#I’m not even an akechi guy!!!!!!

[persona-brainrot-real]

I know for a fact that if you make the decision not to accept Maruki’s offer, having given him the calling card, Akechi still goes to fight. I think he stands outside of the palace for a while, perhaps longer than he needed to while he waits for Joker and the rest of the PTs to show up, and I can imagine the bitterness and betrayal he feels realising not only has Joker chosen his life over everyone else’s, against his direct wishes, but intended on denying him his free will and his active choice in the decision. It’d be a betrayal he’d almost find hard to believe hurts him, but he did get close to Joker over the past month of working together, but the sting of realising Joker didn’t listen to him would probably be what encourages him to go, despite the risks, and fight Maruki alone.

And he would lose. He would have to- Maruki only loses because he’s outnumbered by several strong-willed people, all people he knows and respects (particularly Joker) but with Akechi? Just one opponent?

One moment he’d be stood opposite Maruki, teeth grit and hands fists, Loki looming behind him, and the next Akechi would be waking up in his Detective Prince outfit, back home, alive and whole and maybe for a moment he’d be upset, or enraged, or devastated, but only a moment before Maruki’s control over cognition wins and he can’t remember what he was unhappy about.

[qualityrain]

not pictured is joker teaching neku to dodge bullets idk

[lotus-pear]

ok so i finished the game and i fear this aged terribly

also like an absolute fool i did the true ending so i got no shuake angst on 2/2 like i was expecting……….i also didn’t have a file ready before the talk with maruki so it appears i’ll have to play the game for the third fucking time just to get the bad ending

finally started p5 royal ‼️‼️‼️‼️

expect some royal trio art soon they are my dearly beloveds (minus akechi i hope he dies in this reality too)

[thedaythatwas]

something I appreciate about akechi as a character is that he never seems to think hmm, maybe I should emotionally distance myself from joker, because being invested in him could end up being bad for me when I need to kill him. the vengeance-oriented character goro is made out to be at first glance ought to think like this, but NO! goro akechi is NOT (just) that guy!

from the beginning, akechi goes above and beyond the minimum requirements of getting intel on joker and gaining his trust. he says, I’ll go the extra mile! I’m going to follow him around, inside and outside the metaverse. we’re going to talk about my dead mom. I’m going to insist that we’re RIVALS! I’ll spend so long thinking about all the reasons I hate him that it’ll become obvious to everyone around me— even joker’s (not a) cat— that what I feel isn’t really hate but something much more complex. obviously, this will make killing him that much more gratifying, because our lives are now intertwined! HA! take that joker! I WIN!

I believe this… interesting… thought process has something to do with akechi’s central motivation being more than just a desire for vengeance. he also desperately craves approval and recognition. akechi is not actually all that pragmatic. he’s highly driven by emotion, sometimes at the cost of logic (I mean… his revenge plot isn’t all that mature or well-thought through. it’s basically suicidal).

this considered, it seems that becoming akiren’s rival would be second nature to goro. it gives him a veritable cornucopia of things he craves. winning their “game” allows him to feel recognized for his worth. just playing it gives him opportunities to feel seen and known. being a rival is addictive. he gets the chance to embrace the anger he cultivates towards akiren and the rush of putting him at the center of his thoughts. their rivalry is by far the most intimate relationship akechi has. and so, he gets more and more tangled up with joker— and in his feelings about joker— regardless of any risk that poses to his plans. distancing himself would go against goro’s every instinct.

being akiren’s rival is tied to akechi’s vengeance, but somewhere along the line, “besting joker” evolves to be about more than plotting against shido. this is probably for similar reasons as to why akechi’s desire for vengeance against his father was never purely about “vengeance” at all.

of course, this comes with the pesky, entirely predictable side effect of akechi getting a bit obsessed. oh well! it doesn’t end up stopping him from trying to carry out his order to kill akiren.

regardless of how events actually unfold, akechi’s feelings are a clean-cut liability to his revenge plot. a rational character would probably want to avoid such an obvious crack in his armor. this to say, as intelligent as akechi is, he’s not really all that rational. there’s a difference! he’s not who he appears to be at first glance, or even second or third glance. he’s not the detective prince, or an assassin with tunnel vision for vengeance, or even just plain angry. akechi wants to be needed, and he’ll do anything to chase that feeling.

so yeah, it would’ve been nice if he had found a homoerotic rival before the shido revenge plot debacle happened! alas.

[vashtijoy]

Extremely random thought but do you think that cringy fanfictions written by preteens who then grew up to be embarassed adults would have never existed in the Marukiverse, considering how that art student who was in a slump was forcibly pivoted to archery instead?

wow, goddamn. I guess you could take it either way, couldn't you? Maruki does seem to think that struggling against the odds isn't worth it, and that depression and discouragement are best treated by giving up.

I do tend to think that Maruki is able to tell what people truly want, to somehow divine it out of their heads, even before 12/24—just because all of the kids get something they really want, even when it's not necessarily obvious. Maruki makes some startling judgements there, but the PTs all seem to agree that they were genuine temptations.

So my reading would tend be that Yusuke's artist friend really did think he might have been happier as an archer, and really did believe there was no hope for him in art—but, just as the PTs all turn down their wishes that they desperately want, Yusuke's friend has chosen not to switch paths, and to stick with his painting despite his slump. Until Maruki happens to him, at any rate.

What I think is more likely is that people who want to write would still write. They just wouldn't ever feel discouraged, or down. They wouldn't go through that phase of realising all their work is cringe. And of course, because Maruki's reality has no pain or challenge or complexity, nobody would ever write anything worth reading.

Which brings me to....

deleted text chat

While I was checking the archery chat, I ran into this deleted chat all about conflicting wishes, and how the very thoughts in people's heads, their ability to feel negative emotions at all, will likely be erased. It's unsettling reading, and confirms a number of theories that go around about what life in Maruki's reality would really have been like, and how he'd likely handle conflicts.

It's SCRIPTCHAT_282, and since it didn't make it into the English localisation, it will have been cut in very early dev. Look out for Akechi chiming in when Ann talks about wishing to get rid of people they don't want around.

Futaba 正月のこと覚えてるか? Do you guys remember New Year? Ryuji そりゃもちろん 嫌でも忘れねーよ… Course we do. There’s no way we could forget that. Futaba わたしのおかーさんいただろ? 春もおとーさんいたよな? My mom was there, right? And Haru’s dad was there too, right? Haru え、うん　いたけど… Uh, yes. I suppose so... Makoto なにかあった? Did something happen? Futaba ちょっと考えてたんだ I was thinking. Futaba 死んじゃった人に会いたいって 思ったら生き返ってたじゃん? If we think about wanting dead people back, they come back to life, right? Futaba んじゃその逆は? って So does it work the other way around? Sumire 逆…ですか The… other way around? Ann いなくなってほしい人に 消えろって願ったら… If we wish for people to disappear, who we don’t want around… Ann ってこと? Is that what you mean? Futaba そ! Yeah! Akechi なかなか面白い考えだね 、どう思う? That’s quite an interesting thought. Ren, what do you make of it? [Joker] 消える気がする I feel like disappearing myself. [Joker] 考え方が変わる It’s changed my perspective. Yusuke だが、誰かが生きてほしいと 願ったらどうなるんだ But then, what would happen if somebody else wished they were still alive? Sumire 一度消えて また現れるんですかね… They’d die, and then reappear again, wouldn’t they..? Ryuji 忙しいな Busy day. Akechi そういう考え自体 が 消えてしまうんじゃないかな You know, even thoughts such as these may die out in the end. Yusuke 自分のか? You mean our own thoughts? Sumire そういうこと考えなくなる ってことですね Do you mean we just wouldn’t think such things any more? Akechi 僕も同意見だな　思考自体を消されると思うよ It does seem likely. I’m afraid thought itself will be erased. Futaba あーなるほど Huh. I see. Haru 負の感情を抱かなくなるのかぁ… So… so we won’t be able to feel bad things any more..? Ann 平和になりそうだけど なんか気味悪いね It’s kind of creepy, isn’t it? We’d get to live in peace, but… Ryuji つか、よくそんな 物騒 なこと思いつくよな You always gotta think of the worst things, don’t you, Futaba? Futaba だってヒマなんだもん It’s because I get bored. Futaba あ、そうじろう帰って来た そんじゃな! Oh, there’s Sojiro! See ya! Yusuke 本当に暇潰しだったのか So this was all just to relieve her boredom? Makoto じゃあ、私たちも 授業に戻りましょう We should all turn back to our lessons, anyway. Morgana 人を生き返らせる、か。認知を使ってそんなことするなんて… Bringing people back to life, huh? Imagine using cognition to do such a thing… Morgana ワガハイには理解できないぜ。 I just can’t understand it.

revision history

Click here for the latest version.

v1.0 (posted 2024/11/30)—first posted.

[honeysweetcorvidae]

something bouncing around in my mind that I’d really love to hear your thoughts on is regarding how shuake age together (assuming they get to, bc I am a Goro lives truther). On one hand, I love thinking about what a mature, comfortable relationship might look like for them. (Learning each other’s sensory idiosyncrasies? favorite foods? preferred ways to wind down after a tiring day and what time to carve out for each other vs for themselves?) and yet I also wonder if that domestication… like… loses some specific flavor in the shuake? they’re Weird about each other, we know this to be true & its like the spice of the ship. I’m curious what you imagine their relationship might look like in 20, 30 years. Because I’ve personally experienced how the things that are exciting at 17 are annoying/uninteresting now that I’m older, tastes change, things get stale… yet I also believe they would continue to find the other interesting and continue valuing and loving each other, even in domesticity haha. But there are so many ways to imagine that changing as they age, if it does. as someone else who has Copious shuake thoughts I wanted to toss this at you and hopefully hear your take on things. love and light <33

(forgive me if this is a little disconnected, it’s one a.m.) this is a really fun question to think about!! i’m personally of the opinion that they will always be at least a little bit deranged— i think they’re the type of people to say “see you next week!” to a friend and the next time you see them they’ve like, traveled halfway around the world and destabilized a tyrannical government. as a way to unwind from a long few weeks of running a cafe. (more under the cut)

as a COUPLE i personally find myself in a camp of “deeply intense and kind of annoying”— they’re the kind of guys who do not tend to do things in half measures, right, so i think once they’ve settled on being Together they’re fuckign together. long haul. really profoundly aggravating to be around. they compete a lot still but i imagine it mellows over the years.

akechi in particular, i think, would be really set on Having And Taking Care Of joker (a fic i’m particularly fond of that gets into the dynamic i imagine for them(albeit in college, so still fairly close to canon) is malevolentmango’s old habits die loved) because he’s the kind of guy who needs A Purpose, and if he’s going to keep living beyond his expected use date then he needs SOMETHING to DO, you know? again, i think that mellows over the years, but he’ll always be Kind Of Intense.

i also have a vague headcanon about them adopting. personally i don’t have a breeding kink can’t really imagine them wanting to go the bio-kid route, but i can absolutely see them taking in a kid, particularly an older, more “difficult” one. one series i looooove [although i’ve never really been into joker as a therapist, but they do make it work] is frockbot’s tricksters, which goes super into detail on them taking in kids in a similar situation to goro and struggling through the growing pains of it. my OWN unwritten-but-moderately-fleshed-out babyconcept is “horrible little rat they both independently bond with in a kind of sitcom parallel-storylines situation”. (behold.)

anyway that aside:

i do think there’s merit to the idea that the shit you liked when you were seventeen doesn’t always hold interest anymore. but i also think they’ll probably always enjoy the rush of arguing over everything and scheming for no reason and fighting in another world, if they can get it! they probably chase their weird freak highs in a lot of ways. i could see all kinds of things— rock climbing. intense ballroom dancing. really dangerous investigative journalism. things of this nature. i can’t see them settling down Normalstyle with 2.5 biological children and a dog and office jobs and therapy*, personally. i do believe they’re always going to be weird and a little codependent and a little unnerving to be around. but in a nice way! eventually.

anyway, thank you for the ask!!! it’s soooo fun to think about this sort of thing. i love the idea of them with a future and space to breathe.

*frockbot notwithstanding. tricksters Earned that shit

[ginbutnottonic]

Style switch.

Been feeling down lately but these two manage to still slip thru my depression

Drawing them kinda makes me forget everything ngl

Also new chapter posted!

Here is a snippet:

“...Your connection to the Metaverse, your reaction to the call- How much do you know about this situation?!” Akira felt agitated. Even to him it felt out of character, but he finally heard from Akechi and he can’t even see his face, can’t hear his voice, can’t ask him who did this to him?! And not to mention the Metaverse returning after Yaldabaoth was defeated. 

“I can’t tell you, I’m sorry…” Chiyoko refused to look at him, she was trembling slightly.

“Why?! Shit… Why?! Are you being threatened? By who?!” The guy couldn’t find a place for himself, his body was turning in anger and confusion from this situation.

“You could say that. But in reality I… I don’t want to put you on the radar too. It’s… a very dangerous situation to be in.” She turned her head away and then Akira noticed something familiar on her neck.

“This…” 

I would really appreciate checking it out, I will draw a proper cover when I get back to my former self hehe~

[akechi-if-he-slayed]

and when i spread my akechi wait for it agenda !!

WAIT guys…your obedient servant is kinda giving shuake realness…wait…

[moonllita]

Do not date all the guys on Valentine’s Day…

Ryuji finally say fuck

Yusuke finally did this face

Mishima is finally called by his first name

and Akechi finally kill you

Sorry for the potential typo errors, English is not my main language but I tried (I’m not even good in my native language lol)

[justdarklr]

My beloved little truck freak

I wanted so bad for him to just be a normal silly little guy . But of course he’s insane . And it’s made even worse that I’m voicing him in our friend group’s playthrough 🥺

Then again I’m also voicing Goro Akechi and Sou Hiyori so . Yeah

[monakisu]

I'm pretty sure Joker being like Sleeping Beauty in Royal was intentional. After all, third semester in general has a fairytale theme, with Sumire being Cinderella and Maruki being the Fairy Godmother that grants her (and everyone else's) wishes. But he's also Maleficent, because he puts Sleeping Beauty (Joker) to sleep. Hence Maruki viewing himself as the good guy but also being the bad guy. He gives Sleeping Beauty his Prince Charming (Akechi) in order to convince him to stay within the dream of the false reality, but fails to realize what Prince Charming's goal is in every telling of the story. To wake Sleeping Beauty. Hence, Akechi being the most against the fake reality and being the one to convince Joker not to stay in the reality. By failing to admit his role as the villain, Maruki brings about his own demise in the form of Akechi. It's so well done I can't imagine it being anything but intentional. I mean, Joker even walks with Akechi, "once upon a dream" if one considers the fake reality akin to a dream.

^^^ YEAH!!!!!! YOU GET IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 🧨💥🧨💥🧨💥

i find the irony of goro and maruki’s varying self-awareness levels to be RESPLENDENT!! like here we have goro who has always desperately yearned to be the hero and yet he’s resigned himself to playing the role of villain, the big bad wolf killing mothers and fathers and plotting against the righteous thieves… but come third semester he’s the heroic prince charming saving sleeping beauty!!

(although i like my yaoi toxic, i have to admit how perfectly akira and goro click together as two halves of a whole; they intrigue and excite each other, fulfill their savior complexes and desire to be known intimately, bring the best and worst out of each other...) these two freaks are literally this:

anyways i like to daydream that in the euthanasia ending (i enjoy how horrifying and clinical that name is) even after the rest of the world has long forgotten akira, goro, who has always been stubbornly aware and driven by the truth (i mean, both his AOA's talk about the truth; the boy is FIXATED), will eventually make his way up sleeping beauty’s tower to wake up his love…

and then there’s the other part of the irony: maruki who thinks himself to be his new reality’s messiah but is actually the real Big Bad woa!! a classic evil queen, the evil stepmother, coraline’s other mother trying to trap her in her spiderweb… amazing!!! like u said, he’s simultaneously sumi’s fairy godmother and akira’s villainous fairy! everyday i thank the devs for adding third semester bcuz hoo boy did it elevate p5 to the high heavens!!

i’ve always been very fond of the sleeping beauty parallels in p5, but i’d never thought about it thoroughly enough to realize how instrumental goro’s prince charming role is in dismantling malecificent’s curse! thank u for opening my eyes!! i’m literally giddy from glee!!!

[luffyvace]

Hello first of all- Omg my new fav author I LOVE UR WRITING SM LIKE ???? APBDISBRQKOZ

I found your blog form the author!Reader the anon who ask haz a creative mind I loved the 2 post sm I already got addicted to it I hope u Dont mind me requesting sm form it

Imagine Kusuo getting a notification (he seems like the one has his phone on dnd but has his notification open for his s/o in all media) of her post sm in one of there public social platform saying "I'm turning into my emo phase if this writer block doesn't move on form me " and when checking her private acc (the it's only access for him and her older friend) she is all memes about her writer block and her saying "if I stop writing I give all my books and series to you my friend" just her and overreacting to her block writer

Hiii!! THANK YOU CUTIE!! It always makes me so happy to hear I can share my hobbies with others <3 ahhh I see! Of course I don’t mind dear :)

ohh so if I’m getting this right it’s Saiki finding readers second blog (in which she mostly posts unserious stuff about her writers block) I believe I get what ya mean :}

*･..°•*:.｡:3･.｡.:*･..*°.･

Lol if feel like almost every writer has they’re side blogs or blog where they not a writer they just read other’s stuff

and to me this blog seems like a kinda funny vent blog where reader can just complain about her writers block whenever she has it

LOL imagine going inactive on that acc for weeks and saiki’s wondering if you forgot about it or forgot the password but you just simply have had a lot of motivation lately

then all the sudden you come back and your rebloging all types of relatable author memes and making posts about how ‘your going emo because you have writers block’

honestly it’s kinda ironic to him

he likes your posts on both accounts to support even when your do have writers block

cuz who’s likes a guy who ups and leaves when you don’t have motivation?

the first time you threatened to give your books away he knew you were joking but at the same time he was like ‘wait don’t give all your books away they can’t write it as well as you can 😀’

’kusuo I’m joking’

🧍

‘me too I knew that’

(“Thank goodness..her books were the only thing keeping me sane from those nuisances..”)

- In Saiki’s head

he doesn’t get all the writer memes bc he’s not an author, obviously he’s not stupid so he does find some funny

i feel he doesn’t post on social media but if a post of yours does particularly good he’ll repost it

i think I touched up on him being supportive before but yeah I’m gonna say it it again bc it truly is an honorable mention

‘(Name/pen name) has posted!’

- notification

👆💥📲

- Saiki

the emoji combo was terrible but basically that’s him about to break his screen from how hard he clicked

he’s always the first one on your posts and interacts every way possible

except comments..

which sucks cuz it boosts it a lot but he just doesn’t interact online 😭

if it’s a social media where you can see who liked, aiura and torisuka always tease Saiki for being the first like every time

“Dang your a real simp huh? Your the first like on her every post!”

- Aiura

”MAN! You don’t miss a beat do ya Saiki? I can never beat you to it 😭”

- Toritsuka

“wow..you beat me once again. The second the notification pops up you’ve already liked, reblogged and shared before I can even click on it. That’s impressive I must say, but it’s also quite annoying because I would like to be the first one to support (name) one day. In fact you do everything first! You get the books before they publish! You like all her posts first! Satire or not too!- yadda yadda yadda..”

- Akechi

“you don’t even respond to me that fast! Sometimes you leave me on read or delivered for 2 days before you answer me”

- Kaido

Saiki also sees that your friend likes your second acc too

which he would figure since you two are close

ehehe..a bit short dearest but I hope it brings you joy regardless~ 😅💞

I have much to get out..need to be more active..

[ikeromantic]

Entwined, Ch. 16

Part 16 of a multipart series. Mai has been reborn in the modern age after a full life in the Sengoku. The warlords as spirit animals find her again after 500 years of searching for her soul. Approx. 2000 words.

Chapter List

The hypnotherapist’s office was getting crowded. Kaiya sat wedged between Bo and Shingen on the couch, while Mitsuhide perched on the armchair, holding Mai’s hand. The atmosphere was tense, despite Shingen’s attempts to put Kaiya at ease. At least, that’s what she assumed he was doing.

The constant flirtation, cheesy pick-up lines, and over-the-top compliments had to come with an ulterior motive. She kept a watch on him from the corner of her eye. He clearly had beef with Mitsuhide, but was keeping it under wraps. Kaiya was grateful for that at least. 

Bo was still trying to wrap his head around everything. He kept glancing at Mai and looking away, muttering under his breath. Kaiya wasn’t sure if he was afraid of losing his license, worried about Mai, or just freaked out by learning that past lives were an actual thing.

Kaiya knew she ought to be freaked out. She’d never been much into supernatural or spiritual stuff, but she accepted there were things you could see and things you couldn’t. That was why she didn’t mess with ouija boards or luck charms. They probably wouldn’t do anything except what if they did? No thanks, she thought. 

Her eyes slid back to Mai. She wished she could take back the entire morning. Find an argument that kept her friends home and safe. If she’d had the right words -

“It isn’t your fault,” Shingen said softly, his voice pitched for her ears alone. 

Kaiya’s head turned so fast that she popped him in the face with her ponytail. “What?”

He gave a crooked smile. “Sorry. It just looked like you were blaming yourself. But it isn’t your fault.”

“Of course it isn’t,” she replied crossly. “It’s Mitsuhide’s fault. And yours. Your whole weird . . . group.” 

Shingen chuckled, though he didn’t sound amused. “I suppose it is. Although she might have reached this point even without our interference. Triggered by a smell, a familiar sight, a sound.” He paused for a breath, his gaze distant. 

Kaiya frowned and crossed her arms. “So you’re telling me she might have gone catatonic from some deja vu?”

“Yes, something like that.” He refocused on her and then tapped the tip of her nose. “You know, you’re cute when you’re angry and deflecting.”

“I’m not deflecting. But I am angry.” Kaiya glared at him. 

Shingen shrugged. “If you say so, angel. I have a talent for ferreting out lies, especially from pretty girls.”

Mitsuhide glanced up at them. “It’s fine to place the blame with me. Don’t try to lighten my burden, Takeda.”

“I wasn’t. Just pointing out the facts to our little beauty. The spirit and mind are unpredictable. That’s all.” Shingen sighed. “For example, no one would have clocked you as a romantic, Akechi. But enter one little mouse and you turn into a -”

“Can you both be quiet,” Bo asked, rubbing his temples. 

Kaiya stood. “I’m going to grab some drinks. Anyone have a request?” She needed some air, a few minutes away from the tension in this room.

“There’s a shop just around the corner,” Bo told her, glancing up. “I’ll take whatever. Here.” He handed her some cash.

“Water is fine for me,” Mitsuhide said, his gaze still on Mai’s tear-streaked face.

“I’ll come with you.” Shingen stood.

Kaiya gave him a withering look. “I don’t need your help.”

“Nevertheless, angel.” He smiled at her.

She frowned. There was no point in arguing with him, she decided. “Fine.” 

Even with Shingen in tow, she felt her tension ease the moment she stepped outside. Seeing the brightly lit street, the blue sky. Other people walking around, happily ignorant of the problems of past lives and ill-advised hypnosis. Kaiya took a deep breath. 

“Better?” Shingen had somehow gotten right beside her without her noticing. 

“For such a big guy, you move quiet.” She frowned. “And yeah. I guess.” 

He patted her shoulder, then left his hand resting there. “It’s been a hard day. Your mind must be reeling.”

Kaiya scoffed and removed his hand. Not that it didn’t feel nice there. Of course it did. Warm and comforting. She imagined all of him probably felt pretty nice. But that was the problem. Guys like him were trouble. Case in point, he was part of all this past-life crap haunting Mai. “Reeling isn’t the half of it.”

“If I can help in any way, angel, you have but to ask. I can’t deny a beautiful woman.” 

She considered. His offer was probably a lot of hot air, but there was no harm in asking. “Fine. You can explain this to me. How this Mitsu-whatever was looking for Mai 500 years and how you know her and - and - I don’t know. This whole thing. Explain it.”

Shingen nodded. “I can try.” He explained as they walked, and Kaiya listened. 

“So, you guys are what? Immortal?” She narrowed her eyes. 

“Not exactly.” Shingen ran a hand through his hair. “We serve at the leisure of the divine. A bit like the vassals that served us in life.” He chuckled. “It is in their interest that we remain, and live among humans to do our duty.”

Kaiya sniffed. “You say that like you aren’t human too.”

“I’m not. Or not only.” He ruffled her hair. “I can’t explain much more than that.” 

She pushed his hand away again. “So if you aren’t human, what then?”

“Spirit. The physical form can be varied. It isn’t important.” 

Kaiya looked him up and down in an obvious way. “It isn’t? Because it looks to me like you went to a lot of trouble to look like this.”

Shingen flashed one of his dimpled grins. “I take that to mean you like what you see.”

“Ugh. Were you like this with Mai back in the Sengoku? Because if so, I can completely understand why she went for Mitsuhide instead.”

He put a hand to his chest. “I’m hurt, angel. You’ve sent an arrow straight to my heart.”

Kaiya laughed at his dramatics. “Somehow, I think you’ll get over it. Now come on. We’ve got stuff to buy.”

The two of them picked up soda, tea, and water, along with some snacks and then headed back to Bo’s office. They were met at the door by a man Kaiya could only call imposing. Tall, hair shot with iron grey, a stern face marred by a large scar. His steely gaze pinned her to the spot and she stopped so suddenly she almost dropped the drinks she carried.

“Cuz!” Shingen gave the man a wide smile. “You made it.”

“Of course. I said I would come.” The man’s gruff voice held a note of reprimand. “Your text was vague.” He lifted a black medical suitcase. “I wasn’t sure what to bring.”

Kaiya nudged past him, determined not to be affected by his intense aura. “You’re the priest guy then? Come on. This stuff isn’t getting any lighter.” 

“I am Kennyo. I am - was - an abbot.” He opened the door for her. “Here, let me assist.”

“I was going to do that,” Shingen huffed. 

She flashed the abbot a smile. “Thanks. It’s great that at least one of you sexy spirit men can be useful and not just pretty.”

“Hey! I’m useful!” Shingen followed her in, protesting. 

Kennyo chuckled, his harsh features softening with a smile. “I see Shingen has made an impression then.”

“Something like that.” Kaiya paused to let Shingen open the door from the lobby to the office. “Mai is back this way.”

Kennyo stepped in just behind her. The smile disappeared from his face as if it had never been. “What have you done, Akechi?”

It took a few minutes to explain. Kaiya was glad Bo was there to talk Kennyo through it. She sat back with her soda and chips, only commenting where the hypnotherapist left out important bits. Kennyo did not interrupt, only nodded.

The abbot rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “So you believe she has trapped herself in memories of her previous life with Mitsuhide. It is possible. Though such entrapment should not occur unless . . .”

“Unless what?” Mitsuhide turned his golden gaze on Kennyo. There was a current of tension between the two men that even a blind person could not miss. When their eyes met, neither would look away. 

Kennyo gave a grunt then nodded. “It isn’t important.” 

“So, can she be brought back? You can help, right?” Shingen nudged the abbot. 

“There are ways we can reach her, but it will be up to the young lady to return or not.” His expression was grim. “In matters of the soul, there are no guarantees.”

Mitsuhide nodded. “I understand. What is it we need to do?”

***

Mai stood on her tiptoes to press a kiss to Mitsuhide’s lips. “When will you be back?”

“A month from now.” His thin-lipped frown didn’t improve, even with the kiss. “Sooner, if I can manage.” Mitsuhide pulled her into a hug, his hand resting protectively on her stomach, splayed over the small bump there. Barely visible, and yet, it had become the center of their universe. 

“I don’t know if I can manage a whole month without you,” she sighed melodramatically. “Who will protect me from Hideyoshi’s worrying? And Ieyasu’s special tonics? Oh gods . . . and Nobunaga’s orders to keep me safe from all harm? It took nearly a week to convince him I can still walk up and down the stairs on my own and you were here for it!”

This rung a dry laugh from Mitsuhide. “I guess you’ll have to submit to their ministrations at least until I get back.” 

Mai pretended to pout. She wasn’t a fan of all the extra attention she was getting, but she appreciated the intent. The warlords cared for her, and they worried about her safety. She worried too. Having a baby in the Sengoku era was far more dangerous than having one in the modern day. 

For a heartbeat, Mitsuhide’s image before her wavered, doubling on itself. Two Mitsuhides gave her a wry smile. Four golden eyes filled with warmth and concern. Then there was just one of him again, and he squeezed her tightly. “You have to come back to me, now.”

She raised a brow. “I’m right here, silly.” 

“There isn’t a here. This is - it’s not real. Just a memory.” When he pulled back to look at her, his gaze was heavy. “Remember.”

Mai shook her head. He was talking nonsense. “Ok. If this is some game you’ve come up with to tease me before you leave, I’m not liking it much.” 

Mitsuhide’s hands slid up to her shoulders. “It’s no game.” His voice cracked on the last word as if beneath his calm demeanor there was a tumult of emotion.

“I . . .” Voices came to Mai then, floating through the empty air, the speakers invisible to her eye but known. 

‘How can you tell if it’s working?’ Kaiya

‘They are breathing together. Hearts in sync. It is working.’ Kennyo

‘Maybe I should call emergency services, just in case?’ Bo

‘They’ll just be in the way.’ Shingen

Mai stumbled back, pulling away from Mitsuhide. She was trembling. The world around her flickered. Not real. Her vision went dark at the edges and she felt a wave of dizzy nausea.

Then he was gone. She stood beneath a tree, and the world around her shimmered with summer heat. Mai looked down to see her daughter Mitsuki, smiling up at the tree. Her little hands waved in the air, trying to catch the dancing motes of light as they filtered down through the leaves.

“There’s my little princess,” Mai cooed. “You miss your papa, hm?” She smiled. “I miss him too.” Her gaze went to the horizon. “He’ll be back soon.” She knew Mitsuhide would always come back to her. He’d promised. Just as she promised him.  Come back to me . . .

[thedaythatwas]

I need to know what goes on inside akechi’s head on the evening of october 24th.

like. look at it from his perspective. he comes to leblanc early. he has his priorities straight: he’s going to play some mind games, really get under joker’s skin.

(bear with me while I get serious about a profoundly unserious conversation)

he’s staking his claim on enemy territory. he’s sitting patiently, waiting for akiren to walk through the door. surely, it will intimidate his rival to know that he’s made himself at home in his living space. look how close he managed to slip without akiren noticing! he even went so far as to strike up a conversation with his odd barista caretaker. akechi would drop some quick political jargon here, reference some continental philosopher’s name there— all in the name of making akiren look totally incompetent.

really, joker should be terrified. he should feel violated, even. akechi would! hence:

look— he’s so self satisfied! yes, he totally won this round!

🚨 BUZZER NOISE! 🚨

see, akechi is playing 4D chess. so is akiren! but they’re using drastically different playbooks. we know this because goro akechi procedes to get hit with the following:

I know you as the player don’t need to select that dialogue option (I could go on about the implications of that, but other posts have already said it better). but you can! and I, for one, do.

not to get too deep on what is obviously a joke post, but I think this offers some insight into those little rants that akechi goes on sometimes. you know what I’m talking about— “oh, you’re so special, so interesting, it’s like we were fated to meet each other!”

yes— they were basically fated to meet each other, but that’s not the point.

as silly as it sounds, the fact that dialogue options like this exist proves the oft-stated fact that akiren is the antithesis to akechi’s thesis.

akechi plans his interactions with akiren down to a tee, and still, akiren manages to throw akechi off his rhythm! every. single. time. nobody else does this.

part of this is because akiren sees his interactions with akechi for what they’re worth. it’s all a gamble, a chess match. akechi appreciates that akiren is an equal player in their game. he respects that. it takes intelligence to see a bluff for what it is, and to call it. flirtatiously, too!

that respect is what makes their relationship so compelling. it holds true whether you read what they have as love, hate, obsession, or, hell, even all of the above! you know it isn’t indifference, because that doesn’t make any sense coming from either of them.

call me crazy (I certainly deserve it) but if akiren responds “honey, I’m home” to akechi, he hears another message loud and clear: I see what you tried to do here, I’m calling you on it, and you don’t scare me. you’ve made your move, and I’m going to undo it with flair, because I’m joker, and you love it.

and when you look at it like that, it makes sense why little things might set off akechi’s thoroughly-stated appreciation of akiren. they aren’t “little” to him at all. I’m sure he doesn’t wax poetic just to fuel akiren’s ego, anyway. that isn’t quite his style.

and hey! even if akiren didn’t mean to communicate all of that (he totally did though), it doesn’t make the sentiment any less real to akechi! I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. the guy has issues. let him plot the downfall of his enemies (real and perceived) in peace <3

[gamequoteshowdown]

Hi everyone! I hope you are doing well so I can have the pleasure of ruining your day!

I have finished the match-ups for the first round and I have the list right here but I put a little twist on it. You see, every single poll in this wave has two quotes from either the same game franchise and/or character competing against each other! So choose wisely because only 1 can move on!

Here are the match-ups <3 - Mod Villain (SPOILERS FOR PERSONA 5, GHOST TRICK: PHANTOM DETECTIVE, METAPHOR: REFANTAZIO, KID ICARUS: UPRISING, BIOSHOCK AND FINAL FANSTAY XIV)

POLL 1: "Case closed. This is where your justice ends." - Goro Akechi, Persona 5 | "Teammates!? Friends!? To hell with that! Why am I inferior to you!? I was extremely particular about my life, my grades, my public image! So someone would want me around! I am an ace detective! A celebrity! But you… You're just some criminal trash living in an attic!? So how!? How does someone like you have things I don't!? How can such a worthless piece of trash be more special than me!?" - Goro Akechi, Persona 5

POLL 2: "Whatsa matter? All those broken bones smart a bit? What's it like to feel pain? Does it make you feel ALIVE?" - The Man In Red, Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective | "It might make it hurt a little bit when I move you, though… Quite a little bit, actually." - The Man In Red, Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective

POLL 3: “Attack in any number. Wield any weapon. But…fight with your very lives! If you live a by a creed then show me its’ strength!” - Louis, Metaphor: ReFantazio | “You believe me resurrected? Heh. Even if I could defy death, I care nothing for the prospect.” - Louis, Metaphor: ReFantazio

POLL 4: "Sorry to keep YOU waiting. But now that I'm here, let's get this party started. Welcome to MY Underworld, Pitty Pat." - Hades, Kid Icarus: Uprising | "It was a simple case of distracted chariot driving. I shouldn't have been doing my hair." - Hades, Kid Icarus: Uprising

POLL 5: "Would you kindly" - Frank Fontaine, Bioshock | "A man chooses… a slave obeys" - Andrew Ryan, Bioshock

POLL 6: "Remember us. Remember that we once lived." - Emet-Selch, Final Fantasy XIV | "I want you all to die! And I want to die too! Oh yes, I want to die and take everyone with me in a paroxysm of pain and suffering!" - Fandaniel, Final Fantasy XIV (Endwalker Expansion)

POLL 7: "Ah. Your prejudice made my bluff too effective, I see. … besides, even IF I threw him, he would just… Bounce. My son… is… A bouncy little pumpkin." - King, Deltarune | “To my people, I am a hero… to you? I’m the bad guy!” - Spade King, Deltarune

POLL 8: "It hurts, Ness… …I’m h…a…p…p…y… …friends… …It hurts, …it hurts… Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness….. …go… b… a… c…k… …Ness… I feel… g… o… o… d… …I’m so sad… …..Ness" - Giygas, Earthbound (Mother 2) | "Foolish one, you cannot do a thing with your meager powers… Powers worthy of a lowly insect." - Giygas, MOTHER

[kroosluvr]

since i’m drawing fem sh/uakesu/mi (to be uploaded tmrw hopefully) thoughts on if i designed a male sumire? tossing some ideas around, i think he’d be just as tall as akira- pretty lanky and cute looking.

his thjng w gymnastics is trying to make his performances look effortless and simple although it doesn’t come Easy to him like it did with kasumi. in the same vein i wonder if i could adjust the timeline so the kasumi accident happened earlier, so he was pretending for Longer. maybe… ok maybe what if kasumi wasn’t famous yet, so to the common person you wouldn’t necessarily doubt this guy as “kasumi.” it’s just sumire’s made-up notions that “kasumi is better than me in every way. and now he’s dead so now i have to carry on his legacy bc i could never do what he was on track to do.” smth like that. (i like it when AUs, even if it doesn’t change much, changes Little things that make the story fresh and there’s more to explore)

as kasumi he’s a little brash and outgoing, kinda like ryuji but not as hardheaded i think. daredevil but mostly egged on easily. sumire (third sem) is listless and quiet, lone wolf, throws himself into situations with the urge to just blindly “test himself” whatever that means.

i think with akira, as both “kasumi” and his real self, he genuinely just thinks he’s really cool and compelling. prob especially since akira lets the rumors just run off his back, “kasumi” thinks that’s really cool of him since his whole thing is seeming effortless. sumire in 3rd sem would respect him a lot, and strive to become strong so that he could be someone akira could depend on. he’d feel ashamed that he lied to akira this whole time though (acting as a fake self)

he’d def be nervous around akechi LOL i think more so than canon sumire? i think this sumire is locked on to making akechi Like Him so he’s overcompensating to an almost self sacrificial extent which reminds akechi of akira and disgusts him kinda. ( akechi also sees himself in sumire in those moments which is a complex feeling)

ANYWAY idk does this sound cool compelling? i’m just checking in bc i … havent rlly seen anyone do this sort of genderbend LOL so i’m not sure. let me know!!!