#ryuji wildcard au

[argentsunshine]

so i was going to make confidant screens for my wildcard ryuji au to bait people into asking me about it then i said "yknow i feel like p5's ui is very akira i feel like it would look different if ryuji was the protagonist" so here we are.

[ace-pancake-detective]

Wildcard Ryuji: In Shido's Palace Ryuji has Oracle locate the cognitive Akechi so she and Noir can get some form of catharsis. It's from him the PT learn about Akechi's connections to Shido and his """plan""" for revenge. When the engine room fight occurs the Thieves use that info to rile him up and tear his reasoning apart. Ryuji does save him from getting locked in but not out of kindness, it's simply so he can't take the easy way out.

I absolutely love this.

The idea of Ryuji just being petty enough to save Akechi, but also the aftermath being that Goro is still alive, and is going to have to do things the theives way is great.

[lesbiamano]

i just realized. i think i never posted the arcanas for all the characters in my swap au😭😭for the sake of not leaving you guys on tumblr in the dark, this is them!

• The World (as in The Wildcard) - Futaba Isshiki, codename “Sibyl”

• The Magician (yes he is a cat in the over world) - Akira Kurusu, codename “Bishop”

• The Chariot - Yusuke Kitagawa, codename “Vivid”

• The Lovers - Haru Okumura, codename “Ivy”

• The Emperor - Ryuji Sakamoto, codename “Star”

• The High Priestess (he’s a human kid here) - Morgana, codename “Pawn”

• The Hermit (and navigator) - Goro Akechi, codename “Hawk”

• The Empress - Makoto Niijima, codename “Specter”

• Justice (Black mask) - Kasumi/Sumire Yoshizawa, codename “Indigo”

• Faith - Ann Takamaki, codename “Valentine”

as for the non playable arcana characters, i also changed a few of them

• The fool (and i mean the actual real one) - Igor

• The Hierophant - Sojiro Sakura

• The Wheel of Fortune - Kiyoko Akechi

• The Strength (from the get go) - Lavenza

• The Hanged Man - Zenkichi Hasegawa

• Death - Tae Takemi

• Temperance - Sadayo Kawakami

• The Devil - Mika

• The Tower - Shiho Suzui

• The Star - Kana

• The Moon - Maya Amano

• The Sun - Tatsuya Suou

• Judgement - Sae Niijima

• The Councillor - Rumi

and as a little bonus, instead of jose, i put in sophia ! not for any major plot reasons, just because i really wanted her there lol

anyway! that’s all of them! if you have any questions i’d be happy to answer! i love this au so much it’s so fun😭

[beezonia]

P5 eah au

Akira - Son of the Mad hatter (wildcard)

Ryuji - Son of Jack (his story involves climbing and a lot of running to escape giants)

or we make him the son of captain hook (in reference too Captain kidd)

or he’s the son of the hare (Alice in wonderland)

Ann - Daughter of either sleeping beauty or she’s the daughter of goldielockes

or we make her the white queen from Alice in wonderland? Idk

Futaba - Daughter of Robin Hood or daughter of the pied piper (it’s futaba come on)

Yusuke - Son of the little mermaid

or son of the white rabbit

Makoto - Daughter of Prince Charming (I’m going the darling route with her)

Haru - Daughter of Snow White

Akechi - Son of the queen of hearts

Sumire - Either we make her the daughter of Alice and Kasumi was the og daughter but she died/disappeared and her sister took her role

or Sumire is the youngest daughter of Cinderella (In reference to Cendrillion) and it’s Kasumi who doesn’t want to follow her destiny so Sumire might have too

Shiho - Daughter of the hare (tortoise and the hare)

or she’s the daughter of smee (so her and ryuji stay close)

That’s all I got for now! I’ll get back to you on the adults/Toshiro/Eri soon

——-

[symphonic-scream]

Post

Uhm. Another P5 characters with P4 plot au. This one with Makoto-Goro siblings

I'm off my ADHD meds for a little bit so my mind is running wild again so here's another au.

The wildcard is Akira/Joker here. He's staying with Sojiro and Futaba while his family is on a world traveling cruise for a year.

Star is Morgana. He's, more like P5 Morgana. A cat.

Magician? Futaba! She's basically Inaba's only tech support, and takes a lot of crap for being so "obsessed" with something that's "ruining the youth"

Chariot Ann for this one. She plays volleyball, moved to Inaba the year before, has a girlfriend back in Tokyo. She's hoping to get to see her at tournaments.

Priestess Yusuke! His mom, Sayuri, runs the Inaba Gallery, which holds cultural art and pieces about the town's history. He has been spending more time running tours since her illness has spiked. (Transmasc Yusuke)

Emperor Ryuji! He's misunderstood. Wants to protect his Ma, but everyone just sees the violence they saw in his dad. He's also coming to terms with being bi

Lovers Haru. She's a celebrity chef, taking a year off from being a baking show host after a ton of threatening letters, and a break in while she was away from home. So she's staying with her Uncle Munehisa Iwai and cousin Kaoru, helping out at their airsoft and hunting shop

And. Fortune Makoto. But gimme a sec to explain that one

Instead of one detective Prince? This au has TWO!! The Detective Princes, the Akechi twins; Goro Akechi, the charmer, runs a sweets blog, the Hunger Arcana. And Makoto Akechi, the silent broodier twin, the lonelier brother, the Fortune Arcana

Now let's talk specifics. Makoto is AFAB, female at birth. After their parents up and left, Makoto started pretending to be Goro's brother to be "safer". Then, it felt good. But, not quite right. (Non-binary Makoto.) They haven't thought about it since they started binding and taking T, at 15. There's other issues at play

Makoto doesn't know who they are anymore. All anyone sees of them is Goro's twin, the little brother, the shadow to the much more beloved Prince. They swallow down anxiety pills each morning, trying to erase the shake they feel in front of the camera. It doesn't ease the sting of their brother's harsh words

Goro wears his outfit from canon. Makoto has a similar coat, but instead of tan it's dark blue. Black pants, black boots to his black dress shoes. No headband. Less bangs. They keep their hair shorter than Goro's. To help pretend to be his brother. It's choppy, a little wild, and when it's wet from the rain it sticks up all over. They have a custom Breton style cap (it's like a police cap), it's dark blue, black, has a bright blue fist on the part where a badge would go.

They start to split more and more as the story goes on. It really strikes when Makoto starts at Yasogami, and Goro continues on playing the adult. After Makoto is saved from the TV, they move out of their apartment, living in the spare room in the Kitagawa home

Anyways that's the outline under the cut will be extra stuff I've come up with

Makoto, post being rescued, lying out by the Samegawa riverside, late at night, hat beside them just. Watching the stars

Haru lies beside them. Doesn't say a word. But, she takes their hand

Makoto: ...do you think I'm doing any good with the group?

Haru: of course you are, why would you ask that?

Makoto: ...

Haru: oh, your fight with Ryuji.

Makoto: it, did he say it was a fight?

Haru: he seemed upset like it was one. What happened?

Makoto: ...he asked me out. But, I don't know, it didn't feel right. I can't tell what he thinks I am, *who* he thinks I am. But, I know it's not who I want to be

Haru: he doesn't think of you as a girl. None of us do

Makoto: but he sees me as a guy.

Haru: ...and that's not you? You're neither?

Makoto: I'm, that's an option?

Haru: oh, you isolated little baby queer

Makoto: wha

Haru taps at their bound chest a little: you like this, right? The binding?

Makoto: yeah. I always have, it's why I started the hormones. But,

Haru: are you worried they'll turn you into someone you're not?

Makoto: it's silly, cause, I like what I've gotten. But,

Haru: but it's enough?

Makoto: it's enough,

Haru: hey, did I tell you I like girls?

Makoto: no?

Haru: mm. Cause I like girls. But I also like, non-men. And some men, selectively.

Makoto: oh? So, you know about this stuff?

Haru: I do. So does Akira, and Yusuke, and even Ann. So, we could talk to Ryuji over time, get him to understand some stuff, if you were interested in trying with him. We could do so regardless

Makoto: ...he's not, my type. I, I think I also like non-men. Women too.

Haru: hm, fancy that

Haru, flirting

Makoto, densest motherfucker in Inaba

Haru: how about this? I can start using neutral terms with you, see how you feel? Maybe ask Yusuke and his Mom to do the same?

Makoto: that, sounds nice. I'm, going to talk to my doctor. Lower my, T. A little bit.

Makoto at school, quiet and pensive, in the male uniform with their cap, hands in pockets, just standing by the stairs, looking at their boots

And Haru slides over, hand to their wrist, smiling all pretty, and Makoto softly smiles back

Their whole class thinks they're dating lmao. The whole school thinks so

Ryuji: ...ah, so I wasn't his type to begin with. EFF,

Yusuke: hm? Oh, Makoto-senpai wishes to be referred to with gender-neutral terms. You weren't *their* type to begin with

Ryuji:

Ann: YOU KILLED HIM LMAOOO

Akira: rip Ryuji

A little skip. To them being in Relationship together

Makoto lying back on Haru's bed, knees off the edge, coat thrown off, black turtleneck riding up just enough to hint at abs. Haru sits on their lap, work apron tossed aside, the dark button-up having a few buttons undone at the bottom, a few at the top. She's holding one of Makoto's hands to her thigh, just under where her skirt rests, the other is on their stomach. Makoto's remaining hand is buried in bright curls, and they're panting, Haru giggling as she sprinkles kisses to their jaw

"Your, your uncle- when will he,"

"We still have a little time, don't worry. I woudlnt put you in a situation where he'd try to kill you."

Makoto's mind is spinning so fast. Only thought being "Haru". Haru is having fun turning her stiff little detective into affectionate mush

And, when her uncle does come home,

Munehisa: hey, you didnt tell me you had a boy over

Haru: uncle, this is Makoto! ***They're*** helping me study for exams!

Munehisa: ...uh, okay? Just. No funny business with my niece, okay?

Makoto: Y-YES SIR

So. Yeah

[senblades]

To follow up on my comment about Fftsr + pq2

would futaba go behind everyone’s back to form her own “revenge squad” alongside ryuji and makoto, maybe including Ken, who would definitely sympathize with her

what if sumi and haru pop out of one of the labyrinths with kotone in tow, and now futaba’s revenge squad have blocked off the door to that screening room, and now Fuuka and Ann are trying to talk everyone down

oh ho ho I love fucking around with pq2 au's- there's just so much potential for fuckery! (and judgement from the other persona teams HA)

(this is also a good opportunity to analyse everyone's behaviour in the latest chapters of fftsr lmao)

Hm... Ken is an interesting one, since I think Akechi has a lot of similarities with both Shinjiro AND Ken, and I think they'd both recognise that. Additionally, it's not an exact 1-to-1 situation, so I think that if Futaba stayed in a state of "FUCK THIS" long enough to try and get revenge, I think a solid chunk of the p3 squad would want to stay solidly out of it (or, damage control- I think you're right that Fuuka would be with Ann on this one)

Ultimately, though, Futaba in the most recent chapters of fftsr is being impulsive. She's angry, hurt, and most of all: confused. She doesn't have the full situation. She made an irrational and impulsive descision in the midst of her panic, and the rest of the thieves are either feeling too betrayed (Ryuji, Makoto), or too panicked/confused (Yusuke, Morgana, Ann) to not enable her. Point is, that getting q2'd is a GREAT opportunity for Futaba to calm down lmao. In saying that, though, I think that "calming down" is more synonomous to "crashing", in this case. Even if Futaba gets her answers, she isn't going to be happy about them. I think Taba in this pq2 scenario wouldn't be a super effective Navi for a while

As for Sumi and Haru- I think that once everyone gets forcibly thrown together, the misunderstanding would clear up pretty quick. In saying that, though, that just brings on a whole lot of OTHER questions- main one being "time travel???" second one being "Why are you buddies with an assassin, again?"

Oh ho ho the wildcards...

Ren! is fucked! HA- getting q2'd directly after chapter 45 would really just leave him disoriented to hell and back, and it would probably take some time to convince him that what's happening is actually real. I also doubt he'd be in an emotional state to lead... anything. So that's a solid 7-ish persona users without anyone to direct them.

Akechi! :D he's also fucked! HA yeah Sumi and Haru aren't getting any direction outta that one- so that brings our "unattended persona user" count up to 10

So Minato, Yu, and Kotone need to pick up the slack. great! I actually think that Kotone in this situation is best choice for "full group leader". Why? Well, I don't know when exactly the p4 squad gets q2'd, but it definitely takes a while for the "moral greyness of it all" to actually sink into the plot for them- so when confronted with the shitshow that is the p5 squad at the moment, I think Yu would be at a loss.

p3, on the other hand, is very used to morality soup! In saying that, Minato is on that whole "2000's emo boy" bullshit, and doesn't have the assertive force to get everyone under control- considering it's pre-October-4. Kotone meanwhile, though still in "pre-October-4" land, definitely has more of that "Aight! Shut up! Everyone get your shit together!" energy, that the p5 squad would really benefit from HA (and, enough compassion to balance both sides of the equation)

I think at first, everything would be a shitshow of pointing fingers though LMAO

Sorry for the very long answer... I have a lot of thoughts, and I didn't even cover half of them LMAO. I pity the pq2 writers

[jester-creates]

thinking about that Mechanisms persona 5 au again. The one where it's the mechs cast in p5. So I might as well put who I think should go where.

This is also a college au. I guess. It just fits better

The phantom thieves- the Mechanisms. This is obvious why. They choose the Mechanisms as their phantom thieves group name first, but after a certain someone kept basically saying to everyone that they were the Mechanisms in public, they made the band as a cover and now they have to manufacture beef between themselves as the band and themselves as phantom thieves and that the phantom thieves definitely stole their name.

wildcard- Jonny D'ville. He's the narrator of the Mechanisms and one of the first members of the Mechanisms. He's up there for most roles over all the albums, so wildcard. I'm half tempted to make his persona Prince Charming because one, it would tick him off to no end and two, it the role he as himself played in ouatis.

0 fool - I think Yog Sothoth or one of the elder gods would make the best fit for Yaldy. No idea who Igor would be though

1 magician - the Toy Soldier. It is the least organic of the Mechanisms which is in line with Morgana's origins. I'd say it was given instructions to find the wildcard and eventually found itself in the first Palace pretending to be a Shadow or something. Haven't decided on a persona for it yet though

2 high priestess - Ashes O'Reilly. They have mob connections (though a lot different from how Makoto's went). Ashes would slso manage to become the student president at their college. Their persona would probably be Hades

3 emperor - Raphaella la Cognizi. She and Yusuke are both eccentric weirdos (/pos) in their fields. She has probably neglected herself and her finances in her focus on science as well. Haven't decided on a persona for her yet

4 empress - Nastya Rasputina. A princess and an Heir to a food company are basically the same thing right? (I almost had her be the futaba of the group due to Out, but I figured that being the Haru of the group fit her better. Plus she deserves to be the most terrifying member of the group. And also a big weapon.) Haven't decided on a persona for her yet.

5 Hierophant- Dr. Carmilla (unless I find someone better). She is somewhat of a parental figure? I'm not too sure on this one.

6 the lovers - Gunpowder Tim. His whole thing with bertie parallels Ann's thing with Shiho pretty well.

7 chariot - Baron Marius von Raum. He seems like he would be the most like Ryuji. He does do the talking about the phantom thieves out loud thing which results in them having to make the band as a cover.

8 strength- the Aurora. As the most inhuman of the crew, she gets to be Jonny's attendant in the Velvet Room. They do figure out that something is up with the VR and rescue her much earlier than lavenza gets rescued in p5. (Aurora and Nastya are together in this au still)

9 hermit - Ivy Alexandra. She would definitely be a Navi type.

10 fortune - undecided maybe loki?

11 justice - drumbot Brian. He gets to be akechi due to the whole 2 modes thing, so two personas. To keep in line with his mostly robot thing I am going to make him a anti shadow weapon (think aigis from persona 3)

12 Hanged man- the pendragon trio (or at least arthur). the thing with mordred could be a good parallel between iwai and his kid

13 death- Oedipus. tae and oedipus are both doctors who do kinda have a similar storyline. plus the image of oedipus in tae's outfit kills me

14 temperance - undecided. maybe cinders?

15 devil - Ulysses. Ohya and them have a very similar starting point when we meet them. And Ulysses is a gumshoe (a detective) so that would take the place of ohya's investigative journalism.

16 Tower - undecided. Maybe Heracles?

17 star - undecided. Maybe rose red? Maybe Guinevere?

18 moon - undecided. Maybe pilchard? (Though he'd do better as a Palace ruler or the Shadow that leads them to the second palace)

19 sun - snow white. She and Yoshida both are politicians campaigning for peace and better stuff.

20 judgement- Lyfrassir Edda. They and Sae are both long-suffering people in kaw enforcement who have to deal with the Mechanisms/phantom thieves and all their shenanigans.

[emanation-aura]

hi this is a free space to infodump about any of your fics. my ears are open and my eyes are peeled. love your writing

Thank you anon! I love infodumping about my fics but I hate doing it without reason, so this is literally perfect.

Ok, so: more P5R fic this time, but I've actually run out of Palace AUs for the moment so it's something else I was cooking.

It's a rewrite of the Okumura's Palace "Morgana fallout" scene where Ryuji and Morgana get so heated that Morgana runs away, but instead of making Joker a passive observer who just... watches his team fall apart, I gave him some agency (and anger!) to work with. Disclaimer: Akira is really, really rude to Ryuji in this because he's snapping from months of pent-up anger, but I don't mean for it to last and this is not a Ryuji-bashing fic; they make up later.

"Fine then," and he can feel the moment the temperature plummets, knows that the hard-edged voice which he'd taken so much care to soften has finally reared its head. There's nothing he can do about it, though— the anger wells in cracks and bubbles, impossible to ignore. "Let's go on the merits of usefulness, shall we? In that case, I should simply disband the Phantom Thieves, because I can do everything you can." It's too far. It's way too fucking far. He shouldn't be saying this at all, breaking their trust— how could he disband the only thing holding them together, giving their lives meaning and purpose? But there is nothing he can do to stop the venom spilling out of his mouth, the months of pent-up tension and weariness inflicted on him the moment he stepped into Tokyo. [...] “Where do you get off calling Morgana useless?!” Akira cuts it again, unable to stop himself. It skips across his body merrily, this vein of deep-seated anger, intertwining itself with the erratic thump-thump-thump of his heartbeat. “Is that all the Phantom Thieves are to you? Useful or useless?” That manages to cut through the chaos of the room like a knife. In the deadly still aftermath of his words, Akira derives cold satisfaction the way his teammates flinch back from him. It swells in his heart like that, thick and hazy, erupting into the room like poison gas.

There's something incredibly interesting about Akira teetering on that edge of "why can't I do this by myself?". He is a Wildcard/Trickster with huge adaptability due to his range of Personas, so while it would suck to not have his teammates as a safety net, he is theoretically capable of going through the game (at this level, anyway, not so much early on) solo; that's also a little gameplay-story integration with the Joker Solo runs people do.

This, of course, is also incredibly similar to Akechi's own philosophy around teammates, and part of why they mirror each other in so many ways. Speaking of Akechi, though, this is also fundamentally a shuake fic, so:

Akira runs a hand through his hair, grimacing as it comes away sticky with rainwater. He doesn’t dare look at Akechi while he thinks of a reply— it feels too invasive, meeting the detective’s eyes, as if he’ll see through everything Akira is trying so desperately to hide. “Are you alright, Kurusu? Did something happen?” Damn him. Akechi has always been uncannily perceptive, although any person with a half-decent brain could probably tell he’s going through some shit right now. The way the detective’s voice goes soft around the edges, though, something almost compassionate creeping through… “I’m fine, detective,” he replies curtly, hunching further into himself as he turns away from Akechi’s gaze. That compassion is the same poison in Yusuke’s voice, the one that punctured his heart like bullets. “Shouldn’t you be getting home?” “You don’t look fine,” Akechi bites back, sharper. It’s almost a relief as the concern bleeds away from his voice, replaced with something more disapproving and caustic. “Did someone attack you? Are you hurt?” Fuck. Akira resists the urge to bury his head in his knees and tries to breathe. Every cold breath seems to stab him in the lungs, a tip-tap to the rhythm of the rain soaking him through. ...A shadow falls over him. Akira looks up to see Akechi’s umbrella open over him, the detective’s grip on the handle tight with tension. “You’re going to catch a cold if you stay like this,” Akechi says tonelessly. “You should go home, Kurusu.”

Akira runs away to Kichijoji to avoid confronting his friends after (blowing up at them / punching Ryuji in the face / having a traumatic flashback) all in one. I don't want to spoil the rest of the fic but it's shuake, Akechi finds Akira in a vulnerable state, you can fill in the rest of the blanks (though it's not smut).

Something I will share though is that sometimes it's easier to share your burdens with someone you are strangers with. Akechi isn't exactly a stranger to Akira, but they have a connection that is both incredibly personal and also impersonally strange. They act like acquaintances and then rivals in the confidant progression, but there is a spark of recognition in that relationship that is absent from most others: like recognises like, which is why the Shuake relationship is so interesting to explore. They skip every conceivable normal 'milestone' a normal friendship does but still understand each other on a deep level because of their similar backgrounds and experiences.

Here's a part I'm really proud of, though:

He doesn’t have any defenses or smokescreens left to throw up. All Akira can do is avert his gaze and curl his hands tighter around the mug, uncaring of the way it begins to burn him. What can he say? Sorry, I thought you were arresting me? Akechi sighs, and although Akira can’t see his expression, it sounds utterly defeated. “I would appreciate a truthful answer,” he says evenly, although perhaps only Akira is privy to the tightly-controlled bundle of emotions behind that flat neutrality. “If nothing else, for the sake of not repeating this incident. Don’t take me for a fool, Kurusu. Your actions tonight were highly irregular, and I could already work out an answer based on what you told me.” “Then why don’t you?” “I’d rather hear it from you instead,” Akechi shrugs. There is a storm brewing in his red eyes, though, formidable and piercing. “Don’t you hate it when people just assume things about you without asking for your perspective?”

(quick context: Akira had a traumatic reaction to Akechi trying to haul him to his feet)

This is something they share deeply. Of course, it's obvious with Akira because he is the subject of so many bad 'delinquent' rumours in Shujin, subject to literally everyone who knows about his criminal record assuming things about him before they meet him, up to and including Sojiro. Akechi's is less obvious but just as intense: it's two-fold, coming from both his status as an orphaned bastard child and as a Detective Prince. He accrues the default social reaction of pity or praise respectively due to the assumptions forced on him by society; for an orphan it's helplessness, stupidity, and being unloveable, and as the Detective Prince it's the assumption that he has his life under control with everything handled. In this way they are both people who have had the burden of societal expectations forced upon them.

One last snippet to end this rambling off:

“What’s it to you?” Akira finally manages, averting his gaze. The mug beneath his fingers has finally cooled to a reasonable temperature, once again allowing the chill to spread along his fingertips, ice freezing over slowly in his veins. What is Akira’s deepest weaknesses and insecurities, to Akechi? Why is he sitting in Akechi’s living room at three in the morning, allowing the detective to dissect his psyche? Akechi goes silent. When he speaks, he’s back to the placid TV mask again, his idle fingers and tapping foot curiously still. “I wasn’t aware it was anything, Kurusu-kun. I saw you in trouble, so I helped you. Is there anything more to it than that?” I saw you in trouble, so I helped you. Akira, coming between the drunken man and the woman he was accosting. Watching Ryuji about to be executed by Kamoshida. Akechi has just cited the motive of the Phantom Thieves. Or, well, the motive before the fame and popularity got to their heads. Something dizzying jolts through his chest— is this how they felt? Thinks of Kawakami’s miserable second job, Hifumi’s controlling mother, Chihaya preyed on by a cult. Changing their hearts. Is this how they felt, being helped?

This is so dear to me because I interpret things to see that Akechi is not heartless. He is, obviously, a serial killer and assassin working for a fascist politician/father for his own ends, but that doesn't mean he has completely ditched all his values.

This is where I diverge from canon a bit. After the Akechi Black Mask fight, Futaba says: "but you didn't trust anyone. So you got one [Persona] for your lies, and one for your hate." This implies that Robin Hood stems from the lie of justice within Akechi's own heart and was never genuine— yet in the 'Proof of Justice' OVA in the anime as well as Akechi Rank 5, Akechi is depicted idolising heroes and using a laser gun (his weapon in both Metaverse forms) from a young age, before his mother died. Robin Hood represents the quintessential 'steal from the rich, give to the poor' kind of underdog justice that would fit the Thieves perfectly if he didn't turn out to be traitor, but we're also given hints that this is the original Akechi before he was tainted by the world; his version of 'justice' that was true even if it was simultaneously used as a lie.

Think of it like... method acting. Goro's Robin Hood, and by extension, "I saw you in trouble, so I helped you" justification is an act, because he is putting on a show of a courteous gentleman to fit with his public image. But that act stems from a genuine desire for justice and righteousness in his heart that never quite died.

This is also multiplied 10x by the fact that it's Akira whom Goro is trying to help and they have that aforementioned unique relationship that is impossible for me to define in a single post.

Actually I lied, this is the snippet I want to finish on: I wanted this continuity to carry into Royal's Third Semester so I wrote an extended interaction of their 'reunion' in January.

“I need to know what happened now between then,” Goro asks curtly, done with dancing around the topic. “Did you take down Shido? What happened after?” So Kurusu explains. “Yes, we took down Shido,” in a voice that bears an unmistakable hint of pain. He shelters it well, but it’s still recognisable to Goro’s trained ears— after all, doesn’t it sound awfully familiar to that same wavering tone a soaked Kurusu had used outside of the billiards bar in Kichijoji in November, shrinking away from his touch like it might burn him? The memory slams itself into Goro in a way he doesn’t know what to do with, so he shelves it and listens to the absolutely insane explanation of how Akira shot god on Christmas Day.

Thanks so much for the interest in my fic because god I have so many thoughts to expunge that wouldn't fit in authors notes! This one isn't published and it's literally just saved on my computer as 'P5R fic', so if people had fun title recommendations (preferably lifted from irl literature because that's my style) feel free to send them in.

[justdalek]

Part one of the Phantom Thieves for the Crusaders au

More info + Gor(e)o Akechi below cut

Ren (Amamiya) Kitagawa

Husband of Ryuji and Yusuke, father of Hikari

Arcana: The World

Persona (Main): Arsene

Still the Wildcard

Has the ability to physically curse anyone in and outside the Metaverse when it opens up again

Works as a Child Service agent to help properly rehome children who were put up for adoption

Became a vigilante hero to save kids from abusive situations after the Metaverse shut down (prior to its second opening)

He is happy to be a model for Yusuke or a consultant for Ryuji

Hikari is closest to him due to his calm demeanor

The only time he lost his temper in front of his daughter was when she was rushed to the hospital after a bad battle in Mementos and Morgana did not inform Ren what actually happened until a few days later (he thought Hikari went missing)

He is still very much a troll when he wants to be

Ryuji (Sakamoto) Kitagawa

Husband of Ren and Yusuke, father of Hikari

Arcana: Chariot

Persona: Captain Kidd

Fully lost his right leg after a bad car accident shattered his femur bone (Ren nearly sued the other driver out of sheer anger that Ryuji couldn’t get his leg back once and for all)

Became a Paralympic for Japan’s track team

He has won 2 gold and 3 silver medals before retiring to become a track coach for one of the high schools

He loves racing Ren in the evenings and being Yusuke’s model in the early morning

Was surprised that Hikari took an interest in skating, but was fully behind her (he fell many times on the ice)

Nearly became a helicopter parent because he was worried that he’d end up like his father, but Ren and Yusuke made sure to remind him that he is not a repeat and that Hikari needs her own space

After the Metaverse opens again, he has the ability to generate electricity by himself, causing several accidental power outages

Yusuke Kitagawa

Husband of Ren and Ryuji, father of Hikari

Arcana: Emperor

Persona: Goemon

Uses his art to inspire people to be their best self

Cried happy tears when Ren and Ryuji asked to take on his last name

Created a self portrait of the current Kitagawa family after Hikari’s arrival (with much encouragement from Ren and Ryuji)

Had a rather hard time bonding with Hikari at first due to remembering how rough his own life got with Madarame, as well as wondering if he is living up to his mother’s expectations

That changed when Hikari (and later Ryuji) had an honest conversation with him about how he’s doing fine and that he shouldn’t be thinking too hard about it

Hikari gets much closer with him after that, and especially after she takes an interest (later hobby) in pottery

Very much makes sure that his family has all Japanese traditional outfits for the proper occasions (especially Ryuji)

Yusuke gains the ability to generate ice after the Metaverse opens a second time. He has to be mindful about his body temperature as he could accidentally freeze an entire floor or person he comes in contact with

Goro Akechi

Arcana: Justice

Persona: Robin Loki

The last remnant of his soul that somehow existed after Dr. Maruki’s reality/Palace was destroyed

He has only one goal: Destroy the Metaverse permanently

His personas are a mutated fusion since Akechi hasn’t fully passed on

Joins the Phantom Crusaders under the guise that he is a mentor for them

Surprisingly becomes a sort of uncle figure to Hikari and Fuyuki

Loves to get under Ren’s skin

Yes, he’s still petty

[sombrerokiwi]

I HAVE MANY PERSONA AU THOUGHTS mostly about the fellas who aren’t Hikari! I know we love our shadow cursed boy here on the sombrerokiwi blog but I’m curious as to how the other travelers fit in with his story! what’s their deal?

Well we already established at Arn's blog that Ochette is the Wildcard. She's from the Metaverse and looks like a Beastling in there but when she's in the real world Ears and Tail become fake. Basically kind of like Morgana but the cosplay questions go up by 10. We know that Mahina and Akala are Velvet Room guys and we know one of them will disappear after a while. Very concerning.

Osvald was a previous Metaverse Researcher who is now on parole. He got framed for the house fire that killed his family and had to serve in jail for a while before someone found evidence that there may have been foul play and bribery concerning the case. He’s Hikari and Throné’s upstairs neighbor and the first one who learns about Hikari’s Curse and the fact that he can travel to the Metaverse. He’s helping in any way he can and keeping an eye on Hikari because he is very aware of the Lumina Family and the possible ticking time bomb that Hikari has as the Curse. First Confidant member and all that.

Temenos I believe is a PI who is in the city investigating both the arson-murder case in Ku and the Mental Shutdowns. He’s Akechi if Akechi was a little less unhinged. He works for an organization very aware of Shadows and the Metaverse and followed in Roi and Jörg’e footsteps in order to figure out what happened to them. He’s determined and gives Hikari anxiety whenever he mentions the case in Ku. Hikari has a confidant with him and he has to make sure the man doesn’t find out about his identity. He eventually finds out and they become friends don't worry.

Throné was part of the Blacksnakes laying low to escape the life of crime and Hikari’s roommate. Pirro, Scaracci, and Donnie probably live in this au and if anything she’s just trying to get them to quit because this is hell. The life of crime is hell. She and Hikari are besties and she goes and figures out his real identity fast. The Curse she doesn’t find out about until later. She just assumes Hikari has a lot of baggage and helps him through it, something he appreciates. We will have her stab Claude she deserves it. She deserves to stab Father, Mother, and Claude IRL and in the Metaverse.

Castti I believe we had her be involved with the Metaverse but we hadn't expanded much on her admittedly. We know for a fact that her memories were erased due to her trying to stop Trousseau from doing Mental Shutdowns en masse. Perhaps she was apart of another division of the organization Temenos worked in and went MIA. Huh actually that would be a good other reason why Temenos went in there in the first place. She's still Castti but she has no memories and all her team is dead other than Trousseau.

Partitio is an aspiring business man and I don't know much other than that. He is however the Ryuji of "We're the Phantom Thieves" gag and almost everyone who interacts with him in his inner circle knows he's a Phantom Thief. He is also the person who manages to get more than 4 pieces of information from Kazan because there is literally nothing that the Moonshade Order can use to properly spy on him because he keeps telling everyone who he is on accident.

Agnea admittedly I don't know much about. She's a college student for dance. She probably also works at Gil's Place and that's how she and Hikari meet but I don't know much other than that. She's admittedly the odd one out in terms of Metaverse things because 6 of the cast already knew about the Metaverse/had connections with the Moonshade Order and Partitio is becoming the 7th because of his own investigations. I don't know what Agnea will do here.

Anyways @throne-anguis do you have anything to add? Because I'm a bit stumped on Partitio, Ochette, Agnea, and Castti.

Also Bean a lot of Persona stuff is on Arn's blog so if you want to join in on the discussion go there because I've been slightly going ham over there ever since I remembered Persona.

[rindomness]

c. ca n. can i pretty pleas eknow who swaps with who in the phantom shuffle au please please please i just got here but i am so intrigued hi

HELLO YOU'VE ACTIVATED MY AUTISM BEAM WELCOME WELCOME SO GLAD TO HAVE YOU HERE

The shuffles are:

Futaba: Wildcard

Morgana: Chariot

Akechi: Lovers

Yusuke: Magician

Sumire: Priestess

Ann: Empress

Ryuji: Emperor

Akira: Hermit

Haru: Justice

Makoto: Faith

Notice that some of them swap nice and some of them are completely unconnected. This is because I wrote everyone's name down and opened a major arcana randomizer and let it run. I cannot in text express the noise I made when it returned hermit for akira and justice for haru they have been eating at my brain for weeks now and i am. perhaps. neck-deep in fun fun consequences of all of this

[argentsunshine]

please read the start of my ryuji wildcard au

[atticinthecafe]

Phantom Thief Leader Akechi au rambling beneath the cut

In the velvet room, Akira gets told he can't trust the people around him, especially those with access to the metaverse. He is also told there are people trying to avoid the chaos and entropy of fate and that will drive the world to ruin quicker than it's supposed to happen naturally. The twins aren't sure how to take any of this. To them it doesn't seem right, but who are they to argue?

Akira figures out who the phantom thieves are pretty quickly (or at least, initially that Ryuji is one then goes from there through a little bit of ★being the quiet guy in the background no one notices★) and just kinda ends up staring at them sometimes like "I know what you are."

When Akira and Akechi meet in the TV station, Akira still stands up for the phantom thieves, he wants to believe they're doing something good, but that they should be careful with their actions. Akechi thinks it's interesting that "Hey this random boy who is not a phantom thief is actually standing up to *me* when most others don't trust the phantom thieves".

Akira, when interacting with the thieves really just ends up being This Cryptic Guy who knows a bit too much but we can't say why at all

He makes regular claims that maybe people need to handle their own problems and that this will just make people rely on the thieves and not fix things themselves (like Sumi's opinion in that one hangout). but also just? Random cryptic comments?

This is because he keeps getting told in the velvet room Phantom Thieves Bad. Do Not Let Them Continue On Their Path. Aka he has become a puppet to work against them without realizing it

The twins sure know something is up though, somehow Akechi while asleep accidentally stumbles his way into interacting with them and gets chosen as their backup plan or something

I've scrapped Akira having a secret persona and outfit bc he. Doesn't really have much to hide for any reason. For the most part he isn't really actively hiding as big of an identity as Akechi was. He does hide the fact that he is a wildcard when being brought on the team though, acting like he only has Arsene

Towards the end of the Sae's palace 'Igor' reveals a lot to Akira and that the Thieves are basically opposing god and will only bring destruction, Akira Does Not Want This so he asks if he can stop them if they'll be left alone and if ruin will be put off into the future. He gets told essentially yeah sure, and so when the palace is collapsing (they do actually steal the treasure) he makes a bolt for it and leaves the group, making it seem like he got caught in the crumbling palace. He knows their next target will be Shido (thanks to Akechi deciding that with the group before having to take a detour with Sae) and plans to stop them there :)

[frauleinandry]

anyway here's akechi's learnset - he's the wildcard in this au. in an inverse of canon, his starting persona is gonna be hereward, with loki as his raoul equivalent, and sabaoth instead of satanael

it's primarily based on loki, however it's got a few elements of robin hood's moveset thrown in for character flavour reasons, and some of ryuji's moves for game balancing reasons

[symphonic-scream]

I can't help it I'm giving y'all more of the heroes au

Makoto and Haru study at the same school! Makoto is a very studious law student, glasses, collared shirts and crew neck sweaters, the full nerdy look. Haru is a business major, appears to be all kindness and smiles, wearing bright colours and fluffy clothes

Queen is a total punk. Loud, follows her truth, doesn't back down. Her main suit is dark blue, based on her dad's old one from his time as a Prime Age hero (spandex, bleh). To modernize it and give it a spin more towards her tastes, she wears big, spiked combat boots, dark sliced up jeans, double studded belts, fingerless gloves, a choker, and of course, a leather jacket. Her mask is metal and the top is spiked upwards like a crown. Her jacket has a lesbian flag patch on the front, near the breast pocket! She's known for being a lady-killer during interviews

Noire is teasing smiles, flirty words laced with distraction, slipping past through the night. Her signature is the dark hat she wears with the indigo feather. At each scene she visited as a vigilante, a perfumed feather would be left behind. The light pink collared shirt, the tall purple gloves, her indigo slacks and maroon boots, they all scream musketeer. Her purple lipstick is another icon of her appearance, under the standard black domino mask she wears.

(Queen becomes accustomed to trying to wipe said lipstick off of herself before reuniting with her team)

Makoto and Sae have a stilted relationship. Sae blames the Iron Will power for their father's death, and resents Makoto for "choosing it over her, just like dad"

Haru has a hideout! It's an attic above the barely used arts building at the University. Since it's more of an academics based school, no one really spends too long there. The garden on the roof above the attic gave Haru the perfect excuse to visit, however

Okay some power notes for everyone

Joker has his Wildcard deck. It's a 52 card deck of 52 different powers! He received them from a higher spirit (Lavenza) who chose him to be her chosen hero, bestowing unto him her deck of powers and. A companion. [psst that's Morgana]. The deck resides in a pocket dimension unless he calls upon it, and with practice he's able to pull just one card rather than the deck, making it easier to just draw his random power

Ryuji was struck by lightning. Yup that's it. Now he's like a walking static charge! His hair stands on end from his natural charge, and now (with practice) he can hold back from shocking people randomly. He finds it best to use a metal bat to channel his power

Ann is rather hot (pun intended!), thanks to her flames. It's an inherited power, it skipped a generation. Her grandfather was a hero back in Europe! Her pigtails end in flames when her power is active, and she can form flames in her hands, though she's working on mastering control over the temperature and shit

Yusuke is from the 1800's, he was frozen and thawed in this age and he's. Still a bit odd. His body temperature is always lower, and the frost tends to crawl from his touch

Futaba can speak with machines, like when she touches them she "hears" what they're all about. That's all I have to say she's a nerd. Her mom had the same thing lmao

The Niijima Iron Will is, well, manifesting strong metal around themselves. Makoto tends to pull forth metal fisticuffs, aka brass knuckles, for punches and shit, though she can also bring up personal shields and minor bits of armour

And Haru!! She has the classic Psychic stuff. Telekinesis and all that. An unofficial power of hers is being really good at flustering miss Queen wink wink

TALK TO ME ABOUT THIS I WANT TO TALK ABOUT TJIS PLEASE

[oraclememehacker]

The Phantom Revisers (A Persona 5 AU Fanfic) Chapter 3 (Part 2): The Editing Process

Part 1 Here!

She was back in her outfit from before, but noticed what looked like a door that was glowing. Her attention was taken towards it as Mona was talking about something. She had already tuned him out and was walking towards the door. It would open automatically, and she made her way in. The whole world changed for her, and she was back in the velvet room. Upon making her way back into the cpu room where Igor was, she saw that things were different. There was a server rack behind him with all sorts of stuff, and two individuals working on it. A tall, slender one and a short, fat one.

“Welcome back to the velvet room, storybook thief. As I told you, the next time you would show up would be on your own accord.” Igor stated, before snapping his fingers and having the two suddenly turn to face her. The long, slender one had big, pointy ears, glowy green eyes and a short nose. “Hello, I am byte.” The other one, the short and fat one, had a longer nose, and glowy blue eyes. “And I am bit.” “These two are the velvet room attendants.” Ah, bit and byte. Considering the whole computer motif, she figured it made sense.

Byte would make a book appear using the server and then walk over to her, handing her it. It was a hard back book with the word persona on it. Upon opening it however, she would find that it was full of blank pages. “This is the first of the books that you will need in order to change the story of humanity.” Byte would then go back to her place. “This is a very important book. As I told you, you are a wildcard. You will be able to carry more than just one persona. That book will be where you summon them from, just like the book you got when your potential was awakened.”

Igor then motioned for Bit to make his way towards her. With their glowy eyes, they both really stood out, but she was thinking about how the blue eyes reminded her of blue LEDs. He summoned another book via the server rack and made his way over to her before handing it over. It didn’t have a title on it and was blank. “Use this book however you wish. You will find that the challenges you face will require you to be creative. What you write in it, will matter. Please use it well.”

Both books vanished, and she saw byte go back to his spot. “In order to change humanity’s story, you must start by changing the stories of those who wield their influence to harm others. You are currently dealing with one. How you go about doing so well…” Igor just chuckled. “You’ll find out as you go along, I’m sure of it. There is so much more to discuss, but for now…gain new personas, use your abilities wisely, and soon you’ll find out everything. Until next time.”

The whole world shifted around her, and she was back in the story book world. Mona and Sojiro were looking at her and Sojiro just had an exasperated look etched onto his face. “Sakura-san. Sakura-san! Sheesh, you looked like you weren’t even here.” She shook her head and then turned to look at the others, Mona now being back in his cat boy form. “You weren’t listening to a word he was saying, were you?”

“No, what was Mona saying?” Futaba admitted and Sojiro just sweat dropped. “Okay, android cat thing, explain all of that again.” “Understood. “He started to talk about how this world was basically the world of a story. The story of Sakamoto Ryuji in this case. Right now, they were essentially at the current point in the story. He was seen as a legendary figure now, and the whole thing with his like of pirates was basically kinda buried, though was still there.

Mona further went on to explain that to change the story, to change his influence and how he felt, they had to go back to the beginning. They had to go to the catalyst, the thing that started this story basically. He was looking for that when he got captured and thrown into the cell. “So how do we get back to the beginning of the story then?” Futaba was curious since, if it was like a story, then they’d have to flip the pages back, right?

“I’m not entirely sure yet. However, I surmise there is something that will allows us to turn the pages back on things. I was also looking for that along with the catalyst that started this whole thing.” This was a complicated thing to figure out, but she was sure they had the ability to do so. Especially with her powers and all that. “Well, all we need to do is explore then, not get caught by Sakamoto and then we’ll all be fine right? It’ll be easy, like level 1 in a video game.”

“Yeah, you wish this was easy Isshiki-san.” Sojiro just let off a sigh. “When we left before there was security all over the place, and I suspect that there will be security still. I doubt we can just go through the way that we did.” Oh yeah. They did have to bypass some security to escape first time they were here. Ugh, this really was like a video game. Always some sort of hardship to endure. “Hmm…well, we’ll figure things out, I’m sure of it! No different than I figure out how my characters get things done in my fanfics.”

“Again, you wish it was this easy. Good grief, this isn’t a video game.” He was praising her and now he was acting like a child. “You’re right, this isn’t a video game. This is a story!” “That doesn’t really change things Sakura-san and you know it!” “You’re right, but we must change things. For Suzui-chan’s sake and everyone else that he’s hurt.” That shut Sojiro up since she was completely right and all. He just took a deep breath and sighed. “Yeah, you’re right. Let’s do this, for them.”

Going into the stadium building, their suspicions were confirmed as they saw security around. Thankfully they were able to find a place to hide, drawing no suspicions from the guards who were looking for anyone suspicious. “In order to get past them, we will either have to sneak past them, or to defeat them in combat.” Mona told them. “I shall show you how to start up combat, since you have the power to fight Futaba.”

Mona snuck up behind a guard and then his right hand turned into a taser like device and shocked them from behind. This made them transform into a pixie who was fluttering around. Then a book appeared in front of him. “Talos, I summon you.” A bronze winged being appeared in front of Mona who was ready to fight in his behest. So, she wasn’t the only one who could summon these personas it seemed. Her Ananshi book appeared in front of her. “Ananshi! Come to me!”

She held out the dagger and was ready to take down this pixie when it would start flying around her and was giggling the entire time. “Ooh! So serious! Why so serious? Have some fun!” Futaba’s death grip on her dagger loosened a bit and she had a realization. Was this one of those personas that was mentioned? An idea popped into her head. She summoned her second book, arriving down from the sky and she opened it once she grabbed it. “Hang on, don’t attack yet Mona. What’s your name anyways?”

“Teehee, me? I’m Pixie! Who are you all? Ooh, let’s play a game!” Futaba made a special pencil appear and then would write the word Pixie in it and then show it to the seemingly friendly Pixie. “Is that how you spell it?” Futaba showed the words to the fairy. “P-I-X-I-E! Yep! That’s how you spell it! Come on! Let’s play a game!” Pixie seemed to be very insistent that they play, but something weird happened. The book started to glow and so did the Pixie.

Of course, Futaba was confused but realized something. This must’ve been the process of getting a new persona! Or maybe it wasn’t. Well, only one way to find out really! “I want you to join me in my fight against the leader of this place. He’s uh…very mean and won’t let you play. I will. Promise.” “We’ll get to play together? Sure! I’ll join you then!” Pixie then started to turn into characters and fly towards the book. Suddenly she was part of the book and Futaba could feel her within.

Sojiro was just looking at all this with a stupefied expression, slack jawed. “Okay…I was not expecting that. What sort of abilities have you gotten yourself Sakura-san?” “Interesting. I was not aware such an ability was possible. But now that I’ve seen it, you must have the ability to wield more than one persona. That is an incredible ability that you possess Futaba. I believe that you will be able to use that to get us through here so much easier. Especially since we have one person in our possession without the ability.”

“I’m right here you know. Unfortunately, you’re right about that. I don’t have those powers of yours. Still, I want to see what’s going on. This is like some look into his mind or something. As an aspiring psychologist I need to see what sorts of things are going on in this weird world.” Well, they were going to have to keep him safe that was for sure. “Okay Sakura-san. But keep behind us alright? So, I think we should go back to that pirate ship and see if there’s anything else there. If I were something important, I’d be there.”

Sojiro was unfortunately starting to get used to these statements, and merely just sighed as they made their way to the room alongside where the ticket master was, avoiding some enemies, and taking down some other guards with relative ease. Futaba even allowed Pixie to come out and help. That made the fairy elated, getting a chance to play. With each battle, she was learning how to wield her personas, how to attack properly and so on. It was thankful the enemies that she had to deal with were weak, though unfortunately she was still having a bit of a problem grasping how to get more personas currently. Pixie was a freebie it seemed.

She knew that she would figure out things though. This was like figuring out things in a new game after all. Soon, they made their way to the elevator, some small talk being had as they were figuring out their next move. With Sojiro still being with them, they couldn’t get too far into this, with him being a potential liability and all that. To his chagrin of course. Once back down in the cavern they saw the pirate ship off in the distance and got back on the boat to get there.

Futaba was staring at her third book that was blank. She was told to be creative with it, but how could she be creative if she didn’t even know what sort of things could be done with it in the first place! She figured out how to capture a persona by complete accident after all. And, if they were going to change the story of the teacher from hell, she was going to have to figure out a lot of things.

Sojiro noticed how she was in deep thought and brought her out of that. “Everything alright there? You’ve been staring at that book for a while now. Is it important?” “Oh, it’s uh, I’m trying to figure it out. I was told I needed to be creative with this thing, but I can’t seem to figure out what I could do with it. But I’m sure something will come to mind.” Sojiro seemed to be satisfied with that answer and helped them get to the ship, and eventually on the deck.

There was a bunch of guards that now looked like pirates roaming around. “If I were something important, I’d be in the captain’s quarters or the helm.” Futaba told them both once they got into a good hiding place. “This will be the same as before. In order for our success to be guaranteed, we must stealthily take out the enemies and then go from there. I calculate our success at 53% currently. Please, follow my lead.”

“Hang on.” She stopped Mona from going forward, a light bulb going off in her head. Her pencil appeared in front of her, and she wrote down something. “I just thought of something. So, we’re in a story, right? What would stun an enemy in a story? Writer’s block.” The logic was escaping Sojiro from his puzzled expression. She held out the book at an enemy and it would start to glow once she tapped on the Writer’s block option she made and then after a bit…

Zap! The enemy was stunned. “I hate when I get writers block. I feel like I can’t get anything done. In this case, it prevents the enemy from doing anything. Temporarily at least.” “That is a brilliant and creative idea you just employed Futaba. Let’s take the enemy down now.” They rushed to the enemy and struck, before taking it out in a couple of attacks. Futaba would get struck once or twice but was otherwise unharmed. Pixie would help by healing her, and now it was time to move forward.

Defeating a few more enemies on the deck of the ship, they made their way to the interior of the ship. Since Futaba’s first guess was the captain’s quarters, they would look around for it. “You know, I never realized how claustrophobic a pirate ship would be. These corridors are tight.” Futaba said out loud to herself. “It’s almost like pirate movies aren’t the reality.” “Yeah, and we’re in a story, I doubt this is realistic either. Oh, hey look, a special door. I believe that’s where we need to go.”

It had skull and crossbones on it, along with what looked to be a trophy adorned on it. It must have been Sakamoto’s quarters. Pushing on the door, they made their way in, and they saw a desk in the middle of the room. It was nicely decorated, pictures adorning the walls of what they had to assume was his accomplishments but in the style of pirates. Futaba went up to the desk and was scanning it. The first thing she saw was a book. It must’ve been very important, from the fact that it had his name on it, followed by “The Story of a zero to a hero” on it.”  Well, there was no way that wasn’t important. “Sheesh, self-aggrandizing much?” Sojiro’s voice had contempt dripping off it like venom. “Well, I think the easiest thing to do is to go back to the beginning and find this source and get this over with.”

“I’m getting to it. Hold on.” The room was spacious, there was the nice and well-made bed, and she saw the trophies as well. There was this bad feeling in the back of her head as she opened the book up and was examining it. They didn’t know what going back in the story meant, but as she was looking at the picture, she was getting an idea of what this meant. It talked about he was on top of the world and could do anything he wanted. He had all the control and power, even if it was at the expense of others.

So, he really was feeling like that huh? That explained why he was talking down to Suzui, and why nobody ever tried to stop him. Man, this was a deplorable situation for sure. Before she could turn the pages so they would go back in the story, she heard the door open. There was Sakamoto with a few of his guards. Things happened in a flash, as the guards rushed towards Sojiro and Mona, quickly dispatching of them by grabbing them and holding them back. They were forced to watch as he made his way up to Futaba, malice, and contempt in his eyes.

This time she was ready, or so she thought. She went to summon Ananshi and that’s when the book was knocked away and she was grabbed forcefully by her shirt. “You. You humiliated me you little brat! You don’t dare humiliate the great Ryuji Sakamoto!” He forced her close to him, the death grip he had on her outfit apparent, before he shoved her backwards, causing her to fall onto the floor on her back. Before she could react, she felt him stomp on her stomach causing her to groan out in pain.

“That’s what you get for disrespecting me!” She felt another stomp followed by a kick. Meanwhile, Sojiro was watching with disgust and anger pouring out of him. He was struggling against the grip of the guards who had him held by his arms. All he could think about as he saw Futaba get kicked over and over again, seeing her cough up some blood, was just how helpless he felt. About how he had let things happen. He knew how bad it was with Sakamoto, and how people were letting him get away with it.

But every time he tried to do anything, his life was made worse, and he felt stuck, just going through the motions at this point. That was part of why he tried out looking like a punk. It was a desperate attempt to make himself stand out, to do something different. But instead, he just felt like an absolute fool. “Stop it! You bastard! She doesn’t deserve to be treated the way you treat Suzui-chan! Urg…” This was it. With Futaba down there was nothing they could do. He even watched with despair as she was picked back up, dazed, and hurt, and had a sword pushed up against her throat.

“This is where things end for you. I’m not going to let anyone take away what I’ve earned. I’ve gone through hell and back, and you aren’t taking it away from me!” Sakamoto screamed, venom dripping from his voice, getting ready to deal the killing blow. The depths of despair were hitting Sojiro, and that’s when he heard a voice. “Giving up already, Sojiro? When your story and hers has already begun? For shame, for shame. Justice may be blind, but she is not deaf. You must be hearing the cries of those being hurt, as they are loud.”

He wasn’t sure what was going on, but he saw a book start to float down from the sky. This was just like what happened with Futaba. Was he getting the same powers as her? “When things are darker than a moonless night, and the depths of despair are more bitter than hell, the only thing to do is to fight back. Seize my power and fight back against those who strive to oppress and hurt others. Call my name, Godot, and seize control of your own future!” With a burst of strength, he managed to escape the grasp of the guards and would grab the book. He saw the name Godot on it, and he flipped open the book. His look started to transform as he did this.

His normally punkish appearance would change, wearing a peach-colored suit and a tie, along with a long black overcoat. His hair was slicked down, and he was wearing a mask with a smiley face on it with the words happiness, sadness, anger and surprise in Kanji. “Persona…Godot, come to me! Show him that we’re not going to just stand back and let him control our story!” A beam of light surrounded him, and Godot would appear, sporting his mask that glowed a bright red, holding a cup of scalding hot coffee. “How may I help you today, master?” “Throw that damn coffee at him.” “As you wish.” Sakamoto would have a cup of coffee thrown at him suddenly and quickly.

The combination of hot coffee suddenly splashing on him and the mug smashing against his head made him drop Futaba, and that was ample enough time for Sojiro to slam into him, causing the disgruntled teacher and pirate to end up slamming against his bed. The mixture of chaos and confusion with this situation allowed Mona to turn around, stunning one the guards and getting himself free. Sojiro took this opportunity to help Futaba up. “Are you alright?!”

“Y-Yeah…give me just a moment…” Her whole body was pain, but she managed to make her way over to the book and started to flip the pages back, as a guard was heading towards her. Sojiro then realized that in one of his pockets appeared to be a pistol, and he pulled it out and shot the guard directly in the head. She managed to flip back to the last chapter and the whole world started to change around them. “Hold on, I have absolutely no idea what’s about to happen!”

The whole world ended up flipping backwards like pages on a book, and the next thing they knew, they were in a stadium once again. It was a different one though, and there were announcements over the speakers about an up-and-coming track star called Ryuji Sakamoto who was hoping to overcome the odds and win gold at the Olympics in 2012. He was nowhere to be seen though, along with the guards.

“We are now in a different point in his story. However, I suspect that due to us disrupting things, there will still be him and his guards looking for us. We should proceed with caution.” Mona told them before realizing the two were exhausted, especially Sojiro, who seemed ready to collapse. “On the other hand, we will not be able to explore much with you two being exhausted. We must make a retreat and come in when you all are rested.”

“Coulda told you that, you dumb cat.” “Hey, be nice for once.” Futaba retorted as she looked at her metanarrative app and saw that it was flashing. Once she pressed it, the world changed around them, and they were once again back in the real world. She was still shaken up and hurting a bit though. Once she took a moment to calm herself down, she made her way over to Sojiro and gave him a huge hug. “Thank you, thank you so much for saving me…”

It took him a moment to return the hug, but he did, patting her back. “Heh, it’s not a problem, really. You saved my life, I saved yours. I was tired of looking to the sidelines anyways. I’ve known that things were bad for a while but every time I tried to say anything things just got worse for me. That’s why I just stood there and watched that bastard berate Suzui-chan. Because I knew it would just get worse for me if I dared stood up. And she’s unfortunately far from the first he’s done that to. That’s why I was so proud of you, by the way.”

“Heh, thanks. I wouldn’t be a good protagonist if I didn’t stand up. I just…I know what it’s like to be bullied and all that. Bullied so much for my intelligence, and everyone assuming that I tried to steal and sell their personal data.” She let out a bit of a pained sigh at that. “I didn’t do it. I know someone set me up. But with everyone having their eyes on me, I have to be careful with what I look at currently. By the way, I guess you don’t really have to be formal with me. Just call me Futaba alright?”

“Heh, fine by me Futaba. And you can just call me Sojiro.” “Alright Sojo!” “…I said Sojiro, not Sojo.” “Heh, Sojo’s bizarre adventures. I like it.” “I said call me Sojiro!” That just caused her to roar out in laughter for a good bit as they finished hugging and pulled away from each other. Not to let Mona feel left out, she went over, picked him up and gave him so head pats and scratches. Even Sojiro reluctantly got into it, and they would hear an artificial purr from him.

“Let’s meet up tomorrow, alright Sojiro? I’ll have to see how I feel but if I’m feeling fine, we must keep going through that place. We’re a team now, and we need to change things for the better.” Determination coursed through her despite some lingering pain, and Sojiro agreed with that. Mona would go back into her bag, and they would head off for the time being.

[April 11th, 2017]

Futaba was currently going through history period, writing down some notes but mostly thinking about going back to that story book world. What was it going to be like the further they went into it? She didn’t know, and it was fascinating her! Though, unfortunately she had loaded up on coffee and energy drinks this morning, and the urge to pee hit her. She raised her hand and waited on the teacher to see it. “May I go to the bathroom real quick?” “Yeah. Make it quick.”

She rushed out of the classroom and headed to the restrooms; but that’s when she noticed that they were closed because of cleaning and maintenance. It felt like the universe was laughing at her and her bladder related emergencies. “I picked a really wrong day to drink two energy drinks before school…” Rushing upstairs, she decided to use the first year’s restrooms, as using the third years would be weird and awkward and beyond her power levels.

Upon making it to the restroom, the urge was really hitting her, making her have to cross her legs awkwardly. But all of that would come to an abrupt stop when she saw something in front of the sinks. At first, she couldn’t even comprehend what she was seeing in front of her. What the hell, what the actual hell was going on?! Before she knew it, she let out a terrified scream. What was it that Futaba saw? It was Suzui Shiho, in the midst of hanging herself…

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