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Soulmarks were something everyone had.
They were the subject of many after-school specials, fairytales and children’s stories. It was a simple enough concept, which most people understood by the time they were five or so; when two soulmates touched - be they platonic or romantic - a mark would appear on each of their bodies, showing that they were meant to be connected. People who were popular usually had a great many soulmarks, painting their skin with swatches of bright colours.
Like many children, Akira’s first soulmarks represented his parents: Sosuke and Ryoko. Sosuke was an office clerk; not the brightest man, but he got by with the help of his colleagues, many of whom he shared soulmarks with.
Ryoko was a university professor who taught Economics - a subject that always bored Akira - with a look of unmatched excitement in her eyes. Her skin held many marks mostly from friends and students she was especially fond of. Her favourite platonic mark was always the mark of her best friend Meiko, which was a light green.
A long time ago, when his parents were in college, Meiko had a crush on Ryoko, but nothing came of it. Even so, they remained friends long into adulthood. In fact, Meiko had helped set up Ryoko and Sosuke on their first date.
Ryoko’s mark was orange, and Sosuke’s was blue. Together, they formed a heart shape, right above his own beating heart. Perfectly complementary, like them.
Akira hadn’t formed any other soulbond until he moved to Tokyo.
Leaving his home hadn’t been easy, but Ryoko had assured him that it was only going to be for a year, and that they’d still be there for him when he came back, so Akira had reluctantly gone along with it.
Besides, what was the worst that could happen in one year?
***
As far as these things went, Akira was coping with his temporary home decently well. Sojiro was nice - if a little gruff - and while Leblanc’s attic left a lot to be desired, at least it was a roof over his head. Once he got around to cleaning it up properly, he had a feeling that he would be able to make it cosy!
Of course, even fresh starts could go wrong sometimes.
On his first day at his new school, Shujin, he ended up caught in the rain, taking shelter underneath an awning while digging through his bag from the umbrella he was sure Sojiro put in there for him.
Unable to find it, he looked up so he could gauge how soaked he’d get if he ran the rest of the way there, and met eyes with a blonde girl, who lowered her hoodie and glanced over at him curiously. Akira was about to say hi when a car pulled up beside them and an older man stuck his head out of the window.
“You’re going to be late,” said the man. “Here, I’ll give you a lift.”
The girl looked a little apprehensive, but eventually nodded and stepped into the car. “...Thank you.”
The man turned to look at Akira. “Would you like a ride too?” he asked. “There's quite the downpour today.”
“I’ll be okay,” replied Akira. “A little rain never hurt anyone.”
“Suit yourself,” grumbled the stranger with a shrug, winding up his window and driving away, leaving Akira standing alone underneath the awning. He wasn’t alone for long, however.
Right as the stranger drove away, a blond haired young man ran past Akira, clearly in pursuit of the car. Eventually, he realised that he wasn’t going to catch up and stopped. Fists tightly clenched, he shouted, “Pervert bastard!” after the vehicle.
Akira hesitated. “Pervert?” he repeated.
The boy whipped around, a scowl on his face. “What are you gonna do? Rat me out to King Kamoshida?”
“I wasn’t planning to,” said Akira. “Should I?”
The boy scowled. “Hell no!”
“Then I won’t,” Akira shrugged. “I’m Akira Kurusu, by the way.”
“Ryuji Sakamoto. You new to Shujin or something? No way you wouldn’t know Kamoshida otherwise.”
“I’m a transfer student,” explained Akira. “Today is my first day.”
Ryuji looked almost sympathetic underneath his scowl. “Word of advice, dude: stay as far away from Kamoshida as you can. Trust me, he’s not someone you want to get tangled up with. My friend made that mistake already…”
“Your friend?” Akira repeated, making Ryuji’s scowl lighten a little.
“Yeah, the blonde girl who was with Kamoshida. Her name’s Ann.” Ryuji rolled down the sleeve of his jacket, revealing a bright red soulmark on his forearm. “We’ve been platonic soulmates since middle school. Only thing is, she’s been acting super weird since she and her soulmate Shiho joined the volleyball team last year. I’m sure Kamoshida’s got something to do with it, but I can’t prove jack shit.”
“Aren’t you two friends?” asked Akira. “You could just ask her.”
Ryuji’s silence spoke volumes and Akira decided to not pry too much. “We should get to school soon,” he said at last. “My mom will kill me if I’m late on my first day…”
“I don’t think my guardian would be too happy either,” added Akira. “Do you know a shortcut?”
Ryuji nodded. “Yeah, I do. Follow me.”
***
Akira might have been new to Shujin, but he was pretty sure it wasn’t meant to look like this.
Instead of a non-descript school building, like he expected, in front of them was a towering stone building, with turrets reaching up into dark, stormy clouds. The sky was even tinged a dangerous shade of red.
This was a castle, not a school.
What was going on…?
Ryuji looked confused too, instinctually reaching for his forearm with his free hand, where Akira knew his soulmark was. “We gotta check this place out, right? This is seriously weird…”
“I’ve got to admit, I’m curious,” said Akira, eyeing the castle with a terse curiosity. “I’ll watch your back.”
Ryuji grinned. “Thanks, dude.”
The pair stepped over the drawbridge, glancing down at the churning water beneath them, and entered the foyer. Ryuji grimaced as he laid eyes upon a gaudy portrait of Kamoshida, which was hanging on the wall. “What the ‘eff is with this place…?”
Before Akira could reply, he was cut off by the clanking of armour and a booming voice declaring, “Halt, intruders!”
“Hey, we’re students here just like you,” snapped Ryuji, stepping closer to the armoured guard. “The heck? That armour looks so real…”
The guard continued to speak, as if they hadn't even heard Ryuji. Akira got the sinking feeling that whatever was piloting the suit of armour wasn’t exactly human. “Intruders will be dealt with briskly,” they announced. “It is the will of King Kamoshida.”
Ryuji recoiled. “King Kamoshida? The eff are you on about? You better start making sense right now!”
“You’re quite the troublesome slave,” remarked the guard, raising his blade above his head. “No matter. King Kamoshida will take care of you himself, I’m sure.”
“Ryuji, watch out!” Akira shouted, shoving him out of the way.
The last thing Akira felt before the guard brought the heel of his sword down on the back of his head was the burning presence of a soul bond forming between him and Ryuji.
***
Between awakening to Arsene, locking King Kamoshida in his own prison cell and meeting a strange cat-like creature that called itself Morgana, Akira hardly had a minute to breathe until he and Ryuji were safely back in the real world.
Once they were sure the weird castle was gone, Akira looked to his hand, where an electric yellow soulmark had appeared. “Huh…”
Ryuji looked just as surprised as Akira, rolling up his school shirt to take a look at his own soulmark. At first, the mark appeared black - almost disappointing, after everything - however, as Ryuji lifted his arm to get a better look, the pair realised that the colours in the mark shifted slightly, becoming more iridescent.
“Woah… it’s amazing,” said Ryuji. “Makes my mark feel a lot less cool.”
“I like it,” Akira said. “You’re my first platonic soulmate in Tokyo. That’s special.”
“I guess it is…”
Akira exchanged numbers with Ryuji, promising to talk more about the Metaverse the following day. Only then did Akira realise that it was almost midday. Sojiro was actually going to kill him if he was four whole hours late to his first day!
Luckily, Ryuji knew a shortcut and they managed to get back to Shujin before their afternoon classes started.
Kamoshida was waiting for them at the gate, which made Akira’s blood boil. Rubbing at Ryuji’s soulmark with his free hand, Akira did his best to school his expression.
Despite having to deal with Kamoshida and the Metaverse, Akira was optimistic about his future at Shujin Academy.
***
The next few days passed in a blur.
On Tuesday, he and Ryuji returned to the Castle to investigate Kamoshida’s crimes. They found more than they expected and more than either of them wanted. Ryuji’s rage was building with each discovery, until Akira was sure he was going to blow up.
Everything came to a head when they ran straight into Kamoshida and his guards. At Kamoshida’s taunting - Akira trapped underneath his boot - Ryuji finally lost his cool, shouting and cursing at Kamoshida. In that moment of total rebellion, he gained his Persona, Captain Kidd.
On Wednesday, he and Ryuji attempted to get information from the volleyball team, but couldn’t get anything out of them.
Finally, on Thursday, while he was on his way home from school, Akira overheard Ann on the phone with someone. Voices were raised, but he only heard parts of the argument. Seeing Ann sitting on the floor of the train station made Akira hesitate.
Ann was Ryuji’s platonic soulmate, which made her Akira’s platonic soulmate by association. While he wasn’t totally sure that it worked like that, Akira decided that was as good of an excuse as any, so he crouched down next to her.
“Hi, I’m Akira,” he said, holding out his hand to show her the electric yellow soulmark. “I’m one of Ryuji’s platonic soulmates. Do you want to get dinner with me?”
“Dinner with you?” Ann looked amused, but not offended, which Akira hoped was a good sign.
Remembering the yen he had gotten from the Shadows in Kamoshida’s Palace, he added, “I can pay.”
Finally, Ann stood up. "I'll pay for my food, thank you."
***
Akira had never been to Big Bang Burger but the food was cheap and pretty good, all things considered. He was definitely coming back another time.
While she was quiet at first, Ann eventually started to explain the argument that Akira had overheard. The things Kamoshida had attempted to coerce her into made Akira feel physically sick.
“I wish I could tell Shiho but I’m worried that she might do something… drastic if she finds out,” whispered Ann. “She’s my soulmate; I don’t want her to be hurt, or to hurt herself.”
“Having a soulmate doesn’t sound easy,” said Akira.
Ann shook her head. “It isn’t. Shiho is a part of me and I’m a part of her. Losing her would be…” she began, trailing off.
“Like losing a part of your heart,” Akira concluded.
Ann laughed, just a little. “You’re well spoken for a juvenile delinquent.”
“I’m often told that I’m more than that.”
“I suppose you must be…” said Ann. “We’re both more than people expect, huh?”
Ann really had no idea…
***
The next day, Akira ran into Shiho on his way to registration. He was excited to meet the girl he had heard so much about, but as he approached her, he noticed an oddly distant look in her eyes. It was the look of someone who was about to make a bad decision because they were desperate.
He had to do something, before it was too late.
“You’re Shiho Suzui, right?” he said. “I’m Akira Kurusu. I’m one of Ryuji’s platonic soulmates.”
Shiho looked hesitant. “He never mentioned you…”
“Yeah, I’m a transfer student. I only met him a few days ago.”
“Oh…” Shiho finally looked Akira in the eye. “It’s nice to meet you, Kurusu.”
“You can call me Akira, if you want. We both know Ann and Ryuji, right?”
Shiho frowned. “I think I’ll stick with Kurusu for now…”
Oh, well, where are you headed?” asked Akira, trying to keep the mood light. “I’ll walk you to your next class.”
“I’m… going to go to the nurse’s office. I’m not feeling very well,” Shiho explained. “Tell Ryuji I said ‘hi’.”
Akira waved goodbye to Shiho, walking down the hallway a little until he was out of sight. It was only then that he turned around to watch Shiho walk down the hallway, and right past the nurse’s office.
Wherever she was going, it wasn’t to the nurse’s office. Nervous for her safety, especially after what Ann had told him, Akira decided to follow her. Admittedly, he didn’t know his way around Shujin very well, so he wasn’t quite sure where Shiho was heading.
That was, until she pushed open the door to the rooftop. At first, Akira thought she simply wanted a few minutes to herself somewhere peaceful.
Then, Shiho started moving towards the edge of the rooftop and his heart sank in his chest.
Ann had been right. Shiho was going to- She was planning to kill herself!
He couldn’t let that happen!
His body moving without the permission of his mind, Akira reached out a hand to grab Shiho’s hand, yanking her back from the ledge. As he did, he felt the burning sensation of a soul bond forming between them.
Shaking a little, Shiho looked down at her hand, where a shimmering, iridescent mark had appeared. “Kurusu, I- I don’t- Why?”
“I couldn’t let you make a mistake like that,” Akira stated. “There are people out there who love you, even if you can’t see it. People like Ann.”
Tears gathering in her eyes, Shiho sobbed, “I don’t know why I- I just wanted this to stop!”
As Akira hugged her, he looked down at his left hand, where a soulmark had appeared. It was a soft teal colour. If Shiho was his platonic soulmate too, that was all the more reason to change Kamoshida’s heart.
***
Akira and Ryuji definitely didn’t plan for Ann to end up in Kamoshida’s Palace, and Ryuji flipped his lid when he realised that his platonic soulmate was in danger. Thankfully, they managed to get to Ann before Shadow Kamoshida could do anything especially heinous to her. Ann had even been able to awaken to her own Persona, Carmen, before turning her fury against Shadow Kamoshida for his crimes against her and Shiho.
However, after their first fight together, Ann fell to her knees and passed out, leaving Ryuji to carry her out of the Palace. Akira offered to help, but Ryuji refused, since he knew Ann would be more comfortable being touched by him than by Akira.
They returned to the real world, with Akira buying them each a drink from the vending machines. Ann took one, sipping it slowly, and silence hung over the trio for a few minutes.
“So… what was with that place?” Ann asked at last.
Morgana did his best to explain everything in a brief, easy to digest way, but it sounded confusing, even to Akira.
“I want to help,” Ann said, turning to Akira. “Kamoshida hurt my soulmate ; I’m gonna make him pay!”
Ryuji gave Akira a meaningful look. “She’s gonna go in on her own if we don’t bring her with us. Besides, a little extra firepower couldn’t hurt.”
Both literally and metaphorically…
Reaching out his hand to shake hers, Akira was surprised at the colour of the soulmark that seared across his palm. Fiery red, exactly like Ann.
He liked it.
***
The last thing Akira expected was for Morgana to request - or rather demand - to live with him once they left Kamoshida’s Palace. While Akira had never looked after a cat before, he was willing to give it a try. When he told Morgana that, he hissed and clawed at Akira’s hand.
“I am not a cat!” he snapped. “Don’t call me one!”
Akira definitely learned his lesson then, and refrained from calling Morgana a cat from then on.
The thing Akira was most worried about was how Sojiro would take to him bringing home what was effectively a stray cat in all but name. Luckily for him, Sojiro had a soft spot for cats, and agreed to let Morgana stay with them as long as Akira took good care of him and didn’t let him into the café when there were customers.
He knew Sojiro wasn’t nearly as mean as he looked!
Changing into his pyjamas, Akira was about to go to sleep, when Morgana piped up. “Can I- Can I sleep on your bed?”
Sitting down, Akira asked, “Why?”
“I’ve never gotten to sleep near someone before,” explained Morgana, “I think it would be… nice.”
Akira smirked. “You just want to cuddle with me, don’t you?”
“NO!” Morgana hissed, swatting Akira with his paws. “Nevermind, forget I said anything.”
“You could have just asked, Momo,” said Akira, scooping Morgana into his arms. “I’m always down for cuddles. In fact, I…”
He trailed off. Something else was holding his attention now.
A new soulmark - an almost black-grey - had appeared on his forearm.
Morgana was one of his platonic soulmates.
He had just formed a soul bond with a cat. Ryuji was never going to let him hear the end of this. The mark even looked a bit like a paw print…
On his haunches, just behind his bandana, Morgana had a shock of white fur, which definitely hadn’t been there before.
Oh well, what was one more soulmate, cat or not? Though, he definitely wasn’t going to let Morgana hear him calling him a cat again. Being scratched once was more than enough for him.
***
A day or two after Kamoshida’s change of heart, Akira came home from school to find Sojiro sitting at the bar, watching the news.
“I can’t believe this happened at Shujin…” he mumbled, rubbing at the bridge of his nose underneath his glasses. “Did that man do anything to you?”
Akira got the impression that Sojiro wanted to call Kamoshida a variety of much worse things but had elected not to. “Not really,” said Akira with a shrug. “I haven’t been there for long enough for him to know who I am.”
Sojiro managed a nervous laugh. “That’s a relief… Ryoko would murder me if I let anything bad happen to you while you’re here.”
“That does sound like Mom,” Akira replied. “How do you two know each other? She never mentioned you before my probation.”
“That’s a funny story,” said Sojiro, standing up and stretching. “Let me go brew some coffee, and then I’ll tell you. How does that sound?”
“That sounds good. Thanks, Boss!”
Patting Akira on the shoulder, Sojiro went to step around the counter. However, a burning sensation on his palm stilled him.
A soulmark.
Akira looked just as startled as Sojiro.
“Well, I’ll be… your parents will certainly be surprised to hear about this,” chuckled Sojiro. “Now, how about that coffee?”
Later that night, Akira would look at the platonic soulmark, and marvel at its warm, rich shade of brown. Just like the coffee Leblanc served…
***
As Yusuke was all too eager to tell them on their first meeting, his preferred subject of art was soul bonds, in all their forms. Following Madarame’s change of heart, he asked Akira to help him with his exploration of the human heart, expressing a fascination with the soulmark Akira had given him, when he shielded Yusuke from Shadow Madarame, mere moments before Yusuke had awoken to Goemon for the first time.
Hearing that the mark was the third one Yusuke had ever formed made Akira a little sad. At this point in his life, Akira’s skin was already scattered with soulmarks, while Yusuke only had three to his name: one from his mother, Ayaka, which was lilac; one from Natsuhiko, which was aquamarine; and the one Akira gave him.
He did not have a mark from Madarame.
Knowing the isolated life Yusuke had led up until that point, it did make sense, but that didn’t make Akira feel any better about it.
So he offered to spend time with Yusuke whenever he could, and often ended up modelling for him. More than anything, Yusuke appreciated the challenge of trying to replicate the specific shade of each of Akira’s many soulmarks.
According to him, Ryuji’s soulmark was not quite the same as Canary yellow, so he had to add a few drops of orange paint to the mixture to perfectly match it. Ann’s vermillion was tricky to get just right, since you had to blend the paint carefully to get the precise shade. At least Morgana’s white was easy to replicate , Yusuke had added, chuckling a little to himself.
Though he would never admit it, Akira was sure that Yusuke’s favourite was his own soulmark, which had appeared on Akira’s skin as a pale blue, so faint that you almost couldn’t see it.
One day, a few weeks after they met Yusuke, the artist approached Akira with a canvas.
“It has taken me some time,” he stated, looking a little embarrassed. “Your soulmark is not an easy one to replicate, after all. Nevertheless, I did my best.”
Turning the canvas around so Akira could see it, Yusuke suddenly got self conscious. “I know it isn’t my best work,” he admitted.
Akira shook his head. “It’s brilliant! I’ve never seen it captured so perfectly before.”
“... You can keep it, if you like,” said Yusuke, offering Akira the canvas.
“I will treasure it forever,” Akira replied with total sincerity. “In ten years, when you’re world famous, I’ll be able to brag that I have a Kitagawa original.”
“You flatter me, dear leader.”
***
Their new teammate - Makoto - wasn’t one for physical affection.
That was totally fair, but Akira had to admit that he was curious as to whether or not he would end up forming a soul bond with her too. So far, he had formed one with all four of his other teammates, so the way he saw it, it was only a matter of time.
However, it wasn’t until their trip into Jinbocho that Akira finally confirmed that Makoto was one of his platonic soulmates.
The weather was pretty good now that they were in the middle of summer, so Akira jumped at the chance to go out for a little day trip with Makoto, if only to bond more with his new teammate.
Makoto was excited to take a look around Jinbocho, since she had always been a fan of reading, as well as a collector of second-hand books. Jinbocho was practically paradise for her! Plus, they were planning to look around for academic journals that mentioned cognitive pscience.
The interesting part of the outing occurred when the pair were leaving one particular shop where Akira had purchased a cookbook for Sojiro, hoping that he could, subtly or otherwise, nudge him into diversifying his repertoire of recipes.
He and Makoto were discussing their theories relating to cognitive pscience, which was likely what powered the Metaverse, when a familiar girl walked up to them, giving Akira a timid wave.
“I didn’t think I’d see you here, Akira,” Hifumi said, looking towards Makoto. “Is this your soulmate?”
Akira blushed a little. “Nothing like that!” he insisted. “She’s a classmate. We’re… doing a research project together.”
“Akira, why don’t you introduce us?” Makoto said, giving Hifumi a curious once-over.
“Oh yeah. Makoto, this is Hifumi Togo,” Akira replied. “She’s been teaching me shogi for the last couple weeks. Hifumi, this is Makoto Niijima; she’s a classmate of mine at Shujin.”
With the polite introductions over, Makoto finally gave into her curiosity. “Togo-san, how long have you been playing shogi?” she asked.
Hifumi thought for a moment before replying, “Most of my life. I’ve always enjoyed games of strategy, so I took to shogi quite naturally when my mother introduced me to it.”
“Interesting… I’m something of a strategist myself. Perhaps we could meet up at some point to discuss the topic?” Makoto asked.
Hifumi gave her a tiny smile. “I’d like that, Niijima-san. If you pass me your phone, I will save my number in it for you.”
Digging her phone out her pocket, Makoto passed it over to Hifumi, who quickly inputted her number before passing it back. “Thank you, Togo-san.”
“It was no trouble at all, Niijima-san,” said Hifumi. “I’m looking forward to it.”
The two shook hands to seal the deal, and as they did, Makoto felt a burning sensation wind its way across her palm. Hifumi had left a forest green soulmark on Makoto’s palm, and she had left a silvery-grey soulmark on hers. Both were the heart shape typically associated with a romantic soulmate.
Hifumi raised an eyebrow in surprise, examining the mark closely. “I see… It appears we have much to discuss next time we see each other.”
“We definitely do,” mumbled Makoto, sounding almost breathless.
As they watched Hifumi leave, no doubt to play yet more shogi, Akira gave Makoto a cheerful grin. “Someone got lucky,” he teased. “Imagine meeting your soulmate just like that.”
Makoto wasn’t the type to blush, but her cheeks were a little pink. “She seems like a wonderful woman…”
“She is,” Akira replied. “You two are gonna get along great!”
Later that day, while he and Makoto were on the train home from Jinbocho, he was knocked against her when the train came to a standstill, confirming what he already knew.
They were platonic soulmates.
***
After Futaba’s change of heart, she spent almost a week unconscious.
Akira had been horrified when Futaba passed out, but Sojiro reassured him that it was a regular enough occurrence that he wasn’t worried. Sometimes, Futaba overworked herself and needed to sleep for a few days to give her body time to recover. The girl’s awakening probably played a part in it too, now that Akira was thinking about it.
When Futaba finally woke up, everyone teamed up to help reacclimate her to the outside world. From working the counter in Leblanc to a full-on trip to the beach, Futaba was beginning to break out of her self-imposed shell, bit by bit.
So, when Futaba texted him announcing that she was catching the train to Akihabara all by herself, he tried not to worry too much. He had been meaning to have a look around Akihabara himself, so he asked if he could join her, which Futaba enthusiastically agreed to.
On the train ride over, Akira looked at some reviews for video games, trying to decide which one he should spend his Metaverse cash on. He was still checking the reviews on his phone, when he spotted Futaba a few feet away, being bothered by a police officer. She looked absolutely terrified, and Akira’s protective instincts kicked in.
After his wrongful arrest, his opinion on the police plummeted, so Akira sure as hell wasn’t letting an officer harass the girl who was basically his little sister for no reason.
“Futaba!” he called out, striding over. “I’ve been looking for you!”
Whipping her head around, Futaba exclaimed, “Akira!”, before shuffling to hide behind him, grabbing ahold of his school shirt. For a brief moment, Akira registered a sharp stinging sensation just below his shoulder blade, but he ignored it, instead focussing on giving the cop a good telling-off for scaring his sister.
Later that day, when he was getting changed for bed, he got a chance to look at his new soulmark in the mirror. The shade of neon green was fitting for the tech-obsessed Futaba.
***
Kunikazu Okumura was dead.
Akira couldn’t stop replaying that fateful day in his head, looking for something - anything - that they could have done differently.
Kunikazu Okumura was dead, and Haru was falling apart.
How could she not be? They had killed her father through their negligence. She had every right to hate them, despise them even.
And yet, Haru wasn’t that kind of person. Despite her grief, she reassured the Phantom Thieves that she didn’t blame them for what happened, and that she simply needed some time to herself to process everything that had happened.
As her soulmate, Ryuji had fiercely defended Haru, making sure that everyone held true to their promise to leave Haru alone for as long as she needed or wanted to be alone, despite their protests.
Then, one day, two weeks after Kunikazu’s death, Haru messaged the group chat, telling everyone that she was coming back to school. Privately, she requested that Akira assist her with her rooftop garden, since she was worried that her plants might have been poorly taken care of in her absence. Ryuji was also invited, which he was beyond excited for. Ever since he found out that Haru was his romantic soulmate, Ryuji had been following her around like an excited puppy any chance he got. It was endearing, in an odd way.
As the trio were watering Haru’s many beds of vegetables, Haru leaned over to ask, “Akira, can you pass me the watering can by your feet?”
Without even thinking about it, Akira picked up the watering can, handing it over to Haru, and gaining yet another soulmark. This was probably one of the most aesthetically pleasing marks he had; the royal purple was certainly distinctive.
Ryuji had been more than a little jealous, only calming down when Haru assured him that it was simply a platonic soulmark. Akira hadn’t been lucky enough to meet his romantic soulmate yet, but he figured he still had plenty of time. His parents didn’t meet each other until they were almost twenty-five!
That didn’t mean he wasn’t a little jealous though.
***
If there was one soulmark of his that Akira wasn’t especially fond of, it was the one he shared with Goro. There was nothing wrong with it - the glittering gold was quite pretty in fact - but something about the mark always rubbed him the wrong way, ever since he first received it. He and Goro had been playing billiards, and Akira, still new to the game, accidentally fumbled with his cue stick, bumping his shoulder into Goro’s.
Goro barely even cared that he had found a platonic soulmate; instead, he regarded Akira with the same mild curiosity that he always had and returned to their game like nothing had happened.
At first, Akira believed that Goro was acting distant due to his difficult past. He was no stranger to having platonic soulmates with difficult pasts, so he hoped that Goro would warm up to him over time. All he had to do was wait…
And he would wait forever.
Because Goro Akechi was dead.
As Akira watched the golden mark on his arm fade away, he wondered if they could have stopped Goro from dying.
If they had met him earlier. If they had noticed the warning signs. If they had reacted fast enough to pull him away before the barrier fell, could they have saved him?
Maybe that was just wishful thinking, but Akira had always been an optimist.
***
After Yaldabaoth’s defeat, Akira was looking forward to some well deserved rest. The Metaverse was finally gone, so they didn’t have anything to worry about. Everyone could finally get back to their normal lives.
Maybe he could finally meet his soulmate?
Akira headed to sleep early that night, looking forward to his New Year's plans with his friends, but when he woke up, he realised that something was off.
For one, when he woke up, it wasn't to the feeling of Morgana curled up on his chest, but instead a small human boy snuggled up next to him. Akira startled so hard that he fell out of the bed, waking up the boy, who sleepily rubbed his eyes and grumbled, “What’s wrong, ‘kira?”
Then, Akira noticed the iridescent platonic soulmark on the boy's shoulder. “Morgana? Is that you?”
“Why wouldn’t it be me?” Morgana whined, not happy to have been woken up. “Come cuddle me more!”
The day kept getting stranger: Wakaba was alive, as was Kunikazu; Yusuke was living with Madarame once more, though his mentor seemed to be a far gentler man than before; Ryuji was still a member of the track team; even Shiho had returned to Tokyo.
Just when Akira thought things couldn’t get any worse, he felt the soulmark on his arm - the one Goro had given him - burning with a white hot heat, as he saw the ex-detective enter Leblanc.
Goro made some vague comment about having to speak to Akira before dragging him off to the laundromat to interrogate him about the strange world they had found themselves in. It was only Kasumi’s phone call that snapped Akira out of the conversation.
A Palace.
Kasumi had found a Palace.
***
It had been a week since Maruki kidnapped Sumire - they knew her true name now - escaping deeper into his Palace with her in tow. Though it killed Akira to watch him leave, he knew he had no choice. If he objected, Maruki could very easily do something drastic, and he couldn’t risk Sumire’s life like that.
However, the situation they returned to wasn’t much better. Sumire was still in denial of her true self, causing her Persona to go berserk, attacking Akira and Goro. Things were beginning to look dire, when Akira heard someone call his codename.
“Joker!”
Before he knew what was happening, Akira was shoved out of the way of Cendrillon’s attack, and Ryuji put himself between him and the rogue Persona.
“You came,” Akira gasped, looking amongst his friends and platonic soulmates. “I didn’t think you would.”
“Of course we came,” said Ann.
Yusuke nodded. “You’re dear to us, Joker.”
“What Inari said!” called Futaba from her perch in Prometheus.
“What kind of teammates would we be if we didn’t come to your aid?” added Makoto.
Haru readjusted her grip on her axe. “What are your orders, Joker?”
Grinning a little to himself, Akira began to give his team directions. In no time at all, Cendrillion was downed, and Sumire dropped to the floor. Akira managed to reach her in time to break her fall, catching her in his arms. As he did, he felt the burning sensation of a soul bond forming on his forearm.
Really, it was only a matter of time before he gained another soulmate.
Once the Phantom Thieves were safely out of Maruki’s Palace, Akira rolled up the sleeve of his shirt to examine his soulmark.
A pure red heart.
Sumire was his romantic soulmate.
Little did Akira know, Sumire was having the very same realisation across the city.
***
Akira wasn’t sure how to bring up the topic of soulmates to Sumire.
The poor girl already had so much on her plate. How was he meant to bring any of that up to her?
Sorry you lost your sister, got manipulated by your therapist, and found out that everything you thought you knew was a lie, all in the span of less than twelve months. Anyway, you’re my soulmate; wanna date?
There was no way that was going to work out. Heck, Sumire would probably slap him for his troubles.
Even so, Akira spent a lot of time with Sumire in the weeks following her awakening. A part of him worried that he was being selfish, trying to hoard all of her time, but when he tried to pull away, Sumire would always message him, wanting to spend time together. Eventually, he realised that Sumire really did enjoy spending time with him, regardless of whether or not they were soulmates.
Finally, one day, Sumire messaged him asking if they could spend some time together at Leblanc after school. Akira obviously accepted, letting Sojiro know that Sumire would be coming over.
Sumire wanted to talk to Akira about her work with Coach Hiraguchi - Akira was so proud of her for the progress she had made over the last few weeks - which, of course, led to her talking about Kasumi.
“I talked to Kasumi’s soulmate yesterday…” she admitted, absentmindedly rubbing at the burgundy soulmark on her arm. Though they had never spoken about it, Akira knew it was from her sister.
“What were they like?” Akira asked.
Sumire managed a quiet smile. “They were lovely. I hadn’t spoken to them since she died, but they were excited to get back in touch. They miss her just as much as I do, so it was nice to talk to someone who understood how it feels.”
She took a sip of the coffee Akira made for her. “I’m sorry, I’ve been talking for a while, haven’t I?” she chuckled, glancing away from him shyly.
“It’s okay; I like hearing you speak,” said Akira. “It’s interesting to hear what you think.”
That caught Sumire a little off guard, and she looked Akira in the eyes once more. “There’s something else I’ve been meaning to talk to you about,” she admitted, still blushing a little.
Akira couldn’t stop the fluttering of his heart in his chest, even if he wanted to, and he did not want to. He wanted to feel like this forever. “Yeah?”
“We are soulmates, aren’t we?” Sumire said. “My memories of that day are a little… hazy.”
Akira nodded, rolling up his sleeve to show her the soulmark on his arm, which was undeniably hers. “I didn’t want to bring it up, especially when you have so much else to think about.”
“This is important too!” insisted Sumire. “I-I really like you, Akira-senpai!”
“You do?”
“Of course I do! I’ve liked you for so long, but I thought we weren’t meant to be because we didn’t have a soulbond. I suppose it makes sense though. You aren’t Kasumi’s soulmate, you’re mine,” Sumire rambled, blushing even brighter red with every word. “Sorry, I’m talking too much, aren’t I? I think I’m a little nervous.”
Akira smiled warmly at her. “It’s okay, take your time.”
Taking a deep breath, Sumire finally admitted, “I think I want to kiss you.”
“Your wish is my command,” Akira replied, leaning over the countertop to press his lips against hers. Startled at the sudden gesture, Sumire took a moment to relax into the kiss. Once she had, she reached a hand into Akira’s hair, pulling him closer. He could taste the coffee he had made her on her lips.
As he pulled away from her, Akira breathlessly said,“I love you.”
Sumire smiled. “I love you too.”
***
It was over.
Maruki was defeated, and the true reality, with all its many flaws, was restored. After a slightly shaky start, Akira and Sumire were officially a couple, much to his sister’s delight and eternal (but good-natured) teasing.
Morgana had been overjoyed when he kept his human body after the final collapse of the Metaverse, and after discussing it with Sojiro, he and Sumire decided to adopt Morgana as their son. However, for legal reasons, Sojiro would be put down as Morgana’s legal guardian, at least until Akira and Sumire were old enough to legally adopt him.
There was only one thing missing. Or rather, one person.
Lavenza had been there for him since he first arrived in Tokyo, albeit as Caroline and Justine, and in the latter part of his journey, she had been an important Confidant to him.
One cool March morning, while Akira was walking home from school, he spotted a flash of white hair in the distance.
It couldn’t be…
…but what if it was?
“Lavenza!” he called out, breaking into a sprint to catch up to the girl. “Lavenza!”
Reaching out to grab ahold of the girl’s wrist, panting for breath, Akira saw the face of the girl he had thought he lost forever. She was here, in the human world, with him.
A look of recognition appeared in Lavenza’s eyes. “Trickster?”
“Yeah, it’s me. I thought I’d never see you again.”
“Me neither,” Lavenza whispered. “I thought you were gone forever.”
Embracing the girl, Akira had already started making plans to adopt her.
Neither of them noticed the platonic soulbond that had formed between them until later that night. Akira found the shade of velvet blue charming.
***
Cuddling with his wife and children, Akira found himself thinking about his soulmarks. If asked, he could point out every one of them and describe their colour with perfect accuracy. His soulmarks were special to him, as they were a signifier of the most important bonds of his life.
Pressing a kiss to Sumire’s forehead, he dozed off to sleep, feeling more content than ever before.
He was a mosaic of everyone he had ever loved, and he wouldn’t have it any other way.