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Ryuji was the type to wear shorts in the middle of winter and not feel cold.
Okay, maybe he felt a little cold, but not enough to change out of this sweet new fit. Which he’d bought on clearance. Because it was the middle of winter.
“If you catch pneumonia, I’m gonna laugh,” Ann said.
“Yeah, well, if I die from it, you’ll be sobbing at my funeral,” Ryuji shot back.
Yusuke shook his head. “How morbid…”
The thieves approached the cabinet building, and Ren waited until they were all within range before starting up the Nav. Ryuji didn’t understand how anyone could look at that place and not find it suspicious. It had all the warmth of a prison.
And speaking of warmth…
“Shit, is the heatin’ b-busted or somethin’? It dropped like t-ten degrees!”
The blonde girl shrugged. “I don’t feel any different.”
“Perhaps that’s due to your Persona’s fire-based skillset,” Yusuke suggested.
Makoto took a moment to adjust to her surroundings. “It doesn’t seem colder to me.” Everyone agreed. “Joker, check for status effects.”
“None that I can detect.”
“It’s probably those shorts,” Ann chided. “The cold’s finally catching up to you.”
“I don’t think that’s how it works.”
“Extreme weather sometimes makes shadows more or less agitated. Why can’t that logic extend to Persona users?” Ryuji glared at her through chattering teeth. “I’m serious! Maybe Captain Kidd is sick of you wearing August in December!”
“Can you handle being on the starting lineup?” Ren asked.
“‘C-course I can. I’m sure I’ll get over this soon.”
Ryuji did not, in fact, get over it.
For a short while, his condition began to improve. He fought alongside Ann and Makoto, plowing through irritable shadows like it was nothing.
Then Ren switched Ann out for Yusuke.
Makoto dubbed their current opponent the “Rhetorician of the Sea”, which was a cooler way of saying “stingray with more teeth”. Yusuke used bufudyne—his first time doing so since acquiring the skill in Mementos—and it reacted by draining him of whatever health the spell would’ve taken. He collapsed, unable to defend himself against the second round of retaliation.
Not on my watch.
Ryuji sprang into action, striking their opponent before it could do any more damage. Electricity, as it turned out, was its weakness, and he initiated an All-Out Attack to finish it off.
“Hey,” he offered his hand to the girl, “you okay?”
Yusuke didn’t respond, staring up at him with a dazed expression. His eyes weren’t unfocused enough to warrant a check for confusion, but something was clearly wrong. Finally, he said, “Y-yes, I am, thank you,” and accepted the gesture.
The second their hands touched, a chill ran up Ryuji’s spine. It was as if he’d turned on the shower, only to be hit (literally) with the realization that they’d run out of hot water. What’s more, his chest harbored a sort of discomfort unique to falling asleep in his binder.
Except… cold.
He didn’t miss how Yusuke recoiled, letting go once he was on his feet.
“Alright, now one of you’s g-gotta admit it’s freezin’!”
“Now?” Ren repeated. “Are your symptoms getting worse?”
“These ain’t ‘symptoms’, J-Joker!” He whipped his head around. “C’mon, I can’t be alone in this! Someone else needs to f-fess up already!”
“You should take a break, Skull.”
“I agree,” Makoto added. “It would be wise not to fight in your condition.”
“I’m fine. I can handle a little c-c-cold. And- and you all saw what I did to that shadow—I found its weakness! That’s g-gotta help my case.”
“Skull,” the worry in Yusuke’s voice added another layer of frost to his lungs, “you’re trembling. Allow me to accompany you off the battlefield. That last attack greatly depleted my health as well. We should both rest.”
Ryuji leaned against the wall, hoping to ease his erratic movements. “If it’ll keep you from naggin’ me, I’ll let Noir take my place.”
As the pair strayed behind the rest of the group, Ryuji continued to analyze Yusuke’s demeaner. If anyone had been acting “weird”, it was him. To an outsider, it seemed the attack did more damage than he let on. But Ryuji knew better, and this wasn’t what he looked like when hiding that he was in pain. Physical pain, at least.
“What’s up, Fox?”
“Hmm?”
“You’re thinkin’ real hard ‘bout somethin’.” Yusuke turned away, which only aided Ryuji’s suspicions. “Hey. You and I are well aware of how dangerous it can be to leave those deep thoughts unchecked. What’s up?”
“Does the cold hurt?” Yusuke asked. “I won’t tell my truth unless you tell me yours.”
“‘Course that’s how it is. Fine.” He stopped Yusuke with a hand on his shoulder, and he flinched again. “I-it does hurt. A lot. I just didn’t want my teammates to worry, least of all you. Cold’s, like, your thing, but this has got nothin’ to do with you.”
“That’s where you’re wrong. It has everything to do with me.” He waited until the other thieves were occupied with a Cerberus before continuing. “Goemon made a rather concerning statement a while ago, and I was too embarrassed to bring it to your attention. He said… he’d gotten especially close to your heart recently, that he’d practically wrapped himself around it, hence the painful cold. I imagine it starts in your chest, then branches outward, correct?”
“Y-yeah, but that don’t make sense. Why is your Persona hurtin’ people, and why me specifically? Did I upset you? Did I hurt you…?”
The cold squeezed his heart with enough force to momentarily leave him breathless, and he apparently indicated he was about to collapse, because Yusuke waived any hesitations he may have had and allowed his friend to lean against him. Ryuji heard the girl hiss as he grasped his forearms. Alright. Yep. That’s physical pain.
“H-hey…” Ryuji whispered.
“Guh- what…?”
“I ain’t g-gonna repeat myself: did I hurt y-you? Am I hurtin’ you right now?”
“You shouldn’t be asking me that question. I’m—huff—to blame for Goemon’s actions.”
“Not consciously. And even if you w-were, I prolly did somethin’ to deserve it.”
“Sku—UUHHLL…!” Yusuke yelped, body seizing. His tail, which occasionally reflected his emotions, now stood on end like a pissed off Morgana.
Either his scream or Ryuji’s alerted Ren, who made the executive decision to put the mission on hold until they’d sorted out… whatever this was.
A familiar voice echoed in Ryuji’s mind as they located the nearest safe room.
[You know why this is happening.]
You’re givin’ me too much credit. I ain’t gotta clue.
[Goemon has taken control of your heart, as I have done with Yusuke’s.]
Why!? I didn’t ask you to!
[Not consciously. Consider why we, your true selves, might find interest in the hearts of others, and what that means for your relationship. Consider how you feel about him.]
Consider how I…?
Ryuji suddenly understood.
Yusuke collapsed into a chair at the corner of the safe room. Ryuji followed.
“Stay away… it will only make things worse.”
“You’re gettin’ shocked, ain’t you?” He sat beside him. “I’m cold as shit, and you’re gettin’ shocked. That can’t be a coincidence.”
“It’s just as I feared. We’re hurting each other.”
“No, no- well, yes, but only ‘cause our Personas are tired of us not workin’ through shit ourselves.” He laughed. Yusuke still wouldn’t look at him. “Awakenin’ to one ain’t exactly a fun experience. It seems the Metaverse is incapable of half-assin’ anythin’.”
“We’re hurting each other…” The girl softly repeated, his posture wilting further.
Ryuji clenched his jaw, a rather uncomfortable way of keeping his teeth from chattering. “If- if that’s the only important part to you, we’ll never stop hurtin’ each other. I get the irony of me, mister emotional constipation himself, tellin’ you all this, but- just- ugh, suck it up and let me know how you really feel!”
“You’re angry with me,” Yusuke replied matter-of-factly. “Good. After committing my most selfish act yet, I cannot imagine reacting any other way. I continued developing romantic feelings for you even after being informed of the damage it causes your heart. Whenever you brought up your depleted stamina in Mementos, I knew. I knew, and I said nothing.”
“I could never be angry with you for that. I just wish you’d come to me sooner. Or I’d come to you. That way, we wouldn’t’ve suffered in silence.”
“Had I been the only one affected, I would’ve endured it. I enjoy loving you, Skull.”
Ryuji’s hand hovered by Yusuke’s cheek—a risky move that may very well freeze his entire body—yet it didn’t get any colder. In fact, it had started to warm up a bit. “I enjoy lovin’ you, too. But if you’re in pain, please tell me, okay? We ain’t doin’ this shit again.”
Yusuke nodded. Shutting his eyes, he leaned into his hand.
No doubt about it—lovin’ him’s gotta be the greatest feelin’ in the world.