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amaranthinecanicular · 4 months

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THE KING'S CANARY TAKES FLIGHT!

The king's canary has abandoned his duty. Jimmy would argue he just quit a bad job. Either way there's a bounty on his head and a curse around his neck, and with Grian and Joel's voices ringing in his ears, Jimmy's dreams of freedom seem further out of reach by the day. That is until he saves a blaze hybrid who, for some reason, is hellbent on returning the favor. Alone, Jimmy is pathetic. Honestly, even with Tango, Jimmy still thinks they're kind of pathetic. But with a little bit of luck they just might make it.

[My gift for the @mcytblrholidayexchange, for @thesleepycat! I'm so sorry it's so late, but I hope you enjoy it, and I hope you had a stellar holiday!]

[alternatively read on ao3.]

THE KING’S CANARY TAKES FLIGHT!

It’s a catchy headline. Jimmy glares down at the trodden newspapers and admits at least this: it is a catchy headline.

One week and three towns out from the capital and the gossip still refuses to die. Jimmy blames the excess of perfectly reproduced ink on paper; if redstone wizardry hadn’t automated the process, he’s certain the printing press would never have taken off, and he’d have been able to slip through the cracks of the kingdom long before news could spread.

He skirts the edge of the street and keeps moving. The phantom twinge of a boot grinding into his toes is easy to ignore. Less easy to ignore: the voices of the townsfolk, tittering over his crime. He hears his name but more often he hears his title. Canary. Canary. Canary.

“Poor birdie. Can’t be easy, being the king’s canary,” says one woman. Jimmy doesn’t know if she’s being sarcastic or sincere; he can’t risk looking her in the face.

“Pah! Canary. Yellow-bellied sapsucker, more like,” says a man. “All he ever had to do was stand there and not die and get paid for standing there and not dying. Couldn’t even do that.” He’s starting to sound like Joel. “Got no idea what a real, honest day’s work looks like. Spoiled and ungrateful, you ask me. If I were him, with gifts like that, I’d be up in the castle no questions asked. Bitty canary’s nothing but a coward—ow!”

The man hops up and down on one foot, glaring at the oblivious butcher who’d stomped on it.

Jimmy draws his hood low.

Joel thought he was cursed by a witch. Grian thought he was born with it. The Red King said it was a gift from the gods, divine proof that he was meant to rule and no harm was to come to him.

Jimmy doesn’t know anything about a witch, or the gods, or the circumstances in which he was born, but he thinks Joel was closest to the mark. It’s a curse. It's always been a curse.

A dilemma: Jimmy needs food.

His wings are numb with cold and his feet feel like he’s leaving behind the skin with every step, but food is the pressing issue. It’s taken two weeks and five towns of varying industry, but he’s finally run through the stock he took from the castle. He’s got plenty of money for more, but money isn’t really the problem. They just put out a reward for him. Martyn’s doing, if he had to guess. If anyone was considering letting him go before, they certainly aren’t now.

Redstone has taken hold here, turned the town metropolitan, and he can hear as well as smell all the local dishes that the vendors are hawking: caramelized redstone sweets, charred and spiced meats, cups of blazepowder soup. They smell so good. He keeps to the outskirts of the market square, watching from the corner of his eye as steam wafts up every time the vendor ladles out chunky red broth. Jimmy feels the hiss of a burn on his hand; a second later the vendor’s eye twitches at a splash of hot soup. She looks up, and Jimmy ducks away before their eyes can meet.

There are no good options. If he pays for a meal, he’s almost guaranteed to be recognized and exposed. If he tries to steal something, he’s almost guaranteed to be caught and exposed. (He has no talent for thieving, as Grian and Joel proved every time they dared Jimmy to nick something, back when money was tight.) If he does nothing, his traitorous stomach will complain loud enough to garner attention, and then he’ll be exposed. Or he’ll starve. Which is also bad.

If he could, he’d have hiked through the forest until he got to the plains biome. Away from the towns and the crowds, free to hunt for his own meals. But every time he drifted from the path Joel and Grian’s voices rang in his head, reminding him that he’s never been good at camping, that mobs seem drawn to him like they knew he was weak, that he could barely hold his own with them around and on his own he was next to useless.

He’s almost at the end of the square. What then? Keep going and hope he doesn’t collapse on the road to the next town? Even the thought of food leaves him lightheaded, he’d never make it. Wheel back around and pass through the market a second time, and risk being recognized? His pace slows to a crawl. Joel and Grian were right—he can’t survive on his own. He doesn’t know why he tried. He was warm and well-fed in the castle, and if he wasn’t appreciated then at least he was secure, and he only had to die occasionally.

Among all the spiced fruits and roasting meats, there is a small cart selling apples. The man working the cart is distracted (reading a paper with Jimmy’s reward plastered across the front, because what else would he be doing), only halfheartedly calling out prices to the bustling crowd. Jimmy is several yards away. Then only a handful. And then he's within arm’s reach, and no one has looked his way once. Surely no one will miss an apple? The owner of the cart shouts, and Jimmy flinchs, but he's only making a sale to a man on the other side of the cart. They fall into animated conversation. Jimmy stands scant feet away, unnoticed.

He could do it. He could do it now. That would show Grian and Joel. If Jimmy could steal an apple, what else could he do? What couldn’t he do? Of course he could survive on his own! Oh, they’d feel so terrible for thinking otherwise. They’d fawn and shower him with praise, and they’d tell him how capable he was, how strong and clever, how they were wrong to doubt him. They’d grovel, probably. They’d tell him they were sorry that he had gone through what he’d gone through, and how they appreciated that it had been for them, and that he didn’t need to do it any longer because he had tons, oodles of other skills and gifts that made him worth the burden of keeping him. He’d show them.

If he ever saw them again, he’d show them.

The nearest apple is shiny and perfectly red. Jimmy reaches out.

Pain ravages him. It explodes hot along his side, blunt force that shatters his arm and leg and pulverizes his insides, even as it doesn't. He staggers. He chokes. Every breath feels like a betrayal, his body piercing itself over and over. The ghost of broken ribs. He chokes. He groans.

It doesn’t stop hurting. It’s getting worse. Fear and pain leave him nauseous. Where will it come from? Where where where—

There. A redstone automobile down the street, blurred by his tears. It’s moving too fast. The wheel is wobbling wildly, the redstone in the undercarriage is sparking. It’s coming straight at him. No, it’s—it’s coming straight at the apple cart.

The crowd is parting around him, now, he thinks. He’s getting looks—recognition or alarm, he doesn’t know. He tries to say run, but all that limps from his mouth is a moan. The man speaking to the vendor turns and sees him. Jimmy thinks he sees him. They have seconds.

“Run,” he thinks he says. Gasps, sobs, something.

The world jags and falls sideways. A man is above him. The man from the apple cart, and the vendor looking perturbed over his shoulder. One of them is speaking, the words bleeding and incomprehensible. Jimmy retains none of it. The pain is sun-bright. It razes away everything else.

Scant feet away, a vehicle screeches, and an automobile, out of control, smashes into the apple cart. There’s shouting, screaming. The vendor is gaping at the wreckage that is his livelihood. The man he was speaking to gapes as well, first at the splintered remains of the automobile and the cart, then at the mashed apples, then at Jimmy. If Jimmy could see him, he would know, then, the difference between alarm and recognition.

Jimmy doesn’t see him. Jimmy is dead.

Jimmy doesn’t wake up right away. First, he stops being dead. Then he’s sleeping. He’s aware when this happens, in the loosest sense of the word—there’s no dreaming, no out of body experience, nothing in particular to tether him to the world at all. But the body knows when it’s dead and when it’s not, and so Jimmy knows. He lays quietly, thoughtless, floating, starry, until his body decides to stop doing those things. Then he wakes up.

The first thing he notes is that he’s still starving. At least he’s no longer cold.

The ceiling is a bland beige, splotched with dull scorch marks. Not back in the castle, then. That’s good. He blinks. He blinks again. His eyes are crusty and dry. So is his mouth. It’s very, very dry in here, actually, and very hot. Practically boiling, but in an arid way. Now that he’s awake, his armpits and the small of his back start to prickle with sweat. He has to wrestle his arms out from under a heavy quilt to rub the last of the sleep and death from his face, and his palms scrape against chapped lips. Still, he’ll always take too hot over too cold.

“Hey, you’re awake,” says a voice. “How are you feeling?”

There’s a blaze hybrid standing in the middle of a small, round room. He’s stoking a little fireplace with—with his bare hands, by the looks of it. Wow. Jimmy’s never seen that before.

The hybrid turns to him fully. He’s shorter than Jimmy, wiry and sharp all over. He has wild blond hair, swept back from his face, the ends of it wavering into candle-like flickers of flame. His eyes are red all the way through. A long, slender tail flicks behind him, tipped in a merry ball of orange flame.

“I’m okay,” Jimmy says neutrally.

“That’s good. You, uh, looked like you were in a lot of pain before.”

Jimmy does his best not to react to that. Grian always chides him for wearing his heart on his sleeve. “Okay. I’m feeling much better now.”

“You look it,” says the blaze hybrid. Jimmy chances a glance at his expression, then away. Does he know? Impossible to tell—mostly he just looks relieved. “Do you remember what happened?”

He does, for the most part, though he doesn’t remember this man. But the faces were all blurring together at the end. “Kind of.”

The blaze hybrid scrapes a small wooden chair out from a small wooden table and drags it to Jimmy’s bedside. Jimmy does his best not to stiffen up too noticeably. The man throws himself into the chair, his limbs poking in different directions like an awkward bundle of sticks.

“We were in the market. You looked like you were in pain,” he says. “A lot of pain. You called me and the apple vendor over to you, and then a carriage took out the cart behind us. Then you—” He pauses. “Passed out. I brought you here.”

Passed out. Jimmy doesn’t correct him. Instead he focuses on the “here,” and how very not a doctor’s office “here” is. Unless this man is the town doctor, and this is just the very cluttered and unsanitary place he practices medicine. Or maybe he’s a trained healer so he saw no need for a doctor? This could be innocent. It could mean nothing.

Stupid, says a voice in his head that sounds like Joel. He knows.

Jimmy does not panic. He is so so good at not panicking. “Well. Thank you. For that. Um. And—and where is here, exactly?”

“Oh! Yeah, of course. Welcome to my home!” The blaze hybrid throws out an arm, gesturing to the small room: the tiny fireplace, the tiny table, the tiny dresser, the few utilitarian appliances and the many tinkering knick knacks scattered all over that Jimmy can’t make heads or tails of. “Temporary home. Place I’ve been renting for a few months, I guess. Welcome either way.”

“Thank you,” Jimmy says again. Still in town, it sounds like. Okay. Okay. He can work with this. What would Joel and Grian do? Fight their way out. Not really an option for Jimmy; he’s always frail after revival, unlikely to win a fight or a foot race. But he’ll figure it out. And the blaze hybrid might not know who he is. Probably. Definitely!

The blaze hybrid says, “Sorry if this is forward, but. You’re the king’s canary, aren’t you?”

“I don’t like that name,” Jimmy says immediately, like an idiot. Death always muddles his brain, blunts his filter. “I—I actually have to go, right now, immediately. Places to see, people to go, you understand how it is, thank you again for the help—”

He lurches for the side of the bed, where the floor, predictably, rises to meet him. Less predictably, the blaze hybrid catches him around the shoulders.

“Hey, hey! Careful, man, slow down.” He pushes Jimmy back to the bed. Jimmy wishes he could say it was forceful, but Jimmy's pretty sure he's just as weak as a foal, and terrified out of his mind. He must do a poor job of hiding it, because the man makes a funny sound in the back of his throat. “Oh, I’m not—I’m not going to, like, turn you in or anything. No one else recognized you, and I didn’t tell them. Don’t worry about that.”

Jimmy will absolutely worry about that, thank you very much. “Um. Okay.”

The blaze hybrid holds up his hands. “I mean it. You’re safe here. The only reason I asked is because I was wondering if it was your, uh, power that happened? Back at the apple cart? I think that’s what happened, I just wanted to be sure.”

This feels like a trap. Like the king’s men are just outside the door, waiting for confirmation before they burst in and drag him back, where Ren will likely soliloquize about loyalty and betrayal and then Martyn will lob off his head. But if that were the case, shouldn’t they have already done the bursting and the dragging? Jimmy all but confessed his identity two seconds ago. He sees no way out of it now.

He nods, just once.

“I thought so.” The blaze hybrid's eyes are deeply red. Fire dances inside them. Jimmy can’t tell if it’s reflection from the fire or something inner and innate. “Thank you. You saved my life.”

Jimmy swallows. “You’re welcome.”

“Seriously. Thank you.” He reaches out and squeezes Jimmy’s shoulder. He’s smiling. “So: don’t call you canary. Got it. What should I call you?”

“Jimmy,” Jimmy says, after he fails to think of a proper alias that isn’t Joel or Grian or King Ren. “Jimmy Solidarity.”

“Jimmy Solidarity. I’m Tango, of the Tek variety. You can just call me Tango.”

Jimmy nods. He doesn’t know what else to say.

Tango says, “You hungry?”

Is he trying to stall Jimmy long enough for the king’s men to get here? Most likely. Jimmy’s stomach decides he doesn’t care. “Oh my gosh yes please I’m starved.”

Three bowls of blaze powder soup later (better than what was being sold in the street, if only because it is now in Jimmy’s belly), Jimmy finally feels like more of a human again.

“Thank you,” he sighs, reclining back on the pillows of Tango's bed. The bowl is still warm in his hands. He’s loath to let go of it. “That was amazing. I’m, uh. Sorry if I took too much.”

Tango is still on his first serving. He laughs, and it doesn’t sound mean-spirited at all. “Dude, don’t worry about it! Nothing a chef likes more than someone enjoying his food.”

Jimmy swirls his spoon through the creamy broth at the bottom of the bowl. “Is that what you are? A chef?”

“Nah, not really. I just like cooking. Sometimes you gotta have a hobby that’s just for you, not for money, you know?”

“Sure.” It’s not something Jimmy has ever thought about, but he likes the idea. “Um, I should. I should probably go.”

“Okay,” Tango says easily. “You want some tea before you head out?”

Jimmy might actually cry. “Yespleaseohmygosh.”

The tea is even better than the soup, spiced and fragrant, smoky in the aftertaste. Somehow, against all odds, the company is even better.

Rather than being a wildly successful chef, Tango works with a nomadic troupe of demolitionists. Not a job Jimmy’s ever heard of before, but it sounds cool when Tango describes it. According to Tango and his expansive hand gestures, the redstone wizardry boom has resulted in cities and infrastructure rapidly expanding, deconstructing, rebuilding. In the chaos—his eyes brighten with the word—there’s opportunity for innovation, discovery, entrepreneurs.

“And blowing stuff up in creative ways,” he adds. “So that’s always fun. I just figured out how to make the buildings implode instead of explode—reduces debris and collateral damage, and just looks awesome.”

“That’s amazing,” Jimmy says sincerely, and Tango’s smile glows, literally. It is suddenly imperative that Jimmy break eye contact.

“Another cup?” Tango asks.

Jimmy wants to, very badly. He’s enjoying talking to Tango. He’s enjoying the warmth and the tea and the conversation where both parties see each other as people, instead of a tool or a burden. “I should probably get going.”

“Oh,” Tango says, then laughs, a little bashful. “Yeah, of course. Look at me, chatting your ear off! Let’s get you up.”

He takes Jimmy’s cup and then his arm in a firm, claw-tipped grip. His hand is bony and pleasantly hot. With his support Jimmy finds his feet, and manages three whole steps before his knees buckle.

“Whoa whoa whoa!” Tango catches him, and leads him back to the edge of the bed. “You okay, buddy?”

“I’m fine,” Jimmy says. He feels a little lightheaded, a little breathless, more than a little humiliated. “This just happens when I—it just happens sometimes. I’m used to it.”

“Do you want to rest up a little longer?”

“I really should get going. You’ve done enough for me as it is.”

Tango nods slowly. “How far are you headed?”

“Far.”

“Right.”

A pause. Jimmy clasps his hands between his knees and wills strength into his body. Usually it takes about three hours after revival to fully recover, not that Jimmy will tell Tango that. It’s not like he hasn’t had to get up and go minutes after death before. Ren was the target of back to back assassination attempts once, and Jimmy made do then. He can feel Tango reappraising him, the paleness of his face, his worn clothes and unwashed hair. He struggles not to shrink on himself.

This was a nice reprieve—a lovely surprise after a terrible death. He needs to leave before he ruins it. Oversteps Tango’s bounds, annoys him, reveals himself as something to be used or pitied.

Tango hovers, then sits beside him.

“It’s just that…you still look kinda iffy, dude. Is there anyone I could bring you to? Anyone you trust to help you get…wherever you’re going?”

“I do,” Jimmy says quickly, eager not to be thought of as pathetically alone. “I mean, I did. I mean—I don’t, anymore. They wouldn’t have been safe, is all, with the whole on the run thing, and anyway, they wouldn’t have—that is, I…” He trails off, and says lamely, “It’s complicated.”

Tango’s voice softens. “Okay. I get that.”

They sit together. Tango offers him another cup of tea; Jimmy takes it. He blows across the surface, watches the flecks of leaves bob on rippling waves.

After a minute, Tango claps his hands on his knees and stands up.

“Well hey, if you’re going to go you should at least go in some good shoes.”

He crosses the small apartment to the door, where Jimmy’s tattered shoes are propped up against the frame. Instead he grabs the sturdy pair of work boots beside them.

Jimmy blanches. “I can’t take your shoes!”

“Sure you can.” Tango sizes up Jimmy’s foot, decides it’s close enough, and pushes the boots into his arms. “They’re my extra pair, so you’re not putting me out. They might be a little snug, but I think snug is better than what you were working with.”

“That’s not the point! You’ve done too much for me. I can’t take your food and your tea and your shoes, I just can’t.”

Tango gives him an amused look. “Okay, but you saved my life, remember? I value that a little more than an extra pair of shoes. Take ’em. I insist.”

Jimmy does take them, but only because Tango also tries to give him new clothes, cloak, and packed-up food, which he turns down. This time when Tango helps him up, though Jimmy teeters, he keeps his feet.

Outside it’s still winter. In the warmth of Tango’s apartment, Jimmy had almost forgotten. Since his death night has fallen, and the streets are empty and bitterly cold.

“You’re sure I can’t convince you to rest a little longer?” Tango asks.

Jimmy draws his cloak tight around his shoulders. “Long way to go, I’m afraid. Thank you for everything.”

Jimmy looks back at him. It’s the first time he’s looked into Tango’s face in a while: he’s pointy all over, angular, bordering on gaunt. He’s a candle in the dark. His smile is tinged with concern.

“No need to thank me,” he says. “I hope you get where you’re going, Jimmy. Take care.”

He offers his hand. Jimmy shakes it. If either of them linger, Jimmy tells himself it’s only because Tango is so warm.

Jimmy walks away. With every step further he remembers that he’s a fugitive, and that he needs to go quickly, quietly, and carefully. On to the next town, and the next, and the next, until he’s run out of towns entirely and has made it to where the sky is blue and the horizon opens into forever. He looks back once, and sees Tango still standing there, waving. He looks back again, but now the door has closed, and Jimmy doesn’t know which window was Tango’s. The gifted boots squeeze gently at his toes.

His hands twitch with splinters as he reenters the market square, where the stalls have been folded up for the night and the street is empty.

Only it’s not empty. The owner of the apple cart is despairing over the broken remains, picking through sharp shards of wood. He hisses and shakes out his hands. Jimmy grimaces. He tugs his hood lower and turns on his heel.

“Hey,” the man calls behind him. “Hey you!”

Jimmy walks faster.

“You! You’re the one who—stop, blast it! You owe me a new cart!”

“I really don’t, actually,” says Jimmy, dropping his voice two octaves. A hand grabs his shoulder. Jimmy’s wings protest, pushing back hard under the cloak. The hand is shaken off. So is his hood.

“It’s you,” the man says.

“No it isn’t,” says Jimmy.

“It is! You’re the canary! That reward could buy me a whole fleet of new carts.” He looks around wildly.

“Please don’t,” says Jimmy, but the man is already hollering.

“I’ve got him! I’ve got the canary, guards! Someone!”

Jimmy turns to run but the man seizes the back of his cloak. His hand closes on the arch of a wing, and Jimmy yelps.

“Hey! Let go of him!”

There’s the distinct, winding pain of a body shouldering hard into Jimmy's ribs. Then Tango is tackling the man to the ground.

Jimmy goes sprawling. He struggles to his knees through the phantom dings and scratches of two men wrestling on cobblestone. Behind him, Tango is fuming, “What the hell, man! He saved your life, what are you doing?”

All along the street, lights are coming on. Doors are opening. Heads poking out. Eyes going wide. The town is folding in on him. Jimmy can’t breathe.

And Tango is above him, once again.

“Come on!”

He offers his hand. Jimmy takes it.

They run.

Grian and Joel would have come with him.

If he’d asked. If he’d told them. Of course they would have. They would have protected him, taken care of him. They would have sighed and scoffed the entire time. They would have resented him, and made sure he knew exactly how much of an inconvenience this was, and didn’t he know he was upending all their lives, and why couldn’t Jimmy just do his job? He was always causing problems, and never considering the effect it had on others.

The moment Jimmy revived on the cold marble of the throne room and realized he had to leave was the same moment he realized he couldn’t bring Joel and Grian with him. He couldn’t even tell them. They would have insisted on joining, whether Jimmy wanted them to or not. Whether they wanted to or not. They cared for him; they would risk implication and conspiracy for him. And they would never let him forget it.

He’ll never see them again. That hurts too much to think about, so he doesn’t.

“I’ve ruined your life.”

“You haven’t ruined my life, come on.”

“I have, I absolutely have. Your home—”

“My temporary home.”

“Your temporary home, your job, all your things. Poof! All gone, Tango! Because you helped me!”

Tango is starfished flat on his back. Jimmy is making the ground’s acquaintance with his face. They fled down the darker road out of town, figuring they were less likely to be followed, and after an hour of hard running, they both pancaked in the dirt. Jimmy has too many cramps to name, and a doubled echo of Tango’s cramps on top of that. The stars above feel judgmental. Jimmy is glad to stare at hard-packed earth instead.

“Oh my gosh, you’re my accomplice now,” he moans. “They’re going to be looking for you too. Tango, your life is over, I’ve ruined it.”

A warm hand pats at Jimmy’s back with infinite, undeserved patience. “You didn’t ruin anything, buddy. I mean it! This is for the better, if you think about it.”

“For the better. Ha.” Jimmy spits out a little bit of dirt. “How?”

“Like you said, that place was temporary. My team will pick up my stuff, so I haven’t lost any of it. Well, except for what Bdubs will scavenge. That’s a given.” Tango waves a hand like being forced to abandon his entire life in the dead of night is hand-wavable. “And the good thing about working with your buds is that they’ll always have a job for you if you need it, so no harm there. Honestly, demolition was fun, but I’ve been thinking of trying something new for a while now.”

“You’re a wanted man now. How are you going to go back? You’ll be arrested on sight.”

“Pshaw. One guy saw me help you.”

“The whole town saw you help me!”

“Hey, you’re the one they’re after, not me. By the time I get back, they’ll have completely forgotten I exist. Tango Tek who?”

Jimmy rolls his head to one side to give Tango a flat look. Tango is already looking back at him. He looks amused. That makes no sense.

“Okay, honesty time? I wanted to offer to go with you before,” Tango says. “Help you get wherever you’re going. But you seemed pretty jumpy, and I thought it would freak you out. Offer’s still on the table, though. I like traveling new places, seeing new things. Makes for good machination inspiration. And two is safer than one, right?”

“You don’t know me,” Jimmy says. His voice is weak.

“I don’t know how many times I can say this, but you literally saved my life. That makes you a pretty cool guy in my book.” He looks Jimmy dead in the eye, and says simply, “You seem like you could use some help. I’d like to help.”

Jimmy believes him. In the back of his mind he can hear Joel and Grian taunting: just like Timmy to trust the first stranger he meets. Can’t ever hack it alone, can you, Tim? Probably he’s about to run off with some maniac bent on selling his curse to the highest bidder. Or an opportunist who intends to hold this favor over his head for the rest of his life. Would be just like him to get into hot water like that. Sure, it would be nice if there were someone out there who really wanted to help for the sake of helping, and it would be nice if doing so didn’t lead to resentment or blackmail or a direct ticket back to the castle. But that person is a fantasy. That person doesn’t exist.

But Jimmy believes him.

He sniffles. Some dust goes up his nose. “We don’t even have a torch.”

“Okay, you got me there,” Tango concedes. “We’ll need to get some supplies in the next town. Oh—here, this is yours.”

He reaches into his pocket and pulls out Jimmy’s coin purse.

“It’s why I followed you. You left it in my apartment.”

Jimmy just gapes, so Tango plops the purse on his back.

“Take your time,” he says, generously.

Jimmy does take his time. After a few long seconds of fish-mouthing, he says, “I hope you took some. I was going to bribe you into not giving me up.”

Tango snickers. “Darn. Missed my chance. Guess you’ll just have to buy our first meal instead.”

He shouldn’t. He knows he shouldn’t. Even if Tango is being genuine, Jimmy is still a wanted man. Bringing him along could only put him in danger. Grian and Joel would be judging him so, so hard if they knew.

But Grian and Joel aren’t here.

“Deal,” Jimmy says.

Tango smiles. Jimmy dares to smile back.

Then Jimmy yelps at the ghost of sharp fangs sinking into his neck. “Ow ow ow—Tango, spider! Spider spider spider!”

“What spider where now—whoa!”

Jimmy yanks him up just as a spider the size of his torso skitters out of the forest, barely missing a lunge for Tango’s face.

The spider chases them a full second hour until torches intersperse the road again. If this had happened yesterday—or even a few hours ago—Jimmy is sure he’d have burst into tears.

But Tango makes this funny yelp-laugh sound when he screams, and when they finally reach safety, he cheers. Jimmy, despite himself, cheers too.

The next town is close enough to reach by afternoon the next day. They walk through the night and arrive exhausted, unwashed, hungry, and in better spirits than Jimmy expected. By a lot, actually. Turns out sharing misery halves it instead of doubling. Who knew?

Jimmy tries to keep a low profile while Tango goes to retrieve food and supplies. Waiting in an alley with nothing but his thoughts (and Grian and Joel’s imaginary advice), feeling equal parts conspicuous and insignificant, he half-expects Tango to return with guards. Maybe more than half. Even if it hadn’t all been a ruse to gain his trust and turn on him when most profitable, Jimmy finds it hard to believe Tango won’t come to regret his decision when he realizes what deadweight Jimmy is.

But all Tango returns with is two loaves of bread stuffed with roasted peppers and Jimmy’s exact change. He even managed to secure lodging. The innkeeper refused to give them a two-person room when she hadn’t vetted the second person, so Tango conceded to a single. Then he helps Jimmy climb through the window in the back. There’s a lot of flailing and scrambling and frantically beating wings, but once they’re through, Jimmy lays flat on the floor and stares up at the ceiling in wonder.

“I can’t believe that worked,” Jimmy says breathlessly. “You’re a genius.”

“Aw shucks.” The flame on Tango’s tail flares and puffs. “Thanks, man!”

They crowd onto the tiny bed and Jimmy is out as soon as his head hits the pillow. He wonders, as he falls asleep, if maybe Tango cut the innkeeper in, and he’ll wake to guards waiting to arrest him and Martyn laughing at him for thinking he got away, and Tango and the innkeeper splitting the reward money…

He wakes twelve hours later to Tango fiddling with some new redstone contraption. He sees Jimmy’s awake and says, “Morning, buddy!” Then he hands him a bowl of oats with fresh winter fruit, and a hot cup of spiced tea.

In the next town, Tango sells his little redstone doohickey, and uses the money to pay for their meals. It’s only fair, he says. And when Jimmy protests that bankrolling the trip is the least he can do for all the help, Tango just laughs.

“Back with my crew, we split everything evenly,” he says. “Theoretically, anyway, when we weren’t enabling Etho’s spending habit and Bdubs wasn’t trying to weasel his way out of it. Regardless! We should be supporting each other equally. That’s what partners do, right?”

Partners. Jimmy doesn’t trust himself not to say something stupid, so he just nods. Partners. That sounds nice.

On the road, they talk about their people.

Skizz, Impulse, Bdubs, Etho—Tango’s demolition crew, a cast of colorful characters. “You’d like them. They’re good guys. Skizz especially, he’s my bestie. Nicest guy in the overworld.”

Tango has loads of stories, a broad range from heartwarming moments with Skizz to absurd adventures with Bdubs to wild tales of Etho that make Jimmy question whether he’s a real person or not.

“He soloed a wither once,” Tango declares proudly.

“No way.”

“He did.”

“No way! You’re lying.”

“Jimmy,” Tango gasps, scandalized. “Would I lie to you?”

Jimmy’s gut instinct, for some reason, is no. “No one can solo a wither.”

“Etho can. Though if you asked Bdubs, he’d tell you he soloed it. Now that’s a lie.”

Jimmy hums. Night is falling rapidly but the sky clings to a deep, dusty orange. Joel always says that means snow.

“Grian and Joel might be able to take down a wither together,” he says. “Especially if I was there to help them. Definitely not alone, though.”

“You talk about Grian and Joel a lot,” Tango says, a gentle invitation.

“Oh, sure. I spent most of my life with those jerks. Don't really remember anything before I met Grian. I think I lived by the sea?” He daydreams sometimes about sparkling blue that stretches on forever. He’s not sure if it’s a memory or a dream. “But then I got saddled with Joel and Grian, and we kept each other alive. Or I kept them alive with my curse, not that they’d be caught dead saying thank you, no sir.”

He chuckles, and thinks to stop there. But Tango is watching him and smiling. Jimmy snaps his eyes back to the sky.

“I sort of grew out of my wings as I got older, can’t really fly with them, you know? But I could fly when I was a kid, and there I was, zooming through the trees, when bam! I get slapped in the face by some invisible brick wall, and that makes me bam! smack right into a tree. A second later, and bam! Grian smashes into a tree right next to me. Turns out he was flying behind me, saw me crash, and that made him crash, and his crash is what made me crash in the first place.”

Tango laughs. “Feedback loop of pain, huh? That’s how you met?”

“Yep. Then we found Joel two years later, and that was that. Locked in with two bullies. We kept each other alive. Or I kept them alive with my curse, not that they’d be caught dead saying thank you, no sir! They’re my—”

He almost says brothers. Thank goodness he didn’t. Even the thought of Grian and Joel’s ridicule makes his cheeks burn with shame.

“They’re my roommates, kind of. Or they were, before I started working for Ren and living in the castle. They’re why I stuck around so long, actually.”

The way their jaws had dropped, the first time he gave them their cut. He’d had the thought: I can finally repay you. I can finally be of use.

“They were the first ones who called me a canary,” Jimmy says, brightening. “It was just a joke. An annoying one that I hated, but it was ours, so I didn’t really mind that much. Martyn heard it once, and he told Ren, and, well.” He stares hard at the orange sky. “Kind of got overdone, after that.”

“Yeah,” Tango says. When Jimmy glances over, his smile is a little dim. “I bet it would.”

He seems glum. Jimmy doesn't like that. "You know, Joel has a curse too. Turns into a big monster at night. Needs true love's kiss to break it, the whole thing."

"Yeah?" Tango perks up. "What kind of monster?"

"Oh, you wouldn't believe me if I told you," Jimmy says breezily.

Tango's grinning again. Thank goodness. "Try me."

Money was always tight, when it was just the three of them. Jimmy minded, of course, though not as much as Joel and Grian did. Privately he liked that it was them against the world. The worst part, to him, were the nights they had to split a thin serving of broth and Grian and Joel were in foul enough moods to needle Jimmy for not pulling his weight.

Still, they made ends meet. And there at the end, they were even doing well. Jimmy can confidently say that Grian’s the best architect in the kingdom, and his reputation was only ever growing. He was commissioned by some nobles in the capital. This is the one, boys, this one changes everything, Grian would say, over and over, and Joel would grumble, it blummin’ better be, how much you keep banging on about it, but he’d catch Grian and Jimmy in headlocks and knuckle at their hair, so he was excited too.

They got to the capital. It was bigger and busier than any place Jimmy had ever been, built into the shadow of the king’s castle. While he worked, Joel took up odd jobs throughout the city. He was hired to clear out a nest of phantoms that was terrorizing the outer districts. He let Jimmy tag along.

Jimmy felt the death coming up on him. Claws raking his back, tearing his throat. He swung around, looking for Joel, and saw a king’s guard instead. He was bleeding and exhausted. Jimmy tackled him out of reach of a phantom’s talons; somewhere in the distance Joel screamed Timmy!; before the pain had a chance to fade, Jimmy shuddered. Jimmy died.

Jimmy un-died in the castle. Joel and Grian were nowhere to be seen. Instead there was the king’s guard, who was actually the king’s hand, who was actually Martyn.

Your whole life’s about to turn around, mate, Martyn said. You’re welcome.

“Why didn’t you turn me in?”

He manages to rein the question back three more days, until it pops free on the road. It’s started to snow, just a handful of delicate flakes that Tango tries to catch in his mouth. He’s looking at Jimmy, frozen, with big eyes and a pointed tongue poking out of his mouth.

The question is still as ill-advised as it would have been on day one. He’s sure Grian would think so. Why would you bother putting the idea in his head, he would say, why push it? Grian is smart about things like this, keeps his cards close to the vest. Joel is more forward, likes to know things upfront, doesn’t mind being confrontational about it. But Joel wins fights that Jimmy doesn’t. He’d say it’s plain stupid.

Tango doesn’t say it’s stupid. He says, “Yeah, that’s fair. I’d want to know too.”

It makes Jimmy feel almost reasonable for asking. Tango wipes his mouth and kicks thoughtfully at the road.

He says, “I’ve got no loyalty to the king. Nothing against the guy, I’ve heard some good things, but I’m netherborn, right? And I barely feel any national pride there, so not much obligation here.”

“There’s a reward,” Jimmy points out. Imaginary Joel and Grian groan in frustration.

Tango’s eyes narrow skeptically. “Sure, but you didn’t commit a crime, did you? Unless I read that article wrong. Seems to me you just left your job. You should get to quit like anyone else. I don’t see what the big deal is.”

He says it so simply. Just as simply as Jimmy thought it was.

“I mean,” Jimmy says, “I did steal some bread.”

Tango barks a laugh. “Well, now I have to turn you in. Moral obligation.”

Jimmy nods solemnly. “It’s only right. Clap me in irons, throw away the key.”

Tango keeps laughing. His nose scrunches with it. Jimmy feels a little silly for being so proud. He’s made loads of people laugh before, thank you very much. It’s just that he’s usually the butt of the joke instead of the one making it.

He likes making Tango laugh. It’s a nice laugh.

It doesn’t snow much longer, but they spend the time counting who can catch more snowflakes on their tongue. Jimmy wins by one.

“Here,” Jimmy pushes one horn into Tango’s hands. He’s so excited.

Tango turns it over, as confused as intrigued. “Is this an animal horn? Where did you get this?”

“Just now, when I went to the bathroom! There was a goat out there, it tried to kill me—”

“What—”

“Honestly it shouldn’t even be here, Grian says they only live in the mountains. But it missed, and it broke its horns off against a tree trunk.”

“Wow.” Tango admires the color and the shine, the smooth break and the grooves in the dark keratin. “It’s so cool.”

“It gets cooler.” Jimmy lifts his horn to his lips. A sweet note carries, and a flock of birds take to the sky. Tango’s jaw is on the floor.

“How’d you do that?”

“Grian knew how, and he showed me and Joel,” he says. “I thought if we were separated, or lost, or see a threat or something, we could blow this to find each other.”

Tango’s eyes are shining. “That’s an awesome idea. Can you show me?”

Not every town can be reached in one hard day’s walk. Sometimes they have to camp out on the road, laying out bedrolls and building fires to keep winter at bay. Tonight it’s cold enough that Tango gives Jimmy his extra bedding; he’s netherborn, he says, so he doesn’t need as much to keep warm. They keep the fire high and scoot the bedrolls close, talking too late into the night. And Jimmy just…tells him.

“You’re going to build a ranch?” Tango asks.

He sounds surprised. He probably looks surprised, not that Jimmy would know, since he’s having trouble looking at him.

The ranch isn’t something he likes to talk about. Every time he says it out loud, it sounds sillier, so he tries to keep it tucked safe and close behind his heart. He mentioned it to Joel and Grian once, though he’s sure they don’t remember it. Why would they? They’d been so dismissive at the time. There aren’t enough riches in the world that could convince me to sell you a farm, let alone teach you how to run it, Grian had sneered. Joel pointed out that even if there were, no one in their right mind would stick around once they realized what a slow study Jimmy was. Jimmy felt small, and he never mentioned it again.

With Tango, he told him only as much as he needed to. They were heading out of the forest biome and into the plains, where the land unfurled into smooth, rolling prairies and burst with sunflowers. The logic was sound enough on the surface: Ren’s borders ended with the biome, and with one step past Jimmy would be free and clear. Tango was just glad to visit somewhere he’d never been before. He didn’t ask further questions, and Jimmy didn’t offer further answers.

But they’ve been traveling together for weeks, now. Tango has never made Jimmy feel small.

“I’m not planning on building one, exactly,” Jimmy mumbles. He busies his hands by sitting up and thrusting his hands at the fire. A talent of Tango’s: he can build a beautiful fire in three minutes flat. “Grian’s a way better builder than I am. I’m just hoping to buy it off of someone. Something small, if the owner was already hoping to retire or something. And then I’ll pay them extra to stay on a little while and teach me how to run things.”

Tango sits up too. “That’s an awesome idea.”

Jimmy’s head snaps up. “Really?”

“Yeah, man! Way better to admit when you need help than to crash and burn just because you tried to tough it out alone. Keeping the old rancher on until you’ve got the hang of it is smart.”

Tango looks genuinely impressed. He looks admiring. Jimmy’s wings start to flutter.

“Do you know anything about running a ranch?” Tango asks. He doesn’t sound accusing like Joel, or mocking like Grian. Just curious.

“Not really,” Jimmy admits. “But I’m pretty good with animals, and I don’t mind hard work. It might take me a while to get the hang of something, but I’ll stick with it until I do.”

“That’s great,” Tango says earnestly. “I think it’s way more useful to be able to stick to something than to be good at it right away.”

One of Joel and Grian’s favorite pastimes was poking fun of Jimmy until he shouted and flustered, and then laughing at how splotchy he got. They said he looked like he had a rash. He hopes he’s not as pink as he feels now. “Thanks,” he says again.

Tango leans forward, elbows on his knees, eyes bright. “What kind of animals will you have?”

Jimmy hums. “Chickens, for sure. Lots of cows. A couple goats, I think. Maybe a warden?”

Tango’s laugh is surprised and delighted. “A warden?”

“Yeah. I was thinking like—if I could train it, then maybe it could use it’s sonic thing to round up the herd. Is that weird?”

“No, I love it! Wardens are so cool, and we know so little about them. Plus they’re kind of cute, in a scary monster way.”

Jimmy beams. “Exactly! Tango, I could not possibly agree more.”

“You’d have to bring that one up from the underdark yourself,” Tango says thoughtfully. He lights up like a firefly. “I could help you! I bet I could think of a way to get it safely to the surface.”

“You definitely could, that’s not even a question. You’re brilliant.”

Tango’s eyes go ruby round. Jimmy’s mouth opens and shuts. Should he take it back? He should take it back.

But Tango just smiles, broad and lopsided. “Thanks, Jimmy.”

“You’re—” Jimmy’s voice cracks. God damn it. “You’re welcome, Tango.”

They stare at each other. Tango says, “You have frost in your eyelashes.”

Jimmy’s eyebrows shoot up. “Huh?”

“You have—” Tango clears his throat. “You know, because it’s so cold. It doesn’t happen to me because I run too hot, so I just, uh. I noticed.”

“Oh,” says Jimmy.

Tango nods, pink at the ears. He turns quickly to the fire, stoking it with a few deliberate pokes of his fingers, then says a little too loud, “I’d love to make some mazes for your animals. The warden especially. Obstacle course type things, you know, for enrichment.”

They're just daydreaming. Jimmy knows that. But he wants it. It’s a little too revealing, how much he wants it.

He wraps his arms around his knees and rests his chin on them. “Yeah? Like what?”

The good news is that they’re getting closer to the border, if Jimmy’s map is to be believed. The bad news is that they misjudge the distance to the next town and run out of food a full three days before they get there. Tango slaps together ingenius redstone traps to catch hares that tide them over, but that doesn’t stop them from ordering two full stews each when they finally come upon a tavern, nor does it stop them from hunkering down right outside the building and inhaling the stew in companionable, ravenous silence.

Deep into the second bowl, Tango giggles, “Oh no, we’re pathetic.”

Jimmy thinks that yeah, they kind of are. He thinks, maybe, he doesn’t mind being pathetic with Tango.

Working for the king wasn’t so bad. It really wasn’t.

On his good days Ren was generous, kind, goofy and forgiving. He cared about his subjects’ problems and pushed for the industrialization that improved quality of life throughout the kingdom. He treated Jimmy like a subject instead of an equal, but like a subject he was respectful of. Most of the time. Half the time.

The issue was that, the other half the time, he stopped being the good King Ren and started being the Red King. Vicious and uncompromising. A nose for weakness and for bloodshed. Jimmy suspects it’s a curse, though it’s clear he’s not eager to break it. He makes lots of enemies, the Red King does. Jimmy knows that better than anyone. Once he died impaled on a traitorous guard’s spear. When he came to, curled around a wound that wasn’t there, Martyn was beheading the would-be assassin three feet away, the spear was cracked in half at the foot of the throne, and the Red King was howling with laughter.

Never look him in the eye, when he’s like that. Never expect an apology. Never expect to be free.

But reiterate how generous he was. Happy to pay for Jimmy’s services, and provide him with safety, food, comfort. On Jimmy’s first day he said, The crown appreciates your service, lad. You have been touched by divinity to prove our birthright by providence, and for this we shall be gracious. How might we show our appreciation? No price is too high for the king.

Jimmy is still surprised he managed to stop quaking long enough to request a stipend for his family. (Family sounded more sympathetic than roommates, he figured. He was glad Joel and Grian weren’t around to hear.)

Martyn looked annoyed by the request, imposing at the king’s right side, and Jimmy tried to clarify, something modest, please, but Ren didn’t hesitate. The first payment was enough to set the three of them up for life, if they were scrupulous. The second payment ensured they could live comfortably without having to work another day ever again. The third payment was excess, and it never stopped. Grian and Joel were overjoyed.

Tango is frowning. It’s a strange look on his narrow face. Jimmy has rarely seen him without a smile.

“I guess that’s generous,” he says, slowly.

“It was,” Jimmy insists. He fingers the leather pouch weighed down by his earnings. More than enough to get him where he’s going and then some. The Red King may be waiting to kill him for abandoning his post, but Jimmy can’t deny that the only reason he has any chance at all is because of his kindness.

“Right. Right.” Tango scrubs a hand through his hair—it sends sparks flying off the ends. Jimmy watches them swirl with the snow, and then he watches Tango’s mouth purse as he makes funny humming and scoffing sounds. Jimmy looks back at the sparks again with renewed focus.

“It’s just,” Tango blurts, “You didn’t really have a choice, right? I guess it was nice that he paid you, but you weren’t allowed to say no to the job offer, because it wasn’t really an offer. And obviously you weren’t allowed to leave.”

Jimmy shifts uncomfortably. “I guess. What’s your point?”

“I don’t know. I just don’t think you should be defending him, is all. He forced you to hurt for him. He didn’t give you a choice. You shouldn’t have to be grateful.”

His eyes are fierce. Striking, hot like live coals. The sharp angles of him look harsh in a way that Jimmy’s never seen before. He doesn’t know what to say.

The indignance goes out of Tango’s shoulders. His tail curls. “Sorry. Not my place.”

Jimmy thinks of agreeing with him. Instead he says, “Don’t be. That’s nice of you to say. Thanks.”

Tango smiles, but it doesn’t have the spark it usually does. They walk for a few more hours. Tango’s silence is uncharacteristic, and it makes Jimmy antsy. He feels like he’s done something wrong. He doesn’t know how to fix it.

Eventually they decide to take a break before the next leg. Not for long, if they want to sleep in beds tonight, but it’s good to get off their feet for a little while. Jimmy nibbles at some jerky and sips at his waterskin. The only downside to the break is how the winter reasserts itself. He very carefully does not wince at the cold water that needles down his throat.

“Here,” says Tango.

He holds out his hand for the waterskin. Jimmy gives it to him, though he knows he has his own. Tango clasps it firmly between both hands, and after a moment, hands it back. Steam puffs cheerily from the top. The next sip Jimmy takes is hot enough to make him shiver.

“Thank you,” he sighs. He takes another scalding gulp and shuts his eyes to focus on the warmth as it flushes through his chest and belly. “You’re amazing, Tango.”

Tango says, “You know, I worked in a coal mine.”

It catches Jimmy off guard. “You did?”

“Yeah, for about a year. They hired me as an engineer, to make things safer and more efficient. Not an easy balance, but a fun challenge.” Tango licks his lips, then says, “I actually worked with canaries. Designed an apparatus that resuscitated them when they passed out.”

“You did?” Jimmy says again. Broken record, Joel would say. Jimmy can’t be bothered to care. His chest is winding tight.

“Yeah.” There’s something off about Tango’s face, his voice. He looks a little earnest. He looks sad. “The owners of the mines weren’t too interested, but the miners themselves, they took as many as I could make. We all loved the little guys. Didn’t want to see them get hurt.”

“Oh,” Jimmy says. “That’s really cool.”

It’s a silly thing to cry over, so he doesn’t. He does indulge in a moment of bravery and reach out to hold Tango’s hand in his. Tango just runs his thumb over Jimmy’s knuckles, over and over. He doesn’t let go, even when they make it to town and a room and a bed.

When Jimmy wakes the next morning, Tango is still holding his hand.

“Tango!”

Tango jumps up with a start, sending the wood for their fire pit scattering. “What! What’s up? Are we running?”

“No no no—” Jimmy skids to a stop in front of him, wings flaring for balance. He’s grinning so wide his cheeks hurt. “That caravan we just passed. There was an old woman in the last cart, did you see her?”

Tango, gathering the sticks back up again, gives him a quizzical look. “Yeah?”

“Right, well, she had a thorn in her foot, I could feel it, and I figured she wouldn’t recognize me because she could barely see. So we got to talking, and I took the thorn out—bunions the size of mountains, man, I’m telling you—and look! Look what she gave me!”

He sweeps his hands out from behind his back. The green glass bottles slosh and clink together. Tango’s jaw drops.

“Ohmygosh, is that—is that wine? Jimmy! That’s wine! You’re amazing!”

Jimmy laughs, triumphant. “I know! I’m amazing!”

They jump up and down for a while.

“Okay okay okay, we should be smart about this,” Tango says. He stops jumping but keeps flapping his hands. “If we’re careful, I bet we could make these last the rest of the trip.”

Jimmy nods rapidly. He’s already removed the stopper on the first bottle. “Right. Just a couple sips a night, to warm us up.”

He takes a swig, then hands the bottle to Tango. “Right! Just a night cap. We’ll play it smart.”

“Can you?” Jimmy asks, deep into the second bottle of wine.

Tango has been giggling for the past hour, this funny consonant sound like an ignition clicking. The more they drank the bigger he built the fire pit, until the flames roared higher than they are tall, but Tango is happy, so Jimmy is happy. “Absolutely! Can I what?”

“Tango, Tango. Can you tango?”

Tango’s face is flushed. The pink clashes with the red of his eyes and the amber of the fire. Jimmy thinks it’s lovely. “Can I what?”

“Don’t laugh, this is an important question!” Jimmy is giggling too now. “I’ve wanted to ask you since we met. Do you actually know how to tango?”

“Jimmy.” Tango lifts his chin, expression sloppily stern. “What kind of question is that? Of course I know how to tango.”

Tango does not, in fact, know how to tango. They dance anyway, spinning and dipping and swinging each other in circles. They make flagrant and frankly ugly use of their horns. Tango nearly throws Jimmy into the fire by accident and then fishes him out at the last second. In return, Jimmy tries to lead Tango in a waltz he barely learned at the castle. They laugh so hard they stomp on each other’s feet.

They dance and dance and dance until they spin out of the safety of the firelight and get attacked by a skeleton. Then they stumble back to the fire and dance some more.

THE KING’S CANARY AND HIS COAL MINE?

“Is this kind of racist?” Jimmy asks. “It feels kind of racist. They’re calling you a whole coal mine.”

Jimmy and Tango squint together at the newspaper that nearly got them caught. Tango’s involvement has finally been noticed. His attempt to get them lodging for the night was met with guards and a frantic escape into the forest, where they crouched beneath a rotted old log until their legs fell asleep and their pursuers moved on. Then Tango pulled out the flier he’d grabbed in his haste.

He pokes at a short paragraph detailing his life. Well. His work history, mostly. “I think maybe it’s a reference to the fact that I used to work in a coal mine. I’m surprised they knew that.”

“Still feels kinda racist,” Jimmy says, then sighs. “I’m sorry, Tango. I knew you’d get caught up in my nonsense eventually, and it’s finally happened.”

Tango snorts. “I think I’ve been caught up in your nonsense for a while now, partner. This is like recognition for all my hard work! It’s kinda cool being on a wanted poster, huh? None of the other guys have bounties on their heads, not even Bdubs. I can’t wait to see their faces.” He prods Jimmy with a pointy elbow. “Guess we really are partners in crime now, huh?”

Jimmy knows he should feel guilty. But Tango is smirking at him, like they’re sharing a secret, and Jimmy banks the warmth of it in his chest like like something to be hoarded and adored. “Guess so.”

Tango’s name in the papers means they have to avoid towns and main roads. Meaning, in turn, that the safest option is to just keep to the forest.

This is fine in the daylight. Exciting, even! Jimmy always marvels at how Tango keeps their energy up. Cutting through the forest is more direct than the roads, anyway. It’s a bit of a struggle, but they’re making good time.

Then night falls, and suddenly it’s mobs mobs mobs, and Jimmy is shrieking and fighting with creepers and zombies and spiders while Tango is scrambling to find a clearing and build a fire big enough to ward them off. Somehow, they manage, after many scrapes and bruises, but winter is only ever deepening. The cold reaches into Jimmy’s bones. All of his joints ache, and even with the fire beside them and all of Tango’s extra bedding he shakes so hard he can’t sleep. He tries to keep his teeth chattering to a minimum.

“Jimmy,” Tango whispers from the next bedroll. Jimmy cracks his eyes open. From one side Tango is lit up in gold, but from the other the moon bleaches all his warm hues blue. “Jim?”

Jimmy does not let himself stutter. “Yeah, Tango?”

“You’re still shivering.”

“Um. Yeah. I guess I am. Sorry.”

“Why are you apologizing?”

Jimmy falters. “You already gave me all your blankets. I—I keep putting you out.”

“You’re not putting me out. Don’t think that.”

His hand brushes Jimmy’s cheek. Jimmy sees it coming and still he jumps at the first brush of warm thin fingers.

“You’re freezing,” Tango says, brow screwing into a knot. He bites at his lips, his eyes wide and worried. Moonlight glints off the points of his teeth. “Okay, so—I run hot. Blaze hybrid and all. If you’re up for it, I think it would help a lot if—if I get in there with you? Insulation and body heat and stuff.”

Oh, Jimmy won’t freeze to death at all. His face is on fire. “You don’t have to, Tango.”

“I want to,” Tango blurts, a few sparks flaring off the ends of his hair. Then he subsides, fidgety and shy. “If you want to, I mean.”

“I want to,” Jimmy says. “That could—that might be nice. Thanks, Tango.”

Tango’s shoulders sag in relief. His smile is toothy and painfully awkward. “Okay. Cool. I’ll just, uh—wriggle on in then. Incoming.”

Jimmy snorts. Tension, miraculously, dissipates. Tango does wriggle in, and when he’s done wriggling, he tucks the blankets under him to insulate the heat. The difference is instant, cocooning Jimmy in warmth so profound it practically tranquilizes him, eyelids suddenly heavier than bricks. He knows he should be embarrassed. Gratitude and affection drowns it out.

“Is that better?” Tango asks.

“Yeah.”

“Good. Okay, good.”

His arm rests gingerly across Jimmy’s shoulders. Already half asleep, Jimmy nudges into the narrow cage of his body. His sternum is hard and Jimmy’s nose thaws against it. "Thanks, Tango."

Tango’s arm relaxes. The world smells of spiced tea. "Always, Jimmy."

Jimmy sleeps better that night than all the many nights he’s spent on the road thus far. Better than any night in the castle. Better than he has in a long time.

They’re less than a day’s travel from the border when the snowstorm hits. While the sun is up Tango and Jimmy trudge and trudge and lob snowballs at each other, and when the sun is down they’re forced to cobble together some sort of shelter. Eventually Tango rigs up something droopy and wet that does nothing to keep out the cold but at least will keep them from being buried alive.

“Oh my god, it’s awful,” Tango laughs.

“Shut up, it’s amazing,” Jimmy says, because it is.

They drink the very last of the wine and then hold each other close for the rest of the night. For the first time since Jimmy met him, Tango shivers. Jimmy holds him hard and tries his best to rub warmth into his back.

And then Jimmy gets caught.

It’s his own fault. Of course it is. It always is.

The snow has stopped by morning, but Tango is still shivering. His golden hair is just hair, no sparks or flames at all. His tail is barely a smoldering ember.

“I’m fine,” he assures Jimmy though cracked blue lips. “It’s just a cold, it’ll pass. Not so good in the rain and snow, is all. I’ll be right as rain in no time, don’t even w-worry about it.”

Jimmy does worry. The only food they have left is hardtack, and the only water is freezing cold. Tango’s so weak that he can't even heat it. “There’s a town near here. You rest, I’ll keep my head down and get you something warm to eat.”

“Don’t,” Tango says, but any sternness is undercut by his trembling. “I’m telling you, I’ll be fine. If we get going now we’ll make it to the border before sundown. I’m serious, Jimmy, don’t.”

“I won’t go,” Jimmy lies. “Rest anyway. One nap to regain your strength won’t kill us.”

It takes some convincing, but eventually Tango agrees, and drops off nearly as soon as Jimmy cards a hand through his hair. Then he tucks Tango in, builds the fire as high as is safe, and hikes through the snow to the nearest village.

When he gets there, the townsfolk are too busy digging themselves out to really spare him a second glance. Notably, he doesn’t see a single paper with his name on it, not even in the tavern. He keeps his head down anyway, he’s careful, and he doesn’t whoop with joy when the tavernkeeper says they serve blaze powder soup, no matter how badly he wants to.

As soon as the town is at his back he sheds his cloak to wrap up the bowl and keep the heat in. A little sloshes over the side, but not much. In minutes his spine is aching and his muscles are seizing with cold, but it’s fine. Tango isn’t far.

He doesn’t see the club coming at all. Suddenly his head is cracking open, and his teeth are rattling in his skull, and starbursts are blotting out his vision and he’s on the ground, in the snow.

There are men. There are ropes. Jimmy blinks sluggishly and stares at the soup, splattered and steaming, and thinks, but that was meant for Tango; what will Tango have to warm him now? And he thinks, I’ll have to get free, so I can get more.

Darkness pulls him under.

“For the last time,” says the mercenary. “Where’s that coal mine attached to your hip?”

He’s one of five. Jimmy doesn’t know which one; they all look the same, even a week out, with the same rough beards and ugly laughter and bad humor. He might be able to discern them if he ever looked at their faces for more than a second at a time, but he refuses to do that, even when they yank on the rope slowly skinning his wrists and grab his chin and sneer inches from his face.

“For the last time,” Jimmy says back. “I wasn’t traveling with anyone.”

The man growls. Jimmy’s wanted poster is shoved in his face. It’s old, the ink smudged and barely legible.

“Bullshit. It says right here, coal mine. We want that reward, canary, and we’ll have it.”

“The paper’s wrong,” Jimmy snaps. “But kudos, you know, for being able to read. You don’t look the type.”

The back of his hand splits Jimmy’s mouth open. Blood speckles the snow in bright ruby droplets. The earth spins and Jimmy starts to list toward it until a meaty hand throttles his collar and brings him nose to nose. Jimmy looks sharply to the side.

“Watch yourself, canary. Mouth off like that again and I’ll skewer and roast you over this fire.”

It’s a bad fire, objectively. Tango’s are better by far. Jimmy shouldn’t say so, but he’s going to, because he’s angry. When he woke up and realized what had happened, he was angry. The next day he was angrier. And the day after that he was angrier still. He keeps expecting himself to cower, but his fury won’t let him. He’s angrier than he’s ever been in his life. He’s angry at the mercenaries, and at Ren and Martyn. He’s angry at Joel and Grian and his curse and the world and himself. He’s so sick of fear and sadness and hurt. The hurt won’t ever stop but he can get rid of the others. He can spit in this man’s face and damn the consequences. It’s not like he hasn’t died before.

Jimmy opens his mouth but all that comes out is a grunt of pain, echoed by the mercenary when another one comes and kicks him in the hip.

“No, you fuckin’ won’t. Reward’s only if we bring him in alive. You kill him, I kill you.”

Around the pitiful fire the other mercs guffaw in unison. The first man growls, gives Jimmy a shake like a dog with a rabbit, and then throws him aside.

“Reward don’t say nothin’ about roughing you up,” the man says. His boot digs into Jimmy’s stomach. Jimmy glares down at the snow and dirt and blood and doesn’t give him the satisfaction of crying out.

They try to get Tango’s whereabouts out of him for a while longer, but eventually grow bored with his silence. After a short debate they toss Jimmy the bones of their dinner. Jimmy ignores it.

In the dead of night, when most of the mercenaries are sleeping except the one on watch, Jimmy thinks he can hear the musical call of a horn in the distance. He thinks he must be dreaming.

At the end of the second week, the mercs get drunk. More drunk than any other night. At first Jimmy thinks this might be an opportunity for escape.

They drink more. They get reckless. Jimmy thinks, oh, this is bad. He’s right.

All they do at first is taunt him. Shove him around a little. A few more bottles in and they come up with a quick, admittedly creative game involving Jimmy’s curse. One mercenary grabs a rock and has the others stand around him in a loose circle. Jimmy is forced to stand in the center as well, and as the man with the rock turns slowly, threatening each of his friends one by one, the other merc watch Jimmy for his reaction. When Jimmy flinches at a strike to the shoulder or hip or face, the mercenaries try to dive out of the way of the hit they know is coming.

They do this for an hour. Jimmy is barely standing by the end of it. He doesn’t cry out once.

He doesn’t cry out, either, as they drag him to a tree and tie him to the trunk. Drunk fingers make poor knots. He could get out of this, he thinks. If he could just get his feet under him. If he could just make his hands work and his vision stop swimming.

The mercenaries are speaking to him. Words register on delay.

“Can the canary sing for himself?” one mercenary slurs. “Let’s find out!”

“It won’t work,” Jimmy mutters. His curse has never worked on himself. They don’t hear him.

One pulls a crossbow, and takes too long fumbling a bolt in. The others egg him on. “If you kill our reward, I’ll take it out of your hide,” one of them says, but doesn’t stop him.

“Stop distracting me,” says the man with the crossbow. He takes wavering aim. “I’ll jus’ knick his arm.”

Jimmy stares down the stock. He thinks about all the time Joel and Grian have ever laughed at him. He thinks of all the times Joel and Grian have ever made him laugh. He thinks of Tango, and the fragrance of spiced tea. He wonders if dying for real will feel like every other time he’s died.

A bolt slots neat and sharp between his ribs, and Jimmy thinks, yes, this hurts just as much as every other time.

The pain is blinding. He died to an assassin’s arrow once, choking on blood that both was and wasn’t flooding his lungs. It took ages. He hopes this is quicker. He can’t catch his breath. His head hangs and tears press from his eyes. For a second his vision clears.

There’s nothing there.

His head snaps up. The mercenary is still taking aim.

He shouts, “Tango, don’t—”

An inferno consumes the camp, and Jimmy’s vision sears to colorless white.

The mercenaries are screaming. A fire is roaring. Someone cuts Jimmy free, but he doesn’t see who. He can’t see anything. Pain comes in from everywhere, too much to separate. He’s burning and he’s bruising and he’s coming apart. All of it coalesces, all of it becomes the one lancing bolt that isn’t in his ribs. He can’t think of anything else. He can’t think at all.

“Tango,” he chokes. “Tango—”

His vision starts to go. No. He can’t die, not to this. If he dies, then that means Tango—

If Jimmy could lift his head, he’d see the forest on fire, and the mercenaries burning alive. He’d see Tango’s heaving back, bright as a star, and he’d see him turning back to find him, a hand pressed to the wound in his side.

Jimmy does not see. Jimmy is dead.

First, Jimmy stops being dead. Then he’s sleeping. In some starry, dreamless place, he grieves. Then he wakes up.

The first thing he notes is the ornate ceiling, a mural to Ren’s magnificence. Various takes on this same theme are painted in every room of the castle, so it's pretty obvious where he is. Either he was dead much longer than he's ever been or some other mode of transportation cut the travel time down to a fraction. Maybe both.

The next thing he notes is Grian and Joel standing over him. That explains that--Grian probably flew him here. They stood over him like this the first time he died, too. An old man had had a heart attack nearby, though they didn’t know it then. Jimmy was dead, and then he wasn’t, and then he was staring at Grian’s face, a thousand miles away, and Joel beside him, blubbering into his hands. When they realized he was alive they screamed.

They don’t scream this time, and they aren't crying. They look like they might have been, though. Their eyes are rimmed with red.

“Look who’s awake,” Grian says. His wings are poorly groomed and his smirk doesn’t look half as shit-eating as it usually does. He nudges Joel in the side. “Go get him, Joel.”

Joel glares. “Why me? You go get him!”

They argue about it for a minute, though Jimmy is too muddled by death to follow. Who are they fighting about getting? Ren? Martyn?

He settles back into his pillows. It doesn’t matter, does it?

Grian wins, eventually, much to Joel’s chagrin. He turns his glare on Jimmy, as he usually does. Jimmy expects to be noogied or boxed around the ears. Instead Joel hooks an arm under his neck and butts their foreheads together.

“If you ever scare me like that again,” he says, and sniffles hard, “I’ll bloomin’ kill you, you hear me?”

He huffs and grumbles his way out of the room. Jimmy watches him go. He turns his attention to Grian.

Grian waves a little. “Hi, Tim.”

“Hi, Grian,” Jimmy says, and he bursts into tears.

Grian holds him. “There there, you big baby,” he says, and pats his back gently.

Tango is gone, Jimmy tries to say. He tries to say, I’m sorry you had to save me again, I’m glad to see you, Tango’s gone. Tango’s gone.

Instead he cries and snuffs and gets snot all over Grian’s red sweater. Somehow, Grian lets him. He pushes at Jimmy until he scoots over on the bed. There’s more than enough room for them both; the beds in the castle are bigger and softer than any he shared with Tango on the road. That thought sets him wailing again. Grian chirps at him, sits him up until Jimmy’s slumped in the center of the bed and Grian can sit comfortably behind him, picking through his wings while he hiccups and sobs and shakes.

The tears don’t stop, but eventually they quiet. Various saline fluids drip silently down his face while Grian preens him.

Grian says, “Why didn’t you tell us you wanted to leave, Timmy?”

Jimmy’s breath shudders out of him. “You—you would have come with me.”

“Obviously.”

Jimmy can hear Grian’s eye-roll in his voice. He bites the inside of his cheek. “…You would have made me feel bad about it. I didn’t want to ruin your life.”

Grian’s practiced fingers twitch to a stop deep in his feathers. He huffs, withdraws his hands, then closes them firmly on Jimmy’s shoulders and turns him in place.

“You ruin my life every day, Timmy,” Grian says. He's frowning, but he meets Jimmy's eyes with determination. “But so does Joel. And I ruin yours and his too. We're all messing with each other, all the time. That’s how it’s meant to be, or we wouldn’t be—we wouldn’t be—”

“Yeah,” Jimmy says. Grian’s face falls into relief.

“We went after you anyway, you understand?” he says, gentler than before. “It was a lot of work, but we’d do it again. And we’d only make fun of you a little. So next time, just take us with you, save us the trouble.”

“Okay.” Jimmy’s eyes swell up again. “Okay.” Then he says, “I met someone.”

“I know. We were tracking you both. We found him first, then he helped us find you.” Grian pulls his sleeves down over his hands to wipe carefully at Jimmy’s face. More tears take the place of the last.

Jimmy can barely get the words out. “He’s gone, Grian. I don’t, I can’t—he’s gone.”

Grian’s eyebrows fly into his hair. “What?”

The door opens. Joel staggers in, supporting a wild-eyed Tango. His hair is a mess, singed at the tips. His slim chest is a cocoon of white bandaging. He is very much not dead.

“Jimmy!”

Tango breaks free despite Joel’s protest. He launches at Jimmy and immediately falls flat on his face. Jimmy feels it first.

Jimmy screams a little. Then he lurches out of Grian’s grasp and straight off the side of the bed.

“You’re—you’re alive! Tango, you’re alive!”

“I’m alive? You’re alive!” Tango springs up. His nose is bleeding. His hands are warm on Jimmy’s arms, helping him up, then on his face. The calloused pads of his fingers, the chips of his claws, the warmth of him. Alive. “I can’t believe you went to town like that, I told you not to, ooohhh, I’m so mad I could kiss you—”

“You’re alive,” Jimmy is sobbing. “You’re alive.”

Tango’s mouth wobbles, then purses, then wobbles some more. That makes no sense. What reason does he have to cry?

He pulls Jimmy into his chest. Every awkward angle and sharp jut of bone digs into him, and Jimmy only holds closer, tighter.

“I thought I lost you,” Tango says. His voice cracks. “I thought I’d never see you again. When I saw what those bastards did to you, I lost my mind. I could have burned the whole forest down. I could have killed them all.”

“You did kill them,” Grian says flatly. “Like, all of them. Barely left any for me and Joel. Rude.”

"I hurt you," Tango says. His arms around Jimmy stop holding so tight, which won't do. "When I burned them, I hurt you. You died for me, again. I'm so sorry."

"I don't care about that. I come back to life, Tango, you don't. You—" He pushes Tango back by the shoulders, feels his heart break at the sight of the bandages. "Oh my god, you did get shot. I knew it. You can’t do that again, not ever.”

Tango makes a clucking, clicking noise. Through the panic, Jimmy thinks: I missed your silly noises. “Yeah, okay. I’ll do my best to not get shot again.”

He’s smiling. It’s brilliant. He’s brilliant. He's alive.

Tango taps their foreheads together. Jimmy’s eyes flutter shut. His nose is clogged, but he fights for a deep breath anyway. Just one breath of that spark and spice. Just one more. Just one more.

“Also I’m here,” Joel says loudly. “If anyone cares.”

Jimmy ignores him.

Jimmy is on the road again. The air is cold but not bitter. The snow is finally starting to thaw.

Grian and Joel filled him in on what happened to his bounty. Turns out as soon as they learned that he fled, they went to appeal to the king on his behalf. Predictably, the king ignored them. Joel and Grian are not to be ignored, as Jimmy knows better than anyone.

After weeks of dedicated campaigning and psychological warfare, in which they managed to turn the whole capital city against its monarch, the Red King gave way to King Ren. King Ren remembered that actually he liked that funny little canary guy, and didn’t think it was all that groovy to hold him against his will. The bounty was lifted, a retraction was printed, and Grian and Joel took off after Jimmy. Instead they found Tango fuming in the snow. The mercenaries were acting on a bounty that wasn't even live anymore.

Jimmy isn’t ready to believe any of it until Martyn, grudgingly, hands him a severance package in the form of several bags of gold, the reins to a genuinely massive horse, and an official pardon with the king’s signature and seal. Ren calls Jimmy dude in it.

“What are you going to call him?” Tango asks.

“Norman, I think,” Jimmy says. Tango nods approvingly.

“Norman. I like it!”

Tango is walking beside Jimmy with a pardon of his own, and even a small sack of gold as an apology for the bounty. No horse, though. He’s the main reason Jimmy hasn’t mounted and rode off into the horizon. Joel and Grian are closing out their own affairs, and then they’re planning on catching up to Jimmy and helping get him set up in the next biome. Ranching still doesn’t seem like the kind of life they’d enjoy, so he doubts they’ll stay. Jimmy will live on without them. He did in the castle, and the did on the road. They can survive apart. It's nice to know, still, that they'll come when he calls.

As for why they're trailing a day behind, Jimmy suspects the only real reason for that is because they’re giving him and Tango time to…he’s not sure what.

Jimmy says, “I guess you don’t have to escort me to the border, anymore.”

Tango kicks at some slush. “I guess not.”

“You could go back to your demolition crew. Or anywhere else you wanted.”

“Yup. Yup.”

The sun is rising. The sky is mostly pink. In the distance birds are singing.

“I was thinking—”

“If you wanted, you could—”

They look at each other. Jimmy laughs, and so does Tango, clear and loud.

“You first,” Tango says.

Jimmy summons his courage. He’s surprised at how easily he finds it.

“You could stay,” he says. Tango stops walking, and so does Jimmy.

“What?”

“You could stay at the ranch, I mean. You said you wanted to see the plains, so you’re still welcome to join. You could stay at the ranch. For a little while, or—or however long you’d like.”

Tango stares at him. Jimmy’s courage falters, but does not crumble. He starts rambling.

“You wouldn’t have to pay rent or anything. Just help me around the ranch sometimes, with the cows. And the warden. And when you want to go explore, you could, and the ranch could be like—like a homebase or something. I’d never expect you to get hurt for me. And you’d—you’d never expect me to get hurt for you.”

“I wouldn’t,” Tango says. “Never.”

“I know.” Jimmy’s throat is tight. “I know you wouldn’t.”

Tango takes a few deep breaths. He looks a little starstruck, which Jimmy wasn’t expecting, and is very sweet. With each one breath the flames in his hair and tail swell and ebb, swell and ebb, until they calm down with one firm exhale. Jimmy waits patiently.

Tango meets his eyes and clears his throat. “Yeah, yes, I’d like that. I’d really really like that. I was going to say the same thing, but you said it better. You’re really incredible, you know that?”

Jimmy kisses him. Quick, the corner of his mouth.

Tango looks starstruck again. “Wow.”

Jimmy spins to face his new horse and mess with the bridle. It nickers knowingly. “Ahem. Um. Are we both going to be able to fit, do you think?”

There’s a sound that might be Tango slapping his cheeks. “Only one way to find out!”

They do both fit, though it takes about ten minutes of flailing and sliding off the side and Norman probably laughing at them in horse. The whole thing is objectively humiliating. Jimmy doesn’t care a whit.

It’s full morning by the time they’re ready to start moving again. Tango’s arms come around Jimmy’s waist. His smile is sharp and crooked at his shoulder. “Ready, rancher?”

A thrill goes up Jimmy’s spine. “Born ready!”

He gives Norman a little kick. They rocket into a gallop, and in under five minutes Jimmy is somehow the one tumbling off the side of the saddle.

Tango howls with laughter. He pulls Norman into a canter, then a trot, then a walk. It’s clear which of them have actually ridden before. “Oh man, I’m sorry, are you okay?”

Jimmy groans from the ground. “Maybe you should drive the horse.”

That sets Tango off again. “Sure, sure. I’ll drive the horse. Here, let me help you up.”

He leans down, offers his hand. Jimmy takes it.

“My hero,” he laughs. “My rancher.”

#life series #traffic smp #double life smp #team rancher #mcytblrholidayexchange2023 #jimmy solidarity #tangotek #tango tek #grian #joel smallishbeans #ran's writing #life series fic #fantasy au #Jimmy is on the run for his life #Tango is just along for the ride #Jimmy and Tango's Big Disaster Road Trip

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party-of-rpg-muses · 2 years

Text

There’s something I’ve been wanting to do for a while now. For some time, I’ve been seeing people talk about what happens at the start of the Okumura arc and I feel people oversimply a certain issue. So I’d like to go over and give my own viewpoints.

For context, at the start of the Okumura Arc, Morgana has a falling out with the Phantom Thieves and leaves the group until he reconciles with them and rejoins with Haru in tow. Many people proclaim that Morgana is acting like a brat or that he insults Ryuji several times throughout the game and the one time Ryuji insults him back, Morgana throws a tantrum. Me, personally, I believe there’s more to it than that. However, I’d like to point out that this isn’t me defending Morgana and protecting him while saying it was Ryuji’s fault. Similarly, I will not be saying that Ryuji was completely blameless.

First, this scene. It takes place on the beach after Futaba’s Palace and she officially joins the Phantom Thieves. Ryuji does basically say that Futaba is better at navigating the Metaverse than Morgana, who has shown multiple times to be unsure of things, despite his skills. He’s had moments where he admits to things he doesn’t know. This is their argument, to which the others basically ignore. Ryuji doesn’t outright call Morgana “useless”.

All this happens later that day, at night. For context, Morgana was awoken from his sleep by a nightmare, causing him to doubt his existence. He begins to fear that he’s just a Shadow and that he has no real identity. Yes, Morgana does reflect on him being useless, but isn’t too bothered by it at the moment. If anything, this is the first time Morgana starts to consider that he’s losing his place among the Thieves; as Futaba is better at analyzing the Metaverse, especially when compared to someone who spent a lot of time within it. Not to mention that before Makoto joined, he served the role of Analyzer. Both the role of Navigator and Analyzer, roles he was quite proud of, were taken from him.

But for the time being, Morgana is more concerned with who or what he is, his sense of self starting to take a hit.

This one takes place a few days later, when Futaba is analyzing the information from Sae’s laptop. Ryuji takes a moment to poke fun at Morgana, causing him to react how one would expect him to react. However, I’d like to draw attention to Ann’s comments. While she tries to make him feel better, her calling him “cute” bothered him, no doubt causing him to think she views him as nothing more than a simple housecat. There are also a few times where Ann does seem to talk about Morgana like a mere pet, like asking Joker if he takes Morgana out for walks.

And this one here occurs the first time you enter Mementos after Futaba joins your party. Futaba explains how Mementos is expanding and giving her theories as to why, thus causing this. Futaba was able to figure out how Mementos works while Morgana, who has been to Mementos several times in the past, wasn’t able to figure out much about it. It’s at this moment that he finally starts to fall into his depression, losing his sense of self.

I’d like to point out that depression isn’t just being really, really sad. Someone who is depressed can also start to close themselves off from those around them or even cause a complete personality shift. Morgana clearly wants to get his issues off his chest, but changes his mind. He feels like he doesn’t want to burden others with his own problems.

And this is when Morgana’s depression really sets in. The way he sees it, he feels like the group only sees him as either a vehicle to drive around in Mementos or as a cute little kitty. When asking Futaba about what she found, she merely brushed him off and her comments about him possibly being wrong about being human struck a nerve. The entire time, he insisted that he was human. He can take people calling him a cat, since that’s what he looks like and people keep calling him a cat, but at this point, he begins to worry he isn’t even a cat, but possibly being something else entirely.

Again, Morgana wants to talk about his issues, but can’t bring himself to do so and worries more about Joker, even trying to act like his usual self to hide his pain and causing his personal issues to fester within him.

And here is where things finally reach their boiling point. Perhaps out of the entire group, Morgana was the one most ready to tackle Okumura, no doubt so he can reaffirm his position in the group. Not just to the others, but to himself. But when the group (most notably Yusuke) express hesitation, Morgana finally has enough and leaves. I’d also like to point out that the third image mirror the very first in the exchange between Morgana and Ryuji.

And even here, Morgana is somewhat regretful about leaving. There’s very much a part of him that doesn’t like the idea of leaving, but he feels it’s something he has to do.

More of the same; Morgana trying to reaffirm to himself that he is human and that he’s not some useless housecat.

And here, Joker and Makoto talk with Haru at Shujin, wherein she admonishes the Phantom Thieves for not helping Morgana. Not a single one tried to reach out to Morgana when he started feeling down. Though, one can’t help but wonder if it would matter, considering his pride, which most likely created a vicious circle of self-doubt while not wanting others to know.

And it’s here in Mementos that the PT ambush Haru and Morgana before apologizing. Though Ryuji initially refuses, due to believing he didn’t do anything wrong, as the two always make fun of each other, not realizing things were different. And after chasing Haru and Morgana, Ann apologized on behalf of the Thieves. Even Ryuji apologized, but he lets it slip and uses the word “useless”. Of course, this causes Morgana to think that nothing has changed and they still think he’s useless. Basically, Ryuji said “We still think you’re useless, but we don’t care”, which sets Morgana off.

And finally, the group finally lets their feelings out. Ryuji desperately wanted Morgana to listen to them and Morgana states that he wanted to protect his pride. Keep in mind that he’s a very proud person/cat and tends to stick to his guns. I also want to point out that just before this exchange, Sugimura (Haru’s fiancé) kicks Morgana into a wall, to which Ryuji angrily shouts “The hell are you doing to our friend?!”, openly referring to Mona as his and the group’s friend. And even after, he tried to play the injury off, despite being clearly and seriously hurt.

It isn’t until Haru tells him to be more honest that he finally relents and opens up completely to the group. He just wanted to be useful and have a reason to stick around, as opposed to everyone else, who joined because they were put down by society and wanted to change it.

And the group is more than happy to welcome Morgana back, cementing his place within the Phantom Thieves once more, even coming to play during the encounter with Shadow Okumura.

#Persona 5 #Persona 5 spoilers #Morgana #long post

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misssakuramochi · 5 months

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hello there mochi !! i hope its okay if i use your name (＾▽＾) could i please request for a persona 5 romantic matchup?

my name is clockwork. i use he/they pronouns and i’m sixteen. i’m an intp and 9w4, leo sun; capricorn moon; and virgo rising. i’m also transmasc (ftm) and was wondering if you could include headcanons for when i come out to whoever you match me with? if not, that’s alright!!

i’d prefer being matched with someone from the phantom thieves, but as long as they’re not a legal adult, i don’t mind being matched with one of the confidants either (ie, mishima, togo, etc)! i was wondering if i could get both a male and a female matchup? but if not, just a male matchup would be fine with me too (　＾∀＾)

personality wise, i’m a bit on the reserved side but i can be super energetic once i know who i’m talking to! i’ve actually been told i can look intimidating (i have a bit of resting bitch face LMAO) but i’d like to think i’m just a goofball who tries to make everyone laugh when he can. i have a lot of energy whenever i’m around people that i like and have trouble knowing when to tone it down when it’s too much. i’m a super loud person who enjoys making others smile, especially if i know that someone doesn’t laugh a lot (it only encourages me more)! I try to act all cool and like i’m calm/collected, but the reality is i’m just a kid who wants to have fun! i’m a very imaginative person and i love trying to find the beauty in everything. i’m more of a half-full than half-empty kind of person, though i have had times where i can be pretty pessimistic. but i’m usually a very bright person who does his best in everything, and i want to leave a positive impression on people.

i can be a bit of a people pleaser, and a lot of the times i might accidentally put others before myself. but because i’m like, a naturally very emotional person, i can get super upset and angry whenever i don’t feel heard or like i can’t talk about my personal opinions. i’m also a pretty air-headed person, where i can be completely clueless to a lot of situations where i’m not aware of my surroundings. i can also overthink a LOT at times, it is horrendous. i will convince myself that someone hates me when the reality is they just had a bad day or something. i don’t like being judged or feeling like someone’s not putting enough effort into our relationship if i’m obviously trying my best to talk to someone. i also have a tendency to hold grudges for long periods of times and have a short temper/can be passive aggressive, which makes it difficult at times because i can be upset at someone for even small things for a while. i do my best to manage my anger and frustration, but there are definitely times where my patience get worn really thin, sigh… (´⌒｀｡)

some of my interests include playing video games as a pass time (mainly rpgs and rhythm games). i also love watching and reading different animanga series, my favorite genres are usually fantasy or sci-fi like jujutsu kaisen or dr stone! i also really like to draw, i draw digitally in my free time whenever i feel the inspiration hit me, haha! i also love to eat out at restaurants and experience different types of foods and cuisines to try! going out to different places is super fun, and i have plans to travel the world when im older.

i suppose, if i were to describe my type i’d want someone who’s very patient with me. someone who can match my energy and understand when i’m tired or overstimulated without me having to verbalize it. i’d want someone who can communicate with me rather than just expect me to pick up on their feelings (i have been very bad at that in the past). basically, i need someone who is completely the opposite to me mindset wise LOLOL

sorry this got so long, but thank you so much for taking time out of your day to read my request! if you end up not being able to do it, that’s alright as well! if you need to dm me for anything, go ahead!! thank you so much , and stay hydrated !! (*´∇｀*)

I match you with...

HARU

○ You want opposite? You've got it in shy, reserved, observant Haru. She checks all the boxes. Once she learns a person, Haru is very aware of their emotions - she knows when you need space, or when you need a comforting hand - at least as much as anyone can without words.

○ Patience is also Haru's middle name. She's actually too patient with the people she loves sometimes, which is where you step in to stand up for her while she's learning to do it for herself. On the flipside, her calm gentle self is there to bail you out and calm you down when your tempter gets the better of you. Gentle and working hard at being communicative, it's hard to be angry with her. It's cute how you always have each other's backs, but in different ways.

○ Haru hasn't had the easiest life, and getting a real smile out of her (one that isn't polite or placating) is a treasure to you. No one makes her happy like your goofball self and thats a treasure to her. You make it your number 1 goal to make her laugh as much as possible and she loves you more than words can express for that.

○ Haru is always watching those around her. Ad much as you are her scary dog privilege with your resting bitch face, she's the one who points out whenever something is off. A tug on the sleeve always tells you Haru's spotted or sensed something off and it's gotten you guys out of more than one sticky spot

HEADCANONS

○ Coming out to Haru does come as a bit of a surprise to her. Not a bad one, mind - she's probably relieved when you tell her, since she could tell something had been on your mind for awhile - she's glad it was nothing bad. She's a little nervous at first because she, sheltered as she is, isn't sure the proper ways to show you respect and be polite. Once she realizes she can just ask you, she becomes your biggest supporter and super conscientious about your preferences.

○ Taking each other out to eat is your most common date night. She takes you to all kinds of fancy places you'd never be able to go on your own, and you take her to local mom and pop shops or greasy spoons she'd never be able to go to with her family.

○ Again, Haru is your biggest supporter. This extends to your art too and she has so many of your drawings as her wallpapers, or on her desk alongside real photos of the two of you. You draw her once and Haru is so flattered she goes bright red, which you think is the cutest thing. She becomes your muse from that point on

○ For your first anniversary Haru takes you to a faraway beach (maybe in Hawaii) to start your dream of traveling the world. She gives a whole speech on wanting to be there when your dreams come true and how you're her brightest star. It's an extremely romantic getaway - one you return to in your honeymoon years later

Hello friend! I'm trying to get better at putting comments here lol;

Anyway, I hope just the one match is ok. I try to find the absolute 1st place matchup and write for them! Thanks for being kind and understanding 💛

Anyway, I hope you still enjoy! Stay hydrated as well!

#matchups #headcanon #persona 5 #haru

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darkmist111 · 3 years

Text

Phantom Thieves Play Dungeons and Dragons

The Wander and the Worker

Akira had faced many trials, both legally and spiritually. He had also been a master of organization, stuffing as much activity as he could into a single year.

Yet this challenge nearly brought him to his knees.

“So you only add 2 to armor class?”

“No that's only for medium armor your un-armored right now.”

“Shit I should've picked a race with more dexterity.”

It was like herding cat's, without Morgana’s help.

“You guys ready? It's almost 5.” Akira said know that this group could double a session’s play time.

“Hold on I’m trying to memorize our modifiers.” Ann said squinting as she had forgot her glasses at home.

“Don't worry just remember your crap at everything not dexterity and charisma.” Ryuji said nonchalantly.

The plan was to get all the players to level 2 before they got to the main campaign, so Akira did this little mini session with 2 characters first so the players could slip into their roles.

“Alright are we ready to play?”

Ryuji had finally gotten Ann to stop fusing over her papers.

“As we’ll ever be I guess *sigh* I really hope I don't die at level 1 again.” Ann groaned.

“Hell yeah let's kick some ass!”

“Alright close your eyes and listen.” Akira took a deep breath and his voice changed.

“This is the world of Exceeden”

Akira peaked and caught the grins on his two friends faces.

“Unlike our world with disconnected planets, the world of Exceeden is but one layer stacked in-between other realms, but different from the other realms Exceeden did not occur naturally but was created by 20 core gods. The gods were once one shared in their love of their creation, however what they didn't know was it would grant them more power than even their unparalleled minds could imagine.

Jealousy, anger, spite, and rage broke them apart each believing their creation should go the way they decided and the 20 became 5. 6 of Law, 6 of Chaos, 2 of Good, 2 of Evil, and 4 to keep the balance.

While the realm has no supreme rule the cycles of mortals carry on. Empires rise and fall, stories are told and forgotten, until finally the sands of time cycle towards something or someone that can shatter the heavens despite their humble beginnings.

The year is 997 A.I.(After Invasion) and our story takes place on the continent of Almoria. While not the largest continent it houses a wide array of People and Cultures in no small part due to the many differences environments.

In the far north in the icy tundras Orc and Goliath tribes war against the Tiefling Solos Empire and their Minotaur allies even further north in the Shadow Lands.

Below that are the eternal plans of Sparks where wild magic hum and fae slip into our world. Bands of Centaur and Satyr dance across the fields, unknowingly starting war with the Leonin Clans.

On the east of the Great Sezali Desert a new and ambitious clan of HobGoblins are gathering their forces of Goblin and Bugbear.

This makes the Elven Allied Council to the west nervous and the desert has become a sort of cold war, but also a hive of activity for trade and merchants.

On the West Coast the Aarakocra war against the Triton and the East Coast, the legendary Tortle Cleric Genbu brokers peace between the Locathah and the Grung.

In the Mountains Kobold, Lizardmen and Dragonborn War against a unfathomable threat as the Chromatic dragons and Metal Dragons have united to control the Arcane Canyons.

With the fall of Tyrant Human King Rexanik, many flee to the peaceful mountains city of Eternix. The city, nicknamed the city of small folk, was almost completely Gnomes, Halfling, Dwarfs, as well as the Black Wing Monastery, suddenly has possibly the highest human density in the continent.

Humans have also tried their luck in the chaotic Forest of Nayan only to be never heard from again.

In the south peace is almost a certainty as the brotherhood between the Loxodon and Gith remains just a strong as a century ago. Their city Omniox hold the Verdan trading Guild the only constant in these turbulent times

Not all is so clear though, hidden in the desert are rumors of cults who use arcane, scientific, and religious methods to create inhuman monsters that stalk the night.

However it is that Desert where we start our story in the town of Ixyana. Ixyana is a port town to the sea of sand, willing to offer weary travelers any pleasure they require... for the right price. Ixyana has always been self governed but with escalating tensions between the Elven and HobGoblin armies, the town is being pressured to pick a loyalty. But today neither a Goblin nor Elf is the new stranger in town.”

“Ryuji please introduce your character.”

“I’m just a guy who looks like an average traveler, I’m wearing normal cloths and using a spear like a walking stick, the only unusual thing about me is that have blue skin and white “Hair”. I’m a Fighter but only because you get in fights when you wander as much as I do, but it's clear I’m not formally trained.”

The wanderer enters the town carrying a satchel over his back midday. He makes his way towards a inn looking to rest for the night. He hears a commotion and see several HobGoblin warriors speaking angrily toward each other, before rushing off. The young man enters into a alley to avoid crossing their path, as he steps out he sees another beautiful HobGoblin women in revealing clothes dart out from behind a stack of boxes. Before his eyes she begins to shift form before becoming a striking dark haired Elven women and quickly entering the Inn.

“Well That's a Flag if I’ve ever seen one.”

The man is overcome with curiosity and follows her. He enter the inn and sees the first floor is a diner/bar.

At this time of day not many people are drinking and lunch is already over so the inn is uncrowded.

The blue man sees the former HobGoblin women now Elven sit in the corner of the bar skillfully blending in for those not looking.

As he walks up to her she glances before biting her lip.

“Sorry I’m not working right now.”

You realize from her statement and her outfit that this women is one of the courtesans of the towns most powerful group in place of a formal government, The Desert Respite, worshipers of Bast one of the 20 original Gods and practitioners of the arts of pleasure both of a sexual nature and of entertainment.

“I still can believe your playing a Prostitute.” Ryuji says teasing.

“For your information I’m a high class escort. And let's see if you’ll be laughing in a few minutes.”

“Sorry it's not that I... I just... saw you change.”

The woman tenses her eyes narrowing and grits her teeth.

“So what?”

“Are... Are you a Spirit.”

The women slowly turns her head, seeing the nervous young man though in her eyes he's more of a boy shift his weight nervously.

“Perception check!”

“Roll for it.”

“...!!!! Natural 20!”

“Heh, yeah he's a pretty easy mark.”

“Hey!”

She smirks before tipping her drink back and gesturing to the seat across from her.

“From out of town.”

“Out from... everywhere.”

She changes her posture, trained but attractive.

“The desert must've been quite the ordeal, I didn't notice a Caravan enter town. Is your group somewhere else?”

“No, I’ve been traveling alone.”

“Alone?”

“Yes I am quite skilled at traveling, born and raised doing it in fact.”

“Incredible, you must be strong.”

The women bit her lip while the blue skinned man sweat feeling nervous from the shapeshifters forward flirtations.

“You know I have a certain need for a strong man.”

“Role Wisdom Ryuji.”

“What! She hasn't even cast anything.”

“Your mouth was dropped.” Ann teased. “Let's hope your character isn't a simp.”

“No way!”

Ryuji rolled.

“Shit! 6, 7 total.”

“Simp”

“Shut up!”

“What did- What do you need. I’m always looking to help out.”

“You see a girl can only stay in one town for so long before she needs a change of pace. I’m thinking you’ve been to plenty of places, why don't you and I go on adventure.”

The spearman let out a yelp as he felt her leg delicately trace his own.

“And I’ll be sure your thoroughly compensated.”

“Roll Perception against Ann’s Persuasion.”

“Yes!”

“Shit”

Ann rolled and grinned which caused Ryuji to hang his head.

“21 total Persuasion!”

“Goddamnit, 14 total.”

“Yeah she has you wrapped around her finger.”

“*Gulp* There’s no need for that ma’am, I'd be happy to guide you wherever you desire.”

The man saw her smile turn victorious and her leg rubbed a little higher.

“Don’t worry it's no trouble, when we stop for the night I can give you a nice and long compensating.”

_______________________________________

The pair quickly gather their things the shapeshifter, changing again into a stunning Yuan-Ti. They walked through the town. Some men stared at the shabby looking Traveler and the beautiful courtesan, leering at her exposed cleavage, open thighs, and toned belly, others smirked and gave respecting nods. He glared and the former while that latter made him feel like a scumbag.

She insisted they walk on foot so not to draw attention. The man frowned but didn't say anything.

As they walked they chatted.

“My names Zap by the way.”

“Nais of the Desert Respite.”

“So Nais, are you wondering what I am?”

“Probably not as much as your wondering what I am.”

“Well I don't know, I’ve never seen someone change what they look like except my dad.”

“Your dad?”

“Yeah, he’s a Genie.”

“...”

“...You're not joking?”

“Nope. A Lightning Genie to be specific.”

“Insight Check... 11?”

“He seems to be pretty honest.”

“So you can grant wishes?”

“He could, not me. I’m only half genie, my other half is Human from my mom. Dad said my type of people are called Genasi.”

“Where’s you dad now?”

“He’s only allowed to stay in the material plane for 20 years at a time. He left on my 10th birthday, I’m 22, so he’ll be back in 8 years. Though he’ll probably see my mom before me.”

“... You know that is a really weird story right?”

“I actually didn't know until later in life. For a long time it was just the 3 of us, then the 2, now me.”

“I see.”

“What about you?”

“What about me?”

“You can change into other things, is it magic?”

Nias looked away not wanting to meet Zap’s eyes.

“It's not magic it's just something I’m able to do, as well as my mother and her mother before her. She said that we might be descended from Doppelgängers.”

“That's amazing.” Zap said with awe.

“Perception Check!” Ann yelled out.

“Zap doesn't lie. He's a open book.”

“19!”

“Zap really does think your amazing.”

“Geez he doesn't have to try so hard I already said I’d fuck him.”

“Excuse me! But Zap is a gentleman he doesn't only think about sex.”

“Unlike his player.”

#persona 5 #phantom thieves #joker persona 5 #persona 5 ryuji #ryuji sakamoto #ann takamaki #p5 yusuke #yusuke kitawaga #makoto niijima #haru okumaru #p5 akechi #morgana #dungeons and dungeons #changlings #genasi

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thepancakeboi · 4 years

Text

96. “I saw that. You just checked me out.”

“That takes care of that,” I remark as the leopard-like Shadow crumbles. It explodes into black wisps from Robin Hood’s power piercing its chest. If this is the strongest that Sae’s Palace has, then this will be easier than I thought.

Mona looks up at me. “You’re not so bad,” he remarks.

“And I am capable of much more,” I reply, letting a little bit of my cockiness show. Much more than they can possibly imagine, more than the Phantom Thieves will ever see. “Now then, let us deal with the Shadows quickly.”

“Wait,” Panther interrupts. “Doesn’t it sound like we’re gonna get ambushed based on what we heard earlier?”

“I agree,” Queen adds. “I’d like to deal with them as quick as we can... But now that we have an infiltration route, I’d suggest we return for now and prepare.”

Her suggestion makes sense, even if I know I could tear my way through this Palace on my own power. “Very well, I trust your experience and judgment. Let us do that.”

With a nod, Joker says, “Let’s go.” Everyone begins to depart, but I continue to stand by the elevator. Something has been on my mind, and it has been bothering me since our outfits first changed. Joker is the first to notice my absence. He stops. A worried look appears on his face. “Crow?”

“Yo! You comin’, Joker?” Skull calls out. He is waiting by the stairs heading up alongside the rest of the thieves.

“Go on ahead. We’ll meet you at the entrance,” he replies with a wave of his hand. They obey without another word, although Mona gives a somewhat concerned look at us before leaving. Joker waits until they’ve left before asking, “What’s wrong?”

Now that it’s just us, I walk right up to Joker, getting almost in his face. I’m finally able to confirm my suspicions. “You’re taller than me.”

“Hmm? I’ve always been taller.”

“No, I distinctly remember you being slightly shorter than me by about an inch.”

“I grew.”

“In the last two minutes?”

“Yes?”

“I highly doubt that.” I take a step back and look down at his boots. As I suspected, they have a rather noticeable heel on them. “Really, Joker? Really?”

“What?”

“Are the heels truly necessary?”

“Maybe. Why?” he asks and, with a smirk that only Joker can pull off, rests his arms on my shoulders as he whispers the next question in my ear. “Does it bother you that I’m taller?”

“We should probably leave now,” I blurt while pulling away from him. This close proximity is sending shivers down my spine, and I don’t have the time to investigate why that is. Besides, there’s no way I’m giving him the satisfaction of knowing that, yes, it does. It irritates me immensely. It already bothers me that Fox is taller, although at least he never mentions it. He doesn’t care. Joker, meanwhile, is the type of person who would probably wear heels in the real world just to mess with me. I’m not letting that become a possibility.

“Okay.” I’m surprised that he leaves it at that. He turns and walks over to the stairs. I don’t initially follow after him. Something about the Phantom Thief leader is grabbing my attention, though what is it? Is it the way he exudes confidence that Ren normally represses? Perhaps it’s the way he holds himself like he’s about to take on the entire world and win in style just because he can. Or maybe it’s his outfit that I’m now taking notice of. One of these days those flaps on his coat are going to get stuck in a door. Oh wait, is it-

“I saw that. You just checked me out.”

I blink, startled. I hadn’t even realized that Joker’s now leaning on the stair railing, looking back at me with mild amusement. “I did not,” I say, barely refraining from snapping the response.

“Yeah, you did.”

“I was not checking you out.”

“Then what were you doing besides staring at my ass?”

“I was not staring.”

“Were too.”

“No. I simply noticed you walk like a girl.” At the confused tilt of his head, I elaborate. “The coat mostly obscures it, but you definitely sway your hips while walking.”

“You’re one to talk.”

“Excuse me, but I don’t have a feminine walk nor heeled boots like you do.”

“Maybe not,” he acquiesces, but he doesn’t seem bothered by his admission. He strides over to me, placing his hands on my hips. What is he scheming? The cheeky smirk that creeps onto his face concerns me. “But you do have feminine hips.”

I stare at him, flabbergasted. “W-What?”

“You heard me.”

His hands shift ever so slightly. The movement draws my attention back to the sensation. I can hear him chuckle as I tilt my head down in an attempt to hide the blush dusting my cheeks. “How would you even know something like that?”

“I see things, and you didn’t deny it.”

“It should be obvious that your statement is false.”

“You also have feminine hands,” he adds, taking my left hand in his right. His other hand is still on my hips. His fingers tap idly against my side as he looks deep in thought. “Is that why you wear those gloves all the time?”

“That is not the reason. Besides, my hands are completely normal.”

“Then why do you?”

“Am I not allowed to wear them just because I like them?” I yank my hand away and push Joker’s hand off my hips before he gets any ideas. His lower lip twitches a little as if he’s bothered by this. I pretend I don’t notice this trivial change. Why does it matter anyway? It’s not like I care or anything. “It’s definitely not because of something like having slender hands. Your assumption is wrong.”

Something about this seems to snap Joker out of whatever sour mood he was just in. “But you do, and it’s perfect.”

I’m foolish enough to take the bait he’s laid for me. “How would such a thing be perfect?”

“Because,” he says while grabbing ahold of both my hands this time, “they fit so well in mine!”

My face flushes red at his response. It’s even worse because he is correct. Something about this gesture seems right...like it’s meant to be this way. I want nothing more than to agree, but this isn’t going to end in a way he desires. Instead, I respond, “You’re delusional.”

“No, I’m not. Weren’t you the one who said ‘we seem to share some kind of bond’?” Those were my exact words a couple of months ago. How he remembers I have no idea. He brushes a hand along my cheek, his smile turning into a smirk as my face heats up even more. “And I didn’t imagine that. You’re blushing, aren’t you?”

“I’m not.”

He beams, seeing right through my lie. “You are! And quite adorably too! You’re so cute!”

“I’m not-” I repeat, scowling. Does he really think that? I hate that I love the possibility. He chuckles in response. “What is it, Joker?”

“You’re cute when you’re angry.”

“Stop calling me cute.”

“Okay...cutie,” he says while tousling my hair with his free hand.

“Joker-” I try to smooth it down, but he grabs my hand in his own. It’s all too tempting to take my mask and jab him in the eye for this. That wouldn’t be very becoming of an ace detective, though. “I’m not cute.”

“You are too. Did you not see your reaction to finding out the calling card is for more than show?”

“That doesn’t mean I’m cute,” I mutter. Perhaps I went a little overboard on my ‘reaction’. “I told you to stop calling me cute.”

“But I didn’t call you cute earlier.”

“Cute and cutie are practically the same thing.”

“You didn’t say I couldn’t call you a cutie.”

I hate that he has a valid point. “Stop calling me cutie then.”

“Adorable?”

“No.”

“Beautiful?”

“Also no.”

“Precious?”

“Don’t even think about it.”

“Love of my life?”

“Stop joking around, you menace.” If he’s trying to get to me, it’s working. I need to end this conversation now. “The others are probably wondering where we are. Let’s go.”

“Yeah.” He lets go of my hands now. I don’t miss the warmth of his hands holding mine. I don’t. He snickers as he proceeds to walk away. I’m confused as to why at first. It’s then I notice his gait. Is the hip-swaying from earlier more...exaggerated this time? When he turns his head and gives me a flirtatious wink, I know that he did it entirely on purpose. I shake my head as I follow after him, knowing I’ll only have to suffer through this for just another month. One more month, though maybe...no. I can’t stop now. Even if this feels so...perfect.

Prompt list

#akeppi writes #p5 #persona 5 #p5r #persona 5 royal #goro akechi #akechi #ren amamiya #akira kurusu #p5 crow #p5 joker #akeshu #shuake #writing prompt #ren is a menace #but joker is even worse #he has nothing to restrain his menace tendencies #he can and will be a menace to society and goro

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innenofutari · 4 years

Text

On Goro Akechi’s morals and forgiveness (character analysis, but also just a very rambly post)

Akechi is… a very interesting character, I have no doubt about this. Also my favorite of course, if you hadn’t figured that out yet by this giant text you’re about to read (sorry). I have a lot I want to talk about in regards to him since he is so intriguing and we actually don’t have that much info about how his thought process works so it leaves a lot of room for speculation.

In any case, in this meta in specific I’m going to be talking about Akechi’s...morality(?), forgiveness and his relationship with regret. I’m not sure if that’s the best word to define this but I’ll roll with it for now. I’ll try to be fair and talk about things as I personally see them, it’s totally fine if you don’t share my views! Now, onto the actual meta.

Starting off, as people are obviously aware, Akechi is a morally gray character, a darker shade of, but he’s a sympathetic and tragic character nonetheless. That much is undeniable, he was written to be sympathetic, even if I’d argue Atlus did a pretty poor job of it in Vanilla (he was still my favorite ever since then though lol) but he’s reached his true potential in Royal, which makes me immensely happy to see. I get so unbelievably happy whenever I see people saying Royal changed their perception of him and started to like him more! But even then, there are a lot of people who just can’t forgive him for what he did, and that’s only natural. I personally think that, if you don’t try to sympathize with Akechi and truly, truly try to understand his mind and history, you’re doing him a huge disservice. But, forgiveness is something that everyone is free to think and decide if he deserves it or not. In Akechi’s case, I feel like forgiveness is something much more personal to the player, and this shows between the Phantom Thieves too.

There is a visual novel I hold very close to my heart called Umineko no Naku Koro Ni (which I’ll be quoting relentlessly throughout this entire post) that illustrates what I think better than I could put into words, so I’ll be quoting that scene with a few tweaks for better context:

“You said you understood the culprit’s motive.”

“...Yes.”

“Is that motive… a satisfying explanation for why they’d [commit murder]?!”

“Who knows. That’s for you to decide. Even if I say it’s satisfying, that doesn’t mean it will satisfy you. …You have to decide that for yourself.”

I really like this. It reminds me a lot of Akechi’s situation. I firmly believe that this has no “objective”, “most correct” answer to, just your personal feelings, which are the most important. I, as a player, do forgive Akechi, I want him to have a happy ending, another chance at life, manage to live happily with Akira and have some fun for once. That’s what “forgiveness” means to me in this situation, but while some people may empathize with Akechi, they still can’t forgive him. They think he should stay forever in jail or die since he cannot be redeemed in any way in their eyes. Where do I wanna go with this endless blabbering you ask, and I respond, I just want to try and see Akechi’s actions through two different lenses.

Well, I personally don’t like downplaying the crimes he committed and dumbing it down to “he was being manipulated” because, even if this is not false, it is not entirely correct either. Akechi is so fun to speculate about because he’s a character who is always clashing against himself in various ways as if he was in a constant state of internal turmoil, and this is not very different.

Akechi himself made the choice to go to Shido. It is extremely unlikely that he didn’t know he was going to be using his new powers for murder. He may have been very young, but despite the fact that he was a child forced to mature prematurely, he knew exactly which type of person Shido was. When he walked into that deal he was aware of the consequences and had fully made peace with the fact that he’d be taking another person’s life. Now, I’m not saying that Shido never manipulated him because he did, but not with that particular choice.

This alone tells plenty about Akechi’s morals. I believe that Akechi indeed has some level of empathy for other people, but I sincerely doubt he feels especially bad about the Okumura-like people he had to kill. He might feel bad for the family of the victims or just feel nauseated with himself, however, he doesn’t regret a thing. As if he had grown numb to it. ...Until a certain point, that is, but I’ll talk about that later.

I would also like to elaborate further on Akechi’s continuous conflict with himself, and this particular piece of Maruki’s confidant immediately reminded me of this:

He’s talking about Akira here, but isn’t it interesting to note that Akechi’s internalized and externalized realities are, in contrast to Akira’s, the farthest they could possibly be from each other? His sense of justice, childlike desire to be loved and seen as a hero, in contrast to the cold-blooded murderer he had become? It’s like there are two people fighting it out inside of Akechi’s brain (lol) which must cause him a lot of distress. I don’t believe that Robin Hood is a ruse or that his Detective Prince façade is entirely fake. The way I see it, they are his ideal, which he strayed so far away from he lost grasp of who he himself is.

In my opinion, Akechi has never cared about fame the slightest bit, he used all of that as an opportunity to act out the person he wished he was, just and virtuous, while still being the feral murderer and bloodstained person he is today. These are two integral parts of him that he has never known how to reconcile. It’s interesting to note that in the third semester he was the one who since the beginning advocated firmly to return to the harsh reality but he had spent the entire game living in the comforting “detective prince” dream he made for himself until the engine room scene happened.

With the third semester context, the engine room becomes so interesting because that scene is akin to Sumire finding out she’s not Kasumi. It’s a cold bucket of water thrown straight to Akechi’s face and telling him to wake up from this lie he made to comfort himself and face reality: he is no hero. Despite the fact that he is, too, a victim, he is simultaneously a murderer who perpetuated with the cycle of his father’s aggressions and he cannot escape that fact. Worse, he was being manipulated all along and his revenge plan and arguably his only reason to live AND justification for his actions was completely crushed.

Once again, this Umineko scene illustrates what I think Akechi’s situation up until that point was like:

Akechi rationalized every awful, inexcusable thing he did as, “It’s for my revenge’s sake” and ran with it. He was incredibly blinded by his hate and ignored the weight of the consequences of his actions up until that point where everything came crashing down right in front of his eyes. There is no excuse and no justification for that.

However, Akechi was also abused himself. There is no excuse for what he did, but is getting back at the person who took everything from him so reprehensible a thought? Is wanting justice against someone who essentially ruined your life not understandable? Many people like to say “cool motive still murder” or things of the like, but I’m asking you again to put yourself in his shoes.

Yet AGAIN with a Umineko screencap:

I played this the other day and one of the first things I thought of was Akechi. A lot of people draw parallels between Akechi and Adachi, but that’s just so damn wrong and make me lose my hair so much and become completely bald because that couldn’t be farther from the truth and I’m gently asking you to reconsider. In the pic above, Adachi would fit the “homicidal maniac” mentioned to a T, and while Akechi is by absolutely no means free of guilt and much less a stellar person, his crimes were moved completely by his heart.

For the people who use his choice to become Shido’s hitman to say Akechi does not deserve any kind of forgiveness and that he’s a murderous maniac, I ask you to at least think of what state of mind he was at that moment. Think very hard about it, imagine how completely bleak life must have looked like then, to the point that he risked everything on murder.

This is nothing more than my speculation, but I believe Akechi’s thought process at that moment was something along the lines of, “I have nothing to lose since my (current) life is completely meaningless". It was as if he had reached such a numb state he chose to forgo all his morals and humanity in pursuit of at least one thing that would give his life meaning, that being his hate for Shido, which I also think was the only emotion he ever truly understood well ever since his mom passed.

Since Akechi is all about conflicting emotions though, I would also like to remind you how vulnerable Akechi really is to any kind of affection. His “childlikeness” that Robin Hood represents was, by all accounts, still there. Akechi has a desperate need to be loved while simultaneously putting up walls and wearing masks, making it extremely difficult to have any kind of meaningful relationship. This is something that Shido thoroughly takes advantage of, too.

That’s also why one of his lines to Akira hit so much harder for me, following this reasoning. “If only we had met a few years earlier,” expresses many emotions at once. If Akechi had known something other than misery and hatred during that period of his life he would not have latched so thoroughly to that revenge plan. Akechi simply had nothing to lose, since he had nothing at all.

I mentioned earlier that Akechi doesn’t regret a thing, which I still think it’s true. Before he had met Akira, he truly did not regret a thing, but meeting Akira caused him a lot of strife because not only Akira is a person whose whole existence flaunts everything Akechi could have had if he hadn’t fallen into fate’s trap, but Akechi also experiences happiness through his connection with Akira. Hanging out and talking to him truly makes him happy, and it’s something more genuine than he’s ever known. Yet, it’s too late, because his choices were already set in stone and he had already pulled the trigger with no way to take any of the bullets back.

That’s why Akechi is so confusing, so controversial and sometimes uncomfortable to think about. There is no clear line between good or bad, he just is something in the middle. Akechi is both a person who ruined a lot of people’s lives with no regard whatsoever to the consequences but also a victim rebelling and retaliating against the person who took everything from him and made his life a living hell. That’s why it’s so hard for not only some players to form opinions about him but also downright uncomfortable for the Phantom Thieves to think about. There is no objectively best answer for what he deserves. It just doesn’t exist. Should he spend the rest of his life in jail, or dead, because his crimes were inexcusable? Or should he be given another chance at life to learn to be happy? It’s entirely subjective, and that’s why he’s so great to think or discuss about.

Aaand that’s it, I’m grateful you read so far, hope I didn’t piss anyone off, also not gonna pretend this wasn’t very self indulgent because of the amount of times I quoted Umineko in it. Anyways, thank you!

SIDE NOTE: I didn’t write this recently, it had been sitting on my drafts for some months now and I found it again today and decided to just release it into the wild because why not? I think this was meant to be much longer than it is and to elaborate more eloquently on a lot of points I brought up (like the PT with Akechi) but alas, I lost the train of thought and so it Perished.

#goro akechi #meta #p5r spoilers #persona 5 #p5 #persona 5 royal #character analysis #long post

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yusuke-of-valla · 4 years

Text

face down in the carpet i feel safe

Gen, but you can read Shukita

TW: cursing, bleeding, self-depricating thoughts, mind control

[A/N]: @soniagiris welp. I stabbed the boy.

Wordcount: 1456

AO3

It’s almost like being in a dream. Things seem perfectly normal while you’re sleeping, but when you wake up you can’t understand how you thought the 8 foot tall bats flying down the street made any kind of sense.

It’s so funny, Yusuke can’t help but laugh while Makoto tries to staunch the blood flowing from his abdomen.

“Diarahan! Diarahan! Fucking diarahan!”

“Stop, you’ll just tire yourself out.”

“It- this should work! Why isn’t it working?”

It’s his own fault, naturally. He was too slow. If he’d just dodged that Marin Karin, if he hadn’t missed the shadow earlier and allowed Ann to finish it off before this could happen, he wouldn’t have gotten hit, and he wouldn’t have gotten wrapped up in a world where it made perfect sense to attack Akira, and Akira wouldn’t have had to stab him to get him to stop.

“We’ll just have to get him to a hospital. Skull, grab his legs, we need to get him into the bus.”

“Alright. Ya hear that, Fox? We’re going to get you help. Just hold tight buddy.”

If he’s being honest, he deserves this. Yusuke had barely slept the night before. He’d sat in his room in the dark trying to paint, just fucking paint— he used to be good at this didn’t he? He used to be able to make art that meant something, that reached people right?— and if he could’ve just done the one damn thing he’s done his entire life, if he’d just been enough then maybe he would’ve been rested and wouldn’t have been such a failure. He wouldn’t have let his friends down and gotten used like that and-

“I think he’s hyperventilating? Should he be hyperventilating? C’mon Inari you’re not allowed to die on us!”

“Fox, can you hear us? Just focus on my voice, alright? It’ll be okay”

Nothing is remotely okay. Yusuke doesn’t know the last time he’d been “okay”, not really. There had been days where he could keep his head above water but he’s always been one mistake away from being lost beneath the waves. It’s only natural that his luck finally ran out.

“Is the wound… getting worse?”

“What?!”

“Shit, I think he’s right. It’s getting bigger.”

“How is it getting bigger?”

“I don’t know! We’ve been keeping him as steady as possible.”

There’s too much shouting. Too many bright lights, too much going on. He wants-

He wants to feel like himself again.

He wants to feel like a person instead of some useless thing that can’t even do the one thing he’s really good at.

He wants to feel stable, and like he knows what’s expected of him, and what he needs to do.

He wants to be back at Madarame’s.

He wants to not be so pathetic. That’s really the right word for it, isn’t? He’s a child trying to cling desperately to a lie.

It’s so fucking funny.

Yusuke isn’t sure if he’s laughing or crying right now.

“Panther, knock him out.”

“What?”

“Just put him to sleep! I’ll explain in a second, but I think he’s the one making it worse.”

“Alright. Carmen!”

Yusuke wakes up in a hospital room. He tilts his head to see Akechi in the corner, reading a book.

Yusuke considers saying something, but the thought of talking feels like too much effort so he just watches Akechi, until Akechi looks up.

“Ah. You’re awake,” Akechi says, putting the book down and taking out his phone quickly. “How are you feeling?”

Yusuke hums noncommittally. He feels like trash, but he’s not giving Akechi that ammunition.

Akechi nods. “I see.”

Suddenly, the door bursts open and the rest of the Phantom Thieves spill into the room.

“Yusuke!” Ann gasps.

“Holy shit dude, don’t scare us like that!” Ryuji says. He looks like he’s been crying.

Yusuke supposes he can’t keep quiet now.

“Sorry?” Yusuke says. His voice is shaky and hoarse.

“We were so scared you…” Makoto takes a deep breath, and steadies her voice. “You lost a lot of blood, and the doctors said you’ll have to be here for at least another week, but probably a little longer.”

“Oh.” is all Yusuke can say, and really isn’t that just the cherry on top? They’ll insist on putting off any future operations for his sake now. He really is useless.

“Can you guys give us some alone time?” Akira asks. The others share a look, Futaba especially looks like she wants to protest, but eventually they all leave the room. Akira pulls up a chair closer to Yusuke, and sits down.

“Sorry for stabbing you.” Akira says.

“It was mostly my fault.” Yusuke replies.

Akira stares at him, and Yusuke isn’t sure he’s ever seen their leader truly at a loss for words. Akira’s been known to pause sometimes, to think over the best thing to say, but Yusuke’s never seen him look like this.

“I know what you’re going to say.” Yusuke says.

“You do?”

“I’ll accept my removal from the Phantom Thieves graciously, you don’t need to worry.” Akira’s eyes widen, and Yusuke tries to keep his composure. Of course this would happen, he messed up, he caused problems, which means he’s out. There’s no use keeping around someone who can’t pull their weight.

“Yusuke, no.” Akira says. “I would never dream of kicking you out, why would you even-” Akira takes a deep breath. “Alright, I can guess why, but still. That’s not true. What I was going to say was, after I stabbed you, the wound didn’t close up, no matter what we tried. And Akechi said that maybe the problem was your cognition.” Akira bites his lip. “Like, you didn’t want to be healed, or you didn’t think you should be.”

Yusuke turns away so that he’s not looking into Akira’s eyes anymore. “I… suppose my thinking was along the lines of ‘I failed, so I deserve it’,” he mutters.

“Yusuke… you didn’t fail. It was just an accident, it happens to the best of us.”

“When the others get brainwashed, they're not relentless to the point that you’re forced to stab them to get them to stop.” Because if there’s one thing Yusuke’s always been good at, it’s doing what he’s told. He’d gone after Akira with aplomb, had his hands around their leader’s neck and squeezed until Akira was forced to lash out and-

“That wasn’t you failing.”

“Then what is?” Yusuke snaps. What does he mean that wasn’t a failure? Yusuke nearly killed him, then he worried everyone because Yusuke apparently can’t be healed, so now he’s a liability in battle and-

Yusuke wants to scream. Akira is too nice. He’s never bothered by anything Yusuke does and Yusuke’s sick of it. Someone is always bothered by something Yusuke does, Yusuke can’t not fuck up somehow. Eventually he crosses one of the ten billion invisible lines that everyone but him seems to know, so why won’t Akira just tell him which ones to avoid? Why does he have to keep insisting there isn’t a point when Yusuke won’t be enough?

“Nothing.” Akira says firmly.

“That isn’t true.”

“Yes it is.”

Yusuke rolls his eyes. “Akira, that’s absolute nonsense. There has to be a line. I could get Futaba killed. I could reveal your secrets, I could-”

“But you wouldn’t.” Akira insists.

“You don’t know that.”

“Yes, I do. I trust you Yusuke.” Akira places a hand on Yusuke’s. “Please, trust yourself. Trust that you are doing the best you can do right now, trust that you don’t have to force yourself to be better, and trust that you’re not falling short of some sort of cosmic prerequisite for people to care about you.”

“You are a magnificent liar, Akira.” Yusuke says, drawing his hand away.

“I’m not lying.” Akira says. “Yusuke please look at me.” Begrudgingly, he does, and Akira takes off his glasses and meets Yusuke’s eyes.

“Yusuke, I promise you, there is no way you could fail me, or any of the others in a way that would make us leave. You’re not going to be thrown away the second you’re no longer useful, alright?”

Yusuke nods.

“And I am going to keep telling you that until you believe me. The others too.” Akira says.

Akira’s words hang in the air, and Yusuke...

A part of him wants to believe Akira.

Another part reminds him of the last time Yusuke desperately wanted to believe someone.

“Can you please go?” Yusuke mutters. “I’d like to take a nap.”

Akira stares at him, and for a split second Yusuke thinks that Akira will say no, and demand his attention, but eventually Akira nods. “Yeah, sure. We’ll be here when you wake up.

#persona 5 #yusuke kitagawa #ren amamiya #akira kurusu #shukita #alto writes #blood tw #cursing tw #mind control tw #self-deprecation tw #wordcount: 1000-1500 #fun fact leaving comments or reblogging gives me serotonin ✌🏽

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lovelypersona · 4 years

Text

Sunday (Akira Kurusu x You)

A/N: holy shit im writing for persona again who saw that coming!!!

Word Count: 3,400+

Summary: You used to be friends with all of the Phantom Thieves. But now? You aren’t sure where you stand in their life as you sit in the diner, stood up once again.

Commission Me

Where have you been?

Been searching all along

Came facing twilight, on and on,

Without a clue

Without a sign…

The rain comes down in thick sheets outside, the water smacking down on the roof and windows of the diner you sat in, undisturbed and dry. You had luckily made it in on time before the downpour started… but the seat across from you remained empty.

Truthfully, as sure as the weather, you had expected just as much that he wouldn’t show. Akira, though only a high schooler, same as you, seemed unusually busy. Plans always seemed to fall through… but it seemed he always had time for the other friends he met along the way. Friends that you met, too, and you felt like you belonged with. Friends that were all dear to you- but maybe you weren’t as dear to them.

You sigh as you run the tips of your fingers against the rim of the coffee mug in front of you. It’s been empty for quite a while, and the coffee tastes nowhere near as good as Boss’s. You were upset that your friend had decided to be a no show again, but you can't bring yourself to be disappointed. As stated before, you weren’t expecting anything different.

Maybe it was silly to keep this charade going, you think. Maybe it was time to finally face the facts.

Without grasping yet,

The real question to be asked…

Where have I been?

You were beginning to feel like a porcelain doll. Fake smile, pretty hair… fragile and right about to break if shoved to the side.

Which, unfortunately for you, this was exactly the case since you met Akira. You could feel you weren’t ever a priority for him. Always shoved to the side… to be dealt with later at a more convenient time. It begs the question- what on earth was Akira’s priority anyway?

You had accepted since that rainy Sunday spent alone in a booth that you would never get an answer and your friendship with the entire group of misplaced misfits would never get better. If they wanted to brush you off… you figured you would do the same. Smile, say the right things, do what’s expected of you at the moment… but not a lick more than that. It was only fair. Why give and give when you are never given back?

You felt hollow like a porcelain doll, too.

I’m a shapeshifter at Poe’s masquerade,

Hiding both face and mind,

All free for you to draw.

I’m a shapeshifter,

What else should I be?

Please don’t take off my mask,

Revealing dark…

“Has anyone noticed something off about ___ lately?” Makoto is the one to bring it up during their meeting in Le’Blanc. Everyone exchanges glances and nods and the student council president sighs.

“They’ve seemed… I don’t know? Less spunky?” Ryuji scrunches up his face in confusion.

“I’d say less energetic,” Ann butts in, “less… like ___. Like they’re trying to be someone else.”

“Withdrawn,” Akira says simply, the one word like the final puzzle piece everyone needed. Ryuji lights up.

“Yeah, that’s it!” And then he dims down again. “But why?”

“You don’t think something happened, do you?” Futaba fidgets in her spot, frowning and Makoto softly rubs her back.

“It’s possible,” she sighs. “But I don’t know what it could be.”

Yusuke hums, a contemplative look on his face as he cups his cheek. “They don’t have family troubles, do they?”

“I don’t know a lot about their home life…” Akira says, and everyone else seems to feel the same.

“Well, what do you guys know?” Morgana looks skeptically across the room, stretching his back lazily on the table. By now, he’s expected an answer, but as he looks at the group, he sees the lost expression everyone wears. Morgana’s ears droop back. “...I think that’s the issue.”

Indeed.

Moments of calm

Nothing left to be found

A mirror right in front of me;

That’s where I find an empty glass

Reflecting the sad truth,

It’s telling words not to be told...

Your grades were never the best, but they haven’t been getting better. They’ve taken a long steep dive into No Coming Back- This is Bad territory, but you can’t bring yourself to care. You never really cared about school what with their corrupt system and unfair teachers anyway- you only came for your friends.

But you don’t really have friends anymore, so…

You don’t know why you keep going to school if it’s only to look out the window and fail tests and wish you were anywhere else but there- seeing the people you love, being in their reach, and yet never being spared a glance.

Home isn’t much better either. Your father basically hates you, always has, and he hates your grades- he thinks you’re a failure and he makes sure you know it every time you come home.

You know you’re a failure.

For a second, you thought you weren’t. You thought, hey, I can do this. I can be someone- something-- if I can be with them.

But they’re gone, and they took a sacred part of you with them, so now you’re stumbling and trying to piece yourself back together.

But you have no idea how.

I need the mask.

You don’t really care for Sundays. School isn’t in, which means you can stay home with your unhappy father or you can go outside and be all by your lonesome. Of course, the answer is always to go outside- you can’t stand the stiff and horrid energy your father gives, making anxiety swirl in your stomach all day.

You’re wondering where you could possibly spend your day when an unexpected ting comes from your phone.

Even more unexpectedly, it’s from Akira.

Akira: Are you busy today?

You purse your lips and wonder what he could possibly want.

You: Why?

---

Akira and Morgana sigh at your response. “That’s not really a good sign, is it?” The cat looks worriedly at the phone and Akira frowns. No, it’s not, but at least you replied, right?

“Just keep trying,” he huffs and types on the keyboard, trying again.

Akira: I wanted to hang out, all of us. Morgana misses you.

Said cat smacks at his hand, claws out and all and Akira yelps. “What?!”

“You can’t even give them the simple knowledge that you miss them, too?!”

“Well-”

The phone buzzes, taking his attention away from his angry partner.

You: Oh. I don’t know, don’t you guys hang out a lot? I don’t want to intrude.

You: If you wanted to hang out with someone, you should ask the people you really want to see.

Needless to say, his heart sinks.

---

Akira: I asked you because I want to see you. I’m sorry I haven’t lately.

You: Do you even remember last Sunday?

Akira: Why?

You: Then you don’t. You wanted to ‘hang out’ then too, but not with me. You had time for everyone else, but couldn’t even give me a message to stop waiting for you in the diner.

You: Stop acting like you care when you don’t.

Sent at 9:33am.

---

There’s a hot, sizzling, awful feeling inside your stomach that reminds you of anger as you shove your phone in your pocket and continue to walk aimlessly around Shibuya- but with a lot more power in your steps than before. There’s another feeling besides that, just beneath the anger- a watery, upset and guilty feeling. You know you shouldn’t have snapped.

How unlike you, right?

You have to remember to play the part, don’t you? Act like you don’t care, act as a friend, act like you’re okay, act, act, act act act act-

Your phone is buzzing but you can’t bring yourself to look at it as you- unknowingly- make your path to the diner and inside. You aren’t even aware that you’ve ordered a coffee until the kind waitress with sympathetic eyes places it down in front of you.

A watery, broken sigh escapes you as you hide your face in your hands, trying to quell down your crying, but you can’t. Silently you weep alone in the corner of the diner, shoulders shaking and composure breaking.

I’m a shapeshifter,

Chained down to my core.

Please don’t take off my mask,

My place to hide…

“Why’d you call a meeting so early?” Ryuji yawns from his place on Akira’s couch. Futaba doesn’t look much better, more or less falling asleep as she leans against the blonde. Makoto rolls her eyes.

“It’s 10.”

“Way too early,” Futaba groans, her eyes drooping before Akira smacks the table. The sound is enough to wake everyone up, standing alert and ready as they look to their leader. He drops his phone on the table, free for everyone to see as he frowns deeply.

“We have a problem,” is all he says.

It doesn’t take long for everyone to read it and for the facts to sink in. “Last Sunday…” Haru speaks. “It was raining, wasn’t it?”

“Which means we probably went to Mementos…” Makoto raises a hand to her forehead, a guilty look on her face.

“What do we do?” Ann questions, nervously tugging on her pigtails. “I… don’t think this is going to be easy.��

“The fact we barely know anything real about them and we still managed to let them down isn’t very encouraging,” Yusuke says.

“I hate to be the one who says it,” Ryuji stiffens up, “but what can we do? Mementos, palaces… it’s bigger than them. We have to do this. We can’t help that they aren’t a part of it.”

Everyone glares at him, but only because they know that he’s right. Except for one.

“You’re all hypocrites,” Akira hisses through his teeth, his expression furious as he gestures to his messages on the phone. “You all make time for someone! Makoto, you still talk to Eiko, and Ann still makes time to visit Shiho!” The leader angrily pockets his phone. “We all have somebody outside of this- this thing we’re trying to do. I thought you all cared for ___. Are they really so easy to push aside?”

And yet, something curls unsteady in his stomach. Whispers in his ear, are you free of blame? Didn’t you do the same? Wasn’t it so easy to forget they were ever around?

Akira feels sick. With himself and with his friends. He knows it’s probably just the stress of school and the deadline- but their implications toward their friendship with ____ just--- he couldn’t believe it.

“I’m going to go see them. I’m going to fix this. They deserve more than what we’ve been giving them.”

What he has been giving them.

——

Alone in the diner, you begin to dwell on the past. It’s something you do a lot because it’s easy- the present is so sad and hard, so you’d rather think about another time when things were better. You still remember how you met Akira- and by meeting him, you eventually met everyone else.

He had been studying in the library. Makoto was there too, she always was, but she had a fine way of tuning everyone out as she absorbed herself in her studies. She didn’t hear the relentless whispering from all around the room- all targeted at the new boy. But you did.

How can anyone focus with all this noise? You watch him carefully- it’s a little hard since he’s hidden behind a cubby, and you feel a little creepy for trying so hard- but you want to know if he’s bothered. Does he notice how people talk to him? How can he stand it?

Do you think he’s studying, or do you think he’s planning his next crime?

The voice reaches out a little more than the rest- when you glare at the person it came from, they don’t seem to notice or care. And then you look back at Akira- you notice how his pen has stopped moving and his shoulders are stiff.

So he noticed it, then.

You knew what it was like to be rumored about and bullied. It’s not hard to become the butt of the joke in school- kids are judgemental and mean, it’s just what they do. But this seems too unfair… can’t you do something?

Without realizing it, you’ve walked up to Akira’s cubby and tapped on his shoulder. He merely looks up at you, a concerned look in his eye that you don’t blame him for.

“Hey, if you want to study without any noise…” You slowly start, “I know that the club room on this floor is empty right now.”

There’s a nervous beat in your chest as you offer this to him. You hope he doesn’t take it the wrong way- you don’t want to get rid of him, you just want to help. You readjust your school bag on your shoulder as he refuses to respond. “Anyway, that’s where I’m going. You’re free to use it, too, if you need to.”

Surprisingly, he stands up immediately, gathering the loose books in the cubby and putting them in his own bag. You wonder for a second if he’s about to dash off before he turns to you, a sincere look on his face.

“Thank you. I’d like to go somewhere quiet.”

And that’s how it all started- simple as that. An act of kindness for your schoolmate turned into frequent study sessions in the empty club room, which gradually filled up with more people as the months went by. That’s how your friendship with them all started. It wasn’t the most exciting story, but you look back on that day and the ones it followed with a sad smile.

The club room is no longer filled with the rowdy group after school. Eventually, it was just you- and then you couldn’t bear to be there alone anymore, and the club room became abandoned and cold.

Thinking about it makes you want to cry again- but you think you’ve worried the poor waitress serving you enough today. It’s already a little past noon, hours flying by without you noticing it, and you should probably head home for the day. Nothing is waiting for you here.

As you call the waitress and fumble for your wallet, the door of the diner slams open- hard- catching everyone’s attention as a dark-haired boy rushes through. Your eyes are wide as you realize who it is.

It’s Akira, and rather abruptly, he heads right for you and sits in the booth seat across from you. His cheeks are flushed and hair is unusually wild as if he’d been running, but he grins at the waitress even as he’s out of breath. “I’ll have a coffee, please,” he says.

“O-okay,” she’s about as confused as everyone else, including you, but she hurriedly walks away with Akira’s order and the people in the diner collectively begin to mind their own business.

Now it’s you and him- in the diner sat in a booth, on a Sunday- exactly what you were supposed to be doing before. But this time, it’s not raining.

“You look like you ran a marathon,” for some reason this is the first thing you can think to say. Akira laughs, subtly fixing his glasses and smoothing out his hair as he does. You didn’t mean it in a bad way- he looks handsome either way.

“You weren’t answering your phone, so I just ran everywhere I thought you might be until I found you.”

Right. You had put your phone on silent. Wiggling it out of your pocket, as soon as the screen turns on you see dozens of messages, all from Akira. You instantly feel bad, but before you can say anything, Akira’s hand reaches across the table and covers your phone, forcing you to put it down.

“I didn’t say that to make you feel bad. I get it. I, uh,” he stutters, “I wouldn’t want to answer me either if I were you.”

“What are you doing here, Kurusu?” You ask him before you don’t have the guts anymore. Being here with him… It makes you anxious. You forgot what it was like to talk to him.

Your choice in name visibly upsets him, but he doesn’t say anything about it. You feel it’s appropriate- you hadn’t talked in such a long time, you no longer felt that you should use his given name. It doesn’t feel right.

“I wanted to see you,” Akira says. The waitress suddenly appears with his order, not saying anything as she quickly leaves after his quiet ‘thank you’, and then he continues. “I wanted to apologize for not being around lately… We’ve all noticed that you’ve been acting differently- but- we didn’t do anything. And I’m sorry.”

“Well, that doesn’t make me feel any better,” you frown, your eyes stinging as you look at the table.

“I know it doesn’t… but I needed to say it. And I wanted… to spend today with you, if you’d let me. I want to fix it.”

You know he’s sincere- Akira doesn’t lie, not often anyway. He doesn’t lie to you- to his friends. Immediately, you want to say yes- please be my friend again, please make it feel better.

But you can’t.

“I can’t,” you say. “I… it doesn’t work like that. I can’t be your friend again while knowing I might not be your friend tomorrow, the next day, or next week… You just disappear, Kurusu, you all do. You all disappear and I don’t know why, but I can’t stand it.” Your hands wring together on top of the table nervously, your heart beating a bit too fast. You hate admitting it to him, but you can’t deny it anymore- whatever they’re doing, you’re not a part of it. It’s so painfully obvious that they don’t trust you, and it makes you feel like shit.

Akira seems to be at a loss for words. The two of you sit in an upsetting silence- you want to apologize and make him feel better, but you can’t do that anymore, so you stay quiet.

“Every… every Sunday,” Akira starts. You look up at him slowly. “Every Sunday, I’ll be here. And I can’t promise I can always bring everyone with me, but I’ll… I’ll be here. All day.”

“Don’t say that if you don’t mean it,” you sigh and he quickly shakes his head.

“I do mean it. I told you- I want to fix it.”

His hand reaches out again, softly grasping one of your own clammy hands. “I can’t tell you exactly what we’re doing… But I can tell you that the group and I… we’re doing something, and it’s dangerous. It’s exhausting. And I don’t want you to be a part of it because I don’t want you to get hurt.”

What… on earth does that mean? Your chest feels heavy as you hold his hand back, worry in your eyes. What are they doing that would make him say that- make him look so upset and tense?

“But I still want to be friends with you- you’re dear to me. I don’t want to lose you because I made the mistake of getting caught up in other things.”

You’re dear to me.

Those words seem to break you apart. You promised yourself you wouldn’t cry again today, but the tears fall before you can even catch them. You sniffle pathetically, holding Akira’s hand tighter as you cry. “I’m sorry,” you whisper. Before you realize what’s happening, Akira is standing up, moving around the table so he can sit beside you, still holding your hand.

“Don’t be.” He whispers, his other arm wrapping around you and holding you against him.

And it’s been so, so long since you felt this wanted- it breaks you all over again and you continue to cry, basked in the warmth that is Akira as he refuses to let you go. “Every Sunday?” You ask him, quiet and meek. A part of you is embarrassed to have him see you cry like this, but most of you is too overwhelmed to care.

“Every Sunday,” he promises. And even though maybe you shouldn’t… you believe him.

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thecorpulentbeagle · 4 years

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Okujima Week 2020: Whatever You Feel

Today’s topic can be anything. I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do, and I actually went through a couple of different topics in my head. I eventually settled on this one!

Here is the fanfiction.net link.

Please enjoy this final part of the Okujima Week 2020 Challenge!

As always: THIS STORY WILL NOT CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR PERSONA 5 ROYAL, BUT WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR PERSONA 5.

Okujima Week 2020 Challenge:

A Misunderstanding:

Whatever You Feel

-Makoto-

“Alright! Truth or dare, Makoto?” Futaba shouted from her sitting/squatting position on the bed.

“Seeing the dares some of you have come up with, I think I’ll have to go with truth,” Makoto replied laughing.

The Phantom Thieves were currently at their hideout in Akira’s bedroom, and they were playing a game that Makoto had heard of, but had never really participated in.

It had been Ann’s suggestion once the group had returned from a mission in Mementos. They had fought for a few hours and gained significant battle experience, but they didn’t want to push themselves too hard. They had left the Metaverse only to return and have some of the more excitable members of the team not wanting to part ways just yet.

Ann had argued that they all barely spent time together that didn’t involve fighting for their lives. They were sure to grow gray hair eventually from all of the stress.

When Akira had asked her what she had in mind, the model had replied with Truth or Dare. Ryuji and Futaba immediately agreed, and their excitement led to Haru’s approval as well.

Yusuke and Makoto had been a little bit harder to convince, as they both thought the game juvenile, but the pleading from the others eventually wore them down. It didn’t hurt that Akira made it an “order” from the leader of the Phantom Thieves.

Morgana decided to sit this one out and be the “referee” to make sure that things didn’t get too crazy. Makoto was hitting herself for not having thought of that idea.

It was now Makoto’s turn, which she was somewhat apprehensive about. Just a moment ago, Ryuji had dared Futaba to draw a mustache on Yusuke’s face. The blonde had shown a little mercy in allowing her to use a marker that would come off easily. Still, Yusuke had not appreciated it, and Akira and Makoto had had to hold the artist back from attacking Futaba as she scribbled on his face.

Though Yusuke was often weakened by hunger, he did have strength, and he’d managed to get a lucky hit on Makoto’s shoulder that had been (based on the trajectory) meant for Futaba’s face. Makoto was glad that she’d been able to protect the younger girl, but she was already starting to feel a bruise form. She’d seen that Akira had been roughed up as well, and his glasses were currently askew with a slight bent in the frame.

“Okey dokey!” Futaba pondered dramatically, pursing her lips and tapping her chin with her finger.

“Oi, Futaba! Get on with it already!” Ryuji shouted when the pause dragged on for a moment too long, roughly jostling her shoulder from his position next to her. “We ain’t got all day, ya know.”

“Ack!” Futaba fell over from her perched position, and luckily hit her head on Akira’s pillow. “Jeez, tough crowd.”

“Think of it as karma for your crime earlier,” Yusuke berated from his chair, rubbing a wet towel under his nose, attempting to rid himself of the blemish.

“You’re so dramatic, Inari!” Futaba sat back up. “Besides, it’s already coming off.”

“It isn’t the mark being on my face that is the problem, as much as it is the crude design that was implemented.”

“Aw, Yusuke. I thought you looked cute with the curly mustache. Like a comic villain or something!” Ann teased, squeezing his cheek.

“I appeared childish. Exactly my point.”

“I thought you looked very elegant,” Haru added, trying to bring peace to the situation.

“Anyway! Makoto!” Futaba directed her attention back to the older girl. “I know you like analyzing enemy weaknesses and everything.”

“True, but I don’t do nearly as good of a job as you, Futaba,” Makoto replied, smiling at her.

“Someone appreciates my genius!” Futaba laughed. “But my question is for you. Who are you, Makoto Niijima, weak to?”

Makoto tilted her head, confused. “Um…?”

She looked around the room to see if anyone would give her some kind of clue as to what Futaba meant. Did she mean type weaknesses? If so, the hacker, along with the rest of the team, already knew that.

It seemed as if this question piqued an interest among the Phantom Thieves, however. Everyone was looking at her with excitement in their eyes. Was there something she was missing?

Figuring that the answer to her question would only come with an answer of her own, Makoto answered truthfully. “Well, I suppose I’m weak to Haru.”

Everyone gasped in response. Futaba, Ryuji, and Ann all laughed and high-fived each other, saying that they “knew it.” Yusuke was chuckling to himself, and Akira and Morgana were smiling deviously at her.

What surprised Makoto most was Haru’s reaction.

The other girl was looking at her with shock, her face red. When she noticed that Makoto was staring at her, she immediately looked down at her hands in her lap and began to fidget. She seemed… extremely embarrassed. But what was there to be embarrassed about? If anything, Makoto should be embarrassed to admit weakness to another person. Not that she would be, as she knew that no one in the Phantom Thieves would attack anyone else in the group – except if they were confused, but that was a different story.

“Damn, Makoto! You sure got guts admittin’ somethin’ like that in front of Haru!” Ryuji clapped her on the back, causing her to splutter slightly.

“Really! I didn’t think you would actually do it,” Ann cheered.

“But I don’t understand. Of course I’m weak to Haru. She’s weak to me as well –” Makoto began to explain but was cut off by a squawk from Futaba.

“Where is all of this confidence coming from? You not only admit that Haru’s your weakness, but assume that she’s weak to you too?” Futaba looked in awe. “You’re not even bashful about it or anything! This defies everything I’ve ever seen in movies, books… real life!”

“I-I’m not assuming! It’s a fact!”

“Now I see why Haru’s into you. Confidence is an attractive quality,” Morgana explained, nodding his head as if imparting wisdom.

Wait. Attraction? Makoto’s eyes bugged out of her head at this realization. “H-Hold on. Does being ‘weak’ to someone mean…?”

Haru looked back up at her. Her face was still red, but she seemed a little bit more composed. “I see. I figured she didn’t know what Futaba was implying.”

“Makoto. You cannot be serious right now.” Futaba cackled. “I know you’re the oldest out of all of us, but you’re not a granny. When you’re ‘weak’ to someone or someone is your ‘weakness’, it means that you’re attracted to them. I guess ‘cause they make you weak in the knees or something.”

“B-But I didn’t mean that at all! My Persona’s weak to Psychic, which Haru’s uses, and hers is weak to Nuclear, which mine uses. That’s all I meant!” Makoto could now feel her face heating up. She couldn’t believe she’d just admitted… and that she assumed Haru…

She considered running out of the room, out of LeBlanc, and even running all the way back to the apartment she shared with her sister. Makoto couldn’t remember a time in her life where she’d been this embarrassed.

However, she didn’t want to insult Haru by doing so. That the mere thought of being attracted to Haru would cause Makoto to flee in terror… probably wouldn’t make the other girl feel great.

“Okay, everyone.” Akira waved his hand to get the Phantom Thieves’ attention. “We should continue our game. There’ll be plenty of time for teasing our senpai later.”

“Buzzkill…” Futaba slumped back, clearly dejected.

“Don’t be so sad, Futaba. It’s still your turn after all.” Makoto whipped her head back towards their leader, seeing him winking at the younger girl.

“What do you mean? It’s clearly mine!” Makoto did not want Futaba to have an option to do anything right now, seeing as she was most likely going to take full advantage of Makoto’s misunderstanding and subsequent embarrassment.

“It would be if you had answered the question that Futaba had presented.”

“But I did!”

“You did not.” Yusuke smiled slyly at her. “You answered a question based on your own interpretation, not Futaba’s. This means that you answered your own question, not hers.”

“But according to everyone here, my Persona’s weakness and who I’m attracted to are both Haru, so then I technically did answer both!”

“That would be the case if you were indeed attracted to Haru. Are you suggesting that you are with that declaration?” Yusuke chuckled.

Makoto realized that she had been manipulated yet again. She’d been so focused on reasoning her way out of the situation that she hadn’t realized just what facts she was using. “Th-that is…”

“C’mon, Makoto! Admit it! You totally have a crush on Haru!” Ann teased, leaning forward from where she was sitting to flick her on the nose.

Makoto looked to Haru, who had been quiet this entire time. While her face was still flushed, she appeared to be much happier than before, rather than flustered. Why would that be? This conversation was obviously going downhill fast.

“Now that it’s been decided that it’s still my turn, I would like to ask Haru something!” Futaba stood up on the bed (which caused Akira to sigh at the ruffled sheets) and pointed dramatically at the girl, who giggled at her antics. “Truth or dare, Haru?”

All eyes were on the gardener, Makoto’s included. There were a number of things that could result from either a truth or a dare, and she wasn’t sure which she would prefer to have happen.

Haru glanced at Makoto quickly before focusing back on Futaba. “I suppose… dare.”

Makoto winced.

“Yeah! You made it too easy there, Haru.” Futaba laughed. Looking around the room, she said, “Do I even need to say the dare out loud, or do we all basically know what it is?”

“I’d say it, just in case this flies over Makoto’s head too!” Ryuji joked.

“Honestly…” Makoto shook her head. Though she sometimes misread social cues, even she knew what Futaba would ask of Haru.

“Well I’ll say it just to make sure we’re all clear. And to see if I can make Makoto’s head explode!” Futaba rubbed her hands together. “Haru Okumura, I dare you to kiss Makoto Niijima!”

“Why are you using our full names?” Makoto asked, curious despite the situation that was about to unfold.

“So neither of you can run off and find someone else named ‘Makoto’ or ‘Haru’ to kiss since you’re too shy to kiss each other. Obviously!” Futaba added jokingly.

“It sounds like they’re gettin’ married or something with the formalities!” Ryuji quipped.

Makoto looked down, leaning her forehead against her hand. “Please stop.” How had this gone from admitting attraction to getting married?

Before she could dwell on this too long, she felt a light touch on her cheek. It was fleeting, and as she looked up to see what had happened, she saw Haru’s face a few inches away from her own. The other girl was smiling at her, and Makoto realized that she had…

“A kiss on the cheek doesn’t count, Haru!” Ann chided.

“It’s not like they were gonna make out or somethin’!” Ryuji shook his head.

“Well yeah, but…”

“We wanted some ‘mouth-on-mouth’ action here!” Futaba whined, crossing her arms.

Makoto watched as Haru leaned back to her original sitting position and giggled slightly at everyone’s antics. “If I recall, you only dared me to kiss her. You didn’t say what kind of kiss it had to be.”

“The one loophole!” Futaba wailed jokingly, falling back onto the bed with a loud “huff”.

“Well now, I believe it’s my turn.” Haru turned back to Makoto, who blushed and looked down at her lap, not wanting to make eye contact with anyone right now.

Makoto could feel her face heating up, and the source seemed to be the place where Haru had made contact. The kiss itself had been gentle and sweet, just like the girl herself. But what made Makoto really flustered was that it didn’t seem… hesitant. Haru had been determined and unafraid, which had to mean that she was confident in her feelings… right?

“Mako-chan, did you hear me?”

Makoto snapped her head up to face Haru, who was looking at her with a slight smirk on her face.

“Looks like Makoto really is weak to Haru. That kiss was a critical hit!” Makoto glanced at Futaba to see that the younger girl had resumed both her normal sitting position and what was slowly becoming the norm of teasing the student council president.

“I…” Makoto sighed, not having the energy to retort or deny anymore. “No, Haru. What did you say?”

Haru giggled again. “I asked you truth or dare?”

“Do I have to go again?” Makoto shook her head at the chorus of “yesses” that rang around the room.

“Fine.” Makoto did not want to be dared to do anything at this point, so she decided for a truth yet again. “Truth.”

“Would you… hm, I suppose I should follow Futaba’s example to make sure.” Haru cleared her throat. “Would you, Makoto Niijima, be interested in going on a date with me, Haru Okumura?”

“Ooooh!” Everyone teased in a sing-song tone. Even, surprisingly, Akira and Yusuke (although to a lesser extent).

“I-I…”

“I swear to God, Makoto, if you don’t say yes…” Ann rolled her eyes.

“I agree. After all of this, your answer should be obvious.” Yusuke smiled at the girl.

She knew that, deep down, everyone had her best interests at heart. Even the teasing itself was being used to propel her towards Haru, figuratively speaking at least.

Makoto decided to just go with it. She wanted to be confident like she had been (inadvertently) at the start of this situation. Though Makoto hadn’t considered Haru as anything more than a close friend, this game proved that maybe she should consider her as… something more.

A date at the very least wouldn’t hurt anything.

Makoto looked straight into Haru’s eyes, and they seemed startled at the girl’s sudden burst of confidence. Makoto smiled. It was nice to know that, while she herself was easy to tease, she could elicit similar reactions out of Haru.

“Yes, Haru. I would definitely be interested in going out on a date with you.” Using one more burst of adrenaline, Makoto reached out her hand and took hold of Haru’s. Lifting it to her lips, she gave her a quick kiss.

“M-Mako-chan…” Makoto chuckled at Haru’s sudden ineloquence, her eyes looking down at the ground.

The rest of the Phantom Thieves hollered and cheered, which caused Makoto to laugh. Sure, she was still wildly embarrassed, but she decided to own it rather than push it away. The feeling of joy far outweighed any negative aspects of it after all.

And she could tell based on the tender look that Haru was now giving her that the other girl felt the same way.

Done! Hope you enjoyed. And I hope that you enjoyed this Okujima week!

I tend to struggle with chapter titles, so I decided to try and spell something out with each. If you look back and take the first letter from each title, see what word you come up with!

Let’s hope Royal does this pairing justice (or gives us more ammunition to ship with, at the very least).

Happy Okujima Week 2020 everyone!

#okujima #okujima week #okujima week 2020 #makoto niijima #haru okumura #makoto x haru #haru x makoto #p5 #persona 5

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callunavulgari · 4 years

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TOP 25 FICS OF 2019

1. these roads will take you into your own country by @notbecauseofvictories | American Gods | Laura Moon/Mad Sweeney | WIP | 33k

Here’s a joke for you: a Muslim, a zombie, and a leprechaun walk into a bar in Misery, Indiana. No one stares, because no one in the puckered, shitty asshole of Misery, Indiana gives a fuck. The Colts are playing.

Heather Says: So. It’s funny that another of @notbecauseofvictories‘s stories is at the top of my list again this year. Keep in mind this list is sorted by when the fic was read rather than favorites (because that would get real complicated real quick). Clearly there must be something about January. There’s just something about the writing that is easy to slip into, be it a Star Wars fic or a Labyrinth fic or even a fic about Johnny and the Devil. This was lovely and I can’t wait until it’s finished.

2. eighteen wheels on an uphill climb by @honkforhankcon | Detroit: Become Human | Hank/Connor | 91k

Hank is going to die. He’s going to die right here in Kentucky, 53 years old, halfway to broke, and tragically sober. Survived only by a nine-year-old St. Bernard and the 31-year-old twink who delivered the fatal blow.

Heather Says: I don’t think that this is the first DBH fic that I sought out after beating the game, but it is the first that I loved enough to make it to this list. I didn’t think that I would go for a modern au for this fandom, certainly not a modern au wihere Hank is a truck driver and Connor is a sex worker (albeit briefly?) but here I am.

3. Fuck pride (pride only hurts, it never helps) by ImogenGotDrunk | Detroit: Become Human | RK900/Gavin Reed | 41k

After the android uprising, Connor becomes a permanent fixture in the DPD. That’s fine. Gavin can accept that. The dipshit’s more human than he used to be, and a decent detective to boot. Gavin can deal with him being around. What Gavin cannot deal with is Connor’s replica; two inches taller, blue-eyed, and with a mouth that Gavin doesn’t know whether to punch or take between his teeth. The RK900 model has been assigned as his partner for the foreseeable future.

Heather Says: I also never thought that I’d like a fic with Gavin in it. But I got curious about all the Reed900, and well, this fic really won me over. The writing is fantastic, and it softens Gavin while still keeping him believable. Also, well, I like the enemies to lovers thing.

4. Almost Cool by @blacktofade | Buzzfeed Unsolved | Ryan/Shane | 30k

While filming the Yuma Territorial Prison episode, Shane gets bitten by what he thinks is a bat. Spoiler alert: it's not.

Heather Says: This is actually the first thing that I read for this fandom. In fact, this is the fic that got me into Buzzfeed Unsolved in the first place. I’d seen a lot of art and gifs and fics pass my way, but I was only ever slightly interested in what I saw until this fic came through my inbox and piqued my curiosity.

5. Pride by @astolat | Game of Thrones | Jaime/Brienne/Cersei | 22k

Jaime didn’t understand why Cersei suddenly insisted on trimming his hair and shaving his beard, but he also didn’t care to fight her on it, even though he’d just as soon have kept the beard: it was bitterly cold in the small tower room with its arrow-slits.

Heather Says: Wowza. This fic was intense. I’ve always loved Jaime and Brienne. I’ve loved them since the second book, which was read at least a few years before I started loving them in the show. Adding Cersei to their dynamic would have probably been almost impossible to pull off if it was anyone else, but @astolat lives to surpass my expectations.

6. Skin and Scales by Ernmark | The Penumbra Podcast | Lord Arum/Sir Damien/Rilla | 18k

The man glares, and this time, Damien is certain it isn’t a trick of the light: those eyes are violet as amethyst. He wears disdain like a second skin–- or, perhaps, like the scales that he is missing. “Lord Arum?”

Heather Says: I was one of those people who skipped through all of the Second Citadel episodes during my first listen through of Penumbra. The stories were good, but the pull of Juno was too great. A couple months after I finished, I went back and listened to everything I didn’t. And let me tell you. Lizard monster. Honorable knight. Bookish girlfriend. Poly. It hit every single button I had and then some. This fic really hit the spot when I ran out of story.

7. someone you like by caela | She-Ra | Adora/Catra | 5k

catwithabat u think ur so hipster but u just look like a lesbian 27m she_ra @catwithabat bc… i’m a lesbian. lmao 5m

Heather Says: Noooot usually a big fan of high school fics. Namely because I’m not in high school anymore and well, after you read so many in your teenage years they sort of lose their luster. This one was phenomenal enough to change my mind.

8. Sands of Time by @tirsynni | Legend of Zelda | Ganondorf/Link | WIP | 98k

Link awakens in the desert with no idea how he got there, to encounter his worst enemy...except it was the King of the Gerudo, not the King of Evil, he faced.

Heather Says: I have seen a lot of really good Link/Ganondorf art over the years, but never really stumbled across a fic that didn’t have judicious amount of non-con involved. But the Breath of the Wild 2 trailer happened, and everybody started drawing really pretty art, so I went looking. And lo and behold, @tirsynni saved the day with this gorgeous time travel/fix-it fic.

9. killed with kindness by veterization | Persona 5 | Akechi/Akira | 52k

Goro can't quite figure out why so many people keep acting like they're his friend. (Or: the one where the Phantom Thieves decide to know thy enemy, befriend thy enemy, love thy enemy, crush on thy enemy).

Heather Says: I’ve read a couple of veterization’s fics over the years, and to date they have never disappointed me. They published this in June, and I think I clicked on it mostly because I was bored and hadn’t read any good P5 fic yet. This was basically just what the doctor ordered, and I was really happy to find something where Akechi’s story went ever so slightly different.

10. paper thin by @ebonybow | Buzzfeed Unsolved | Ryan/Shane/Sara | 9k

Shane’s new neighbors are a morning-sex kind of couple.

Heather Says: So I went into this one knowing very little about how Sara fit into things. I didn’t know she was Shane’s girlfriend. I’d never even seen her, but I clicked because I like poly and I trust the author. I was 100% not disappointed. There’s also another fic with a very similar dynamic here, which is also aces.

11. damn.nation, now available on itunes by @kaikamahine | Good Omens | Aziraphale/Crowley | 11k

When lowly tempt-pusher Amphora (formerly of Stairwell 7B North, before she Fell,) gets the notice that end times are nigh, she gleefully quits her job and cancels her Netflix subscription and takes her place among the legions of hell. This, it turns out, was a bad plan.

Heather Says: Elizabeth may have only written one fic this year, but she made it a damn good one. I’ve always loved her OCs especially, so I was pretty tickled that this is 10k+ of outsider pov. Also, demons! Demons are great! This demon is great! I want like 9 seasons and a movie about Amphora, just saying.

12. The Dragon and Her Wolves by hapakitsune | Game of Thrones | Jon/Sansa/Daenarys | 60k

When the truth of Jon's birthright is revealed, control of the North and Daenerys's claim to the Iron Throne are both called into question. To preserve their tenuous alliance and secure her rule, Daenerys puts aside her personal feelings to arrange a marriage of political convenience between Jon and Sansa Stark.

Heather Says: What do you mean season 8 didn’t exist and the show totally ended with a three way relationship between the two most powerful women in Westeros and Jon Snow? Never been a big fan of Jon/Sansa before this, but this is another of those writers that I would literally trust if they wrote a fic about a fork and a spoon.

13. never tell me the odds by @wildehacked | Wolf 359 | Eiffel/Hera | 9k

“I tried Star Wars," he says, adjusting the phone under his neck, "and it was way underwhelming.”

A shaky breath from her end. “Well, where did you start?”

Heather Says: I don’t remember which of @wildehacked‘s fandoms I started reading first. Most recently it’s been The Magnus Archives (more on this later). The point is, they’d written Wolf 359 fic and it had Hera and Eiffel and it was literally everything that I’ve been looking for since the series ended.

14. Find Me Somebody by raiining | Good Omens | Warlock/Adam Young | 11k

“You left me,” he said. “You both left me, for him. And I can’t even blame you, because I’d have left me for him too.”

Heather Says: There was an Art. The art was lovely. So I went looking, because that’s what I do when faced with beautiful art depicting a rare pairing. And I found the holy grail. Like, possibly my favorite Good Omens fic? Ever?

15. flirting with fire by @brawlite | Stranger Things | Billy/Steve | WIP | 7k

Steve's a cop, Billy's a firefighter. It's not a grudge, it's just a regular old small town rivalry.

Heather Says: Okay so brawlite has written a lot of great stuff this year (more on that later), but I read this in bed at the beach house this August while I was reeling from both a horrible sunburn and like seven hours of mild to moderate day-drinking while everyone else was still throwing back shots right outside my bedroom door. Jaws was playing on the tv and I wasn’t even paying attention to it, because THIS. Long story short, I’ve been thirsty for more ever since.

16. gold, when you find me by mmtion | The Flash | Iris/Barry | 53k

It's not that Iris hates The Flash, per say - more that she hates writing about The Streak in a weekly, pun-heavy comic based on The Flash.

Heather Says: I never would have thought that a canon pairing would make it to my Top 25 list, but here we are. I like Iris/Barry a lot better when they don’t grow up together and spend a lot of time playing the Superman game, apparently. Also, this was really well-written, and sexual tension has never been something I’ve felt from Barry and Iris, but I felt it in this fic. Just. Damn.

17. never gets old by @brawlite & @toast-ranger-to-a-stranger| Stranger Things | Billy/Steve | 78k

Falling in love with a cam boy named KingSteve isn't the smartest thing Billy Hargrove has ever done, nor is it the most healthy -- but the good choice is rarely ever the fun choice, and Billy is all about living life fast and loose.

Heather Says: Told you I’d come back to it. brawlite and toastranger are a fantastic team. last year was cherry pie and under the covers, this year it’s camboys and cop/firefighter dynamics. Also, I have a really strange fascination with fics where a character has an instragram. It’s really, incredibly strange. Also also, every time I see this fic title I get that one Discovery Channel song stuck in my head. And no, it probably isn’t the one you’re thinking.

18. ways to save the world by @wildehacked | The Magnus Archives | Martin Blackwood/Jon Sims | 19k

“I left you,” Martin says softly.

Heather Says: And we’re back at wildehacked too! The Magnus Archives was a thing that happened to me. This is I think the first fic I read for it while listening, and it was so very close to what we got in canon. I think when it comes down to it though, I still prefer this fic, even if the ending of this season was pretty fantastic.

19. The Denial Twist by beethechange | Buzzfeed Unsolved | Ryan/Shane | 35k

“This is kind of surreal,” Shane says, taking a sip of his tea. It’s piping hot and delicious, except it tastes like hot chocolate and not like tea at all. “Sort of—Wonka-esque, right? Or Alice in Wonderland.”

Heather Says: While the vampire one is my favorite both because it is excellent and because it was my first, this one was bizarre and sexy and also I read it like only a month or so ago! The dancing was my favorite part, but having dreams to work with made this story fantastically interesting and I loved every second of it.

20. silver in our lungs by taywen | Spinning Silver | Miryem/The Staryk Lord | 4k

The marks had been with Miryem for as long as she could remember. There were a number of them, all the same shade, following one after the other around her left wrist. They were pale as old scars, though they felt no different from the rest of her skin, and her mother claimed that Miryem had been born with them.

Heather Says: I really like soulmate aus. There’s so many different ways to twist them and the way they can sometimes change the dynamic entirely and other times not change them at all is just fascinating. I’ve been hoping there would be more Spinning Silver content on ao3 and running into this while I was trying to decide what I wanted to do for yuletide was a real treat.

21. you got me begging, begging, i'm on my knees by plalligator | The Queen’s Thief | Attolia/Eugenides/Costis | 5k

Costis has a particularly enlightening evening. (or, that struggle when you're a guard who's in love with your rulers and it turns out you would kind of like it if they bossed you around a little)

Heather Says: I accidentally re-read the King of Attolia and it made me consider ships I had perhaps not previously considered. This was really lovely and just steamy enough.

22. something more alive than silence by pageleaf | The Queen’s Thief | Attolia/Eugenides/Costis | 21k

It was a good thing that six months after the king had promised to halve the guard, he still hadn’t done it, because since then, there had been two attempts on the king’s life.

Heather Says: I want to only type the words AGONIZED NOISES to describe this fic because that’s basically my headspace when I get 21k of a shiny new ot3, but I mean. Really. This is super good and maybe my favorite yet? Why didn’t I start reading this fandom when I first read the books?

23. Timing it Right by DragonBandit | The Bright Sessions | Mark/Damien | 14k

The dragon chooses, Mark knows that as well as any boy born in a weyr. He'd never considered what that would mean if the dragon picked someone you hated. He's starting to think that was a mistake.

Damien's gold rises at Whitney. Mark tries to make things right.

Heather Says: This should actually be somewhere back in March, but I apparently closed out of the tab at some point. I never really got into Pern much. I have the first three books, but got most of the way through the first one a long time ago and then never picked it back up. I didn’t think I would like this, mostly because of the fact that I hadn’t gotten into the books, but was surprised to find that I absolutely loved it.

24. Keep It In Your Sights Now by LuckyDiceKirby | Shades of Magic | Lila/Kell/Holland | 9k

Holland travels with Lila and Kell. Somewhere along the way, they reach an equilibrium.

Heather Says: I love the new things I’ve discovered during my yuletide trompings. I don’t think I ever actually considered this pairing when I first read the books, but I am just so enamored with the idea of the three of them together. Like, why did I not realize that potential back then? This was lovely, and I loved it, and I want so much more out of this pairing than what ao3 has to offer me.

25. Charioteer by petrichoral | The Queen’s Thief | Gen & Costis | 13k

Captured in battle and stuck in the Mede capital, Costis has given up all hope of seeing his country again. But Eugenides has a habit of turning up where he's least expected.

Heather Says: Technically this shouldn’t be on here because I only read it today, but it was really wonderful and so canon typical. Gen and Costis were perfect in it, Irene was perfect in it. Everyone was perfect and nothing hurts.

31 notes · View notes

seadragonjade · 4 years

Text

Chapter 2: Festivals and Fireworks

After they infiltrated the palace, the next day, the group went to Leblanc after their school activities to talk about their next plan and to have a talk about the new teammates. As they walk over there Jaden-Drake gets a little nervous. God I hate this. What if it’s going to be like what happened in America? What if one of them turns out to like that dick? Great, I'm overthinking things again. Jaden thinks as he sighed. “Relax Jaden,” Xander states as he slaps his back. “I ensure, you that this will be like a new chapter in our lives. A fresh start.” He smiles down at his friend. “He’s right. It’s not going to be like it was last school year.” Draco tells him with his bearded dragon smile. “*sighs* You guys are right. I shouldn’t really worry.” Drake tells them with a smile. It doesn't mean I won’t though. The smile then falls again once they look away. He sighs again. He really didn’t like to think about what happened to him last year. It was a bad memory that he’d rather forget about. The bearded dragon saw this action. “What’s wrong Jaden?” Draco asks looking up at his saddened friend. “I’m fine, don't worry about it.” He tells him.

“You don’t look fine. Are you sure?” Akira asks, coming up from behind Drake. Drake looks up a little at him. Dreading being the shortest friend just like he did back in America. “Um, no I am not. Truthfully, I don’t really want to talk about it right now since we have a job to do and I don’t really want to worry people right now.” He tells the black-haired boy who nods at him. “Really that’s no excuse why you shouldn’t tell us why you are upset.” Morgana, from what Jaden understands, meows at him. Jaden sighs as he looks at the feline. “Trust me. I’ll tell you guys when I’m ready. Just...not right now.” He tells the black feline. He nods as they continue to walk to Leblanc. As soon as they entered Jaden, Xander, and Draco saw the barista. “Eh, you got some new friends here with ya?” the barista asked Akira as he entered the door. “Yes, they're also new to Japan so we decided to stop by to have a discussion.” He told the black-haired barista. He nods and gets back to work. “I wonder if they got any tea here.” Jaden mumbles to himself. “Alright, so what should we put on the calling card?” Ryuji asks as he sits down at a barstool. “Well how about this. ‘Sir Jonathan Brademire the prideful tyrant, we can see that you have stolen artworks of others just for your own sick and sinister desires. We shall steal your distorted desires and make you confess your sinful deeds. This will be done tomorrow, hope you have prepared yourself. From The Phantom Thieves of Hearts’.” Morgana said. “So how are we going to send this?” Xander states as he looks at the cat.

“We usually have either Ryuji or Morgana go be the deliverer.” Ann tells him as she sits down at the booth. “But we’re going to have Morgana deliver it to him.” Makoto explains. “That’s a smart idea if I am honest.” Jaden-Drake states as he pulls out his art book and pencils to start drawing. “Alright, so all we need to do is make the calling card.” Yusuke states as he watched Drake drawing one of his OCs. “You are also fond of art?” Yusuke asks him. Drake looks up and smiles. “Yeah. I really like to do art since both of my parents loved doing it as a hobby and I got the talent passed down to me. I posted a lot of it online when I have the chance to.” He tells him. “Wow, I received the talent from my mother. Maybe we can draw together sometime. If you’d like, of course.” Yusuke said. Jaden looked at him and smiled. “Sure. I’d love that.” He writes something down and gives it to Yusuke. “Here is my number so that way we have a way to contact each other for that.” He smiles at the shorter green-haired male. “Thank you. I’ll be sure I will.”

*Time Skip: Evening*

“Okay, so Xander what level is the treasure on?” Akira asks Xander looking straight at him. “Fifth floor in the northeast section of the castle.” He tells them, “Alright, so we go to the fifth floor and head in the direction Xander goes to get the treasure. If anyone or anything gets in our way we fight it. Like usual. Don’t forget the safe rooms. They could help us a lot.” Everyone nodded. “Hell yeah! Let’s get this done tomorrow.” Ryuji yelled out. “I hope we can get this done.” Makoto said. “Remember everyone, it’s all or nothing.” Morgana states looking at everyone. They all nodded in acknowledgment. “Right. *sighs* let's do this.” Jaden said as he looked at everyone. “Since this is our only shot let's make it count, all or nothing.” Akira looks at him and nods. “Alright everyone, see you tomorrow.” He said to every one of his teammates. “Make sure to get a good night's rest, you're going to need it.” Draco tells everyone as he jumps into Drake’s book bag. “Let's end this meeting.” Xander said. They all looked at him and nodded. “I’ll see you guys tomorrow then.” Makoto said to everyone as she got up and left. “Right, see you guys later.” Ryuji said as he waved to his friends as he walked out the door. “See you guys tomorrow then.” Ann said as she leaves like the other two. “I’ll see the rest of you then. Oh, and Drake.” Yusuke said. “Does this Saturday work out for you?” He looks at him. Drake looks at him and nods. “Yeah. It’s a perfect day.” He tells him with a sweet smile. “That’s wonderful. Well, I’ll see you later then.” He says as he walks away. Jaden-Drake smiles as he watches him walk away. Well, he is really nice. He thought as he started to pack the rest of his stuff. “Going on a little play date?” Xander said as he waited for his friend.

He looks at him and blushes a little. “Really mate, really?” Drake said as he eyed his friend. Once he walks up to him and Xander pinches his arm while saying. “Come on you know how much I like to tease you.” He chuckles as he rolls his eyes. “We’ll see you tomorrow, Akira-kun.” He tells Akira as he walks out with Xander right behind him. “Hmm, what nice kids those two seem to be.” Sojiro says as he watches them walk out. “Yeah...yeah they are.” He says as he walks behind the counter.

*Time Skip: Next Day; After School *

“*yawns*”

“I told you to get enough sleep last night.” Draco said, glaring at Drake who seemed to be very tired. He rolled his eyes as the bearded dragon was giving him a little lecture. He closed his eyes as he sighed out, “Alright, alright. Can you quiet down so that way no can know that your-OOF” He was cut off by bumping into someone...again. He fell on his butt. “Crap. Oh, crap sorry...oh, hi Akira.” He said looking up to see who he bumped into. Akira just chuckled as he helped him. “We gotta stop this literally bumping into each other right away before this becomes a habit.” He tells him. “Yeah, I agree.” He chuckles a little bit. “I also agree.” Draco states as he pokes his head out of the bag. “Oh, Akira, so nice to bump into you. How is Sojiro fairing alone?” Xander said as he walked up. Akira looks at him. “Oh, He’s doing just great.” While they were talking Jaden takes his hair out of its small ponytail and reaches in his bag to grab his brush. He begins to brush his hair seeing that he messed it up when he fell. “Hey Drake.” Ryuji said as he walked up to him. “What’s up?” He said as he put his hair back into a small ponytail. “Hey guys.” Ann said as she ran up to the group of boys.

“Hello Ann, how was your day?” Xander said looking at Ann. Ann looked at him and smiled. “My day has been going great, thanks for asking.” Ann said to Xander with a smile on her face. Jaden sighed as he smiled watching the interaction. Maybe it will be different. He thought. “Oh, that reminds me. Jaden, since you have been in a downward situation, Shujin has a school therapist. So if you want you can go talk to him. He’s a really nice guy.” Ann said looking at him. “Yeah, he is. He’s also really helpful.” Ryuji added in. “Huh, I might have to go check him out tomorrow then.” He said, looking at the two of them. Akira nodded in agreement with that statement. “His name is Dr. Maruki. Since you're planning on seeing him tomorrow.” He told him. “What’s this about Jaden seeing someone tomorrow?” Makoto asked, walking up to the group. “We were telling Drake about Doc.” Ryuji told her. “Ehh, afterwards I might just go to the velvet room.” Xander said to the group. “Alright.” Drake said looking at Xander. Akira looked at him and nodded. “Sorry I’m late, I was talking to one of my teachers about my last project.” Yusuke said as he came up to the group. “Alright since all here let's head over to the Palace.” Morgana told the group. They all nodded and started heading towards the museum.

Once the Phantom Thieves got inside the palace, they started their plan. “Alright everyone let's do this.” Draco said as he started running. As they ran, they bumped into one of the guards. “Shit.” Ryuji said as the guards transformed into their true forms. “PERSONA!! PHOENIX!!” Jaden shouted right away as a burst of blue fire came around him. The persona above him was human-like with fire like wings. “Woah.” “MARAGIDYNE!!” He shouted at the top of his lungs. Watching the guard burst out in flames. “Jack frost! Ice Age!” Xander yelled right after Jaden. Everyone watches the guard disappear. “Come on let’s go.” Xander said as he walked ahead with Jaden right behind him. Draco followed in tow behind them both. “Damn that was cool.” Ryuji said as he followed. Jaden chuckles as the rest of them follow. More guards showed up but the team took care of everyone that came and went into safe rooms a couple of times to level up and to regain lost sp. Then they went into the room where the treasure was. The room was massive; it looked like a throne room with statues of Jonathon’s family. “Wow, this is weird.” Ann said looking at one of the statues. “Tell me about it.” Makoto said. “I thought…” Jaden began as he looked. “I thought...I thought we weren’t important to him but I guess I was wrong.”

“Let’s not worry about that now. Quickly find the treasure.” Morgana said. Everyone nodded. They all looked around the room trying to find it. “I wonder where Jonathan’s shadow is lurking?” Xander states while observing the area. “I don’t know but we better hurry.” Akira states. Yusuke looks around at the thrones. As he was observing them he looked up to find a painting. In the painting it showed a family with a child no older than four, a baby with blond hair growing on his head and a pair of very happy looking parents. “Do you think this would be the treasure?” He asked while looking at it. “It is the treasure if Mona starts going crazy for it.” Ryuji said as he looked at it. “Huh, let me see.” Morgana said as he walked up with the rest of the group. “MEOOW!” He said, causing Drake to jump a little out of surprise. “I think you scared uh, we never got your codenames did we.” Ann said looking at them. “Nope. We didn’t get yours as well.” Drake chuckled out as he rubbed the back of his head. Xander looked between Morgana and the painting. “Mona, that is not catnip.” He told him. “Uh-hum. Um, sorry about that.” Morgana said. “I lost my cool for a second.”

“It’s fine since now we know that it is the treasure.” Jaden tells him with a calm expression. “Alright, let's grab it and get out of here.” Ryuji states. “Hey, Fox, give me a hand this shit’s kinda heavy.” He tells Yusuke as he tryings getting the painting. “Right.” He said as he went to help Ryuji. “Halt, stop right there thieves!” A booming voice came out. “Well, shit.” Ryuji said. “If you want the treasure you're gonna have to get through me.” As the group turned around to see the shadow turning into a giant bat-like creature. “Looks like he’s gone batty.” Xander jokes. “Pfft. Dude, really.” Jaden said with a chuckle.

“Yes.”

“Geez”

“Guys, focus!” Morgana told the two of them. “Mmmh, right.” They quickly got into their fighting positions. “PERSONA! LUNGE!” Ryuji shouted. Getting a good hit on him. “PERSONA! MABUFUDYNE!” Drake shouted. “EAGLE BEARER! SWORD DANCE!” Xander shouted out. Watch him freeze and get crushed by swords. “CARMEN! MARAGI!” Ann shouted out after the three boys. “JOHANNA! MAFREI!” Makoto shouted. “Wow, that’s one cool looking persona.” Drake said looking at her in awe. “Jaden, please pay attention to the battle. GOEMON! BUFU!” Yusuke shouted. "DO YOU KNOW WHO I AM?!” Shadow Jonathan yelled at the top of his lungs. “Oh, Skull watch out!” Morgana shouted at Ryuji. “Ah, shit.” He said as a giant gust of powerful wind hit him and he fell on to his butt. “EEE!” Drake screeched as a giant wing hit him. “My children, come and help your dear family member.” The shadow said. “Right away uncle.” A little boy came running in. The little boy looked like the one in the painting.

“Ah little Damien, just in time.”

“Oh, no this can’t be good.” Ann said right as Damien gives Jonothan an item that healed him up. “Oh, come on!” Ryuji said. “Looks like we just have to attack him more. JACK FROST, DIAMOND DUST!” Xander shouted. “Hmm, you guys do that.” Jaden said as he looked at the boy. “DRAGON MAZIODYNE!” He shouts as his attacks hit the little boy. “EE, sorry ‘little’ brother. Heh.” He said as the boy fell. “Um, was that a smart idea?” Akira said looking at him. “Well, he did heal him before, who says he won’t do it again? Also, be careful cause he might have another up his sleeve.” Drake explains to him. Akira nods at his explanation. “WHAT?! NO!” Shadow Jonothan yelled as the little disappear. “ARSENE, EIHA!” Akira shouted. “PERSONA, GARULA!” Morgana shouted. “Ugh, my youngest come on out!” “Hmph.” A little boy from the other day came running out. “There’s more!” Ryuji said. “EAGLE BEARER, MARAKUNDA!” Xander yelled. The wings from shadow Jonothan started flapping his huge bat-like wings and started to make a huge gust of wind. “What the hell?” Jaden said as he put an arm up to cover his eyes from getting dust in them. The rest of the group is doing something similar to that. “YOU CANNOT DEFEAT ME THAT EASILY!” The shadow yelled as a gust of wind came hurtling towards the group. Knocking down a few of them. “Oh no, Scarcen, Fenikkusu was knocked down!” Draco shouted at Xander. “Huh, very interesting code-names.” Fox states looking at Scarcen. Scarcen pulls out his gun trying to dew Shadow Jonathan. “Who is up for an All-Out Attack?” He said, looking to the others. Joker, Panter, and Fox all nodded. All four of them pulled out their guns pointing at Jonathan’s shadow. As the all attack and Scarcen did the final blow and land he said. "Another feather to add to the collection.”

“Gaah.” Shadow Jonathan grunted. He reverted to his regular form. “If I couldn’t deft you in that form then I’ll kill you in this one.” he shouted as he grabbed his sword. “Quick we got to get the other back on their feet.” Morgana shouted as he summoned Zorro. “PERSONA! MEDIA!” He shouted again, restoring a little bit of HP to his teammates. Scarcen braces himself. “PERSONA! RECARM!” Morgana shouted as Fenikkusu got up. “Thanks, mate.” He said as he got back into his fighting stance. “Your reign of pain ends here! PHOENIX! MAZIODYNE!” He shouted and pointed to Jonathan. Watching him get electrocuted.

*Time Skip: After the Battle*

Once they won the battle, Shadow Jonathan cowered in fear in front of the group. “No, don’t kill me!” He said in fear. Fenikkusu just looked at him and anger appeared in his eyes. “Please, please. don’t ki-AAAA” he was interrupted by a blade being thrown at him and landed above his head. “I’ve seen how you people appear all defenseless at first and then strike your enemies down when their backs are turned.” Scarcen stated as his mask started glowing red. “That is not going to work.” He begins as he lifts Shadow Jonathan by his shirt, slamming him to the wall. “We are going to leave with your treasure. And you are going to confess all your sins to the public! Is that clear?!” He yelled in his face. Jonathan meekly nodded. “Good.” Scarcen said as he threw him down on the floor. As he looks up from the ground he locks eyes with Fenikkusu. “Drakey. Please help me. Please, I am so sorry.” He started as he crawled to him. “Please.” Fenikkusu looks down at him. “You think that after years and years of you lying to everyone. Lying to your family. Lying to my mom.” He begins to tear up looking away. “You left after threatening my family to take me away over 13 years ago. I just want to know. Why? WHY?!” Jonathan flinched after hearing that. “Let’s just get the treasure and then get out of here.” Panther said as she was looking at Fenikkusu. “Yeah...alright.” he agreed with a sigh. Draco ran and grabbed the painting. The palace started shaking and falling apart. “Let's get out of here. Mona, you know what to do.” Joker said as he looked at Morgana who just nodded. “R-right.” as he turned into his car form. “Come on Fenikkusu.”

“Even though I am angry at you for what you did. Just so you know...I do forgive you for what you have done.” He said to him as he began to grab Draco and Scarcen. Getting into Mona with them. “Let’s go NOW!” He shouted as they drove away and out of there. “Are you okay or at least going to be, Drake?” Akira asked Jaden as he huffed. He looked at him and sighed. “Yeah. I’ll be fine.” He stated, while he turned to Akira and smiled. “Are you sure? You went pretty deep back there.” Ryuji said. “Yeah. It was almost kind of scary to watch.” Makoto chimed in. Drake looked at them and chuckled. “We have been in similar situations with our friends.” Xander said looking at the group. “Yeah, so it’s something you get used to. Also, it’s not like it’s going to be our last rodeo if you get what I mean. Also...I forgive him.” He said to them. Everyone in the group except for Xander looks at him in confusion. “What do you mean you forgive him?” Ann asks. “Didn’t he do your family wrong? He doesn’t deserve the forgiveness that you're giving him.” Yusuke said, looking at him. He looks at Fox. He just chuckles. “You guys don’t really know me that well since we just met, but I learned that there are things you just need to let go and forgive.” He tells them with a little smile. Draco titled his head in confusion. “Even after what he did to your family?” He asks as Jaden picks him and puts him in his bag. “Everyone deserves a second chance to redeem themselves. Even if they did you wrong in the past.” He said to him. “Well over time they deserve a chance unless they really did something wrong then it would be very tough for me.” He explained to the rest of them. “Think about it. What we are doing is essentially giving them a second chance by stealing their distorted desires and letting them start anew after they suffered the consequences for their sins.” Xander told them looking at them. “Even if you don’t forgive them we’re still giving them a second chance.” He continued. Drake nodded in agreement. “Yeah. Even though we have the memories of them doing wrong we can still have hope that they have changed.” He said looking at them with a smile on his face.

Everyone looked at the two speechless. They all stopped and agreed with what they were saying. “Anyways the painting is on the floor. Whoo, it looks like it did in the Palace.” Ryuji said as he looked down at it. “It does. Weird...” Ann said. “Huh, would you look at that. He really did still care about my family...even after all this time.” Jaden-Drake stated as he picked it up. “It’s a really beautiful painting. I wonder who painted it.” Yusuke said, looking at it. “Well, hard to believe but, Jonathan painted it himself.” Drake said looking at him. “Really? I didn’t think he was able to be a good painter.” Morgana said. “Well, he is, it's just that the fame went to his head. Anyways we’ll see all of you tomorrow. Xander and I gotta get going. Also, I need to give this back to my family.” said Drake as he was holding up the painting. “Wait, you’re not going to-oof” Ryuji got cut off by Akira shoving his elbow to his side. “Let us know how your family is going to react to it.” Akira told Drake as he adjusted his glasses. “Right. Well, bye.” He said with a little blush on his face as Xander and him walked away with Draco in his bag.

Xander smirks as he pokes Drake. “Seems like someone else’s heart was stolen today.” He stated. “Sh-shut up, mate.” He states as he pushes him away. “It’s not like that. I mean we just met. I can’t have a crush on him right away.” He blushed really red. “Do you think he is of the Lovers Arcana?” Xander continues to tease him. “What the hell man?!” Jaden whisper-yelled at him. Xander chuckles at his blushing friend. “Ugh, I hate you sometimes you know that.” He glares at him. “I know.” “Will you stop teasing him for once Xander? You can tell he is redder than a tomato.” Draco tells him. “All right, all right I’ll stop. However, it applies to you two as well.” Xander tells them as he walks a little bit ahead of them. “Fine.” Jaden sighs out as he follows him. “Hey, it’s not like I tease you guys!” Draco hissed out. The boys laughed out at Draco’s complaint.

*Time Skip: At school*

“Mr. Kurusu, stop daydreaming when you are in my class!” Yelled a male teacher as he threw a piece of chalk at him. Akira dodged the piece of chalk and it ended up hitting a sleeping Drake against the head. “Huh, Ow.” Drake states as he wakes up and rubs his head. “Crap.” The teacher said as the students whispered about what Jaden was going to do. He just looked around in confusion. Looking for what hit his head. “Are you okay?” The teacher asked. “Um, yeah. Does anyone know what hit my head?” He answered the teacher. Everyone just started to snicker at the situation. Jaden fixes his seating position and starts looking down trying to find it as the teacher goes back to teaching. Once he found the chalk he got very confused. “Who threw a piece of chalk and why?” He whispered. “Oh, well.” He thought after not caring for an answer at that moment and time. A little while later class ended and Jaden grabbed his bag with Draco in it. “Hey, Akira do you know where Dr. Maruki is?” He asked him while catching up to him. “Hmm. Oh, Yeah. I can take you to him if you like.” Akira told him. “Sure. I don’t mind.” He said flashing a bright smile. C-Cute. Akira thought. “Hmm, Akira you good?” Drake asked him, looking a bit concerned. “Um, what yeah no I’m fine, come on let’s go.” They began their journey to the nurse’s office. They chatted about their lives and the Phantom Thieves. “Well, I’ll chat with you later then.” Akira told him as they were right in front of the nurse’s office. “Yeah. You too, mate.” He waved to him as he walked off. Drake sighed then knocked on the door. “Ah, yes come in!” He heard a young-sounding male call out from the other side. He opened that door and walked in to be greeted by a brown-haired young man with black glasses. “Oh hi, you must be one of our new students. Jaden-Drake, I’m guessing?” Dr. Maruki said as he walked over and bowed. “Um, yeah. And you must be Dr. Maruki. I heard a lot about you from a few of my friends.” He said bowing a little bit. “Go ahead and take a seat.” He motioned to the chairs. As Drake sat down the messy-haired doctor asked. “Would you like some tea?” The green-haired boy nodded at the question. As the doctor got him some tea and himself an apple juice the teen boy looked around the room.

“Here you go. Do you also want some snacks?”

“Um, no thank you.”

“Alright, so what brings you here?” Dr. Maruki asks while he hands Jaden-Drake his tea and sits down on the couch right next to him. “Well. I just have a lot of stuff on my mind.” Drake began. “Really, like what?” He asks. “Well, since I just transferred here with my friend and a lot of problems that happened last year just came into my mind. It hasn’t really affected me in my school work thankfully. It’s just the fact that it’s hard for me to fully trust people because of last year. *sighs* Though, I’m not going to let my past affect me from making friends though.” He explained to Maruki. Maruki nodded as he listened to the green-haired teen. “May I ask you what happened last year?” Dr. Maruki asked. “Um, well. Basically, there was a kid I met last year that joined my friend group. We all thought he was a good guy but he ended up tricking us and we didn’t notice it but the people around us did. He tricked a few of my friends into kicking me out of the group.” Jaden stated as he rubs his sides. “I felt more...happy when I left the group. It was even shown when I was talking to my family. Turns out he affected my attitude itself. I got better friends after that and I learned my lesson. I thought about this from time to time, but I really wouldn’t want anything to be changed. Cause if that situation didn’t happen then I wouldn’t have the friends I do now and I wouldn’t be able to see who was my true friend and not. Well, I had a lot more situations in my life that taught me that same lesson. Like one of my early guy friends, from when I was 12, sexually harassing me and asking me to have sex with him. And friends turning on me and abusing me emotionally for a few years in elementary school.” Drake finished it up. He looked at the doctor who seemed a bit surprised. “Well, that’s a lot that has happened to you in your life. And you wouldn’t want to change a thing even if you had a chance?”

Jaden shook his head. “No, because I believe everything happens for a reason. And I believe I wouldn’t be here today if I didn’t go through my trials in my early childhood, fighting my next trials in life. Since life isn’t always sunshine and rainbows. There’s always going something that life will throw at you.” He explained. He nodded right after that explanation. “Hmm, you do seem like that type. Very cheerful too. I bet you will make lots of friends here too.” He chuckled at the comment. “I hope I will. Well, it was nice meeting you Doc. Thank you for listening.” He said as he got up and bowed. “Hmm, your welcome. It was nice meeting you as well. Come again if you have any other problems or you just want to talk, my door is always opened.” The doctor tells him with a soft smile. Drake nods and walks out the door while waving to Doc. “Wow, you kinda went deep back there.” Draco said as he pokes his head out of the bag. “Deep in what?” a voice came from behind them. Xander comes up from behind while adjusting to his glasses. He looks at the two with a bit of a confused expression. “I kinda went too deep when talking to Dr. Maruki. I basically gave him a short version of the story of my life.” Drake explained while rubbing the back of his neck. “Well, it is good to have an adult who can vent out your problems too.” Xander stated as they walked off. “Well, that is true.” Drake signed out, walking next to the taller male. “The thing is I already do. It’s just that he’s always busy so...I guess this is one way to vent if I can’t vent to him.” he continued.

Xander gave him a confused look. “What do you mean? Do you have someone that lives in Japan that you can vent to?” He asked looking at his friend. Jaden-Drake automatically stopped in his tracks. “Shit.” he whispered to himself. “You know that you can’t lie to me. I can differentiate truth from lie. I can see emotions. Feel pressure and hear expressions. My sixth sense is impossible to hide something from it.” The dark tan boy turned to his friend relaying the true powers he had received from his persona. Drake sighed looking at his friend. “I know that I can’t lie and the same goes to you buddy. I can sense when people are lying. Just more on an animalistic level though. *sighs* He’s a dude I know that had come to visit in America when he was a kid and my family got to know his family and in turn we visited him here in Japan. And he is always busy nowadays. Not like he wasn’t busy before when we were kids.” He mumbled the last part to himself. “Look, one of these days I’ll introduce you guys. Not right now.” He finished off with a sigh. He started rubbing his neck again. “Ok then. Just be glad that I am unable to pry into a person’s memory.” Xander told him. Drake looked at him and laughed. “You're making it sound like he is a bad person when he is like my older brother. Bawha. Dude trust me. I’ll get you guys to meet him. But like I said he is always busy. You can just ask me what he does mate.” he told his friend as they began walking again to meet up with the others to hang out. “I know, you seemed rather joyous whenever you mentioned him. It’s hard to notice but it is there.” He chuckled as his friend laughed. They both just laughed as they walked on.

*The news on the television*

A man with short, black hair walked up to the podium in front of all the news reporters and his audience with cameras showing live footage for everyone at home to see. He is shown to be breathing in and out as everyone wonders what he is going to say. “Everyone, I have wrong you all for a very long time. I am not the artist you think I am. I have taken others' work for my own self-gain. I have even stolen my own art pieces from people that I have given said pieces to.” He sighs as he looks at everyone with teary eyes. “I have also hurt those that were closest to me. By letting someone in and letting them tear into me and being rude and hurting the people I love in the process. To those that I hurt, stolen from, and never seen in years because of my actions... I am sorry *Sobs* I am so so very sorry. There are no words to describe how sorry I am.” He sobbed out. He kept on crying on camera. Everyone watched as he kept on crying. Some were angry while others felt bad for this man. “I let my pride overshadow me. I stole others’ work so my work was the only one people would see and I would brag how good it was. So after this, I will make this right by giving the artworks back. From those I have stolen, to those I have taken from. I have already given back a painting that belonged to my family. *sniff* I hope that you all can forgive me one day. And to those that I love...I hope that you can come and visit me so we can talk and have a spot of tea or just have something to eat. Thank you.” Just like that, as soon as he finished his speech the reports, just like a swarm of wasps, started asking him questions. He ignored them as he walked away from his podium.

*At Leblanc*

“Damn, I didn’t expect him to be crying in front of the cameras.” The spiky-haired blonde said while watching the small TV on the wall. The Phantom Thieves were all at Leblanc’s hanging out for the day while the TV was on. “Once a person’s distorted desires are taken away they will start to confess their sins since they realize how bad they are. The worse, or the more sins they made, the more burdened the person feels.” Xander explained to them. “No, I’m fine...yes...bro trust me...yes I am watching it...no I didn’t threaten him...let’s just say I am apart of a new team...yeah...love you too...yes I’ll let you know if the school does anything stupid...yeah talk to you later to...bye bro.” The green-haired teen talks on the phone in the background of the others. “We, understand that bit...but it’s strange just watching it,” The blue-haired teen stated. He sighed then looked at Xander. ”I’ve been meaning to ask this, but how long have you two been doing this? Since you two know so much about this stuff and seem to be very knowledgeable in this sort of thing.” Yusuke asks while looking between the two as Drake hangs up his phone. Drake came over to the others and both of them looked at each other. The multicolor-eyed teen rubbed the back of his neck. “I think the 18th of July marks 10 months since we had gotten our Personas and started this journey.” Xander stated. “Yeah, we’ve been doing this for a while so, if you guys have any questions you can ask us.” Jaden told them with a smile. Draco nodded as he tried to bite Morgana’s tail. “Yep. I also got a lot of knowledge about a lot of situations.” Draco stated as he was still trying. “That reminds me, have you gotten any of your memories back since we’ve been here?” Jaden asked, looking at the bearded dragon, moving the feline's tail in the process. The dragon glared at him once he said that. “Bits and pieces but nothing I can make out.” He sighed out. “Huh, you don’t have all your memories either. I guess I am not the only one.” Morgana said looking at Draco with a smile. Draco’s eyes widened as he looked at the blacked-haired feline. “You lost your memories too?” he asked with his pure black eyes that were full of life. “Wow, you guys lost both your memories...you know what, you guys could most likely be brothers.” Jaden said as he finally sat down. “How can a cat and a lizard both be related when they're not a part of the same category of genetic species.” Yusuke said looking between the two creatures. “Well, they're unlike the creatures that they are based on. I mean, they can eat normal human food without getting sick, so there could be a chance.” Drake said as he petted both creatures.

They all nodded in understanding. “Oh wait, Xander, don't forget that we have to get job applications. And don’t you say the shadows in the Metaverse can give us enough yen! We both know that’s not true. So please get my computer out while I go wash my hands.” Jaden-Drake told Xander as he walked to the bathroom. “Ok, how about that beef bowl shop?” Xander asks Drake as he comes back. “Are they hiring for two people? Cause we don’t have to do the same thing. I mean as long as it’s not you know what. I’m cool with it.” Jaden tells him. “Well, they said that they need as much help as they can get, meaning that both of us could work there.” Xander told his green-haired friend. As the two teens talked about their job hunting, they didn’t notice Akira and Sojiro listening in on their conversation. Akira looked at Sojiro with a knowing look and Sojiro nods. “Hey, if you boys want, I can have one of you work here. It’s if you want of course.” The older man said to the two. Both boys looked at each other. “I mean if you're okay with it. Then sure I guess that is fine.” Jaden said looking at him with a smile. “Sure, Jaden would LOVE to work with you and Akira.” Xander stated with a little smirk on his face. Jaden’s face turned bright red after he heard that statement. “Well, I guess that settles it then. You’ll start tomorrow. Akira will teach you the basics.” The older male with glasses told Jaden as he smiled at him. The green-haired teen nodded in agreement while still blushing red. Everyone chuckled a little as Jaden started to calm himself down.

*Time Skip: July 17 Sunday*

Jaden-Drake groaned as he walked with the three other boys and two creatures to a festival Ryuji had been talking about for a few days now. It was really hot and Drake was sweating from wearing a black jacket and light blue jean pants. I should have stayed home. Or agreed to work with Sojiro today. He thought as they got there. He really didn’t like the heat but learned how to get used to it because he grew up in California, both central and southern. Once they got there, the shortest boy heard the blond complain. “It’s so hot.” He stated. “It’s as if we’ve walked around in an enormous sauna.” Jaden rolled his eyes at Yusuke. “Mate, you shouldn’t be wearing dark colors then. It makes it worse since the dark colors absorb the heat.” Jaden told Yusuke, who was wearing dark-colored clothes. “I have experienced walking kilometers through deserts, this is nothing.” Xander told them with a bit of pride in his voice. “And I grew up in the hottest parts of California and trained in hot weather. Still learned wearing dark clothes was/is a very terrible idea.” Jaden explained. “Whose bright idea was it to come here again?” Ryuji stated as he turned to his friends. “Yours.” Morgana stated as he popped out of the bag. While the boys were bickering a bit, a female news reporter was recording the festival. “And just look at that crowd. Smiling faces everywhere you look.” She exclaimed. “Huh, didn’t really expect the news team to be here.” The multicolor-eyed boy said looking over to where he heard the voice. “With that, let’s move right into asking some of the visitors here for their comments.” She finished off. “A TV crew, hm?” Yusuke stated. “I don’t really like the sound of it.” Jaden stated. “We better not stand out then.” Akira stated. “Hmm, I agree.” Drake with his friend. “We should grab our kebabs and get outta here.” Ryuji said with a smile. “Ah, let’s interview those five.” The female reporter said gesturing to the group. “Is she talking about us?” Yusuke asked. “I don’t know but I really don’t like the sound of it if she is.” Draco said hiding in Jaden’s bag still. “What the-” Ryuji exclaimed. “What do we do, Akira?” Morgana asked the messy-haired teen. “Let’s just stay calm.” He told them. “Right.”

“Good point. We’ll look even more suspicious if we panic now.” Yusuke said looking at his leader. “They got us.” Morgana said in a nervous tone. “Oh, no.” Draco said as he ducks back into the bag. “Aw, hell...okay, I’m gonna start making some real cringey comments so they can't use any of the footage.” Ryuji told them. Jaden facepalm and shook his head. “Idiot.” He mumbled under his breath. Akira chuckled at his friend's comment. “Wait, where did Xander go?” Xander was still standing right next to them however he was hiding under the Shadow of Nyx whilst silently laughing at them. “Dang it, is he using that Shadow-thing again?” Jaden stated as he looked around. “Hello! It sure is hot today, huh?” The lady said, looking at Ryuji. “Yeah, for sure!” He stated. “And if it’s this hot in July, can you imagine just how insane the weather’s gonna be in December?” “Ah, anyway...since you’re here for the festival, does that mean you and your friends there are meat lovers?” She asked him. “Uh...I’d say that we’re really lovers of fruit! Oh, and sweets! Sweets are just to DIE for!” He told her. The lady looked at him and then started to chuckle nervously. “Well, ah...thank you very much for your time!” She said to him. As soon as she walked away Ryuji relaxed. “Phew, that was too close.” “That was truly cringe-worthy, but are you certain that they won’t air any of it?” Yusuke said, looking to his blind friend. “That wasn’t that bad. You should see the stuff back in America.” Drake told Yusuke. “I’m pretty sure she thought that was a broadcast disaster. We oughta be okay.” Ryuji answered his blue-haired friend's question. “If you say so, mate.”

“More important than that, though; it’s time to get some MEAT!” Morgana purred out. “Oh, right! My kebab!” Ryuji said. “Can I just have some tiny pieces of whatever you're gonna eat, Drake?” The bearded dragon said, popping his head out. “Yeah.” After the group got in line they got their food. “The lines for the food stalls were even more insane than the heat!” Ryuji whined out. “Standing around in this sweltering heat was rather trying.” Yusuke sighed out. “If you think that's bad, how about standing in line at Disneyland. That could be way worse. And trust me I would know.” Jaden told the two of them. “And almost all the good stuff was already sold out.” Ryuji sighed out. “I didn’t eat breakfast this morning. I’m starting to get light-headed…” Morgana said. “Geez. Even though I didn’t eat for a different reason and I ain’t getting light-headed...well then again.” Jaden said. “Even still, an occasion like this seems to make everything taste delicious.” Yusuke said with a small smile. “That’s because the food is cooked here and not at a fast food place.” Jaden said with a smile. “I go to a lot of places like this with my dad or older brother. They're always so good.” Jaden stated while drooling. Xander nodded. “Yeah, this is good food.” He smiled out. Akira sighs. “I really wanted a kebab.” He said, a little disappointed. “B-But look, Akira-at least we have shaved ice.” Morgana told him. “You can have some of mine. I don’t really mind since I’m not a big kebab person and only really wanted to try it.” Jaden said holding his kebab up to Akira. “Really? Right, if you're giving me some of your food you can have some of my shaved ice. If you want some.” He said to the shorter male. “It’s fine, mate. You don’t have to give me some. Trust me on that much.” Jaden replied with a smile. “Welp, we came all the way out here, so we might as well go check that thing out.” Ryuji mentioned to his friends. “What thing?” Yusuke questioned. “I heard they’re building some kinda huge-ass stadium or somethin’ nearby. Wait, was that what it was?” Ryuji questioned himself at the end. “You don’t know what you’re talking about, do you?” Morgana asked him. “Oh, I heard that the last time I was talking to my older brother. He believes it is a stadium.” Drake stated as he was being handed Akira’s snow cone by Akira himself. “A stadium…” “Oh yeah, I kinda forgot about that.” Xander mutters out. “Well, such buildings often have intriguing architecture; I’d love to see it for personal reference.” Yusuke stated. “Yeah? Let’s go then!” Ryuji said to the group.

They got to the construction area only to see that they barely started working on it. “Oh c’mon, that’s it? They barely even started!” Ryuji exclaimed. “We seem to be premature spectators.” Yusuke stated. Drake looked at it. “Huh, I thought they started a week ago.” He said looking up at it. “I guess this is what people call ‘jumpin’ the gum.’” Ryuji said. “Jumping the gun.” Mona corrected. “Say, isn’t that Kasumi?” Xander said, pointing to a very saddened girl with red hair that was in a ponytail by a ribbon. “Hey, I believe that is. Why does she look so sad?” Jaden said looking at her. “Well, anyway; hey Ryuji, I’m up to grab a bite with ya.” He said looking at the disappointed blond. “What really?” He stated in surprise. “Yeah, I’m kinda still hungry since I ate very little.” The teen stated to him. “Well alright. C’mon, let's go then Jaden-Drake.” Ryuji said, walking off. “Well, I’ll leave you two to go talk to Kasumi to see if she's okay.” Jaden said following the blond with Draco still in his bag who seemed rather happy as well. Xander and Akira walked up the teen girl. “Hello, Kasumi-san.” Xander said. Kasumi jumped a bit in surprise. “Auditore-Senpai, Kurusu-Senpai?!” She said to both of them. “What a pleasant surprise.” Akira said to the red-haired girl. “It is also a pleasant surprise to see you here as well,” Xander states while looking at Kasumi. “Y-Yes. Did you two come to see the stadium too?” She asked them with a fallen expression. “We decided to visit the stadium out of curiosity,” Xander explained to her. “Same here, I needed to give myself a pep talk.” She told the two boys. “Is something wrong?” Akira asks. “Sometimes, when things get me down I come here.” She states with a small smile. “Although that doesn’t really answer your question does it?” She says after thinking for a bit. “I know this may get in the way of your guys' plans, but would you two be willing to join me for lunch?” She asked with her eyes looking rather red and puffy. “Sure, we don’t mind.” Akira said, thinking it was best to accompany her.

*Time Skip: Dinner*

“Phew! That was delicious.” She said happily, stretching out her arms “What did I just witness?” Akira said with a worried look. “I always like this after a meeting.” Kasumi said with a little smile. “In all honesty, I’d like to keep going...but any more will end up harming a performance.” “Next time let’s go to an all-you-can-eat buffet,” Xander chuckled out. “So the meet was done?” Akira askes. “Simply put? It was a disaster.” Kasumi sighed out. “I’ve been feeling like I’m getting back into the natural flow of things, thanks to you two.” Kasumi said to both of them, still being a little sad. “Smile my dear! You know you’re never fully dressed without one!” Xander smirked out. Thinking no one would get where that’s from. Kasumi looked at the tan-skinned boy and then laughed a little. Her smile had fallen when she stated. “But when the moment of truth arrived, my body still wouldn’t move the way that I wanted it to…” “Is it more of a mental thing?” Akira asked her. “I think… that’s a big factor” She told them. “Something similar happened to me in middle school-but back then, I had someone by my side that kept me going...” “Who do you mean?” Akira asked her out of curiosity. “...” Kasumi sighed. “I… have a younger sister.” Kasumi told the two boys “We promised each other that we’d win international gymnastics together...competitions.” She explained. “But this spring, she... died, in an accident” Her expression was not the best at this moment and time. “I promised her we’d take the gold for our routines across the world. But I can’t stop worrying about my lack of improvement lately. I’ve really been throwing myself into practice, but I wonder if even that won’t be enough...” She explained to them. “It’s not over yet.” Akira told her. “Agreed.” Xander nodded. “After all, if you feel like you hit rock bottom, just know this. There is only one way to go and that is up.” He said confidently. “If you ever need help with anything my friends and I would be willing to help out during your time of need.” Xander finished off with a small smile. “Thank you. And you're right, Kursu-Senpai, I can’t let it end like this! You guys just keep on rescuing me, don’t you?” Kasumi stated as she smiled. “Okay! No more brooding! There are still more meets left this year. I’m going to start from scratch and train as hard as I can.” “That’s the spirit,” Xander told her while Akira nodded. “Thank you guys so much for listening to all that! Now I feel like I’ve been recharged, mind, body, and spirit-” she cut herself off. “...Well, at least my mind and spirit are recharged! The best way to stave off hunger is with some vigorous activity! I’m going to jog home, take care!” She got up and walked away from the two boys. “After eating!? Talk about an iron stomach.” Xander said as he watched her walk off.

*Time skip: Evening*

“Woo, I’m beat.” Jaden-Drake stats as he flops down on the couch. “Hey, dude how was the whole lunch thing with Yoshizawa?” He turned to his friend who was leaning out to the kitchen counter. “It went well, she just needed someone to cheer her up,” Xander said, looking at his friend. “Alright.” He sighed and turned on the T.V. then began to start laughing. “I knew it. See they should let me do it.” He shook his head as the news from earlier showed his blond friend. As soon as he was about to change the channel his phone chimed. Thinking it was the group he checked his phone. “Shite…” He said under his breath. “Glad that I used that stealth tactic.” The tanned boy said while looking at the T.V. “I’m glad I was in the bag.” Draco said as he sat on the couch right beside Jaden. “Hey, can both of you be quiet real quick, my brother wants to call me. Also, Xander, you saw the text Ryuji sent us? Glad I gave him my kabab still while I got to catch his shaved ice haha.” The green-haired teen stated as he got on his phone and started to dial his brother. “Hey...bro...what’s up?” Jaden started. “You saw it...What?...Oh yeah...I know I told them I could make it way worse than that….Yeah...Next time I’ll do that...Yeah love you too bye.” Jaden sighs as he hangs up. “Phew. I thought that was going to be way worse than that.” “How worse can you make it?” His friend asked him. “Oh, I was talking about the phone call. The news thing I would have just answered the questions in English but pretend I don’t understand what she is saying or just told her not to record us cause we didn’t want to be on TV.” The older teen explained. “Oh, that kind of method. I would have spoken in a language that I learned from the bleeding effect.” Xander stated. “Oh, I thought of something else at the time that is something you know I would do...or I could have spoken in Greek.”

*Time Skip: July 17 Monday*

[Phone convo]

Ryuji: Tomorrow’s the fireworks festival! Let’s meet at Shibuya at 5!

Ann: Hey, Makoto. Are you going to wear a yukata?

Makoto: I’m planning on it.

Yusuke: Yukatas are a great part of the summer tradition... They truly heighten a woman’s beauty.

Yusuke: I think I will wear mine as well.

Xander: I made sure to bring one, I will also make sure that Jaden does as well.

Ryuji: You three got one…? How about you, Akira?

Akira: I don’t have a yukata.

Ann: Hey, I know! Why don’t you come without your glasses?

Makoto: What’s the point in that?

Ann: I dunno, you don’t get to see fireworks everyday, so it’d be sad just wearing normal clothes!

Ann: I was just thinking he might want to go for a change of pace.

Ryuji: That sounds great! You should totally come without glasses!

Ryuji: Welp, you guys better not be late tomorrow!

“So can I wear a little bow tie since you guys are gonna wear your yukatas?” Draco asks as he watches both boys start trying to look for their clothes. The two looked at each other in confusion. “On your tail?” Xander questions. “No, around my neck like a human.” He said. “I don’t know if we have one your size mate.” Jaden stated as he looked through a box. “Aw, man.” He said. “Sorry little buddy.” They continued their search for their yukatas. “I wonder what Akira would look like in a yukata though...” The green haired teen mumbled while blushing. “Looks like love is in the air.” Xander stated as he watched his friend’s blush turn darker. “God, I hate you sometimes dude.” The older teen said looking at him. “I know. Anyways, let’s go check our closets?” “*sighs* Alright then.”

*Time Skip: Daytime*

The boys finally found their yukatas and started to put them on. Drake was blushing a little bit as soon as he was done putting it on. The yukata he wore was mint green with a dragon design with a bird on it. “Maybe I should wear something underneath so that way I feel less exposed to the world. How about you Xan-man?” He asked his friend who was still putting on his. His yukata was white with a design of a silver-colored eagle with the eye of the eagle containing a blue flame in the iris. “You should always wear something underneath.” He replied as he finished trying it on. “True.” He paused for a moment. “Well unless it’s a quilt.” Xander looked at him with a confused look as he went off to his room. “Wait what?” he asked. “Ask my dad.” He heard him shout. When both boys were finished, with Draco in the bag, they went out the door and headed straight for Jaden’s car. “Alright. Okay so let’s head to Shibuya...forgot to ask you. Wanna take the car or do you want to take the train?” He asked, looking at his friend. “Train is faster.” Xander told him. “Right, let's go then”

Once they were on the train they were pushed together since the train was really crowded. “I hate this.” The shorter of the two sighed out. He really hated being in crowded areas sometimes. This time being one of them. “Now for today’s Train News. Today’s headlines are…’Fireworks Festival Tonight’, expect roads and transportation to be congested for the entire day. ‘Sudden Weather Changes: Imminent!’ Be careful of sudden shifts in climate from afternoon to night.” The train monitor announced. “Huh, so that means most of these people are going to the firework festival.” The green-haired teen stated. “Great.” The black-haired teen stated while sighing.

*Time Skip: Evening*

The group of five boys were all standing around waiting for the girls to arrive. “Uuuugh, It’s so hooooot…” Ryuji groaned out. “I feel like I’m being baked.” Morgana whined. “I think it feels good. Since I was stuck inside the apartment for most of the day today.” Draco growled out. “Those girls are way too late.” Ryuji complained. “It must be taking time for them to put on the yukata.” Yusuke explained. “Or maybe it’s traffic. Since it is an event going on and a lot of the roads are blocked.” Drake explained to the blond. “Why aren’t you two wearing one?” Yusuke asks the boys in normal clothes. “I don’t got clothes like yukata. But man, you look way too normal in that.” Ryuji said while looking at Yusuke. “I have to agree.” The shorter male said “People often say that to me.” Yusuke said. “Well, then again, depending on the person I meet I would say the same.” Drake told them. Yusuke nods. “That makes a little bit of sense.” “Ah, by the way...the exams…” Ryuji mentioned. “I bet you got a big fat F on them.” Morgana joked. “Shuddup! We- We don’t know that yet.” He glared at the blue-eyed feline. “That was very rude to say Mona. Even by my joking standards.” Drake told the feline. “Wait until our grades come in.” Xander stated. “Really. Don’t make him even more stressed.” The multicolored-eyed teen stated. Right after Drake stated that, two young ladies came up to them. One was in a pink yukata and the other wore a black yukata. “Are you going to the fireworks festival?” The lady in the pink yukata asks them. “That’s right.” Yusuke answers. “Us too! Wanna go together?” The one in a black yukata asks while coming close to Drake. Drake backed away from her and went next to Akira. “Are we…getting hit on?” Ryuji said, stunned. “I would rather not get involved with this.” Xander stated while backing away a little. “C’mon, let’s go together.” The pink yukata lady suggested. “Do you happen to be a model? You look great in that yukata.” The one in the black said to Yusuke. “Is your friend in the green yukata shy or something?” She asked point to Drake who is currently hiding behind Akira. “He doesn’t trust new people that well.” Akira stated to the ladies. He goes back to looking at Ryuji. “Waitin’ around’s a pain, so can we just go with these chicks?” He asked. “No way.” Akira answered, shaking his head. “We’ll all apologize to the others later!” Ryuji smirked. “This is a dishonorable action, what would Ann and Makoto say to this?” Xander asked, looking at Ryuji. “Who cares?” He told him. “That’s enough! You’re disgracing your yukata. You should be more aware of your womanhood.” Yusuke told the ladies. They both looked at each other, then walked away. “That kinda was a bit mean there, mate.” Drake told Yusuke as he got out of his hidden position. “They were being disgraceful. What else can I say?” He asked. “How could you?!” Ryuji said with disbelief. “Why don’t you go after them then?” Ann said. Both her and Makoto walked up to the group. “So those are the kinds of girls you like, Ryuji.” Makoto said. Xander and Drake chuckled at that comment. “Uh, well… That’s…” Ryuji began but could think of anything to say. “...You know, Yusuke’s a pretty boy, but he is really missing out because of what he says.” Ann stated. “I guess, but he’s more likeable since he stays true to his ideals. Definitely more than somebody I know.” Makoto stated while eyeing Ryuji. “I have to agree with both of you on that. But then again we are high schoolers so we’re going to think differently now then when we’re adults.” Xander said with a little chuckle. “I heard that Ryuji’s pretty much failed his exams.” Morgana chimed in with a little smirk. “Oh?” Makoto looked at the black-furred feline. “Mona, you little-” Ryuji began but got cut off. “Hey, it’s gonna get crowded if we don’t get going.” Ann said. “Agreed.” Yusuke said. The group had begun walking away right when Ryuji started talking to the ladies from before. “But man, you both look amazin’ in yukata! Talk about Japanese beauty…” When he was done he opened his eyes just to see the group walk away. When he got to them Drake made a little remark. “Dude, don’t even try at this point.” “H-Hey!”

Once they got to a convenient store, the show had already begun. “Oh… It started already…” Ann sighed out. “Ah!” Jaden heard some people say. “I see it.” Some lady shouted out as people looked up and saw huge fireworks lit up the sky. “Wooh.” People started cheering as the group was watching a few raindrops come down. “Oh, no.” Drake said in disappointment. “Why now…” Makoto said while Ann groaned. Draco jumped a little as soon as he heard thunder. The group got under the convenient store’s header roof to dry off. Jaden-Drake wasn’t really too pleased as they were drying off watching Ryuji, Akira, and Yusuke, who were right next to him, watch Ann lift up her yukata. So that she can get the water out of it. Xander, in the meanwhile, wasn’t paying any attention to what was going on. But as soon as Makoto pointed it out to Ann they quickly looked away. “Come on!” She said a little loud. “Looks like you need help…” Ryuji stated while still looking away. “Then why don’t you go and buy me a towel already then, huh?” She said as she grabbed Ryuji and shook him a bit. Drake looked at them and shook his head while Makoto sighed. Right before he could sit the two up the speaker stopped them both. “Due to the sudden change in weather, a heavy rain and flood warning has been issued nearby.” It spoke. “Since the festival cannot proceed in this weather, we truly apologize for canceling today’s fireworks show.” Right as the speaker was speaking this information the group watched a woman about their age with a few people standing by get into a black car.

They soon went inside to get out of the rain even more. “Ack… We’re just trying to get outta the rain, but look how crowded it is…” Ryuji said. “I guess everyone had the same idea.” Ann sighed out. Drake sighed. “I knew we should have brought the car.” he stated, shaking his head. Makoto was still staring outside while the three of them had made their statements. “What’s up?” Ann asked her. “Mm, I think I just saw someone I know…” Makoto stated to the group. “You mean the girl in the black car?” The blond female asked. “Well, she’s got a ride...” Ryuji huffed out. “The rain seems relentless. Might be a while before it stops.” Xander said as he looked outside. “I have to agree with you on this one mate.” Jaden sighed out. The short male sighed out. “Time to show off your skills, Mona! We need you as a car!” Ryuji exclaimed to the cat. “It’s not possible in the real world.” Morgana shouted at him. “My feet hurt…it’s cold…the festival’s been canceled…this sucks.” Ann complained. “You know if my mom were here she would say ‘suck it up buttercup’. So is everyone else but you don’t hear them complain.’” Drake said at Ann's comment. “That’s a mean thing to say.” Makoto said, looking at him. “My mom is brutally honest.” He said looking back at her. “We made such a commotion with the public, and this is what we get? Laaame...” Ryuji said with a sad look on his face. “Aren’t heroes that lurk in the shadows boring?” He looked to Akira. “I like the shade.” Akira told him with a little smile. “What are you, moss?” Ryuji asked. Drake giggled at the conversation. “Well, it’s much better this way.” He giggled out. “Even Drake agrees with me.” Akira pointed out. “Whatever, you two are weird.” The blond sighed out. “I want to change the world with a loud bang, like a huge firework!” Ryuji complained. “...Then again, we aren’t gonna find anyone bigger than Kaneshiro that easily.” He continued on, looking disappointed. “We will just have to wait for another criminal to reveal themselves.” Xander told him, shaking his head a little. They all nodded at Xander’s comment. “The rain is letting up. Though it’s regrettable, we should go our separate ways for today.” Yusuke told the group as he was looking outside. “Yeah. Let’s go home.” Morgana said in agreement.

Words: 10956

Sorry for the long wait pictures for this chapter are coming soon.

Posted: 05/07/2020

#persona 5 #p5 royal #p5 morgana #p5r rp #p5 ryuji #p5 joker #p5 protagonist #p5 ann takamaki #akira kurusu #makoto niijima #ann takamaki #ryuji sakamoto #persona 5 yusuke #p5 yusuke #yusuke kitawaga #morgana #p5 oc #persona fanfiction #Persona OC

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imaginetyzx · 4 years

Note

ANDNNDDDDD “What does it mean when I can’t get you out of my mind?” WITH YUSUKE CUZ I KNOW THAT NAME AND YOU SAID YOU WANTED MORE. OK IM GOOD NOW ILY -REIGENQUEST

OK FINALLY GETTING AROUND TO ANSWERING THIS ONE LMAOOO OOP

It’s been only a couple weeks since I met the Phantom Thieves through my classmate, Yusuke. I’ve known Yusuke for awhile though, ever since our first days of school. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t find him insanely attractive, albeit a little clueless. He has good intentions though.

He even asked me to come over and help him with a project! I wonder what he’s struggling with?

His dorm isn’t far in comparison to mine, so I just walked over with a bag full of my various supplies. He didn’t really specify on what he needed help with, I just assume he needs someone to bounce ideas off of. We all do sometimes. Most of the shit I draw isn’t original content anyway.

I finally get there and knock on his door. He opens it almost immediately.

“Ah! Tori, you’re here! Thank you! Please, come in!” He speaks loud and clear, as usual. He steps back to allow me to step inside and I follow suit.

His dorm is both neat and messy at the same time. His furniture (how little of it there is) is clean and organized in comparison to the rooms shape. However, there’s art supplies covering almost every flat surface I can see. Even most of his kitchen counter has papers and pencils around it. I hope he eats better than I do. I eat cheap Ramen like twice a week.

“Here, my rooms over here.” He speaks up, walking and looking back at me to see if I’m following him. I do so, and when he opens his bedroom door it’s just like the main room but there’s even more art supplies. The occasional finished or unfinished painting is scattered around as well. At the center of the room is a stool and an easel, facing away from the window, I assume to allow him lots of sunlight to see his paintings.

“Come and look at what I’ve done so far, would you?” He gestures to the easel, and I walk over and look. Definitely unfinished, but it already looks amazing. There’s many different shapes of paint splatters around the border of the canvas, with cool colors. the middle space is plain grey.

“What’s the problem?” I ask.

“This assignment is supposed to be abstract, but as you can see by the paintings around the room, I have only been able to paint portraits as of late. I’m having difficulty getting inspired enough to make this assignment my best effort.” He sighs, looking at all the paintings he mentions.

He’s right, these are all portraits of people. They all look sort of similar, but different enough to notice. One of them almost reminds me of how I draw myself, actually. Probably just a coincidence.

I direct my attention back to the painting at hand.

“Hm…” I ponder with some ideas in my head that he could pull off.

“This frame idea you have is really nice, I think you should just get random with the middle! Make something weird, like paint flowers but instead of real flowers they’re made out of cookies or something.” I suggest, before continuing. “But also, keep the colors similar to those you used in the border. Darker colors will go much better than any reds or yellows, so hot pinks and purples would probably be the way to go.”

Yusuke smiles and walks up to me.

“Ah…I see…Thank you, I think I have found an idea of my own thanks to that idea of yours.”

I smile big.

“Of course! It’s no problem, we artists gotta help each other out sometimes! Show me the finished product when you’re done!” I turn to leave, but he speaks up.

“You can stay and observe, if you’d like. I want your live input.” He says, gathering some brushes and paints to start painting. For someone who just had an epiphany, he is moving…very calmly. I guess that is just his normal personality, but even so, he usually gets so fired up when he has a new idea.

“Oh, uh, sure!” I walk over to his bed to the side of the room and sit there as he starts painting. The silence is weird at first, but after awhile it’s comforting. I can tell he’s very focused. The sunlight from the window behind him makes his royal blue hair sparkle unlike any glitter you could buy in a craft store. I can’t help but let my posture relax as I watch him work, unaware of the smile on my face as I zone out. I zone out so much, in fact, that I don’t notice when he stops painting and looks at me. It isn’t until he speaks that I snap out of it.

“What does it mean when I can’t get you out of my mind?” Yusuke asks so casually. He said what. What? I visibly shake my head and look at him for real this time. He’s holding his paintbrush in the air and looking right at me, before he returns to painting after seeing my shock.

“W-w-what do you mean?” I stutter accidentally.

“I keep thinking about you and I haven’t figured out why, exactly. You’re obviously my good friend, and I appreciate you plenty, but indulging in my thoughts is only making it happen more often. I was considering inquiring with Ann or one of the others about this, but I figured it would be easiest to ask you first.” He speaks to me and I somehow retain only two words of that.

Good friend.

Okay, breathe, idiot.

“Well, I can’t really tell you that. I don’t know exactly what you’re thinking of me so there’s no way I can tell you what it means.” I start fiddling with my jewelry. “In my experience, when I can’t stop thinking about someone, I usually start to wonder if I like them…but it might not be a universal experience.” I speak softly but clear enough for him to hear.

“Hm……ah. I think I know what you are saying.” He says, fixing a brush stroke he accidentally made too light.

“Ah…” I make a confirming noise, unsure how to progress the conversation, if at all. I look at my lap as I do so, pulling out my phone as a habit. I do it whenever I don’t know what else to say. Thanks to this, I don’t even notice him put his brush down and get up. He walks over to me and rests my chin in his fingers, lifting my face to his. My face turns red before he even speaks.

“Those paintings…we’re…or rather, are…you.” He quietly tells me, slowly leaning closer. Curse his naturally romantic aura! I make the boldest move of my life and lean to him first as our lips make contact.

We both back up after a moment, and he smiles.

“Thank you for your help. Will you continue to be on my mind?” He holds my hand, waiting for an answer.

It takes me a solid minute to realize what his question means, before I nod.

He smiles at me. The room feels much warmer all the sudden.

#anon #drabble #FUCKKCKUASFIUFGOASUIFUOGIAFS #tysuke #art dummy #this one was fun

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mrauthor3ds · 4 years

Text

SSBU Canon Power Tier fixed

-= SOME EXPLANATIONS =-

Mario, Donkey Kong, Yoshi, Luigi, Peach, Bowser, Wario - These seven are the star children - people blessed with great power. So it makes sense to scale them with each other. Donkey Kong and Wario in particular have demonstrated feats correlating with moons, both small and big. So, it’s likely that the rest follow suit as well.

Link, Young Link, Toon Link - While Link may not have the same magical prowess as Zelda or Ganondorf, he can still hold his own against massive armies. Young Link and Toon Link, still being kids, are just a step behind him. I could put Young Link on Country-scale with adult-Link if we consider the Fierce Deity Mask, but it is a situational equip (only usable in major boss battles).

Kirby - If you ever doubted Kirby’s boundless power before, Planet Robobot straight-up describes him as having infinite power. This can well justify how he can scale up to just about ANY threat to planets or reality.

Fox, Falco, Wolf - I initially considered putting them in Peak-human, since they’re just pilots first and foremost. Then I remembered that there’s a bunch of different guns and explosives that they can use in Assault. So they get a pass in City-scale.

Ness, Lucas - These two were a couple of the trickiest to lock down. I know that Ness is granted power from the Earth itself, but we don’t see that power helping much against Giygas - so the power he received is still ambiguous. Lucas’s power was a little easier to get a grasp on, though. We know that he earns higher levels of PK Love as he unseals the Dark Dragon - a mysterious being that holds together the Nowhere Islands. They seem just big enough to be a country, so that’s the best lowball I can think of. Ness might be in a similar ballpark, since he and Lucas both contested evenly with Porky’s vehicles - and it’s implied that the one in Mother 3 is an improved model.

Captain Falcon - This is mainly based on the anime, where he seems to draw power from the Reactor Might, a cosmic fragment that he protects. While it doesn’t really make his punches planetary, the Falcon Punch we saw still gave off enough energy to suggest that his strength is in the megatons. Since Mario’s castle-punting feat has similar energy, I felt it best to put Falcon in Continent-scale as well.

Daisy, Diddy Kong, Bowser Jr. - These three aren’t star children like Peach, Donkey Kong, or Bowser. However, they’ve at least proven to keep up with the star children in their casual levels (Daisy even launched Bowser away once). So, Country-scale seems a reasonable place to put them.

Sheik - Why is Sheik in Country-scale when Zelda is in Continent-scale? Aren’t they the same? Well, yes. But the Sheik persona wasn’t just for concealing Zelda’s identity - it also concealed her power. So this is technically a self-imposed handicap on Zelda’s part.

Marth, Lucina, Roy, Chrom, Ike - Each one has led massive armies from the frontlines, and that’s besides wielding blessed weapons. It’s reasonable to believe that they can hold their own in battles against whole nations.

Mewtwo - I initially considered Planet-scale since it intended to spread a hurricane across the world. However, that hurricane didn’t spread fast enough to cause quite enough destruction, so its power is likely less than planetary.

Mr. Game & Watch - He supposedly represents all playable roles in the Game & Watch series. And most of these roles are of employed in high-risk zones - construction, deep-sea diving, even the military. While not canonically any Duon, he’s still clearly a tireless worker.

Meta Knight, King Dedede - Even though Kirby is in ?????, these two are in Planet-scale? Well, they can certainly keep up with Kirby’s own planet-busting strength and sometimes speed (Meta Knight can actually fly across the galaxy as fast as Kirby flies on his Warp Star), but they don’t have the same malleable power as he does. And, well, the day is typically only saved by Kirby’s hyper-adaptability.

Pit, Dark Pit - They’re certainly tough angels, but owe most of their successes to the powers and weapons granted by gods much stronger than they.

Pokémon Trainer - Wait, why is he ranked? Well, I figured I’d rank EVERY fighter available. And Pokémon Trainers in the main series show a great deal of superhuman stamina - falling long ways, traveling and biking tirelessly, going through very hazardous environments...No ordinary kid can manage all of that!

Sonic - I’m being kind of generous with this, as Sonic’s own strength and durability haven’t really stacked up to most other characters in the Continent tier. Though that is compensated most of the time by his Super Transformation - while it lasts, of course. Still, it can be hard to hit him when he pays attention, and he’s been able to compete neck-and-neck with Mario in the Olympics for the past 12 years. So I’d say this spot is secure for him.

Olimar - This tier was made JUST for him. And for Alph, too, but this Tiermaker didn’t have Alph, so...

Villager, Isabelle - They’re both in Peak-human mainly by how tirelessly they work.

Rosalina & Luma - The only other fighter in the ????? tier, and for good reason: Rosalina’s cosmic magic is unfathomable. She can pilot the Comet Observatory all across the galaxy, communicate with others from afar, and possesses strong telekinetic power. And that’s just part of what we know! She’s somehow lived for centuries, and together with the Lumas, they possibly have the power to restore destroyed galaxies! Her power couldn’t possibly be constrained to just planetary...!

Palutena - ...So why is Palutena in this category? Isn’t she a powerful goddess? Well, yes, but it’s implied that she’s among the weaker gods in the Kid Icarus world. We do see her capable of conjuring powerful storms and slinging around huge landmasses with her telekinesis, but nothing really suggests that her own power is planetary. In fact, all the other gods, by their own power, also rank at continental-scale at best...possibly.

Robin - Why is Robin a tier above the FE protagonists? Well, simple. Naga herself points out that Robin possesses the same power as Grima, even though he hadn’t succumbed to the Fell Dragon’s power. So, it’s reasonable enough to scale Robin’s full strength with Grima’s power - which, may I remind you, devastated the Archanean continent in the future.

Shulk - I may get some flak for this, but let me explain. Shulk used the combined power of three Monados - Zanza’s, Meyneth’s, and his own - to reshape his world. We know that much. But first, he had to combat Zanza, a being who essentially lorded over the world. Shulk’s Monado could match with Zanza’s Monado alone, sure. However, it also had the influence to neutralize the logic-manipulation of Zanza’s “godly defenses“. Still, this means that this Monado at least has the ability to bring down a mighty planetary being.

Corrin - Is it just because he’s an avatar character like Robin? Well, somewhat. It’s already stated early in the game that those that carry the blood of the First Dragons can easily handle whole armies on their own. That does sound like the other FE protagonists, but it goes further. Those with First Blood can influence the very land around themselves through Dragon Veins. Some can even wield divine weapons. In fact, Corrin’s Yato is believed to hold the power to devastate the world if misused - maybe its full power isn’t that ludicrous, but its Omega form is powerful enough to match with one of the First Dragons, Anankos (who can manipulate an entire dominion). And that’s not even bringing up Corrin’s dragon shapeshifting...

Joker - I’m gonna get a lot of hate for this, I bet...Anyway, this placement in Country-scale is based on his strongest Persona, Satanael, which serves as a counter to Yaldabaoth. However, while Yaldabaoth does merge the Metaverse into reality, we never see this extend beyond Japan. So while Yaldabaoth’s power - and in turn, Satanael’s - is great, nothing proves that it eclipsed the entire world. And even then, we only see Japan’s populace cheering on the Phantom Thieves (which triggers Arsene’s evolution into Satanael).

#super smash bros ultimate #canon #tier list

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lovehotelreservation · 6 years

Text

The Get Laid Cafe [2/3]

Summary: With no more fake Olympic gold medals or fancy yakuza briefcases to sell, the disbandment of the Phantom Thieves has been tough on your wallet–and your heart. Thankfully, a gig at one of Tokyo’s most popular maid cafe has helped to fill the void in both.

That is, until four of your former fellow Phantom Thieves return home to attempt to convince you to consider a different occupation, if not just different clients.

Namely them.

Rating: PG-13* (Rating will go up to NC-17)

Series Pairing: Akechi/Akira/Reader/Ryuji/Yusuke

Chapter Pairing: Akira/Reader/Akechi

[Part 1]

BACK AT IT AGAIN AT THIEVING CREMES!!!

; v ; Thank you all so much for your support and patience with this fic! I am really proud of what I was able to accomplish with this piece, and it elates me to no end to be able to share with you all!

As always, I truly hope you enjoy this lewd little tale~!

----------------

A few days after your ruined reunion with Yusuke and Ryuji, you were readying yourself for your inevitable confrontation with Akechi and Akira.

Whether you were commuting to and from work, grabbing dinner with the girls--while trying to avoid bringing up your current predicament in fears of causing a rift between them and the guys--or even while you were working your shift, you were nearly constantly planning and preparing.

Would Akechi come in the early evening, charming your fellow maids with his disarmingly sweet smile and innocently asking if pancakes were served?

How likely was it that Akira would show up at night for your cafe's perfect imitations of Sutabaa's coffee drink menu?

While Ryuji and Yusuke didn't bring up your maid job anymore whenever they texted or called to ask what you were up to, you were positive that they had spoken to the former leader of the Phantom Thieves by now about what went down during your reunion. Likewise, you had no doubts that Akechi would've done some investigating on his own. Perhaps calling up Sae and steering the light-hearted discussion about his time in London to any interesting stories that Makoto may have been involved in--especially about her friends.

So focused on this ordeal, always hyper-vigilant of your surroundings, you swear you could practically see through walls.

So focused on the risk of either of the two showing up during your shift that you honestly forgot to consider they may show up afterwards.

As per your scheduled duties, you were responsible for closing up shop this evening. Twisting the keys in their respective locks, you were thinking about when Akechi and Akira were supposed to arrive back in Tokyo. From what Futaba had told you, the latter was due back in a couple days, whereas the former had texted your and your friends’ group chat yesterday morning to say that he couldn't wait to see you all soon.

You were left to wonder what time exactly he would be back, as that detail wasn't mentioned--honestly, however, you felt that was intentional, given the circumstances involving you.

And then the devil spoke,

"Mm, how fortunate this wonderful coincidence. It seems luck was on my side for me to have caught up to you."

The keys in your hand almost fell to the floor as you whirled around in utter shock. You were met with a charming and gentle grin, expensive casual wear of the latest trend, and the shine of a metallic suitcase.

"A-Akechi...!"

In that moment, you knew you were screwed.

You could see his eyes twinkle with satisfaction at your astonished reaction, all the while he chuckled with relaxed amusement. "It's good to see you too, though..."

His eyes trailed to the side, followed by his head turning the other way as he mused, "…it appears that we're not alone. And here I thought I had the upper hand."

While his voice remained lighthearted, you could tell there was an displeased tinge to the words he spoke.

There was only one person who could twist Akechi's charming demeanor and incite his more aggressive and competitive nature--the same one who had you gasping out in utter surprise and horror as you turned around.

"A-Akira!"

Forget screwed. You were fucked.

Having seemingly emerged from the shadows, he held a calm yet knowing smile, dressed in a well-worn but fashionable outfit assembled from sifting through Parisian thrift shops, and the glint that appeared not from a pair of fashion glasses, but rather the onyx irises that they framed.

One lithe arm raised in greeting, accompanied by a hum of your name, "It's been a while. Good seeing you." The same arm dropped slightly, instead drawn out to the side, as mirrored by its counterpart, a silent yet obvious request for a hug.

You didn't think twice.

The last time he held you was when you were sending him off at Narita International Airport, his embrace comforting as it was reluctant to let you go while you sniffled how much you would miss him. His palm rubbing up and down your back in a soothing manner was a sensation that still left you shivering.

This was the physical embrace that persisted in your fantasies of being held by him--or perhaps Akechi, Yusuke, or Ryuji after all four finished having their way with you. Though the outfits and context changed with each imagined scenario, the aftercare was almost always the same, save for when you pictured them in a more rough and ruthless mood.

You resisted from shuddering as you were engulfed by his arms, immediately feeling the body heat that you wished wasn’t obstructed by layers of clothing. The security in his embrace made you want to never be freed, wondering how nice it would be--or even better--if he held you like this as your lover instead of a friend.

"Aww, am I to be left out of your friendly affection?"

Akechi's voice was your liberator.

Snapping out of your reverie, you barely caught how Akira's already tight hold on you subtly constricted further. Still, worried about hurting the feelings of the other--even if his tone was teasing and his smile remained--you broke away from the embrace while you opened your arms to accept Akechi instead.

"O-Of course not, Akechi. Come here!"

From one cage to another.

Akechi was beaming while he eagerly scooped you against his chest for a welcoming embrace, but with your vision obscured, you did not notice how he and Akira exchanged narrowed glances. Yet another instance of their rivalry taking form even amidst the tight-knit friendship amongst the former Phantom Thieves.

In this instance, however, Akechi only saw Akira as mere backdrop, especially now that you were literally within his grasp.

"It feels so good to embrace you like this again," he sighed happily, drawing you further towards him while his chin rested on your shoulder. "Honestly, my arms were tingling after we parted in the airport. It was then that I knew I'd be homesick because of you."

Despite how you didn't want to pull away from Akechi much like you did for Akira, you drew back slightly at his words, your jaw becoming slack. "'Homesick,’ Akechi? ...Really?"

You both heard and felt the mild timbre of yet another pleasant hum, which only contrasted to the tightened grip around you while his eyes became half-lidded. Seemingly pleased at your struck expression, he then purred innocently, "Though things seemed to have changed with you since then, hm?" His head tilted to the side, the charming smile on his features remaining even as his more conniving calculating side revealed itself. "I wonder, will Akira and I be charged for hugging you since we're within vicinity of the cafe?"

Shit.

Akira chuckled from behind, seemingly closer than before. "And without any discounts at that too, right?"

The feeling of despair weighing you down could've made you plummet straight to the Earth's core at this point. As expected, Ryuji and Yusuke must have told Akira everything about your encounter. Not to mention, by the sharp and knowing look on Akechi's face, you already knew that he had done some investigating on your job.

You braced yourself for what was to come.

Putting on a teasing front to hide the anxiousness that was quickly running rampant through your entire being, you let out a small laugh while you slipped out of his embrace. There was no point in dawdling or feigning ignorance around these two, especially when they had you surrounded. "Sounds like you've been snooping around. As on point as ever, huh, Akechi?"

His expression became prideful while he cupped his chin, one eye shutting in a wink. "Even while preparing to return to Japan and assisting my professors--among the best lawyers in the United Kingdom, mind you--I certainly couldn't turn a blind eye to a cherished friend potentially being in danger."

"'Danger'?" You repeated innocently as you refrained from wincing. So that was the angle he would be going for, even if you were elated to hear him express concern over you.

"Lest you forget the issue with Kaneshiro and Makoto's friend. As amusing as they are, host clubs and maid cafes often involve trouble, especially with their employees. I do not want you to be harmed or get caught up in such a scenario, hence why I do believe this calls for a formal interrogation into possible prostitution at your workplace," Akechi went on, his tone sophisticated and concerned, even if his wording was purposefully phrased to get a rise out of you. "Your assistance would be of great value."

Having reconstructed his reputation as Detective Prince after Shido's downfall, he still had his influence over and connections with Tokyo's police force. And knowing him, he wouldn't refrain from making good on his bluff.

Despite inwardly seething, you did your best to retain your calm facade before him, even amidst the tense silence between you, him, and Akira, the latter of whom was as silent as ever. He was probably surveying the situation at hand to determine the opportune moment to swoop in to make his move.

However, you were adamant to not give him or Akechi the satisfaction of taking the upper hand, of taking away the distraction you needed to keep your desires in check.

This was mind over matter, and though this was both Akechi and Akira that you were standing up against, you reminded yourself of your success with Ryuji and Yusuke. Thus, with your reaction unfazed and unbothered, you shrugged with a sheepish expression. "Sorry Akechi, but all maid-related inquiries are to be handled at the cafe, whether through our site or through one of our employees. Though..." Your heart was pounding while you brought your hand up to run a hand through your hair, being mindful to make it look as flippant as possible, matched by the smile that tugged on your lips. "...for any after-hours activity, you just need to be willing to pay my fee."

The narrowing of his eyes was enough to make your knees nearly buckle. "So, you're refusing to help me with this serious offense?"

"Innocent until proven guilty," you briskly replied with a sharp tone. "After all, even you said this is mere speculation, a possibility of shadiness going down--not enough to convince a judge to issue a warrant, I’m sure." His teeth clenched in response and you couldn’t prevent your smile from widening in satisfaction as you felt a burst of confidence. "If you want to talk about London, fine. But if you try to ask about my job, it's gonna cost you."

"Is that so?" His tone held a sharp bite to it while his eyebrow cocked at your defiance.

Not backing down, you nodded as you continued, arms folding across your chest, "Are you sure you want to engage in suspicious activity on a hunch? Especially with all the effort you've put into scrubbing up your reputation, with the help of me and everyone else? I'm sure even you wouldn't want that, Detective Prince."

That did it.

Akira's silence was finally broken by an amused snicker, much to Akechi's blatant dismay if by the frowning curl of his lips and the shaking grip on his briefcase handle.

You went there.

You had to.

Now going on a high stride, you knew what to do next. Your lips parted to speak once more, your body slow to turn around. "And what about you, Akira?" You faced him fully, watching as his laughter quieted, his tranquil demeanor returning. "How are you going to try and get me to quit?"

He only offered you a half-hearted shrug. "I think from what I've seen just now, and from what I heard from Yusuke and Ryuji, you're pretty set on sticking to this job."

On one hand, you were relieved that he was laying off of you. However, there was also a pang of disappointment that he didn't seem to be passionate or concerned enough to urge you to leave.

At least, that was what it seemed to be initially.

Akira's expression grew serious, as did his tone while his gaze bore straight and deep into yours. "All I want to know is why--the real reason, not the ones you’ve been using as excuses to us and the girls."

Your composed--even cocky--facade finally broke with genuine confusion. "'Excuses'?"

"I know you," he affirmed, his tone leaving no room for argument. Noting the look on your face, his own broke into a grin in response.

"We know you," Akechi interjected, his tone rather tight at the thought of being excluded.

Your gaze shifted between the two, now feeling the heat of both their intense gazes focusing on you.

It made you wish they were looking at you this way in bed, preferably while you allowed them--and Ryuji and Yusuke--to do as they pleased with you.

However, not to get caught up in that fantasy, which would most certainly lead to your downfall, you faced Akira once again as you huffed, "Like I said to Akechi, if you want to hear anything maid-related, we can discuss things after payment."

"Is that how it's going to be then?" Akira responded, the tone less of a question and more of a challenge.

It was difficult to not shiver, but still remaining headstrong, you declared, "Yes."

The tense silence was at its thickest at this point, with the two staring unblinkingly at you, contemplating your words, your attitude towards them.

At last, the rigid atmosphere was broken once again by Akira's amused chuckle, "Mmm, very well." He took a step forward, his arms swiftly pulling you into a short embrace as he murmured lightly against your ear, "We'll be seeing you later then."

Almost immediately, you felt heat press against your back and a puff of air against your other ear, Akechi mirroring Akira's actions as he hissed out, "Count on it."

Then, as quickly as they returned to your life, the two left separately, both going in opposite directions, leaving you alone in stunned silence.

You couldn't even begin to imagine what might be in store.

The days that followed had you even more on edge than before, wondering when one of the four would show up again to dissuade you from your job, to just do something to you. Despite your tenseness, however, you didn’t bring it up to any of the girls, wanting to be sure that your actions didn't break up any friendships within the former Phantom Thieves.

But you knew Akira and Akechi.

You knew firsthand the extent of their determination and calculation.

And coupling that with their words to you that night, you knew they were plotting something.

#akira kurusu #goro akechi #persona 5 #reader insert #the get laid cafe #super freaknasty writing #management will return in a queue minutes

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sassiperere · 7 years

Text

Sex Tape

Title: Sex Tape Pairing: Akira Kurusu/Ryuji Sakamoto Rating: M (implied sexual content) Word Count: 3712 Summary: futaba gets a hold of some compromising information and it all goes downhill from there (chatfic)

Fucking i dont even REMEMBER how we got to this conversation in the pegoryu discord server BUT WE DID and we semi rpd this whole thing at 11pm all the way through midnight and i was writing this thing based on that conversation at like 2 am so im actually very embarrassed but anyway enjoy this fucking chaos of a fanfic

READ IT ON AO3

GROUP NAME: ✨ PHANTOM THIEVES ✨

MEMBERS: Capable Leader™, -` RYUJI ´-, ANN~, Yusuke K., Makoto, [hacker voice].

TODAY 00:47 AM

[hacker voice]: Gee, futaba, what do you do with all your amazing hacking skills?

[hacker voice]: I leak government secrets, destroy anonymous organizations and hack into my old neopets account because I forgot the password and I wanted to feel nostalgic

Makoto: What’s that?

[hacker voice]: children’s website. You had to adopt a “neopet” and raise it kinda like a Tamagotchi. It had some really fun features like games and events and shit. It really kept me entertained when I was younger

[hacker voice]: comfort site, if you will.

Makoto: Sounds nice!

Capable Leader™: you played that? I thought it was really boring when I tried

[hacker voice]: with all due respect wtf is wrong with you?

Capable Leader™: I dunno, all the neopets looked kinda ugly…

[hacker voice]: you have a dick with tentacles as a persona and you’re calling neopets ugly????

Capable Leader™: I never said Mara was pretty

[hacker voice]: point taken

[hacker voice]: but like my point is

[hacker voice]: kacheeks

Capable Leader™: They were kinda cute but I abandoned one for a soy sauce or whatever was that dragon one

[hacker voice]: that’s it

[hacker voice]: that’s where I draw the line

[hacker voice]: you’re dead to me

[hacker voice]: I’m leaking your nudes

Capable Leader™: WTF?? HOW DO YOU HAVE THEM?? I DON’T EVEN HIDE THEM IN MY PHONE ANYMORE??

[hacker voice]: oh my god you actually have nudes?

Capable Leader™: oh…

Capable Leader™: woops…

ANN~: knew it

ANN~: @ -` RYUJI ´- pay the fuck up

-` RYUJI ´-: wtf? WTF??? WTF AKIRA???

-` RYUJI ´-: WHY DO YOU HAVE NUDES??

-` RYUJI ´-: ARE THEY YOURS OR LIKE NUDES YOU RECEIVED?

Capable Leader™: Listen

[hacker voice]: update I got them

Capable Leader™: do you really?

[hacker voice]: four of them were taken on the same day cause your nails were painted black and the other two are from a different angle and your underwear has paw prints on it

Capable Leader™: fuck.

-` RYUJI ´-: FOR REAL??

Makoto: Excuse me what kind of nonsense is going on right now?

[hacker voice]: I hacked into Akira’s PC and got his super secret dick pix

Makoto: I expected better from both of you

ANN~: Guys I’m heer im just slaughging so hard I cant se

-` RYUJI ´-: WHY DO YOU HAVE THESE?? WHO ARE YOU SENDING THEM TO??

Capable Leader™: does it matter who I send my genitals to?

-` RYUJI ´-: UH YEAH?? I CAN’T BE THE ONLY ONE WORRIED ABOUT THIS CAN I??

Yusuke K.: What seems to be the matter?

-` RYUJI ´-: AKIRAS BEEN SENDING NUDES TO STRANGERS AND FUTABA GOT THEM

Yusuke K.: Akira I did not know you had nude portraits of yourself

Yusuke K.: You should have informed me. I would gladly appraise them.

Yusuke K.: I would love to paint you too, if you so desire. I’m sure your form is marvelous to capture on canvas.

-` RYUJI ´-: dude…

ANN~: I FEEL BAD THAT IM LAUGHING

Makoto: @Yusuke K. it’s really not what you think…

[hacker voice]: ryuji are you

[hacker voice]: jeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeealous?

PRIVATE MESSAGE: the blonde fuckboy one

the blonde fuckboy one: yo futaba

the blonde fuckboy one: do you actually for real have akiras dick there?

You: YOU ARE I CAN’T BELIEVE THIS

the blonde fuckboy one: stfu

You: yeah I do have akira’s nudes for real, here I’ll send you a sneaky preview as proof

You sent AKIRA_NUDE_1_CENSOR.jpeg

the blonde fuckboy one: oh my god

You: interested in the full, uncensored ver? For a mere fee of 400y you can have it

the blonde fuckboy one: no wtf im not gonna do that to my bro akira

the blonde fuckboy one: but how big is he

You: im speechless

the blonde fuckboy one: is he bigger than me?

You: dunno need material to compare

the blonde fuckboy one: ok

the blonde fuckboy one: wait

the blonde fuckboy one: youre gonna threaten to leak mine too fuck you

You: worth a shot

PRIVATE MESSAGE: Emo Bob Ross

Emo Bob Ross: Hello, Futaba, I am interested in Akira’s nude portraits. Are you perhaps offering them?

Emo Bob Ross: Ryuji did say Akira was sending them off to strangers so I would imagine he has no quarrel with me evaluating it.

Emo Bob Ross: Should I pick them up at Leblanc?

You: I don’t even know where to start

Emo Bob Ross: Any of them would be fine. It would be difficult to take multiple ones to the dorms regardless.

You: I feel bad now

Emo Bob Ross: ?

You: yusuke… you should go to bed…

You: you’re typing a lot please don’t make this into an art rant thing

Emo Bob Ross: Futaba must I explain once again that nude portraits have no perverted undertones and are about the portrayal of the human being stripped of all it’s factors back down to it’s core, thus revealing it’s innermost self? The true self. The self an artist so desperately seeks to represent and very few up to this date have been successful. My eternal search for the perfect and realest form has me in need of diverse- both physically and spiritually – models that are willing to bare their very souls to me. I am not looking at this experience as a lustful, carnal desire. I would never dare take advantage of someone who has been brave enough to let me gaze upon their being so intimately for the sake of art. We have been through this. I have been through this with several people, in actuality, I’m starting to get a little tired of explaining this over and over again but for the sake of deconstruction of societal standards that block my advancement in the unexplored road to artistic perfection I will gladly do so.

You: holy shit

You: im sorry yusuke but its 1 am im just skimming through this

You: the thing is not that I doubt your passion to your study of the arts

You: the thing is that what I have… is not art…

Emo Bob Ross: I’ll be the judge of that

Emo Bob Ross: Not to offend you but I have a trained eye

You: you know what

You: do you have 400y? For that much you can have the digital copy. Physical copy is gonna be at least 600 depending on the material

Emo Bob Ross: I’m low on cash but I’ll keep you in mind if I manage to rake in the money.

GROUP NAME: ✨ PHANTOM THIEVES ✨

[hacker voice]: @Capable Leader™ lets make a deal

[hacker voice]: give me a copy of every nude you make willingly and I wont leak these

Capable Leader™: why tf would I do that

[hacker voice]: cause your dick is magical and I’ll split the spoils 20/80

Makoto: Stop this at once. There’s no way this deal is good news. Akira knows this.

Capable Leader™: I demand at LEAST 50/50

Makoto: AKIRA

[hacker voice]: I deserve more?? I’m doing ALL the work?

Capable Leader™: It’s MY dick??

-` RYUJI ´-: he’s right tho… the dick is like 90% of a man’s identity…

ANN~: Whats the other 10%?

-` RYUJI ´-: the balls

ANN~: I’m sorry I asked

[hacker voice] 40/60 is the MAX im willing to go and that’s me being GENEROUS because I recognize you have magic juju dick pix that already fished in two possible buyers

[hacker voice]: and also youre my friend and I love you

-` RYUJI ´-: I never said I’d buy it???

[hacker voice]: sigh

Capable Leader™: Ryuji…

-` RYUJI ´-: UH

Capable Leader™: Bro…

-` RYUJI ´-: I MEAN

Capable Leader™: If you wanted my nudes…

-` RYUJI ´-: I ALSO ENVER SAID I ASKED FUTABA FOR THEM DON’T GET THE WRONG IDEA

Capable Leader™: You just had to ask…

-` RYUJI ´-: LISTEN I JUST WANTED TO KNOW IF YOU WERE BIGGER THAN ME THAT’S A MAN THING

-` RYUJI ´-: wait really

ANN~: omfg

Makoto: I feel like this conversation is about to get very intimate

Yusuke K.: I would like to request permission to ask for your nudes as well, Akira

Capable Leader™: oh

Capable Leader™: well that’s a surprising turn of events

Yusuke K.: I fail to see how that surprises you considering you know how I am a fan of the erotica genre and it’s artistic disposition to strip a human bare to it’s very core.

-` RYUJI ´-: no dude…

-` RYUJI ´-: like this is not the nude art thing you keep talking about...

-` RYUJI ´-: this is like

Capable Leader™: (implying I’m not art)

[hacker voice]: touché

-` RYUJI ´-: a dick pic

-` RYUJI ´-: like its just a picture of his dick taken with his phone camera that’s it

Yusuke K.: Well, anything can be art! Art is subjective! I would like to evaluate the photograph!

-` RYUJI ´-: LISTEN MAN, AKIRA DIDN’T TAKE THAT PICTURE TO BE ARTSY, TRUST ME.

Makoto: Yusuke I strongly advise against this

Makoto: If anyone online offers to send you “a nude” please do not accept it…

Yusuke K.: It does intrigue me why anyone would simply want a picture of someone else’s genitalia when you could get the full view…

Makoto: remain intrigued

Makoto: not everything in life needs to be understood

Capable Leader™: Hey Futaba, I accept payment in Ryuji’s nudes as well

[hacker voice]: the contract has been sealed

-` RYUJI ´-: WTF AKIRA

-` RYUJI ´-: I DIDN’T CONSENT TO THIS

Capable Leader™: Come on, Ryuji… my bro…

Capable Leader™: This is just a bro thing…

Capable Leader™: Whomst amongst us never seen their best bro’s dick?

Capable Leader™: You’re my best bro, Ryuji… I wanna get to know every part of you…

Makoto: this is a public chat

[hacker voice]: gross

Capable Leader™: The very deep and intimate connection between two bros is nothing to hide, Makoto…

ANN~: You should hang out and deepen your bond

[hacker voice]: don’t think I don’t know what youre doing ann, that’s cheating

ANN~: ;)

-` RYUJI ´-: bro…

-` RYUJI ´-: If you wanted MY nudes bro…

-` RYUJI ´-: you could have just asked, bro….

Makoto: I can’t believe this is a thing that is happening right now

ANN~: ive turned off the TV this group chat is too lit for me to take my eyes off it

Makoto: it’s 2 am we should prepare to bed

Capable Leader™: [MESSAGE DELETED]

[hacker voice]: FUCK

ANN~: YAAAAAAAAAAAAAASSSSSSSSS IM RAKING IT IN TONIIIIIIIIIIIGHT

ANN~: WAIT WHAT

Capable Leader™: what? I didn’t delete that?

ANN~: FUTABA THATS CHEATING!!

[hacker voice]: YOU CHEATED FIRST! YOU INSTIGATED HIM!

ANN~: I INSTIGATED THE IDEA BUT NOT WHO WOULD BE SAYING IT???

[hacker voice]: HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

ANN~: SAY IT AGAIN AKIRA

Capable Leader™: @ -` RYUJI ´- come over

[hacker voice]: I hate that im partially to blame for this

-` RYUJI ´-: woah akira

ANN~: no bitch no matter how this conversation went it would end the same way cause im ALWAYS RIGHT

ANN~: I’m making it rain Monday morning. I’m taking Shiho to that fancy cake place she wanted to go.

-` RYUJI ´-: isn’t it kinda late for that??

Capable Leader™: I’m alone and Boss doesn’t open shop tomorrow

Capable Leader™: I can show you the goods myself

Capable Leader™: You know?

-` RYUJI ´-: SDSDMX,X CM SALÇ DAÇSD

-` RYUJI ´-: DID YOUJUST BOOTY CALL ME??

Capable Leader™ sent MAYBESO.gif

-` RYUJI ´-: BRO

Makoto: Gross innuendos publicly aside: finally

Makoto: It was getting frustrating seeing you two obviously pinning on each other

[hacker voice]: and don’t even talk about the baton passes…

Capable Leader™: I mean he hasn’t accepted yet…

ANN~: oh he will

ANN~: he better

-` RYUJI ´-: why should you decide

ANN~: cause as your best friend I know whats best for you and I know for a damn fact you will not get a better score than akira

-` RYUJI ´-: thanks I love you too

ANN~: FUCKING LOOK AT HIM! HE’S OFFERING HIMSELF ON A SILVER PLATTER!

-` RYUJI ´-: THIS IS REALLY AWKWARD FOR ME MAN…

ANN~: don’t embarrass yourself in front of your crush like that

Capable Leader™: I like when they get shy

ANN~: oh my god youre such a slut

Capable Leader™: ;)

-` RYUJI ´-: bro…

ANN~: WHAT ARE YOU DOING STILL IN THE CHATROOM GO ANSWER THE GOD DAMNED BOOTY CALL ALREADY

-` RYUJI ´-: IM REALLY NERVOUS OK

ANN~: RYUJI YOU USELESS BISEXUAL

-` RYUJI ´-: GDI

Capable Leader™: you don’t have to come for real it was just a joke

ANN~: wait really?

Capable Leader™: @ -` RYUJI ´-

Capable Leader™: wait is he actually coming??

[hacker voice]: yeah he left 5 mins I traced his phone rn

Capable Leader™: oh fuck…..

ANN~: was it actually a joke??

Capable Leader™: No I just didn’t think I’d actually get this far??

ANN~: YOURE BOTH USELESS BISEXUALS AND I HATE YOU

Yusuke K.: Akira may I join you both? If you’re willing to model for me I will certainly not pass on this opportunity

Makoto: Please don’t.

Capable Leader™: oh my god yusuke

Capable Leader™: not today

Capable Leader™: maybe some other day

Capable Leader™: wink wink

Yusuke K.: I understand. Take all the time you need but please consider my request.

[hacker voice]: I can’t believe Ryuji’s about to get the succ

[hacker voice]: according to my gps ryuji should already be at leblanc??

Capable Leader™: oh he’s here alright. Just nervously prancing in front of my front door.

Capable Leader™: I haven’t called to him yet, let a man be ready

Capable Leader™: (I also don’t know if im fully ready so…)

ANN~: oh grl you got this

ANN~: you’ve been training all your life for this

ANN~: besides its not like hes gonna know the difference between a good bj and a bad bj lol

Capable Leader™: youre right

Capable Leader™: but I also you know, care about him a lot

Capable Leader™: I wanna make this a good experience cause I care about ryuji a lot… like in a very gay way…

ANN~: Aww!! :)

Makoto: I want to take no part in this conversation but that was adorable

ANN~: srsly im talking to ryuji rn on private and hes freaking out cause of the same thing

ANN~: wants it to be really good to you bc he loves you sm and youre so hot and hes already semi just thinking abt you

Capable Leader™: I’m flattered

ANN~: he’s super overwhelmed cause its his first time and with a boy he loves so like admsadsa damn ryuji youre so cute

ANN~: almost makes my cold blooded bitch heart feel something

Capable Leader™: I’ll give him all the time he needs!

ANN~: you should really open the door for him and at least put him inside cause its cold and there was a robbery in your street earlier this week

ANN~: and you know ryuji hell stubbornly stand in front of that store until the sun comes up if hes wallowing in nerves

Capable Leader™: youre right…

Capable Leader™: im gonna go do that…

Capable Leader™: @[hacker voice] if you have any cameras in my room turn them off!

[hacker voice]: for how much?

Capable Leader™: FUTABA, PLEASE.

[hacker voice]: calm down theyre already off. Havent been on since we became friends.

[hacker voice]: just thought youd like to have your fond memories engraved on tape for your enjoyment…

Capable Leader™: …

Capable Leader™: that’s… tempting

Makoto: are you out of your mind??

ANN~: YOU’RE SUCH A SLUT, AKIRA

Makoto: God, you’re hopeless. At least talk it over with Ryuji first.

Capable Leader™: I just did. He’s cool with it.

Makoto: Somehow I feel like this is an oversimplification of the conversation.

Capable Leader™ changed his username to Tapable Leader <3

Tapable Leader <3 changed the group name to AKIRA & RYUJI’S SEX TAPE

Makoto: I’m leaving.

Makoto: Only talk to me when you want to group up from now on.

-` RYUJI ´-: I ONLY AGREED WITH IT IF ONLY ME AND AKIRA GET A COPY!!

-` RYUJI ´-: ITS ONLY FAIR CONSIDERING YOU’RE ALREADY SELLING AKIRA’S NUDES!!

[hacker voice]: I’ll make three copies of the sex tape

[hacker voice]: 600y each

[hacker voice]: first come first serve

[hacker voice]: no reservations

[hacker voice]: you show me the money the tape is yours

[hacker voice]: those are my terms

Tapable Leader <3: even if Ryuji and I get copies there’ll still be one in the wild for someone to buy?

ANN~: isn’t that thrilling tho

ANN~: one other stranger youll never know about can be watching you

ANN~: and if futaba agrees to take down any reuploads of the tape its like your very own secret but like… shared with a stranger… that’s a kink isn’t it??

[hacker voice]: yure right…

Tapable Leader <3: holy shit

Makoto: This is so irresponsible…

[hacker voice]: thought you wanted no part in this?

Makoto: I can’t simply not take part. You guys are worse unsupervised…

Tapable Leader <3: Futaba, it’s a deal if mine and Ryuji’s copies are free of charge

[hacker voice]: fair enough

Tapable Leader <3: nice. We’re going upstairs now.

[hacker voice]: camera’s ready!

ANN~: lmao I cant believe this is actually happening

Makoto: so much for reputable thieves…

Makoto: I swear if this sex tape leaks and we get found out because of it…

Makoto: What’s worse! Akira’s on probation! That will most definitely spell trouble for him depending on who gets their hands on this tape!

ANN~: Guess we have no choice but to buy it ourselves!

Makoto: Or don’t do the sex tape?! At all?!

ANN~: Nothing’s gonna happen, Makoto! Chillax!

ANN~: How can they possibly trace a video of Akira sucking Ryuji off back to the phantom thieves?

ANN~: What kind of evidence even is this?

[hacker voice]: Akira’s jacked??? I didn’t know he worked out that much??

ANN~: he looks really skinny right?

ANN~: did ryuji come with his stupid neon pink and green watermelon bullshit panties?

[hacker voice]: they stopped to talk rn

[hacker voice]: ryujis like flipping

[hacker voice]: asking if akira had done this before

[hacker voice]: apparently akira has sucked “some dicks”

[hacker voice]: AT LEAST TWO ARE FROM HIS CLASS

Makoto: Do you really need to keep us updated?

ANN~: yes

Makoto: sigh

[hacker voice]: @ANN~ ryuji’s wearing the pink underwear

ANN~: god I hate those

ANN~: @Tapable Leader <3 burn them when youre done

[hacker voice]: I hate doing this. This is just like when you’re watching a movie and there’s a unnecessary kissing scene and the entire scene is like 3 minutes of uncomfortable schlepping kissing noises.

ANN~: yeah that must be pretty awkward

[hacker voice]: it is super awkward. Akira owes me one

[hacker voice]: oh my god

[hacker voice]: ryuji scared the crap outta me he legit screamed right now

[hacker voice]: I don’t even need mics for this ryuji’s so loud

ANN~: whaaat? Ryuji? Loud?? Who would have thought…

-` RYUJI ´-: IM SORRY OK IM REALLY LIVID HERE

ANN~: WTF???? WHAT AR EYOU DOING TEXTING US???

-` RYUJI ´-: IDK WHAT TO DO WITH MY HANDS!!

ANN~: YOURE USELESS. I CANT BELIEVE YOU.

Tapable Leader <3: you can pull my hair, its fine

ANN~: HOW ARE YOU TEXTING EVEN??

Makoto: It’s been a while since we got an update.

[hacker voice]: do you want em?

Makoto: No, I simply worry how long this is lasting.

[hacker voice]: it’s gotten to a really graphic point. I’m not even watching anymore, its really really awkward… if you want the full juice you’ll have to buy the tape!

[hacker voice]: oh theyre done

[hacker voice]: they just threw the dirty clothes on the floor and went straight to sleep

[hacker voice]: orgasming must be really tiring…

ANN~: @Tapable Leader <3 @-` RYUJI ´- CONGRATS ON THE SECS!! We’re all really happy for you!! You guys deserve each other, really! If anyone says otherwise I’ll punch them!

Makoto: @Tapable Leader <3 @-` RYUJI ´- regardless of how reckless and utterly stupid this whole thing was, I’m genuinely glad you guys worked it out and are finally being honest with each other. It was awfully unhealthy for the team dynamic to watch you two dance around the issue of your attraction so, congratulations!

[hacker voice]: @Tapable Leader <3 @-` RYUJI ´- im not as good with expressing things as the other girls but im also happy I somehow brought you two together. Don’t worry I wont actually sell the sex tapes to anyone btw

[hacker voice]: (or will i)

ANN~: omfg

[hacker voice]: Yusuke’s typing a lot im concerned

Yusuke K.: I did not fully grasp the concept of what was truly going on in this chat tonight but after extensive research and questioning Ann on certain topics I now understand. Futaba’s attempts at prostituting Akira have somehow led into a nuptial encounter between Akira and Ryuji, the kind of which both parties have been secretly interested in for a long time. I also congratulate you both in your achievement for the act of intimacy born from fondness and admiration is one of the truest forms of adoration our kind have come across. I only wish for more of these enjoyable moments and if any of you would be so kind as to model for me the most beautiful sensation of your endless love I would be very thankful.

[hacker voice]: holy shit

[hacker voice]: just looking at this is making my eyes heavy

[hacker voice]: im going to sleep folks

ANN~: same

ANN~: we have to wake up before ryuji and akira to surprise them at leblanc

ANN~: we’ll bring a congrats on the sex cake

[hacker voice]: I’m in

Makoto: guess it won’t hurt to check on them

Yusuke K.: I would love to discuss this over some cake!

ANN~: deal, then! Good night, thieves <3

-` RYUJI ´-: you fuckers are gonna see some dicks

ANN~: that’s the plan dapper dan

ANN~: now go to bed!

thx for your time i hope you enjoyed it ideas that we did in the rp and i couldnt find a way to put here: > futaba leaks the nudes on the phan site > mishima warns akira of the thing and says he has a nice package > akira gets arrested for publicly posting pornography and akechi recognized him by the dick > "whats wrong with a little dick pic" "its not little" > makoto buys a copy of the akira/ryuji sex tape and resells it at school > mishima buys a copy

#pegoryu #akiji #p5 #persona 5 #akira kurusu #takamaki ann #niijima makoto #yusuke kitagawa #akira/ryuji #futaba sakura #sassi do the write

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