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futaba: i have some bad news
yusuke: Futaba, at this point I don’t believe there’s any news that could possibly qualify as bad.
makoto: No, I’m going in the other direction. If there is news that you would consider bad, at this point, bad enough that that’s what you open with, then we should be truly alarmed.
futaba: i lost morgana
makoto: When?
futaba: im not sure is the thing
futaba: i had him while akechi was in the chat but when things got moving i got too panicky and lost track of him
futaba: im not gonna lie i may have blacked out for a moment so im not sure when i last saw him
makoto: That's... concerning.
futaba: yeah
mishima: he wouldn't have tried to take a train through tokyo on his own, right?
ryuji: i wouldn't put it past him tbh
ann: i miss you.
haru: Me too.
shiho: i miss you too
ann: ...i miss him.
haru: ... Yeah.
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futaba: sojiros being sus
ryuji: sus how?
futaba: idk hes been kinda off but i thought it was just bc hes missing a stray in his attic
futaba: now hes been knocking on my door all day trying to get me to come out
futaba: he doesnt usually do that
yusuke: Love, please, as a favor to me, please go talk to your father.
futaba: .
futaba: fine
yusuke: I hope she's alright. For Boss to have grown concerned for her, it must be dire.
ryuji: hey man maybe futaba was right and boss was just worried. maybe he wanted to see her for himself, not for her
ann: both
ryuji: both, sure
ann: i wish i was there with her
yusuke: That makes two of us.
ryuji: three
ryuji: we could always just
ryuji: meet up
ryuji: hang
ann: even sitting next to you at recess feels wrong without akira and morgana there
ryuji: i know
akira: I LOVE YOU I LOVE YOU I LOVE YOU
akira: i love you i love you
akira: i love you all so much im full to bursting with it im going to explode just thinking about it
akira: im gonna cry like actually
haru: Is it really you?
akira: yes haru yes my light my dearest its me
akira: i missed you so much my only consolation from all the bruises i have rn is that i can still kind of see the one you put on my thigh last time we were together
akira: it's nearly faded but not all the way
akira: not all the way
haru: Akira-kun, it's really you!
akira: it's me!
haru: You're alive!
akira: I am!
akira: And all I want right now is to grab onto all of my favorite people and hold onto you so so tight!
haru: I am arranging for a ride immediately.
ryuji: it's really you, man?
akira: yeah dude it's me
akira: im so sorry for scaring you like that
akira: futaba has me grappled like an octopus rn and she is Not Moving
akira: i owe you so many ramen dates
ryuji: you so do, asshole
ryuji: fuck you
akira: i know
akira: sorry
ryuji: im coming over
akira: you better! where is everyone else!
akira: if i'm not covered in phantom thieves by nightfall, i don't even know what i'm gonna do!
ann: i'm on the train as we speak
akira: i am kissing you with tongue
ann: not if i kiss you first
akira: sounds like a challenge
ann: no what sounds like a challenge is how you think you're gonna get through your night when none of us will let go of you long enough to so much as go take a piss
akira: that's a sacrifice i'm willing to make
makoto: How are you alive? Even my sister hasn't been home long enough for me to pretend I don't know anything.
akira: That's because your sister was covering my tracks after getting me out of there and into Takemi's trusty hands.
akira: Well, no. It's more like she took me to Sojiro, who then took me to Takemi. I don't think Sae and Takemi knew each other before.
yusuke: So she knew? Sae knew you were alive?
akira: Takemi made it sound like it wasn't a sure thing for a hot minute there.
akira: I don't know. Maybe she didn't want to get your hopes up if I ended up worse than she thought she could manage.
yusuke: I... see.
yusuke: That bad?
akira: It wasn't the beating, it was the drugs. Apparently they cooked in me or something, or maybe they mixed badly. Like an hour after Takemi laid me down I had a pretty bad reaction. I'm fine now though!
ann: THEY BEAT YOU????
akira: uh
akira: yeah, they did.
akira: i'm better now tho
ann: AND they drugged you? badly?
akira: yeah
akira: hey i love you
ann: im so mad rn
akira: i know
akira: i dont remember most of it, if that helps
ann: that doesn't help!
ann: you're the heart of the thieves, akira! if you go, we all go!
akira: babe...
akira: if anything, morgana is the heart
ryuji: nah man it's you
akira: BABE....
yusuke: Can I be the eyes?
akira: but if you're the eyes, who is going to be our hands?
yusuke: You make a compelling argument. Hm.
ann: can i be the tits
ryuji: nice then i can be the ass
akira: you're the legs, silly
ryuji: each leg has one half of the ass, i still win
futaba: we can share the brain if you want makoto
makoto: That sounds amenable. Which half do you want?
futaba: front half
makoto: That's not... oh, fine.
haru: I can be the arms, Yusuke-kun, that way you can be the eyes!
yusuke: Oh, thank you. That really solves my dilemma.
akira: look at us working this out
haru: Hmmm... But if Ann-chan is the chest, then Mona-chan can't be the lungs, can he? I'd have thought he'd be the lungs.
akira: m "I'm the back, of course! I support all of you, I keep you safe!"
akira: so true bestie i love you
akira: morgana wants everyone to know he definitely did not take my silly little mwah mwah kisses like a baby
futaba: morgana is lying
akira: morgana has never lied about anything ever
haru: So Mona-chan was with you, then? When Futaba-chan lost him?
akira: yeah he went to leblanc to check around and found sojiro talking with sae
akira: he snuck into takemi's clinic like a true little thief and sat next to me and purred all the time
akira: that's how i healed so fast, of course!
haru: Of course!
yusuke: Haha, as he said, he supports us all and keeps us safe...
yusuke: Keeping true to his word...
yusuke: Akira, what... happened?
akira: a lot
akira: what happened when?
makoto: What happened at the interrogation?
akira: listen, we knew akechi was out to get us
akira: we knew he'd been lying from the start, it was only a matter of when
akira: halfway through the fight with sae's shadow i realized that the when was then. akechi picking the date for that infiltration, and the location being what it was, that was him making his move.
akira: he pretty much had all of us exactly where he wanted us and in a situation where if he did catch us (and he would) we would be red-handed
akira: all the proof he'd need to tie us to our previous hits would be sae's heart changing in a similar way to all the other hearts we've changed
akira: i'll admit i panicked when that hit me
akira: i couldn't just sit by and let him win, i had to do something
akira: that's why i asked yall to stay put while i went to get the treasure
makoto: You left the treasure in Sis' Palace?
akira: yeah
akira: we'd still be caught for tresspassing in the courthouse and MAYBE akechi could prove that we were messing around in the metaverse, but if sae stayed the same, there was no proof that it was us who attacked all the other targets
makoto: He could still have planted evidence, if he felt like it.
akira: i was panicking, okay?
akira: for a last-ditch plan you have to admit it wasn't that bad
akira: okay yeah it wasnt good either but at least i could take the fall to keep all of you safe
makoto: Could you have? Look at you.
ryuji: yeah i wouldn't exactly say you COULD take it
haru: And it was a risky and sensless plan, besides!
haru: Sacrificing yourself for us? You know we wouldn't be happy about that.
akira: that's why i just went for it
akira: and hey, it worked, so
makoto: So, tell us about the interrogation.
makoto: Futaba said she watched you die.
akira: the same way akechi watched me die
akira: when i saw sae walk into the room, i dont even know what the drugs did to my brain but it became immediately clear to me that if i could pull her into her palace, i'd be safe
akira: i was half delirious i dont even know what my thought process was
akira: what i think happened was i talked to sae long enough that she got it in her head that i was in that interrogation room, so a cognitive me appeared there in her palace
akira: and then when the bastard came to pull her out of her seat, i got him into the palace, and then i got out
akira: i dont remember that part well but that must be what went down right?
akira: it was fucking terrifying i could see him walk in and i thought i was a goner
akira: but when he shot the guard, i could still see the man standing there
akira: it was the palace superimposing on the real world, akechi was inside and i was outside! i was safe!
akira: he saw cognitive me fall and thought he killed me, so he turned and left right away
akira: nothing weirder than seeing the back of your own corpse
akira: when sae rushed back in, she didn't cross paths with akechi bc she was out and he was in
makoto: I called her as soon as I could. I told her to go get you.
akira: and she did! she trusts you so much makoto
makoto: I'm glad.
makoto: I'm glad you're alright.
makoto: How did Futaba see inside the Palace, then?
akira: i think she was seeing what i was, because we're thieves
akira: like, she was seeing the palace superimposed on the real world
akira: you know how trippy that is
makoto: I suppose it would be difficult to discern that kind of thing...
futaba: yeah the video feed was poor quality to begin with
futaba: im not even sure i could watch it back and make out the difference
futaba: im gonna be real i feinted right after this went down so i didnt even see sae go in and get him
akira: thanks for looking out for me
futaba: ow my ribs MY RIBS I CANT BREATHE STOP
akira: get hugged idiot
haru: I've just left the car! Walking to Leblanc now!
haru: You ARE in Leblanc, yes?
akira: yeah right in the middle booth like i always am
ann: one more stop then i'm in yongen
yusuke: I'm a little farther, still.
makoto: Sorry, I just arrived at the station now. The next train is in two minutes, I'll be a while.
ryuji: i can see haru speedwalking in the distance i bet i can catch up
akira: yes! do that! get here!
akira: i'm so happy
akira: i love you i love you i love you
makoto: What do we do, then, Akira?
akira: wym we get in a cuddle pile and stay
makoto: I meant about everything else.
makoto: About Shido, and about Akechi.
makoto: ... Or even about my sister. We didn't change her heart, after all.
akira: we do nothing
akira: not our circus not our monkeys
akira: your sister can deal with her twisted views herself. she did seem a little different after she got me out, but that might have been the drugs looking
akira: shido's not our problem. he's just another corrupt politician getting in charge of a corrupt country. japan has survived worse, and other countries have, too. it's not worth dying over
akira: and akechi already thinks he killed me
makoto: As soon as you step foot in school, and your name is written on attendance, there will be proof that you are alive.
akira: i dont care. they killed me already. what are they gonna do, kill me again?
akira: akechi can't attack me in the metaverse like the black mask because i don't have a shadow. he can't attack me in real life like a man because real life has laws against it and he'll be charged. so long as i'm careful not to stay alone, i'm safe. the more witnesses the merrier
akira: and shido's lackeys can't arrest me again. what will they charge me for? being the leader of the phantom thieves? they already got that guy, and he killed himself in their custody
akira: makoto, i've thought about this, i really have. we dont have to stick our necks out to protect a whole country that would have us murdered.
akira: i stuck my neck out this time to protect you all, and my neck is still bruised and sore enough that i can't talk well.
akira: we can keep exploring mementos. we can keep targeting small palaces.
akira: but no more risking death.
akira: please.
akira: for me.
makoto: I support your decision wholeheartedly.
makoto: Not only because you're our leader, but because you're right. We shouldn't have to do all that.
ann: i agree too. i love you too much to lose you again
ryuji: i'll follow you to hell itself dude i'm behind you all the way
haru: In truth, I had been thinking of suggesting something like that while we were exploring the Casino. I didn't way anything, but I should have. I'm sorry.
haru: I was afraid you'd think me a coward, to suggest such a thing after losing my father.
futaba: we wouldnt think that
makoto: You'd have been right to ask us to pick our targets more carefully, after what happend. You'd have been right to ask us to stop altogether.
haru: I disagree.
yusuke: I've just arrived in Yongen. And I believe we should stick to Mementos alone, at least for a little while. We can discuss trying a Palace again once we're all more calm.
makoto: I think you're right.
akira: Yeah.
shiho: i didn't wanna say anything, but i did think really hard about asking you guys to stop...
mishima: i will support any decision you guys make, but i'm on team "not dying"
akira: Makoto you're the only one missing from the cuddle pile right now, where are you?
makoto: Three more stops.
akira: Hurry up!
makoto: I think I'd rather this train travel at a perfectly normal speed, if you don't mind.
makoto: You're really okay?
akira: Bruised, and my leg is killing me, but at least the drugs are out of me.
ryuji: hey, we match now! you better not get permanent damage on that leg tho
akira: it's not up to me
ryuji: yes it is! take care of your injury, dude!
futaba: i need it to go on record that they are making out right here in front of morgana like its nothing
ann: oh, let them have it
futaba: ill allow it but only bc morgana is allowing it
makoto: Just left the train! Make room for me in the pile.
ann: it's not complete without you babe
akira: cover me in phantom thieves NOW
akira: NOW i tell you!
akira: NOW!
akira: makoto you're messing with my timing
makoto: I'm walking as fast as I can.
ryuji: run coward
yusuke: Don't listen to them, we'll wait as long as it takes.
haru: Text us when you're close so Akira-kun can get his oh-so-important timing right!
makoto: Turning the corner now.
akira: cover me in phantom thieves NOW!!!