anything to help in the real world. I’m already on probation. Even if they didn’t expel me, no one would listen to me.”

“Me neither,” said Ryuji.

“I…” Ann sighed. “I’m scared of going back in there. I’ve never been so scared in my whole life. But…” She looked away, tugging at the cuff of her hoodie. Her voice was barely more than a whisper. “I’m scared of the real Kamoshida, too.”

Everyone went quiet. Ann sighed again. 

“Everyone says we’re dating — that we’re, you know…getting it on.” She grimaced. “But that’s so not true! I… I’ve been trying to put him off whenever I can, but he keeps making these vague threats about taking Shiho off the volleyball team.” 

“What…?” Ryuji’s eyes were wide. 

“Yeah. I know it sounds stupid, but… Shiho’s my best friend. The volleyball team means so much to her. And she’s seemed so depressed lately, like volleyball is the only thing keeping her going, and I didn’t know what to do, so I…” 

“Lady Ann…” Morgana’s voice was suddenly soft. “You’re so brave, to put up with that for your friend. But we can’t let him keep doing this to you! I’ll—I’ll claw his face off!”

“Yeah!” Ryuji hit the desk with his fist. “Me too! I mean, not the clawing part, but I won’t let him push you around like that either! We have to stop him!” 

“I won’t either,” Akira said, quieter than Ryuji. He thought of the way he’d felt when he met Ann and Ryuji this morning. He couldn’t explain it, but he felt that he’d do anything for either one of them, and that they would do the same, consequences be damned. “Whether we go back to that other world or not, I’m on your side.”

Ann’s face turned red, and she had to look away to hide her watering eyes. 

“I…”

“We need a plan,” Akira said firmly. “Not a plan for the palace: a plan to keep Kamoshida away from Ann.” 

“We can, like, escort you to class,” Ryuji suggested. “And to the train station. And if Kamoshida tries to get you alone, we’ll beat him up!”

“...Or come up with an excuse,” Akira added.

“Fine, whatever.” 

“Thanks, guys,” Ann said, smiling through a sniffle. 

“Don’t worry about it,” said Akira. “But I do need to get going pretty soon. My… guardian is going to be upset with me about missing class, and it’ll be a lot worse if I’m late getting home.” 

“Let’s exchange numbers, then!” Ryuji said brightly. “Then we can keep making plans! The Takamaki Defense Squad!”

“Please don’t call it that,” Ann begged.

“Hey, what about me?” Morgana glanced between their phones. “I don’t have a phone! And I left the Metaverse just to help you guys! Surely you owe me a place to sleep, at least!” 

“My apartment doesn’t allow cats,” Ann said regretfully. 

“I’m not a —”

“I know, I’m sorry, but the landlord will definitely think you’re a cat.” 

“My apartment’s way too small to hide you in,” said Ryuji. “My mom would freak.” 

“Well,” Morgana said, looking up at Akira, “I guess that leaves you, Frizzy Hair!” 

“Me?” Akira chuckled bitterly. “I’m on probation , Morgana. I may have space for you, but if we get caught—”

“I’d never get caught! Just what sort of thief do you take me for?” 

All three of his new friends stared at him expectantly. Akira sighed.

“Fine. Fine . But you have to wait outside until Sojiro leaves for the night, okay? Think you can sneak in through the window?”

“Of course!”

“How’re ya gonna sneak him on the subway?” 

“Hm.” Akira glanced at his bag. “How do you feel about an improvised cat carrier?” 

“A cat carrier? For a non-cat? Undignified!”

“Oh.” There was a beat of silence. “Then, Morgana? I have some bad news…” 

Morgana endured the ride in Akira’s bag with minimal hissing. Actually, once he was safely inside, Akira got the impression that he was rather comfortable in there, not that the non-cat would admit it. Before he went into Leblanc, Akira ducked into the neighboring alley and set the bag on the ground, allowing Morgana to leap out. 

“My room is in the attic. Wait until Sojiro leaves; then you can sneak in through the window. Don’t get caught.”

“Hmph! What do you take me for?” 

Akira smirked and left the feline to his own devices. He had his own problems to worry about. Namely, what he was going to say to smooth things over with Sojiro. He’d just have to be as honest as he could without saying anything crazy.

The door jingled pleasantly as he entered the cafe, but Sojiro’s glare was far from pleasant. 

“I got a call from the school today,” he said without preamble. “I know you left on time, so there’s no excuse for how late you were.” 

Akira stared at the ground, trying to find the words to explain himself without lying too much. 

“Well? What do you have to say for yourself?” 

“I’m sorry,” he said with a wince. “I really didn’t mean for it to happen.”

“What did happen then? Your teacher said you gave her some excuse about being sick?”

Akira thought about the shield bashing into his skull, and later, the way his head had ached so fiercely. 

“Yeah, I got this really bad headache,” he said quietly. “It made me kinda dizzy, so I had to sit down for a minute.”

“Uh-huh.” Sojiro looked him over skeptically. “And how did that ‘minute’ turn into hours?” 

“These other students saw me and wanted to help. I was kinda out of it, so they helped me get to a diner, get something to drink. I’m not sure if that actually helped, but it was nice of them to try. I honestly didn’t realize how much time had passed.” 

Sojiro looked at him for a long time. 

“Hmph. You do kind of look like shit.” 

“Thanks.”

“Don’t get smart with me.” He sighed. “You do get what ‘probation’ means, right? You’re on thin ice right now. I don’t know if this story of yours is true or not, but… either way, you need to stay in line. And next time you feel sick, call the school, or a doctor, for cryin’ out loud.” 

“Yes, Sir.” 

“Don’t call me ‘Sir.’ Now go to your room. Geez. What a pain you’re turning out to be already…” 

Akira hurried up to the attic, before Sojiro could change his mind and kick him out for good. Only yesterday, being sent home would have meant very little to him. But now, he had friends who were counting on him. He’d make Tokyo work, no matter what. 

Chapter Text

That night, Akira woke up in chains for the second time. 

The twins were just as rude as before, and Igor was just as cryptic. He talked about “confidants,” and “fate,” and “rehabilitation,” though Akira still didn’t know what that meant. 

The only useful thing he had to say was about the “Metaverse Navigator.”

Apparently, Igor had given it to him “as a means to train him as a thief.” Not only that, but he promised to give it to anyone else who might “prove beneficial” to Akira. 

He wondered if Igor was talking about the mysterious app that he couldn’t delete. But once again, all of Akira’s questions were met with non-answers from Igor and harsh words from Caroline. 

“Wait!” he called out as Igor started to dismiss him. “This ‘Third Eye’ ability you mentioned… I’ve been getting these feelings — about what to do and who to talk to. Is that a part of it?” 

Igor said nothing, just grinned his terrible grin. Akira tried to think of a question that Igor would answer. 

“...Why did you give it to me? You aren’t giving me much information to go on, so why give me this power?” 

Igor leaned forward.

“I simply became bored with the game. As I said before, the information you gain from your power may help you, but then again, it may not. It is up to you to decide how you use it.” He chuckled. “The way things are going, you have already changed the path of your fate, if only slightly. But your visions will only show you one path, regardless of how much you deviate from it. I am eager to observe your progress, Trickster. Now, if that is all…”

“No, wait—!” 

Caroline lashed out with her baton, causing Akira to jerk back and trip over his leg irons. He waited to hit the hard cot behind him, but instead, he kept falling. 

Akira’s eyes snapped open when he hit the ground. He was lying on red carpet, and his prisoner’s garb had vanished, replaced by the black trench coat he’d worn in the palace. He gradually became aware of a weight pressing sharply on his back, and when he craned his neck to look above him, he saw that a knight in golden armor was standing over him, sword drawn and poised to strike. 

He tried to cry out, but found that he had no control over his mouth. 

Nearby, Shadow Kamoshida stood over a prone Morgana, and Ryuji knelt on the floor, looking defeated.

“Stay there and watch,” said Kamoshida. “Look on as these hopeless scum die for nothing, because they sided with trash like you.”

Akira wanted to look away, terrified that this would be his friend’s last stand. But Ryuji slowly pushed himself to his feet.

“No… That’s what you are…” 

Akira’s vision flickered as his headache flared to life once more, and Ryuji was suddenly much closer. His clothes had changed; he was wearing an old-looking black coat and a red scarf. He was surrounded by a blue glow, and behind him was a pirate straddling a ship like it was a skateboard. 

“Right on… Wassup, Persona!” said Ryuji. “This effin’ rocks!” 

The foot had been lifted from Akira’s back, and he began to slowly push himself to his feet…

His head blazed with pain, and Akira found himself in the dark, lying on his back, with a heavy weight on his chest.

“Agh!” 

Akira’s voice was his own again. Heart pounding, he shoved at the weight that held him down, desperately pushing himself upright. A high-pitched yowl put him on high alert.

“Hey! What gives?!” 

Morgana’s voice broke into his confused state, and Akira gasped. Awareness was slowly returning to him. He was in his pajamas. He was in his room above Leblanc. He was safe. 

“S-Sorry,” he stammered, swinging his feet over the side of the bed. “You okay?” 

“I landed on my feet,” Morgana said haughtily from the floor, licking a paw. He shot Akira a piercing glare that was more curious than irritated. “What was that about, anyway?” 

“Sorry,” he said again. “I was having… It was a nightmare, I guess.” 

Morgana appeared uncomfortable. Their bond may have been forged in fire, but they still hadn’t known each other long at all, and asking about bad dreams was definitely outside of Morgana’s comfort zone. Talking about his problems was also way outside of Akira’s. He was used to keeping things to himself at home, being seen and not heard, sometimes not being seen at all. 

But he recalled, on the other hand, the warm weight on his chest — the inexplicable feeling of companionship. The memory of how it had felt when he’d met Morgana was at odds with the way his heart still pounded in his chest, still unable to calm down from what he’d just seen. 

Silence settled around them for a moment before Akira found his resolve.

“Actually, it wasn’t a dream.” He pushed himself to his feet and stumbled over to the desk Morgana had forced him to clean earlier, flicking on the lamp. His pulse began to settle as the room was bathed in light. 

“What do you mean?” Morgana asked curiously. 

“Morgana… Have you ever heard of someone named… Igor?”

The moment the name left his lips, Akira was hit with a strong sense of wrongness. He shouldn’t be talking about this, should he? But… he trusted Morgana. He couldn’t say why, exactly, but it was the same reason he’d instantly trusted Ann and Ryuji — that warm feeling, deep in his chest, telling him that they were connected somehow. It was that warmth which allowed Akira to continue after Morgana shook his head. 

He told him everything. He told him about arriving in Yongen-Jaya and instinctively making his way to Leblanc. He told him about the warm feeling he’d felt talking to Sojiro, and the words that had run through his head when they’d met. He told him about the blue light that seemed to reveal the future in its glow. 

And then he told him about Igor. Akira did his best to repeat everything he’d heard from Igor word-for-word, because he knew Morgana would want every detail; and Morgana, for his part, listened with rapt attention, eyes wide as saucers. When he was done, Morgana sat back on his haunches and stared, completely floored. 

“Akira, that’s… that’s incredible. I have so many questions, I…” 

“You look a little overwhelmed.”

“Just gimme a minute!” he huffed. “It’s a lot to take in!” 

“Yeah, imagine how I feel.” 

“You didn’t even know about the Metaverse until yesterday, and now it turns out you have these special abilities, and a…well, a sponsor, for lack of a better word, who gave you a sixth sense and is watching your every move?!” 

“I mean… He didn’t say he was watching my every move.” 

Akira preferred not to think about that part, actually. It sent a chill up his spine. 

“That is so not the point! Akira!” Morgana leapt onto the desk so he could look him directly in the eye. “You’re special. You might be my key to understanding the Metaverse — to figuring out where I come from and how I can be human again!” 

Akira swallowed down the anxiety that suddenly rose up in his throat.

“Look, I—I don’t really know anything. I didn’t ask for any of this.” He scrubbed his face with the heel of his hand. “I may have these weird abilities, but I don’t know how to use them, and I definitely don’t know as much about the ‘Metaverse’ as you do.” 

“I’m not trying to put pressure on you or anything, just…” Morgana sighed. “I have a confession to make. I know I’ve been acting like I know everything there is to know about this stuff, but the truth is, a ton of my memories seem to be missing. I don’t remember where I was born, or how I ended up like this.” He lowered his head, his tail curling protectively around his body. “I decided to join you guys because I got the feeling that maybe you could help.” Akira opened his mouth, but Morgana hastened to continue. “You don’t need to do anything, really. I just feel like if I stick by you, we might be able to come up with some answers.” 

Akira sucked in a breath. 

“I guess I see what you’re saying,” he said slowly. “There’s definitely something weird going on here, and I seem to be a part of it, somehow. So maybe we can figure this out eventually. Together.”

Morgana held out his paw, and Akira took it gently in his hand and shook it. The cat grinned.

“Then I guess we’re partners.”

Akira grinned. “How about friends?” 

“What’s the difference? Anyway, it’s way too late for you to be up talking to me! You need to get back to sleep if you want to do some investigating tomorrow!” 

Akira settled back into bed, still smiling softly. Morgana continued to rant about proper sleep habits as he kneaded the mattress next to Akira, walked around in a tight circle, and finally curled up on the bed. Within a few minutes, they were both asleep again. 

When Akira opened his eyes again, there was sunlight coming in through the window, and his alarm was beeping. He groaned softly, turning off the offending device, and glanced at the screen. He had a few new messages.

“Ann and Ryuji texted,” he said quietly, and Morgana popped his head up in interest.

“Ooh, lemme see! Don’t keep me out of the loop!” 

“Only if you keep your voice down. Sojiro will be here soon.” Akira sat up so that they could both look at the screen and opened the chat app. 

Ryuji Sakamoto started a group chat.

Ryuji added Ann Takamaki.

Ryuji added Akira Kurusu.

Ryuji changed the name of the chat to
“Takamaki Defense Squad.”

ANN: I told you not to call it that!

RYUJI: Ugh, fine!

Ryuji changed the name of the chat to
“Ann’s a buzzkill”

ANN: Ryuji!!!

Ryuji changed the name of the chat to
“Anti-Kamoshida Club”

ANN: That’s a little better, but like…

         What if someone sees it on my phone?

RYUJI: OK, OK! Akira, you pick the group name! 

“Hey, hey!” Morgana tapped Akira’s knee, where he was perched reading the exchange. “What about the Palace Infiltration Team? Sounds professional, no?” 

Akira smirked.

AKIRA: Morgana has a good one.

Akira changed the name of the chat to
“Palace Infiltration Team.”

ANN: Ooh, I like it!

RYUJI: It’s OK, I guess.

           Anyway!

           Are we gonna try going back to the
           castle today or what?

ANN: But we don’t even know how we got
         there.

         I was thinking we could start by talking
         to Shiho

         And maybe Ishikawa too?

RYUJI: Aw, cmon Ann! 

            I wanna check out that castle again!

            We can find out who else Kamoshida
            has trapped in there!

“Sounds like you have the deciding vote,” said Morgana. “I think we know how to get back to the palace now, with what you said about the Metaverse Navigator. But gathering intel is an important aspect of thievery, too…” 

AKIRA: Why not both?

RYUJI: You mean ask around AND check out
            the castle?

            I’m down! 

ANN: I guess that’s okay, as long as we’re really
         careful. 

         So, it’s settled?

AKIRA: Sure. 

RYUJI: K, cool. Let’s meet in your classroom at
            lunchtime to plan.

AKIRA: Sounds good. I have some stuff to tell
             you guys, too.

ANN: What kind of stuff?

         Oh wait nvm!

         We better get moving or we’ll be late!

RYUJI: Later!

Akira smiled and put his phone into his bag, quickly getting ready for school. He heard Sojiro arrive while he was sliding into his blazer, and he made a “hush” gesture at Morgana, who rolled his eyes. 

“What are you gonna do while I’m at school?” Akira whispered, bending down close to the feline. “You shouldn’t stay here; Sojiro could come upstairs.” 

“I’ll just come with you,” said Morgana.

“You’ll…what?” 

“You heard me.” 

And with that Morgana leapt into Akira’s open bag, squirmed around a moment to get comfortable, and commenced his impression of a bundle of textbooks. Akira sighed.

“I’m going to get expelled from this school so fast,” he said, picking up the bag. “Incredible that it hasn’t happened already.” 

Akira’s first morning at Shujin passed without incident, aside from the continued stares and unconcealed whisperings about his record. He met Ann and Ryuji on the way, and walked to class with Ann on the off chance that Kamoshida tried to stop her. Luckily, he didn’t. 

Kawakami was a decent teacher, although she was too lazy to tell the students to quiet down and often got off-track in her lectures. The other teachers were interesting, to say the least. Some seemed to ignore him entirely; others seemed to call on him exclusively. Ushimaru in particular seemed to have it in for him, which was unfortunate, because the man threw chalk like it was an Olympic event. By the time lunch rolled around Akira was grateful for the respite. 

“What did you want to talk to us about, anyway?” Ann asked while they waited for Ryuji to show up. 

“Kind of a long story, and I don’t really want to tell it in public,” said Akira. “It can wait until after school.”

“Well, then, I’m gonna text Shiho and see if she wants to join us. We usually eat lunch together, so I don’t want her to think I’m blowing her off. Plus, maybe we can talk to her about Kamoshida.” 

“What about Kamoshida?” Ryuji asked loudly, dropping down on the desk next to Akira’s. 

“Shh! Are you trying to draw attention to us?” Ann whispered furiously. 

“Attention? Everyone already left!”

It was true. Most of the classroom had been empty anyway, but the moment they’d seen that the transfer student and Sakamoto were eating in here, the last of them had fled to find a safer place to eat lunch. 

“You can talk now, Morgana,” Akira muttered, “but be ready to hide if the door opens.” 

“Anyway,” said Ann, “I invited Shiho to join us, so be on your best behavior. And don’t interrogate her, please! She has a lot on her plate right now. If Kamoshida comes up, we can ask her about him, but I don’t wanna push it.” 

“Fine, fine.” Ryuji rolled his eyes. The door opened, and the girl Akira had met yesterday stepped inside cautiously, as if expecting to be told she wasn’t welcome.

“Shiho!” Ann called happily. “Over here!” 

Shiho took the seat next to Ann’s and turned it slightly so she could see them. 

“Hello again, Kurusu-kun,” she said quietly. Akira tried to look a little less intimidating.

“Hello. It’s Suzui-san, right?” 

“That’s right.” Shiho gave a small, teasing smile that belied her meek demeanor. Akira found himself thinking she looked very pretty when she smiled. “Thank you for making friends with Ann. She could really use more than one.” 

“Shiho!” Ann groaned, trying to hide her blush. Shiho just shrugged unapologetically. 

“It’s true.”

Ryuji roared with laughter for quite some time. He smacked his palm on his leg, and even pounded the desk a few times, but the fit continued unabated until his face was red with the strain of it. 

“Okay, that’s enough, Ryuji,” Ann finally muttered, though a smile was threatening to break through her annoyed scowl. “It wasn’t even that funny.” 

“Nah, man, I just really missed Suzui’s wisecrackin’!” he laughed, turning to Akira. “She seems quiet, but don’t let her fool ya.” 

“Noted,” Akira said with a small smile of his own. 

“I think this guy’s prolly the same way,” Ryuji guessed, taking a swig of his soda. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “You seem like you got an ice cold sense of humor. Am I right?” 

Akira shrugged. “Guess you’ll find out.” 

“See?! That’s what I’m talkin’ about! Ice cold, Man.” 

Shiho chuckled quietly, which made Ann beam. 

“I don’t know,” said Morgana from inside the desk. “I think he’s more of a drama queen than you think.” He poked his head out, pretending not to see Shiho’s incredulous expression. “This morning, he didn’t have time for breakfast curry, and I thought he was gonna cry.” 

“It’s really good curry,” Akira mumbled in his defense. 

“Um.” Shiho blinked. “There’s a cat. In your desk?” 

“Shiho, meet Morgana!” Ann declared. “We found him yesterday on our little, uh, adventure before school.” 

“I-Is that why you were so late?” Shiho sputtered. “You found a cat?” 

“I mean… That might be part of it, yeah.” 

Shiho laughed, this time a bit less timidly. 

“So that’s how you all got to know each other, huh? A bond forged by a furry friend.” She stroked Morgana’s head, and he pouted but allowed it. “How have you been hiding him in class?” 

“He’s very well-behaved. Most of the time,” Akira said pointedly. “And, honestly, I think the other students are too terrified of me to say anything about it.” 

“Oh, right. The whole, um…” Shiho trailed off, unsure how to put it politely.

“Criminal record?” Ryuji supplied. 

“Um, yes. That.” She paused. “May I ask what happened exactly? O-Oh, wait—” She covered her mouth, eyes widening. “That’s really rude of me. I’m sorry. You don’t have to answer that. Me and my big mouth—” 

“It’s okay,” Akira interrupted. “I don’t mind.”

You could have heard a pin drop. Ann was sitting at attention, but trying not to appear too interested. Ryuji, of course, had no such qualms and was openly staring at Akira, waiting for the story to come out. Even Morgana had crept closer on the table in anticipation. 

But Shiho was doing none of those things. She was looking away, chewing on her lip hard enough that she was going to pierce the skin if she wasn’t careful. 

“It’s yours to share when you want to,” she finally said, though Akira had to strain to hear it. “No one should force you, I mean, just to satisfy our curiosity…”

“It’s okay,” he repeated. “I wouldn’t mind sharing, if you’re willing to listen.” 

He hated how tense the atmosphere had become, after they’d started off so carefree. But he supposed there was nothing for it. 

“I was walking home from school,” he began. “It was late, and there weren’t many people out. And I heard this woman yelling for help.” He picked idly at the hem of his sleeve, unable to meet anyone’s gaze. “There was no one else around, so I ran to see what was going on. This guy was trying to force her into his car, and she couldn’t get away.” 

Ann gasped quietly next to him, and it almost made him flinch in surprise. He made a conscious effort to relax his shoulders. 

“The guy saw me and told me to beat it. He said he owned the police, so calling them wouldn’t do any good. He just kept trying to push her into the car, so I… I just grabbed his shoulder. I didn’t shove him or anything, I just pulled him off of her. But he was pretty drunk, so he lost his balance and hit his face on the curb or something. Then he got really pissed, and he said he’d sue me, and that the woman would have to testify against me or he’d take her to court, too. I guess he had some dirt on her or something.” 

“Wha— and she did?!” Ryuji sputtered. “After you tried to help her, she still let you take the fall for that bastard?!” 

Akira shrugged. 

“I guess. I never even found out the guy’s name. Apparently, he’s such a big deal that he doesn’t even have to show up in court.”

“But that’s bullshit!” 

Akira waited for Ann to admonish Ryuji for swearing so loudly, but she didn’t. When he finally glanced up at her face, Akira was surprised by the silent anger he saw there.

“I’m sick of the way these shitty adults can just step all over us!” Ryuji fumed. “It just— it pisses me off!” 

“Yeah,” said Ann. “I’m sorry that happened to you, Akira.” 

“That’s really messed up,” Morgana agreed.

Akira shrugged, unsure what to say in reply. Even though he already trusted the others implicitly, he still hadn’t been sure they’d believe him. After all, no one else had, and these three had only known Akira for a day. He wouldn’t even blame them if they didn’t, yet somehow…

“Shiho,” Ann asked tentatively. “Are you okay?” 

“I’m sorry,” Shiho said quietly. “Sometimes it still amazes me, you know? How cruel the world can be.” Akira’s heart stuttered when he realized there were tears in her eyes. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t be getting so upset when you’re the one who had to deal with all this.”

“It’s fine,” Akira said quickly. “Um, thanks. For believing me.” 

“No one else did, huh?” Ryuji asked knowingly. “Figures.” 

“Your parents,” Shiho murmured, “did they…?” 

Akira shrugged again.

“It didn’t really matter if they believed me or not. Either way, I…” embarrassed the family. “Well, either way, I was convicted. Apparently, I was lucky to just end up on probation instead of juvie. But I’d already been expelled, and Shujin was the only school that would still take me, so I ended up here.” He smiled wryly. “All in all, it could’ve been worse. At least there are three people who don’t think I’m a psycho.” Morgana meowed indignantly, and Akira chuckled. “Four people, then.” 

“I don’t get how you can be so casual about it,” Ryuji muttered. “I’d be pissed. Hell, I am pissed. How come you’re so calm after getting so royally screwed over?” 

Akira didn’t say anything, but Shiho surprised him once again by speaking up. 

“Sometimes there’s no time to be angry,” she said. “You just have to accept it, or it’ll tear you apart.” 

“That’s….kinda true,” said Ann. “But you shouldn’t bottle it up, either. That’ll end up making things even worse, eventually. And, speaking of which… Shiho, we wanted to ask you something.” 

Shiho tensed up immediately, her palms resting on the desk in front of her like she was getting ready to push herself up and bolt. Ann noticed this and held her hands up in a gesture of peace. 

“It’s nothing bad, I swear. It’s just that… we’ve heard some things, and seen some things, about… Kamoshida. And we wanted to make sure you were okay.” 

Shiho smoothed her skirt on her lap, chewing her lip again. 

“We already know he’s an asshole,” said Ryuji. “But is he, ya know, hurting the volleyball team?” 

“You were limping yesterday,” said Ann, “and today you have that brace on your knee. I’m just worried…”

“It’s not— That’s just from practice,” Shiho insisted. “He just works us really hard is all. And the big tournament is coming up, so… It only makes sense that training would get more intense.” 

“What about the boys’ team?” Ann pried gently. “Mishima-kun always looks like he’s hurt. And Ishikawa-san—” 

“He’s harsher on some than others,” Shiho interrupted firmly. “He’s harsh on me because he knows I can do better.” 

“Shiho—”

The bell chimed over the loudspeaker, and Shiho leapt to her feet like a spooked animal. 

“Lunch is almost over,” she said, gathering up her untouched food. “I’ll see you all later. Um… It was nice to officially meet you, Kurusu-kun.” She hesitated. “Try not to let the rumors get to you, okay?” 

“Thanks, Suzui-san. I won’t.” 

And with that, she was gone. 

“Shit,” Ryuji said, pushing himself to his feet and stretching. “Well, that sucked. She’s obviously hiding something.” 

“We can’t push it too hard,” said Ann. “I’ll try to talk to her again after school. Maybe I can get through to her by myself.” 

“Maybe,” said Ryuji. “Hey, lemme know when you’re done so we can start investigatin’.” 

The classroom door opened, and students began to file in, so Ryuji nodded at Akira and left. Morgana had already slipped back into Akira’s desk.

“Hey,” Ann said quietly, “thanks for telling us about…” 

“No problem,” Akira muttered. “Thanks for listening.” 

After school, Ann informed the boys that she wanted to talk to Shiho alone for a while. It was decided that Akira and Ryuji (and Morgana, who was upset when he wasn’t initially mentioned as part of the security team) would escort her to Shiho, grab some food from a nearby Triple Seven, and meet her on the roof.

“There she is,” Ann said brightly, once they made it to the area near the vending machines. Shiho waved from her seat on the bench, but didn’t get up.

“Hello, Kurusu-kun. Sakamoto-kun.” 

“Wassup, Suzui?” Ryuji said with a grin before turning to Ann. “Hey, you guys gonna be okay by yourselves? We can hang around if ya want, just in case…?”

“We’ll be fine. Thanks, Ryuji.” 

Shiho looked concerned.

“Ann? Is something wrong?” She glanced at the boys. “Why would you need someone around ‘just in case’? Is… Is someone bothering you?” 

“Actually, Shiho, that’s kind of what I wanted to talk to you about…” 

Akira lifted his hand in a half-wave at Shiho before leading Ryuji away to give them some privacy. 

“So,” said Ryuji. “Wanna get some junk food?” 

“Sounds good to me.” 

The Triple Seven had a variety of decent food, but Ryuji insisted that they go for chips and candy instead. Akira didn’t argue; he wasn’t picky. However, when it came time to pay, he found himself glancing at the “now hiring” sign in the window. If he was going to survive in Tokyo, he was going to need a job soon. 

They brought their haul back to the school roof, and Ryuji reclined at one of the desks to chow down. Morgana sat on the floor, eating from the tin can of tuna they’d bought for him. They all sat in silence for several minutes until Ryuji cleared his throat. 

“Hey, uh… you and Ann both kinda dropped some heavy truths today and yesterday, about Kamoshida and your arrest and stuff. And, like, I figure it’s only fair I do the same, right?”

Akira shrugged. “Only if you want to.” 

“I kinda do, honestly. It’s just that most people know about me already — at least, they know part of the story.” He huffed. “I was on the track team last year. I was really good, too, not to brag or nothin’. But then Kamoshida volunteered to take over our training.” Ryuji dug the heel of his hand into his leg and massaged it absently. “He was awful. Made the practices as crazy difficult as he could, and he’d lay into us constantly, trying to get us to screw up. I guess he could tell I was a… a weak link, ‘cause of my temper, so he went after me ‘specially hard. Till one day he pushed me too far.”

Morgana had stopped eating his canned tuna and was staring up at Ryuji with something like pity in his catlike eyes, but for once he had the tact to keep quiet. 

“What did he do?” Akira finally asked. Ryuji groaned in frustration, scrubbing his hand over his face.

“My dad was a real asshole. He used to hit me sometimes, and my mom, before he finally beat it. Somehow, Kamoshida found out about that and he told everyone. He kept sayin’ that I’d turn out just like him. I just … lost it, ya know? I hit him, and he used that as an excuse to beat the shit out of me, callin’ it ‘self-defense.’” Ryuji scoffed. “Bastard broke my leg.” 

“What?” Morgana hissed. Akira scowled.

“That’s…. That’s awful, Ryuji,” he said, clenching his fists. “I…” 

“That wasn’t the end of it, either,” Ryuji interrupted. “He used my ‘violence’ as an excuse to disband the track team for good. Made sure everyone at this freakin’ school knew I was the thug who ruined it for everyone. They all write me off like I’m…” He chuckled humorlessly. “Well, I’m sure I don’t need to tell you about that. They do the same to you, with your record an’ all.” 

“Yeah.”

“Seems like you guys are two peas in a pod,” said Morgana.

“Ann’s the same way,” Ryuji added. “Always gettin’ judged because of her looks. And now everyone thinks she’s foolin’ around with Kamoshida, too.”

“And I may have the mind of a human, but unfortunately, I’m stuck looking like a cat for now,” said Morgana. His eyes lit up. “Maybe that’s what will make us such great thieves! We’ve all been discarded by society, and no one will take us seriously.” 

“I still don’t really get why you keep callin’ us thieves,” said Ryuji, “but we’re definitely a good team. I don’t know how, but we’re gonna take down Kamoshida, one way or another. I can feel it!” 

They all jumped when the door to the roof swung open, but relaxed when Ann stepped into view. She glanced between them suspiciously.

“What’ve you guys been up to?” 

“Just some deep conversation, Lady Ann,” Morgana said, sounding pleased. “I believe we had a male bonding moment.” 

“Dude, you made us sound so lame!” Ryuji lamented. “You’re supposed to say, like, ‘just guy stuff’ or something.”

“Oh, I so don’t want to know,” said Ann, rolling her eyes as she sat down next to Akira. 

“But i-it wasn’t even bad, though!”

Akira let them go back and forth for a minute, basking in the warmth of their bickering, before he finally put an end to it. 

“How’d it go with Suzui-san?” 

Ann sobered immediately. 

“I told her the truth,” she said, “about what Kamoshida was trying to pressure me into. And how he was using Shiho’s position to blackmail me. She was, um, really upset.” 

“Yeah, I would be, too,” said Ryuji. “What’s she gonna do?”

Ann smiled ruefully. 

“Well, first she told me in no uncertain terms that I was not allowed to make any more sacrifices for her position. She said that she’d earn it fair and square, and if Kamoshida wanted to set up the team based on such petty reasoning, then that was his problem.” Ann laughed quietly. “Actually it was the most Shiho-like thing I’ve heard her say in a while. But I could tell she was really freaked out by what I told her. She said she was going to pretend to be sick for a few practices, and then she’d decide whether she wanted to stay on the team.”

“Seems like a smart move,” said Akira. “And if he gives her any trouble, we can find a way to intervene. I’m not sure how, exactly, but I’m sure we’ll come up with something.” 

“I still think punching him out should be on the table,” Ryuji said darkly. 

“Have you already forgotten that this guy’s on probation?” Morgana scoffed, jerking his head at Akira. “You’ll have to use that thick skull of yours for something other than bashing if you want to keep Kamoshida away from Shiho and Ann.” 

“Hey! What’s that s’posed to mean, you stupid cat?”

“Ugh! Could you guys please chill out?” 

“Sorry, Lady Ann.” 

“Anyway, while we were talking, Mishima-kun came to get Shiho.”

“That loser?” Ryuji rolled his eyes. “If Kamoshida told that guy to shoot himself in the foot, he’d probably do it. What’d he want?”

“He said that Kamoshida wanted to see Shiho in his office.” Ann gave a small smile. “Shiho told him she was sick and that she couldn’t make it. She’s so brave, defying him like that. I just hope Mishima doesn’t get into too much trouble. He looked really nervous.” 

“Mishima is on the volleyball team, then?” Akira guessed. 

“Yeah, he’s like Kamoshida’s main bootlicker,” Ryuji explained. “He’s all ‘Yes, Sensei! Right away, Sensei!’ Makes me sick.” 

“He’s always injured, too,” Ann said softly. “His face was bruised in class today.”

The four of them sat in silence for a moment, thinking. After a while, Ann cleared her throat. 

“Anyway, wasn’t there something you wanted to tell us, Akira?” 

Ann and Ryuji stared expectantly at their new leader. Akira shifted in his seat, but refused to back down. He had trusted Morgana with this information, and he trusted Ann and Ryuji, too. 

“You guys should settle in,” he said. “It’s…kind of a long story.”

Chapter Text

All things considered, Ann and Ryuji had taken Akira’s revelations about Igor and his Third Eye rather well. Ryuji had thought that Akira having “psychic powers” was “hella awesome,” and had been even more excited about the idea of going back to the Metaverse and getting his own Persona. Which was why it took everyone by surprise when Ann got hers first.

Granted, the difference was only a few seconds. 

Kamoshida and his guards had caught them by surprise in the main hall, and Akira and Morgana had been knocked down and restrained. It felt much like it had in Akira’s dream of Ryuji’s awakening; but this time, Ann was there, too. Kamoshida had left the boys to his guards and taken Ann to a separate room. Only a few moments had passed before they heard her screaming.

The desperation in her voice was enough to make Ryuji awaken to his Persona and break free from the guards. But by the time the boys had almost finished dispatching with the enemies, Ann broke through the door, chest heaving, wearing a determined scowl and a mask of her own. Apparently, the screaming had been the sound of her ripping it off for the first time. Akira and Ryuji had been both impressed and a little frightened.

With how exhausting their second trip to the Metaverse had been, Akira wasn’t surprised that Ann and Ryuji wanted to head home soon after they returned to the real world. But first they had to come up with a game plan. 

“Kamoshida is definitely abusin’ the volleyball team,” Ryuji said when they finally sat down at Big Bang Burger. “A’ leas’ the boys, ’n’ maybe the girsh too.” 

“Gross, Ryuji. Don’t talk with your mouth full,” Ann scoffed. “But he’s right. That stuff we saw in the dungeons…” 

“If he sees the boys on the team as punching bags in the Metaverse, then that’s how he sees them in real life,” Morgana agreed. 

“I also don’t think that I’m the first person he’s, um, harassed in that way,” Ann added. Akira nodded solemnly.

“Based on some of the statues and stuff in his palace, I’m afraid you’re right.” 

“Like I’ve been sayin’ all this time, dude’s an abusive perv. An’ we haven’t even seen half of it yet. Who knows what else that bastard is hidin’ in there?” 

“So what do we do next?” Ann leaned forward, weary but determined. “We can’t let him get away with this, but right now we don’t have any power to stop it.”

“We’ve done some investigating in that other world,” said Akira. “Why don’t we continue our investigation in the real world?” 

“You mean walkin’ around, sniffin’ out clues?” Ryuji folded his arms skeptically. 

“More like sneaking around, and asking questions. Quietly.” 

“You’re not exactly the most subtle group,” Morgana said — a bit rudely, Akira thought. But he was probably right. 

“Well, the volleyball rally is tomorrow,” said Ann. “Why don’t we use that time to find members of the boys’ team and see if they’ll talk to us?” 

“An excellent plan, Lady Ann!”

“Okay, but what do we do when we have the evidence?” Ryuji asked, temporarily abandoning his burger. “Do you really think anyone’s gonna listen to us? Or even care?”

“The way I see it, you have two potential methods of taking down Kamoshida,” Morgana said. “The first is finding a way to expose him in the real world. But if that doesn’t work, there’s always a second option. You can try defeating him in the Metaverse.” 

The three of them stared at the cat in surprise.

“Will that…work?” Ann asked.

“Even if we were able to do it, what would that do to Kamoshida? Would we have to kill him in his palace?” 

Morgana looked uncomfortable.

“No — at least, I don’t think so,” he said reluctantly. “I…I think that there’s a way to take away his distorted desires in the Metaverse without any negative effects. But there’s always a chance that we could mess up and end up, well… killing Kamoshida instead.” 

“Wait, for real?!” 

“Killing him? We aren’t murderers!”

“I’m not okay with that,” Akira quickly agreed. 

“Yeah, I mean, Kamoshida is bad, and sometimes I wish that he— …But I don’t think I could actually do it, ya know? Then I’d be…” 

“Worse than him.” 

“Yeah.”

“No, no, you guys are misunderstanding me,” Morgana said quickly. “I’m not saying we would directly kill Kamoshida. We would be stealing his distorted desires from his palace, basically destroying the palace itself, not destroying Kamoshida. Essentially, we take away the part of him that wants evil things, making him finally regret his actions. The only problem is that doing so might have a bad effect on the person whose desires are stolen. I’m not entirely sure that it wouldn’t…take away his will to live.”

“That’s a pretty big 'maybe,' Morgana,” said Ann, biting her lip. 

“Look, you don’t have to make the decision now.” 

“That’s true,” said Akira. “There’s still a chance we can fix this in the real world.” He tried to inject some confidence into his voice, although he had to admit that his faith in other adults was too damaged to truly believe they could find justice that way. “And while we’re doing that, we can keep learning more about this whole Metaverse thing. Maybe we can find out exactly what will happen if we steal someone’s desires.”

“I learn more about the Metaverse every day!” Morgana piped up. “I’m positive we can figure this out somehow!”

“That’s good,” said Ryuji, “‘cause you were soundin’ way too chill about the whole ‘murder’ thing.” 

“What? No! Like I said, it’s not really—”

“Guys, please,” Ann interrupted. “I am exhausted. Can we finish this discussion some other time?”

“Of course, Lady Ann! My apologies.” 

“So, we meetin’ in the gym for the rally?”

“Sounds like a plan.”

“See you both tomorrow,” said Akira. 

And the group split off in three directions.

Akira hadn’t exactly expected everyone to open up at the rally, but he also hadn’t predicted just how uncooperative they would be.

The rally itself had been brutal — a chance for everyone to stroke Kamoshida’s ego while his players got pounded. It was truly depressing that no one else seemed to notice or care how often Kamoshida, a grown adult and former olympian, deliberately spiked the ball at his smaller students. One boy in particular was hit so hard that he seemed to lose consciousness for a few seconds. The sight of it turned Akira’s stomach.

He had hoped to speak to Shiho again, perhaps without Ann this time, in case there was something she was holding back; but she had called out sick for the day, which, admittedly, was probably for the best. 

As soon as they were able to slip away, the three of them went in search of volleyball players to interrogate. But the responses were all very similar.

“I got these bruises at practice, same as everyone else.”

“Kamoshida pushes us hard because we have to be the best.” 

“What happens on our team is none of your business, anyway!” 

Most of the time, these sentiments were followed up by a hearty amount of suspicion for the criminal transfer student. After one boy flat-out refused to speak to the three of them because of Akira, he decided that perhaps it would be better if he didn’t take part in these interrogations.

Instead, he headed vaguely in the direction of the nurse’s office. For some reason, he felt compelled to check on the boy who’d gotten hurt, even if it was unlikely he’d want to speak with a delinquent. He hadn’t gotten a good look at the guy, but he recognized his hair when he saw him limping out of the office just as Akira arrived.

“Excuse me?”

The boy spun around and met Akira’s eyes.

The feeling in Akira’s head in and stomach hit him so quickly that he didn’t have time to process it before a disembodied voice rang out in his ears:

“I’ve been staying up managing the Phan-Site all night! I think it’s called…PR?”

“I may not be able to change the world, but I can change myself.”

“TAKE IT DOWN, PHANTOM THIEVES!”

Akira's heart stuttered in his chest, and he took a half-step back. 'Phantom thieves?' That was the title Morgana had been using for them. This guy didn’t feel quite as familiar as Ann and Ryuji had, but clearly he knew something about what they’d been doing. Or, at least, he would know something. 

Akira wasn’t the only one to flinch. The timid-looking boy took one look at him and yelped, stumbling back a few paces before freezing in place, eyes wide with fear. 

“Sorry!” Akira said quickly. “I didn’t mean to startle you.”

“N-No, it’s, uh, it’s fine,” he stammered. His hands were held slightly in front of him, and he looked seconds away from bolting.

“It looked like you got hit really hard back there,” Akira said. “Are you okay?”

“O-Oh, yeah, I’m fine. I’m not really feeling well, though, so I was just heading home…”

Akira was about to ask him to wait up, but unfortunately, at that very moment, Kamoshida rounded the corner.

“What’s going on here?” he demanded. His voice was stern, but his manner was easy, like he was enjoying himself. “Mishima, shouldn’t you be at practice?”

Mishima had already looked spooked before Kamoshida’s arrival, but now he looked downright ghostly. The way his pallor accentuated his bruised face made a flame of anger simmer in Akira’s stomach. 

“He was just saying that he doesn’t feel well,” Akira said smoothly. Kamoshida’s eyes snapped to his, and Akira could tell that he saw the anger smoldering beneath his cool expression. “I was going to walk him to the train station.” 

“Why would you do that?” Kamoshida sneered, dropping the semi-professional veneer. “Kurusu, isn’t it? You and Mishima here aren’t friends, are you?” 

“We’re in the same class.” 

Kamoshida broke eye contact long enough to look Mishima up and down. 

“You don’t look sick to me,” he said. “You really gonna skip out on practice?”

“I— um…” 

“How are you going to get better if you don’t work at it, huh?”

Akira clenched his fist and tried his best to keep an even tone, but inside he was furious. A sudden surge of protectiveness had washed over him as he watched Mishima cower before the gym teacher. 

“He has a concussion,” Akira said firmly. “I’m pretty sure he’s not supposed to participate until he’s cleared by a doctor.”

“Are you a doctor, Transfer?” His tone was light, but his eyes were hard as stone. 

“No, Sir.” 

“Then why are you giving medical advice to my players?” He took a step closer, and Akira had to tilt his head up to meet his gaze. “I heard you were asking a few other students about their injuries, too. You really ought to be careful about sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong, Kurusu.” 

Akira’s heart was beating faster in his chest, but his anger made him brave.

“I just don’t want to see Mishima-kun get hurt,” he said firmly. 

Mishima made a strangled squeak of a sound, and Kamoshida, strangely, tilted his head back and began to laugh. It rang false in Akira’s ears; like most of what Kamoshida had said so far, it was entirely performative. But when he finished chuckling, a dark look passed over his face that was quite genuine. The hallway was deserted, and Akira felt for the first time that he was truly in danger. Kamoshida stepped even closer and lowered his voice. 

“You’re concerned about this loser? When I happen to know that he’s the one who ruined your life?”

Over in the corner, Mishima squeaked again, like he wanted to interrupt but couldn’t make his mouth move. Akira glanced from the terrified boy to the giant standing over him and gulped.

“What do you mean?” 

“Hm. I shouldn’t tell you this, but I recently learned that it was Mishima who leaked your records on the school forum.” The fire in Akira’s blood suddenly turned to ice. Kamoshida smirked. “Didn’t know that, huh? Sorry. I hope that doesn’t cause any friction between the two of you…” 

Kamoshida laughed again before heading for the stairs.

Akira could hear his heart pounding in his ears. He thought of how hopeless he had felt when he realized everyone knew. His chance to start over, to let people form their own opinions of him, had been ripped away. And the person who had done it…

Akira glanced up at Mishima. The guy looked absolutely terrified. He was looking at Akira the same way he’d looked at Kamoshida: as if he expected a beating, and maybe even thought that he deserved one. 

It made Akira sick.

Suddenly, the cold anger that had been taking over his insides was overwhelmed by another surge of warmth. Protect, his mind was insisting. Protect. 

“Kurusu,” the boy pleaded. He slid down the wall, hands held up to protect his face. “Please, I-I can explain! I didn’t want to leak your record, but Kamoshida made me! You don’t know how powerful he is, I couldn’t just say no, I…” Mishima looked close to tears. “I had no choice!” 

Akira let out a long breath, releasing some of the tension in his muscles. With a bit of effort, he looked the other boy in the eye and nodded. 

“...Okay.” 

Mishima stopped sniveling and froze. His shaking hands stayed in their protective position for a moment before he slowly lowered them, a look of confusion on his face.

“What?” 

“Okay, I believe you.”

“You…” Mishima was gaping like a fish.

“I know Kamoshida’s abusing the team,” said Akira, causing Mishima to flinch slightly. “I’m sure it’s hard to say no to someone when you’re in a situation like that. If you say Kamoshida’s the one who told you to do it, then it’s his fault. I’ll blame him. Not…” Akira sighed. He deliberately relaxed his hands, which had been balled up in tight fists, willing himself to let go of his remaining anger. “Not you.”  

As Akira’s words sank in, Mishima slid to the ground, his legs trembling with spent adrenaline. His head fell back to rest against the wall, and he roughly wiped at his eyes, where a single tear had escaped.

“I don’t understand,” he said at last. “You’re not…angry?” 

“Of course I’m angry. The whole school is afraid of me. Any chance I had at making a good impression is gone.” Mishima flinched back, and Akira worked to calm his voice. “But like I said, it’s not you who wanted to mess with me; it was Kamoshida. And from the look of it, he’s ruining your life too.” He gave the boy a searching glance, and Mishima had to look away. “I can’t really explain it, but… I feel like we’re supposed to be friends. Not enemies.” 

“Friends?” Mishima let out a short, surprised chuckle. “Are you serious?” 

“Sure, if you want to be. If not, then how about allies?”

“Allies…”

“Against Kamoshida.” Akira could see Mishima’s face closing off, so he hurried to continue. “I see what he’s doing to you. To the others, too. He thinks he can do whatever he wants, like he’s the king of Shujin, but he’s not. He’s just a bully who’s used to getting his way. We can still stand up to him.” 

Mishima slowly shook his head, shoulders hunched in defeat.

“You don’t understand, Kurusu. It won’t make any difference. The students, teachers, even our parents… they all know about it. They keep quiet because he makes the school look good, and everyone wants him to write college recommendations for them.” He sighed. “It doesn’t matter who you tell. Nobody cares.” 

Akira’s mind raced to process this new information. If the parents and teachers really knew, then they would have little recourse, even if they found the evidence they needed. But he shoved those thoughts to the back of his mind for now, knowing that this moment was crucial. 

“I care.” He held out his hand to Mishima. “I know I don’t have a lot of power here. But I care what happens to you, and I don’t want you to keep getting hurt like this. If you want to fight back, my friends and I will fight with you.” 

Mishima stared at Akira’s outstretched hand for a moment. Something hardened in his eyes — something like determination. He reached out and took it. 

Palace Infiltration Team

RYUJI: Dude! Are you serious?

            After all that, you got Mishima on board
            just by talking to him?

ANN: You must have really made an impression,
         Akira!

         Guess that’s why you’re the leader

A few days ago, Akira would have balked at the idea of being anyone’s leader. He’d never had many close friends, and when he had gone out in a group, he’d always been the one who followed what the others were doing. But somehow, through a unanimous vote, he’d been elected leader of their little group. And even stranger was how right it felt. 

RYUJI: For real, though, what’d you say
            to him? 

AKIRA: You kinda had to be there.

RYUJI: OK whatever, don’t tell us then.

ANN: The teachers said we can go home, but
         I’m kinda antsy. 

         You guys wanna just…

         Hang out? 

AKIRA: I’m down.

RYUJI: Sorry, promised my mom I’d get
            groceries for dinner.

ANN: Ooh Ryuji’s got a dinner date to keep!

RYUJI: ???? 

            Yeah, with my mom!?!

ANN: Jk, I think it’s sweet!

         Anyway, Akira, do you still wanna hang? 

RYUJI: It’s not sweet!!

AKIRA: Sure, let’s meet at the school gate?

RYUJI: It’s just normal I’m just helping out
            my mom!

ANN: Sounds good.

         See ya tomorrow, Ryuji!

RYUJI: Fine whatever bye!

Akira met Ann at the gate as promised, hoping it wouldn’t be too uncomfortable hanging out just the two of them. Ann was leaning against the wall messing with her phone, but she smiled and waved when he approached. Akira smiled back. 

“Hey.” Ann put her phone in her bag. “I’m glad you weren’t busy. I didn’t want to go home yet.”

“Me neither.” 

“Is Morgana with you?”

“No, he said he wanted to do some investigating on his own. Not exactly sure what that entails, but he’s meeting me at school tomorrow, so I guess that’s one more night without my guardian finding out about my new roommate.” 

“True.” Ann chuckled. “Is it kinda weird that we’re just…friends with a talking cat now? Like, I know he’s not really a cat, but…”

“No, you’re right. It’s super weird.”

“Okay, good. Glad I’m not the only one who thinks so. Although, I think the weirdest part is how easy it’s been to accept this stuff.” 

“I know.” He shifted his bag on his shoulder, already accustomed to having Morgana’s weight there. “My life has been so weird since I got to Tokyo. It helps that you guys have been here as witnesses, or I’d probably think I’d gone crazy.”

“Too true!”

The two fell into silence for a few moments.

“So…” Ann tapped her foot thoughtfully. “Wanna go get crepes?”

Akira laughed, loudly enough that Ann gave him a confused look.

“Sorry, it’s just… somehow, I knew you were going to say that.” 

“Ooh, your cool ‘sixth sense’ thing?”

“Sort of. It’s hard to explain, but when I met you, it was like having a flashback. I know that doesn’t make sense, because I’d never met you, but it was like for a moment I could remember meeting you before, being your friend. And I could taste crepes.”

“That’s…” Ann trailed off, and Akira glanced up anxiously, thinking he’d scared her off. But she just laughed in disbelief. “That’s insane! But also, seriously? I like crepes so much you had a vision about it? Maybe it’s time to start cutting back on my sugar intake…” 

“Please, not on my account,” Akira chuckled softly. “Besides, you just promised me some crepes, and now that’s all I can think about, so…”

“Yes! Let’s go! You can tell me more about this vision of me when we get there.” 

The crepe shop was in Shibuya, so it didn’t take long to get there. While they were waiting for their food, Akira told her everything he knew about how his “visions” worked, which really wasn’t much. Mostly, she was interested in the details of what he experienced when he had them — these “feelings” that he got, mostly about people he wanted to get to know better, or people he knew he had to stay away from. 

“So, you had one of those feelings about Mishima-kun today?” 

“Yeah. It’s like this warm feeling, and it varies from person to person. With Mishima, it felt like I needed to protect him, but also like he would be a good ally, maybe even a friend. But with you and Ryuji, it felt like more than that. Like we were on equal terms, like we had this… this unbreakable bond, or…” Akira trailed off, feeling his face heat up. “Sorry. I know that’s weird.”

“No! I mean, it kind of is, but in a way, I get it. I may not have that 'third eye' thing, but I feel close to you guys, too. Like—” She glanced away, chewing her lip. “I know we’ve only known each other for a few days. And Shiho thinks it’s crazy that we’re already on a first-name basis, but…”

“Some things really bring people together,” Akira said, nodding. “I guess fighting monsters in another world is one of them.” 

Ann grinned.

“I guess so!” 

Ann’s phone jingled, and she pulled it out to check it. Akira suddenly felt as if he might be monopolizing her time.

“If your parents want you home or something…”

“Oh, no, nothing like that. Actually, my parents aren’t home right now. They do a lot of work overseas, so I don’t always see them much. A lot of the time, it’s just me at home.” Her voice was upbeat, but in a way that made Akira sad.

“Sorry to bring it up.”

“No, it’s really fine! I have a great relationship with them and everything. They just don’t always have time for me, with how busy they are. We do video calls at least once a week, so they know how I’m doing. But, I mean, I haven’t told them about…” She cleared her throat, clearly not having meant to start on that topic. “Anyway, how about your family?”

“Mine?”

“Sorry, I don’t mean to pry. I know it’s probably complicated. It’s just, you said you lived with a guardian, right?”

“Yeah. My dad and my stepmom sent me to live with a friend of a friend. I had never met him before. He owns a cafe in Yongen.”

“That sounds kinda scary, living with a stranger.”

“It was at first, and I can tell he doesn’t like me very much, but the weird thing is… I had a ‘feeling’ about him, too. Like we’re supposed to be close or something.” Akira sighed. “It’s kind of conflicting, knowing I’m meant to have a relationship with someone who doesn’t really trust me.”

“I’ll bet.”

Ann’s phone jingled again, and Akira nodded that she should feel free to check it. He took the time to ponder how much he’d spoken today. Most of the time, Akira was content to let other people do the talking; he didn’t have much to talk about, so he just contributed when necessary and listened quietly the rest of the time. But he’d found himself opening up more and more to the familiar strangers who had suddenly entered his life the last few days, and he wasn’t sure how he felt about that. He hoped he hadn’t talked Ann’s ear off today. She hadn’t seemed to mind, though. 

“That was Shiho,” Ann said brightly. “I told her I’d help her go over my notes from class today, since she wasn’t here. Would you like to join us?”

“Oh. I…wouldn’t want to intrude.”

“Good thing we want you there, then!” 

Akira smiled.

“Well, okay.” 

“Hey, didn’t you say your guardian owns a cafe?” 

Akira poked his head into Leblanc a little earlier than usual, checking to see that there weren’t any customers before stepping inside. Sojiro glanced up, a little surprised.

“You’re back.” 

“Yeah. I was wondering if it’s okay for us to study in here for a bit?”

“‘Us?’” Sojiro narrowed his eyes. 

“Just me and two classmates. Friends.”

“Hm.” He still looked highly suspicious. “I guess that’s fine, but you better keep it down. If you get too rowdy and mess up the ambience, it’ll be bad for business.” 

Akira once again tactfully refrained from mentioning the lack of customers in the shop. Instead, he nodded politely and turned to hold the door open for Ann and Shiho, who were waiting just outside. The two girls looked around appreciatively, taking everything in. 

“This place is nice,” Ann said with a smile. Shiho nodded.

“It feels very homey,” she said softly.

“Yeah, it really has a great ambience!”

This earned both girls a smile from Sojiro, though he quickly turned around, pointedly ignoring the three of them. Akira heard him mumble, “At least some kids appreciate it,” which he didn’t think was fair, seeing as Sojiro had never asked him for his opinion. 

“So this is where you’re staying, huh, Akira?” Ann asked curiously. Shiho’s eyes widened.

“Oh, you live here, Kurusu-kun?”

“Yeah, I sleep in the attic.”

“You must get this nice coffee smell all night long,” Ann said with a hint of fond jealousy. “Pretty soon all your clothes will smell like that. Be careful, or the ladies will be all over you!”

“Ha. Not sure I’ll have that problem at our school.” 

“Oh, I don’t know,” said Shiho. As soon as the words left her mouth, she covered it with her hand, eyes widening. “Oh, I-I mean…” 

Akira felt himself turn red for the second time that day, while Ann laughed heartily at the both of them. After a moment, Shiho overcame her embarrassment and began to giggle along with her, and Akira was forced to join in. 

As the three of them sat in the comfortable atmosphere of Leblanc, chatting and studying happily, Akira felt that warm feeling again, though this time it had nothing to do with his gift. Despite everything that had happened in the last week, Akira Kurusu felt content. But a traitorous part of his brain couldn’t help but think that this wasn’t quite right. 

Surely, he thought, it was too good to last.