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Chapter Text

"Oh God...why'd you do it, kid?" Sojiro Sakura stood at his counter in shock. There was no way-

Suddenly, the door to his cafe smashed open with enough force to shatter the glass as it hit the banister. At the same time, two people stumbled through the entrance, their movements hampered by one hanging off the other's left side.

"What the!?...You!?"

"I was hoping I'd make it here before that aired..." Sae mumbled. Then, she spoke up, "He's alive. Can I get some help here?"

Sojiro moved around the counter to Ren's side. Together, they eased their way over to a booth and carefully helped Ren into a seat. Sojiro slid the table to one side to free up space and helped the barely conscious boy lay down.

Standing up and looking over his ward, he turned to Sae with a cold glare. She held her hands up, hoping to placate the mans anger, or at least redirect it.

"I had nothing to do with this. I interviewed him after the...interrogation...but I had no hand or say in his current state. I don't know any specifics, but I know they beat him badly and injected him with at least two doses of pentothal"

Sojiro stared at her.

"I'm sorry to run, but I can't stay here. I'm not sure yet what these kids got themselves involved in, but I can't chance anyone finding out he's here or that I brought him." She turned to leave, then paused after seeing the door. "I'm sorry about your door. I'll pay to get it fixed."

Sojiro didn't respond. He was again looking over Ren.

"I know he looks bad, but I know he'll be fine. He's the toughest kid I've ever met. Even beaten and drugged, he was able to recount the events that led up to this and bring me over to his side. All without implicating anyone else. …Not for a lack of trying on my part. He will need medical attention though."

Ren stirred and spoke, just above a whisper. "Ta-kemi. She knows."

The two adults looked from Ren to each other.

"I-I know who he's talking about. Sojiro said. "She's a regular of mine. I'll call her."

"Very well. If he trusts her, I'm sure she can help. I really have to go now."

"Thanks. For, bringing him here...and believing him. You don't have to worry about the door. I think we owe you."

Sae waved him off as she left. "No way. I'll be back soon and I'll pay you for it." Then she left, closing the door behind her.

Sojiro took a deep breath as her heels clicked away. Looking a seemingly unconscious Ren over again, he was certain the extent of punishment the boy had endured was partially, or perhaps mostly covered by his tattered clothing. He walked over to his ancient yellow dial phone, picked up a card the obscure doctor had left him and dialed the number. The phone rang just long enough that he began worrying she might not pick up. The thought hit him that if she knew and had seen the news…

"Dr. Takemi. I'm sorry, but we're closing early today due to unforseen circumstances. Please visit an ER if it's an emergency." Her typically dry and disinterested voice sounded even moreso than usual. She must have seen the news.

"Wait! It's about Ren. Please come the the cafe."

"Ren? But…ok, I'll be right there." Sojiro heard frantic movement before the call cut off.

He took a deep breath again as he hung up the receiver. He then heard a gasp from outside and someone worriedly called into the cafe.

"Boss!?" They saw each other through the now glassless door. "What happened!? Where's Ren!?"

Sojiro walked over to the door and opened it.

"Makoto? He's here. He's over there, but Makoto, he's-"

She rushed over to where Sojiro had indicated, ignoring his warning. When she saw him, she gasped and her hand shot up to cover her mouth. He looked bad, but she knew he was alive at least thanks to the slight rise and fall of his chest.

"My God. What did they- do to him?" She mumbled.

While Sojiro was still standing in the doorway he heard a pair of familiar platform boots approaching quickly.

"Christ, Boss. What happened to your door?" Tae asked, then she saw Sojiro and Makoto. "Where is he?" She asked, concern clear in her voice.

Makoto looked at the booth he occupied and backed away as Tae rushed over.

"What the hell happened to him!?" She looked at makoto and then Sojiro, both slightly withering under her glare.

Sojiro recovered first. "I don't have any specifics, but he was beaten and apparently drugged with pentothal."

"By who!? The news said- ...wait, the police did this!? How'd he get here!?"

"That one's older sister, a prosecutor, dropped him off and ran."

"We need to get him to a bed. I'd rather get him to my clinic, but he's in no shape to be moved that far. He stays upstairs here, right?"

"Yeah. I think with three of us we can get him up there easily enough." Sojiro replied.

"It won't be pleasant for him, but I'm going to try waking him up. It'll be easier to get him upstairs and assess his condition if he's conscious."

Tae moved to gently wake Ren and Sojiro looked at Makoto, concerned.

"Hey, if you think seeing him- like this- may be too much, you can stay down here. I'd say you could go home, but I get the feeling that would be pointless."

Makoto smiled slightly. "No. He was strong for us. Now I'll be strong for him. I'm not leaving his side."

As Tae gently shook Ren awake, he gasped and flinched away, immediately grimacing in pain. She was quick to back off and try calming him as he looked around in fear.

"Hey, easy. You're at Leblanc. You're safe."

Makoto slowly approached the booth, trying not to startle him further.

"You're ok, Ren. Please relax.

The tension drained from his body and his breathing slowed.

"Mako." He said weakly.

He reached for her, trembling and she very carefully took his hand. She saw there were bloody rings around his wrists and had to hold back a surge of tears.

Tae let them have a moment. "We need to get you up to your bed. Think you can help us with that?"

He nodded, gave a weak squeeze to Makoto's hand, then released and sat up slowly. It was obvious that it took great effort as he scowled at the pain. He looked up, his eyes watering. "Mm'sorry. Can't- stand."

Makoto let out a slight sob and moved to help him while Tae did the same.

Sojiro put a hand on her shoulder. "Let me help the doc get him upstairs. You go up and make sure our path is clear. There should be some towels up there, lay a few across his bed, yeah?

Makoto wanted to protest, but nodded and quickly disappeared up the steps.

"Ready doc?"

"Yes."

They both braced themselves under Ren's arms and wrapped theirs around his back. He winced at the contact and nearly every movement they made caused his breath to hitch. Tae and Sojiro shared a sideways glance at each other and nodded lightly. He was in really bad shape. They made it up the stairs with some help from Ren and got to his bed. As soon as they had him sitting on the edge, he lost consciousness. His head lulled forward, but Sojiro caught him and they laid him down carefully.

Tae checked and timed his pulse. "It's slow, but it's there."

The other two let out the breath they had been holding. Sojiro checked the fuel in the space heater, turned it on and moved it closer to the bed.

Tae stood up and looked Ren over for a few seconds. "I need to get these clothes off him so I can examine him. I'll need some help."

Makoto walked up to Tae, blushing slightly. "I'll do it. We're umm...kind of dating? He won't mind."

Tae gave a slight smirk. "Oh? Ok then."

Sojiro chuckled lightly. "I'll leave it to you two then. Let me know if you need my help. I'm gonna make some coffee and another batch of curry. Something tells me we're in for a long night and probably a lot more company."

"If anyone else comes by, don't let them up here. I know they'll want to see him, but it won't do anyone any good."

"Understood."

With that, both parties went to work.

Tae and Makoto worked carefully to remove Ren's clothes, leaving him in only boxers. What they found left both of them speechless for a short time. Makoto had her hand over her mouth again and was losing the fight against her tears. Tae was trying to remain stoic, but rage was apparent on her face.
Three injuries stood out amongst everything else. One was a literal boot print in the center of his chest, another on this right leg and a severe impact on his stomach where it looked like he'd been kicked full force. There were bruises of varying severity across his entire torso and face, small cuts and scrapes here and there, multiple messy injection sites on his left arm, showing he had clearly tried to fight them off and lastly, the lacerations around both of his wrists. A clear sign that he had been handcuffed while beaten.

"A long night, he says...yeah, I'd say so." Tae muttered. She then turned to Makoto. "I know this is hard to see, but like you said downstairs, you need to be strong for him now. I'm going to need your help here."

Makoto wiped her tears and looked up at the rafters while working to control her breathing. After a few seconds, she looked down and nodded to Tae.

"I'm ready. Just tell me what you need."

"We'll need to clean him up a bit first. Any dirt or dried blood is going to keep me from getting an accurate idea of his condition. We need a wash basin or something similar filled with warm water and as many clean wash rags as you can find."

Makoto nodded and went downstairs.

#

Sojiro made his way downstairs after leaving his ward in the care of Tae and Makoto. He leaned against the bar with his head in his hands and took a deep breath, telling himself Ren would be ok. He thought to flip the sign on his door to closed and lock up for a long night in his humble cafe.

"Think I need a smoke first."

He stepped outside and lit up a cigarette, taking an especially long drag and holding it in for a few seconds before finally exhaling. He instantly felt a little more calm as he watched the cool breeze wisp away the smoke. It was dark now and there were few people still milling about. He noticed a group approaching, led by Futaba who was carrying Morgana. The Phantom Thieves all wore somber expressions.

"What are you all so down for? You know he's alive, right?"

Haru replied. "We do know he's alive, thanks to Futaba-chan messaging our group chat, but we also know he's in really rough shape."

Sojiro thought to ask how Futaba had found any of that out, but decided it didn't matter for the moment. "He's upstairs being taken care of by Dr. Takemi and Makoto. Unfortunately, while you're more than welcome to hang out downstairs and have some coffee and curry, the doc has made it clear that no one else is allowed up there for now"

Ann asked what they all wanted to know. "Hey Boss...how bad is it? Her tone was strained and deeper than her usual cheerful demeanor.

"I won't lie to you kids, it's pretty bad. I haven't seen what was hiding under his clothes, but it's not pretty. Sae told me he'd been beaten badly and injected with Pentothal as a kind of 'truth serum'."

The whole group looked down. Haru was first to speak once again. "How horrible..."

Yusuke was next. "Even with all we've seen and all we know, it's incomprehensible that such acts would be carried out by the police against a minor."

"Once he's recovered enough to join in, I expect a full explanation of what you guys have been up to and what led you all to this point... For now though, come on inside. I gotta make the coffee and food. You're all welcome here for as long as you'd like to stay, provided your parents or guardians are ok with it."

"Thanks, Boss." They all replied, piling in after Sojiro opened the door for them.

He finished his cigarette with one last long drag, flicked the butt into a can next to his door, flipped the sign to closed and blew the smoke out (away from the kids) as he walked in and locked the door. As he walked behind the counter to get started in the kitchen, Ryuji piped up.

"Yo Boss, what happened to your door? You have a break in or something?"

"Heh. Sae Niijima happened to my door. When she brought the kid here she had him hanging off her side, trying to support him because he could barely walk. She threw it open so hard it smacked the wall and shattered the glass as she came stumbling in. What a rollercoaster that was. I had just seen the news and then that happened and I saw her of all people. I yelled at her to get out, but then I saw the kid on her shoulder."

"Holy shit..." Ryuji breathed.

"Speaking of the news, do you know what that felt like? Not knowing what was going on and seeing that report? How many other people know and are gonna be devastated by seeing or hearing that?"

The Thieves all looked at each other guiltily and then down at the floor. For a third time, Haru spoke up first.

"We're very sorry for deceiving you, or at least leaving you out of the loop. To be honest, we didn't know they would announce his...death like that. If it weren't for Futaba-chan messaging the group chat, we probably would have thought we failed. As far as who else knows, we will have to wait on Ren."

"It's alright, it's not like I'm mad at you kids or anything. I just can't imagine what you guys have been doing and what you got yourselves involved in that led to all this."

Futaba spoke up. "We're all actually involved and even we can hardly believe it sometimes. As far as what we've been up to, for now I'll just say that it's related to mom's research."

"Wakaba's research? Cognitive Psience, was it?"

"Yeah. There's a lot more, but like you said, we'll wait for Ren to recover before we explain it all."

The conversation lulled as Sojiro worked in the kitchen and the Thieves chatted quietly amongst themselves.

A few minutes later, a very tense Makoto came downstairs. When she saw everyone, she smiled, relaxed a little and went over to give them a minor update.

"I'm sorry I can't tell you more yet, but just know he's really alive and he's going to make it." Her voice was quiet, but confident. Her friends nodded and smiled back.

She then turned to Sojiro.

"Boss, I need warm water in a basin or large bowl and as many clean washcloths as you can spare."

"You got it. One second."

#

Makoto returned upstairs with a large pot full of warm water and plenty of clean washcloths, the latter carried in a paper grocery sack. While she was gone, Tae had improvised an IV drip by hanging it from the shelf next to his bed. She asked the doctor about it as she set the pot and rags down.

"What are you giving him?"

"Just fluids to keep him hydrated and help push the pentothal out of his system. I also drew some blood. Once we're done here, I'll go back to my clinic and run the sample to make sure there's nothing else we need to know about... Well, let's get him cleaned up. You wipe him down and I'll focus on any cuts or scrapes."

Makoto nodded. Tae went to her bag, pulled out some peroxide and cotton balls and they both set to work. Makoto tenderly wiped down his stomach, chest and arms, changing out rags often while Tae treated anywhere she saw broken skin. When Makoto moved to start on his face, she affectionately ran her fingers through his hair and then moved it out of his face. She saw there were red marks where his glasses usually sat, then saw a dark bruise on his left temple. She let out a slight gasp, which got the doctor's attention.

"Did you find something else?"

"Yes."

Makoto moved back a little to let Tae examine the marks and bruise. Some of the anger from earlier returned.

"It looks like his glasses were on for at least part of that...interrogation, and this bruise... Well, it's not important right now. Finish cleaning his face off and we'll sit him up."

Makoto sat on the edge of the bed and leaned over Ren. She put one hand on the back of his head and one under his back and carefully raised him up, essentially hugging him with her chin on his shoulder as Tae examined his back.

"There's only some minor bruising back here. Nothing that should require special attention. You can lay him back down."

The younger girl nodded, but didn't move. She was gently running her hands through his hair again and though she wasn't crying, her eyes were wet with tears. Tae gave a slight smile and stood up.

"We're pretty much done here for now. I'm going to go back to the clinic and run that blood sample. Boss has a card of mine downstairs, but here's another. Call me if anything happens. I'm not going home tonight, so I'll be close by. I'll run this sample and be back with some pain meds for him that won't interact with anything in his system. I imagine none of you will be leaving either, but what I said earlier still stands. No one else needs to come up here other than you, Boss or I."

"Ok." Makoto said quietly as she laid Ren back down.

With that, Tae disappeared downstairs as Makoto looked Ren over carefully.

#

The remainder of the Thieves and Sojiro downstairs had fallen mostly silent as they ate and drank, the latter at the bar while the rest occupied booths. They all looked up as they heard someone coming down the steps.

Ryuji stood up quickly, bumping the table a bit. "How is he, doc?"

"He'll live, but recovery will take some time. I have to ask you all to stay down here for now. I recruited Makoto to help because she was here first, so she's allowed up and of course boss is since he's the kiddo's guardian, but the rest of you need to stay down here."

Ryuji sat back down dejectedly, but agreed along with everyone else with a nod.

"Well, I'm off to go run this blood sample and bring back some pain meds. I'll be back soon."

Sojiro pointed at a large to go cup on the counter. "There's an Altura blend for you, on the house."

Tae grabbed it as she strode towards the door. "Thanks, Boss."

As Takemi left the cafe, everyone went back to half-heartedly eating in relative silence. The coffee and curry were delicious as always, but no one was in much of a mood to enjoy anything while their leader suffered upstairs.

#

Makoto had moved from sitting on the edge of the bed, to Ren's desk chair that she had pulled over next to him.

"Hey... Ren... You can stop pretending to be passed out. I know you've been awake at least since I sat you up. I felt you tense up..."

He opened his eyes slowly, blinking a few times. His gray eyes were unfocused and lacked the soul piercing depth they usually held. As he looked at her, they sharpened slightly, but it was clear his mind was still in a fog.

"Mako..." He mumbled.

He reached up for her with his left hand, then his eyes rolled down to see the IV in his arm. He recoiled and his breath caught as he moved to rip it out of his arm. Makoto intercepted his hand and tried soothing him.

"Hey, hey, it's ok, you're safe, you're home. Takemi did that to help you get better."

He relaxed some and his breathing slowed as he laid his head back down. He opened watery eyes, took as deep a breath as he could and sighed. Then he mumbled again.

"Hurts."

Makoto thought her heart might actually break. In the corners of her mind she could feel guilt pulling at her. The plan had mostly been hers. Everyone contributed, they all went with it and Ren had readily accepted the starring role, but it was mostly her idea. This was all her- ...She shook her head slightly. That train of thought wouldn't help him right now.

"I know... I'm sorry... Dr. Takemi went to test some blood she got from you. She wanted to make sure whatever is in your system won't react to pain medication. As soon as she's done, she'll bring you something that will help. Ok?"

He nodded slightly, then closed his eyes.

"...Stay?"

"Of course. I'll be right here."

Hearing that, he truly relaxed and after a few moments he was asleep. Makoto found a blanket and covered him with it, then sat and held his hand, periodically running her other through his hair. Eventually, exhaustion took over and while still holding his hand, she laid her head down on her other arm and drifted off to sleep.

#

Ren awoke to a familiar darkness, a familiar cold slab against his back and familiar cuffs on his-
He shot upright and grunted as he fought against the bindings on his wrists.

"Inmate, please calm yourself. You are in a place of safety." One of his two wardens spoke with her usual muted tone.

Ren looked up and began to regain his senses. Justine was looking at him with what appeared to be genuine concern and for once Caroline did not smack the bars to his cell or yell at him. A deep and familiar voice cut through the silence.

"Trickster, your daring and marvelous plan to escape death has succeeded. It was quite the show. However, you seem to now find yourself -or rather your mind- in a place of darkness. I ask that you overcome this, lest you fail your rehabilitation and ensure the coming ruin."

"If you don't regain control of your mind soon, you'll lose your mask and all of your personas, inmate!" Caroline yelled as always, but with a hint of something else in her voice.

Justine followed up. "Now inmate, return to your slumber. We will not meet again until you have saved yourself."

Ren felt exhausted as he lay back on the slab in his cell. He would have to think more about what the twins and Igor had told him after he got more rest. Maybe Mako could help him...

#

Ren awoke again to find himself standing in a dark hallway. Whispers began to reach his ears.

'I hear he carries a knife.'
'He looks calm, but I bet when he loses it...'
'Why is the Delinquent in the library?'
'Is he actually studying?'

He shook his head and walked, shutting out the rumors that had followed him since the day he started at Shujin. The whispers dwindled until he turned a corner and found himself on a familiar street at night. He listened for what he knew he'd hear and headed towards the sound of a man and woman arguing.

'It wasn't a mistake. I did what was right.'

'I did what was right. I swore to Arsene that I hadn't made a mistake when we made our pact.'

Though he believed what he was thinking, Arsene felt distant in his mind. Since he had vowed to abide his rebel soul, his first and true persona had remained at the forefront of his mind, even conversing with him frequently. Now though, he could barely feel his presence.

"Get in the car!"

"Please! Someone help!"

His pace quickened. As he approached the familiar scene, he reached up and grabbed the man's shoulder. As soon as he did so, the ground beneath his feet gave away and he fell into nothingness.

He flailed and looked around wildly as he continued falling, hearing voices from all directions at varying volumes.

"Guilty!" -gavel crack-

A chorus of his friends and girlfriend. "I can't be friends with a violent delinquent."
"I can't be with someone like you. It's over. Goodbye."

Faces appeared before him, then turned away and disappeared.

"You've disgraced us! Do you have any idea how bad this will make us look!? I'll be lucky to even keep the store running!

His father's voice was severe and he could hear his mom crying in the background.

"No. I didn't do anything wrong. I just tried to help..."

His voice was quiet and weak. Maybe he had made a mistake. He felt a familiar weight on his face. He reached up to feel the white domino mask just in time for it to break and fall off. He could no longer feel Arsene within himself as he continued to fall...

#

"...en? Ren? REN!"

He jerked awake and yelled out as he sat up, stopping short at the pain and then coughing, making it even worse. His eyes were panicked, looking around the room trying to get his bearings. He took quick, shallow breaths and his heart raced. As everything came into focus, his eyes landed on Makoto who was standing by the bed. As he looked at her worried face, he began to relax.

Makoto didn't really know what to do or say for a moment. She decided to ask him what happened.

"...Did you, have a bad dream?"

"...Yeah... Yeah it was, just a nightmare."

"Do you want to tell me about it?"

"It was..."

The scenes from his dream flashed through his mind. Everyone from his old life had turned on him. No one even tried listening to his side of the story. He felt darkness creeping further into his mind. If his new friends found out how broken he was, they would abandon him too. He'd already had three episodes in front of Makoto. It was only a matter of time.

"...nothing... It was nothing. Just a bad dream. Really."

He smiled. It wasn't genuine.

Makoto wasn't convinced, but she didn't want to push him. "Ok. Please talk to me if you need to. I want to be there for you. I am here for you."

"Of course, Makoto. I know you are." The words were hollow.

Makoto was still worried, but she smiled at him and then turned to upright the chair she had kicked over while trying to wake him. The first rays of light were starting to spill through the window. She had gotten some sleep, but it hadn't been great sleep and she was a little stiff from the position she'd been in. As she sat back down at his side, she considered if him not using her nickname held any significance.

"Everything still hurts... Gonna sleep."

"Ok. I'll be here. Dr. Takemi should be back soon."

He nodded and closed his eyes. Makoto became conscious of a friction in the air between them. She felt as though she was only seeing Ren and found no traces of his bold alter ego. She tried not to think about what either observation meant, but one thing was clear. Ren was not ok.

'Joanna. Can you sense other personas?'

'Are you sure you wish to know the answer to the question you are about to ask?'

'...Yes.'

'No. I can no longer sense Arsene within him.'

Chapter Text

'Joanna. Can you sense other personas?'

'Are you sure you wish to know the answer to the question you are about to ask?'

'...Yes.'

'No. I can no longer sense Arsene within him.'

Makoto felt her heart plummet into the pit growing in her stomach. What did that mean? Was it even possible for a persona user to lose their persona? Especially someone as strong as Ren? She felt a little dizzy and made her way to the couch nearby. She laid down and covered her eyes with one arm. The room slowly stopped spinning and at some point, she drifted off to sleep.

#

Makoto felt herself regaining consciousness and opened her eyes to a sea of blue. She looked around bewildered as her eyes adjusted and found a circle of what looked like prison cells. She heard two gasps behind her and spun around to find two young girls who looked to be guarding a cell, though it seemed empty.

"Wh- who are you and what are you doing here!?"

"I believe this is the inmate's romantic partner."

Makoto blushed slightly at the awkward title, but before she could respond a deep voice behind her chuckled and spoke, giving her a chill and drawing her attention.

“Hmhmhm… My, how curious and unexpected. I've never heard of one, other than the trickster entering the Velvet Room on their own.”

"The, what? What is this place? Where am I?"

"Welcome my Velvet Room. It is a place between dream and reality, normally occupied only by its stewards and the star of this show, the trickster. You know him as Joker. It is most intriguing that you should find yourself here."

"This, show? Joker? Is he here? Do you know what's wrong with him?

"It seems our trickster and his friends executed a daring plan to escape his death. However, that success seems to have come with a high price. His body will mend in time, but I'm afraid some scars go much deeper.”

One of the girls behind her spoke up. “If he doesn't save himself soon, he'll permanently lose his mask and all of his personas! And then…”

“And then the game will be over. Truly a foolish end.”

Makoto felt a flare of anger. “Foolish? A game? This is supposed to be a game?”

“Ha ha ha… Worry not, Priestess. I have full faith that the Trickster and the bonds he's forged will see him through.”

“...Priestess?”

A bell rang out from somewhere and she suddenly felt herself jerk awake back on the sofa in Ren’s room. Haru had apparently been trying to gently shake her awake.

#

The rest of the Thieves had all passed out at one point or another as the night wore on. Sojiro had given in and gone home to sleep. Futaba lasted the longest, glued to her laptop and looking for any credible mentions of their leader's escape. It seemed no one was the wiser, so far.

Haru was the first to wake as early morning light and the sounds of life began spilling through the door to the cafe, no longer muted by glass. She stretched and stood up, making sure to be silent as possible and looked towards the stairs. She remembered the doctor telling everyone to stay downstairs, but she had to check on Makoto and see Ren for herself. She made her way up and found Makoto on the sofa, Ren asleep and Morgana curled up at the foot of the bed. She whispered from across the room.

"Mako-chan?"

Haru got no response, so she crossed the attic and tried to wake Makoto up. She gently shook her shoulder and the latter girl jerked awake, but stayed calm.

Makoto sat up. “Hey, Haru. Good morning.”

“Good morning. How are you?”

“Well enough, thank you.”

"Is Ren ok?" She asked, still whispering.

"Yes. At least I think so. He'll recover from his physical injuries, but…"

"But?"

"I don't know for sure what it means, but… Johanna can't sense Arsene, his original persona anymore. …I also don't see any Joker in him like I used to."

'Milady?'

'It is as she says."

Haru stared at Ren sleeping and couldn't help but notice that he did seem a little… -less- than usual.

They heard the cafe door open and close softly, then footsteps crossing the floor and up the stairs. Tae stopped as she entered the attic and looked first at Ren, then to Makoto and Haru.

"Well, at least only one of you disobeyed my orders. I expected to get back and see everyone up here."

Haru apologized. "I'm sorry. I needed to check on Mako-chan, and see Ren for myself."

"No worries, at least the two of you can be quiet and not disturb him. I finished running his blood sample. I have pain meds that should help him feel a lot better while he recovers."

"Thank you, Dr. Takemi." Makoto replied.

"Please just call me Tae, or doc. Anyway, let me set up this pain medication so Ren can get to feeling better."

Makoto and Haru nodded and the latter joined Makoto on the sofa.

#

After Tae had finished setting up the pain meds, she moved Ren's desk chair over near the sofa and joined the other two in watching him rest. After a period of silence and after the doc had studied the other two for a bit, she spoke up.

“Ok you two, what gives? I know you're concerned for your leader, but why so quiet?”

“Well… Wait, our leader? What do you mean?” Haru looked anxious.

“Relax. I know you're the Phantom Thieves and Ren knows I know.”

Haru looked to Makoto who nodded at her, then she relaxed some. The latter decided to voice their concerns while Haru seemed to grapple with the revelation.

“Do you know anything about mental wounds?”

“Mental wounds. Well, I did study psychology while I was in school, but I'm far from an expert. Are you worried Ren here may be suffering internally?”

“Yes. He had a nightmare earlier and when I woke him up he had another anxiety attack. Afterwards, he was just, different. It was like he'd grown distant.

Haru spoke up. “It may not make much sense to you, but Mako-chan and I can't help but feel like he's a little less -him- than before.”

“Hmm. It's possible that he might need to speak with someone after he heals up a bit. I don't know exactly what he's been through, but it was clearly difficult.”

Makoto decided to clue the doc in a little on what the past seven months or so of his life had been like.

Afterward, Tae looked pensive for a minute or so. Digesting what she'd been told. “I think it's safe to say that he'll need some counseling after all of that and then, this.” She gestured in Ren’s general direction at the last part.

The three were quiet for a few minutes. Then Ren stirred. Tae got up and moved over to his bedside.

“Morning, Guinea Pig. I've got you on some good pain meds now. Feel any better?”

“Yeah… Thanks, Tae.”

“Don't mention it.” She stepped aside so he could see Makoto and Haru on the sofa. “Your friends are worried about you though. How are you feeling otherwise?”

The other two weren't close enough, but Tae didn't miss the flash of longing on his face before it was overtaken by a stoic expression. He turned his head towards the wall next to his bed and mumbled.

“I'm fine.”

“Ren, you guys are a team. If you don't trust them enough to-”

“Oh we're a team? I seem to remember being the only one in that fucking room getting tortured.”

Makoto and Haru both gasped. The former stood up and took a step forward. “Ren I'm so sorry, I didn't know what they were gonna-”

“You didn't know what they were gonna do? You're the second wannabe cop to say that to me. Your sister basically said the same thing.”

Makoto stepped back and practically fell back onto the couch. She looked completely lost.

Tae cut in, her tone severe. “You're being way too harsh and you're blaming the wrong people for this.”

Ren seemed to come back to his senses. He rolled back over and looked at the doc, then Makoto and Haru. The look on Makoto’s face made his chest hurt and his throat tighten. “I'm… sorry. I just-”

“We're heading down stairs. You need to get some rest. Come on, you two.” Tae waited for Haru and Makoto to get up and then headed to the stairs.

Ren watched them go. Makoto stopped and stared at him for several seconds before descending. She looked hurt. He hurt her. Why had he lashed out like that? He was already paranoid his friends would abandon him, just like his old friends from his old life. Pushing them away certainly wouldn't help anything. He rolled onto his back and let his mind wander while staring at nothing in particular on the ceiling.

But…they'd let him get hurt. Maybe they deserved to-

“What the fuck…” He reached up with the hand that didn't have an IV in it and rubbed his head. Why would he think like that? He sighed and tried to clear his mind again.

After quieting the storm of conflicting thoughts, he couldn't help but notice how he felt nothing. Physically he knew the pain meds were working, but he felt nothing. He was self aware enough to expect some anxiety or PTSD from this ordeal, but not this…nothingness.

‘Arsene.’

…

‘Arsene?’

…

That probably wasn't good. He'd noticed Arsene felt distant since waking up to Mako- Makoto pulling him up into a hug last night, but hadn't thought too much about it.

He remembered his brief visit to the Velvet Room. Igor asking him to overcome something, Caroline telling him he needed to regain control of his mind, Justine telling him to save himself, then his mask breaking as he fell in his dream… Wait. His mask had broken and fallen off. Was that just a dream or was it more than that?

#

Tae, Makoto and Haru took seats in the booth closest to the door of the cafe. Makoto was silently crying and Haru was trying to comfort her by rubbing her back lightly, but also looking a little lost herself.

Tae spoke in a hushed tone, so as not to wake the rest of the Thieves. “You two know he didn't really mean that, right? He doesn't really blame you for this. I saw his face when I asked how he was doing otherwise and I caught a flash of an emotion that was far from anger before he rolled over.”

“Of course.” Makoto replied weekly. “But it doesn't help that I already feel like I'm at least partially to blame. We all contributed to the plans that landed him in this condition, but…letting him get captured to fake his death was mostly me.”

“What other choice did you have?”

Makoto looked up at Tae, eyes widened slightly. “What do you mean?”

“If you all are involved in something so serious that you needed to fake his death while in police custody, is there anything else you could've done?”

“I think she's right, Mako-chan. I don't think we had any other options.”

“I guess…maybe you're right.” Makoto took a deep breath, wiped the tears from her eyes and relaxed some. “Thanks, you two.”

The trio heard footsteps approaching and the door to the cafe opened. Sojiro walked in, closed the door and looked around to see who was still there.

Tae gave a casual wave. “Good morning, Boss.”

“Morning Doc, Makoto, Haru.” He replied, nodding at each in turn. “How's the kid?”

“I have him on some good pain meds. I spoke to him earlier and he seemed to be doing well. He's asleep now. We came down here to let him rest.”

“Good to hear. Any idea how he's doing…otherwise? I'm more than a little worried about him after he panicked like that yesterday when you woke him up.”

Tae glanced at Makoto and Haru, then back. “I'm afraid we'll have to wait until he's back on his feet to really get a grasp on how he's doing mentally. It goes without saying though, some anxiety or PTSD is likely.”

Sojiro was silent for a moment. “I'm sure you're right. I can't imagine what he's been through.”

Makoto looked down at her hands in her lap.

Sojiro looked at her. “Sorry. Didn't mean to, you know.”

“It's ok. For better or worse though, we'll probably never know what he really went through unless he decides to tell us.”

Tae looked between the three of them. “I don't want anyone trying to pressure him into talking about what happened.”

“Of course.” they all replied.

Sojiro headed behind the counter. “I'm gonna make some coffee and start the curry for today. Altura blend for you, Tae?”

“Yes, please.”

“How about you two?”

Haru turned to answer. “I'll take the same, please. Mako-chan?”

Makoto looked up, seeming to have been brought out of her thoughts. “That sounds good to me as well. Thank you.”

Sojiro started working on their coffees. “You got it.”

Chapter Text

Ren was staring at his wrists with distant eyes, occasionally rubbing one or the other slowly. His breakfast coffee and curry sat on the bar in front of him, barely touched. It was obvious he had made an earnest attempt to eat, drink and enjoy it, but after a few bites and one sip he had stopped and just started staring...

It had been two days since he'd returned "home" to Leblanc. The initial shock of his condition had worn off for Makoto and with a thorough examination from Tae and some good pain meds, Ren seemed to be well on his way to recovery. Physically at least. It was obvious everything he'd been through had taken a toll on him mentally as well. Makoto would never tell anyone, but despite the gross corruption they were fighting, she never thought the police would go as far as they did. She figured at worst they might rough him up a little and make threats, but…they had drugged and tortured him. In retrospect it made some sense, she supposed, though it made her sick. Ren was never meant to leave that place alive and he was the single greatest threat to the conspiracy his captors were no doubt a part of. Why would they hold back? She shook her head lightly to bring herself back to the present and observed Ren some more.

 They had grown especially close over the last few months and had even begun dating. She knew how to handle a physically hurt Ren from their escapades in the metaverse, but dealing with a mentally hurt Ren was very different. She felt like he was more open with her than anyone, but even she had gotten scant few glimpses behind the mile thick facade he wore for everyone else's benefit. She knew he wanted to always be the stoic pillar for others to rely on, but she had to find a way to convince him that he could be vulnerable with her.

The problem was, whatever mental scars he had were causing him to be completely cold and distant to everyone including her, making it difficult to really talk to him and start trying to figure things out. He hadn't outright told her to leave, but his outward indifference to her hurt. She'd love nothing more than to be sitting at the bar next to him, comforting him. Or at least trying to. But as things were, she was sitting in the farthest booth from him. Just watching, and hoping that wasn't too much for him. His jab at her and her sister still echoed in her mind frequently, and she wasn't sure she could take another comment like that.

#

Ren was staring at his wrists, occasionally rubbing one or the other. His breakfast coffee and curry sat on the bar in front of him, barely touched. He looked from the corner of his eye to the girl sitting in the booth farthest from him. Not wanting to be in his face, but clearly not wanting to leave him be either.

‘She should just leave. It's only a matter of time anyway. Is she just being polite? Or sticking around out of guilt? Doesn't she have anything better to do?’

“I guess I appreciate your concern, but surely you have better things to do than stare at me all morning.”

Makoto was taken aback, but recovered quickly. She gave a casual shrug and replied.

“Not really. I don't have any student council duties, I have a friend talking notes for me in school and sis knows I'm here and is ok with it. So I'm here, watching after our leader…and my boyfriend.”

Ren gave no response. Makoto tried staring through the back of his head to see what he was thinking or at least see any kind of reaction, but to no avail. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

“Ren, it's clear you're struggling with something. Why can't you let me or any of the others help share that burden?”

“Because it was just me when I first got here, and it'll be just me again once-...”

“Once, what?”

Ren shook his head. He took a few more bites of curry, chugged his lukewarm coffee and went to get up from the bar. He turned to the left to stand, but as soon as he put weight on his right leg, it gave out and he stumbled. He reached for one of the bar chairs, but still fell and brought the chair down with him. He hit the ground with a grunt. Makoto was at his side in all of a second.

“Ren!”

“I'm fine!”

He was already trying to push himself up.

“No, you're not! Let. Me. Help. You.”

“I don't need you!”

He stood unsteadily and picked up the chair with no small effort. Makoto had steeled herself against his lashing out and just watched him.

“You don't need me? Fine. If you can get yourself up those stairs, I'll leave you alone.”

Ren scoffed and made his way to the stairs without looking back at her. It was a struggle and he was clearly in pain, but he made it. Makoto let out a huff and turned to where he had been sitting. She grabbed his plate and mug and took them to the kitchen, wrapped up the unfinished curry, put it in the fridge and washed out the mug. After looking at the stairs for a short time, she made her way back to the booth she had been occupying most of the morning. Sojiro had closed the cafe for a few days while Ren recovered, so they had the run of the place. And as promised, Sae had paid to get the front door fixed, so they had some privacy as well.

Makoto’s phone buzzed. It was a text from Futaba.

“ Hey, that sounded kinda rough. I'm coming over.”

Well, not total privacy, she remembered.

#

By the time Ren got to the top of the stairs, he was completely out of breath and in pain. He looked to the window sill and saw Morgana, then made his way to the shelves where some water and his meds were. Hopefully what little he ate counted as not taking them on an empty stomach.

“You're still hurt, you know. You should take it easy. And let people help you.”

He felt that familiar flare of anger, but worked to control it and shove it aside. He swallowed his pain meds, drank some more water and then sighed as he sat on his bed.

“...I know… Morgana, something is wrong with me. I keep having thoughts and feelings that don't feel like mine. I even almost got mad at you just now, and if I'm not angry, I feel nothing…and I can't hear Arsene anymore.”

“That's not good. It almost sounds like…”

“Yeah…that makes some sense based on the two dreams I had. At the end of one, I was falling and my mask broke and fell off. The other one…I don't remember details, but I got the impression that I needed to save myself somehow.”

“Well, there's an easy way to see if you have a shadow. I'd say you're too in control right now to have a palace, so we'll assume it's in mementos. If you're going to check the nav, just search your name and don't worry about a location or distortion.”

“Well, this'll be weird.”

Ren pulled out his phone and tapped the icon for the metanav.

“Ren Amamiya.”

‘Candidate found.’

Ren and Morgana looked at each other for a moment, then the former shrugged.

“There ya have it.”

“This is so strange. I've never heard of a persona user developing a shadow before.”

“Aren't I just special… I'm gonna get some rest. We'll deal with this after that. Maybe I'll text everyone and- …and we will ask for their help in fixing this.”

#

Futaba sat across the booth, staring at her laptop. When she showed up, it was clear she had been crying, but Makoto wasn't sure why. The obvious answer was Ren yelling earlier, but she wasn't sure if that was enough to bring her to tears.

“Hey, umm…”

“What is it Futaba? You seem like you've got something heavy on your mind.”

“Well… I have something to show you, but I'm not sure you want to see it. Or if I should show it to you, or anyone.”

“Ok. Can you start by just telling me what it is?”

“It's…cam footage.”

“Cam footage?”

“Of Ren.”

Makoto’s eyes went wide.

“You mean…”

Futaba nodded.

“I'm sorry for not saying anything till now, but…I watched and recorded it live…It's how I knew he was alive and was able to keep you guys updated…Mako…It's not pretty.”

Makoto barely registered the nickname.

“I need to see it.”

Futaba moved over to sit next to Makoto. The Phantom Thieves’ Oracle was strong and during the mission, was able to watch this with only disgust and concern for Ren’s safety. Futaba was not that strong yet. This was going to be hard to watch now. She reached for the play button and leaned into the side of the girl she had begun to consider something of a surrogate big sister.

“Are you sure about this, Mako?”

Makoto was surprised for a moment by the contact and the use of Ren’s nickname for her again, but it wasn't unwelcome.

“...No. But I need to see what happened to him.”

Futaba hit play, and the two of them watched.

They watched as Ren was dragged in and forced into a chair.

They watched as he was held down and injected with back to back doses of something.

They watched as he refused to speak, despite the drugs and abuse.

They watched as he passed out. Only to be woken up by a bucket of water, then kicked out of his chair, kicked in the stomach, a boot ground into his temple. They raised him up, released him from the handcuffs and gave him a clipboard. He pushed it away and received a boot to his right thigh.

They watched as he finally relented and signed whatever was on the clipboard and was moved over to sit at the table.

They watched as a woman walked in, saw the syringes on the floor, shook her head and then sat in front of Ren.

“Sis…”

Futaba reached up and stopped the video, but made no move to pull away from Makoto’s side. Her voice was quiet and strained.

“The rest is just your sister talking to him, then leaving, then coming back and helping him escape.”

“You were right. That was awful. But I'm glad you showed it to me. I needed to see what he went through.”

“He'll be ok. Right?”

“I know he will be. But we need to figure out why he's so distant and seems so diminished right now. When Haru and I saw him, we felt like we couldn't see any Joker in him like we usually do.”

They sat in silence for a few minutes. Futaba sat up and was staring at her lap.

“Hey. You don't think… N-nevermind.”

“You're wondering if someone like Ren could develop a shadow after going through something like that.”

“Huh? Well…yeah.”

“I'd be lying if I said the thought hadn't crossed my mind. I haven't had the will to check the nav, though.”

“I think we should. We need to find out what's wrong with him.”

“You're right.”

Makoto pulled out her phone, then paused in thought.

“If I understand how all of this works, he would only have a presence in mementos and not a palace. Since the cause of the distortion is so recent. Does that sound right?”

“I think so. Should we go to the station or just see if his name hits first?”

“Let's just try the name.”

Makoto touched the icon for the metanav. Once it opened, she took a deep breath, then spoke softly.

“Ren Amamiya.”

‘Candidate found.’

Chapter Text

“Ren Amamiya.”

‘Candidate found.’

#

Ann twirled her hair nervously. “Why are we all at the station? Shouldn't we be at Leblanc in case Ren needs anything?”

“There's something I need to show you all.” Makoto pulled out her phone, opened the metanav and showed the screen to the rest of the Thieves.

#

‘Inmate! Wake up, inmate!’

Ren jerked awake and winced in pain. ‘Caroline?’ He'd expected to be in the velvet room, but he was in the attic above Leblanc.

Morgana looked up from the foot of the bed. “You alright?”

“...Yeah.” He reached for his pain meds and water.

“We should get moving on telling everyone what's going on and what to do about it. You're still in control now, but the longer we wait, the stronger the distortion will become.”

“You're right, let's go.” 

With some effort, Ren descended the stairs to find the cafe empty. ‘I thought at the very least Makot- …Mako would still be here. Guess I'll text her.’

[Ren] 

Hey, where are you guys? I need to talk to all of you.

…

…

Not sent

“Uh oh.”

“What's up?”

“I tried to text Makoto, but it wouldn't go through.”

#

“Whoa, Queen. Your mask is different.”

“What do you mean, Panther?”

“It's like, half of it looks like Joker's mask.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

‘Johanna. Any idea what's going on?’

‘It seems you have gained your dear Ren’s ability to hold multiple personas. It has been quite fun talking about you two with Kaguya.’

Queen blushed slightly.

‘Can I call upon his personas like I can you?’

‘It is surely worth a try.’

“Kaguya!”

To everyone's surprise, Joker's preferred healer persona manifested behind her.

“Kaguya?”

“Yes, my Queen?”

“Umm… n-nevermind.”

‘She was going to request that we cease talking about her relationship with the Trickster, but it seems your use of his nickname for her sapped away her resolve to do so.’

‘Johanna, could you not?’

‘Whatever do you mean?’

Queen put a hand to her face and pinched the bridge of her nose. Kaguya chuckled and allowed herself to be pulled back into the split mask and she could hear Johanna laughing. 

“Anyway… We should get going. Oracle, lead the way please.”

“You got it!”

#

Ren turned from closing and locking the cafe door and hurried towards the station. He made it five steps before his right leg gave out and he fell to his hands and knees. “God damnit…” He mumbled as he pushed himself up.

“You ok?”

He bit back the now familiar flare of anger that wasn't his. “Yeah. Just gotta take it a bit slower, I guess. I gotta catch up to them, though. If they try to fight my shadow, win or lose, it won't be good.”

“Do you think they could defeat your shadow?”

“...”

Ren stayed quiet as he continued towards the station, which told Morgana all he needed to know.

#

Queen felt powerful. 

She had felt powerful since her awakening, but this was different. 

Every fight was as easy as using her ability to scope out weaknesses, then using one of Joker's personas to annihilate whatever enemy they were facing. It was a little intoxicating. She found herself wondering how he was able to keep his ego in check, if this is how he felt all the time. Her sudden overconfidence even led to some mistakes during their first few fights, but she adapted quickly and they were burning through enemies without incident after the third fight.

Oracle guided them through Mementos, deeper and deeper. After what felt like hours, they stopped to rest and recover at a safe room.

Queen sat next to Oracle. “Do you think we're close to finding his shadow?”

“Yeah. I think it's going to be on the next floor.”

“Good.” Queen looked around. “Everyone doing ok?”

She received nods and a chorus of affirmatives.

#

Ren felt weak and helpless as he entered Mementos with Morgana. As he expected, he wasn't in his thief outfit and he wasn't able to call on any of his personas. Not even Arsene.

“Morgana. I know you usually need Ryuji’s help with this, but if we're going to make it in time, or at all, you need to put everything you have into this. We have to run down any shadows we can't avoid, and you'll have to help with navigation. I'm afraid I'm pretty much…useless right now.”

“Don't worry Joker, leave this to me! Hang on tight!”

#

The Thieves braced themselves as they stood at the entrance to the area in which Joker's shadow would be. The rails twisted themselves up into a spiral and the very air felt distorted. It was all familiar, but also not. This wouldn't be like any of their other targets in Mementos. Queen looked side long at the others and nodded to them. They all returned the nod, then stepped forward.

Once through the portal, they all stopped short. Knowing was one thing, but seeing was another. Joker's shadow stared at them, and all they could do was stare back. 

He spoke with a distorted voice that seemed to be a combination of both Ren and Arsene. “I was wondering when you’d show up.” His voice was cold. Simmering hatred the only hint of emotion.

Queen took a step forward. “Joker-”

Ren's shadow raised a pistol and pointed it at her and she stopped short. “Don't start!” Queen and the rest of the Thieves flinched. “What, you gonna say you're sorry!? You didn't think the police would go that far!? You knew I'd pull it off!? Knew that I could convince your sister to go against the police and help me, despite seeing what they did to me!?” The shadow’s speech rose in pitch and intensity throughout, his breath ragged.

He was quiet for a moment and his breathing slowed. “But you know, maybe I shouldn't be surprised that none of you cared about my well being.” He spoke in a sarcastic tone. “The only reason any of you ever even spoke to me is because I have this power and was able to help you. You never really cared about me. Never really learned anything about me. Meanwhile, I've learned everything about you. I can't say I blame you though. Who'd wanna be friends with some delinquent transfer student with an assault record? …So. Why pretend you all care so much now?”

Silence.

The shadow's eyes scanned over the Thieves, watching their reactions.

Skull, Fox and Noir just stared blankly. Panther and Oracle were openly crying.

After nearly a full minute, Queen took a step forward despite the pistol still pointed at her. “Ren.” 

The shadow's grip tightened around the gun. 

“I've suspected that you might have felt this way for some time.” She took another step. “But-”

BANG

Queen went down to one knee while clutching her left shoulder.

“Queen!” The Thieves all called out as they ran forward. She was already rising to her feet and they all stopped short. 

Queen fixed Ren's shadow with a cold look as she stood tall. “You know, guns only work in the metaverse because shadows perceive them as real. Do I look like a shadow to you?” She began walking forward again.

The shadow faltered back a step.

BANG

BANG

BANG BANG BANG 

The shadow fired until the gun was empty. Each bullet hit Queen, to his eyes, but she remained unfazed and continued towards him. Once she got to him, she grabbed the pistol, wrenched it from his grip and tossed it away. 

Queen stared into the eyes of the being that was a distillation of all the anger, fear, and insecurity that dwelled within the boy she loved, and continued. “But… Every time I tried to reach you, to get you to truly open up to me, you pushed back, and assured me you were fine. I thought it best to give you your space and more time. I see now, that was a mistake.”

The rest of the Thieves walked up, surrounding Queen. 

Skull stepped forward. “C’mon man. You really think we're all only here because of Joker? I know it's true that you've helped us all out a ton, but we've also all just hung out as friends and it's always a blast.”

Panther stepped forward. “And you have to know we've always got your back. In here, or out there.”

Queen looked from her friends back to Ren's shadow. “I know the plan to let you be captured in Sis’s palace was insane. I know it put incredible pressure on you…and I know the police…treated you worse than any of us could have expected, but you know as well as I do, that was our only option. If we hadn't realized we were being set up when we did, you'd be…” She trailed off, then took a deep breath. “I know you were betrayed by your entire hometown. I know that you helped a woman in distress and your reward was a criminal record and to have even your own parents turn their backs on you, but we're not like that. We know and see the real you. None of us are perfect, but we will never turn our backs on you.”

Queen had nearly forgotten she was talking to a shadow and was reaching her hand up towards its face when the sound of an engine reached her ears and the Morgana bus burst through the portal at the far end of the chamber. Everyone turned their attention to the new arrival as Morgana slid to a stop right in front of the Thieves, looking quite worse for wear. Ren all but spilled out of the bus, landing on his hands and knees as Morgana reverted back to his humanoid form and laid on his back, exhausted and wounded.

Then Queen yelped.

Everyone turned back to Ren's shadow to see that it had taken Queen hostage, a dagger at her neck in a desperate attempt to maintain control of the situation.

Ren rose to his feet, blue flames burning in his eyes as he stared down the worst parts of himself, holding a knife to the girl he loved. “Kaguya…Mediarama.” His voice was quiet, but firm.

Blue flames flashed across both Queen’s and Joker's faces and Queen's mask was solid gray again. 

Joker's domino mask was back where it belonged.

Kaguya floated behind him as her healing magic swirled around all of the Thieves.

Ren, now healed, stepped forward.

His shadow stepped back, but kept the dagger to Queen's neck. “Stop right there! You don't wanna see her get hurt!” His voice no longer carried the eerie echo of Arsene.

“Queen. Call upon Izanagi.”

Though she wasn't sure it would work after his reawakening, she complied. “Izanagi no Okami!” There was a strange sensation of power flowing back into her and Izanagi appeared.

Ren's shadow tried to press the dagger harder against her neck, but found her to be impervious to the blade.

“Think you can take care of him, my Queen? Just don't kill him. Changing my heart by force won't do us any good.”

“Take care of me!?” The shadow's voice had risen to an ugly screech. “She’s my hosta-”

“By the myriad truths!”

The Almighty attack exploded, sending shadow and hostage in opposite directions. Joker dashed to the side and caught Queen. He held her for a moment before setting her back on her feet.

‘Nice catch, Trickster.’

‘Arsene!? God damn, is it good to hear your voice.’

‘Glad to be back.’

“Nice catch, man!” Ryuji unknowingly parroted as he and the rest of the Thieves ran up to surround their leaders. “So, what now?”

“We need to-”

“Damn you…damn YOU ALL! I HATE ALL OF YOU!” The Shadow had gotten back to its feet. “How can you forget the way they abandoned us to die!? How can you just forgive them for everything!? They're just like our old friends in our old town! They'll turn their backs on us as soon as it's convenient! They'll-”

“Shut up. You're nothing but a loose collection of my anger and insecurities, given form by the metaverse and I won't let you control me any longer. You think we had a choice? This isn't some kids game we're playing. We're fighting corruption on a national scale. We're fighting people who think nothing of killing those that get in their way. And these guys? They've all had plenty of chances to turn tail and run. Yeah, we helped them out first, but we'd be dead or in jail right now if it weren't for every single one of them.” Joker took a step forward and the rest of the Thieves followed. “So shut up…and go back to being a little voice in my head that I can ignore.”

“You…you think you can just shove this part of you aside? Ignore it? Pretend it never happened!?”

“No. But I also don't need you down here, causing me to suffer thoughts and feelings that aren't my own and lash out at the ones I care about most.”

“This won't just go away! There will always be a part of you that feels like me!”

But the shadow was fading. It eventually exploded into motes of light, then coalesced and flew at Joker, absorbing into his mask.

Joker was still for a time, staring at the spot his shadow had been. Then he turned around and bowed deeply to his friends and girlfriend. “I'm sorry…I'm sorry for how I've been acting since I came back…For not letting you guys in when you tried to help or get to know me better…I'm sorry for every negative thought I've had regarding you guys, even if I never spoke it aloud…I'm sorry for any and everything my shadow did or said…I'm sorry for allowing myself to develop a shadow at all…” He stood up straight and looked at Queen. “And I'm sorry for trying to push you away. And for lashing out at you.”

Queen walked up and held his face. “You've been through so much over the last year.” Her voice wavered with emotion. “And leading the Thieves only added to that. You held yourself together through everything and we all took that for granted. We should have taken the time to make sure you were really ok. Instead we just pushed and pushed and you took on more and more burdens. You saved all of us in some way. And we never stopped to consider if you needed saving as well.” She lowered her hands and hugged him tightly. “I'm so sorry.”

Joker hesitated a moment, then returned the hug. “I know.”

The rest of the Thieves all looked ready to launch into their own apologies, but Oracle broke the silence first. “Uh guys. I'd love to stay here and hug it out, but we should probably make like a tree before the rattling chains guy finds us.”

Joker released the hug and stood up straight. “Yeah. Let's get out of here.”

#

As the Thieves exited Mementos, Ren took one step and almost fell, but Ryuji and Makoto caught him. “Damn. Guess metaverse healing doesn't carry over.” He chuckled. “Course it wouldn't be that easy.” 

Ryuji propped Ren up from his right side and helped him stay upright and walking. “I've got you. Let's get back to Leblanc.”

“Thanks.”

#

Once back at Leblanc, Ryuji and Makoto helped Ren up the stairs and to his bed, the rest of the Thieves following. Makoto sat on the edge of the bed and Morgana curled up next to Ren, while the others occupied chairs and the love seat. 

Ren sat up with his back to the wall, looking around at his friends. He could tell they all had something to say, but were unsure how to begin.

‘Well this is kinda awkward.’

‘Give them some time. You have all been through a lot. Let everyone sort through their feelings and work out what they wish to say. That kind of open communication can only strengthen your bonds.’

‘You're right. In the meantime, though…’

Ren reached out and lightly grabbed Makoto’s arm, pulling at it in a request for her to scoot back and sit next to him. She looked back for a second, a tinge of red on her cheeks, then obliged. Once situated, she leaned her head on Ren's shoulder.

#

‘My, how bold. Snuggling right in front of your friends.’

‘Shut it. We both need this.’

Johanna chuckled. ‘I know.’

Makoto rolled her eyes, but grinned as well at the teasing. She looked up at Ren and saw he had leaned his head back on the window sill and closed his eyes. There was still some bruising visible on his face and tears welled up in her eyes as parts of his torture flashed through her memory.

#

Ren felt Makoto shift next to him and discretely opened an eye to see her hand reaching up to his hair. He cursed inwardly as he felt a split second urge to flinch, but stopped himself. He felt her hand as she ran it through his hair, a habit she’d picked up not long after they began dating, and one he quite enjoyed. He closed his eyes again, and let the comfort of being next to Mako and surrounded by his friends again wash over him. 

After some time, Haru cleared her throat politely. Ren opened his eyes and raised his head to give her his attention and Mako withdrew her hand and sat up as well.

“I feel we all have things we wish to say, but I suppose I will go first.” Haru stood and bowed, as did the rest of his friends while Mako stayed at his side. “Ren. I'm very sorry that we didn't try to better understand what you had been through, or take that into consideration when we put this plan together.” She straightened and continued. “I'm also sorry that we never made more of an effort to truly get to know you. You helped all of us through so much. You helped me escape a terrible forced relationship, and helped me realize what I need to do for my future and the future of my father's company.”

‘Yep. Awkward. I'm glad they're willing to speak openly with me though, after everything.’

Ryuji spoke next. “She said it better than I ever could. I'm not great at this stuff. I'm sorry, Ren. I kinda feel like I failed you as a friend. I'm not gonna let that happen again.” He straightened up and looked to Ann.

“You've helped me through so much…I could never repay you. You helped me with Kamoshida, Shiho and so much more. I'm sorry for not thinking more about what you'd been through and not realizing that you might need help too.”

Yuske was next. “You rescued me from an abusive home and the man that watched my mother die. Please forgive me for not better taking your needs into consideration.”

Futaba stood awkwardly and held her hands behind her back, wringing them while staring at the floor. “Um… You saved my life. I've been dealing with my own stuff, but… I'm still sorry I didn't do more, or realize sooner that something was wrong! I'll do better. I promise.”

Morgana was sitting on the window sill. “I've been with you pretty much since the beginning. I could tell every now and then you were struggling with something, but I didn't want to push or pry too much. I'm sorry.”

Ren looked around at his friends. “I accept your apologies, on the grounds that you all stop beating yourselves up over it here and now. We're all in this together and what happened is my fault as much as anyone else's. As our leader, paired with what happened in my hometown, I got it in my head that I couldn't open up or show weakness around you guys. Even Mako.” He pulled her into his side. “And for that, I’m sorry. We trust each other with our lives, but I still didn’t feel like I could really open up. I’m going to work on that.”

He laid his head back on the window sill and was silent for a minute. “I don't know about you guys, but I'm exhausted. If you're able, I'd love for you all to stay, though I can't exactly promise luxury accommodations here.

#

Ren stirred, feeling a familiar slab against his back and bindings on his wrists. This time though, he didn't panic. He stood up and approached the bars of his cell like he'd done so many times before. This time however, he was surprised to see Mako standing just outside his cell. “Mako?”

“Ren!” She rushed to the cell and grabbed his hand. “I've been here once, when you were first recovering. It's so strange.”

A familiar deep voice spoke out. “Trickster. Congratulations on regaining your mask and control of your mind. I was certain you would succeed. Though I did lend some assistance by giving the Priestess here your Wild Card ability. I was impressed by her determination to assist you and was moved to do so.” He tapped his fingers on the desk a few times. “In any case, we can now resume your fight against distortion and the coming ruin. I feel we are very close to our goal.”

A bell rang somewhere in the distance. “It seems our time is up, for now. Return to your world, and remember…I have high hopes for you.”

#

Sojiro entered his cafe, making as little sound as possible. Looking around, he didn't see anyone occupying the booths and the kitchen was silent. He made his way upstairs, avoiding the steps he knew would creak. Once at the top, he couldn't help but smile. All of Ren’s friends were passed out in various places around the attic. It did his heart good to see them all together, no doubt helping their friend recover from his ordeal.

And if Makoto was in Ren’s bed, the two clinging to each other like lifelines…

He certainly wasn't going to tell anyone.