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halcyon-writings · 3 years

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i checked this list and it said persona so im hoping this is still ok. Date night with the protagonists? (Makoto, Yu and Ren) please and thank you >///

ー『anonymous: Can i get dating headcanons for the persona protags (Makoto, Yu and Ren) please and super thank yous. I love these boys so much. ;A;』

note(s): I am going to combine these requests as they are similar enough I hope that is alright! no real warnings for this one either, I just think these dudes are neat. Also I know they all have like 5 different names, so I just went with the ones I am more familiar with. Maybe(????) spoilers for 3, 4, and 5, so if you haven’t finished or played them, be warned (although, idk if anyone would read it if they haven’t played the respective game but idk warning for spoilers just in case) also idk how i feel about these hcs rn, but i did my best dhdjdj

all my other links can be found in my navigation post!! If you like my writing and you’d like to support me, my tip jar is also linked there!

hcs under the cut so i’m not clogging anyone’s dash (originally these were gonna be a short set of hcs but i guess not dbdndn)

What our dear protagonist lacks in overall extrovertedness, he makes up for in action. Surprise surprise, dates can either range from hanging out in the dorms and cooking a nice meal together. Or maybe going to the mall and heading to the arcade. Or basically wandering around until your legs hurt and your purchases range from new outfits to weird antiques from the antique shop.

However he really does treasure these little trinkets, because the memory of your laughter when you were given a certain item will forever be ingrained in his mind. It’s a comfort in the end too.

Date nights are focused on you and you only. He definitely sets a date where he knows you both are free so that there’s less likely of a chance for being interrupted. He definitely wouldn’t want his time with you to be wasted. Although seeing his small pout when it does happen is very cute.

You also gotta be keen on if he sees something he likes and wants. While Minato won’t exactly say it, his gaze lingers a bit longer than usual. But he ultimately won’t get it, because he wants to focus on you and also save up for when the group goes to Tartarus. So if you surprise him with whatever he had wanted, he’s so happy.

While he is slightly more reserved in comparison to Yu and Akira, Minato speaks through action. Whenever you two are walking together, he always has your hand in his, or keeping close by in some way. He likes to cling to you when it’s just you two, his head buried in the crook of your neck as you two nap tother, legs tangled up together. Or the small jokes he says loud enough for only you to hear, but they’re still so funny. Sometimes you’re asked if he’s really a good boyfriend, and you have to laugh off the doubt, because they don’t see the sides of him that you do.

My god. Yu would absolutely be the best at arranging dates and hangouts. I take no criticism. Like you guys could literally just be walking all around Inaba, or just sitting by the river bed and it could be one of the greatest times you’ve both had together. A romantic at heart, Yu would also be a bit cheesy in arranging dates.

He shows affection through communcating it. Whether it’s a new outfit or something, he’ll say that you look incredible or if you’ve studied for a hard exam, he’ll make sure you know how amazing you are for passing. Idk just anything that has you smiling from sweet compliments and other words of affirmation. A big sap, honestly you try and joke about it but he just earnestly says “Who wouldn’t be for you?” And you have to sit down and hide your face in your hands for a solid 5 minutes.

You also gotta be cool with Nanako. But then again she’s a cute kid and a sweetheart so idk why you wouldn’t be. Although he does get a little flustered if it’s you two watching her while Dojima-san is working late at the station and the old ladies coo over how you three look like a mini family yourselves. Which is kind of a common occurrence. And I feel like Yu would know pretty well if he sees a future with someone he’s with, and with you he does shhh

Date nights in Inaba are really fun and a good way to wind down, sometimes it’s wandering Junes and finding whatever the newly advertised, as seen on tv appliance is. Or other parts of the shopping district, where he can really let go and just have fun for himself. When not worrying about school work or the cases the Investigation Team is working on.

some spoilers here; but after Izanami is defeated and the year ends. When Yu has to leave Inaba it doesn’t mean that he won’t put his best efforts to keep up the relationship. If possible, video calls or just the occasional text too. And when he visits, while he does miss his friends, he’s especially antsy to see you too. And when you’re both together again, he refuses to leave your side.

Now, Akira can be described as this suave, casanova type character. But he’s also a giant dork and you know it, he knows it, the Phantom Thieves all know it, hell even Sojiro knows it. It doesn’t mean his attempts at flirting doesn’t get you blushing. And when he sees the flustered expression, it only motivates him to keep going. But turn the tables on him, and he’s putty in your hands. (And he looks very cute).

Because of the way you met, aka, at Shujin, where his reputation was basically over and done with before it even began, he has a lot of doubt and trust issues, what if someone dared you to speak to the “criminal” or something? While he won’t show these doubts out loud to his friends, it’s still something he thinks back on a lot. But when you defend him vehemently one day, he knows he was right to trust you.

A part of dating Akira, is eventually finding out who he is. Maybe trips to Mementos cause him to be late to dates or not even show up at all. You end up stood up more often then not once things begin to get really serious. From small time school teachers to the literal Yakuza (and eventually a candidate for Prime Minister, and a god), you don’t know where he is. And that becomes really stressful because then the doubt™️ sets in.

To make this less angsty and more funny, imagine you know from figuring it out. He’s suspiciously watching the news on the PT, and no offense to Ryuji, he’s not the most quiet. So he’s so nervous trying to tell you when you’re just “yeah I know, sorry for not telling you, I wasn’t sure if you wanted me to know.” and he’s just the surprised pikachu face.

As for date nights, the city is your oyster. I’d say the world but mans still currently has a criminal record so probably not yet. But he’s gonna take you wherever you want. Whether it’s a themed cafe, or just the streets of Shinjuku, as you take in all the sights from the bright places, he’s willing to do whatever for you. That includes facing off kids at the arcade for a stuffed plush you saw and admitted it was cute. He is a man on a mission. And you cannot stop him. So you both end up back at Leblanc at the end of the night carrying your plushies and eating some curry that Sojiro left warming for you. That even includes the Big Bang Burger challenge he will do it for you , even though you probably do laugh at his pain after but you still coo and praise his efforts.

After he goes back home, record clean and world hopefully peaceful. Virtual dates become a thing, either just sitting and talking while having dinner or something is nice. He still loves to say those cheesy pickup lines that had you hiding your flustered expression as you walked through the streets of Shibuya on call. You only hung up on him once but he quickly called back and was very pouty about it. You were forgiven though with the promise of giving many kisses when he visits.

#persona imagines #persona x reader #persona 3 imagines #persona 3 x reader #minato arisato x reader #persona 4 imagines #persona 4 x reader #yu narukami x reader #persona 5 imagines #persona 5 x reader #akira kurusu x reader #mine

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m-y-fandoms · 3 years

Text

COMMISSION: Joker/Akira/Ren x Reader Part 3

This fic assumes Mishima isn't a confidant, the reader is the Moon arcana instead, keep this in mind.

word count: 6.3k words, SFW

- Admin Myah

Over the next few weeks spent with Akira, or… Joker, as he seemed to be called when the situation demanded, you learned that the world was much more complicated than you ever could’ve dreamed. Sure, you praised yourself for being a little less of a sheep than the idle-brained teenagers of your everyday life who thought of nothing but gossip, status and appearances, but now you felt insignificant, like you’d been asleep all this time until Akira, Ryuji and Ann had placed six symbolic hands upon you, and shaken you to life. Layers upon layers, he explained the subconscious world that lay beneath, which ached to be revealed, only to those who’d open their eyes.

＊

It’d been a rush, your first time in the Metaverse. You’d insisted to Akira, though he protested, that you wanted to see what all of this near-unbelievable nonsense he was explaining was all about. He’d never taken non-Phantom-Thief confidants into the Metaverse, and he was hesitant, silent for a long while before deciding that your help was worth the risk. After all, he’d already told you everything, and they had no way to erase memories… yet.

You remember Akira taking your hand, the skin on skin contact. Up on the school’s rooftop with Ryuji and Ann flanking you, Akira had told you it was a precaution, to make absolutely sure that you transferred into the Metaverse with them and landed in the same place. You had to be touching one of them, for your safety, and he’d eagerly volunteered. With the cat in his bag seeming to smile at you over his shoulder (an occurrence which made you feel like you were going looney already) he tapped an app icon on his phone, some scary red little square, and with that, your body lifted, began to float, or so it seemed. Red completely consumed your vision, red and black ink like those blobs you’d seen the Phantom Thieves appear from when this all began. You gasped, stumbling back a step as if you could escape the all-encompassing wave, and Akira, sensing your trepidation, squeezed your hand slightly.

The rooftop faded, and you felt like a character from a videogame fast-traveling to their destination. Almost as fast as it appeared, the trippy red and black sludge subsided, and before you sat a dark, dreary scenery. A castle, one that obviously belonged to a malevolent ruler sat amongst a purple sky and the smell of despair.

“What the…” your mouth hung agape for a second, taking in your surroundings before letting your eyes trail down to where your hand met Akira’s. Assuming you no longer needed it, you shook him off gently, not even sparing a glance his way, and his eyebrows creased just the smallest amount, not that you noticed. You were too focused on the giant cat before you, knee-height, with a round, bulbous head. “Is… are you-?!”

“Much more handsome and dashing in this form, wouldn’t you say?” Morgana - now confirmed - gave you a sly look as you leaned down to his height to run your hand along the fur on his head.

“Wow… so cute!” You cooed.

“Hey! Stop it! Stop it! I am a warrior and to be taken seriously!” he whined, shooing away your hands, his fur on end.

“Ha!” a sharp laugh rang out behind you, and you turned to see that Morgana wasn’t the only one who’d made a drastic change. Ryuji was now clad in some kind of leather pirate’s uniform, his demeanor far more fearsome and a skull mask across his face. Ann donned a skin-tight body suit and cat mask, and Akira wore a lavish long coat, red gloves, and a masquerade mask. He looked like a magician from some fairytale, or perhaps the leader of some band of Robin-Hood-inspired band of vigilantes… although you supposed that was kind of what he was now… either way, he would make amazing source material for your main protagonist. Such swagger, a commanding presence… he didn’t seem to exactly be the same Akira you’d met earlier.

＊

The trip to the Metaverse was almost completely uneventful… almost. Just once, when you’d begged Akira to press forward and show you the inside of the castle, something called a “shadow” attacked, and you got to see the band of thieves in action. It was shocking, leaving chills running down your spine. Here were your classmates, people your age with ghost-like spirits materializing at their backs, flipping through the castle’s corridors, shooting guns and slingshots and magic at terrifying beasts. It was all so fast-paced, so stunning, that your body locked up witnessing the battle. A shadow spotted you in the background, defenseless and clearly not part of the Phantom Thief entourage, and taking the petty opportunity only a sore-loser on the ropes would take, struck out against you. You shrieked, your hands uselessly coming up to defend your face as if it would help. Akira’s eyes widened, his reflexes so much faster in this realm, and turned on his heel, diving in front of you to deflect the blast of frosty energy swirling toward you. It bounced off of the side of his large steel dagger and ricoheted back at the shadow. After assessing the situation and asking if you were okay, Akira decided it was time to return you back to the real world. It was too dangerous for someone without a persona to wander here. The thieves would return later, once you were safe at home.

＊

Anyway, now you believed him, you knew everything he was saying, about Kamoshida and his fucked up mind, about confidants, personas and metacognition was real and very much a serious matter. Now all that was left was to decide just how you could help them, what kind of deal you could strike with the clever leader of the Phantom Thieves. Of course, he didn’t expect you to get something and give nothing.

It was decided that you’d offer your knowledge as a writer to help with negotiation and charming shadows in the Metaverse. You’d turn those golden lines you wrote on the pages into real-life lessons, and Akira would learn to seduce shadows, to out-smart them, to persuade them to give up everything they had: their money, precious belongings, even their very selves. He would flirt, threaten, intimidate, any honeyed word or silver-tongued method he could use to make deals with shadows go along more smoothly. Perfect. It would help him out immensely. But, what did you want, he’d asked again.

It felt embarrassing, now that you were put on the spot, forced to disclose it, but although those “golden words” translated well into lessons for others, you found that you couldn’t as easily take your own advice. You struggled with human interaction in your real life, especially of the romantic kind. You could write a healthy relationship out on paper, create the ideal love interest from scratch for a story, but stumbled along words like some socially incompetent fool once it came time to apply that knowledge. As much as you hated to admit it, these days even getting true, realistic romantic moments down on paper was a struggle. The well was drying up, writer’s block, as you’d explained it to your online friends. It was near impossible to make something from nothing, and you had nothing. No real romantic experience. You couldn’t help but think this was the route of the problem. Your writing, your precious romance novel would flourish, if only it’s author wasn’t completely clueless.

“Date me…” You mumbled, surprised out how your long moment of pensive introspection had accumulated into this clunky statement.

“What?” Akira let out a breath he’d seemed to be holding the entire time, just watching you think on what method of reciprocity was worth your help. Losing your nerve at the incredulous tone of his voice and the raise of his brows, you shrunk back a bit, ready to defend your words.

“W-wait!” You held a hand out between you. “Not really. I mean…” how to word this…? “Like, fake!” He looked even more confused than before. You released a noise of frustration. “What I mean is, you take me on dates - fake ones - stupid little stuff couples do, for my writing, of course…” You looked toward the ground, suddenly extremely interested in your shoes.

“How does that benefit you in any way?” He smiled, a bit forced, a blush dusting his pale cheeks.

“Well I- I’ve been having writer's block lately. I mean sure, I can give you lines and lessons from my previous works, drabble and things I’ve learned, written down in the past, but I have no fresh material. Stagnation is every writer’s downfall, but I have no experience, I need more to go off of… and then maybe I can even transfer what I discern from our… interactions - er… dates I mean - to you. Does that make sense?” You looked up at him hopefully.

“Uh… no,” Yeah, you knew it didn’t, but that’s all you had for him. His hand shook, much less confident as Akira than Joker, and he shoved it in his pocket.

“It’s hard to explain, I just… that’s my deal. Will you take it?” You clutched your bag a little closer to your body. “We don’t even have to tell anybody. I just want to experience it… going out… with someone…” It sounded a little more pathetic now that you were actually hearing yourself. You both stood in silence, Akira contemplating your words. It wasn’t that he didn’t like you as a person… it was just… complicated…

“Give me a day to think about it,” he spoke quietly, giving you a polite send off before parting ways.

That night, anxiety set in as you rolled around in your bed restlessly.

Did you sound like a creep? Were you being unreasonable? Was this asking too much of him? Does he think you’re crazy? You’ll probably never hear from him again. He’d probably rather find a way in that crazy Metaverse to erase your memories so he can forget the awkward exchange ever happened. Maybe he’ll kick your shadow’s ass one day.

You debated going to school the next day.

＊

Akira’s night, though not as horrendous as yours, was not a peaceful one. Like so many nights, he found himself awoken to the clink of a ball and chain, dressed in striped rags as he stood and walked to the bars of his cell. The twins were waiting, as always, anger in their eyes.

“Look alive, prisoner!” Caroline spoke.

“Our master would have a word with you!” Justine chimed in. Akira looked up, meeting Igor’s large grin.

“You’ve forsaken a bond, Trickster. One must ask, why?” Igor’s hands splayed over a deck on cards on his desk.

“Huh…? What do you mean?” Sleep lingering in his mind, and confused as to why he was here this time, Akira replied.

“I’ve told you, the bonds you strengthen over time and the new bonds you form, they will be what wins this fight. You can only complete your mission, save all that is, through the support your confidants provide, so why have you abandoned this bond?” Igor’s fingers folded together, hands clasped, a show of disappointment. “Now is not the time to not try hard enough.” Was that a hint of frustration in his tone? If so, he didn’t show it.

“...I’m afraid I don’t understand.” Akira rubbed one eye lazily.

“You’re not trying to understand, worm! Wake up!” Caroline’s fist banged down across the bars, startling Akira slightly. He looked to Igor again, who held up a single card between two fingers. On its face sat two wolves, both howling up at a glittering moon.

“The Moon.” Igor stated plainly. “Illusion, fear, anxiety, intuition, uncertainty, complexity, secrets, the unconscious mind. A friend, a possible lover, someone unsure of themselves and others. Creativity, shadowed by doubt. Someone who supports others but not themselves.” As he spoke, images of your face flashed in Akira’s mind. Igor threw the card into the air, catching it upside-down, letting the wolves fall into the moon, swimming in its glow. “Reversed: release of fear, repressed emotion, clarity, misinterpretations overturned. Someone who can fix what was upright. But you’ve passed over the opportunity.” Igor swipes his free hand in front of the card, and it disappears.

Scenes play out in Akira’s head. Confrontation with shadows, confrontations with real people, but these aren’t real… or rather, haven’t happened yet.

He receives clarity.

The Moon has more to offer than lessons on charisma, seduction, trickery, persuasion. His intuition will grow, his ability to perceive things before they happen, the ability to read and understand people, and be understood in return. Other bonds will grow, empathy will grow. More friends, closer friends, a flash of blue hair, white uniform, red hair, headphones, then a tidy uniform, a Shujin uniform, gloves, a beige jacket, and finally bouncy curls and a soft, high pitched voice. With your help, the Phantom Thieves can grow. Bonds will strengthen. Complexity, Igor had said. More than meets the eye. Was there more to you? You weren’t too bad, obviously intelligent… a bit odd, but kind enough, and he did find you cute… but pretending, a fake relationship? How could a fake bond strengthen

The card reappears, as if out of thin air, and Igor points to one upside down wolf.

“Me.” Joker whispers, as if guided by an unseen force. Igor points to the other wolf.

You.

He awakens with a start, nearly knocking Morgana off the bed. He has an answer for you now.

＊

He finds you at school the next day, huddled in the library and not where you’d said you’d meet him. You’d been dreading this, waiting for the rejection, your hand trembling slightly on the book in your hands. He sits across from you, a look of determination on his face. Waiting for him to speak was torture.

“I’ll do it.” He holds out a hand, waiting for you to shake it, seal the deal. A contact has been signed.

＊

Your first date with Akira is clunky, unpracticed, unprecedented of course. He doesn’t know much about what to do, either, so he takes you to Le Blanc for dinner. Some coffee and curry, maybe a soda and some conversation on the side? It couldn’t be too bad, right? That’s what dudes do, he thought, bring their... pretend sweetheart somewhere for dinner, right? Sojiro is teasing, of course, wondering who this new person was, why Akira was holding their hand. He smirks like a dad proud of his boy, and Akira, too embarrassed under Sojiro’s scrutiny now to sit down and serve you curry, rushes you upstairs.

After being dragged by the hand up rickety old stairs, you end up in Akira’s room alone. You look around, taking in his sparse decorations, humble belongings. It then strikes you that you are, in fact, alone. Alone with a boy in his room, for the first time in your life. You didn’t know how you got here, and so fast. Maybe you were in over your head. Maybe you just needed to calm down. This was part of the process, right? Real couples did this, to get to know each other. He beckons you over, gestures for you to sit on his bed with him. You’re hesitant, but Akira isn’t making a big deal out of it, and you’re not really alone, with Morgana right there, so you sit, as far from him as you could be on the surprisingly soft bed. Struggling for words and new to dates himself, Akira decides to treat you first and foremost like his friend. That makes this all easier.

He spends the next hour or so describing Mementos, his mentor Igor, the twins. He wants you to know everything, and it surprises him. His other confidants, save for the actual Phantom Thieves, don’t know anything about the hidden world their bonds are healing. He describes the arcana to you, the tarot, the way his soul resonates with The Fool, Ryuji The Chariot, Ann The Lovers. His doctor friend is Death, Sojiro the Hierophant. Morgana here is the Magician, and proud of it. He explains how he feels a bond with them, as he now does with you. They make him feel like he can do anything. You’re included in that now. You feel warmth rise to your cheeks. How could he say that so casually? It wasn’t like it was a love confession or whatever, but you had trouble seriously telling your online friends you appreciated having them in your lives without adding a joke or meme in there somewhere. Why did he even need your help? He seemed well spoken. You said so, voicing these opinions aloud.

“Huh.. you know, I actually don’t usually talk this much,” he smiled. “Must just be you.” He was only half teasing. You looked away nervously, feeling the need to change the subject.

“S-so, what am I?” You began to stroke Morgana’s fur, and this time he didn’t seem to mind.

“You mean your soul?” He scooted a bit closer.

“Yeah.” It didn’t go unnoticed.

“The Moon.” He replied softly.

He spent the rest of the night explaining the levels of Mementos, and some of the wicked people whose hearts he’s had the displeasure of seeing inside, but the absolute pleasure of changing. You say you aren’t surprised so many people are walking around so hurt inside or eager to hurt others. When the “date” ends - neither of you having even gotten that promised coffee or curry downstairs - you’re touching, sitting shoulder to shoulder looking at the moon outside his window with Morgana on your lap. The room seems a little warmer, a little less humble. Akira mentions with a sheepish grin that it’s getting late, and offers to walk you home.

Rank Up!

＊

You sit in your bed that night, Akira now having returned to Le Blanc, and think about if this will make good writing material or not. You had to have learned something, right? There was something to be gained from every experience… but you can’t help feeling like you’ve warmed up to the thought of Akira a bit more… not too much, however. You smiled to yourself at the thought of The Fool, tricked into dating the Moon, for all it can offer him.

He’d been so awkward at your front door when he dropped you off. You could tell he had no clue what to do. He was frantically looking around. People in movies kissed their date at this point, cheek or lips, depending on how the date went, right? He confessed that he’s one of those people who truly don’t know anything about romance, like you’d mentioned earlier in one of your conversations. You tell him it’s fine, that you didn’t expect anything, that you just met the other day. He thought he was being clear, dropping hints that he might want to peck your cheek, just a quick gesture to kick off your fake relationship, but maybe he wasn’t as slick as he thought. The hints seemed to go over your head. Maybe he really did need help.

＊

Your second date comes in the form of you begging to go back into the Metaverse for some inspiration. He fights you, bringing up the last time a shadow attacked you, but you are persistent. He gives in, taking you to the highest rung of Mementos, where the shadows are weak and he can keep you safe adequately on his own. It is a date, after all, no Phantom Thieves tagging along. Mementos is a bit more frightening than Kamoshida’s Palace, you mention, and he eases your fear, promising to protect you here, always. You take in his Phantom Thief uniform in more detail as you walk the long corridors of the realm of the subconscious and decide he looks quite handsome in it.

You watch him battle a demon that is the personification of lust, a succubus-like creature dripping with temptation and love, or so it thinks. Joker uses all that you’ve taught him so far, which isn’t much, and cons the false idol of love out of their money. It was quite comical yet a bit sad to watch the shadows expression fall from a cocky to a defeated one, but preformative love you’ve decided, is doomed to lose. The irony flies over your head.

From this experience, watching Joker fight with speed and grace, you settle on a genre for your novel. It will be a high-fantasy romance. Joker will inspire your main character, of course, but the love interest… was still undecided. You started drafting her to look like Ann, act like Ann, give off the energy and power Ann does. Ryuji was an option at first as well to inspire the love interest’s personality, but he was a bit too brash. You wanted someone strong, but soft and elegant at the same time. These characters were loosely based on the Phantom Thieves, anyway, so it didn’t really matter.

＊

When you leave the Metaverse, though Akira is a bit exhausted, he takes you to a local casual restaurant to make up for the last time at Le Blanc. There, sitting across the counter from you two is an older gentleman. Yoshida, Akira whispers, is a friend of his, another confidant. The Sun. Yoshida makes small talk, asking politely if you’re with Akira, and you feel your stomach clench. You knew this was fake, the agreement was clear, but hearing it aloud, the awkward ‘we’re just friends’ that was coming made you sweat. It still felt like rejection anyway. When Akira confirms that yes, you are in fact dating, your eyes widen, the coil in your stomach releasing. He smiles, taking your hand. This has to be an act, a show to play up the relationship. He’s just performing his duty, his role, holding up his end of the deal in order to simulate a real relationship and give you worthwhile source material… right?

Either way, you appreciate not being publicly humiliated, and smile back. That night, you write down everything, and what it’s like to not be alone.

Rank Up!

＊

Days pass, Kamoshida coming and going, justice being served, and you spend more and more time with your fake boyfriend. Your parents let him come over, and in your room you let him read some of the old poetry you’ve written, some lame pining drabble from your younger years, and some more recent things you’re proud of. He scours your room, digging up old hobbies and photos. You tell him all about them. He tells you he enjoys learning these things about you. You simply smile. It doesn’t seem to be the reaction he was looking for. Not liking the small frown that adorns his features, you pick the conversation back up, asking if he thinks you’ll ever have a persona. He smiles, maybe someday.

Rank Up!

＊

The Phantom Thieves are gaining fame, only more fodder for your writing. The more you hang out with Akira and his friends, the more real it feels. Your online friends can feel it, too. They sense you changing, talking less of writing and more of Akira. They tease you, of course, but they don’t get it. He’s just a main character… just a muse.

This time, Akira walks home to Le Blanc alone, wondering if he should tell you how he feels. He doesn’t like it, holding up this pretense of a fake relationship, pretending the glances and touches don’t matter. He wants to tell you…

...that he’s slowly falling.

You receive a little gift in the mail the next day. It’s a deck of tarot cards. The return address is blank. You call him to tell him all about it, and end up discussing the pros and cons of each card all night. What a coincidence that you should receive your own deck all of a sudden.

Rank Up!

＊

There are moments where you’re afraid you may be falling, too. There was the time that a blue-haired young man stalked you and your friends through Shibuya, turning corners when you did, always on your trail. When Ryuji finally got fed up and confronted the weirdo, asking why the hell he was following you guys, he’d revealed that his name was Yusuke, a student of a painting master, and that he was simply following inspiration where it lead.

“Your friend there, I was drawn to them,” he points elegantly, like some manga bishounen, past Ryuji and toward you. “I beg of you, allow me to paint your form. Something about your normalcy stands out. What I mean is, there is beauty to be found in not standing out, a silent grace in being so plain.” You could tell Yusuke meant no harm, that he simply may be a bit socially inept with his words, as well, but the way he was talking about you set something in Akira on fire. He stood in front of you, shifting until his body blocked yours from Yusuke’s sight.

“They aren’t plain.” He spoke with a dangerous edge to his tone, and you felt your heartbeat speed up. The hint of jealousy in his voice at Yusuke’s request for you to model for him, and anger at him calling someone he found so fascinating plain was evident.

＊

Yusuke seemed to be in denial in the coming days. Though your little troupe seemed to constantly be bumping into him, offering him sound advice and trying to awaken him to the mire of corruption that was the truth behind his mentor, Ichiryusai Madarame, he refused to see reason. He dove further into his art, but you could tell he was hurting. You used your time with Akira these days to teach him how art, much like film and literature, can reflect false truths and influence people. The deception, corruption and shallowness of the media extended to the art world, as he learned after one or two gallery visits with you.

It was then, in a gallery displaying Yusuke’s work, as you sat in a secluded corner alone discussing ways to take down Madarame, that Akira started to flirt incessantly.

He takes your hand, bringing up romantic tropes in movies he’s seen that seem so forced, one-sided, cliche, uncomfortable. He mentions that he would’ve done better, explains how those scenes would’ve played out if he had any say.

“Is that so?” Your brow raises, amused by how animated this usually quiet boy could be when he was passionate about something.

“Yeah! Of course! What, you don’t see me doing that?” he laughed breathily, going on about how the male lead of some high-school romance film Sojiro rented for him was clumsy, forceful, and didn't give his lover time and space to think about their feelings. “I would’ve treated them much, much better… “ his words trail off, as if lost in thought.

“...Is that so?” You ask again, studying his face and asking yourself how you didn’t notice before how beautiful the hue of his eyes were. You sure as hell were noticing now… steely grey, sharp, deep, purposeful. You’d have to write that down… for research purposes of course. When you pull yourself back to reality, no longer lost in the swirl of his irises, you realize he’s staring at you, and has been for some time.

“Do… can I-” he speaks, throat dry, and scoots himself closer. “May I kiss you…?” His voice is soft, so soft, scared.

“...Yes.” You answer, naturally, impulsively, voice just as soft. When Akira leans forward, and softly presses his apprehensive lips to yours, you feel like you’ve been set on fire. Your mind begins to go crazy, while your body is frozen. It’s not that you didn’t like it, some part of you did. You wanted more, but it felt wrong. This wasn’t real. You didn’t truly like him… right? This kiss was fake, for research purposes… to cure writer’s block…

...right?

You were frozen more from guilt than nerves. Weren’t first kisses supposed to feel like little butterflies in your stomach? Did he think he owed you this? Were you taking advantage of him at this point? Did he feel forced to kiss you to keep up his end of the bargain?

Akira deepened the kiss, a hand on the back of your neck, guiding you, begging you to reciprocate. When you didn’t, lost in your own head, he pulls away, a small frown tugging at his lips.

“W-we… we should head home. I’ll walk you…” he sighs. You both stand, make your way back onto the main street from the museum, and are silent the entire walk home.

You think he’s silent because you’ve forced him to think he needs to kiss you, and now regrets his decision. He thinks you’re silent because he’s just forced a kiss upon you, just like some Chad from a movie who can’t understand boundaries. Neither of you know your silence is for the exact same reasons.

Akira drops you off at home with a quiet ‘goodnight,’ and walks home, clearing his head in the cool night air.

“Stupid… jeez… fuckin’ stupid,” he huffs, repirmanding himself. This wasn’t real. You’d stated that from the beginning. This relationship was to benefit your writing, to help him in the Metaverse, nothing else. Nothing else.

Nothing. Else.

It was his fault he let himself develop real feelings. He has no right to be sad, to blame you, to get upset. You’d stated the terms from the very start…

Maybe he really was The Fool.

Rank Up…?

＊

The next few weeks are awkward.

Both of you think it’s your fault.

You go on dates like usual, but they are strictly business. You get writing material, he gets advice, no touching, and certainly no kissing. Yusuke joins the group. Things are great… friendly… strained, tense. Akira wonders what the hell he’s doing, if this bond is even worth it. Weeks pass. He feels your bond with him growing, but not in the way he wishes. It felt like all of his other confidants: visit, gain, rank up, gain power, learn. He wonders if he can keep this up. His heart aches. He wants to touch you more, but can’t, wants to tell you more, but won’t let himself.

＊

One rainy night, he calls you, like he often does when you can’t meet up in person, and tells you he can’t do this anymore. You lie, and say you agree. The guilt won’t let you tell him the truth, that you want to end the farce, move onto something more real. You can sense your feelings for him growing stronger each day, and it’s not fair to him. Without fighting, without the big “it’s not you it’s me you” you’re used to reading about in books, you tell him you respect his decision, and it’s over. When Akira hangs up, he finds himself a bit angry inside. You didn’t even try to fight for the relationship. There was a tiny little part of him that hoped you felt anything for him, that maybe it meant something to you. He cries that night, for the first time in a long time. They are angry tears, frustrated ones.

＊

In your bed, you find yourself sitting upright, dead inside, unfeeling, empty. You feel like a part of you is gone, but can’t pinpoint why. You don’t even notice the tears sliding down your own cheeks as you sift through the pack of tarot cards that mysteriously came into your life. You find The Moon, and play with it, twisting it between your fingers before sending it flying across the room like a paper dart. Did this mean you couldn’t hang out with the Phantom Thieves anymore? Were you losing your only in-real-life friends and… boyfriend(?) all in the same day?

You sifted through the cards and gently set aside the Emperor, the Lovers, the Chariot. Then your hand drifted over the Fool. You held it out in front of your face. A dancing man looking up at the sky with a jesters cap perched upon his head smiled back at you.

The start of a great journey, freedom from constraints. Each day is an adventure. Courage, anything can happen. There is a need to experience new things, to let yourself experience the love you deserve. Be willing to take risks.

A sad, thoughtful smile crosses your lips. You turn the card upside down.

If you disregard the repercussions of your actions, you are the Fool. You cannot see the position you’ve put yourself in. Is everything what it seems to be?

A breath catches in your throat, a wave of nausea hitting you. You scramble for your phone, and dial a number.

Silence, ringing, silence.

“...Yeah…?” Akira sniffles. He’s been crying???

“I want… can we talk… can I come over?”

“It’s late.”

“It’s not, we came home way earlier than usual. You’re just using that as an excuse.” You were feeling a little braver than usual, the spirit of the Fool within you. You heard him thinking, a sigh that came through as static.

“Yeah… fine, I’ll be waiting.” Relief washed over you.

＊

When you knocked on the door after speed-walking to Le Blanc, Sojiro let you in with a warm smile. He obviously didn’t know about your falling out with Akria, yet.

“He’s upstairs,” he gestured, exhaustion evident in his voice. You rushed past, thanking him with a small bow of your head. Only now was the inevitable fear starting to sink in. Akira heard footsteps creaking on the stairs. Sojiro never came up unannounced, and with that realization, his back stiffened. Morgana picked up your scent, excusing himself, passing you on your way up the stairs. He could take a hint.

He stood immediately, stepping toward you, stopping halfway. You shrunk into yourself, unable to meet his eyes.

“Akira… I wanted to talk…” you muttered.

“You said that… about what?” He was more than a little pissed, but he was always one to hide his temper well.

“Can we sit…?” You gestured to his small sofa. It didn’t feel right to sit on the bed. He hesitated, before shuffling over and sitting next to you. “I wanted to apologize.”

“For what?” Oh, there were so many things, but he wanted to know what you thought was worth apologizing over. Maybe he wasn’t being fair, he dialed back his attitude a tad.

“For… making you enter into the agreement in the first place. Someone’s affections, their love, their touch and body… it’s not something that can be forced. It should never be pretend.” You felt like the biggest hypocrite ever right now. His head shook a bit in disbelief, blinking hard.

“I wasn’t pretending!” His hands flew to his hair, mussing it. “That was the problem.” He sighed heavily.

“What?” You couldn’t believe what you were hearing.

“I wasn’t being forced… are you… you must be the most oblivious person I’ve ever met.” He laughed cynically.

“But-”

“Wait, wait, why did you think I ended our” he put air quotes up, “ ‘fake’ relationship.” He needed this clarification, now. For closure, for redemption, to fix things, whatever may come next.

“Because… because I was forcing you to date me! You were uncomfortable?!” You could feel your voice begin to break, tears clawing to escape. You’d never felt so disgusted with yourself as you did right now.

“Are you serious?” He took both of your hands, looking you in the eyes. You nod. “Answer truthfully. Do you have feelings for me? Real ones?” You bit your lip, that feeling of selfish guilt creeping like bile up your throat. You nod again. “This whole time?” Another nod. He releases you, turning away. “Sheesh, maybe I’m the oblivious one here…” he spoke more to himself than to you. You both sat in tense silence, not sure what to do, what to say.

“Akira…”

“It was real to me,” he moved closer, trapping you against the end of the couch.

“Really?” Your heartbeat was going crazy, and he leaned ever so slightly closer, his hand on the back of the couch for support. “I broke up with you because it was hurting me to pretend I didn’t have real feelings for you, and to think you didn’t want me back, not for real. I thought… that you’d always think of me as just some character for your book.”

“No… Akira… had I known you felt this way…” He leaned in further, your noses bumping slightly, clumsily. This time, he felt no discomfort, no hesitation from your side. His heart fluttered in excitement. You could feel his breath on your warm cheeks.

“May I kiss you?” He asked again, a secondary, unspoken question sitting beneath his words.

“Yes.” Your voice was shaky, but you were sure, for once, of what you wanted. His hand went to your back, cradling you into his chest to lay down flat against the couch. With a passion he’d been holding back, he pressed his lips to yours without reservation. You sunk into the warm, plush feeling, tilting your head at a better angle. He kept the kiss soft, shallow, low pressure, looking for you to give him the signal to stop. When your arms reached upward, snaking around his neck and pulling him harder down into you, he groaned softly, barely audible, before passing his tongue over your lips a single time. You parted your lips, allowing him access, and his hand, pale and trembling, came up and found its way under the hem of your shirt, splayed nervously against the smooth skin there.

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mo2k · 3 years

Text

Imagine…you meeting the kamaboko squad for the first time♥️. (pt.3)

No.3 : Hashibira Inosuke

Pairing : Inosuke x [fem] reader

Warnings : none , except for slicing the demon’s head part . If you do count that as violence , other than this is just fluffed <3

a/n : Ahhhh~ we’ve finally come to the last part of this series ! ✨ hope you guys enjoyed this ! •~•

Synopsis : So,you’re a (you choice) rank of demon slayer.You’ve always work alone since the beginning-but then,on one fine day…your crow told you that you have to work your next mission with another demon slayer,much to your dismay-but still,you comply the orders and went off to finished your mission…

Applause….

Praises…

These sounds resonate in your ears as people shouted a “Thank you!” for you.You flicked your blade gracefully and soundlessly to clear off the lingering crimson blood before put it back into your scabbard and bowed down a little politely to the crowd.

The demon you’ve just slew seemed to be so impatient and desperate…like it can’t waste another second to devour flesh…maybe that’s why it appeared immediately after the golden sun left the sky…So lots of citizen still haven’t gone home and get the chance to behold you performed your work.

“Thank you for saving me and my son’s lives…” spoke the woman you’ve just rescue,her son was clutching tightly to his mother’s leg as he tried to hide behind her back.

“Oh!And you can rest for a night at my house too!” She offered with a kind smile and you nodded your head gently.

“Thank you for your offer ma’am,I really appreciate it and would love to accept if I’m not bothering you too much” You smiled sweetly back at her.And she laughed-

“Of course dear!You’re not a bother at all!You’ve just saved our lives remember?” She waved her hand as a gesture for you not to worry. “Come,darling.Let me lead you to my house” She beamed,before tell her son that it’s ok as she hold his hand gently and start to walk back her home.

You slowly went after her,people were still cheered for you and some even bowed down for you.You felt your heart swelling with joy and felt overwhelmed as you dragged your eyes over the crowd.You can’t help but let your lips curved upward slightly at the sight you’re seeing-feeling proud of yourself for being able to protect these people…

“Hey there!” Called a voice from in front,it was the woman. “Aren’t you coming?” She cried again and you felt your smile grows a bit wider as you speed up your pace to catch up with them.

After you have had a good meal and a relaxing bath,you let yourself fall to the mattress and stared blankly at the ceiling of your room…

“Ah…another day has passed huh?Time sure travels fast…” You chuckled,then heard something from outside.You immediately sat upright-head’s ringing with thoughts like ‘There’s another demon?I thought there was only one,or was it something else?But I still shouldn’t really let my guard down,should I?’

You grabbed your sword,preparing for whatever it is that might be ‘endangered’ ….

Suddenly,you heard something fall and the door just slide open.It was that timid boy that clutched tightly to his mother earlier,you realized that he’s been peering into you for a while but cracked and slipped to the floor from being careless,which also makes the door slide open and reveal the little mischievous culprit…

“Ah!!!!” He cried as he hit the floor,you felt your heart skipped a beat when the door slides open-before calming down and sighed a bit to yourself,feeling relieved that it isn’t anything bad…

You got up from the mattress and walked over to help the child to his feet, “Are you alright?” Was your first question as you grabbed his arm gently while your other hand gripped on his waist lightly to pull him up.

The boy nodded slightly with trembled lips, “I-I-I’m s-s-sorry…” he stuttered out,and you sighed again while smiling at him.Your eyes were kind,and filled with adoration as you gazed down at him lovingly.

“It’s ok…you’ve got nothing to be sorry or scare about…” you ruffled the boy’s head lightly.

“So…why are you here?If I may ask?” You question as you sit down to match his level.This boy is probably only about 5 to 6 years old,he’s so cute and tiny <3

“I-I…C-can I really s-say it?” He answered nervously,fidgeting with his fingers…and you nodded gently with a small smile.Trying to encourage him to tell you what’s wrong.

“I-I saw you f-fighting with the d-demon today…and I t-thought it w-was pretty cool…I also w-wonder if I-I could be like that when I’m o-older…” He spoke quietly,it’s almost as a whisper,he stumbled over his own words,his eyes scurried around from side to side.He looks like he wanted to scream but doesn’t have the courage to do so.This make you laughed softly…

“Of course sweetie,of course you can be like me when you get older.I’m sure you’ll become stronger and braver when the time passed…” You smiled fondly as you let out your statement,you just know you adored this boy so much.

“You s-sound just l-like my mother…” he mumbled,and you laughed.

“Really?I’m sorry if I bored you then,but your mother is a very good,kind and sweet lady.Shower her with love,ok?She cares and loves you so much more than any words could described…” You mused joyfully,and the boy look up at you with the slight confusion in his eyes…

“..H-How did you know?” His voice was hesitant,but curious.

“Only by the look in her eyes when she gazed at you was enough to tell me that” You grinned,“What’s your name dear?”.

“A-Akira…” He answered shyly, and you continued-

“Good name,my name’s (L/n) (y/n).Akira,I’m sure you’ll be a great and strong fighter in the future as long as you believe.” You state firmly,and you swore you caught a little glimpse of twinkle in the boy’s eyes.

“Y-You really believe like that?” He looked up,and you beamed.

“Yes,now,would you mind telling more about your dreams Akira?” You spoke softly,he blinked before slowly nodding.His hands were clutched together tightly,telling you that he was still nervous.

“C’mon” You said,standing up while you outstretched your hand, “You sure don’t want to stand here until your legs are sore,do you?”

He nodded stiffly again.You led him to your room and let him sit down beside you on the mattress, “So…” You started, “Why do you wish to become like me?”

“I-I b-because you look so c-cool when you swing your b-blade!A-and your face didn’t even s-shift a little w-when you sliced the demon’s head o-off!” He stuttered out,but you can sense the excitement behind his voice.

“I guess it just happens so often that I’m used to it!” You laughed and he blinked.

“Y-you’ve k-killed other demon b-before?” He asked,you nodded slowly.

“Really!?I-is it is it hard?Or s-scary?” Said the boy.

“Hm…” You hummed, “Maybe a bit.But if I do nothing but scared,I wouldn’t be able to saved people,would I?”

“Oh…i-it’s true…” He looked down sadly with his shoulder slumped.

“You have just saved us today too…I wish was more braver and stronger so I can protect my mother and be like you someday…” He added. You can’t lie the fact that you’re a bit curious about his father-but you stopped yourself.

“You can also be like me when you’re older,I already told you that right?” You asked.

“Yes..but it’s just so hard to truly believe I can be like that…” He trailed off…This make you sighed.

“Let’s talk about other things-What do you like to do?Playing?Or something else?” You said. Decided to change the subject-his eyes lit up immediately with interest.

“Oh!I like to play hide and seek with my friends!And a lot of other things!” He spoke quickly.From what you can see he start to get more courage to speak with you since he doesn’t really stutter like he used to.

“Tell me more about it then” You smiled and he beamed back…

That’s how it went.Akira talked on and on about things,his passion,what he likes and dislikes and many more things else.Not that you were complaining,you were glad he has gained more confidence in speaking.Plus you have fun listening to him talking too!

Until,the boy yawned again for the third time after some moments.Making you realized it was pretty late already so you tell him that he should go back to his room and have some rest.

“And,(y/n)-san…” Akira said suddenly as he stopped and turn to you before he leave.

“Hm?” You hummed while smiling up at him.

“You said that you worked to killed demons…” He started,a little bit hesitation cleared in his voice. “There were rumors…about one demon that lives in the nearby mountains…They say he looks like a boar-a very hot and short tempered boar…Please be careful with it,if you’ve ever encountered it…” He seemed to shudder a little as he spoke.

“I will…” said you, “Thank you so much for this information” You bowed your head a little.

He nodded,before turning and leave the room….

You blew the candles and let yourself fall to the mattress… ‘A demon who looks like a boar?’ You thought to yourself, ‘Better be prepared then…” You sighed.Closing your eyes before drifting off to your peaceful slumber…

—————————————————————————

The rays of sunlight shone through as you stand outside the house.Saying goodbye and thank you to the woman who let you rest at her house…

“You can stay for a little longer and have breakfast with us…” The woman said.And you shook your head gently,

“No,I already owe you so much…Still,thank you for your kind offer once again…” You smiled.

“How many times do I have to tell you that you’re not a bother to us at all…” She sighed tiredly.

“I’m so sorry then…” You chuckled, “And…May I ask where is Akira?” You questioned.Turning your head from side to side to look for the little boy…

“Oh,that boy?” Said the mother, “He’s still fast asleep inside the house.He seemed so tired so I don’t want to wake him up yet,since it’s still so early” She answered.

“I see…” You nodded, “Miss…May I also ask….” You hesitant… “Uh…about your husband?” You managed out…

There was an uncomfortable silence between the two of you for a while…before she replied.

“Of course,my husband already died about a year ago…so Akira was pretty lonely…” She sighed quietly again…

“…I’m so sorry to hear that…” You apologized, “…Your son is a very strong boy…” You added.

“He is…” She nodded with a small smile, “He seemed to like you too” She said- “I’ve noticed his slight changed behavior”

You laughed, “Really?I’m glad” You smiled back at her one last time-before saying, “I think I better go now,thank you so much again” You bowed politely to the mother.

“You don’t really have to bowed!” She said, “Only thank you was enough”

You nodded once you were back to your original position, “Goodbye then ma’am,please have a great day.” You smiled,then turn and went off…

“You are always welcome here dear!” The woman cried after you and waved her arm,you waved back and continued on your way….

————————————————————————

Your crow came flapping towards you before gently landed on your left shoulder….

“Hello (your crow’s name),how are you?” You greeted as you scratched its neck lightly.

“Good!Your next mission is in the graveyard in southwest town!Rumors say there will be demon appeared every night there!You’ll probably reached there at night if you’re not so lazy!” The crow shouted loudly beside your ears,you feel like your eardrums would break any second if you hear your crow’s voice again…

“Hey,I’m offended!Please just be a little more careful with your words next time,will you?” You said…and the crow answered-

“No!What I said is right and true!” Squawked the crow,this make you sighed…

“And!” (Your crow’s name) speak again, “You have to work with another demon slayer this time!” Barked the crow.

“With another demon slayer?” You echoed in astonishment as you stared at the bird with wide eyes.

“Yes!And one more thing!Beware of the boar!” Your crow cried before it lifted off and fly to the blue sky…

“Wait!” You tried to stopped it,but it was no use. (Your crow’s name) just go fluttered its wing freely farther and farther away from you…

You sighed again, “You could have just told me more about that another demon slayer!Or at least,what he or she looks like…” You mumbled the last part.At least even some more information about the demon is good enough for you…You thought grumpily as you took another step and began to continued walking to your next destination…

‘Who was that someone I need to work with?He or she?…If it was a boy….’ You felt your cheeks dusted some light shades of pink, ‘Was he handsome?’ You bit your lip and slapped yourself internally, ‘No no,I must not think like this.My work here is slaying demon and yes I should focus on it.Surely I can do that…’

You paused,sighing….‘Right?’

————————————————————————

You’ve made it to the graveyard at night exactly like what (your crow’s name) told you.After asking for ways and some informations about the demon with people who lives in the nearby village.

They say that it’s true about the rumors,there were people who strangely disappear every night whether they were just asleep or doing something…and another strange thing was that,every morning they will see blood-lots of blood scattered all over the graveyard.The smell is bad and very stinky too…There haven’t been anyone who dared to come across that place as this occurred more and more often…

Except…There was one man,he wore something that looks like a boar mask.So they couldn’t see nor remember his face-that boy was courageous,but got a short tempered and so much enthusiasm…He went to the graveyard a few days ago….No one has seen him since then,they assumed that he was probably dead by ghosts,rancorous souls or whatever-

People also described that the boar’s mask man was a bit off the word ‘normal’…Some called him ‘crazy’ or ‘mad’ from the way he went laughing and running to the graveyard….

‘Eh…a boar again??? Can everything I’ve heard about the boar…be related???’ You thought to yourself after you thanked the people for informations and head to the graveyard…

When you reached there…The place was dark and filled with stinky smell like what you’ve been told…

You covered your mouth and nose with your hand while slowly looking from side to side….But you saw nothing…

Then suddenly you heard someone’s crying…

You quickly whipped your head towards the direction where the voice came and saw a girl crying at one stone,her head on her knees as her body tremble uncontrollably.She has no sense that she could be a demon,you sighed in relived before slowly moved towards her…

“Hey…” You called quietly,and she jumped as she shot her head up at you.

“Are you alright?” You asked.Her frame shook violently with fear-

“W-who are you?” She asked back,tears still ranning down her cheeks.

“Shhh,don’t cry.I’m not here to hurt you-but please just tell me,what happened?” You cooed,crouching to her level and rubbed her shoulder to comfort her.

“M-my friends and I came to see if there was a real ghost in this graveyard.I-I already told them we shouldn’t come here especially at night!But they wouldn’t listen and now they’re dead!I-I saw it with my own eyes-I-it’s so t-terrifying…” She sobbed harder covering her face with her hands…It pains you to see her like this…

‘She was only a child…and here she is…has to watch this dreadful and brutal scene…’ You thought sadly as you watch her with sympathize. ‘I feel sorry for her…I’m sorry…If only I’ve arrived here a little faster your friends wouldn’t have been dead…’ You contemplate with anger,you were angry with yourself for not being able to protect her friends.All you can think now was that,you must protect this girl…

As you’re about to ask her how long has she been sitting here-you heard a screech coming from your left.You snapped your head to see what the sound was.And your eyes met with the demon’s disgusting eyes…

It has to be the demon who’s killed this girl’s friends,from the blood that dripped down to the floor from its mouth…The girl shriek in fear and you drew out your blade while gritted your teeth.

You must win this battle…

The demon snarled at you and immediately charged towards you and the girl.This one seemed to be so hungry for human’s flesh and blood but it doesn’t have the desperation like the last demon you’ve slew.You yelled for the girl to run as you gripped your sword preparing to killed this demon in one blow with (your breathing) style…

The girl scurried away from the demon and you raised your blade over your head,ready to swing.Just about time you swing your blade-aiming for the demon’s neck.The demon got stab to its side and staggered back clutching its wound.It pulled the blade out and throw it to the side,wincing and wriggling in pain.

You whipped your head to the way where the blade came from and met with a man who’s wearing a boar mask as he laughed wildly with contentment about something…

You stand there blinking in shocked as he continued to laugh and say something like, “You see how strong I am now!?Of course!Because I am the great Inosuke!The strongest swordsman in this world hahahaha!”.

‘A boar…a boar…a boar….So familiar…Oh!That man!The one people’s been talking about!He’s not yet dead?How surprising…’ You thought as your mind tried to process about what’s happening…

‘And…seems like the people were right…He’s something but definitely not normal…’ You observed as he’s still not laughing nor just shut his mouth… ‘He didn’t really seemed to care about the demon…did he?’

The demon’s shook its body for a few more times before looked up and glared the so called ‘The great Inosuke’.It hissed and rushing towards him-probably wishing to end his life’s first.

“Ha!You thought I have only one blade!?Wrong!I have two blade!Waiting to cut off your head here!So cool I know!Hahaha!” Said Inosuke,raising his other blade in his other hand to show the demon.

‘Seriously?’ You thought,shocked and baffled.You immediately chase after the demon but it didn’t seem to care-It’s like it want nothing more than to ripped the boar mask man’s heart out of his chest.

You quickly sliced the demon’s head off using (whatever form you like) form from (your breathing) style once you reach it and as it was about to grab the man.The boar mask man also prepared to stab through the demon body again but you steal his thunder first…

“Ha!?” He cried with disbelief, “How dare you!?I was about to finished this demon’s first!” He pointed at you,specifying.

You ignored him as you flicked your blood clean before putting it back into your scabbard…

“Hey!I’m talking to you!” He bristled,and you sighed tiredly.

“I just want to finished my work.Is it that hard to understand?” You raised your eyebrow as you glance at him.

“I don’t care!But you just stole my scene!I can’t accept that!Who are you!?I’m Hashibira Inosuke the greatest!And who are you!?” He shouted,so loud-you rolled your eyes at him.

“(L/n) (y/n),satisfied now?” You answered.

“No!I demand a fight!Let’s fight to see who’s stronger than who!?” He cried,and you stared at him for a minute,blinking.

“What!?” He bellowed.

“…Nothing…I just can’t believe how childish you acted…” You spoke calmly,before turning- “And maybe next time for your fight.As you can see-I’m busy right now.So please wait patiently-” You stopped,looking around.Finding for the girl-

“There you are” You called once you find her,walking towards the girl.

“Are you alright dear?” You asked,crouching down to her level.The girl was still a bit scared of what has just happened but she still manage to nodded for your question.

“Good” You smiled, “C’mon,let me take you back to your home.Where do you live sweetheart?” You demand as you take the girl’s hand.

“I-In the village.” She answered nervously,glancing around to see if there was more demons.

“It’s ok love, just stay close to me alright?I’ll protect you.” You tell her,trying to make her relaxed.And she nodded again,too afraid to speak.You gripped her small hand a little tighter.Before heading back to the village.

“Hey!” Called another voice behind you,you turned around only to be met with the same boar mask man. “How dare you ignoring me again!?” He cried,you sighed and shook your head in response.

“Will you just stand there,or come with us?” You asked him,and he seemed stunned a bit.

“Come with you?Why would the great Inosuke come with you!?” He yelled back.

“Up to you then” You said before continued to walk out of the graveyard.

“Wait!” He cried but this time you didn’t even glance back. “Damn you!” He said,but still-he ran after you back to the village.Saying that this can be a challenge of who ran faster.

‘He really isn’t normal…’ You thought to yourself as you watch him ran towards the village as fast as he can. “I’m not taking that challenge!” You cried but he didn’t seem to hear that…

‘I guess waiting for some minutes wouldn’t hurt for him then…’ You shrugged.

As you reached the village you met with the parents of the girl.They seemed so worried and scared from the gasp and sound of happiness they made as soon as they saw their daughter.The little girl also immediately ran into her parents arms,crying.The scene was just so beautiful that you somehow that a tear might slipped from your eyes.

The girl then pointed at you saying that you were the one who saved her from the scary ghost in the graveyard.Her parents looked up with gratefulness and the people nearby started clapping and cheering for you.Shouting a big ‘thank you’ for their hero.This make the same feeling of your heart swelled with joy came back again.

You were so so happy at that moment…until that boar mask man came shouting towards you that you lose and he win or something like that…

“Why were you so slow!?See!Well,I’m the great Inosuke so of course I win!And you lose hahahahahah!” He laughed again,and you smiled dryly at him.

‘Couldn’t he just come to me later?’ You thought sickly,before sighing.

The crowd,were shocked and surprised to see that he’s still alive.Gasping and whispering became widespread through the people.Still,the parents of the little girl offer you and Inosuke to rest for a night or two at their house.You two of course accept the offer,you thanked them politely all the while Inosuke,laughed wildly while saying something like, “Of course Inosuke the great will accept your offer hahaha!”.

At last…he didn’t even thank them…. -_-

————————————————————————

You sighed with contentment as you walked to stroll a bit to refresh yourself before going to bed.You decided to go and relax at the engawa (veranda).But when you go there,oh-how much did you regret your decision…

You found that boar mask man,sitting at the edge of the engawa with his legs dangling over it.You almost turn on your heels to go back to your room until you noticed something strange….

Inosuke,or what you believe to be his name,wasn’t wearing his boar mask as he usually does.He just sit there staring off into the distance with no aware that you were watching him.

And not to mention that you almost slipped on your feet once you saw his face.His face-was just so feminine that you almost thought for a second that he was a girl covering her body to look like a boy-

You were debating with yourself for quite a moment about should you go to him or not that you didn’t noticed him slowly turning back as if he feels like someone was watching him.

He yelped in surprised once he saw you, “What are you doing here!?”

You also immediately shot your head to look at him, jumped. “Huh?Me?I-um,I was-I was just about to sit and relax at the engawa for a bit!But I didn’t know that you were already here so I was just planning to leave.” You excused yourself quickly.

He eyed you,feeling suspicious-looking at you from head to toe before meeting your gaze. “Then who stopped you?Just come and sit.” He said.

You were surprised that he didn’t yelled or shouted at you this time.But you sure won’t complain-you wouldn’t want to make him mad and just shouted at you again.

“So-why are you here?” You asked as you sit down.Decided to ease the tension a bit.

“I don’t know” He answered,looking down at his lap.Seems like your plan didn’t work-what about this one?

“Inosuke” You called, “Why do you become a demon slayer?” You asked as you turned your head to face him.

“H-how did you know that I was a demon slayer!?” He demand suddenly,and loudly.

You blinked, “Um…it was pretty obvious since your blade can make the demon disintegrated…And that kind of blade normally belongs to a demon slayer.” You explained,hoping that he would understand.

“Oh-right,and well-I just met a normal demon slayer in my mountain.I asked him for a fight and he loses,that’s when I heard about the final selection and become a demon slayer.” He said and your eyes widen.

“Your mountain?” You repeat.And he blinked at you before nodding.

“Yeah,what’s wrong with that?” He asked.You shook your head.

“Nothing, just a bit surprised.” You answered,remember your conversation with Akira,perhaps he is really the one who Akira spoke about…You thought to yourself-deciding not to tell Inosuke about this in case it make him mad or even worse-make him praise himself again….

Inosuke doesn’t speak anything after that for about 1 solid minute,he just stare intently at you all the time which start to make you feel a bit uncomfortable…

“Um…” You started,shifting a bit in your seat. “Wh-”

“Tell me” was all he spoke,and that suddenly make you realized that he was waiting for you to tell him about how you become a demon slayer.He wanted to ask but is too stubborn to speak it himself-this make you smile and chuckled.

“Sure thing,well- (You start telling your own story of how you became a demon slayer.I want to leave this to your own imagination about your past.Inosuke will listen to every single bit of your story no matter how short or long it is,please enjoyed <3)”

“I see” He answered, “Interesting story” he added and you laughed.

“You think so?” You asked him,and he nodded.This make you smiled.

“….Do you have any family?” He questioned suddenly,you must admitted that this has taken you aback.

“(Yes or no,up to you!)” You answered, “And you?”

“I don’t…I can’t even remember my own mother’s face…” He said,there was a hint of sadness behind his voice.You looked at him before sighing-

“Gosh-Don’t be so dramatic.You are not the only one who’s lost,I’ve met a 5 years old boy who’s also lost his father about a year ago-Even that little boy is stronger than you” You said,standing up while shook your head gently. “The great Inosuke shouldn’t be weak like you,should he?” You asked,looking at him one last time before you’re about to turn and walk away.

“I’ll just go to bed now-Goodnight,weak.”

“Hey!Who did you just called ‘weak’ !?” He cried after you’ve just took a few steps.Seizing your wrist tightly,the sudden movement make you lose your balance.Inosuke tried to stop your fall by pulling you to him-but how accidentally it ended up with you sitting on his lap,eye’s wide filled with shocked and surprised.

You and him stayed there in that position for a moment,you felt your cheeks heat up bright red as you’re still shocked about what just happened before you pulled yourself together and make yourself get up from his lap.Ignoring how comfortable and warm he is or how you wanted to stay there for a little longer-But it is too embarrassing for you •///•

“I-I-I think I will just go to bed now!Sleep well!” You quickly said before turn on your heels and immediately bolted to your room.Leaving him still sitting there,dazed and embarrassed.Dark red coloured itself into his face as he stared at his palm and think back to that moment earlier…

As you soon as you reached your room.You immediately fall to the mattress and stared at the ceiling,thinking.

‘He was just a friend,he was just a friend,he was just a friend,but wait-when exactly did I counted him as my friend?’ You thought,then pull a pillow to shove your face into it,blushing hard.

You were screaming inside as you felt so restless, ‘I cannot think straight anymore…’ was your last thought before you forced yourself to sleep and just forget it…

But can you really?Sorry but I’d say no.Honey-look at you,your face are still dusted with pink even when you told yourself to forget it! owo

—————————————————————————————

When the next day came… -~-

You woke up,feeling tired and sore from yesterday’s work.Being a demon slayer sure is very hard and tiring-and you know you have to get up now or else your crow would come and wake you…

(which you surely didn’t want that,you wouldn’t want your crow to came barking at you to wake up,would you?)

But as you started to get conscious as you stretched your tired muscles a bit?Oh darling-you mind just take you back to that sweet,embarrassed memories you’ve just witnessed yesterday-

You cheeks immediately went dark red again when you recalled it.You shook your head and slapped yourself internally once again before you got up and get ready for the day…

——————————————————————————

You walked out of the house after you went to say goodbye to the owners of the house.They we’re still sleeping soundlessly together with their daughter sleep in the middle and got squeezed warmly by her parents on both of her side.This make you smile before you decided to write a not and leave it on the table instead.

You met with Inosuke once you slide the door open,you felt yourself blushing once your eyes met with his frame.He turned back to look around and trust me,this boy also got a little bit of pink tinted in his face.He quickly look away,decided to avoid eye contact with you.

You greeted him awkwardly,and he greeted back.An uncomfortable silence fell between the two of you as you walked away from the house.After a while,your crow came fluttering its wings toward you and Inosuke.(Your crow’s name) immediately plopped itself on your shoulder.It surely does notice that something’s off as you don’t welcome it as you normally do.

“Your next mission is at Tsuzumi mansion!You two did well in your last mission so we decided that you two should go and do another mission together!Now,don’t be lazy and keep going until you reached your next destination!” Yelled the crow before it opened its wing and flew off into the clear sky.

You two stay there gawkily before Inosuke decided to break the silence, “So…Uh-We’ve to do another mission…together?” He began slowly while glancing at you.You nodded your head stiffly.

“I…guess?” You answered back.And he bit his lip hesitantly.

“I…Yesterday…was-um…actually just an accident…” He state nervously,and you turned your head to fully look at him.

“Yeah…it was…I’m sorry for that…” You added too,and he shake his head.

“Nah it’s alright…it’s um-like I said, just an accident” He spoke.You giggled a bit at how stubborn he is to just properly apologize.

“W-Why are you laughing!?What’s so funny!?” He bristled with his face getting a bit more red as he heard your laugh.He won’t admit that he likes it when you laughed or even just simply smile. 😏

“Nothing!You were just so cute looking like that!” You stated happily with a small smirk when you saw him blushing.He got even redder at that- >///<

“C-cute!?Who!?Me!?” He asked,pointing at himself for confirmation while whipping his head around to see anybody else.

“Yes you~It’s you stupid brain!You’re so dumb!” You teased.

“What!?” He cried and you laughed,run in front of him before stopped.

“You like competition right!?Then come and catch me if you can!” You cried,turning and continued to run away.

“Ha!Bold of you to challenge me!Let me tell you first-I will not lose!” He shouted back as he chase after you to catch up.

This is sure would be such a long,long journey….

Finished ! 💖 Guys-I finally finished this series ! ♥️ Yas !!!!! ✨

It’s been so much fun writing ! 💕 I hope you guys enjoyed it as much as I do writing it ! 💝 And I was wondering -

Is it ok if I take a break for 2 or 3 weeks or more ? I want to reward myself a bit and I also want to collect more ideas and information ! 💗

Like - I won’t be posting any work , but still here to chat / talk or play ask game / tag game or whatever ! ❤️ Just no story writing ( but maybe except for some quick imagines or short scenario - I don’t know owo )

But please know this - No Nsfw , Lemon , Smut please ! I won’t accept any of this - pls understand

And one more thing ! I think I’ll stop the posting every Sunday - after doing this series I feel like I want to write whenever I feel like it . Like I wanted to write because I wanted to write not because it’s time to write . Something like that - I hope you guys would understand ! 🥺💞

Now , thank you so much , please have a lovely day / night everyone ! Do not forget to take care too love ! <3

I do not own the art (s) nor the character (s) ! Credits to the artist ! 💗

-With love,BamBam🦢🌙

58 notes · View notes

kareofbears · 3 years

Text

margin of error

Sophia knows a lot, but that does not mean she understands much of anything at all.

Or, Sophia struggles to grasp why Akira and Ryuji don't follow her predictive algorithm.

read on ao3 or below the cut :)

Sophia knows a lot.

She can tell you almost anything in the known world in an instant. Calculate the radius of the sun. Who won Best Picture three years ago. The outfit to wear when you need to 'dress to impress.' Just yesterday, she was able to find them a bath, a takoyaki restaurant, and an overnight camping site within 0.3 milliseconds. That’s not very many seconds.

Sophia knows a lot, but that does not mean she understands much of anything at all.

She’s quiet while she’s propped on the phone stand, watching the rest of them lounge in the RV. There’s a shape to the interior that wasn’t there before—where it had been pristine when they had first gotten it, now it’s littered with crumbs and instant-food packaging despite Makoto’s half-hearted attempts at scolding them for it. Empty surfaces are filled with knick-knacks, stuffies and a plastic ramen bowl rattling gently along with the RV.

There’s a rare lull amongst them, a moment of quiet. Most of them were napping away the road, gently snoring and bodies jostling whenever a pothole hits, oblivious to the scenery that passes by. Only the soft tunes of pop music from the front and the hum of the engine broke the quiet.

Other than Makoto, there were only two people awake: Akira, scribbling in his journal, and Ryuji, watching him do it. They sat across from each other in the booth, with Ryuji’s chin propped against his hand.

Probability and pinpoint accuracy is what she excels at, and being able to apply them to her friends excites her. Not to mention, she hasn’t been wrong yet.

Idly, she runs the numbers—according to the data she’s collected from spending time with them, the silence will be broken by Ryuji within approximately two minutes. Pulling up a time from within Akira’s phone, she waits eagerly.

A minute passes, and then another. And another. Akira is still scribbling in his neat penmanship and Ryuji is still watching him doing it, unspeaking.

Frowning, she double-checks her calculations. No errors that she can see. It seems that he simply does not want to speak. This is surprising, and very unlike him. He is not usually this quiet. In the Metaverse, he is by far the loudest of them; calling on his Persona’s name can often leave her own ears ringing.

The real world does not stray from that data. His voice is clear in crowded areas, helpful in guiding their big group throughout bustling cities. He is often shushed by the girls when they are trying to sleep at night—Futaba even goes as far as to kick the ceiling from her bunk bed.

The data is strong and sure. There should not be a reason that she should be wrong in this assumption unless there’s a confounding variable that she had missed.

Akira looks up and catches his eye. “Am I boring you?” he asks quietly.

Ryuji shakes his head, grinning. “Couldn’t be happier,” he whispers back.

Sophia’s about to ask when Makoto cuts her off.

“Wake up everyone. We’re here.”

—

“Okay,” Akira calls. His voice isn’t raised, despite the crowded street of downtown Sendai, but they all straighten up. “We’re probably not going to spend too much time here, especially once we take over the Jail. Grab what you need now—snacks for the trip. Shopping. Souvenirs. Frozen pineapple. Any questions?” Yusuke raises his hand. “Yes, I’ll pay for you.” The hand falls back down, relieved.

“Cool. How about we meet back here…” he squints at the large clock hanging on the wall, hand blocking out the blaring sun. “In an hour?”

A chorus of agreements rolls through them as they rush out, excited to explore a new city. “Good speech,” Sophia pipes up from his hand. “Do you do them often?”

“I try not to,” he yawns. His thick black hair is even more unruly than usual, glasses barely hiding the light blue that’s beginning to form underneath his eyes. “Most of the time, they can handle themselves fine. All they need is a schedule and some rules to work with.”

When she doesn’t answer, Akira brings his phone up. “What? Did I say something?”

“It’s because she’s worried about you, you moron,” a disgruntled voice says.

Akira’s gaze flickers towards it. “You’re still here?”

“Of course I am,” Ryuji says. “You really think I’d leave without saying goodbye? Glad I didn’t either, cause you look like shit.”

“Thanks.”

“Still pretty, though. No worries about that part.” He shoves his hand deep in his pocket, stray yen clinking against each other as he rummages. After a moment, he throws something at Akira. “Catch.”

He plucks it out from the air with ease. “Car keys?” he asks, surprised.

“Grabbed them from Makoto before she ran off for stationery shopping.” Ryuji reaches forward, gently turning Akira’s head this way and that, frowning. “I told you to quit staying up so late. You’re exhausted.”

“I am not.”

“He is,” Sophia refutes. “Last night, he had approximately four hours of sleep, with only four minutes of that being REM sleep.”

“I told you. She’s even bringing up computer stuff now.”

“I think you are thinking about RAM, Ryuji.”

“Whatever,” he shakes his head. “Look, just head to the RV, get some shut-eye. You can finally sleep in a proper bed that isn’t an overheating tent with three sweaty dudes and a cat. Oh, and trade phones with me.”

He hands it over without hesitation, sliding Ryuji’s phone into his own pocket. “Why?”

“You have the grocery list in here, yeah? Not to mention, I don’t want Sophia getting bored while you nap it up.” He looks down at her. “Hi, by the way.”

“Hi!”

Akira still doesn’t seem convinced. “But I promised Yusuke—”

“Who’s with Ann now, shopping like they’d die if they didn’t get the perfect skirt to fit her next shoot,” he says, uncompromising. “Chill. It’s fine. We’ll survive an hour without Joker keeping an eye on us.”

They stare each other down for a long moment with Sophia watching. She does not need to run the numbers on this one; Akira will not allow himself to go back to the RV.

To her surprise, he relents. “Twenty minutes.”

Ryuji scoffs. “We’ll see about that. You suck at waking up.”

“Shut up.” And then, quieter, “Thank you.”

“You know I got your back.”

He yawns once more, slowly walking back to their car. “Sophia, please make sure that when he gets the Pocky to get the strawberry one. Futaba won’t eat anything else. And also that Haru wanted doilies to make the place look nicer. White, if you can find them.”

“Roger that,” she replies, distracted. How is she wrong again? This is troubling.

“My hoodie’s in my bag if you get cold!” Ryuji calls out. Akira throws him a thumbs up without looking back. “Jeez, that guy. He’s gonna run himself to the ground before he’s thirty, I swear. Like some geezer with a bad back but with really good hairline or something.”

An old man with a thick head of hair shoots him a glare as he passes by them. Ryuji laughs, high-pitched. “Yikes, that was awkward. Let’s get out of here, we need to hit up the grocery store before they run out of carrots.”

Sophia doesn’t answer, too deep in her thoughts and running endless calculations.

—

It’s impossible for her to get a headache, but her code is trying its best to give her one.

Two mistakes now. That isn’t allowed to happen. She’s lucky that they were both relatively small errors, but it can easily become a bigger problem. What can she do?

Luckily, that had a very simple answer.

“Ryuji?”

“Hmm?” He peels his eyes away from scrutinizing the oranges in his hands, the wires from his earphones swaying when he does. After one too many strange looks when he talks to nothing, it was just better to act like he was on a phone call. “Yeah?”

“I have a question.”

“What am I, a teacher?” he snorts. “If you got a question, go ahead. Friends can do that.”

That’s right. They’re friends, and friends have trust in one another. Sophia jotted that down as lesson number forty-eight, thirteen days ago.

“Okay,” she says. Questions float around her, and she picks the one that’s giving her the most stress. “If I was not as useful as you think I am, would we still remain friends?”

The orange tumbles out of his grip, and he rushes to catch it before it hits the ground. “Wha—!” he stutters out. “Duh! Obviously! What the—where the hell did that come from? Did we do something to think that we’d just ditch you like that?” he lifts the phone so that she was eye-level with him. “Be honest,” he says seriously, quickly. “Did I say something to hurt your feelings? I do that sometimes, and I’m working on it, and I know that’s no excuse—”

“You did not say anything to hurt my feelings,” she says before he spirals even further. “In fact, I do not have feelings for you to hurt.”

Relief blooms on his expression, and he sags his body against the fruit display. “Okay, good. Good. Thought I was gonna get a heart attack. I’d be pissed at myself if I did, and I just know Akira would give me so much shit.” He sighs, ridding himself of panic before giving him her full attention. “So what’s up?

“Sir…” an employee shuffles towards them, hands shaking knees knocking against each other. He is afraid, she notes, but of what? “I’m sorry, but it’s against store policy to lean on the product. Please try to understand.”

“Oh, shoot!” Ryuji exclaims, straightening up. “Sorry, man. I didn’t even realize. I think I squished an orange, but I’ll buy it so your boss doesn’t give you hell for that one.”

The employee blinks. “You would?” he says, shocked. “That would be great, actually. Thank you so much!”

“Don’t sweat it,” he waves it off. Tugging the shopping cart, he places Sophia where they’d normally put babies. “Hope he doesn’t get in trouble. I feel kinda bad.”

She thinks for a moment. “Ryuji, why was that man afraid?”

Swiftly, red rushes to his cheeks. “That obvious? Aw, man.”

“I don’t know if it was obvious, but all the signs were there,” she says, watching as he ducks his head, embarrassed. “What is happening? I do not understand.”

“It’s just—” his eyes shift sideways, meeting the eye of a young girl. Immediately, she directs her gaze downwards. “I look really scary to people.”

“You do?” It isn’t in her program to doubt, but she is rather skeptical. During the entire trip, he has been nothing but kind to her. Yes, there are times when he has arguments with others in the group, but more often than not it’s him that’s being teased rather than the other way around. “Why? You aren’t even that tall.”

“Ouch?”

“I’m just saying that you are not scary to me, so I don’t really understand why other people would be.”

He sighs, picking up a box of miso unseeingly. “It’s a combination of a lot of things. My hair’s bleached, and people usually see that as like, punk or whatever. My posture sucks and my voice is loud.” Shrugging, he throws it in the cart. “It doesn’t really bug me though. At least that means strangers usually don’t bother the group, cause they think I’ll kick their ass.”

“And would you?” Sophia crosses off miso. Only bandages are left on the list, but the cart is filled with snacks, sodas, and a small cactus. “‘Kick their ass?’”

“No way. If I did, my mom would kick my ass, and I can’t pull that shit twice in a lifetime.” Pushing the cart, they slowly meander through the aisles, occasionally looking at what’s on sale. Ryuji tosses in rainbow marshmallows, and after a moment, reluctantly puts it back.

“But you know,” he says eventually. “If someone was bothering the group, it’s not as if I’d just let it happen.”

She considers his answer. “You are tough,” she concludes. “But not scary.”

“Uh, yes,” he says, unsure. And then, with more conviction, “Yeah, that sounds about right.”

“Got it. ‘Ryuji is tough, but other people are terrified of him.’ I will make a note of that.” He looks like he wants to say something, but she keeps going. “Synonyms for ‘tough’: robust, stalwart, and strong. Would you say that’s accurate?”

He laughs, disbelieving. “No idea what the first two meant, but the third one isn’t right.”

“Why not? You can fight Shadows. Your muscle ratio is high. One time, when Futaba couldn’t unscrew her water bottle, you did it with no problem.”

“Because, Sophia,” Ryuji picks up gummy worms, and turns to her with pleading eyes. When she shakes her head, he puts it back on the shelf with a grimace. “Strength isn’t always about muscles and who can kill what. It’s more than that.”

It seems as though he doesn’t want to speak about this anymore, but the topic is too interesting to stop here. “Explain, please.”

“It’s...it’s like mental strength,” he says begrudgingly. “Like if someone failed an exam they studied real hard for, mental strength would help them get through a tough situation like that. Like Akira.”

“Akira has high mental strength?”

“Oh, the highest out of all of us without a doubt. The world could explode and he’d be all—” Ryuji lowers his voice by an octave. “‘Here’s what we can do,’ and then fix it somehow. That’s just the kind of guy he is. All plans and no fear.”

All plans and no fear is a good way of describing Joker. “And you aren’t like that?”

“No way. Have you ever seen me have a plan in my life? I’m more of an ‘act before I can talk myself out of it’ person. Usually works out fine in the end. Besides, he does it enough for the both of us.” His eyes light up. “Do you think if I get the panda bandages, it would work better in the Metaverse? Cause of the brain stuff?”

“I think so, as long as it makes people think it works better.”

“Great.” Ryuji tosses it in with the rest. “And I think we got everything! Let’s head out. If we’re lucky, we can grab some ice cream before we meet up with the rest of them.”

“Good job! But you may want to consider removing the orange soda. Makoto is already unhappy with how much junk food you are always eating.”

“Fine. I’m keeping the cactus though.”

It was only when they’re all sleeping back in the RV when she realizes that she never got to ask him her actual question. Actually, she ended up with even more questions than when she began.

Maybe she’ll have better luck asking Akira instead.

—

They, or rather Akira, have their knees buried in a patch of grass in the middle of Sapporo with a small pile of four-leaf clovers by his ankles when she decides it would be appropriate to ask him.

“Akira, can I ask—” she pauses, and tries again. “I have a question.”

His face is so close to the ground that even the dirt would realize that his glasses don’t have prescription, and people are shooting him worried looks that he completely ignores. “Shoot.”

“Actually, I have many questions, and I’m hoping you’ll answer all of them as honestly as you can in order to have the most accurate data possible.”

“Research?”

More often than not, Akira has been giving her information about the world that she does not have access to. Slang terms that Futaba yells out in frustration, Ann’s tendency to jump from one topic to the next with little regard to who she’s talking to. It’s all confusing to Sophia, so she makes sure to memorize all of these instances and bring it to him for clarification.

“Sort of,” she says. “Some of my predictions have been off lately, and I am trying to figure out why.”

“Sure. Oh, another one.” Gently, he plucks it from the soil and gently places it with the others. “For Haru. Apparently, she’s really struggling with economics, so hopefully this helps her out next semester.”

“How many more?”

“Four,” he replies. “Yusuke, Sojiro, Akane, and Ryuji.”

She frowns. “Ryuji already has one.”

“He’s going to need more than one.” Akira turns to her, distressed. “Entrance exams are coming up.”

“Oh.”

“Yup,” he turns back to his task. “Anyway, you had a question?”

“Right,” she says, clearing her throat: a sign of taking a more serious tone. “Why are you scared of Ryuji?”

Akira freezes. Sophia waits patiently. But after a moment, then two, then five, there is still no reaction from him. And then slowly, he faces her with a blank expression.

She has not known Kurusu Akira for very long—only a few weeks in fact. But in that time, she feels that she has come to learn a lot about him. For instance, he does not like pears. He also finds grocery shopping relaxing, and he would die for his friends. Another thing she has learned from him is that he is very quiet; even in the Metaverse, amidst the explosions and gunshots, he does not yell. It is not as if he has nothing to say, but rather he would rather express himself through gestures and the odd comment here and there. He is much happier to let the people around him carry the conversation for him.

Shock racks through her as he bursts out laughing. His shoulders move up and down as laughs pour out of him uncontrollably. “What—?” he tries, pushing his glasses atop his head. It’s almost hidden amongst his thick, black locks. “Did you seriously ask if I was afraid of Ryuji? Sakamoto Ryuji? Blond guy, helps out in the Metaverse? My best friend?”

“Um.” This was not what she was expecting, despite having no expectations to begin with. “Yes.”

He sighs, content. “I really have to thank you, Sophia.” Akira brings his glasses back to his nose, the corners of his mouth quirked up. “That was really good. Haven’t laughed that hard since Yusuke thought Italy was near Mexico.”

She tilts her head sideways. “I was not joking.”

“Yeah, I figured.” He sits up, crossing his legs over each other, giving her his full attention. “Tell me why you thought I was scared of him.” Even as he’s sobered up, he can’t quite finish the sentence without smiling.

“My predictions have been off lately,” she says, a wrinkle between her brows. “This is normal—predictions by their nature cannot always be right. However, I’ve noticed that they’re incorrect more often lately. I ran the data, and these errors are related to two things:” Sophia brings her hand to the screen so that he can see properly. “You and him, as a unit. Individually, there doesn’t seem to be any errors. It is specifically when you are being measured together that creates mistakes. My prognosis on everyone else in the group creates more stable and accurate results.”

Sophia twists her hair in her hands. “The only reason it would be wrong is because of a confounding variable. Maybe there’s something between the two of you that others do not have. So I thought that answer—”

“Was fear,” he finishes. There’s an odd tone in his voice that she doesn’t comprehend. His gray eyes, sharp but never unkind. “I see where you’re coming from. But, and I can swear on this fact—it isn’t fear. I am not, nor will I ever be, afraid of him.”

She deflates. Wrong again. “And he’s not afraid of you?” she asks, out of desperation than anything.

Akira thinks for a moment. “Do you remember when I was cooking, and Ryuji went in to smell the broth, and knocked the whole thing over and onto my suitcase?” She nods. She had taken many pictures of that moment. “He felt really guilty, but he wasn’t scared of my reaction. He was more scared that he had ruined my stuff. You know what I mean?”

“I think I do.”

He bops the top of his phone a few times, an odd resemblance of patting her head. “Cool.”

Sophia stares at the road past their garden of clovers. Cars speed forward, too quick for her to focus on what the driver looks like. It’s hot today, but she doesn’t feel it. She runs her data one more time. “Akira, do you love Ryuji?”

His hands do not pause. “I love all my friends,” he answers simply.

—

At the end of the day, it does not matter if her attempts at predicting the future are fruitless. If she is in fact humanity’s companion, her code makes sure of one thing above all else: to help humanity with any of their endeavors.

That’s a tall order, especially when there are 7,874,965,825 humans within that humanity at this moment. Sophia is only one being, and realism is etched into her. To make things simple, she gave herself a domain of discourse. A sample size. Narrowing what she can do, and who she can help. The entirety of humanity then, at least in Sophia’s mind, falls under the Phantom Thieves of Hearts.

Sapporo is freezing. Frosty. Crisp. Chilly.

“Fucking cold!” Ryuji shivers, jogging around them in an effort to get warm. “I hate this, I hate this, I hate this.”

“Even with the space heaters on, it seems that the winter isn’t interested in going anywhere,” Makoto says. She’s standing uncomfortably close to Ann, trying to leech off of her inherent heat. Actually, she wasn’t the only one—Haru is also inching her way to her. “It should probably get better once we start moving. Good thing we won’t be here long.”

Yusuke nods, unperturbed. “Yes, this should be a quick run. We’re just here to collect a desire gone astray, yes?” It seems that the ice does little to bother him. “Oracle, can you find its location?” No response. “Oracle?”

He glances to the ground, sighing when he finds her on the ground, eyes closed and breathing deeply. “Wake up,” he says, nudging her with his boot. When she doesn’t move, Yusuke throws an exasperated look at Akira.

Reluctantly, he nods. “Yeah, yeah, I got her,” he says, summoning Queen Mab. Instantly, the temperature seems to rise, just a little bit. Scooping her up, Akira shakes her roughly like a particularly malicious sack of flour. “Wake up, your space heater’s here.”

“This may be a quick run,” Haru says. “But it doesn’t mean we should take this any less seriously. Someone’s desire got lost on its way back, didn’t it?”

“Yeah, that sounds—Mona, get off my leg—about right.” Ann squints her eyes along the horizon. “It’s far, right? If we start moving now, we can probably work off the frost on our skin.”

“Yeah, it’s about…” Futaba yawns as Akira sets her on her feet. “Twenty-minute walk? Ten-minute run, but unless you want me slipping and turning the ice red, we’re gonna want to slow down.”

Akira touches his mask. “Agi.” A wave of heat rushes over them, and she sighs, grateful for the respite. “Hopefully that helped a little. But it won’t last long, and we shouldn’t waste energy warming up. Quick recap—someone lost their desire, we’re here to make sure it gets back. Our top priority is getting that desire back as quick as possible. Questions?”

Sophia raises her hand.

“Yup?”

“Did you say top priority?”

“Yes, I did say top priority.”

“Understood!” she chirps, making a note in her head. It was hard to concentrate when she felt like her insides were freezing up.

Another hand shoots up.

“Noir?”

“I don’t have a question. I just think you’re doing a wonderful job.”

“Thank you, Noir. Always a pleasure.” He looks around, nodding. “Alright. If that’s it, then let’s do this thing.”

They all move ahead, wary of their footing. Sophia frowns as she scuttles forward, scared of being left behind. There is no room for error here. If she feels that she is not useful in the real world, then she can at least utilize her talents here. And the first step to doing that is to make sure she is doing two things:

1) Not slow

2) Won’t trip

After a while, she looks up and feels her eyes bulge. How did they get so far already? Sophia can hardly see them anymore, especially with the slight fog that’s beginning to emerge. She has to get there faster.

Failed step number one already. For once, she’s glad she wasn’t hardcoded with emotions, or else humiliation would be overwhelming. Quickening her pace, she’s determined to do this correctly. One foot, then the next. One foot, then the next. Left. Right. Left. Right. Left—

She slips.

With a gasp, she moves to twist her body so that it wasn’t her head that would take the impact, and closes her eyes shut.

Just before she slams into the ice, arms grab her torso, swinging her forward. “Whoa there, shorty!”

Ryuji uses the momentum to swing her onto his back, and she latches around her neck, bewildered. “You okay? Almost got knocked out before any Shadow got to us.”

“Yes,” she replies, breathless. “Thank you for saving me. That would have been bad.”

“No prob!” he marches onward as if he wasn’t carrying an entire human being on his back while treading through sleet.

“...You can settle me down if you’d like.”

“I would not like.” He grins, boots finding matte ice with ease. “I kinda love carrying you like this. Not like I can do this in the real world, can I? ‘Sides, Futaba would chew my head off if I tried it with her.”

“Have you?”

“Maybe.”

She laughs as they finally reconvene with the rest of them. When Akira turns to them, his expression softens with relief. “All good?”

“All good,” Ryuji says. “Nothing Sophie and I can’t handle.” He raises his fist at her, and she bumps it enthusiastically. Lesson twenty-three: never refuse a fist-bump. It’s one of her favorites.

“Stop, stop, stop, stop!” Futaba calls out from beside Ann, arms were linked as if they were strolling through a park, and not a Shadow-infested land. “I said stop!”

“We heard you the first time!” Morgana yowls. “Are we here?”

“We’re close. Kinda weird though.” She smacks the side of her goggles a few times impatiently. “Nothing’s showing up.”

“Lucky!” Ann whoops. “Let’s get this over with and get some gelato!”

Rounding the corner of an empty street, Yusuke points forward to a glowing heart, beating in time to its pulsing light. “That’s it, I take it?”

“I can get it.” Sophia pats Ryuji’s shoulder, and he lets her down. “That way, we can finish this as soon as possible.”

She runs forward, eager.

“Wait—!” Futaba cries out from behind her. “We’re getting ambushed!”

As she says it, footsteps surround them, the clanging of weapons and the grunts of Shadows appearing out of nowhere. She starts to run faster, terrified of slipping but pushes on anyway. She can do this.

“Shit,” Akira hisses. “Sophie, come back here!”

Sophia ignores him, the Desire almost in her reach when she feels it. A cold breeze, impossibly colder than the temperature before, almost seems to pierce through her skin. She did not need to turn around to know what it was—every cell in her body is screaming it for her.

A curse. A strong one that would have no problem wiping her out like fly on the RV’s windshield wiper.

Would she at least be able to save the Desire? Even if she ceases to exist? Would it be worth it then? It should be, since this is what she was made for.

Something solid shoves her from behind, and she gives out a yell before hitting the ground, hard.

“What…?” she mutters, disoriented. Somehow, she isn’t dead, or even near death. Shaking her head, she grasps for the Desire in front of her before turning around.

Instantly, her heart stops. The Desire in her hand continues to pulse steadily as she stares down at Ryuji, collapsed on the ground.

“Skull?” she whispers. Leaning down, she can still hear his breathing, though it’s faint. Her hand reaches out, before she remembers. Top priority. The Desire needs to get to Joker first.

The ground begins to rumble, and Sophia looks up in time to see an arch of glowing white explode. Every Shadow is eviscerated, their ashes scattering violently at the aftershock of wind that follows from the impact. Concrete cracks, snow blows away. Without a doubt, it’s an attack from a Persona user, but she has no idea who it came from.

As the dust settles, stray bits of ice falling from the sky like hail, Akira shoots out from the fog. He’s moving faster than she’s ever seen him, and there’s a desperation to his movements that throws her off-guard. Maybe he didn’t see yet? Sophia steps forward.

“Joker!” she calls out when he gets closer, thrusting her hand forward. “I got the Desire!”

He rushes past her without a blink.

Akira skids to his knees. “Ryuji!” When there’s no answer, he pulls Ryuji to his knees, resting his head on his lap. Akira presses his fingers against the pulse on his neck, concentrating intensely. Then he grits his teeth. “I can work with this.”

More footsteps. Familiar ones. “Dammit, Joker!” Morgana says. “You can’t just throw around attacks like that, especially with such weak enemies. You know how draining that spell is.”

He ignores him. Akira removes Ryuji’s mask with great care, setting it aside, before touching his own. “Aid me, Sarasvati.”

“Joker?” she tries.

A floating woman donned in green with a delicate instrument in her long fingertips appeared from the fibers of his mask, her expression kind and tender.

“Joker.”

Healing power flows through his hands, so potent that it glows green. Sweat pours from his brow, and his wrist begins to tremble with effort.

“Joker!”

“What, Sophie?” he rounds on her, gray eyes intense.

“I got the Desire!” she announces triumphantly.

A beat passes. And then another. It was as if there was never even a deafening battle not one minute prior.

When Akira finally speaks, his voice is low. “Panther, take Sophie away please.”

Her breathing stops. She could not inhale the air even if it was demanded of her. Akira turns back to Ryuji, but Sophia’s eyes stuck to him—like she was hypnotized, cemented to the back of his head, unable to look away. Every inch of her body is numb, but none of it has anything to do with the cold.

Ann gently takes her hand, hot as iron against hers, and takes the Desire in the other. “Come on, Soph. Let’s go for a walk, huh?”

She lets herself be led away, blank and unseeing, a part of her staying wishing to stay behind to...what? She didn’t know. There’s so much she doesn’t know.

They keep walking, rounding street corners, quietly passing underneath frozen lamp posts. Sophia wasn’t sure where they were going, but she didn’t bother to ask. Eventually, they duck underneath a railing, Ann covering her head to make sure she doesn’t accidentally bang her skull against the metal. When they straight up, she blinks.

“A heater?”

“Yeah,” Ann sighs, flopping down on a toppled column as if it were a sofa. “I figured if we were going to talk, you might as well stop shivering during that time.” At her words, Sophia realizes how hard she was shaking. Ann pats the spot beside her. “Sit. Nothing a little girl talk can’t fix.” She does.

At her silence, Ann hums. “Cold, isn’t it? You guys haven’t stopped complaining since we got here. I’m super lucky that Carmen’s here to help me. Warms me up even better than this heater, if you can imagine that. Completely different from the real world, where we feel like we’re going to burst into flames any second.” She yawns. “But god, there’s no one in all of Japan that can run his mouth about the weather like Ryuji.” Sophia clenches her fist, but she keeps going, speaking almost wistfully. “I mean, he’s just so loud, you know? Like, how many times have we driven by cows on this trip, and he’d literally wake us all up just to show us? Not to mention, he eats up all the food and snores like crazy. God, one time I invited everyone over at my place, and he just slept in my bed when he got tired! Who does that?”

Ann sighs. “But man, I’ve never met someone more devoted to his friends than him. Sometimes, he’d even give ‘Kira a run for his money, the way he’d just drop everything and run to where trouble is. Day or night, that idiot would show up on your doorstep the minute you shoot him a text, wearing the most ridiculous pajamas you’ve ever seen,” she scoffs. “He started the Thieves with Akira, you know? All gung ho about justice and stuff, you should’ve seen it. And he had the spine to back it up, too.” She smiles, just a little. “Don’t tell him, but I think he’s really, really cool.”

A drop of water hits Sophia’s wrist. And another. And another, until her vision blurs and her chest is heaving. “I just—” she sobs without restraint. “I was just trying to help. I just want to be useful and do what I was made to do, and Akira said from before that this—this was the top priority, and I even made sure, so I asked, but when I finally got the Desire and I was so sure that I’d finally done something right...” the image of Akira’s cold gaze makes her flinch, hard. “He’s just so mad at me, Ann. And Ryuji—” she chokes on his name like a curse, her tongue tumbling over it as if it were getting caught in a lie. “He protected me from before, but he said he was tough, so I thought it was okay since the Desire was the top priority but he got hurt because of me.”

“I don’t even know what I’m feeling, or why I’m crying, or why you’re being so nice to me even though I know I did something bad! I just—” Sophia buries her face in her hands, muffling her scream. “I just don’t understand anything!”

Warm hands rub her back. “I know,” Ann says quietly. “You’re trying your best. We all get that, and we all think you’re doing an A-plus job.” She pauses. “Sophia, Ryuji didn’t take the hit for you because he was thinking about the Desire. He did it because he didn’t want to see you hurt.”

That makes Sophia peek up. “But that was the top priority, wasn’t it?”

“Uh-huh, but that wasn’t his heart’s top priority.” Ann pokes her temple. “That whole logic and calculation thing you have going on is good and stuff, but the thing about the human heart is that you can’t always choose why you do things, or how you react in certain situations. I bet you anything that he totally forgot that we were even looking for this thing when he pushed you,” she waves the beating heart in her hand, still glowing. “And that’s also why Akira got a little mad at you from before.”

She deflates. “He hates me,” she mumbles, feeling her insides churn uncomfortably.

“That boy doesn’t have the time in his schedule to hate anyone,” Ann reassures her. “He’s just...really, really terrified.”

“But why?” Sophia’s starting to despise that word. “He already knew that he was okay. Why would he still be worried?”

Ann looks up, thinking. “You really love and care about Ryuji, right?”

Love was still a foreign concept to her, but for once the answer came forth with ease. “Yes.”

“Take that feeling, that dense, little ball of love and adoration in your tiny body, and multiply that by about eighteen million. That’s probably about the range of what Akira feels about him.”

She quickly runs the numbers. “Whoa.”

“Yeah. Kinda scary, huh?”

It is scary. With numbers this high, she can only begin to imagine what it felt like for Akira to think that he might be seriously hurt, or even worse, dead. All because of Sophia.

“Hey now, I know that look!” Ann flicks her forehead. “I don’t want you to get all mopey about this. You said it yourself—he’s a tough guy. The toughest there is, but don’t tell him that. It’ll go straight to his empty head.”

She stands with exuberance, stretching. “Alright, I think we’re about done here. How we feeling? You ready to go back?”

No. Her heart speeds up at the thought of going back, her shoulders tensing in on itself, but somehow it would be worse to stay here. “I’m ready.”

“That’s what we like to hear!” Ann cheers. “No chickening out now, okay? You can do this.”

“I can do this.” Sophia repeats, and then, louder: “I can do this!

“Yay! And Sophie?” she looks up in time to see Ann giving her a warm look. “Just because you don’t understand something, doesn’t mean we love you any less. You are allowed to be confused and make mistakes. Do you understand that?”

Sophia smiles wide. “I understand.”

—

They were a block away from the rest of the group when Akira emerged from the fog. With his black attire and dark hair, he could have looked like a picturesque horror movie figure, but somehow his expression ruined that facade the moment she saw it.

“I’m going on ahead,” Ann says when Sophia stops in front of him. “Someone has to make sure Futaba doesn’t sleep on us again.”

“Thanks,” he answers. Then, to Sophia, “Hi.”

“Hi, Joker.” She’s been practicing her speech the entire way back, her points all lined up in her mind, all leading up to the big apology. “I—”

“Pause,” he cuts in, and she shrinks. Is he still mad? She can’t read his expression. He kneels in front of her, squinting, and it suddenly shifts to horror. “Did...did you cry? Did I make you cry?”

“No,” she says quickly, but he doesn’t believe her for even a minute. “Yes. Sorry.”

“Oh god, no, please don’t apologize. Shit,” he rubs the back of his neck, sighing. It’s guilt, she realizes with a shock. “I’m such an asshole. I can’t believe I let myself lash out like that. A thousand apologies won’t even be enough. I was scared out of my mind, but that doesn’t mean I can just treat you like that. I even sent you away, like you’re some sort of kid,” he winces. “I’m really sorry. Can you forgive me?”

She stares at him. “I was supposed to say that stuff.”

He looks taken aback by her words. “No? How could you have known that we would have been ambushed? Ugh, I’m so dumb. I shouldn’t have reacted like that.” Akira sends her a pointed look. “Though, you really shouldn’t split off from the group next time. Top priority means important, but above all else is your safety. Put that in your code.”

“I will,” she promises.

“Good. And the second priority is—” he reaches forward and engulfs her in a tight hug. “Is that you won’t ever, ever think that I’d hate you.”

She frowns. “How did you know?”

“A hunch.” Beat. “Also, Ann gave me a look.” He pulls back. “Are we still friends?”

Relief washes into her, crashing like a wave. “Of course,” she says, before hesitating. “Is…?”

“Yeah, he is.” Akira rolls his eyes, but there is no hiding the grin that takes over him. “A little too good, actually. He hasn’t stopped running around since I poured some energy back into him. I kind of think I overdid it, actually. Oh, and he’s excited to see you again.”

“He is?” she asks, hopeful.

“Absolutely. Asked about you the minute he came to.” Akira gets to his feet. “Shall we say hi?”

“Please.”

As they walk back, an epiphany takes over her. “Oh!” she exclaims, making Akira jump. “I get it now.”

“What’s up?”

“You love Ryuji.”

“That’s right,” he raises a brow.

She shakes her head. “You love Ryuji,” she insists. Even accounting for a margin of error, there’s simply no mistaking her results.

Akira stares at her for a long moment, before huffing out a laugh.

“Yeah, that’s right,” he says softly.

The moment Ryuji sees her, she sprints, throwing caution to the wind as she leaps into his arms. He catches her without hesitation. “Glad to see you’re safe, shorty.”

Sophia knows a lot of things, but there’s also a lot she doesn’t understand. But that’s fine. She’ll get there, and her friends will be waiting for her when she does.

#p5 #fic tag #margin of error #mine #ryuji sakamoto #sophia #no p5s spoilers sans the locations #kiss ryuji day #just a quick thing yeah sure 7k is quick #my moon and stars #the leader and his right hand man #big shoutout to pear for holding my hand while i had a breakdown in life and decided to write this #akira kurusu

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kenkamishiro · 3 years

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20210218 Jack Jeanne Creator Interview with Famitsu - Interview #1 with Ishida Sui

The Jack Jeanne staff (Ishida Sui, Towada Shin, Kosemura Akira, Seishiro) were interviewed by Famitsu, a Japanese gaming magazine for Jack Jeanne’s release. Someone was kind enough to let me read it, so I’ll be translating the 4 interviews. The interview with Ishida I’ll do a full TL, and the other three I may do more of a summary since I’ve been busy lately.

Ishida Sui

Creator / Character Designer / Script Supervisor

Mangaka. From Fukuoka Prefecture. Creator of “Tokyo Ghoul” and “Tokyo Ghoul:re.” 2021 marks his 10th anniversary in the art industry.

Characters that were created based on the idea of “personifying plays”

Please share with us how you honestly felt when you received the commission request for this work.

That it seemed kind of questionable but interesting nonetheless. “If others can do it, I can too,” I thought.

How did fans react after Jack Jeanne was announced?

I still get letters from the readers of Tokyo Ghoul to this day, but some of them would bring up Jack Jeanne, or mention that they like a character and are interested in them even before the game’s release, so it makes me happy seeing that reception.

Please share with us your thoughts about being in charge of the character design.

It was a good learning experience because it was something I’d never done while working on my manga, trying to finalize the 6-member cast of the protagonist and the main characters, and then completely focusing on them as an elite squad. I tend to make too many characters, so...

When coming up with a character, how do you develop their image?

Previously, I decided it based on the character’s name and face. But with Jack Jeanne, it was a trial-and-error process. At first, I envisioned each character as a personification of a play - for example, Fumi was modelled off of “Salome”, Yonaga off of “Shintokumaru”, Shirota from one of Yamamoto Shūgorō’s works... I dropped the idea after that...and that’s how they were developed. They were created in a peculiar way this time.

Which character did you have the easiest time drawing, and on the flipside, which character did you find yourself struggling to draw?

Kai was the very first character I created, followed by Fumi. Those two I was able to draw relatively quickly. I wouldn’t really call this a struggle, but Suzu, the one with the red hair, wasn’t part of the main cast of six at first. Ootori, the blond character with the prickly personality, was actually part of the main cast at first, but since I wanted a simple-minded character, Suzu ended up being promoted.

I’m sure you consider every character your favourite, but if you had to pick only one character, who would it be?

Probably the main character Kisa. She embodies everything I think of in a shoujo manga protagonist, and I’m very fond of her. But I really do love all the characters. They each have their own appeal, so I can’t settle on just one.

Was there anything you had to constantly keep in mind when designing the characters for Jack Jeanne?

Broccoli specially requested that I give every character a strong colour palette. It’s because if I’m left to my vices, I end up using only subdued tones...I also constantly kept in my mind that I was making them look good-looking as boys.

You were also responsible for the event illustrations in the game. Could you give more details about them, and any difficulties that you faced?

For the event illustrations, I had to be aware of what scene would best match the script. Towada-san also specified where the illustrations should be inserted, but if there was a better scene before or after it, I gave priority to it instead. The hardest part...was drawing them all by myself. There ended up being more than 160 illustrations.

I heard it was you who requested Touyama Maki to design the chibi characters. Please share with us the appeal of the chibi characters drawn by Touyama-san, as well as your thoughts when you saw the chibi characters in the game.

Touyama-san’s appeal...is that their art is great! The deformed characters are perfectly balanced and outstandingly stable. I’m also a fan of their art and I like their life-proportion-size characters. It’s really cute seeing them move their tiny limbs around on the game screen.

Despite his humble abilities as an amateur lyricist, he oversaw every song with a burning passion that was second to none.

You supervised the game and the script, but what was the most memorable part of working on this game for you?

For starters, I vividly recall talking with Towada-san all the time. It was common for us to spend 10 hours a day talking to one another, several times a week.

How did production handled between the two of you for the script proceed?

I come up with the general outline. I’d talk about the overall flow and the key developments during the meetings, and Towada-san would take that and organize it, adding descriptions and colour to the details. It would have been impossible to create Jack Jeanne without her.

You wrote the lyrics to all the songs, including the opening song “Jack & Jeanne Of Quartz.” Please share with us how you came to be in charge of the lyrics.

Originally, there were several candidates, and there was even one person that I thought, “This person might be the one.” But I realized that it would take an enormous amount of time to share the understanding of my work to them, so I decided to give it a try, thinking that even an amateur would be the best for the job as long as they were passionate.

How did you come up with the lyrics?

I’m embarrassed to say this since I’m a complete amateur, but I tried my best to associate it with the feelings and information related to the subject, and whether it sounded good when sung...at any rate, I did my absolute best.

Are there any verses in the lyrics that you’d like people to pay special attention to, or any phrases that you really liked?

Avu-chan from Ziyoou-vachi (a 4-member rock band) is a friend of mine, but when I met up with her, I had her look at the lyrics, and the part she liked I also ended up liking. It’s the phrase “charcoal night grey” in the opening song. I also like the last two lines of the ending song because they represent the entirety of the game.

What was the most memorable interaction you had with the composer Kosemura-san?

He was professional in that every time, he exceed my expectations in what I wanted conveyed. We also spent about a week together (?) during the recording boot camp for the demo songs, and the time I spent sitting next to him and listening to the same songs was surreal. I couldn’t believe the person sitting next to me wrote the songs that I listened to as a student.

I want readers to like Kisa. A cover illustration filled with strong emotions.

On October 9, 2020 on Twitter, you tweeted, “Makin’ games is hard.” What was it you found difficult?

I was given a lot of decision-making authority as a producer, but since I’m a company outsider, I had a hard time making decisions without seeing the actual situation or making choices in areas where I had no insight. It was a tweet vexed from my inability to understand due to lack of experience. I wish I had more power...

What do you want people to pay attention to when they play the demo version?

I’d like people to pay attention to the fact that the art and script were created by very few people (almost two people), much like an indie game. Something like, “Ishida really drew all these characters!” or “Towada-san really wrote all the script!”...there is more to come in the full version.

You drew the cover illustration for this issue of the magazine, but I’d like to hear more details regarding this.

I drew it while reflecting on how lucky I was, like, “I’m really drawing for the magazine I’ve read since I was a kid...!?” I drew both male and female forms for Kisa, in the hopes that people would come to love the main character.

Please leave a message to your fans and readers who are eagerly awaiting the release of this game.

I made it so that players of all ages and genders can enjoy the game. There is a lot more in store besides just the illustrations. I hope you will play it!

#Jack Jeanne #Ishida Sui #translations #the others i will get to next week

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fanfictiondreamscape · 4 years

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First Kisses (Haikyuu - pt. 1)

Title: First Kisses (Haikyuu - pt. 1)

Genre: fluff, tons of it

Pairing: Sugawara/Tsukishima/Yaku/Akaashi/Kunimi x reader (all separate)

Notes: Nothing too unusual, but I thought that I’d start the posting to get something on the page. Whether it gets read, we’ll find out, but I couldn’t help myself. Onto the cliche headcanons. (I may do more of these, but for the time being, this will only consist of my top five characters in the anime). Quick note: some of these may be longer than others.

Only a forewarning, but inspiration hit harder in certain areas, y’know.

Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Masterlist

Sugawara Koushi

ok so

hear me out here, but I think that - for this to happen - it’d be with someone very shy.

someone that’s very shy and reserved while also remaining very aloof and observant

(maybe even a little sarcastic?)

like...he’d be attracted to their air, y’know?

as for the kiss...

the kiss itself would be done somewhere fairly private. and a little covered in shadow

someplace like the back row of a movie theater or the hidden corner of a cafe or restaurant. maybe even out in public when nobody’s outside (read: late night walk in the park)

like seriously, just imagine that, i swear-

ANYWAYS

the two of you would be holding hands, he’d be admiring you while you’re doing whatever you do

he thinks everything you do is adorable, and he can’t help but admire you

it’s only when you notice his googly eyes that you let him know that you know he was staring

he’d blush a little, but remain generally composed.

the quiet would be broken very suddenly by suga

“your so cute when you’re focused.”

little did you know, you were pouting.

he found that the most adorable.

he continued to watch you as you turned your eyes to the floor

oH BOY DID HIS HEART FLUTTER-

he couldn’t help himself.

time seemed to slow down as you looked up and he leaned in closer.

eventually, the two of you were staring into each others eyes

and once he peeked down for a millisecond, he kissed you

the kiss itself was very sweet, very gentle, but also had a slight bite to it?

(how am I supposed to explain this? does this even make any sense?)

as it got more passionate, he cupped your cheek with his hand as you gripped his shoulder lightly

as the two of you pulled away from each other, everything around you was a little blurry

even through the shadows, he could see that you were blushing a firetruck red

(little did he know, he was blushing the same color)

overall, the first kiss between you two would be very romantic and very sweet.

considering it’s suga, though, prepare for a little teasing and a tight hug afterwards.

Tsukishima Kei

THIS BOI I SWEAR-

it’s a well known fact that this beanpole is very obnoxious and snarky

so his s/o would be very much the same

maybe not as introverted, but very much sarcastic and witty

in order to last with this smartass, you’d have to be intelligent and have thick skin

good luck

otherwise, the kiss would most likely happen somewhere very private.

like his s/o’s room or his room, or when they’re home alone.

just somewhere very private and comfy

now here’s the thing-

i think the kiss itself would happen in the midst of a debate

something to throw the other off, y’know?

sooo...

the TV is playing in the background, probably some movie with a huge plot hole

it annoys both of you, but the two of you have two different opinions of how the plot hole could be fixed.

like...

you’re claiming that the timeline could be fixed had they found a certain item before a different one

and he’s claiming that the timeline could be fixed without the inclusion of either item

a whole back-and-forth ensues

the kiss itself though

that happens when you are starting to hesitate with comebacks and reasoning

like-

you know you’re right, but he’s pressing your buttons so much

the timeline is heavily dependent on the items that you stand by, so

(though he won’t admit it, he knows that the items are beneficial to the plot, and he’s only doing this to see you get flustered and red)

since tsukki’s not backing down, you decide that you have to do something drastic

something that’ll make the smart mouth speechless

so you decide that the time is now

when he’s looking at you with that smug look on his face, his mouth just slightly opened and about to make some baseless remark

you lean in and kiss him

it’s very short, very light

but now that he is shocked, you’re happy.

except...

he regains his composure and tilts your head to meet him

he kisses you this time

this time, its very passionate, a little rough, and a little messy

but the both of you enjoy it very much

the two of you act like nothing happened, but it’s the little moments like that that make the two of you happy

and you two tend to kiss and get a little more clingy in private-

overall, very short and kind of sneaky.

there’s still love behind it, of course

but there’s no real ‘pause’ or slowing of time until the second kiss

Yaku Morisuke

now-

i believe that this guy would be drawn to someone that’s very bubbly and energetic

not like yamamoto or lev, but very high-energy and outgoing

which also leads to the setting

A VOLLEYBALL GAME!

who tf would’ve guessed, oh my-

so like, the team is going up against a really powerful and notoriously defensive team

and while Nekoma is going HARD

they’re still behind

the sets were even and the odds did not seem to be in their favor

you’re in the stands, next to the mini yamamoto and lev’s sister

cheering loudly, helping lev’s sister understand the game a little better

anyway...

things are getting tough, and they call a time out

when Nekoma goes to their spot to discuss

you make eye contact with yaku

and you send him a thumbs up while mouthing ‘you got this!’

he sends you a big smile

and his upbeat mood almost completely lifts the slowly dengenerating one of the team

so when they are done elaborating a game plan following the slight loss of a flow

the members in play go onto the court rejuvenated.

with the new energy, they’re able to snag the lead

and, with a three-point difference, they win 25-22

a close call, but they’re excited nonetheless.

so are you and the girls that you were cheering with

as soon as they are finished lining up and people start to leave

you immediately run out of the gym and wait by the doors for your boyfriend and the team to come out

when they do, yaku comes out a little after the other team members

it’s your squeal that shocks him

the kiss happens when you jump onto him

(think something like the falling kiss between victor and yuuri from YOI)

kind of rough, slight teeth, but very romantic and passionate.

nothing bordering on lustful, but most definitely NOT shy

it would eventually mellow out to be more gentle and tame

the scene would lead to mixed reactions from the team, but

you can be sure that kuroo would have some smart remark, lev would have a dumb remark, and yamamoto would be fussing that he doesn’t have a girl

overall, while the kiss would be surprising and rough at first, it would calm down a lot

very romantic, very shocking, but also very memorable

ok but on another note, can something like this happen to me please-

Akaashi Keiji

ok now

this guy would probably be drawn to someone very laidback

kind of chaotic (think quiet chaos)

and very outgoing

like, someone like beck from victorious?

oh god, it’s all coming back to me now-

not so flirty and borderline flighty, but they’d carry the same air that beck does

otherwise, the kiss would probably happen when the two of you are in a private area of something

like a friendly outing or something, and bokuto would be acting like a fool with kuroo or another team member

so like-

the two of you would be cuddled up next to each other silently

maybe like in a less-obvious area

someplace hidden

and you’d just be doing your own thing

playing on your phone, reading, maybe even studying with the pretty setter

either way, you’re absorbed in your work

just as much as he is

though he has been taking slight peeks at you while you were doing whatever

it was distracting him

and he was trying to read

just imagine him thinking

‘they’re so pretty when they’re focused’

you don’t realize that he’s staring at you, but you do eventually are made aware of someone looking at you

with this guy being how he is, he’d probably just keep looking if you made eye contact with him

you’d laugh, he’d turn a little red

ultimately, though, he’d lean forward despite the flustered reaction.

he’d pause in front of you, just watching your lips twitch up into a small smile

a little nod would be the unspoken allowance that he was asking for.

now.

THE KISS

HOO BOY

i imagine that this would be magical

like-

the sparks never leave even after a couple hours.

even then, the remaining sparks are like little fairies that won’t leave your side.

it’s slow, it’s soft, it’s romantic

it’s also not the most gentle, not the most experienced, not the most clean (for lack of a better word)

but it’s everything that either of you could’ve asked for

when the two of you pull away, you giggle a little

akaashi smiles a little

(you know the one!)

anyway, after the kiss

you two would be made aware of the people around you

like bokuto

who is screaming “YEAH! FINALLY!”

you full on bust out laughing and akaashi rolls his eyes

(he may appear bothered, but he finds it endearing)

he does keep a slightly tighter grip on you after that though

overall, his kiss, in my opinion would be the best

if not THE best, then ONE of the best (next to yaku’s oop-)

very smooth, but very inexperienced

while also remaining so unabashedly him, y’know?

Kunimi Akira

now, i haven’t seen as much love for this guy

while i may be missing it or not looking in the right place, i thought i’d contribute to the kunimi train

ANYWAYY

i think he’d go for a bookworm

not necessarily quiet or loud, but very much to themselves.

someone whose shell would have to break

kunimi would probably be best friends with his s/o before he even thought of wanting to date them

and much like suga, i think that the first kiss would happen somewhere slightly private

by slightly private, i mean an area that couples would be plentiful

amusement parks, regular parks, you get it

either way, the area wouldn’t change the kind of kiss

since he is so quiet, i feel like he’d find a way to just relax with you

in a place that is ironically romantic (considering he doesn’t care too much)

that being said, i imagine that this would happen on the ferris wheel

cliche, i know, but just let me elaborate

it’d be getting dark, the two of you would have been at the amusement park with your friends

or maybe even upperclassmen

either way, you two have finally gotten a break from the personalities

and you just want time with each other

no talking, just calm and quiet

anyway, on your search to find something quiet to do

kunimi sees the ferris wheel and notices that the line isn’t very long

(perfect for him, seeing as his laziness is a factor written in the wiki-)

he directs your attention to it in a way that involves little words, and you agree to his suggestion

after a few minutes of waiting, you two get seated and just sit in silence

throughout the whole ride (up to this point), kunimi was looking at you

observing how the sunset makes you glow in the light

how the carnival lights reflect in your eyes

and he melts

you wouldn’t notice it since you are so absorbed in the view of the event

and he is absorbed in the view of you

now, here’s where things get odd

he wouldn’t know how to approach the thought of your first kiss when it crosses his mind

all he knew is that he refused to plan it, the idea struck him, and the timing was perfect.

so.

he just reaches for you hand, and when you turn to look at him

he quickly leans in and pecks your lips

short, sweet, but full of love

definitely leaves the both of you flustered, but

you two do end up scooting a little closer to you after it

and spend the rest of the night at each other’s hip

overall, the kiss is very quick

don’t let that fool you, though, especially with kunimi

the kiss is perfect coming from him, and wouldn’t be the slightest bit overwhelming

it’d leave for more calm atmosphere between the two of you

406 notes · View notes

danganronpasurvivoraskblog · 3 years

Text

Info drop.

Hagihara: This is Mitsuba Hagihara reporting to you from [Insert Location Name]. Last night, this area was hit with a terrible tragedy.

Hagihara: Several patrons of the bar were killed last night in very brutal fashion, and burned alive in an afterward fire. Police still have no idea who or what was behind this. The only thing missing from the scene was one of the now deceased patrons laptops.

Jesus...

*Makoto, Leon, Sayaka, Hina and Mukuro all sit around the TV, watching the news story unfold.

What the hell do you think that was about? Who do you think was behind that?

Could it be Zetsubou?

Hm...I’m not really sure...

Zetsubou might be a bunch of tryhard losers, but do they really have nothing better to do than shoot up and burn a bar?

Sayaka’s right. They’re a bunch of psychopaths, but most of their actions aren’t done without good reason. They must have been after something.

That place is in a crappy part of town though. Didn’t we only recently start renovating it for the people there?

There were plans in the process. During the Towa City Crisis with Haiji Towa, Kuripa went there to get Black Market information.

That’s how he first met his girlfriend. He hired her through the information he got there, in exchange for the promise of renovating the area.

If you ask me...the obvious conclusion is that Zetsubou, assuming they ARE responsible, was whatever was on the stolen laptop.

But again, like Hina said, anyone in that part of town that owns a laptop is probably a pawnbroker.

Was whatever they had worth killing all those people?

There’s something else that’s bothering me about this...It’s that Zetsubou seemed to do a bit too good a job covering their tracks.

What do you mean?

Well, from the intelligence we know, Zetsubou’s two most lethal team members are Narumi Osone and Akira Tsuchiya.

After all, we know full well what they’re both capable of. Tsuchiya killed a whole load of our soldiers in the span of about a quarter of an hour the last time we encountered him. And Osone, well, we know what she’s done.

Yeah...

But one thing I can say is that neither of them are particularly great at covering their tracks...Or more accurately, it’s like they don’t really want to or care to.

So...Is Zetsubou really not involved?

These kinds of problems occur every day. Sure, this is a little extreme, but not every awful thing that happens is the work of Organization Zetsubou.

Oh, Celeste! Yeah I guess you have a point there...

*sigh* I understand. With everything that’s happened lately, it’s hard not to assume that our enemies are behind every little transaction.

I wouldn’t call this “little” a lot of people died in that bar.

True. But think about the world that we live in Sayaka. It’s better, but it’s hardly a nice one.

Hm...

Hellooo~?

*Out of nowhere, Kuripa suddenly walks into the building, behind him is Kyoko and Byakuya.

Oh, hey. What’s going on?

Nuffin’ much. I just came round to see Boss and Mukuro, but along the way, these guys caught me.

Indeed. It’s quite lucky all of you are here. I wanted to speak to you about some things.

Chairwoman is speaking.

*Everyone listens attentively.

I’ll keep this brief. As you know...Future Foundation have been dealing with some...issues lately, but I have some good news.

We might have found a way to gain the edge over Organization Zetsubou.

Really?

How?

Detective Samidare has come back with some information for us.

Yui?

Yes. She found a list of strange transactions in Future Foundation headquarters. None of which were official.

They had a stamp of approval on them from the Foundation heads, but usually in order to get that, they have to have the go ahead from the majority of Foundation chiefs.

Byakuya and I went over the files she sent us, and we realized between us that none of them were one’s we recognized.

What was on them?

Mainly financial and research papers.

Including the resurrection machines?

Yes, but not too many. I remember that was the first one they sent out, but diminished over time.

It makes sense. When the first papers on the machines was leaked, we were on high alert. We made sure whatever information on them was held tight with an iron fist.

So is this the work of the traitor then?

Possibly...no, in fact it’s quite likely.

How in the world did these go under the radar for so long? Nothing on these papers has to be anything particularly threatening, but in the hands of a group like Zetsubou, we don’t know what they’ll do with them.

Whoever leaked these was very clever about it. They sent them out from almost every branch office in every establishment so we couldn’t trace the leaks to one specific location.

Clever...Like trying to find a needle in a haystack.

Think of this opportunity as our magnet.

Yeah, this could be the chance we need to pin them down!

So what’s the plan Ma’am?

Branches 1, 2, 10, 13 and 14 will be going to Yui’s office the day after tomorrow. There will be other members of the Library there to greet us.

Damn, so that’s like...all of us here?

All of us excluding Ryota’s branch, Hiro, Shuichi and Maki Harukawa from Byakuya’s branch. I trust that that’s fine with all of you.

Of course. Any movements we can make against this spy, the better. It’ll give us the edge over Zetsubou that we need.

Question: Why the day AFTER tomorrow? Wouldn’t it be best to do this as soon as possible?

I have some...arrangements tomorrow. And Ryota has a date too, so-

Ryota has a date!?

How!? With who!?

Oh, I forgot about that! I set him up on a date with this cute girl we know. The one who comes round to hang out like, every weekend.

That girl!? She’s adorable!

You are going to give me the details, NOW!

*Sayaka and Hina grab Kuripa by his shoulders and push him out of the room.

Woah! Hey, hey!

Ah, guess I’ll talk to you guys later! Byeee!

*They exaunt.

Every day’s a circus with you people.

Don’t say “you people” as if you’re not involved in the circus.

Fair point I suppose...But what of your arrangements Kyoko?

Oh it’s...it’s not important...

Riiight...

I’ll be on duty if you need me sir.

Yeah, me too I guess. Not much I can do around here. Guess I’ll read that employment magazine I found.

Employment magazine? What about?

A-Ah it’s nothing. Don’t worry about it.

I guess I’ll go with Sayaka and Hina. Not an awful lot else to do around here.

So long as everyone is aware, I care not what you spend the next two days doing.

Well, the message has been received, that’s for sure.

#danganronpa survivor #danganronpa #danganronpa 1 #dr1 #oc #makoto naegi #sayaka maizono #leon kuwata #mukuro ikusaba #celestia ludenberg #aoi asahina #kyoko kirigiri #byakuya togami #kuripa kurafto #the fugitive arc

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honeydots · 4 years

Note

190?

“I think I may be slightly more drunk than I thought”

Summary: Goro winds up having more to drink than he planned, and who else to find him on his drunk walk home than his soon-to-be-assassinated rival.

cw: underage drinking, minor blood mention

(ao3 link)

The smell of wine was always too thick for Goro’s tastes.

He dreaded to hear the hollow sound of the cork popping, and the clink of glass-on-glass as each man drank to their hearty victories.

It wasn’t uncommon that alcohol was served at these sorts of things, with Shido’s colleagues and their celebratory get-togethers. He would always be expected to attend, but not for long. Just enough time for his presence to be known, so that he could come and go without becoming the prudish center of conversation.

He knew they spoke about him while he wasn’t around, and that was unavoidable. These little events were the best way to control their conversations from afar. Leave them with more answers than questions and with casual suspicions, not deadly ones.

Come in, speak in pretty sentences, have a glass of wine, and leave.

He knew better than to reject drinking. Or rather, he knew better than to reject drinking with this crowd. Some men would come in and make a show of Goro’s being a minor, as if their own morals wouldn’t allow it. Laugh along with their drunkards, and let Goro remain blissfully sober.

Though others, and these were usually the important ones, didn’t care. Goro was to politely accept their offer, and to drink not all but most of his glass. Don’t appear eager, but don’t appear sheepish. Drink to another successful success, another voter turnout, another hit.

He’d always think too hard about these nights. Figuratively, wine was the blood of Jesus, drunk to remind Christians of the sins that he died for. Goro wondered how figurative his glass was now. Tonight, they were toasting to blood soon to be spilled; it was practically in their glasses.

Goro certainly wasn’t Christian. It was useless to think of wine as anything more than grapes.

But sometimes he’d imagine watching the men pour their glasses and take a sip, only to discover the salty allure of blood washing into their mouths. Watch them wretch and choke, spit out their consequences onto the ground. A literal taste of their medicine.

Goro would time himself to his drink. He could even call it a game. Full meant to begin his charming conversations, to grit his teeth and bear through the night. Quarter gone often went by largely unnoticed. If he wasn’t speaking to someone while he was a quarter gone, then he’d done something wrong. He was supposed to be sociable and he’d best act like it.

Half was a tedious measurement. By half, he needed to wrap up any of his quarter chatters and then stand aloof to the side. Allow himself to be open to any quieter, private talks. He’d wait to be approached, while keeping a watchful eye on the atmosphere.

Half could also mean he needed to join into whatever room encompassing conversations that he hadn’t been a part of. Even if it was to simply nod along to whatever nonsense the guests were spouting. It was important to be involved in the key factor.

The last stage, and often the most delicate, was three quarters. At this point, he needed to wedge himself into whatever group he could. To act terribly interested and, when appropriate, deem it the time he must be getting home—he was a working student, after all. He would give his goodbyes, relinquish his glass, and walk home, chewing breath mints like tobacco.

But this was a delicate stage because, on days like today, there would be the option of a refill. Some guest with intentions would see his glass half empty, and offer to fill it again. Never enough wine (he wondered if blood was applicable here, too) for a young man like him.

Depending on the party, Goro would reject it. He could even use this method as a way home—saying he’d had enough, and should be going anyway.

But it was different tonight. The man who he’d managed to dive into conversation with was new and important. The founder of a law firm who’d recently begun business with Shido. He’d grown relevant quickly, and this was the first chance Goro had to make an impression on him.

Two glasses isn’t too much.

Goro didn’t care about this man whatsoever, in actuality. As relevant as pond scum in the grand scheme of things. But favors went miles in this business, and keeping his head on his shoulders was more than worth a glass of wine.

And so he went from three quarters, to full, to half, to empty.

An empty glass was a last resort exit, but it was the most effective against the threat of another refill. He’d stayed too long now. He excused himself, definitely, content with his seamless image he’d left with the man.

It was when he stepped outside, into cool air and away from the bustle and buzz, that his decision came back for its vengeance.

He wasn’t exactly dizzy, but he wouldn’t call himself clearheaded. Disoriented, maybe. His face felt a little flushed. He tried to take deep breaths, keep oxygen going to his brain, let himself calm down. Maybe he was just a bit too excited. He faced forward, focused, and walked. Straight lines, straight back. He would be fine—he only had a little more than usual tonight.

Though, it wasn’t long until he ducked into an alleyway to collect himself.

Shit, he thought, dropping his briefcase onto the ground. He squeezed his eyes shut and then opened them again, trying to get himself to focus.

It didn’t work. He felt groggy.

I think I may be slightly more drunk than I thought.

This was ridiculous. He wasn’t some lightweight who couldn’t hold his alcohol. He’d drunk at least this much before, and he’d been perfectly capable of getting back to his apartment. What was different about today?

A displeased clench of his stomach reminded him he hadn’t eaten yet. No breakfast, a skipped lunch in favor of an interview, and wine for dinner.

So, that was it. He needed to eat something. Easy fix, probably. Something a bit hearty would be best, but he was sure he’d see effects even with a small snack.

He hardly felt comfortable going anywhere in the state he was in. God forbid someone he knew saw him, to say nothing of the media. But a dark alleyway on a Tokyo night wasn’t an ideal locale, either.

He considered going into the metaverse, just to get himself out of immediate danger and let the alcohol digest a bit. Let it settle. He could easily slip into Mementos and avoid the subway station. No food would await him there, but at least he wouldn’t be at risk of being seen.

It was dark enough no one would see him enter. He settled it—he’d go inside until he felt sober enough to walk home. Ideally, it would be a short visit. In and out quick enough that he’d still be able to catch the final train. He could excuse being out late with a case, if he was cornered.

He pulled out his phone and opened up the Nav. He was moments away from tapping “Mementos” on his recently visited, when a voice startled him away from the screen.

“Akechi?”

Goro whipped around (casually being an afterthought) and stood face to face with who, on a night like this, he’d call his judge, jury, and executioner.

“Akira-kun,” said Goro, immediately flipping his switch onto a sweeter and less completely deranged setting. “Now, to what do I owe the pleasure? Awfully late to be out, isn’t it?”

Obviously it had to have been Kurusu who’d decided to make himself known. Of all the nights to show his face. Shido’s event had just had Goro toasting to the predicted fall of the Phantom Thieves. A celebration of a plan being put flawlessly together, centering around Kurusu’s uncanny murder. His coincidental suicide.

Goro had hoped to return without even thinking about him, lest he risk himself getting distracted. His death was just business, and that’s how he needed to think of it. Keep Kurusu behind thick walls of paperwork, or as just another shadow in a crowd.

But instead, there he stood, making the aftertaste of the wine on his tongue turn bitter and guilty.

“I’m heading home,” Kurusu began, looking uncharacteristically bothered. He had a twinge more of a frown on his face, and his eyebrows were furrowed. It was hardly reassuring. “Are you… okay?”

Goro bit his tongue. Who else to notice his state of being completely not okay than Mr.Your-Problem-Is-My-Problem himself. Maybe Goro could amuse himself later, thinking about what Kurusu would do if he told him just what was going through his mind. How would he solve that problem?

“I’m feeling just fine, though thank you for asking. I’m heading home myself, so if you don’t mind,” Goro said, giving a polite half wave and trying to ignore how completely awkward this interaction had been. But two steps forward had him steadying himself on the wall, and Kurusu at his side.

At his side. He was touching him now. Holding him up. It suddenly felt like all too much. He jerked away, filling his head with a whole new kind of dizzy. He pressed his hands against his forehead, trying to steady his mind.

It was expected that Kurusu wouldn’t let that slide. He stood back, eyes wide.

“You’re not alright.”

Yes, that was clear now, wasn’t it? He felt lucky that drinking didn’t make him snappy.

Goro’s elongated silence didn’t seem to tickle Kurusu. It wasn’t like he was doing a fantastic job at pleasing Goro at the moment, either, so he let the pause hang.

Kurusu filled the quiet. “Are you… drunk?”

Goro could feel his edge falling. He would not lean into it. He put on a dazzling smile.

“Ah, Akira-kun, ‘drunk’ is such a crude term. There’s a better one—what was it? Maybe feeling a bit buzzed—”

“Did something happen?”

Kurusu’s gaze was very firm.

Goro didn’t hold it for long. He sighed and tried to relax his stance a bit.

“An interesting correlation you’ve just made, but no. Nothing has happened,” he started, folding his arms into himself. “But, I am more intoxicated than I’d preferably like to be, I’ll admit.”

The concern on Kurusu’s face was thoroughly unwelcomed.

“How much did you drink?”

He’d been hoping that Kurusu wouldn’t play the role of saint. The scrutiny of a worrywart was not the attention he was seeking.

Goro leaned (casually being a forethought, now) onto the wall of the alleyway. “Not enough to warrant your distress, Akira-kun. I simply haven’t eaten much today.” Kurusu’s frown grew deeper, and Goro thought to use it to his advantage. “If you’re so worried, though, perhaps you could get me a little pick-me-up from a convenience store.”

Goro’s stomach twisted, making him flinch and lose his balance. He scrambled to keep himself straight on the wall, the alcohol not helping him in the least. That was all the convincing Kurusu needed, much to Goro’s displeasure.

“You need to sit down somewhere,” Kususu said, annoyingly kindly keeping his hands off of him, but prepared to act as a brace. “We aren’t far from Leblanc. Sojiro already went home.”

“Now, I—” Goro began, but found himself feeling a bit undone by Kurusu’s ever present stare.

He weighed his options. He could shake Kurusu off and enter Mementos by himself, wait foodless for his mind to clear, risk falling asleep there and being late tomorrow and possibly stumbling into trouble.

Or, he could rest at LeBlanc for a while.

Kurusu always had such miserable timing.

Goro scrunched up his nose. “...Fine. If you’re willing to offer me your hospitality, I will take it,” he said.

Kurusu’s expression lightened enough to make Goro’s stomach feel bubbly. What a wretched effect he had on him. This was no time to be getting attached. Much more of this and something really would stick.

Goro straightened his tie, picked up his briefcase, and stood tall. He needed to clear his head somehow. Kurusu was simply his means. He was in an unideal situation that needed to be resolved, and nothing more.

He would not let it be more, two glasses be damned.

***

The train ride did nothing but make him feel worse. Drunk and hungry was a terrible combination. Each bump of the car made his stomach churn.

He hadn’t attracted much attention in the shabby railcar, which was lucky, other than the watchful eye Kurusu had been keeping on him. It was humiliating to have someone so nervous over his condition, and Goro wished his choices hadn’t been so black and white.

He was almost too attentive. Goro wouldn’t think about it.

When they’d arrived at the café, Kurusu’s word held true. It was scarce, no customers or owner. That, at least, was a relief.

There was a noise from the attic, and soon after trotted down Morgana. He stopped in his tracks halfway on the stairs, round eyes turning big upon seeing Goro.

“Akechi,” he said, turning his head to Kurusu. “What’s he doing here?”

Kurusu rubbed the back of his neck. “Could you give us a little time?”

Morgana looked between them again. Either Goro missed something, or Morgana accepted that for what it was, because he turned around and headed back upstairs without another word.

Goro sat in his usual spot, but didn’t feel very typical. He felt wrong just enough to know that he’d be here for a little while. It didn’t help that he was already getting tired.

Usually, alcohol’s one solace was that it made falling asleep come quickly. Now, as he fought his eyelids from betraying him tonight, he wished it’d do anything but.

“Is curry okay?” Kususu asked, already tying an apron around his waist.

Any food would do, really. Anything to help him sober up. “I was under the impression curry was about all you knew how to cook.”

Kurusu gave way his signature hint of a hint of a smile, and put himself to work. Goro leaned back in his chair and tried to just focus on his breathing. He should’ve said no to another glass of wine. Or even just snacked a bit at the event. Though he loathed eating in front of Shido and his colleagues, it would’ve saved his evening alone.

Goro watched Kurusu stir the warming pot of curry absentmindedly. The scent was endlessly better than the wine he’d been served. Savory smells of spices and meat. The hunger and the alcohol must’ve been getting to him, because he had to catch himself before he thought it felt homelike.

This was not a home. This was not his home.

Kurusu noticed Goro watching, but Goro was growing too tired to care. He needed to eat something before he thought something damaging. A wandering mind did him no good here.

It was very quiet in the café. Silence wasn’t uncommon between them, but it was rooted in tension. Goro didn’t trust himself much to speak first. He’d always been careful with his words, but the more his thoughts grew out of hand. the more likely he was to spill sensitive information; or say something too private to let anyone else hear.

Kurusu, on the other hand, was oddly talkative tonight.

“So, do you drink often?”

He was as difficult to read as ever. Goro didn’t know how much to attribute that to his current state of disheveledness, but Kurusu maintained his reputation.

“Not really, no,” Goro readjusted a bit in his seat, and looked down at his hands. “Tonight was… This isn’t a habit of mine.”

He did have the underlying concern that the more he did this, the more it might become a habit, if Shido’s example was anything to go by. He’d hate to have inherited anything from a dastardly man like him, but rancid alcoholism would feel like an all new low.

Kurusu remained stone faced. “I see,” he replied flatly.

“Might you be disappointed? I never would’ve taken you for the ‘party animal’ type, but perhaps you aided me for the sake of a connection?” Goro asked, and then immediately regretted not taking the chance to let their conversation die down. Drunk and tired was not a good mix for his big mouth, it seemed.

“I think I’ll survive,” Kurusu said, raising his eyebrows. He set the temperature lower on the burner and got out a plate. It seemed Goro’s meal was finished heating up. And thank god for that, because the hunger was really getting to him now and he was feeling much more miserable than he’d have preferred for a Thursday night.

Kurusu served his curry still steaming, and Goro dug in as calmly and controlled as he could manage, with a quick, “I appreciate it,” before taking his first bite.

He could tell he was being closely watched as he ate. Goro decided not to comment on it quite yet. Getting a little clue-in on Kurusu’s mind always proved interesting.

He mentally berraded himself for thinking that. It was thoughts like those that inclined him to keep his mouth shut. Something about his drowsiness was making him sentimental, and this clearly wasn’t the time.

“You think I’d only help you because I wanted something?”

Again, Kurusu was single handedly keeping their conversation alive. He usually required a bit more effort to pry into, and Goro positively knew why it was different tonight, but kept himself from thinking it.

Goro gave himself a performative moment to think of a reply. “Are you referring to my question earlier? Well, really, is that so odd? Such an intent is hardly uncommon,” he replied, and took another bite. He wanted to say he was sobering up, but so far the curry was only affecting his stomach, not his mind.

“So you think that’s my ‘intent,’ then.”

“Do I have a reason to think otherwise? You’ve set up your own sorts of deals within your friendships, haven’t you?” Goro began again, growing intrigued. “Kitagawa-kun makes you those cards, as one example. It’s only natural that we, as humans, have a give and take relationship with each other. Wouldn’t you agree?” Another bite.

Kurusu looked unimpressed. Goro always knew he’d get something interesting out of him when he wore that expression.

“You think so?”

He met his eyes solidly and smiled. “I do.”

There was a short silence. Goro haughtily scraped up a large spoonful of rice.

Kurusu caught him in a mouthful. “So, what are you giving me, then?”

Swallowing gave him a moment to think. Though it was time wasted, really, because it wasn’t some grandiose question. He hoped he hadn’t said that to sound smart, like some stumping finisher. But Kususu hardly failed to disappoint—so he kept his hopes up.

The back of his mind told him getting excited was the worst thing to do while trying to detach himself, but he buried the thought.

Just for now is fine.

He cleared his throat. Where was he?

“You don’t think I’ve held up my end of the bargain? I disagree. Let’s see,” Goro crossed his legs and brought a finger up to his chin. “I believe I’ve taught you some sleuthing techniques, haven’t I? Though, that was early on. I can see how you may not be satisfied. However, I have introduced you to quite a few hot spots, yes? And I’m aware of the effects that billiards and darts had on you.” He scooped another spoonful of curry, but finished his thought before he took his bite. “And, I certainly hope I’m not mistaken that our conversations have been gratifying for the both of us.”

“That’s what you call give-and-take?” Kurusu replied. Knowing him, though, it was less of a reply and more of a challenge. Goro had forgotten all about how badly he wanted to be in bed at home, now. He may have been tired, but this was a rivalry he intended to dominate. The tricks Kurusu had up his sleeve always proved entertaining.

“‘That’ is what I call ‘what I’ve given you.’ If you’d like my takeaway, well, let’s just say you’ve given me plenty to think about over the last few months.”

Kurusu leaned onto the counter. Goro appreciated the maintained distance, since he still wasn’t exactly in a sensory mood. The alcohol hadn’t left him yet. “You know, I can think of a better name for that.”

“Oh?” Goro said, “Can you?”

Kurusu almost smirked. “Silly little thing called friendship.”

Goro sighed, shaking his head. Perhaps he hadn’t picked up on what he’d been implying. Kurusu could win some and lose some. “Akira-kun, I’m not trying to argue that friendship is off the table. I simply think any relationship can be boiled down to the action of compromise.”

“And I’m trying to argue that I think that’s a shallow way of thinking,” Kurusu shot back.

Goro felt his jaw clench. “Your reasoning?” He presented the easiest smile he could muster.

Kurusu put himself back up at full height and slid his hands into his pockets. “A relationship doesn’t end once a standard has been met.”

Goro rolled his shoulders back. The high of debate was clearing his mind. He hardly noticed.

“Ah, but don’t you think another goal could be made? Or, even two or three? And, a connection doesn’t have to start with just one, you could have dozens of deals with a single person at a time,” he argued, feeling quite confident. “Have you heard of the Social Exchange Theory? It suggests that relationships are formed by maximizing benefits and minimizing drawbacks. In other words, what one gives to you is the defining factor, while you try to deplete what is taken.”

Kurusu seemed to consider that, but his pause gave way to Goro’s unfinished defense. “Let me give you an example: you and Sakamoto-kun are quite close, aren’t you? Is that not a result of both of you, mutually and continually, giving and taking from each other?” He continued, watching Kurusu quirk an eyebrow. “Perhaps Sakamoto is a carefree presence for you, and perhaps you offer him a place of security. But, as one would expect, each of you have flaws. Sakamoto can get rambunctious, and his actions have consequences that can rebound and affect you. That is a cost of his friendship. A give and take, even in non-physical terms.”

Goro took another bite of curry in anticipation of his response. It was already growing cold. At this point, Goro really didn’t think that the curry had helped him clear his mind at all— it was just their conversation in privacy that had given him a chance to focus.

Not that the effects of his drinking were completely gone. He was still very sleepy, and he knew he tended to ramble in exhaustion. Goro had done that here before, even. He needed to figure out a way to wrap this up soon, but. Kurusu wasn’t like the men around Shido. He enjoyed their talks. He didn’t have a glass of wine in hand telling him how much longer he needed to hold up.

It was only talking, between them.

He would power through it. He imagined that once he was up and walking around and heading back to the station, that he’d regain energy again. It was only the atmosphere that was making him so tired. He couldn’t possibly fuck up so poorly as to say something incriminating at a .06 blood alcohol content.

“Me accepting that my friends have flaws doesn’t take from me,” Kususu answered, giving Goro another chance to flex his argument.

“Then, shall I speak more literally? You often cook for your friends, don’t you? That taxes something directly from you, time and effort.” Goro put his spoon down entirely and leaned into their conversation. Kurusu wasn’t the kind of person that Goro felt he needed to chide, but a bit of teasing felt inevitable.

Kurusu replied straight away. “Me cooking for my friends isn’t the foundation of our relationships.”

“But, you have made deals in similar fashions, haven’t you? Would you really argue that none of your relationships were formed from a deal you made? You, of all people?”

He watched the reaction his spiel got from Kurusu. Hardly a twitch, but something had dug under his skin. Goro knew he was enjoying this as much as he was, and it almost wrenched out a grin from him.

Kurusu put a hand out of his pocket and propped himself up, leaning towards Goro on the counter. It closed the space between them further. They still weren’t touching, but his presence was on top of him. It felt close, and Goro had to fight moving away.

“I’ve made plenty of friendships through a give-and-take. But the idea that it’s the only way to view them is one-sided. You can say that it’s an exchange in hindsight, as an outsider, but I’m not thinking about what I get from people when I’m with them. I’m thinking about them, and that’s all.” Kurusu took his weight off the counter. “It’s material otherwise. Only thinking in wins and losses.”

Goro pinched the back of his arm habitually. He spoke a bit quieter. “So you think it can’t be effectively utilized?”

Kursu looked at him firmly. “I think it’s the wrong mindset to have.”

There was a short silence that hung. They stared at each other. Goro broke the contact, closing his eyes and resting back in his chair. He giggled.

“You never cease to entertain, Akira-kun. You really are interesting,” he sighed, trying to make it sound a bit wistful. “Would you tell me what led to such a thought process?”

Kurusu’s expression fell. It was quick, and barely noticeable, but he looked pained. Like what Goro had said had squeezed something hard, but disappeared just as fast.

He replied with his typical emotionless slate.

“There was something that changed.”

Goro tilted his head, and brought up a hand to rest it on. “That something being?”

He wondered what Kurusu might say. He didn’t want to get his hopes up. Perhaps a view in a palace, or a girlfriend, or some connection that would be ultimately meaningless to Goro, but something he still wanted to get his hands on.

Suddenly, his mind felt very present. He shouldn’t have thought that. He shouldn’t be doing this, he shouldn’t be asking this. Now was the time he was supposed to be creating a distance between them, not trying to open him up and solidify whatever makeshift acquaintanceship they’d developed. He was going to kill him in four days. Getting to know him better was supposed to have been a distant ‘what if.’ He shouldn’t feel so curious.

But Kurusu smirked and said, “A secret,” despite Goro’s dilemma.

“Ehh,” Goro complained, feeling both relieved and indescribably annoyed. “You won’t be giving me a ticket into the back of your mind tonight? After all that buildup?”

Kurusu laughed. “I’m sure you wouldn’t want to hear it.”

“Try me,” Goro said, and smiled wide. He ignored his itchy eyes telling him to go to sleep. And the pushing voices reminding him that he was setting himself up for more pain in the long run.

He knew that. He couldn’t help himself, though. He knew he’d get nothing out of this.

The realization made him gulp.

Kurusu eased up. “Maybe once you tell me why you’re ‘buzzed.’”

Goro wasn’t sure he could do much more to keep the conversation from ending. His little cycle of trying to make things as terrible as possible for his future self was going to come to an end. “I think I’ve been keeping up appearances very well.”

“You can’t fool me,” Kurusu replied, and grinned a very faint grin. He took off his apron. “I’m gonna go to the bathroom real quick.”

“Mm,” hummed Goro, and just like that, Kurusu disappeared from the conversation. Goro put his elbow onto the counter and propped his head up, leaning into his cheek. Their talks often ended in nowheres, neither of them giving up their stances. He tried to keep himself from thinking how nice it was to have such a conversation partner. Maybe it was the alcohol, and his growing drowsiness, but he couldn’t help himself.

Kurusu wasn’t his friend, but he could be. Could’ve been, was more accurate. He was digging himself into a hole, thinking this way. But he’d buried himself in something deeper a long time ago.

Goro’s eyes felt heavy. He thought to rest them, just for a moment, until Kurusu returned. Then he could say his goodbyes, their debate having come to an end. And he’d go home, and he’d feel a bit like he was rotting away, and he’d sleep through it anyway.

But for now, he was comfortable in a café, with low lights and a could’ve been just barely out of reach. He was a little undone, but that was just fine for now.

He closed his eyes and barely felt himself drift off.

***

Akira dug through one of his dusty boxes upstairs, while Morgana sat staring at him from his bed. He stuck his arm in deep, feeling around and checking colors and fabrics when he could pull something up for air.

“You two sure are chatty, huh,” Morgana remarked, flicking his tail back and forth.

Akira kept his nose in the box. He was almost positive he’d put it in here. Maybe it had gotten more buried than he thought.

“What’d you guys talk about?”

It didn’t take long to find his prize. It was a bit stuck in the middle, and he had to yank hard to free it from the mess of clothes. But as he pulled, the tension eased, and out popped his summer blanket. He threw it over his shoulder, and he heard Morgana jump down from the bed.

Akira got up and waited for him to join him.

“I’m not sure you’d be that interested.”

Morgana huffed. “You’re always talking about weird stuff.”

The two of them walked downstairs. Akira was trying to be quiet, skipping the second and notoriously squeaky stair, while also attempting to shake out the blanket a bit on his way down.

His silent mission must’ve proved successful, because Akechi was still laying down on the counter sound asleep, in the same position he’d left him. Akira watched his shoulders rise and fall a bit. He looked peaceful.

Akira spread out the blanket between his hands. It was light, but it was better than nothing. It could get cold some nights.

“You know, I still don’t get why you’re being so nice to him,” Morgana said.

Akira didn’t reply. He walked over to the chair Akechi was sitting on, and tried to lightly but snugly wrap him up.

Morgana hopped onto the counter. “You know what he’s trying to do. You don’t owe him this much.”

The blanket hugged around Akechi’s shoulders and back well. Akira made sure it wouldn’t fall off. He tried very carefully not to touch him. Waking him would be bad, and Akira didn’t want to initiate something that would make him uncomfortable. His jolt from earlier had kept Akira off—he wouldn’t make that mistake again.

Morgana persisted. “You aren’t going to get anything out of this.”

Akira stepped back, and made sure there weren’t any uncovered spots. Akechi looked warm, and he looked soft, and he looked exhausted. Incredibly, incredibly exhausted.

“I know.”

#THANKS for the ask!!!!!#also sorry you had to beta ur own request LMAOOOO #i actually struggled a lot more w this one than u think purely bc i was having trouble with coming up with a premise i liked #this was NOT the first idea i had lololol #oh but not to say i didnt have a lot of fun haha #also for everyone who checks tags first: yes its shuake #AND its about 5k #anyway thank u again and i hope u enjoy (enjoyed? heheh)#my fics #ask #i-demand-a-hug #SORRY TO EVERYONE WHO HAD TO DEAL W THIS WHILE THE READ MORE BROKE #my p5 fics

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aetheternity · 3 years

Note

Ayooo ;v; I don't know if you're ok with that, but do you think you could do some headcanon between Inugami and an adult/f/kemono reader who joined the squad as the "mom of the group" ?

That I can do

• If Inugami got a female assistant or like started dating a woman and introduced her to the group they'd have to be someone he trusts deeply. Probably has known them for years and is finally ready for everyone to meet her.

•She bonds with Akira instantly. Probably immediately recognizes Akira as a boy.

•Definitely goes to pick the kids up from missions with snacks for them and always brings two extra pairs of clothes for Kabane.

•It takes a while for her to bond with Shiki the only way I could see it happening quickly is if she loves the same type of pizza as Shiki.

•Late night paperwork sessions with Inugami properly coupled with banter back and forth.

"You know you can stop pretending you enjoy eating hot sauce on pizza just for Shiki" he'd say

"It's called bonding Kohachi, you'd know if you didn't stuff your face into your work and spent more free days with the kids"

"There's no valid reason to eat something so hot after 9pm and I know you're only saying this to get me to go to bed at a reasonable hour."

•Definitely tries to find a compromise with Kabane so that he doesn't sleep on the floor anymore. (Had to put this one in cause it bugs me so much..)

•Mothers Aya and Kon too whenever they're over.

"Kon, please knock and wait for someone to open the door. We don't just barge into people's work spaces like that."

Kon's ears droop and she immediately goes back out and knocks.

•Tries and practically pleads with Aya to get her to wear normal clothing for an eight year old. (Yes this one is also specifically from me because it personally annoys me).

•Cooks some of the meals and washes the dishes for everyone.

"Why can't we have pizza again?"

"Because Kemono or not you're all going to eat normal dinners more often. You're developing children after all.

•Covers Inugami with a blanket when he falls asleep at his desk. Or puts him into the bed herself (Whichever version makes you happier).

•Spoils the hell out of Mihai. Though he'd never admit it he genuinely enjoys having her around. Is also the only person who can order Mihai to do anything she wants. (Probably partly out of spite to Inugami and probably because he genuinely likes her)

•If she's going on missions with the kids she'll clean their scrapes and cuts immediately after if not she's ready at home with the bandaids and rubbing alchohol.

•If she fights alongside the kids she'll also work hard to train them when she can or show them better ways to use their powers. Also brings them water when they finish training.

•Definitely takes the kids on mental health days. She takes a little bucket has the kids write where they would like to go for a mental health day and then she draws one of the pieces of paper and whichever paper is chosen is the place they go no take backs or complaining allowed (that last part is for Shiki specifically.)

•Kabane is confused about it at first but once she explains her methods he's fine with taking a day off.

"Why the hell would you choose the beach Akira it's almost fall!"

"Shiki, remember what I said no complaints."

"The leaves are falling off the trees!"

They definitely left the beach after less than an hour.

•Cuts apples into cute heart shapes and bunnies for Akira.

•To Akira's own anguish she tells the kids when it's time to bathe and how long they're allowed to be in there.

"I can't bathe for such a short period of time!"

"Akira, you waste a huge percentage of hot water and you don't need to be in there for an hour."

"How can you suggest I only take 15 minute baths that's cruel!" Akira cries quickly being comforted by Kabane.

"I'm not trying to be unreasonable. In the long run it'll be helpful. The less time you take in the bath, the more time you have to sleep which will make your skin look fuller and you won't risk eye bags."

Akira is practically beaming at the thought. It takes a while but he slowly begins to take shorter and shorter baths and is always rewarded with bunny apples when he manages to do 15 minutes or less.

•Not only is Inugami glad to have her at the agency but everyone else doesn't know how they lived without her before.

(I was honestly putting this off because I was really nervous about writing this and I was afraid I wouldn't write it the way anon wanted. But once I started writing I had fun. Hope this is close to what you wanted Anon!)

#cal writes #kemono jihen #kj #kj headcanons #kemono jihen headcanons #kusaka kabane #shiki tademaru #aya tademaru #kon #akira #monster incidents

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fuckyeahstephensondheim · 3 years

Text

Rick Pender knows his Sondheim from A to Z

If the word “encyclopedia” conjures for you a 26-volume compendium of information ranging from history to science and beyond, you may find the notion of a Stephen Sondheim Encyclopedia perplexing. But if you have ever looked at a bookshelf full of book after book about (and occasionally by) the premiere musical theatre composer-lyricist of our era and wished all that information could be synthesized and indexed in one place, maybe the idea of a Sondheim encyclopedia will start to make a little more sense to you. It did to Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, an independent publisher that’s made encyclopedias such as this one of their calling cards, offering tomes on everyone from Marie Curie to Akira Kurasowa. Several years ago, they approached Rick Pender, longtime managing editor of the gone but never forgotten Sondheim Review and now, after years of research, writing, and pandemic-related delays, the The Stephen Sondheim Encyclopedia is finally hitting shelves. I sat down with Rick (via Zoom) to chat about this unique, massive project.

FYSS: I want to really focus on the new book, but we should start with your history with Sondheim and The Sondheim Review. How did you become so enmeshed in this work?

RP: As a teenager, the first LP that I bought was the soundtrack from West Side Story, and I didn't have any clue about who much of anybody was, particularly not Stephen Sondheim. But I loved the lyrics for the songs, especially “Something’s Coming” and “Gee, Officer Krupke.” These are just fabulous lyrics.

Then, of course, in the ‘70s it was hard as time went by not to have some awareness of Sondheim. I saw a wonderful production of Night Music in northeast Ohio, and I again just thought these lyrics are incredible, and I love the music from that particular show. Fast forward a little further in the late ‘80s, I was laid up with some surgery and I knew I was going to be bedridden for a week or two anyway, so I went to the public library and grabbed up a handful of CDs, and in that batch was A Collector's Sondheim, the three-disc set of stuff up through about 1985, and I must have listened to that a hundred times, I swear, because it had material on it that I didn't know anything about like Evening Primrose or Stavisky. So that really opened my eyes.

Later, my son had moved to Chicago. He's a scenic carpenter and a union stagehand. He worked at the Goodman Theatre, and I went to see a production when they were still performing in a theater space at the Art Institute of Chicago, and they had a gift shop there. And lo and behold in the rack I saw a copy of a magazine called The Sondheim Review! I thought, oh my gosh, I've got to subscribe to this! This would have been about 1996, probably, so I subscribed and enjoyed it immediately. A quarterly magazine about just about Stephen Sondheim struck me as kind of amazing.

In 1997-98 the Cincinnati Playhouse did a production of Sweeney Todd in which Pamela Myers, all grown up, played Mrs. Lovett, and so I wrote to the editor of the magazine and said, “Would you like me to review this?” That started me down a path for a couple of years of making fairly regular contributions to the magazine. Then in 2004 that editor retired, and I was asked to become the managing editor, which I did from 2004 to 2016. It went off the rails for some business reasons, but it lasted for 22 years which I think is pretty remarkable.

I tried to sustain it in an alternative form with a website called Everything Sondheim. We put stuff up online for about 18 months, and we published three print issues that look very much like The Sondheim Review, but we were not able to sustain it beyond that.

FYSS: How did the Encyclopedia project originate?

RP: The publisher asked me to write an encyclopedia about Stephen Sondheim! I envisioned that I would be sort of the general editor who coordinated a bunch of writers to put this together, but they said no, we're thinking of you as being the sole author. They had done a couple of other encyclopedias particularly of film directors, and those were all done by one person, so they sent me a contract asking me to generate 300,000 words for this book, and after I regained consciousness, I said all right, I'll give it a try.

It took me about two years – most of 2018 and ‘19 – to generate that content. I sent it off in the fall of ‘19, and then, well, the world stopped because of the pandemic. It was supposed to come out April a year ago, and they had just furloughed a bunch of their editors and everything stalled. But now it's coming out mid-April 2021.

FYSS: What was the research and writing process like?

RP: This project came about in part because the publisher initially approached another writer, Mark Horowitz, who's at the Library of Congress and who had done a Sondheim book of Sondheim on Music. Mark and I had become quite close because he wrote a number of wonderful features about different Sondheim songs for The Sondheim Review. When I heard that that he had put my name out there, I went back to him after I had agreed to do this and said, Mark, could we use some of that material that you wrote for the magazine about those songs? And he said, sure do with them whatever you wish. And I was glad he said that, because they were really long pieces, and I've reduced each of them to about 1500-2000 words, which I thought was probably about the maximum length that people would really want to read in a reference volume.

But other than that, I generated everything else myself. I relied upon plenty of material within the 22 years of back issues of The Sondheim Review. Another great resource was Sondheim's own lyric studies, the two-volume set which provides so much information about the production of shows and that sort of thing.

Of the 131 entries I wrote for this, 18 of them are lengthy pieces about each of the original productions, so again Sondheim's books were certainly useful for that, and other books like Ted Chapin's book about Follies.

I also spent some time in Washington, D.C. at the Library of Congress, and Mark loaned me a quite a bit of material that he had collected – not archival material but scrapbooks of clippings that he put into ring binders of stuff about Sondheim's shows.

I came back to Cincinnati with about four or five cartons of materials, and I could really dig through that stuff as I was working on these. And then I have, as I'm sure you and lots of other Sondheim fans have, a bookcase with a shelf or two of Sondheim books, and those were all things that I relied upon, too.

I actually generated a list with lots and lots of topics, probably over 200, and I knew that was going to be more than I could do. Eventually, some things were consolidated, like an actor who perhaps performed in just one Sondheim show wasn't going to get a biographical entry, but I would talk about them in the particular show that they were involved in. So, I was able to collapse some of those kinds of things. But as I said, I did end up with 131 entries in the publication, and it turned out to be 636 pages, so that's a big fat reference book.

FYSS: Who is the intended audience for a work like this? RP: The book is really intended to be a reference volume more than a coffee-table book. It does have photography in it, but it's black and white and more meant to be illustrative than to wallow in the glories of Sondheim. There is an extensive bibliography in it, and all the material is really thoroughly sourced so people can find ways to dig into more.

FYSS: Sometimes memories diverge or change over time. Did you come across any contradictions in your research, and how did you resolve them?

RP: I can't say that I can recall anything like that. I relied very heavily on Sondheim's recollections in Finishing the Hat and Look, I Made a Hat because he's got a memory like a steel trap. Once in a while I would email him with a question and get very quick response on things. I really used him as my touchstone for making sure of that kind of thing.

I also found that Secrest’s biography was very thoroughly researched, and I could rely on that. But I can't say that I found a lot of discrepancy, and some of those kinds of things were a little too much inside baseball for me to be including in the encyclopedia.

FYSS: For figures with long and broad histories, how did you decide what to include? George Abbott, for example, is the first entry in the book and he worked for nine decades! How important was writing about an individual as they relate to Sondheim vs. who they were more generally?

RP: To use George Abbott as an example, I would say that the first things that I did was to go back to the lyric studies and to the Secrest biography and just look up references to Abbott. I mean, it was George Abbott who said that he wanted more hummable songs from Sondheim, so you know that was certainly an anecdote that was worth including because, of course you know, it becomes a little bit of the lyric in Merrily We Roll Along.

So you know, I would look for those kinds of things, but I also wanted to put Sondheim in context because Abbott was well into his career when he finally directed Forum which, since it was Sondheim's first show as a composer and a lyricist, is significant. That was very much the focus of that entry, but I wanted to lay a foundation in talking about Abbott, about all the things that he had done before that. I mean, he was sort of the Hal Prince of his era in in terms of his engagement in so many different kinds of things – writing plays, directing musicals, doctoring shows, all of that.

FYSS: Did any entries stick out to you as being the hardest to write?

I think the most complicated one to write about probably was Bounce/Road Show because it's got a complicated history, and Sondheim has so much to say about it. And because it's not a show that people know so much about, I wanted to treat it appropriately, but not as expansively as all of that background material might have suggested. So I kind of had to weave my way through that one. It also was a little tough to write about, because how do you write a synopsis of a show that has had several incarnations quite different from one another, and musical material that has changed from one to the other? With shows like that, I particularly tried to resort to the licensed versions of the shows.

FYSS: I haven't had a chance to read the book cover-to-cover yet, but I did read the Follies and the Into the Woods entries to try to get a sense of how you covered individual shows, and both of those are shows that had significant revisions at different times. And I thought you made it very clear what they were and also where to go for a reader who wants to learn more.

RP: Let me say one other thing this is not directly on this topic, but it sort of relates, and that is that in writing an encyclopedia, I didn't want to overlay a lot of my very individual opinions about things, but with each of the show entries I tried to review the critical comments that were made about the show in its original form, perhaps with significant revivals and that sort of thing, and then to source those remarks from critics at those various points in time. And of course, my own objectivity (or lack thereof) had something to do with what I was selecting, but I thought that was a good way to represent the range of opinion without having to make it all my own opinion.

FYSS: Did you feel any responsibility with regards to canonization when you made choices about what to include or exclude? What made the First National Tour of Into the Woods more significant than the Fiasco production, for example? Why do Side by Side by Sondheim & Sondheim on Sondheim get individual entries, but Putting It Together is relegated to the omnibus entry on revues?

RP: I guess that now you are lifting the curtain on some of my own subjectivity with that question. I tried to identify things that were particularly significant. I mean with the revues for instance, several of those shows – you know, particularly Side by Side by Sondheim, the very early ones – they were the ones I think that elevated him in people’s awareness. So, I think that to me was part of what drove that. And then shows that that were early touring productions struck me as being things that maybe needed a little bit more coverage. I think the Fiasco production was a really interesting one, but with the more recent productions of shows I just felt like there's no end to it if I begin to include a lot of that sort of thing.

FYSS: I mean it's so subjective. I'm not the kind of person who clutches my pearls and screams oh my goodness, how could you not talk about this or that. But I was surprised to see in your Follies entry that the Paper Mill Playhouse album was not listed among the recordings, for example. I imagine that once this book hits shelves you're going to be bombarded with people asking about their pet favorites.

RP: Oh, I'm sure, and maybe that will be a reason to do a second edition, which I’m totally ready to do.

The Sondheim Encyclopedia hits bookstore shelves April 15. It’s available wherever you buy books, but Rick has provided a special discount code for readers of Fuck Yeah Stephen Sondheim to receive 30% off when you order directly from the publisher. To order, visit www.rowman.com, call 800-462-6420, and use code RLFANDF30.

Celebrate the launch of The Sondheim Encyclopedia with a free, live online event featuring Rick Pender in conversation with Broadway Nation’s David Armstrong Friday, April 16 from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. Eastern. More information and register here.

#Stephen Sondheim #Rick Pender #The Stephen Sondheim Encyclopedia #The Sondheim Review

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mypunkpansexualtwin · 3 years

Text

WIP Wednesday

I am, again, untagged but undeterred! Who wants more Wingman? No? Too bad, that’s what you’re getting!

I... haven’t slept yet. Consider yourself tagged if you want to do this and please please tag me in your WIPs, I really love seeing what my friends, mutuals, and followers are all working on. Part of this is under a cut, mostly for the sanity of Future Me.

About halfway down the block, they realized at about the same time that they had nothing to talk about.

“So…”

“So...”

So. Akira didn’t remember how to have a normal damn conversation. He wasn’t going to blame that on the fact that the only people who’d spoken to him on a regular basis in the past five months were all eccentric to say the least, but it definitely hadn’t helped. One of the top five current sanest people in his life was the drag queen proprietor of a bar in the red light district, for crying out loud. Not to mention he’d always been more of a listener to begin with because it was less stressful. So long as the person talking wasn’t a harried reporter who could only ever be found at the aforementioned drag bar. Or his homeroom teacher being blackmailed into dubious side work by a late student’s family. Or an ex member of the goddamn yakuza. Being “robbed of one’s place to belong” apparently also did a number on one’s sanity.

Akira was pulled from his thoughts by Ono awkwardly clearing his throat.

“I, uh, heard that one of the Japanese schools staying here is Shujin. That you?” Jason hazarded.

“Yup.”

“Phantom Thieves Shujin?”

“That’s the only one I’m aware of.” Akira responded blandly. Not the best topic for small talk considering the apparent state of his brain-to-mouth filter, but better than walking along and twiddling their thumbs until one of them decided to leave. Probably.

Jason cracked a smile and jokingly asked, “Do you know them?” Even half-expecting it, the question still caught him a little off guard. Although not as much as it would have a few months prior, considering he’d gotten it just as jokingly from several of Leblanc’s regulars since May. Meaning he’d had time to practice his answer.

“Oh yeah,” Akira responded, pouring every ounce of sarcasm he had into a completely truthful statement, “I found them on accident and they made me their leader.” Then he rolled his eyes for good measure. Who needed to be a good liar when you could just tell the truth in a way nobody would believe?

“Pff, why would they do that?” Jason snorted, indulging the “joke.” Akira shrugged in response.

“No idea,” he answered, again, completely honestly. “My unparalleled charisma? My superior adaptability?” He paused for his date to stop laughing before he continued, “My cool glasses?” That earned him a scoff.

“Clark Kent you ain’t, buddy.” Ono retorted dryly, but the effect was ruined by the smile trying to break out across his face. Topic successfully deflected.

“Definitely no Superman, either.” Akira stretched and laughed softly.“Too gangly.” He was finally starting to actually relax a little when an arm snaked around his waist and tugged him close, effectively shooting his progress in the face.

“I dunno if I’d say gangly. Lean, maybe?” Ono’s voice was close to his ear again and his hand was ridiculously warm where it rested on his hip. “Whatever you wanna call it, it definitely suits you.”

“Uh. Th-thanks.” A few moments passed, allowing Akira to attempt to scrape together something resembling a brain cell.

“Y’know, if you’re here to make memories, maybe we should get on that.”

Attempt failed, try again later. Something about the guy’s voice, especially with the way it ghosted across an apparently very sensitive spot just behind his ear, seemed to have a vendetta against Akira trying to think. Purely on impulse, with no input from his higher functions that had all abandoned him at that point, Akira turned his head and hummed his assent against the corner of Ono’s jaw. He felt a shiver run through the taller boy and a decidedly Arsene-shaped sense of smug satisfaction in the back of his mind. Akira wasn’t sure if he should offer his inner self thanks or wonder where the hell this kind of helpful nudge was earlier that afternoon with Ryuji. Or at literally any point with Ryuji. Maybe it was for the better, he really didn’t have the nerve to follow up on a move like that. And if he couldn’t with the guy who’d arranged the damn date, there was no way he’d have been able to after probably ambushing his unsuspecting best friend. There was no point in dwelling on that, though. Instead, he met the hooded gaze Jason levelled at him with a smirk meant to cover his rising nerves.

Anyone who knew Joker, Infamous Leader of the Phantom Thieves would have recognized that particular smirk as the prelude to him being a little shit, but Ono did not. He had no idea what to expect when Akira replied lowly, “I think you might be onto something there.” The blond leaned in a little, eyes fluttering shut as Akira reached up to settle one hand on the back of Jason’s neck--

--and shattered the moment with a quiet click from his phone’s camera. Ono blinked a few times, looking up to where Akira was holding his phone up for the selfie he’d just snapped, and back to Akira’s face. Double take. Triple take. And then he fixed him with the most unimpressed face Akira had ever seen in his life, which had to be some kind of world record.

“Uhhh, say ‘cheese?’” He cracked a smile and tried hard not to laugh as that look somehow turned even more unimpressed.

“Ha freaking ha.” Ono pouted up at the camera. “Seriously. I’m gonna crack a rib laughin’ here. You’re hilarious.”

“Are you saying you don’t want a picture of yourself when you look this good?” Akira replied innocently and lowered his arm a little. Maybe it was unfair to push the buttons of a guy so obviously and aggressively walking the fine line between confident and vain, but the way his pout deepened before twisting into a smile was too cute.

“Fine, twist my arm why don’t you?” Jason rolled his eyes good-naturedly and settled against Akira before looking up into the camera. Halfway through the burst of pictures Akira took, Jason exacted his revenge and pressed a kiss to that sensitive spot he’d ghosted his breath over a moment ago. Thankfully the camera didn’t pick up the deeply embarrassing yelp that particular move elicited from Akira, but there was no hiding the way the phone suddenly jerked in his hand halfway through the dozen or so pictures, or the way his face had gone completely scarlet in all of them from that point onward. It was his turn to pout as he swiped through his camera roll and deleted the blurriest ones. “Ooh, definitely send me that one. And those two.” Ono instructed with his chin hooked over Akira’s shoulder. Naturally the guy wanted the pictures with the worst of Akira’s tomato face, but at least the rest he requested were nice. Maybe Akira wouldn’t be spending the rest of the night too mortified.

The incoming text notification that dropped from the top of his screen said otherwise. Goddammit.

“Oh man, the timing on that’s almost spooky. Hell of a coincidence.” Jason laughed as the preview of Futaba’s ‘who the heck is that guy???’ disappeared into the notifications bar. Akira groaned.

“Not a coincidence.”

#my writing #persona 5 #misguided wingman #any and all bits of the persona peanut gallery in akira's head is less a separate entities thing #and more like 'romantic impulsivity and maxed courage stat is stored in the arsene'#I'm working on the final chapter of this and am really hype #like. REALLY hype.#like planning at least 2 spinoff fics that resolve the nonsense #plus possibly a third that's literally just a chatfic of the other thieves betting on pegoryu becoming canon #I've been doing this for how many weeks and only just thought to start putting it under a cut

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blue-lothus · 3 years

Text

Breathe

Summary: It was a misunderstanding, really. But because of it, Akira found himself banished to work at the ship of the terrible captain Kamoshida. But before he could start serving his time, he met a merman, and somehow got both of them thrown in the brig, with a death sentence on their heads.

Or, how Akira saved a merman, got a best friend, fell in love a little bit, and went on an adventure.

Or how it’s @grapeflavoredorange ‘s birthday, and I wanted to write something nice for this amazing person, who wrote amazing things for my favorite pairing. I took the idea from one of our conversations, about how in the sims 4 a mermaid’s kiss gives you the ability to breathe underwater for a few hours.

It was an odd day, the atmosphere felt charged and unnatural. It was raining softly, but the grey clouds were dense, looming over his head. A young man with a mop of rebellious black hair sat at the bay, passively watching the horizon, and the sea.

The rain started to fall harder, and that was the only thing that made him move from his spot.

Akira wasn’t really sure how he even ended up there. The last weeks of his life felt like a bad dream, all disconnect feelings and sudden events that made no sense at all.

How did he end up convicted and then condemned to serve his time on a poacher’s ship?

A year on the sea, for a boy who should have just continued his family business and run a farm.

He sighed under the small shelter he found from the rain.

There was movement in the water, something bright and golden flashing quickly and then vanishing. Gone almost as soon as it appeared, a flash of colour in the white haze of the copious rain. It was pouring at this point, and it was impossible to tell what was that, from where he stood.

Akira had always been too curious for his own good.

He approached, silent as a cat, and leaned over the wooden plates of the pier. For his absolute shock, he found someone staring back at him.

It was beautiful. It looked like a he. His hair was golden and unnatural. But his eyes were a gentle brown, almost human, if his teeth weren’t so sharp. If his hair wasn’t so odd. There weren’t any humanoid creatures around these parts of the ocean, except for merfolk.

This one was surely pretty enough to be one of them. And then, the fact that he was still swimming in that weather was surely proof that he wasn’t afraid of drowning. It was just… a weird place to see one of them. They usually hid from humans, since they started being hunted.

“What were you doing so close to the ship- wait, sorry. You probably have no idea what I’m saying.” Akira shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. It was a well known fact that merfolk didn’t speak human language.

The creature frowned, seemingly deeply offended.

“I’m not dumb. I can speak your dumb language.”

“I didn’t- I mean…” Akira blinked, startled. The creature sounded a bit strange, but he was fluent enough.

“You can stop the bullshit, ok? Kamoshida knows I can speak, and anyone from his crew knows it too.”

“I don’t even know this Kamoshida person. I’m not a poacher. I just got assigned here today.”

The aggression immediately left those brown eyes.

“Oh. I guess it makes sense then.” The blond looked around, swimming in place. “I was just passing by and saw his ship and I thought of throwing some rocks at this stupid thing so it might stall him a bit.”

Akira leaned closer, trying to hear the blond through the thunderous noise of the rain splattering hard around them.

Later, Akira would want to smack himself in the head for being so stupid. It should be so obvious what was going to happen. But they were both distracted, and the rain was too loud to allow them to hear fickle things like footsteps. Akira just noticed when something blocked the partial daylight, a shadow just behind him.

“Who do we have here?”

It was a man’s voice, but Akira didn’t recognize it. The blond, however, seemed to do. His brown eyes got wide, and he immediately yelled:

“It’s Kamoshida, run!”

Akira did turn to run away, but he was a bit too late for that, and the blunt handle of a saber came down hard on his head.

He was too dizzy to see how the merman stopped a second too long when it heard him crying out.

He did hear a pained scream not long after, and then something heavy being brought on board of the ship, still trashing.

“This damned monster, now I finally got him.” Akira heard, and he felt his chest tight with worry. Of course. The captain hunted merfolk. He noticed the hat, and the nicer clothes. Kamoshida was the name of the captain of the ship he had been assigned to.

Kamoshida’s eyes turned to him. “And of course this scum here would turn out to be a mutineer. I knew he was bad news, when my friend asked me for him to join this crew.” And Akira was fairly certain Kamoshida wasn’t ever going to give him a chance.

“I was invited to an important event at the next port so I’ll wait to hand you over to the authorities in the next town.” Kamoshida went on, and Akira’s head was pounding already, and he wished he wasn’t so dizzy otherwise he’d have decked the captain’s stupid face just to get him to shut up.

“And you… I might already have a buyer in potential. If you live that long that is.”

It was clearly a petty vengeance coming from a pitiful man who cared more about humiliating others than he could care about money. He cared about having power over others, and he’d enjoy watching them squirm in place.

Akira was thrown in the brig, and heard the lock clicking heavily. He cursed under his breath, looking around.

There was a metal container there, filled with water and fixed to the floor with screws. It was occupied, unfortunately.

The merman he saw earlier looked in agony, his breathing shallow and fast. The harpoon had caught him by a few inches, and had been torn free of him as he struggled. What remained was an open wound on the side of his tail, ragged edges bleeding a startling red blood.

His scales were a gentle shade of gold. It seemed to gleam faintly in an ethereal way even under the dim light. It was this bit heartbreaking to see something this beautiful with a wound like that.

“I just wanna help.” He held his hands up, in what he hoped was a reassuring gesture.

The creature bared its teeth, snarling. He had very sharp teeth, indeed. Clearly made to tear flesh.

“It’s okay,” he said, trying to calm himself down, because if the merman was going to survive, Akira would have to do something to help. Kamoshida would clearly enjoy watching the specimen die slowly.

Akira reached a hand out.

The merman snapped his mouth, threatening a vicious bite.

The venom was known to paralyze its victim in a few seconds. Painful. Probably deadly, but as far as Akira knew merfolk liked to eat its food while it was still alive, so no one really knew if the venom was fatal.

Those who bought merfolk as exotic pets usually had them muzzled most of the time. Sedated when not. Some pulled off all of their teeth and used it as decoration.

A few tried to get rid of their vocal chords, because they hated the shrills merfolk made.

“C’mon, we need to get that treated. You don’t wanna give Kamoshida the satisfaction of actually killing you.”

That earned him a startled blink from the merman, followed by a resentful glare pointed at the door, where he last saw the captain.

“You’re right.” He seemed to deflate, and allowed Akira to come closer.

“So… if you don’t wanna hunt merfolk, why are you here?” The blond asked in a voice that trembled in pain, but he was bravely pretending otherwise.

Akira found himself telling it all. Maybe because it was the first friendly contact he had since he got arrested. Maybe because the blond made him feel oddly at ease. But as Akira tried his best to stop the bleeding using his own shirt, he started talking about before.

His tale had the merit of distracting the merman from the pain. When the blood stopped overflowing, and as he finished tying off the cloth around the wound, the blond was entirely caught up with the story.

“That’s horrible! It wasn’t fair. I can’t believe they did that to you. And now you got caught up with Kamoshida’s shit.”

Akira blinked, feeling a curious pressure on his throat. It was the first time anyone told him that. It was the first time anyone really looked at him after he was labeled a criminal.

But it made some sense, that another one that was seen as inherently evil and wicked would understand him. They both knew what humans could do to those they deemed too different.

“So… I’m guessing you’ve met Kamoshida personally before this.” Akira was curious about the merman’s reaction at seeing the man, and the disgust in his face at just uttering his name.

“Yeah. He kinda got me once already. He almost caught me and a group of my friends. But I stayed behind and gave them the alarm, and Kamoshida caught me and broke my tail. Sent me back just so all the others would see what happened to those who tried to save one another. He’s trying to divide us, so he can have an easier time catching us.” And he had already broken that one specimen, it wouldn’t be worth that much in the market. But it’d kept the others afraid enough.

“That’s... that’s horrible,” Akira breathed out.

The merman fell silent, and it was just then that Akira noticed how quiet everything was. The late afternoon had probably turned into night without him realizing it. The ship was rocking slightly, a bit differently from when they were at the shore. With a pang of anxiety, Akira realized they had set sail.

There was no way out, and the ship was silent as a tomb as the night grew late. Akira was glad for having company.

Until the next port at least. And then the merman would be sold off, and Akira would be handed over to the authorities and arrested.

They had little to occupy their days, but they had each other, at least. Theyplayed games, and talked, about nothing and everything.

“What do you miss the most, from back home?” Akira asked, one day.

“My mom. You?”

“I don’t think I have anything to go back to.”

Over the days, Akira learned that his new friend’s name was a couple of whistles he had no idea on how to pronounce. He was feeling a bit self conscious about his inability to say it, but the blond looked very frustrated as well as he tried saying his own name.

“Air is so weird,” the merman complained, trying saying his name again and just ended up producing some hisses.

Since he couldn’t tell his proper name out of the water, the blond insisted on Akira suggesting some human names that would fit him. He got into his head that it’d be cool to have another name. He was also extremely picky, and wanted something that sounded cool enough, and that had a relevant meaning.

After many names were discarded, one day, he settled on one.

“Ryuji. I like the sound of that. And I like that it was a warrior’s name. Ok, I’m Ryuji!”

Ryuji had a lot of scars. As if he had cut his back hitting his back on a sharp rock. A slightly crooked finger. A cut next to his eyebrow. Akira had expected for merfolk to have smooth and unblemished skin, but Ryuji wasn’t like that.

Akira wondered why he couldn’t find the blond any less pretty because of that. It was probably the smile. Ryuji had a beautiful smile, and a cute laugh.

Akira had never heard him singing, and he wondered if it was true their voice could put spells on people. His breathless laughter seemed to have a similar effect.

On that day, Ryuji started on the measly breakfast Kamoshida deemed to offer the prisoners, namely, a portion of fish.

“So… does your kind eat humans?” Akira asked, while he was gently washing the wound with what he could spare of the small supply of fresh water they were offered. Fortunately, merfolk seemed to have a much better time recovering from wounds, because it didn’t look infected. Could it be the seawater? Akira had so many questions. It was partially because he had never met a merman before, but it was also a lot just because he wanted to get to know Ryuji better.

The blond hummed as he acknowledged his question. Akira wondered if he should’ve started from another topic. He didn’t mean to sound judgemental. He really should try to improve his social skills...

“Some of us do,” Ryuji answered easily, seemingly unbothered by Akira’s bluntness. “Well, we’re all carnivores, and we are kinda similar to fishes, and humans, but we’re not those things. We wouldn’t eat another merfolk, but humans and fishes ain’t merfolk,” he reasoned. “Oh, but I’ve never eaten a human.”

He was born and raised on that specific part of the ocean, where hunting merfolk was pretty common, so it wasn’t really worth it to any of them to go after humans while in their original form. But they still learned human language so they could trick sailors into thinking they didn’t capture a mermaid, it was just that drunk lad over there who thought he saw a fishtail but he was wrong can’t you see my human legs and how I speak? Please let me go. “That’s kinda those poachers’ fault, tho.”

Akira looked thoughtful, but not afraid, and he didn’t stop treating his wound. Ryuji felt a swell of affection for that boy, so human and fragile, but so daring. So reckless. He’d probably try to befriend anything partially capable of understanding his words. And get his kind hand bitten by the creature. Mangled beyond recognition. Ryuji felt an uncomfortable twinge in his chest.

“I’d never eat you, tho.”

Akira tilted his head, apparently surprised.

“Why not?”

“Well, it’s like if you had a friendly... what do you guys eat for meat?”

“Fish as well. Duck. Pig. Rabbits.”

“Well imagine you had a fish as a pet. Or this pig you said. You think of it as your friend right? You wouldn’t eat it. You wouldn’t wanna.”

Akira huffed a laugh.

“What?! I’m being serious here, y’know?”

“Thanks.”

“What the hell…” he said, but he was laughing too, and Akira felt his heart beating a little too fast inside his chest.

At night, the chilly wind from outside passed through the gaps of the wood, dropping the temperature to an uncomfortable amount. Ryuji ran colder anyway, used to the water temperature of that region, so it took him a few nights to notice Akira wasn’t fairing very well. He woke up in the middle of the night to a small wound.

Akira’s naked torso shuddered as he drew in a breath. His shirt was being used as a makeshift bandage for the merman’s injured tail, and his ragged pants were made of a cheap and too thin fabric.

Ryuji gets out of the water then, lying down next to Akira.

“Will you be okay out of the water?”

Ryuji startled a little at hearing Akira’s voice, not having expected him to still be awake at that hour. But he supposed it was hard to fall asleep when he was that cold.

“If it dries up, after half an hour or so, my tail just changes into legs and I look like a human. I only need a few minutes in the water for it to come back, though.” The blond shrugged, coming closer and blocking a bit of the wind. “I’ve heard not all merfolk can do that, but our species around here can. My grandma says back in the day we used that to charm humans and trick them into falling in love with us. But I don’t know if it’s true.”

Akira considered the concept for a while, then made the very important math that soon enough Ryuji would be naked. Human naked. Of course Ryuji was kind of naked before, but that was different. Akira considered his options. Under his pants he was still using loose shorts as underwear. He could perfectly do without his pants, since his shorts came down to almost his knees. It wasn’t that proper, but who was he trying to impress anyway? It was more important not to have his attractive friend walking around naked.

“What you doing?” Ryuji curiously asked as he saw Akira getting up and taking off his pants.

“You can wear this when you get your legs. I-it can get a bit cold when you have legs,” he said, even if it was an excuse.

Ryuji shrugged, but seemed to believe his words, and kept the clothing in his hands.

They stayed close together, Ryuji trying to trap in a bit of Akira’s body heat. He’d probably be more comfortable in the water, which made Akira feel a bit guilty.

If the blond could make it to water, he could get away. Merfolk could swim miles, and too fast for any ship to pursue if they started running away, which was why they were mostly caught by using traps and other underhanded methods.

“What if I thought of a way to return you to the sea?” Akira asked quietly. “I could make a distraction and buy you a few minutes to swim away.”

Ryuji hesitated for a moment. It wasn’t something he liked to talk about, but then again, he trusted Akira.

“... I don’t think I’d get very far.”

“Why not?” Akira asked softly.

You know you can tell me anything.

Ryuji knew it. It felt a bit shameful anyway.

What’s a merman worth if he cannot even swim properly?

“I’m not… I mean, I can still swim, but I’m really slow. After… Kamoshida broke my tail, I couldn’t swim as before. I’m slow and I tire easily,” he admitted, looking away, missing the crushed look on Akira’s eyes as he realized the extent of the damage Kamoshida had inflicted on his friend. “Sometimes I think I should give up on the sea.”

“But you love it, right?”

Ryuji wasn’t used to anyone being able to look at him and… see him. It was incredibly nice, even if it made his heart hurt a little.

“Yeah, I do.”

They were silent for a few more minutes. The tiniest window on the opposite side of their cell allowed for a stream of moonlight. Akira contemplated it for a bit, until he heard Ryuji hissing, and he turned to look.

His hair was still messy and spiky, but it was tinted a common black, and his teeth were rounded and human. His canines still looked a little too sharp, but it was mostly imperceptible.

Akira very firmly didn’t look down.

Ryuji noticed him staring at his face, and he half smiled, making a valiant effort into putting on that piece of clothing Akira offered. It felt weird on his skin. He put one leg in one hole, and the other in the other hole, and pulled the cloth up. Then, he tied again the bandage around his newly formed leg. The wound looked more gruesome on his human skin, located somewhere close to his shin.

“So… how do I look?” he asked as he finished putting on the ragged clothing, and dressing his wound on his leg.

“You look like a thug.”

“Hey!”

Akira huffed a laugh, and Ryuji laughed back.

He took a moment to look at Akira’s eyes, the gentle curve of his nose, the pale pink of his lips. Ryuji’s heart did a funny thing in his chest when he did that last thing. Akira wetted his lips after a moment, and Ryuji looked away as quick as he could, his heart jackrabbiting against his ribs.

When he thought he had escaped that weird feeling in his chest, Akira’s deep and smooth voice sounded again, and Ryuji’s heart continued racing. It started doing that lately, when Akira did or said some things.

“I barely know how to swim,” Akira offered with a shrug. “I mean, I don’t think I’d drown if I fell in the water, but I wouldn’t last much there.” He could dog paddle and that was about it. Did it work? Yes, but that surely as hell wasn’t meant to be done for more than a couple of minutes.

Swimming wasn’t something he was expecting to need in his life, since his parents owned a farm, but then again since when his life went according to the plan?

Ryuji perked up at the information, though.

“I could teach you! You may need it someday! It’s… everything is so heavy outside of the water. You can’t go up, you have always to walk on the stupid ground and it’s…” He just couldn’t find words to tell. “Swimming is just the best thing. And the fastest you go, the better it feels. It can be useful even when you go back home.”

“I’d like that.” Akira’s gaze was far away, and he sounded oddly melancholic.

“Yeah… anyway, after we get out of here, we could travel the world together.”

“You… Will you want to stay with me? Even after you’re free to go?”

“‘Course. We’re friends, and I think it’d be awesome to go on an adventure, and help people on our way.” And he would have a chance to finally feel worthy, and to make his mom proud of him.

And there was no one else he’d rather go with on an adventure than with Akira. The realization hit him all at once.

“You’re my friend. And… Y’know how I told ya swimming made me feel? Being with you is kinda the same. I feel free.”

Ryuji aimed a bright smile at him, and Akira felt his heart skipping a beat, tripping over while doing something it should know how to do.

“I know a mermaid,” Ryuji continued, excited about the idea of their new adventure. “She’s travelled to other seas, she might know her way around. After we break out of here, maybe at the next stop for supplies, we could ask her for directions and then when Kamoshida notices we escaped, we’ll be far from his stupid ship.”

Akira nodded, thoughtfully.

“Sounds good.”

“Awesome! Then we have a plan.”

It was the thinnest skeleton of a plan, but it was enough for them. They could always wing it from there.

The day their lives really started to change started off as any other. Ryuji was restlessly sitting on his small container of water as he told stories about his life in the sea. Akira had started teaching him how to properly walk on two legs, in exchange of being taught on how to swim at the next chance they got. They had just stopped their training when they heard a commotion outside.

And then a small tuxedo cat gets thrown in the brig with them, screeching bloody murder. One of the poachers used one side of a manacle to put around its neck, and chained it to the wall just outside their cell. The crewmate looked warily at the animal, and threw the keys inside, hoping that the monster the captain caught would dissuade the cat from trying to get to the keys. Akira found it particularly odd, that anyone would put that much effort into capturing a cat. And found it even more odd that the crewmate somehow thought the cat could escape if he got the key.

The cat screamed well after the crewmate left, and it needed a minute before noticing there were more people in the room.

“Woah! A huge tuna! Looks yummy…” the cat actually talked.

“Gah! Aki, what is that thing?!”

Ryuji grabbed Akira’s arm, hiding slightly behind him and glaring at the newcomer. Just in case- he had never seen this cat thing before, but apparently it thought he was food because he had a fish tail- the blond leapt off the container, hoping to get his legs back soon.

“Huh… a cat. But I’ve never seen a talking cat before.”

“And I’ve never seen a talking tuna before.”

“Cat, stop saying my friend looks like a tuna.” Akira didn’t know enough about fish to tell, but Ryuji’s tail didn’t look like a tuna's tail.

“I’m not a cat and I have a proper name.” The cat tried to stand a little taller, but the metal of the manacles was suffocating him a bit. “I’m Morgana.”

They blinked at him. Akira knew he should have started to expect the unexpected since he befriended a merman, but seeing a talking cat was still weird.

“So… will you two let me out? Please, I can help you two as well!”

Ryuji hesitated.

“I dunno… Should we trust him, Aki?”

The cat looked quite miserable, and Akira pondered his options. He hated to see how they trapped such a small animal, and if the cat was imprisoned like them, he probably was an enemy of Kamoshida. Something in his guts told him it was an important decision, and that he kind of knew what he would be choosing from the start.

He really hoped he didn’t regret that choice.

He freed the cat, who took his time to stretch its lean spine and flex his legs. But, true to his word, Morgana leapt up and started trying to pick the keys to their cell from the hook where they hung. He had to insist for a few minutes, but he eventually got them and picked it up with his mouth, treading to their cell.

“There! It wasn’t a bad deal, was it?” He preened, while Akira made a quick job of opening the cell.

“But now what, cat?” Ryuji sullenly asked.

“There’s a storm coming pretty soon, you dumbasses. I’ve been roaming this ship since we left the port, I know the crewmate’s schedules, so we can sneak around them. And then you two can swim to the shore, we’re not that far away, but they won’t notice you’re gone, and they wouldn’t go after you in this weather.”

“What about you?”

“I still have some business here, but I can get out when we reach land. I can hide, I just got caught this time because the stupid captain got up at night out of nowhere…”

“Whaddya think, Aki?”

“Well, I think it’s the better shot we’ll have. I think we can manage to swim, if we’re that close to land. You can swim as slow as you need, and I won’t have to swim a big distance, I think it’s doable. After that, we can hide for a bit, and then go after your friend and ask for directions, and then we’ll see what happens.”

Ryuji nodded, and they all waited until he got his legs again and dressed up, and then they were on the run.

They parted ways with the cat somewhere along a corridor, with instructions about how to get on the deck.

The storm was fierce, having picked up in a matter of minutes, and Akira barely managed to keep upright as the ship lurched to the side. They emerged from below deck to the howling wind and thundering skies. Ryuji faltered, his leg still hurting from the wound, and from using muscles he wasn’t used to.

When the blond crashed into a few crates, they swayed to the side and slid downstairs just to crash into a door. The captain’s door, by the look of it, but they were sprinting on the slippery wood of the deck and running for their lives.

But of course, they weren’t alone above deck.

“They’re running away!”

The storm was sending huge waves that were washing over the wooden floor, tilting the ship in absurd angles, making it absolutely impossible to run. Akira froze in place, and whirled around to look at any possible weapons. Maybe if he took down that group of sailors, before anyone else noticed, on the off chance no one heard the alarm over the roaring of the storm-

It was then that Kamoshida showed up.

“Shoot them!”

Ryuji collided against his side, and the world tilted off its axis as they plunged into the water.

Akira tried to keep his head above the crashing waves, but he only managed to swallow an entire mouthful of seawater. As another wave passed above his head, his body was thrown to the side.

As he tried to swim up, he realized he couldn’t tell up from down even with his eyes wide open. The water was too deep and his lungs burned for air. Everything was salty water that burned his eyes and constricted his lungs from the outside.

The stormy sea at night was every bit as terrifying as he had heard about, and he was lost.

Ryuji’s voice was forming a series of shrills and clickings but everything was drowned out by the roaring in his ears.

Akira shook his head desperatedly, not understanding a single sound out of Ryuji’s mouth, his lungs spasming as he couldn’t hold his breath anymore.

His panic was suddenly cut off by soft lips on his mouth, strong hands framing his face gently. His heart swelled, and it was the sweetest thing he had ever tasted.

It was entirely like a breath of air.

Akira instinctively closed his eyes and let himself savour it, feeling a sudden rush of life running down his whole body.

There was a gentle thumb caressing his cheek, and suddenly Akira forgot entirely about menial things like air. His hands cradled the hands on his face, and he kissed back because he had sort of been wanting to do that for weeks.

It felt absolutely amazing.

They pulled apart, and Akira remembered again he was still underwater.

Ryuji’s lips mouthed human words for him, gesticulating his meaning.

Breathe.

Akira realised then and there that he really trusted Ryuji with his life. He tried to breathe.

It was the weirdest sensation ever. He shouldn’t be able to do that. But somehow as the water rushed into his mouth, his lungs stopped hurting as if he had taken a breath of fresh air.

Ryuji pulled him along, swimming slower than ever with his still human legs, away from the ship. After a minute or two, he got his tail back, and then he started to swim more easily. He brought them away from the eye of the storm, and away from Kamoshida, deciding to take the longer way to the shore, just in case.

They slowly made their way back to the surface, and when they emerged, Akira immediately turned to look at the merman. He felt a lot conscious of the fact that Ryuji’s strong arms were keeping him afloat. They were also really close, and Akira felt his cheeks flushing.

“W-what? How did I…?” It was raining softly over their heads, but he barely noticed.

How am I alive?

“A-a mermaid kiss can make you able to breathe underwater for some hours.”

“O-oh.” So Ryuji was just trying to help. Akira felt oddly disappointed. “Thanks.”

“A-anytime?” As soon as the words left his lips- that felt like they were still tingling with the kiss- Ryuji realised how much he meant it.

“Really?”

And Ryuji wondered if he imagined the small spark of hope in Akira’s voice. On the off chance he had been right, he decided to push it a little bit.

“Yeah. I liked it.”

Akira’s lips curled into a small smile, but he looked a little embarrassed, a blush still high on his cheeks.

“... You know, I think I’m still feeling a little out of breath.”

“For real?!” Ryuji blinked, confused. It should have worked! Maybe he didn’t kiss him right?

Akira huffed a laugh.

“No.”

“Then what- oh. Oh.” Realization dawned on him all at once, and Ryuji felt his heart soaring.

“Ok?” Akira asked.

Ryuji excitedly jumped him, and his kiss tasted like the sea.

Akira couldn’t stop himself from smiling throughout that kiss and the next one, and the next one.

If they kept that up, he’d have enough in him to spend his whole life living in the sea and never come up for air ever again.

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houseisekai · 3 years

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House Isekai: Shadowbringers Act 2, Part 3 - Crossroads

House Isekai Shadowbringers AU Masterlist Here

—

Lahabrea, the Blue Lions, Black Eagles, Ashen Wolves, and House Isekai have finally arrived at Derdriu, awaiting the Golden Deer and the Investigation Team.

Only now does Lahabrea give them the answers they have been waiting for, and the war to finish before time runs out...

[No Greater Sorrow - Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers OST]

Byleth slowly opened his eyes, the light from the windows blinding him.

(Byleth) “Where in the hell...?”

(Minato’s voice) “Oh hey, you’re awake.”

Byleth turned to his side and saw several of the Persona Users in the beds next to him.

(Minako) “Oh, thank god you’re alright!”

(Akira) “Hey, Byleth.”

He slowly sat upright on his bed, reaching for his head.

(Byleth) “Where are we?”

(Mitsuru) “We’re in Derdriu. The journey took a day or two but now we’re just waiting for Claude to arrive in order to discuss our next course of action.”

(Byleth) “And where is everyone else?...Actually, why are you all in the Infirmary with me?”

(Ryuji) “Those voices or whatever is effin’ with our heads. We almost passed out but we seemed to see the same thing...Some kinda tower?”

(Junpei) “That Lahabrea guy better have some answers, I’m sick of being left in the dark.”

(Byleth) “...You may not like what you’ll hear.”

(Minako) “Did he tell you what was happening?”

Byleth hesitated at first, but he responded with a nod.

(Akechi) “That’s just damn great...”

(Akira) “We should probably let the others know you’re alright.”

The Persona users got up and left, though a few stayed behind.

(Minako) “Um...i-it’s good seeing you again, Byleth.”

(Minato) “It’s probably the best news we’ve gotten in a while.”

(Akira) “We’ll see you outside.”

(Byleth) “...Thanks.”

Byleth couldn’t look them in the eye as they spoke. He wasn’t sure he could look at anyone, making him anxious to face House Isekai again.

...

(Claude) “Home sweet home.”

The Golden Deer and Investigation Team finally arrived back in Derdriu, and walked over the hill to the gate.

(Percy) “Milord!”

(Claude) “Hey, Percy. Open the gates for us?”

(Percy) “Of course. You’ll be pleased to know your guests have arrived just last night.”

(Claude) “Go on ahead without me, I’ll be telling the guards to prepare for the worst.”

Everyone nodded and did as he asked.

...

Doomguy and the Ashen Wolves strolled around town due to the lack of having anything better to do.

(Balthus) “Man, anything would be better than just calmly waiting for the Church or Those Who Slither to get a drop on us.”

(Yuri) “Patience big guy. We can’t afford to go hunting when we don’t even know what the hell’s going on. Our time for fighting will come soon enough.”

(Constance) “And what a fantastic time it will be! Fodlan’s fate will be back where it belongs, us!”

(Hapi) “Well we also gotta worry about what the three nations will do after this without Teary and the others keeping them in check. Am I right?”

Hapi turned to Doomguy for at least a nod or shrug. She got neither as he stared to their side.

(Doomguy) “...”

(Hapi) “Hey, Teary, everything alright?”

Doomguy frowned. He thought he saw something move out of their field of vision.

He would have left it alone, but knowing their situation...

Doomguy held up a hand and brought out his shotgun, motioning the Ashen Wolves to head back to the building.

(Yuri) “That’s...discouraging.”

(Hapi) “We should get back to the others.”

They nodded and broke out into a light jog.

...

Byleth staggered out the door of the infirmary to see a few familiar faces.

(Sharon) “Master Byleth, it is good to see you.”

(Cocytus) “WELCOME BACK.”

(Sara) “Jeez, about time.”

(Towa) “Instructor!”

(Angelica) “Yo.”

(Megumi) “Thank goodness you’re awake.”

(Sitri) “Byleth...”

(Byleth) “Thanks. Where is everyone?”

(Sara) “Doomguy went out with the Ashen Wolves to just take a look around the city while the others are here and there in the building.”

(Byleth) “And Lahabrea?”

(Angelica) “In a room upstairs, alone. He said not to call him until Claude was here.”

Knock knock!

(Yu) “Hello? It’s the In-...!!! Oh!”

(Towa) “Yu!”

The rest of the Investigation Team and Golden Deer came through the door.

(Hilda) “Well, well!”

(Yosuke) “Hoho MAN, you guys are a sight for sore eyes!”

Yu took Byleth’s hand and shook it firmly.

(Yu) “Good to see you again, sir.”

(Byleth) “Likewise. Sorry it took so long.”

(Leonie) “Better late than never!”

The other staff smiled as they caught up with the Investigation Team.

(Megumi) “Yuki and the others will be so happy to see you again!”

(Cocytus) “SO, WE HAVE EVERYONE TOGETHER ONCE AGAIN. WHERE IS CLAUDE?”

The door opened once again as if on cue.

(Claude) “Kept ya waiting long?”

He smiled as the rest of House Isekai started to come down the stairs, followed by the Blue Lions and Black Eagles.

(Dimitri) “Claude!”

(Edelgard) “For once, I am relieved to see you.”

(Claude) “Jeez, you’re gonna make a guy blush with compliments like that.”

(Yu) “Long time no see everyone.”

(Yuuri) “YOU GUYS ARE OKAY!”

(Rean) “Hah, I don’t think we had to doubt that, Yuki.”

(Akira) “You guys are more stubborn than us.”

(Minato) “Hey.”

(Minako) “House Isekai is all here again!”

(Ainz) “Unfortunate that we cannot celebrate...”

He examined the room and did a mental head count.

(Claude) “All that’s left should be...”

(Yuri) “That would be us.”

The Ashen Wolves and Doomguy showed up behind Claude, waving.

This was the first time Sitri had seen everyone together like this. It made her smile, knowing how big the family taking care of Byleth was.

(Sitri) “The gang’s all here now.”

(Lahabrea’s voice) “So it would seem.”

[Tears in the Rain - Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers]

Everyone looked up the stairs to see Lahabrea leaning against a wall, with Sothis floating beside him.

(Sothis) “Well, you all wanted answers? We’ll give them to you.”

Lahabrea nodded and looked at everyone. Part of him wanted to smile, seeing everyone united like this.

But they were far from being in a happy mood.

(Kazuma) “First of all, just who the fuck are you? You know our past and have your own Sothis, yet we only know our Byleth!”

(Lahabrea) “My name is Byleth Eisner. I am the real one. The real one you’ve seen in all those flashes when your voices echo in your heads.”

(Minako) “That would explain why it feels so real but...We’ve always known our Byleth to be the real one, what makes you so different?”

(Sothis) “Those voices are your past memories. With us two. Up until just this time, you had always been with us everytime you appeared-”

(Aqua) “Woah woah woah, hang on! We’ve only been here once, what are you going on about ‘everytime we appeared’?”

(Lahabrea) “Some of you are aware of the ‘Divine Pulse’ ability, right?”

(Emma) “That time reversal that Sothis and Byleth do?”

Lahabrea nodded. Most of House Isekai looked confused but those who weren’t affected by it could follow.

(Lahabrea) “You all first arrived individually. First it was only Kazuma’s group. We went through 6 years of hell together, and when the war was finished, we were sent back right to the beginning, when Dimitri, Claude, and Edelgard arrived to Remire Village. Then taking Kazuma’s place at the next loop was Class VII, and so on. Time forcefully resets everytime you go home...and I cannot begin to fathom why.”

(Yu) “So, how is Sothis here? If that’s the case, every loop Sothis would have fused with you, right?”

(Sothis) “It’s because I fused with him that I am here right now. I was not truly gone the first time we fused, but it seems whatever force is at work keeps bringing me back.”

(Lahabrea) “And it was during the final loop we did, we reset time ourselves using the Tower at Zanado.”

(Rean) “But, there wasn’t a tower when we were there.”

(Akira) “No I...I think there was?”

Yu turned to Akira.

(Yu) “Was it half made out of what looked like stone and scifi tech?”

(Minako) “Yeah actually, how did you?-”

(Claude) “We confirmed the tower’s presence ourselves. Had a nice visit in it too...”

(Yuuri) “Um, what actually is that tower?”

(Lahabrea) “For now, it’s best to hear it yourselves. Honestly, not even we understand it.”

Lahabrea pulled out a crystal and it began its playback.

“I don’t know if anyone will be seeing this message, whether that be myself or anyone else who comes into this godforsaken tower but…My name is Byleth Eisner. Son of Jeralt Eisner.”

...

Everyone listened to the entire message, and when it finished, most of them were left in a state of shock.

(Lahabrea) “Since you went into the Tower, I can only assume you saw the skies turn a pale white?”

(Claude) “Something like that. Even in Inaba it followed.”

(Miki) “Inaba? As in-”

(Yu) “Our town, yes. We were wanting to say that tower in Zanado started showed up and is releasing shadows onto the real world.”

The Persona Users turned pale.

(Yukari) “S-Shadows are loose right now in all of our homes?!”

(Lahabrea) “So far, just the Persona User’s worlds. But that won’t be for long. Which brings us to why we have you all gathered under a single banner.”

(Sothis) “You all were NEVER meant to be here. At all. Whatever our previous selves did, it caused a catastrophic rip in reality, at least that’s what we’re guessing.”

(Lahabrea) “And we only made it worse by using Divine Pulse ourselves. It’s why House Isekai exists.”

(Megumi) “S-So...our existence here was a mistake?”

It pained Lahabrea to do so, but he nodded.

(Lahabrea) “Yes. And since you all have been here for so long, it’s now starting to affect your worlds.”

The crystal Lahabrea was holding quickly shifted into a reflection that displayed Tokyo, Tatsumi Port Island, and Inaba, the tower being the most noticeable thing in the reflection.

(Lahabrea) “The longer you are here, the worse this effect will become. Our worlds are merging. All of ours.”

(Naoto) “That...makes sense! It’s why Dojima was able to understand Claude and the others!”

Now, it was the School-Living Club’s turn to feel sick.

(Kurumi) “Then...that means...?!”

(Yuuri) “The infection...!”

(Lahabrea) “Will be in Fodlan, yes.”

(Miki) “W-What can we do to stop it?!”

(Sothis) “We honestly don’t know. Our plan right now is to stop whatever remnants of the world we destroyed. Those Who Slither and the Church has technology from that time, and is whats making them able to wage this war.”

Sara turned to Byleth.

(Sara) “...So where’s our Byleth come into this? He’s been quiet this entire time.”

Byleth looked away.

(Lahabrea) “...You saw the Angels at Enbarr. What their infection does to people. It’s affecting Byleth as well.”

(Everyone) !!!

(Sitri) “T-Then that means?!”

(Byleth) “I’m slowly turning into an Angel....”

(Lahabrea) “I’ve done what I can to delay the process, but its why Byleth is able to permanently kill Inquisitors. But...”

(Byleth) “So far we haven’t been able to find a cure. I will die if it is not found.”

(Megumi) “WHAT?!”

(Lahabrea) “Which is why we need to strike now. If we can stop Those who Slither and the Church before his transformation and our worlds merge.”

Yuri frowned as the light from the window blinded him.

(Yuri) “Looks like we’ll get that chance faster than you think.”

[Will and Reason - Tales of Berseria OST]

Cyril and Alois walked towards the gate as the skies turned into a pale white, soldiers rushing to the gate.

(Percy) “Hey, what’s the meaning of this?! You are not authorized to be in Alliance territory-”

(Cyril) “By order of Lady Rhea, we are to execute the Warrior of Darkness! Any resistance will be met with force, do not interfere!”

The church soldiers kicked open the gates and stormed Derdriu, surrounding all exits.

(Alois) “If we do see him...let me speak first, Cyril.”

(Cyril) “Fine. Make it quick if you are able.”

Everyone looked out the window, grabbing their weapons.

(Claude) “Get Judith and the rest of our forces ready. I don’t think I can talk my way out this one.”

(Edelgard) “I don’t think there’s much point hiding your involvement with us. Perhaps if the three of our forces went out and confronted them, we could buy some time.”

(Yu) “That could work.”

(Rean) “Whatever we’re doing, just make it fast!”

(Claude) “Edelgard, let’s go with yours. Just follow my lead though.”

Dimitri and Edelgard nodded. House Isekai and the Ashen Wolves snuck further into the building as the three classes marched out the building.

(Cyril) “Claude von Riegan.”

(Claude) “Hey, Cyril, Alois. Been a hot minute since we saw each other, yeah? I take it you got promoted to Inquisitors-”

(Alois) “Where is Byleth?”

(Claude) “...Byleth? What makes you think he’d be here-”

(Cyril) “DO YOU THINK US FOOLS?! WHERE IS HE?!”

Dimitri and Edelgard looked to their sides to see soldiers closing in on them, weapons drawn.

Hubert held up a hand to not retaliate just yet.

(Alois) “Lord Dimitri, Emperor Edelgard...I was under the impression you were fighting one another.”

(Claude) “They are here in neutral territory to call a truce, so to speak.”

(Alois) “...And I was also under the impression that his highness was kidnapped by members of House Isekai. Clearly I was mistaken.”

Cyril frowned and grabbed his weapon.

(Cyril) “You are aware of what the Church’s sentence is for treason, correct?”

(Claude) “Sure am.”

No one made a move, both sides were waiting to see what would happen first.

(Alois) !? “What in the...?”

Edelgard noticed a bright light coming from her and realized a blue flame surrounded her and the other Black Eagles members.

Before they knew it, their clothes transformed, all the members wearing a mask and costume.

Edelgard was now in her Flame Emperor outfit, with the bottom half of her mask gone.

(Dedue) “Isn’t that just like...?”

(Hilda) “Akira?!”

(Cyril) “The Phantom Thieves?!”

(Edelgard) “Well, I guess that’s as good as a cue as any-”

[Tempest of Seasons (Rain) - Fire Emblem: Three Houses OST]

Edelgard unsheathed Aymr and swung it at the two, causing the debris beneath them to explode.

Everyone else followed suit and began their assault as Alois and Cyril barely dodged Edelgard’s attack.

Before any of the Church knights could respond, many of them were picked off by the gun wielders of House Isekai, who drove them further up the street.

Alliance Soldiers intercepted them and attacked with swords and bows, leaving Alois and Cyril to the classes.

Claude fired an arrow at Cyril, but was deflected by Alois’s siheld.

Dimitri and Edelgard charged in and tried to attack from the sides, but Cyril blocked Dimitri as his wyvern swooped in and knocked back Edelgard.

Hubert snapped his fingers and a massive black fireball fired from his tome and blew up a group of knights, as Dedue and Hilda crushed ones that came too close into the floor.

Another group of church knights came around the corner and were about to charge before being blasted into the wall by a light spell.

One of them tried to get back up before his leg suddenly in the opposite direction, making him fall over as blood burst out of his throat.

Kazuma became visible, taking his knife out the Church Knight as he turned behind him.

(Kazuma) “DARKNESS!”

Darkness charged in and swung her sword at the knocked down soldiers, hitting the pillar nearby, making it tip over and crush them.

(Darkness) “Wha-BUT I HIT THEM!”

(Kazuma) “Fuck it, doesn’t matter, keep going!”

Aqua and Megumin followed behind Kazuma and Darkness, causing mayhem for the Knights.

Several Alliance soldiers were outmatched by the Church knights, injured on the floor about to be killed.

Only a few of them were able to be saved as Lorenz, Lysithea, Caspar, and Sylvain killed the knights attacking them.

Lorenz and Lysithea opened their tomes and fired several Thorons, piercing through their helmets and blasting their heads off. Their bodies quickly dissolved into white dust, with Caspar punching a hole through a knight and Sylvain ran over one with his horse.

(Caspar) “Hey, we need a medic over here!”

Mercedes, Linhardt, and Marianne ran over and began to heal the soldiers they could as the others ran in from behind.

Linhardt raised his head and saw a few of the group running on top of the walls surrounding the city.

The Denizens of Nazarick, Class VII, and the Phantom Thieves looked around them to see the fighting continued on the outside, the advantage being on the Knights’ side.

(Ainz) “We cannot afford to retreat and lose the only city where we have refuge! Do whatever it takes!”

(Albedo) “Yes, Lord Ainz!”

Ainz began giving directions to the rest of his group as they ran, giving himself and two others a necklace of flight.

(Ainz) “Cocytus, Pandora’s Actor, with me, we go after any reinforcements that may be on their way!”

They flew off far past the main gate, leaving the Phantom Thieves and Class VII on the walls.

(Elliot) “L-Look, some of the knights made it to the walls!”

(Rean) “Class VII, take them out!”

(Sara) “They’re only monsters now, so aim to kill!”

(Class VII) “Yeah!” “Got it!” “Understood.”

(Akira) “Leave closing the gates to us. Joker, out.”

He winked at Rean and gracefully leapt off the walls and onto the roofs, the Phantom Thieves using their Personas to get around.

Lahabrea and Byleth saw the Phantom Thieves hop over their head as they looked at the battle.

(Lahabrea) “You know the deal. Captains first, then get away before you’re spotted. No witnesses.”

Byleth nodded as they moved across the shadows, though Byleth couldn’t help but take a second to glance at the group near them.

The Ashen Wolves and School-Living Club, and Sitri were helping the civilians evacuate as S.E.E.S, the Investigation Team and Doomguy protected them from incoming knights.

(Kanji) “How do these assholes even have these many soldiers?!”

(Akihiko) “The fight they’re putting up is a lot fiercer than 5 years ago!”

Their personas killed the knights with ease, though with everyone they got rid of, five more seemed to take his place.

The School-Living Club felt out of their element here as arrows whizzed by everyone's’ head, but still they persevered.

(Megumi) “Get to the main capital building, you’ll be safe there!”

Kurumi did what she could to slow down any of the knights with her shovel by getting the jump on them, but she could already feel eyes on her. Her luck wouldn’t last forever.

(Yuuri) “P-Please keep your head down and move to that building over there, we’ll protect you!”

(Woman) “T-Thank you dear!”

(Hapi) “Shut up and get moving.”

The woman nodded and did as she was told.

Yuuri and Miki were the farthest from the group, helping out a child who was hiding underneath the carriage.

(Miki) “No knights are around right now, you have to get moving!”

(Yuki) “We’ll protect you, take my hand!”

The child nodded and took Yuki’s hand. Once he was out, his eyes went wide as he pointed behind them.

(Child) “W-WATCH OUT!”

Yuki and Miki turned around to see several figures in black fire a spell at them.

They were too slow to react and took the hit directly, sending them flying back into the carriage.

Megumi got distracted when she saw what happened to them, causing her to panic.

Megumi ran over to the two, grabbing a nearby board to attack the hooded figures before she stopped moving entirely, feeling something go through her stomach.

(Sitri) “MEGUMI!”

[Those Who Sow Darkness - Fire Emblem: Three Houses OST]

An Agarthan took the dagger out of her as he filled the gap with some dark magic, causing her to scream in pain.

Doomguy spun around at the noise and saw what was happening and immediately jumped into action.

(Yu) “Huh?- NO!”

(Minako) “Where did they-?!”

(Minato) “GOD DAMN IT!”

(Yuri) “BEHIND US, AGARTHANS!”

Doomguy cleaved the Agarthan in half with his wrist blade and threw his body at the mages who were getting close to Yuki and Miki, about to do the same thing to Megumi.

The Persona Users began engaging the ones who weren’t hit as the Knights backed off.

(Alois) “Those who Slither as well?!”

(Cyril) “Tch, the heretics developing the powers of House Isekai?! We have to go back and warn Lady Rhea, KNIGHTS, RETREAT, WE ARE OUTMATCHED!”

The knights immediately began to pull back. Alois sighed, hoping to see Byleth, but held his tongue and followed orders.

The skies turned back to a normal color as the Church withdrew, though it was far from good news.

Doomguy ran over and grabbed Yuki and Miki and set them next to Megumi.

(Yuuri) “No no no no!”

(Kurumi) “W-What’s happening, how did they get behind us?!”

(Sitri) “Is she alright?!”

Doomguy didn’t respond as he immediately began scanning the three for injuries.

For Yuki and Miki, it appeared worse than it actually was, the worst being a few burn marks, but for Megumi...

Something was spreading throughout her body, but it didn’t look like anything he’s seen.

Everyone stopped fighting when they saw the knights pull back and saw the Agarthans teleport in.

(Agarthan) “There you all are...Saves us the trouble of hunting you down individually.”

The Agarthans went to the dead and raised their hand to them, deploying a black fog that went into the bodies that made them shake violently, dissolving into a black goo as their essence went to the center where Edelgard, Dimitri, and Claude was.

(Agarthan) “I see the Church has their own version of our spell. Interesting, but inferior. Honestly, we have no idea how they got their hands on this, but thank you for bringing it to our attention.”

He began laughing as all the black substance was forming into a colossal shape behind him, even ones from outside the gate were getting in.

Some bits and pieces were left off from bodies that were too far, and began rising from the dead.

(Kurumi) “Not again!”

Kurumi raised her shovel and attacked one of the creatures by dislodging the shovel’s head into its neck.

The creature’s neck twisted 180 to face Kurumi, making her back off.

Doomguy gave Kurumi a pistol as he cocked his shotgun and blew the creature into pieces.

They looked around them and they were starting to get surrounded.

(Kurumi) “Do your thing, I got us covered!”

Doomguy nodded and began rip and tearing into the creatures, leaving Kurumi and Yuuri to deal with the stragglers. Yuuri grabbed Kurumi’s shovel while Sitri grabbed a sword on the floor.

She had no idea how to use it, but that wouldn’t stop her.

The Persona Users and Ashen Wolves were too busy trying to evacuate the citizens and were holding off the stragglers on their own as well.

Megumi slowly opened her eyes and saw what was going on. There was no way anyone could spare the help in time before they got overrun.

(Megumi) I have to...!

She got up, though every fiber of her body was in utter pain doing so.

(Megumi) “Kurumi....h-hand me the pistol.”

(Kurumi) “What?! But-”

(Megumi) “It’s...not, a request!”

She grabbed her and Yuuri’s shoulders.

(Megumi) “Get Miki and Yuki out of here, now...! Sitri, watch over them for me?”

(Sitri) “Y-Yes.”

They reluctantly nodded and did as she told. As they ran, a few of them tried to chase them before Megumi caught the creatures attention by blasting their heads off.

(Megumi) “Everyone...please, be safe...”

Clenching her teeth in pain, she thanked Doomguy for having a pistol that didn’t have to reload as she gave cover fire to her students.

...

(Dimitri) “YAAAAGH!”

Dimitri stuck his lance into the blob before it could form anything, but when he pulled it out nothing happened.

(Agarthan) “HAH! Your feeble weapons will do nothing to our creation! Accept your fate and die like the dogs you are!”

The blob finally formed into a bipedal monster, it had massive claws on its hands, and spikes on its back. Six eyeballs covered the left and right side of its body and It’s head was something akin to a bull as it used the horns to charge into the fountain, sending the three and concrete into the air.

They landed next to each other, and got up quickly, trying to find any weak spots.

(Claude) “Any plans? Edelgard, you seem to have Akira’s power, can you do that crazy Persona thing?!”

(Edelgard) “N-No, it only affects the clothes, I’m a bit faster and stronger but other than that, nothing!”

(Dimitri) “I have nothing on me!”

The Agarthan continued to laugh until he saw something out of the corner of his eye walk in from the shadows of a building.

[Boss Theme #2 - Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers OST]

(Byleth) “You’re going to pay for what you did.”

(Agarthan) “T-THE WARRIOR OF DARKNESS?! KILL HIM, KILL HIM NOW!”

Before the Agarthan could do anything, his vision suddenly went flying into the air, and as it landed, he could see his own body on the rock, headless.

The body fell onto the floor as Lahabrea stepped into view, deactivating the whip function on his sword.

(Lahabrea) “Everyone else is currently dealing with the Agarthans. Big one is left to us, no objections?”

(Byleth) “None at all.”

Byleth and Lahabrea struck as one, going for the legs which only made their weapons bounce off.

Claude fired several arrows at various parts of the body, seeing what would connect.

The arrows that seemed to have any affect were ones shot at the eyes on the body.

Only one arrow pierced through one of the left eyes on its torso as it screamed in pain, and used its massive arms to block the rest.

(Dimitri) “Seems a lot smarter than the one at Enbarr!”

(Edelgard) “Let’s hope its not as stubborn!”

Dimitri and Edelgard charged head on to the bull-like creature, with it charging in response.

Combining their strength, they were barely able to block its charge, driving their feet deep into the concrete, making every muscle in their body burn from the sheer force.

Lahabrea and Byleth hopped onto the arms and plunged their swords into the eye sockets of the head.

It screamed in pain, but didn’t stagger it as much as they were hoping to, in fact it didn’t at all.

The bull rose its head, sending Dimitri and Edelgard into the air as it grabbed Byleth and Lahabrea.

Before it could do anything, Sothis teleported behind the bull and summoned a meteor above it, the meteor smashing it over the head making it drop the two in pain.

Dimitri plunged his lance into the head as he landed, holding on for dear life as it swung violently around trying to get him off.

Edelgard barely managed to catch herself as she landed, trying to figure out how to get close without being crushed.

Claude seized the opportunity and fired arrows into the eyes on the body.

He managed to get three on the right side, but the creature was quick to block the rest.

(Byleth) “DIMITRI, DRIVE IT INTO THE FLOOR!”

Dimitri roared with rage as took out his lance and smashed the bull’s head, the impact of his hit forcing the bull to slam onto the floor.

The eyes blinked with confusion as Edelgard, Lahabrea, and Byleth took out the remaining three eyes, this time making the bull flail violently, its limbs akin to a toddler throwing a tantrum.

Edelgard was hit by the fist and was sent flying into Claude while Byleth and Lahabrea jumped out the way in time.

Dimitri got to its left side, and was about to strike one of the eyes before all five looked at him and a fist almost crushed Dimitri.

He fell onto the floor after narrowingly dodging the attack while Byleth and Lahabrea ran behind him.

The bull covered its left side with both arms, circling around them.

(Lahabrea) “Don’t think we have anything!”

(Byleth) “How about your Sothis?”

(Sothis) “If I did, would’ve done it by now!”

An explosion suddenly struck the side of the bull, making it tumble over and almost fall again before it was pelted by more explosives.

Doomguy came into view with a rocket launcher, firing rapidly into the bull.

The bull was ready to charge into Doomguy before a massive shadow enveloped his own, causing it to look up.

Valimar dropped from the sky and dug its greatsword into the bull’s chest.

(Rean’s voice) “INSTRUCTOR BYLETH!”

Byleth and Lahabrea immediately hopped into action activating the whips and swinging violently at the eyes, carving them into pieces.

Finally, the bull stopped moving as it exploded into black fog, with the other zombie-like creatures that spawned following suit.

They took a deep breath and sheathed their swords at the exact time, in the exact same way. If anyone had any doubt about Lahabrea being Byleth, it was quelled then and there.

(Byleth) “We need to do a head count and check if everyone’s okay-”

(Sitri) “Byleth!”

Sitri ran up to him, with the School-Living Club in tow. The two noticed that Miki and Yuki were hanging onto Yuuri and Kurumi’s arm, the injuries very apparent.

(Lahabrea) “What happened!?”

...

(Aqua) “TURN UNDEAD!”

Another spell blasted apart the creatures, but still more kept coming.

(Kazuma) “HOW MANY FUCKING THINGS OF THESE ARE THERE?!”

(Darkness) “Aqua, how’s your mana looking?!”

(Aqua) “Getting a bit drained here!”

Megumin hit a few back with her staff, looking extremely angry.

(Megumin) “GO AWAY DAMN YOU!”

(Kazuma) “Megumin, we may need you to-”

The creatures suddenly all dropped dead, and faded into a black fog.

(Kazuma) “...Do nothing.”

Everyone took a sigh of relief and looked at the plaza.

(Kazuma) “Let’s see, Valimar and Slayer are there. Pretty safe to assume whatever it was over there is super dead.”

(Darkness) “All the civilians were taken care of correct?”

(Aqua) “Yeah, a good chunk of us saw to that-”

cough cough!

(Megumin) “Heck was that?”

(Kazuma) “That sounded like...”

His heart dropped.

(Kazuma) “Megumi.”

[Yasashii Megu-nee Arigatou - Gakkou Gurashi OST]

The four of them quickly ran to the source of the coughing and saw Megumi laying against the wall, coughing violently as she dropped the pistol onto the floor.

Parts of her dress had holes and blood marks over it. Her blood.

(Megumin) “MEGU-NEE!”

(Darkness) “Aqua!”

Aqua smiled as she put her hand on Megumi’s arm.

(Aqua) “Don’t worry, we’ll have you right as rain!”

A healing spell emitted from her arm, but it had no effect.

(Aqua) “H-Huh? Why can’t I-”

Megumi grabbed Aqua’s arm and smiled, tears running down her face.

(Megumin) “I...don’t think your healing can fix me up this time...”

(Kazuma) “Hey, don’t be playing the hero, you’re way too nice for that shit!-”

Megumi moved her arm to reveal a hole in her stomach. It was then Aqua finally saw what was happening.

The infection was spreading throughout her body. It was some unholy combination of her original infection, the agarthan’s, and a third light-like source she couldn’t identify.

(Darkness) “H-HELP US, OVER HERE! WE NEED A HEALER!”

The rest of House Isekai and the three Houses finally got to the scene and saw what was happening to her.

Sara, Byleth, the School-Living Club, and Sitri ran to her side, while making way for the healers.

(Sara) “Get to helping her already!”

(Byleth) “Do what you can, please!”

First, Marianne, Mercedes, and Linhardt tried using their best healing spell to no effect, then the Persona Users tried.

(Morgana) “Damn it, why isn’t it working?!”

(Yukiko) “T-There’s got to be something we have that can!”

(Yukari) “Can anyone get a sense of how bad the-”

Yukari stopped when she saw Emma tearing up, covering her mouth.

(Kurumi) “H-Hey, Emma! You can see magic crap right, what’s happening to her?!”

(Emma) “She’s...not going to make it.”

(Everyone) !!!

(Miki) “T-THAT CAN’T BE RIGHT! PLEASE, CAN’T SOMEONE DO SOMETHING?!”

(Ainz) “I used magic detection and...there’s nothing we can do. No amount of healing can stop the infection. I...I am sorry.”

Doomguy scanned Megumi with his visor, but it came up as red.

Lahabrea and Sothis looked on with regret in their eyes.

(Yuuri) “Come on, you know something about this right, why aren’t you?!-”

Megumi grabbed Yuuri’s hand and caught everyone’s attention.

(Megumi) “Don’t worry...This was going to happen either way.”

(Yuki) “But, I don’t understand! Why?! We finally got to see you again and-”

The School-Living Club reached for their head as a sharp pain overwhelmed them.

(Megumi) “You all...got along just fine without me before...And I know you can do so again.”

Megumi began coughing up blood as she struggled to keep her eyes free of tears.

Byleth used his cape to wipe them away.

(Megumi) “Thank you...Byleth.”

She barely had the strength to laugh as she looked up into the skies.

(Megumi) “I...I guess whatever was in my body originally hadn’t gone away. It’s...messing with whatever the Agarthan transformation method is, making it way slower, otherwise I would’ve instantly turned...”

Megumi turned to the School-Living Club members first.

(Megumi) “Kurumi, Yuuri, Yuki...It was so good to see you again. Even if it didn’t last long...I’m glad we could be normal for a little bit together at Garreg Mach. And Miki...Thank you for sticking with them, and protecting Yuki...”

Megumi’s skin on her left arm slowly started to turn into a darker color.

She turned to Byleth, Sitri, and Sara.

(Megumi) “Sara, Byleth...Y-You were some of the strangest co-workers I’ve ever had...but I would never trade that time for anything...And Sitri...? It was an honor...being with your son and husband...”

Yuki sobbed the hardest, holding onto Megumi’s arm shaking it.

(Yuki) “NO NO NO! WE’VE ALREADY LOST YOU BEFORE! NOW THAT YOU’RE BACK, YOU CAN’T JUST LEAVE AGAIN! IT’S NOT FAIR!”

(Megumi) “I...Think I’m about to...”

She began coughing up blood again, which Byleth wiped away again.

(Megumi) “There’s only one way to stop the infection...Please don’t let them watch.”

Megumi looked at Sara’s pistol.

She closed her eyes and nodded.

(Megumi) “Yuki, Kurumi, Yuuri, Miki...You all will be fine. I promise.”

Sitri had to grab Yuki and pull her away, as she was kicking violently to try and get back to Megumi.

(Yuki) “NO, MEGU-NEE! MEGU-NEEEEE!”

(Yuuri) “Thank you, Megu-nee...”

(Kurumi) “Thank you, again...”

(Miki) “It was nice to finally meet you, Megu-nee...”

The three walked away, unable to watch what was coming, Sitri escorting them as well.

All of Class VII, the Persona Users, and Kazuma’s group had to follow, unable to watch.

The Denizens of Nazarick bowed their heads in respect, and followed Ainz, away from this.

This was a private moment for the ones closest to her.

The only ones who stayed were Towa, Angelica, Cocytus, Sharon, Doomguy, Lahabrea, and Sothis.

Megumi took off her cross necklace and gave it to Byleth.

(Towa) “Instructor Sakura...T-Thank you.”

(Angelica) “...You’re too nice, ya know that? We’re gonna miss you.”

(Cocytus) “IT WAS AN HONOR FIGHTING AT YOUR SIDE.”

(Sharon) “You and your students will be my family as much as the Reinfords...”

(Doomguy) “...Thanks.”

Lahabrea had to close his eyes, alongside Sothis. Sara and Byleth stood up, and she pointed her pistol at Megumi’s head.

(Byleth) “...Goodbye, Megumi.”

(Sara) “...See you the next time around.”

Sara’s hand started to shake, unable to keep a steady aim.

Megumi’s hand held onto Sara’s, Byleth’s hand eventually joining in.

They all closed their eyes, and Byleth helped Sara pull the trigger.

...

BANG!

...

Thud...!

When everyone opened their eyes, they saw light particles coming off Megumi. Her body slowly started to fade away into a light blue dust, disappearing in front of them.

There was no more blood, or signs of rot on her, and the last thing they saw on Megumi’s face was a smile.

Then, she finally disappeared, a quiet shattering noise emitting as her body turned into white and blue dust.

When she was gone, Sara fell to her knees, sobbing, slowly joined in by Towa, Angelica, then Byleth.

Doomguy, Sharon and Cocytus bowed their heads in respect.

Lahabrea started to walk away, tears in his eyes...

[Afterglow - Gakkou Gurashi OST]

Bathed in the red of the sun What were you thinking? Filling your eyelids to the brim with tears You tried to play it off, saying, "It's so pretty".

Without a doubt I always thought that these days Would continue on and on....

The sky we look upon, Is watching us from far, far away Merely silent, without change. Grasping hands as fellow lost ones, We're no longer alone. Looking to the opposite shore of this ending world, We can see our dawn on the horizon,

We can see it We can see it So put on a smile...

TO BE CONTINUED IN:

#House Isekai #House Isekai Shadowbringers #Byleth eisner #dimitri alexandre blaiddyd #Edelgard von Hresvelg #Claude von Riegan #sothis #megumi sakura #sitri eisner

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