#thief nanako au

[andiftheycare]

AU where Suguru’s an overworked salaryman and Satoru keeps stealing his umbrellas as a bad attempt at flirting.

Or the you swan he frog meme but make it a fic

☂️ Part one here, and also on twt

☂️ Part two point one below (because it’s now too long and I haven’t even covered everything I wanted to cover in part two)

Highly unedited as I’m writing this as I go and using no braincells.

Tags to be aware of: AU, squint and it’s a reincarnation au (more on this in part 2.2 and 3)

☂️☂️☂️☂️☂️

Over the weekend, Mimiko picks up a talisman at the local temple to protect Geto from evil.

Nanako laughs at her. She’s been in a perpetual state of amusement since Suguru briefly mentioned the thief to them, “Isn’t this too much?”

“Well, we don’t know what Geto’s dealing with,” she’s just partially offended.

“It isn’t a ghost, sis.”

“You don’t know that.”

Their quarrelling is soothing and familiar, and Suguru huffs while he ties the omamori to the umbrella, which now sports a blessing and a curse sitting next to each other.

He wonders if one will override the other. A cursed object protects the same way as a talisman, after all — its energy is just stems from a different source.

At least that’s what his grandma used to say. Mimiko beams at him when she notices the new decoration embellishing Geto's umbrella, and Nanako comes back to put a star sticker next to the printed curse “Just to make it more obvious.”

On Monday, it’s raining and raining, and Suguru finds that his new umbrella is indeed an old one. Or rather, he notices it because he has no memory of walking home under it the previous week.

It just bends on one side, so his left shoulder’s uncovered, but that’s fine, really. Hopefully it’ll make it less appealing to whoever can’t be bothered to leave him alone.

“Whoa,”

Turning isn’t the best idea he’s ever had. In a scale from one to dropping out of high school — which he almost did when he was eighteen and had a peculiar, stubborn way to see his future — he’d put this executive decision just below almost not getting a degree.

Piercing blue eyes find him instinctively and immediately. “I don’t want to turn into a frog.”

“Then leave my umbrella alone.”

A client enters the konbini. Gojo and Geto briefly acknowledge them — there’s music, there’s someone clearning their throat and there’s two set of eyes moving to see this guy trying to reach the rack.

Neither of them moves.

“You could’ve, I don’t know, picked something more terrifying.”

“Because you think being turned into a frog isn’t?”

“I don’t know,” Gojo latches his hands behind his head, “There are worst faiths.”

There were. Suguru once possessed a wicked fantasy for horrible scenarios. Now his brain just produces white noises. “Like what, spending your life simmering in regrets?”

“Yikes, that’s just being a loser.”

There’s another hesitant “Sorry, I need to—" that goes to the wind and birds and gods listening to men, but not to those two.

“Then you don’t need to be cursed, do you?”

“What do you mean?” He says, slowly, but Satoru knows exactly what he means, because he winces, and his stand wavers. “You don’t know me.”

True. He doesn’t.

However.

There’s familiarity in their bickering, a warmth in Suguru’s tongue when he speaks back to him, declining his language into its informal structures rather that the safe politeness that should shield them from getting close too quickly. “You sound lame.”

Gojo Satoru is six feet tall and he pouts. What the fuck.

“I could sound lamer.”

Suguru blinks. Okay, maybe Gojo's right, maybe his instincts are all pointing in the wrong direction here. He doesn’t know him. “That wasn’t a challenge.”

“See? That’s the problem there. You don’t know I like to win.”

The konbini’s client signs and leaves the umbrella on a corner, next to the coffee machine. As an extra in those people’s life, he understands his role and he’s there, after all, just to buy dinner.

“But why would you want to—“ Suguru cuts off. “No, actually, I don’t want to know.”

The other grins widely, “For instance, I could say,” he looks around, then dips his head closer to Suguru “Take me to dinner. That's a great way to get to know me better.”

Before Suguru could even process that, Satoru takes a step back, beaming as if nothing in the world matters to him but the sound of his own voice. “See? That’s already lamer.”

“Please don’t ever ask me out again,” Suguru begrudgingly takes his umbrella, which wasn’t stolen so maybe the amulet is working.

Of course, that’s wishful thinking.

The day after, the umbrella is gone and the omamori’s left lying on the ground like a sad autumn leaf. Suguru picks it up with care, huffing, putting it in his jacket’s inside pocket so for it not to get wet in his walk back to the office.

During the night, when all the buildings surrounding him are pitch black, and his screen’s light scorches his eyes, Suguru briefly thinks about ordering online a small umbrella to keep in his drawers.

Sipping on coffee, he ponders about it, and then the thought is gone as the numbers in his spreadsheet finally makes sense.

“Christ, why are you here?”

At that point, there’s little that fazes him. Gojo leans on the ice-cream fridge wearing sunglasses in the middle of the night. His suit — black, corporate abiding — is utterly wrinkled, and the man looks, for once, tired.

“I could ask you the same question.”

The other raises his shoulder. “I’m having dinner.”

“It’s past one in the morning.”

“Eh,” Gojo inspects the selection of ice creams in silence, and Geto doesn’t know what to do with this man’s silence.

Granted, they met twice, so he shouldn’t be bothered by it; shouldn’t be reading the lines of his face as if they share enough of a past for Suguru to pretend he can interpret Gojo’s spirits.

Weirdly, his stomach churns. It must be because he had barely eaten dinner too.

“You’re not having ice cream. It’s not a meal.”

“I am,” Gojo replies, unbothered.

“But why?”

At that, white hairs pops up and black lenses are directed in his direction.

“Won’t you feel like crap tomorrow? And you’d be hungry in what, twenty minutes?”

“I’ll just have another one.”

Suguru inhales. Why does he care, anyway?

“You should go home,” Gojo offers instead, fingers reaching to open the fridge. They’re long, Suguru thinks distractedly.

“You know there aren’t any trains.” Suguru says, “Besides, at this point it wouldn’t make sense. The journey’s too long.”

“So what, you’re sleeping in the office?”

A question he doesn’t want to answer. “By the looks of it, you are, too.”

“I live close by.” he doesn’t deny it, thought, which is telling. “You can crash at my place if you want.”

“I’m not—-"

Fetching for a triple chocolate diabetic threat, Gojo adds quickly “I’ll be out all night anyway so I’m not fishing for a hook up.”

A part of Suguru deflates, a bitter taste similiar to disappointment weighting his tongue.

If Geto cared about things being proper, he would’ve declined Gojo’s offer. But Geto adopted two children when he was in high school and moved all of them to a shitty flat in Tokyo as soon as he cashed his first pay check, so proper often doesn’t agree with him.

Also, he’d rather not sleep in a karaoke room that night. Or in the office.

“Yeah,” Suguru steps closer to him, closes the fridge. “I presume you’d like me to buy you dinner first, for that.”

There are few blinks, and a car crash happening slowly in Gojo’s features. He thinks that’s lamer than anything the man could’ve said or done. But he doesn’t want Gojo to know he’s somehow winning at his own self-inflicted competition, so he walks towards the drinks aisle “I’ll buy you a beer as a thank you.”

“I don’t drink!” Gojo sputtered “Give me your Line contact instead.”

“I’d rather not sleep at your place then.”

“I’ll delete it if you ask me to.” He’s eager, this man. He could and should look pathetic, truly, with those ridiculous square glasses and his all-over-the-place suit, but he isn’t. Which makes Suguru go oh, maybe he looks like this when he’s begging.

“And you could need stuff at my place. Towels and all of that.” He does a weird hand gesture that makes Suguru wonder if Gojo knows what you need to spend a night in an apartment that's not yours.

“All of that?”

“Buy yourself a toothbrush while you’re here.” Satoru continues, “but yeah, what if you need a special conditioner for your hair?”

“You use conditioner?”

Gojo scoffs, “You don’t?”

Instinctively, Suguru’s hand flies to his bun. “Should I?"

“Unfair.” Gojo hisses, completely hollowing his cheeks as he sucks on chocolate like he’s trying to hoover the dessert with his mouth.

Shades slide on his nose at the sound of Suguru’s laugh.

☂️☂️☂️☂️

A brief walk of fifteen minutes it’s all it takes to move form the jungle of office skyscrapers to one of high end flats.

Figures, the man’s dirty rich. Geto double checks the address when he arrives at the building with the floating pool.

There’s a flash of Gojo’s cocksure grin in his head. Yes. This adds up.

So Geto goes through the motions of getting in the elevator and finding Gojo’s flat, an open loft with high windows and immaculate forniture. Little attention goes to inspecting his surroundings as Geto hunts for a bed.

Code’s 241218. You’ll find fresh clothes in my wardrobe and you can use all products in the bathroom. There’s one in my room and a bigger one in the corridor. Any issues give me a call.

The space’s so neatly organised, however, that Gojo’s instructions end up being clear as a bell. He changes clothes and brush his teeth and he’s dramatically asleep few minutes afterwards.

☂️☂️☂️☂️

He sleeps until the morning and misses his first alarm, the one he set to catch the first train back home, grab a fresh suit and wish Nanako and Mimiko a good day.

Fuck.

It takes him a few seconds to match the white ceiling in front of him with his surroundings, Gojo’s voice a lingering memory in his head.

A warm blanket of sunlight bathes his body and, at seven in the morning, for the first time since Suguru has started working, the pleasure of a rush free morning sinks into his bones, and cracks something in his chest.

If Gojo was there, he’d kiss him.

He isn’t, so that’s fine.

Can I borrow one of your suits?

Suguru texts Gojo as he turns on the rice cooker, a techy model with a vast selection of settings that looks almost unused.

Suit yourself

You’re not as funny as you think you are

You’re wrong. I think you giggles and blushes reading my texts

I don’t giggle

Yet

While the rice cooker steams in a corner, Suguru inspects the content of the fridge and finds some eggs, a package of puddings and a sad looking carrot. That’ll have to do. Mirin, soy sauce and dashi powder are easy to find, and he can indulge in cutting the carrot to mix it with the eggs.

He cares little about being in someone’s else home. Maybe it’s because that flat is a liminal space resembling a showroom, rather than a real house. Suguru doesn’t investigate his surroundings — he values privacy — but he’s cognisant of how him cooking in Gojo’s kitchen blurs the lines of their acquaintanceship.

The eggs sizzles on a pan, and the door of the flat opens with a clicking sound.

“And who are you?”

Geto turns to the voice. There’s a boy standing there with a plastic bags in his hands and an annoyed, stony face. He doesn’t look a bit like Gojo, if only for being in his early twenties.

“I’m…”

The boy takes a picture of him, and quickly types on his phone with one thumb.

Suguru blinks. “What are you doing?”

“Google-lensing you.” The boy looks up, skeptical. Eyes are down to the screen again. A text pops up in Suguru’s phone.

Megumi doesn’t bite.

Bur looks like he could. Megumi scowls. “Why were you involved in an arson case?”

Suguru smiles politely, summoning some of his charms. “Would you like some breakfast?”

[jester-creates]

New au idea: persona 4 but Inaba is quite literally, basically Night Vale with all it's oddities

instead of a radio station Inaba has a TV Station (the only other channel is the midnight channel).

Yu is sent to Inaba after his mom could find literally no one else to take him in for the year. so she called up her brother and sent yu to her hometown hoping desperately that the year there would not turn him weird.

He took the the weirdness of the town like a fish to water.

Yosuke becomes friends with Yu because he knows about the outside world and also takes the title of new guy from him. (He has been here for over a year(? Time is weird in Inaba)) Sometimes he gets possessed by the Junes to work there in the night.

Chie became friends with Yu cause she was part of the Summer reading program in the last year, and is determined to protect "the new guy" from the Librarians. Plus she's already friends with Yosuke and he's friends with Yu. So might as well.

The amagi inn is open though they are only taking ghost customers at this time. miss Yamano is too busy enjoying the inn's hot springs to answer Dojima's question on if she was murdered or just really desperate to get a reservation at the inn.

Kanji's dolls may or may not be alive. we know they are there and they move when we aren't looking. but they also don't breathe and that seems very important to life

Teddie, does not legally exist. Cause everyone knows that there is no such thing as bears.

Rise, as a native to Inaba, is naturally weird. Even before her idol career, she was quite famous for being the first person in Inaba to open their 5th eye. Which comes with the side effect of occasionally floating in the air and giving hyper-specific prophecies to random people. It's much more dramatic in Inaba than elsewhere.

(Also this is an au where Yu is romantic partners with both Yosuke and Rise. Polyamory ftw)

Naoto is not having too much of a fun time in Inaba. She came in to investigate some murders, and he came out with a realization of his funky gender, friends, government mandated eldritch entity (which is probably a persona), and a broken worldview of what she had previously thought was possible.

Dojima is part of the Sheriff's Known Police. And by part of I mean one of two members (the other is Adachi). the Sheriff's known police are also the only ones (not including the IT) that are investigating the murders/ kidnappings. And not because people are dying, but because the killer/kidnapper didn't submit the proper paperwork.

Nanako still gets letters from her mom even if she still can't really meet her. Not because Nanako's mom is dead. No, it's because Nanako's Mom is an Angel, which of course don't exist. (Though Dojima is looking for concrete evidence to submit to the city council that they do)

Everyone knows about izanami's presence. she isn't a threat. however he is a notorious pronoun thief and citizens will often wake up and find that she has stolen [REDACTED] pronouns in the night. they'll give them back the next night by taping the pronouns to the victim's door. someone else can steal the pronouns at that point though. Izanami is a menace.

Igor, or as he's better known, the weird old guy who lives in the blue door we all know is there even if we can't see it, is wanted by the Sheriff's secret police for illegal entity dealing. the sheriff's secret police are only thwarted by the fact that they cannot see the door and thus cannot find the knob to open it.

Junes is basically Strexcorp. either buying or running out local competition. Junes is also the final boss of p4 in this au, as again Izanami is simply a menace.

Yu and Marie both take over the role of TV presenter by the end of the year. They switch out depending upon if one of them's busy. This allows Yu to leave Inaba if he wants to. The previous presenter most likely died during Junes' temporary take over of Inaba.

Also the TV station has a cat. About 9 of it actually. 9 of the exact same cat. Yu and Rise take one of the copies with them when they have to leave as all the versions of the station cat are connected and part of a hivemind and a very effective method of communication into Inaba.

I think that's all I have right now? So I'll just leave now. *closes the door quietly behind me.*

[depressedhatakekakashi]

Do you think Rogue Gai had one of the hardest childhoods?

I always imagined this Gai's parents were politically assassinated to send a message. Like they were blacksmith parents who were conscripted to make weapons/ armor, but the quantity/ quality that was demanded of them was too high, especially for the pay they were recieving (or not recieving. Oof.) and it ended up with them being killed, and their shop/ home being burned down for their "disobedience." Gai just BARELY managing to escape himself, but probably saw the whole thing happen.

Maybe his parents locked him in a built in cupboard that had a small secret door to the outside access in case of emergencies. Like the wall boards were able to move so he/they could have left in case of emergency. (Maybe they were already doing some rebellious stuff and used that secret entrence to let people hide from law enforcement, but how often it was used made the cops suspicious until they were targeted.) But there was no time for the parents to escape... they only had time to save their son...I always picture him as a child eventually running to where the river/ willow tree is and breaking down there. Hiding beneath the tree and praying to any god to not be found as soldiers drew near. I wonder if Nanako was the one who heard him and made a distraction since she was closest). And with Hiroki, the oldest/ one of the only trusted adults in the village dying, and his orphanage/ hospital being ransacked, Gai ended up taking his chances on the streets, and maybe with the help of some beggars, managed to learn the only way to get by was to steal. To be fast, be clever, and stay out of sight. Eventually he learned the city was forever unsafe and hid/ grew up in the woods for "safety." Which came with many if its own challenges...

From there he went from angry/ scared orphan, to thief, to gang member, to freedom fighter rapidly. Until whispers of his name could be heard in fear/hope throughout the village, all depending on who talked about him. He became so infamous that Kakashi heard his name in passing. (And the rest between them, is history).

I think the only version of himself that may have had it harder, was second Gai.

Was I right about any of that?

Childhood wise i would say that Rogue Gai, Dragon Gai and Merchant Gai actually sort of match up.

A large reason for Merchant Gai travelling so much is he has bad memories of his home. He remembers watching both of his parents die from disease or attack and growing up alone in a home that held so many memories. Once he was old enough he clawed his way to an escape by making enough money to get himself a boat. He did all sorts of odd jobs to get this boat, but once he had it he was free. He could sail whenever he wanted and it quickly became a way for him to make money.

I do like the idea of Nakano being the one to protect Gai, perhaps even putting up a veil over him so that when people passed by they didn’t see him at all. She’s not ready to reach out to him yet, but she will protect him from any harm.

I also love the idea of Kakashi walking through the village, just sort of checking in on it, and hearing whispers about a great thief known for stealing from the Rich and giving to the poor.

One of the first places Gai gave money to was actually the orphanage/hospital, which is the first place Lee had rebuilt/repaired when he took the throne.

(I almost want Lee to be Gai’s biological son in this au, so the royal family circles back to Gai without him actually taking the throne)

Kakashi seeking out Yamato and asking him to keep abreast of eye out for some thieves hiding in his woods, and Yamato just rolling his eyes and saying ‘those ass holes who use ny tree’s for target practice? Ya, i can show you where they are”

[vicsep7250]

@ren-amamiyaa and their (he/she?) Golden Heist, Thief Nanako and Cryptid Chaser aus flooded my brain and now Im making this post bc I cant fit all of this in asks!!!

All right, so, idea. Cryptid Chasers, Thief Nanako and Golden Heist are all connected righr???

CC acts as a prequel, TN becomes the inbetween starring Nanako and Akechi, and GH stars a broken and older IT and slightly jaded PT.

So far CC has Yosuke and Naoto forming the brotp that fanon wanted through silly Saturday Night Ghost Chasers Shenanigans, Akiren is bein' a lil shit at midnight bc he needs an outlet and exercise to Phantom Thief. While this goes on, Akechi's ghost/spirit/rement/heart/whatever pulls pranks and shenans along with Joker (hiwever that happens).

As the Cryptid Chasers keep going out of their way to confront Joker about Arsene (bc even he likes to mess around) the other IT in Inaba start to try and stop them from disrupting the peace (read : harassing a known criminal) and this somehow leads to a falling out. Mayhaps Naoto and Yosuke break a few laws and Chie busts them, Kanji wants to know why theyre stalking his student/protege, and Yukiko just wants to keep the rumors about the inn in check bc jfc Yosuke STOP SCREECHING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT IN THE LOBBY THERE IS NO GHOST ON THE TV!

Maybe eventually they call it quits or dont bc Naoto dug this hole too deep to climb out themself and Yosuke is having the time of his life since Partner isnt around and hasn't come back to visit yet (Not sayin' souyo is canon and there but-). And the Cryptid Chasers arc probably ends here with there being some animosity towards their shenanigans , but the IT are all still friends.

Now fast forward to like, uhhh (*flings dart at wall of calendars*) 2014 during winter and Akiren's cryptid acts are now fully accepted and maybe exposed, who knows. Nanako is like 10 ~ 12 (P5 is maybe three/five years post P4 I believe) and is just going through the motions of public education. I.E. go to class, do work, get good grades. Dojima is still the same as he was before Yu came but is at least doing better at being a dad, not much but better. Yosuke and Ted aren't around as much bc Junes, Chie is transferred to Tokyo, Yukiko is busy managing the Inn, and Kanji is busy with work (as a teacher and crafts business owner). Rise unfortunately cant come visit and Big Bro now visits every other year.

Nanako starts to look back and wonder how things started to fall apart amongst the group and recalls that "delinquent" who came back at the same time the Cryptid^tm showed up and ruined the group. So now she starts to remember the good times when Big Bro came by and starts to notice some blanks around winter... Why was she in the hospital when she got kidnapled? Why does she remember these weird flashes of Big Bro and his friends and some monster?? And how come she tried to ask them anything about it they brushed her off each time???

The TV in her room flashes and soon she starts hearing things. She starts to move closer to the tv, as if she was in some sort of trance, as the sounds start to become voices to her. When she's directly infront of the screen she sees something... someone on it...

Nanako doesnt show up for breakast, or to school, and nobody seems to have seen her.

A full year passes on after that day. It starts off with a big search party of the IT and Social Links for the first two months, then after ankther three something stange happens... are people forgetting that Nanako existed or something? Everybody's starting to act like completely different peoplw than who they are too, some even end up hospitalozed due to severe headaches and such, and start claiming that Nanako was never around when she vanished or that she left Inaba or was already deamed dead or missing. This rings alarms in the IT's mimds as they search for answers, eventually all fully reuniting for the first time in years/months.

Naoto and Yosuke blame themselves bc they piece together her disappearance with the Cryptid + Ghost case and immediately get scolded for trying to pin their stupid kids game on a missing person's case - especially now with Nanako missing and possibly in danger again! Afterwards the IT are a bit on edge and a bit broken with the whole thing. Meanwhile Akechi can hear the tale ends of "missing person" and "literal disappearnace" and starts looking into this weird limbo metaverse he's in bc some shit is kinda fucked in here now for some reason. They're pretty much only together as a team to rescue Nanako.

GH in the PTs POV starts when Akiren invites the group to the Amagi Inn thanks to licrative money grin- I mean training. He comes clean into having seen something weird on the tv one late night and wants to let the gang know.

Midnight rolls around and Akechi shows up on the screen and the Thieves losing their shit is an understatement - numerous noise complaints were filed that night. Anyways Akechi decides to just play the role of "hey moron, some shits fucked come help fix it" and ends up informing them of a missing girl and this weird TV Mementos world he is in.

I would like to note that Akechi is not at all bitter or confused at everyone's circumstances in life, no of course not Joker stop crying I know its been a while but shutup theres a kid in trouble rn and youre the only ones who can possibly help her.

When the PT figure out a plan to reach this other world Goro is in (Arsene : THOUARTTHEESTICKYOURHANDINTHETVDOITDOITDOITDOIT) the IT eventually come to the very sad conclusion that Nanako moght be in the TV world and that opens a whole can of worms and burnable bridges to cross.

While in the TV world, I'd like to imagine that due to Akechi having been there for a good while it has been shaped to reflect his heart and be the new overall theme of that world. It all still looks like Inaba, but it all holds themes to Akechi and his no good terrible life. However due to Nanako having been in that world as a kid, and now for an uncertain amount of time, the world now holds motifs to the Heaven area from P4, but it's all sorta ruined and kinda darker.

When both teams get together and enter the weird Tele-Mentos world (IT in a Junes storage and PT at either Ren's pad [bc he moved out obvi] (OR bith teams enter from seperate TVs at the Inn so SHENANS!)) Yu and the IT go through Akechi's influenced world/TV Palace, finding out about his tragic backstory and involvement with the PT, but anything that can and could reveal their true identities is blurred and staticy or missing bc Akechi aint gonna snitch out who ruined his sperm donors life (also I guess saved the world too yeah). While going through the Palace the Team starts to think that finding Goro will just be an "if it happens" sort of deal bc he's been missing for years already, what if we just leave him here bc M U R D E R E R.

Cue a sudden appearance by someone in some sort of fallen angel garb who starts whipping out a full on Metal Gear Villain monologue about how hypocritical the IT are when they find the truth about Akechi's life and disappearance - they claimed to want to live in a world where no one hides in the fig, was that all a lie? Are they going back on their word, and hiding behind a shriud of lies and falsehoods once more? "You've gone and lied and hidden the truth already, what's to say you won't continue?"

Meanwhile Akiren and the Thieves enter at the very top of the Heaven TV Set and have to climb all the way down. As they do so they start seeing little murals or epitaphs about memories and people in this girls life. They see all of these memories of a happy girl who had such a loving family - both found and by blood. As they go further and further down the ruins start to look like an actual Heaven, and the scenary becomes more bright and colorful. Eventually they might run into Crow in his Black Mask clothes and give the bastard a slug on the arm and a group hug or two, bc man he doesn't deserve to suffer anymore like this.

Now that the Phantom Thieves have been reunited (Akechi : I can't leave this world The PT : FUCK, MORE PLOT) they end up thinking up ways to get Akechi out until this weird angel priest looking dude shows up and starts babling about how they are criminals and how they've done more bad than good and blah blah blah. Everyone is just all "We're the good guys, we do the right thing even if its morally grey/ambiguous!" and oh look! Another crazed maniac wants to kill us for our "injustice" *Crow has the decency to look away and not say anything* annnnnnd Heaven is locked off. Perfect.

Now maybe the Phantom Thieves and Investigation Team run into each other somewhere in Akechi's Palace and "You have Personas?!?!" "The hell is a Palace?" "YOU'RE THE CRYPTID OF INABA!!?!?" "And Im the 'Ghost' that follows him." "Wait you followed me as a ghost?" "WAIT WHY ARE THERE TWO AKECHIS??!??!!"

Oh yeah, Shadows... Akechi is still kinda in denial about the whole friends and justice thing...

And now the Dark Priest is back great ("Good name Skull" "Well I've got my moments right?").

Annnnnnnd now I have no idea what happens next and Im all burned out but AAAAAAAAA this entire AU crossover thing is so GOOOOOOOOOOD!!!!!

[artekai]

For a moment I thought I would have to make up a mascot character for the Phantom Thief Rumi AU, because otherwise how would she know how she’s supposed to steal hearts?

But then I thought...

Jose is right there... 🤔

[sunmoonjune]

Masterlist

✧*:  a collection of the works of sunmoonjune!  ･ﾟ*

*This masterlist is old!! It is no longer being updated and there are many works missing! You can find my new masterlist in my pinned post

✧*: all works belong to sunmoonjune! please do not repost or copy on this site or any other. also please do not discuss these works on twitter/tiktok, I am uncomfortable with it 

Series

Like the Moon: poly!Ateez x OC!reader au 

rating: mature

warnings: at the beginning of each chapter!

synopsis: It’s finally the day of your trial. You’ve been waiting for this day for years. Will you succeed and become a warrior the clan can finally be proud of? Or will you fail, and be banished from the village forever? 

word count: 45k

status: ongoing

chapter one: the trial 

chapter two: a familiar face

chapter three: puncture

chapter four: honey 

chapter five: hatred

chapter six: an anchor in storming seas

chapter seven: angel

chapter eight: reconciliation 

OneShots

Primordial: poly!stray kids x reader au

oneshot

word count: 12.3k

rating: mature

warnings: minors dni!! mentions of sexual situations, no actual smut, death mention, graphic depiction of drowning and injuries, blood, polyamorous relationships, fluff, angst, swearing, god au I guess?? Idk I mention they’re gods but don't go into detail, also soulmate!au, I throw a lot of tropes in here it’s just one big comfort fic 

synopsis: “Oh no, the deep voice spoke hushedly, “we cannot destroy something that has loved us so beautifully.”

status: completed

preview

primordial

In Their Loving Hands: poly!mafia!satosugu x kindergarten teacher!reader au

oneshot

word count: 18.8k

rating: mature

warnings: minors dni!! blood, death, gore, cursing, possible sexual scenarios (no actual smut), mafia, fluff, minor angst and hurt/comfort, slowburn, mentions of cheating (reader is afraid of being a home wrecker), probably ooc gojo an geto tbh, insecurity, mentions of being followed/chased, reader is nearly attacked on more than one occasion 

synopsis: (*slaps roof of fic* this bad boy can fit so many tropes in it) you’re a hardworking kindergarten teacher, just trying to earn enough money to move out of your run-down apartment. everything is normal, or as much as it can be, until two men drop their daughters off in your kindergarten classroom. Nanako and Mimiko quickly become two of your favorite students, and their unreasonably attractive fathers only further your interest. what happens when you bump into the two trying to escape a thief one dark night?

status: completed

in their loving hands

ao3 link

Gods and Monsters: poly!satosugu x reader (pacific rim!au)

oneshot

rating: mature

word count: 27.6k

warnings: blood, death, slight gore, cursing, suggestive themes, monsters, reader is attacked on more than one occasion, fighting, reader has a brother, enemies to lovers

synopsis: six years after you lose your jaeger co-pilot, the Marshall finds you working on the coastal wall; he’s adamant you return to your station, however you can't imagine piloting a jaeger with anyone who isn’t your brother. When you’re talked into returning to base, you’re met with the world’s best jaeger pilots. They’re known for both their charisma and their kaiju kill count, although you find them to be no more than a pain in your ass. After a fight leave their jaeger out of commission, they need a third co-pilot to operate the Rainbow Dragon. With no one else able to match their strength and stamina, they set their sights on you - the only person to ever single-handedly pilot a jaeger and survive.

gods and monsters 

ao3 link

House-elves and Moondew: poly!satosugu x fem!reader [hogwarts!au]

two chapter oneshot

rating: mature

warnings: minors dni!! injury, blood, death mentions, magic 

word count: part one - 15k 

synopsis:  

“You must be some wizard,” Suguru huffs softly, a warm smile gracing his features as his dark eyes drift over you. His chest sings with a giddy lightness, feeling the butterflies in his stomach turn when a little grin pulls at your features. 

When you tilt your head in confusion, Satoru continues for his partner.

“You’ve bewitched us,” he murmurs softly, voice warm and husky as he leans close, “body and soul - without even uttering a single spell.”

one 

two [in progress]

dewdrops at dawn: poly!ateez x fem!reader (demon!au)

one shot

word count: 17.2k

rating: mature

warnings: demon au! + soulmate!au + reincarnation au! idk there’s a lot of tropes going on in here (more warnings on fic itself) 

synopsis: you’ve never really believed in angels, or anything of the sort, but in a last ditch effort to escape a grave situation, you find yourself praying for someone - anyone - to come help you. you’re more than surprised when a handsome man appears at your side, horns curled around his head and tail whipping from side to side. his eyes are full of wonder and longing, and he seems almost lovestruck as he meets your gaze. frozen, you let the figure speak as he looks at you with nostalgia and love in his eyes.

“wow, you would not believe how fast angels are! I had to fight like six of them to answer your call.”

dewdrops at dawn

Works in Progress

Our own Constellations: poly!stray kids x fem! reader (primordial universe!)

oneshot

rating: mature

warnings: tba

synopsis: a continuation of your developing relationship with the eight sea gods. after the first few weeks, the nine of you grow closer and begin learning the intricacies of each other, as well as their unique powers.  

status: on hold

[ao3feed-matchablossom]

Rooftops

by Batsy24

By day, Nanjō Kojirō is the richest man in Okinawa. An unofficial prince, playboy, and chef. Pictured by the press as just another careless rich brat that wastes his family’s money. But by night, he gets into his tight black and green latex suit, follows the sun signal, and turns into Joe. He fights criminals and helps anyone that he can, driven by the death of his parents. He’s aided by his sidekicks Red, Snow, and Kitty-kat. Every night he secretly hopes he’ll meet with Cherry Blossom, Okinawa’s greatest thief, and Joe’s forbidden desire. Unbeknownst to him, the thief he’s always chasing through rooftops is his former childhood best friend and now friend with benefits. When a series of strange disappearances make JOE and Cherry Blossom work together, will they finally figure out their relationship and reveal their truths?

Or, the BatCat au where Joe’s the hero, aided by the kids (his Robins) and Cherry’s the thief that drives him crazy.

Words: 6857, Chapters: 1/6, Language: English

Fandoms: SK8 the Infinity (Anime)

Rating: Mature

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: M/M

Characters: Nanjo Kojiro | Joe, Sakurayashiki Kaoru | Cherry Blossom, Kyan Reki, Hasegawa Langa, Chinen Miya, Higa Hiromi | Shadow, Oka Shokichi, Shindo Ainosuke | Adam, Kikuchi Tadashi, Kamata Kiriko, Carla (SK8 the Infinity), Harry (SK8 the Infinity), Original Characters, Hasegawa Nanako

Relationships: Nanjo Kojiro | Joe/Sakurayashiki Kaoru | Cherry Blossom

Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Action & Romance, BatCat AU, Childhood Friends, Friends With Benefits, Enemies to Lovers, Found Family, Pining, Mutual Pining, Misunderstandings, Angst, Fluff, Attempt at Humor, Getting Together, Non-Explicit Sex, Minor Character Death, Non-Graphic Violence, Minor Hasegawa Langa/Kyan Reki, Minor Kikuchi Tadashi/Shindo Ainosuke | Adam, Minor Higa Hiromi | Shadow/Oka Shokichi, Carla is an intelligent fox, Kiriko and Kaoru besties agenda

source https://archiveofourown.org/works/42494832

[that-was-anticlimactic]

📘📘

okay so you’re getting the inumaki phone thief au <3

the premise is. inumaki is a menace and likes to steal people’s phones. he steals yuuta’s all the time, and then suddenly it becomes a Thing and he makes a bet with yuuta (and yuuji because yuuji becomes the second person he steals a phone from) that he can steal everyone’s phones. this of course changes a bit during the goodwill event and they all get included as well. nanami is also included because i Want him to be. also nanako and mikiko are students and geto is a teacher <3

there are some rules he has to follow, though:

RULES:

Inumaki MUST be the one to steal and return the phone

No one can notice him taking it or giving it back, or it does not count

He has to keep it for at LEAST five minutes

Inuamki has to take a picture with the phone turned on to prove he has it

No one can give it to him - he has to steal / take it

once he steals someone’s phone, they get in on the joke / bet. they can’t steal the phone for him, but they can help distract if necessary and come up with plans of action.

the hardest phone to steal, they realize quickly, is nobara’s. her phone is the Last one they manage to steal. like, they get yaga’s and gakuganji’s and idk prolly tegen’s if he has one before hers. even ijichi (and his was hard too). they had group planning sessions where everyone (except for gakuganji bc i hate him lol) to make plans. they got gojo’s pretty quickly because. he’s gojo. and so gojo was helpful in getting shoko’s, and shoko is besties with yaga so she was a big help in getting his and utahime’s. but yeah! after the phone is returned, inumaki and gang tells the person they stole from about the bet and if they want in and everyone gets really into it like even yaga and shoko and noritoshi and everything iuygtfgyhuiuytfrgh

they were worried about certain people’s ability to keep secrets, but yuuji thought it was so fun / funny that he made a huge effort (and it helped that they got megumi’s after yuuji’s) <3

[queen-ofsunflowers]

Is the Kawakami social link gonna be in the p5 mnm even though I can imagine that getting her maid work in Minato and Ryoji's apartment without getting caught will be one hell of a challenge for Phantom Thief Ren.

It is not going to be included in the Monsters and Magic version of P5 for a couple of reasons, one of which being the reason you just listed.

Another is that when it comes to included Confidants/Social Links, the ones that I chose are obviously those that belong to party members, are automatic ones and those that that are important to the overall story - either canonically or because I believe that they would have an impact.

Just to clarify now, these are the Social Links/Confidants that are going to appear in Free To Be Me and Break Away From Limitations.

P4:

Yosuke Hanamura

Chie Satonaka

Nanako Dojima

Ryotaro Dojima

Yukiko Amagi

Tohru Adachi

Kanji Tatsumi

Teddie

Naoto Shirogane

Temperance, which is held up by Tsubaki in this AU.

Margaret*

P5:

Ryuji Sakamoto

Ann Takamaki

Morgana

Yusuke Kitagawa

Makoto Niijima

Futaba Sakura

Haru Okumura

Goro Akechi (his royal confidant, not the vanilla one)

Kasumi/Sumire Yoshizawa

Takuto Maruki

Sojiro Sakura

Sae Niijima

Caroline and Justine*

*I should note that the SL/Confidant with the Velvet Room attendants won't be played out like they are in the game. More so think about the training segments that Minato had with Elizabeth. They're going to be something like that. I have yet to refine the details.

[happilyeveraftereveryday]

My Year in Fics: 2019

Jumping onboard the ‘Year in Review’ trend, but only for my fics, because that’s what really matters ;)

I wrote nearly 125,000 words in 2019, bringing my total word count to 525,885!! 😱😱

Steal Away With Me (Complete)

They called her the Scavenger, for her ability to pluck jewels (sometimes literally) out of junkyards, scrap piles, and miniscule collections where the owners often didn’t know the true value of their items. There were a thousand and one rumors about her. She was trained by the greatest thief in the world. She studied under ninjas in Japan. She could rewire security systems with a wave of her hand. But most impressive of all was that she had never been caught. Kylo Ren was determined to change that. (A fun Thief!Rey AU, where Kylo Ren is trying to catch her, which means he needs to get close to her. And think about her. All the time. Apparently.)

Intertwined (WIP)

Rey first heard him the day she lost her parents. His voice, telling her she wasn't alone. Even after she was adopted, whenever she needed him, she could find him. Until they close off their bond. Until her imaginary friend proves to be not-so-imaginary.

Or, a Jedi: Fallen Order and Sequel Trilogy crossover, where Rey and Ben deal with a lifelong Forcebond as they grow up, and Cal Kestis and the crew of the Mantis raise Rey with all the love she deserves

Exchange Fics:

Black Ties & White Lies (WIP)

A gift for looc_at_me

The plan was simple. Sneak in, kick Paige's ex-boyfriend's ass, then sneak out. But Rey did not plan on arguing with an unfairly hot but unsurprisingly elitist Greek god of a man while looking for said ex-boyfriend, especially when he took offense to her refusing to dance with him for some reason. And she definitely didn't plan on kissing him.

Or how a masquerade party leads to unexpected actions, feelings, and consequences, along with Ben Solo's Cinderella dashing away without even leaving him a shoe behind. Nevertheless, he's determined to find her.

Heart’s Flight (WIP)

For TourmalineGreen/TrixieRen

Rey of the Hood is doing her best to steal from the rich and give to the poor - but when Prince Snoke's watchdog, Kylo of Ren starts hunting her down, it will take all of her strength and cunning to best him. And yet... something about him calls to her. As if her heart knows him. Come for a tale of bold rogues, daring escapes, and hearts' true love - a story to be enjoyed by all!

Sweetness (Complete)

For crossingwinter

Vignettes In the Life of Rey and Ben Solo: Chapter One - Of first fights, baked bread, and hope for a sweet and good year Chapter Two - Of caped crusaders, trick-or-treats, and knowledge that one should be far more afraid of Mama Bear Chapter Three - Of missed connections, mistaken identities, and new beginnings  

Solstice Songs (Complete)

For inmyownidiom

It all started when Finn got sick and Rey offered to cover his shift. As a mall Santa. And then she got caught by his boss. His angry, miserly, unfairly handsome boss. Then there was a snowball fight, and then the elevator got stuck. Not to mention the incident with the mistletoe. And after she lied and said they were dating... Well, you can guess how it went from there.

AKA A version of A Christmas Carol, with Kylo being haunted with his own ghosts; Past, Present, and Future.

Non-Reylo Fics:

¡Viva la Revolución! (Complete)

An Umbrella Academy AU, starring my favorite angry smol murder son

He just needed some damn coffee. But when Five realizes the apocalypse is still on, he returns only to find that Luther is doing his damnedest to jumpstart the end of the world by locking Vanya up. And no one. Touches. His favorite sister. or The way 'Changes' would have gone if Five knew what the hell was going on in that basement.

A Different Kind of Normal (WIP)

A Threequel to the very first fanfic I ever wrote!

Growing up with Shin and Yankumi as parents can't be easy, and it's certainly not normal, but it is always an adventure. Follow Shin and Yankumi's daughter Nanako as she tries to navigate life with her unusual family.

Original stories about the second generation of Gokusen

Thank you SO much to everyone who read, left kudos, or commented, and especially to @thereylowritingden​ for their AMAZING community! You’ve all helped make my 2019 so incredible!!

[ask-the-inaba-wildcard]

Ace attorney persona crossover when?

Ooc: Now. Take my Au. Take it.

Yu’s Phoenix

Minato’s Miles (Protagshipping/Wrightworth RIGHTS)

Minako is Ziska for no other reason except that I think she’d be hilarious with a whip in a courtroom.

Teddie’s Maya

Nanako’s Pearl

Yosuke, I love him, but Mia. At least Teddie and Nanako can channel him-

And for Apollo Justice Era?

Ren is Klavier. I don’t take criticism.

Ryuji’s Apollo Bc Polly’s Chords of Steel remind me of Ryuji screaming “I’m a Phantom Thief!” In a crowded area.

Ann’s Athena because they’re both peppy and they both lovingly go for Ryuji/Apollo’s throat. Also they’re both definitely multilingual.

Futaba’s Trucy. (lET HER BE RYUJI’S LITTLE SIS)

And... Hmm, if Ren wasn’t Klavi I’d say he was Simon but since Ren is literally Klavi, Goro’s Simon.

[pixxyofice]

you know, I should just... write down my thoughts about the timeline of events for the "akira is from inaba" hc/au. Why not? It could help me write it!

.... Warning for long post. I am on Mobile. My thoughts tend to draw on. Apologies!

4-5 years of knowing a group of people is definitely enough to have them considered close friends! So if Akira met one of the Investigation Team, and then was suddenly pulled into their little group (+Nanako), becoming a part of it for 4-5 years? Yeah, Akira would be close to them.

Akira was, at first, a little bit starstruck by Risette and the First Detective Prince being his friends... and then the 4-5 years went by and now its like a side note. "Oh yeah, Rise's Risette. Forgot that through her spicy-ass meals and doting tendencies." "Oh yeah, Naoto's basically like my strict parents who bends the rules sometimes. Forget they're the first Detective Prince."

Nanako is like the little sister Akira never had. So, naturally, Akira is now Souji's little brother in the friend group.

When Akira is put in Tokyo for probation, Akira is supposed to not interact with anyone from his hometown, because they might've been bad influences... but! Souji isn't from Inaba, is he? Hmmm? (Naoto scolds Akira for this... but doesn't tell him to stop contacting them, because everyone knows the trial against Akira was Bogus)

Akira will share cat pictures of Morgana. Souji saves them. "Cat people," sighs the persona groups

"Haha where's the Junes Mascot" "Junes doesn't have a mascot???" "????? what"

When Ann finds out he knows Rise (via him texting her one day about fashion and her looking over his shoulder and seeing a selfie of Rise Herself in some casual gear), she freaks out a bit and also freaks out Ryuji by proxy. Akira has to think for a few moments before going "oh... riiight, duh, friend is also an idol."

Akira, interacting with Akechi: i think the OG Detective Prince not only is smarter, but also cooler in general and is a great friend

Akira, in an act of wanting to share what he does to the people he trusts most and fueled by being Tired As Fuck, asks if anybody knows about Persona. Instead of the reactions he expected ("is that a game?" "Like the psychology theory?" "huh?"), he gets very, very worried messages sent his way and his older friends correctly guessing that he is a phantom thief and their methods are Persona Related. And gets confused by references of TVs from some of them.

Yep, his older friends are Persona users. Explains a lot, he thinks, as he brings up incidents in his head of burning himself on Yukiko's skin (like he has Ann's), of hanging around Chie and Yosuke to cool down (like he has seen Futaba do with Yusuke), and just goes "oh how did i not connect those dots sooner"

He keeps it a secret from his team because they don't need to know there are more persona users other than them (and Akechi).

Naoto does offer to have Rise, Souji, and themself to help out, but Akira insists on doing this journey alone. Souji agrees tentatively, but says "hey, Akira, if you ever feel like you're in over your head, tell us, we can help"

(Akira doesn't take him up on the offer.)

As Futaba joins the team, he recognizes the method in which she got her Persona was actually similar to how his older friends described how they got their Personas. So he guesses that the palace treasure was her shadow right away when the tomb is empty, and bolts as soon as they discover this fact.

Akira now has two younger sisters: Nanako and Futaba. He wants to introduce them when everything is over, they'd get along over Feathermen and other shows of that nature.

"How the hell do you have a signed copy of a pink argus poster?? Most of the signed copies are cities away from here!" "... y'know, good question. I got it from my older... friends... okay gimme a sec I suddenly have to ask them something" And thus Akira found out his older Persona friends were friends with Yukari Takeba personally.

"How... Is it related to Persona stuff?" "yes." "what the fuck?"

Akira doesn't tell them about the velvet room, because surely they havent experienced that. He is wrong, but he's thinking in terms of how he's interacting with it, not in terms of wild card shit doing with the velvet room.

Things go on pretty much normally, except Akira is contacting his older friends every now and then and getting Persona Advice and telling them about how his Persona Adventures are going.

He doesn't tell them about Akechi. That's a Thief Thing, and he doesn't want Akechi to catch onto those other persona users he's interacting with... Just only that they're his friends. (Like with Hifumi and other confidants.)

Persona Q2 is when Akira's knowledge of the other groups of Persona Users gets forced to the front. Luckily, nobody remembers PQ2. Yay!

When Akira hears the name of the second movie, he's like "wait". And then he puts his fake gun to Souji's sword, recognizes Souji, and goes "HEY WAIT" and the phantom thieves are confused as Akira leaps into explaining stuff to his older friends' younger self and also goes "oh yeah we are definitely time traveling in some form"

Shame nobody remembers, Akira and Souji would laugh about wielding a gun as a sword.

After PQ2, Worrying Plan Time. When news gets out that the PThieves leader died, the IT have to actively restrain themselves from going to Tokyo and finding the person who killed him. In the end, Kanji is very close to just deciding "to hell with it, imma run to tokyo," when the group chat pings and it's Akira, saying he's fine but also laying low because his plan worked. Cue 8 worried persona users asking why he didn't ask for their help. Oops.

"Igor doesn't have a deep voice??" "... I should've guessed you were the wild card. Wait. Of course Igor doesn't- what happened to Igor??"

the IT, looking at the sky one xmas eve: hey what the fuck?

After That...

"did you fight a god" "How the hell did you know?" "persona user journey tradition we guess??"

Blah blah getting Akira out of juvie blah blah Akira's back in Inaba now

When the IT are told that, yeah, the cat was a Persona User, they just sigh and go "figures." They then tell him about a dog Persona User, which... Yeah, makes Akira question how that happened. They say they'll explain it later. "When is later?" "When our Persona Friends visit" "h...huh?" "We'll bring you, and if your friends are okay with it, we'll bring them. We're secretive about our meetings."

His friends come over to Inaba to see him, and they get roped into being introduced to Akira's older friends- and, yes, told about them being Persona Users. Chaos and questions ensue.

When someone (probably Rise or Yosuke) mention Mitsuru Kirijo as a really notable (and scary) persona user, things get more crazy. The IT promises to bring the PT to the meeting.

... That's it, I would think!

[ravenoftheskyes]

Personas, Wildcards, and Families. (Part 1)

(AN: Time to start writing again! This is supposed to go to with my Mako-Fam fic that’s up on my blog, but it’s not necessary to read it to read this one. Once again, inspired by the Mako-Fam au on @thieves-in-the-palace’s blog. Also still a bunch of ships. Not gonna tag them all this time. This is gonna be Multipart Bc I kinda hit the paragraph limit.)

Makoto walks into her home, exhausted after a day of running around in Kaneshiro’s palace. The thieves were close to the treasure. A bit more and they could send the calling card. Makoto walked into her room and immediately fell asleep on the bed.

The next morning was luckily a Sunday. Ren had said they weren’t going into the palace today, citing the fact that it was Ryuji’s birthday and he needed to hang out with his boyfriend. Sae was out and Makoto was alone. Until she heard a knock at the door. She walked over and opened the door to reveal...

Akihiko Sanada, Chie Satonaka, and Naoto Shirogane. According to most people, the two officers and the detective were the best trio you could have on a case. Smart, Courageous, and Strong. However, Makoto knew them as her family. She stepped aside to let them in.

“Hm, Teddie’s here too?” She asked them, breaking the uncomfortable silence.

“Yeah...” Chie said, trailing off at the end.

“It’s beary quiet in here!” Teddie said to absolutely no one. Bless him and his talent for bringing smiles to everyone’s faces.

Small discussions grew and the house was filled with conversation and laughter. Teddie walked off to take a call from Yosuke.

“Yosuke and Sensei said that there was something important we had to talk about!” Teddie exclaimed.

Akihiko, Chie, and Naoto knew that it was probably some Shadow Operatives stuff, or something else important, but they hesitated to leave Makoto alone in the house. They knew how it felt to feel alone.

“Go. I’ll be fine.” Makoto said to them, not dulling their worries. But they had to go. So they did.

“We’ll be back soon.” Naoto promised the girl.

Makoto wanted to tell them everything. About how her persona made her feel. About everything they did.

Little did she know, there was a discussion going on.

Teddie walked over to a table.

“She’s awakened to her persona! My nose knows!” Teddie said to the rest of the Shadow Operatives.

“What did we tell you?” Minako said.

“How did you three know?” Mitsuru asked the Wildcards.

“Those labyrinth things we told you about. She was there, in the second one.” Minato said, for once not half-asleep.

Ken piped up from the back, asking about why only they remembered the labyrinths.

“Wildcard magic.” Yu said, and everyone accepted the answer.

“The real question is, how do we talk to her about it? Only other persona users understand personas. She isn’t going to tell us about it.” Akihiko says.

“...I don’t think they’ve gotten their permanent Navigator yet. It’s a bit too early to talk about them with her.” Yu says to the teams.

And so they agree to wait a few months. To let her team gain strength. To have her increase her bonds. Let her connection with Johanna get stronger. Let Queen rise to the occasion.

A couple of months pass. Futaba, Haru, and Goro join the team. Makoto and Johanna get better. They all agree that it’s time to reveal their Personas to her.

They come to Makoto’s house during a bad point. Sae’s doing her whole win/lose thing again. Sae hasn’t been acting right for a couple of years now.

“It’s either a win or lose, Makoto! You can’t lose!” Sae yells out to her sister.

“Sis! Calm down, please!” Makoto yells back, desperation evident in her voice.

Chie, Akihiko, and Naoto rush in.

“Sae! Calm down!” Chie yells out.

“She needs to learn! She’s not going to make her way in this world without knowing that losing is to be avoided!”

“But, Sae! Losing is inevitable! You aren’t going to win everything!” Naoto yells out.

The air becomes tense. It seems to be crackling with electricity. And did it just get colder in here?

“What do you know?! Everyone loves you! You’re winning 24/7!” Sae screams out.

The three of them get flashbacks to the fear during foggy days and full moons. To feeling hopeless and yet, continuing to fight.

“We’re not winning all the time.” Akihiko says to her, as he remembers October 4th, where his best friend, his brother, his rock since Miki’s death, fell into a coma that he wasn’t supposed to recover from.

“We lose a lot more than you think.” Chie whispers, as she remembers her shadow. How it said she only kept Yukiko around for her looks. How it said she didn’t really love her.

“It takes losses to get a win.” Naoto mutters, at a barely hearable level. She remembers Heaven, Nanako’s little place in the TV World. How it broke everyone, little by little when the girl died.

But then they remembered how Shinjiro woke up from the coma, how Chie’s shadow helped her save Yukiko, how Nanako came back to life.

How Nyx and Izanami were defeated. Even if for a few months, the Arisato Twins had to die. Even if for a few moments, the entire Investigation Team sacrificed themselves for their leader. Things worked out for them, because they were willing to take losses for the wins. Adachi, Takaya, Ikutski, Namatame... inconsequential at this point.

Until Sae screams out.

“What have you lost?! Don’t try to patronize me by telling me you’ve lost things too! Get out! And don’t come back!”

Okay, the air isn’t just crackling anymore. Makoto can feel the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. And seriously, when did it get so cold in here?

The three of them leave, not wanting to make things worse. Naoto pulls her phone out of her pocket, ever so slightly. Makoto gets it. Text them later.

And then Sae says that Makoto isn’t allowed to contact them anymore. She should just forget about them.

But Makoto’s a phantom thief now. She’s not going to go down so easily.

The next day, she asks Ren if she could borrow his phone. Ren gives it to her.

To: Naoto Shirogane

Ren: Aunt Nao, it’s Makoto. Sae said I couldn’t contact you anymore.

Naoto: ALRIGHT, I’LL TELL EVERYONE ELSE.

Ren: Class is about to start, so I have to go.

Naoto: WE’LL FIGURE THIS OUT. DON’T WORRY.

Makoto hands Ren his phone back, and bolts to class. She makes it with a few seconds to spare.

Now, Naoto’s at the police station. She switches text conversations.

To: Persona Losers

Naoto: WHO CHANGED THE GROUPCHAT NAME THIS TIME?

Yosuke: naoto stp txtin lik that.

Yu: Partner, your texting isn’t any better.

Yosuke: cmon ptnr

Minato: I’ve got a class going on, text fast.

Naoto: SAE SAID THAT MAKOTO COULD NOT TALK TO US ANYMORE.

Minako: Oh no.

Minato: Minako, you’re supposed to be watching my class?

Minako: Right, sorry!

Junpei: btw I changed the gc name

Yukari: I’m telling Mitsuru.

Junpei: wait no

Yukari: Too late, my beautiful wife is pissed.

Yukiko: Do you have to bring up the fact that you’re with your wife at every turn? I’m home in Inaba while my gf’s in Tokyo and I miss her.

Chie: I miss you too...

Akihiko: Back to the point at hand.

Minato: What, you don’t miss me?

Akihiko: Babe, this isn’t the time.

Minato: I know.

Minato: Oh, I’ve got to go.

Minato: Bye <3.

Naoto: I SHOULD GO AS WELL. GOODBYE.

Yosuke: bye u 2.

Akihiko: skshdjshshsisj

Chie: I can’t believe you killed Akihiko

Naoto pockets her phone, and walks over to Akihiko and Chie.

“So, can’t handle affection?” Chie teases a red-faced Akihiko.

“Shut UP. Can we get back to the point?” He replies.

“As much as I’d love to join in on the teasing, he’s right. We need to talk about Makoto.” Naoto joins in on the conversation.

“Yeah, how are we supposed to talk to her now?” Chie asks.

“We could... wait for her to tell us?” Naoto mutters.

“Naoto, are you kidding me? She doesn’t know we have personas. She thinks we’re not going to believe her.” Akihiko says to her.

“Okay but how do we do either? Sae’s cut off all communication.” Chie interjects.

“Rise or Fuuka?” Naoto asks.

“Rise’s on a tour and Fukka’s on special assignment back home.” Akihiko tells the detective.

“What about Mitsuru or Teddie?” Chie asks.

“They’re also busy.” Naoto says to her.

“...Teddie’s busy?” Chie says, shocked.

“Yosuke’s making him work double-shifts back home to pay for all the topsicles he’s been eating.” Naoto says, stifling a giggle.

“Wait... can’t we just talk to her on the way to school?” Akihiko whispers.

“...”

“Why didn’t we think of that?!” Chie exclaims.

The next day...

Makoto walks off the train, meeting with Ren to have a quick conversation.

“Hey, Makoto!” Chie yells out as they get close to her.

“Oh, hey! You want to talk right now?” Makoto asked them.

“We know you have school soon, but we have to tell you something. Could you come over to the place we’re staying after school?” Naoto asked them.

“Sure...” Makoto replied, feeling a bit nervous.

Makoto walked over to the small house where they were staying for the week while they worked on the case. She walked in, still feeling apprehensive. The Okumura incident had just happened, and they were cops. What if they realized that Makoto was a Phantom Thief?

“Makoto, we need to talk to you about something.” Naoto said, at a table in the middle of the living room.

Oh, no Makoto thought to herself. She’s been busted.

“Tomoe” Chie said to Makoto.

“What?”

“Tomoe, my Initial Persona’s name.” Chie told her.

“WHAT?!” Makoto screamed out.

“Sukuna-Hikona”

“Polydeuces”

“SERIOUSLY?! I’VE BEEN WANTING TO TELL YOU ABOUT JOHANNA FOR MONTHS NOW!” Makoto continued screaming.

After a while, Makoto chilled out.

“So, where do you go to fight Shadows?” Akihiko asked her.

“You guys don’t go to the Metaverse?” She asked them.

“No, Akihiko went to a place called Tartarus, and Chie and I went to the TV world.” Naoto replied.

“Wait... so the stories about the Tower at Midnight and the TV murderer... those were your persona exploits?”

“Yes” the three of them spoke in unison.

“So all those weird names... they were the names of everyone’s personas?”

“Yes!”

“Quick question, Lucia is who’s persona?”

“Fuuka’s.” Akihiko told her.

“So... should I take you to the metaverse?” She asked them.

“We’d appreciate it.” Naoto told her.

And so Naoto takes the three into Mementos.

“It’s very... red.” Chie supplies, unhelpfully.

“Whoa, what happened to your clothes?!” Naoto yelled out.

“Your clothes don’t change?” Makoto asked them. “Then how do you summon your personas?”

“How do you summon yours?” Akihiko asked.

“Oh, like this.” She said, as she removed her mask to reveal Johanna. “By the way, this is the Metaverse. Call me Queen. That’s my codename.”

“Well, Queen, we summon our personas in... other ways. It’ll be easier to show you.” Naoto tells her.

Naoto and Chie pull out a pair of glasses each, as Akihiko pulls out... a gun?

“Polydeuces!”

“Tomoe!”

“Sukuna-Hikona!”

They each summon their personas. Makoto stands there, shocked. And then one idea pops into her head.

“So, the ones from the TV world are the only ones that don’t have edgy summoning sequences?”

“Yes” Naoto tells her. “It’s kind of disturbing how the Phantom Thieves and SEES summon their personas.”

“It’s to signify acceptance of death, Naoto.”

“Still concerning, Akihiko.”

“I mean, the mask is supposed to signify your true self and how you break free from society’s way of saying what you are.” Makoto interjects.

“Still freaky!” Chie yells out.

“Wait... why did you summon your initial personas? Why not your ultimates?” Makoto asks.

“We’d rather show them off in a battle!” Chie yells out.

And then they see a shadow.

“It’s been too long since we’ve done this.” Naoto smirks, as she gets her gun ready.

“Yeah!” Akihiko and Chie scream out in unison.

Makoto goes for the attack.

Two High Pixies.

The battle goes by smoothly, and Makoto makes a mental note of their elements.

“What?! Why did that look like a persona our leaders could summon?!” Chie yells out.

“You mean your leaders don’t recruit personas by negotiating with them?”

“No, just fighting Hableries and Mayas.” Naoto cuts in.

“...What?” Makoto asks

“You... don’t know what a Hablerie or a Maya is?” Akihiko asks her, shocked.

“No, we fight shadows like Pixie or Bicorn...”

“Wait... what... so your Wildcard gains new personas by negotiating with these shadows and they just enter his heart?” Naoto says, with a perplexed look on her face.

“Yeah. How do your leaders get them?”

“Uh, our leaders just say a bunch of Tarot Cards appear in front of their faces and they choose as many as the weird voice allows them...” Chie says.

“That’s... weird”

“We know” the three of them say in unison.

And then chains start rattling.

“We should get off this floor...” Makoto mutters

“Definitely.” Akihiko says.

“What’s the problem? So, the reaper’s in a treasure chest.” Chie adds.

“Looks like the reaper follows Tartarus’s rules here.” Akihiko says.

And then the sense of dread meaning the reaper’s close by comes.

“Run!” Makoto yells, and they all take off towards the stairs.

After three dead ends and almost getting caught twice, they finally make it to the stairs.

“God, I miss the Monabus at times like these.”

“The what?” Naoto asks her.

“Uh... one of our team members is an anthropomorphic cat that insists he’s not a cat and he can turn into a van.”

“Oh. So a mascot.” Chie says “Kind of like Teddie or Koromaru.

“What about Teddie? And Koromaru has a persona?!” Makoto says.

“Teddie’s not actually a method actor. He’s a weird mascot bear suit shadow that grew a body. We don’t get it either.” Naoto supplies.

“And uh, yeah. Koromaru has a persona too. He can’t talk or anything. He’s just a dog.” Akihiko tells her.

“...Damn. Next thing you’re going to tell me Aigis is actually a robot.” Makoto said with a chuckle.

“She is.” Akihiko tells her.

“...What?”

“Aigis is actually a robot” Naoto says.

“Anything else I should know?!” Makoto yells out, which was probably a bad idea considering they were in the middle of Mementos.

“All those crazy stories we told you? Cover stories. Yu and Yosuke did not meet shopping for a TV. They met on the first day that Yu was in Inaba, at school and a couple days later, He, Yosuke, and I fell into the TV world and met Teddie.” Chie tells her.

“...I’m surprised you didn’t spill any of this when you took Goro, Ken, and I to Karaoke and got wasted.” Makoto said.

“Don’t remind me, the hangover was terrible.” Naoto stated, clutching her head.

“Didn’t Ken film everything...?” Akihiko asked her.

“Yeah. I have the video. So does Goro. ‘Blackmail Material’ as he called it. I’m just planning to use it whenever you try to act like mature adults.” Makoto says, stifling a giggle.

“What was the highlight?” Chie asked.

“It’s a tie between Teddie getting wasted and trying to score with everyone there and you and Yukiko forgetting you’ve been dating for the past 5 years and kinda just... getting together.” Makoto says.

“...How much did we drink?!” Chie yells out.

“Just know that Minato, Minako, and Yu are very sappy drunks.” Makoto says.

“Wow, wildcard squad actually shows some emotion?” Chie jokes.

“Wait. Minato, Minako, and Yu are the wildcards?” Makoto asks her.

“Yes, they are.” Naoto tells her.

“...So that’s why I was getting a similar vibe from them and Ren.”

“Ren... so that’s the name of your leader?” Naoto asks.

“Yeah, do the Wildcards always lead?” Makoto replies.

“Yeah. They’ve just got this natural charisma that makes everyone fall in love with them. They’re insanely flirty if you give them the chance to be.” Chie tells her.

“So it’s not just Ren. Wildcards are just gigantic dorks that can make you fall in love with them at the drop of a hat.”

“Yes!”

“Aren’t some of the personas they can summon kind of... concerning?” Makoto asks them.

“...We just ignore them.” Naoto tells her.

“We should probably get back soon, shouldn’t we?” Makoto asks them.

“You’re right, time passes here too.” Chie says.

“There’s no limit on how long you can spend in here, right?” Akihiko asked.

“Nope, just that all the time you spend in here translates into the real world. We came in at 8:24. Sis is going to be really upset if I don’t show up soon.” Makoto said.

“She’s right. As fun as it is fighting shadows in a new place, we can’t risk burning ourselves out.” Naoto mutters. “Not to mention Sae.”

“Yeah. I should get home. See you guys later!” Makoto tells them.

Makoto leaves Mementos, and turns to go home before realizing she has one more question.

“When did you three get your personas?” She asks them.

“Third year of middle school.” Akihiko tells her

“First year of high school.” Naoto speaks.

“Second year of high school.” Chie states.

“So, all before me, huh? I got mine in June of this year.”

“That just means you’re more ready for it.” Naoto tells her with a smile.

“Yeah. Wait, does Ken have a persona?”

“Yeah. He got it in elementary school.” Akihiko tells her.

“That young?!” Makoto screams out. After she comes to terms with the fact that literally everyone in her family besides her sister has a persona, she waves goodbye and walks home.

“Where have you been?” Sae asks her.

“Isn’t that Uncle Akihiko’s line?” Makoto quips.

“Don’t talk about him. Right now, all I’m focusing on is the Phantom Thieves. We’ve got intel that they’ll be infiltrating somewhere soon.”

Makoto makes sure she doesn’t visibly flinch. She knows the plan, but it still scares her. She still can’t believe Goro betrayed them. Betrayed her. His heart’s turned bitter. He’s done unforgivable things. And now he’s planning to kill Ren.

God, I should call Haru tonight... Makoto thought to herself. She needed her sweet, fluffy, girlfriend’s help to deal with everything tonight.

To: Haru Okumura

Makoto: Hello.

Haru: Hello.

Makoto: So you remember how I told you about those crazy adults that are pretty much my family?

Haru: Yes, I remember.

Makoto: They’re Persona users. All of them.

Haru: Wait, seriously?

Makoto: Yeah. I just took them into the metaverse and they summoned their personas easily.

Haru: How long have they had them?

Makoto: Since they were in high school.

Haru: Do any of them use axes?

Makoto: Yeah, Uncle Shinji.

Haru: I’ll have to “axe” him some questions.

Makoto: Haru... Please...

Haru: That was good, and you know it!

Makoto: Fine. I’ve got to go now, though. Got to get to sleep. Night, babe!

Haru: Night, Mako-chan!

Makoto stayed awake in her bed for a while. Her mind was flooded with information. They were going to infiltrate Sae’s palace on the 20th. Ren would be captured. She decided to go to the shrine tommorow. For this plan to work, the thieves would need all the help they could get.

Finally, the 20th arrived.

Joker, ever the showoff. Jumps out a stained glass window. Gets caught. Now the waiting.

...The waiting’s always the hardest part.

Makoto relaxes. Thinking that Ren had never let them down before. He won’t let them down this time.

...Right?

Makoto’s phone starts to ring.

[imashamedtoadmitimmchanzotrash]

Not to be the whiny fake overwatch fan with no writing or artistic talent and never even played the game but y’all are really sleeping on a Persona 5 au? 

Consider: 

McCree in cowboy get-up as a phantom thief

Hanzo and his dragon persona(e?).

That’s actually all I care about cuz I’m gay trash but I’ll think of more

Social Links!!! All of them!!!

THERE’S A SOJIRO IN BOTH GAMES IT’S FATE

The team could plunder Talon palaces. Or maybe you wanna P4 it and have the palaces be for the other team members. Or both?

ALL the costume and persona designs! IMAGINE IT DAMN IT

it doesn’t have to be a high school au tbh, if you’re not into that kind of thing, but it does lend into it pretty well!

OH MY GOD WINSTON IS FUCKING MORGANA THAT’S IT

dad76 could be sojiro, reaper is iwai, ana is tae. I promise this isn’t supposed to be a 1:1 au, but these dynamics could be there!

Hana is Nanako-esque. Most of these suggestions are shitposts so might as well get some of that Persona 4 in here.

Persona 3, you asked? McCree summons the P3 way with Peacekeeper. You’re welcome.

Genji is a fucking ninja in the metaverse, high key.

Hanzo has a palace of his own because he thinks he fucking killed his brother, because I enjoy s u f f e r i n g.

Related note: angst, fluff, wish-fulfillment, anything is possible! Rather versatile au here

omg phantom thief tracer would be so cute

mercy could also be medicine store lady tae, or she could be the support teammate she was always intended to be. This extends to the other support players!

I’m like 94.6% sure this au hasn’t been done before

both of these games are very popular despite the fact that their respective companies could be lowkey shady sometimes

ok i hope i convinced you to do a p5 thingy because it would be cool. these are all just suggestions...i just wanted to get this off my chest...you’re the master of you. but please someone longfic my desires away. or at least make designs for these characters ily

[vicsep7250]

PART 2 OF THE PERSONA 4 + 5 AU BC I HAVE IDEEEEEAAAAAS!

Part 1 is right here in case the post got drowned in other posts .

Aight, so. Ideas involving the Thieves and Investigation Team after encountering the Dark Priest and Shadow Akechi.

During the fight, Shadow Akechi starts summoning other shadows and just starts causing them to suffer psychotic breakdowns against the Phantom Thieves while the Dark Priest fights off the Investigation Team. Unfortunately for the IT it’s been a good while since they’ve actually worked together and done anything in the TV World which is a huge difference to how the Phantom Thieves are just clearing out the groups of shadows that keep coming.

The Priest meanwhile is giving the IT a hard time, monologueing about how hypocritical they are, and just going on a tangent in just how they kept refusing to see the blatant truths right in front of the - about Akiren being the cryptid and other things that they really shouldn’t know about their personal lives.

It eventually ends when Shadow Akechi starts to rant on about how futile it is to deny their lose, and the Priest declares how they will bring them all to true justice, just as they have done for the past year.

So with the plot out of the way we can have the character interactions we want/never knew we needed. (All of which may or may not already be on @ren-amamiyaa ‘s blog) Aka the Kanji and Kanji 2.0 discussion of loving their moms and being gud bois, Ann and Rise going into topics of how they act in the work place and their social lives (remember how Rise as identity issues bc of her career ATLUS YOU NEVER RESOLVED THAT!), and the inevitable Naoto + Yu becoming incredibly destroyed at the fact that the Inaba PD screwed Akiren over and were under Shido’s thumb (I known this is really empty and sparse but just try and fill in the blanks here). Oh yeah and Teddie and Morgana being sorta-kinda-like Shadows and THAT talk happening.

So ya know how I said that the IT are a bit disfunctional now and are barely holding on together to save Nanako? Well imagine how they’re law abiding natures handle with the PT if they were “True Good” citizens, since they kinda are only law abiders (except Yosuke and Kanji but we forgive them). They might renew their bonds and friendships and form new ones with the kiddos, or they might seperate from e/o bc they realize they’re all really different people with different ideals and ways of life with the only trait they share being that they have personas and live in Inaba... and the team just gets woooooorse since now they realize they have no real reason to be “friends” and Yu is crying a storm behind his Narukami Deadpan Mask^tm.

Anyway here’s where things become Persona. The only way out is through the TV the Thieves came though bc Fallen Heaven (new name for new development and its open again hush) (also everyone ran into e/o in Magatsu Inaba ok? ok) but it has become completely different than what it once was when the kids went through it. Now the place is just filled with broken ruins, dark patchy dried grass, dried up rivers that used to flow through the place, cloudy skies and heavy rain are just pouring throughout the entire place. And amongst the ruins there these little buildings scatterd throughout the place ranging from nice looking nursery homes to rotting wooden shacks. Akechi goes silent and still every time they run into one of these places and says nothing about it to the others.

Oh did I mention that bc Nanako loves Loveline and Akechi is a Detective Prince (”You’re not the Detective Prince, Naoto is.” “That title never really held any worth to me nor did it really mattter in anyway.” “Well you’ll always be the true one and only Prince.” “They always like this?” “Honestly we have no idea with Moronji and Naoto.”) there are P U Z Z L E S and C A S E S to solve? Why? Atlus and Persona that’s why andnotbcimgraspingstrawsherre !

The Thieves + Akechi go through these places to find clues on not just this weird TV world but also about that Priest (bonus if we find anything on Akechi to help him) while the IT go off to find Nanako. Shadow Akechi keeps running into the Thieves when they find pieces to the puzzle, about the missing girl, about Akechi himself since he (begrudgingly) is starting to let them in for realzies, how Adachi killed people with help from a god (”Sounds about right” says Joker, Bowl Cut and co probably when through something along the lines of his adventure) etc etc. As they go through things, the buildings start to have mini Palace epsiodes and self destruct, Fallen Heaven looking very slightly more cleaned up each time to it looking less dark and Akechy (badum dsh) and back its ruined state.

With the Team they end up finding out Heaven is either big bc of Akechi’s influence, or it’s a lot longer than they remember. They mainly clear out shadows that end up showing up, but they’re all scared and hesitant to approach them, almost like they’re trying to run and hide to live another day. They only realize this when the run into a Shadow in a hallway instead of a closed room where it just books it. But wait that wasn’t a Treasure Hand the group realizes thanks to Yosuke’s astute observations on the Shadows and the Set. Eventually they find the glass panes of Nanako’s memories and realize they kinda ruined her a bit with keeping her in the dark. I mean what were they suppose to do, tell her about how she got kidnapped, thrown into the tv, got put into a life threatening situation with a monster formed from repressed emotions that put her in the hospital and then DIED FOR A FEW MINUTES WHILE THEY ALL ALMOST MURDERED A MAN?!!??!

While they go through the Set they start to hear voices of other people, a lot of people actually. They all sound like the people who ended up having extreme changes of character, and it sounds like they’re all pleading for... something. Truth? Justice? They can’t tell if it’s either of those things or just mmishmashed mumbles of the people. Anyways they evntually enter some sort of chapel room of the Fallen Heaven with these human Shadows of the people have extreme changes of character. They see that Nanako’s Shadow is in the center of all these people and starts to reveal all of the doubts and emotions she has been feeling over the years about the Investigation Team. It ruins the IT, especially Yu as he basically learns that his Lil’ Sis hates him and wants nothing to do with him anymore. Cue the Shadows melting (screaming and crying bc they do that apparantly) and a fight against uh-duuuuh I dunno... (*flings dart at board*) an angel. What angel? UUhhhhh... fallen... yeeee... canyoutellimrunningouttasteam

After the battle ends, the shadows all seperate and Nanako’s Shadow is nowhere to be seen amongst the ruined churchy room.

Annnnnd now Im burned out and need to think thimgs over again. Thanks to listening to my ramblings on @ren-amamiyaa‘s amazing AUs and community, and I’ll probably make the next ramble post... eventually... theoretically...

[artekai]

Wait just saw ur pinned post and now I HAVE to ask how maruki is being inserted into p4 ABDHDJFJ

SO GLAD YOU ASKED

ASDFSHFG OKAY where to start?

I must have some kind of curse because whenever I try to write a fic I cannot physically resist the urge to put Maruki in it. So every time I start writing a P4 fic it feels like the how do you do fellow kids meme except it’s Maruki going “how do you do, fellow Persona 4™ characters?” This is funny in my head.

I also have tons of crossover ships involving Maruki and P4 characters (okay, they’re only three, but three crossover ships are three sources of pain too many), so it makes sense to put him in P4 so he can interact with them, right?

Usually, the way I put him where I want him to be is very basic. I just say that, after P5R, he moved to Inaba to get a fresh start in life. There, he meets Dojima and falls in love and gets married and becomes Nanako’s father and has a family of his own and they LIVE HAPPILY EVER AFTER. 

(Hi there, hello, I’m the CEO of Dojiruki, nice to meet you :] )

But, well, using a post-canon setting ensures that neither him or the P4 characters can interfere with the main plot of the games.

HOWEVER, one of my fics, Tristitia, takes place during the main plot of P4 in an AU where everything is the same except Maruki is there and is dating Namatame. Well, they’re not dating, but it’s not really platonic either, it’s complicated. To be fair, though, Maruki doesn’t really affect the plot there, because he’s not close to any of characters (besides Namatame) and the whole fic is basically just Maruki reacting to Nanako’s kidnapping, combined with a bit of a character study and comparing and contrasting him and Namatame.

So, moving on. I do have an AU where Maruki plays a huge part in the plot of P4 and that is the Adaruki Roleswap AU, which is exactly what it sounds like. Maruki and Adachi are swapped, so Maruki is Dojima’s partner and the Inaba murderer while Adachi is Shujin’s counselor and can bend reality to his whim during the third semester. It’s the most elaborate AU in this list but it’s pretty half-baked, mostly because I cannot figure out Maruki’s motives for murder and Adachi’s motives to NOT murder the Phantom Thieves during the third semester.

Still, it’s a fun idea to toy around with, and I’ve written two fics about Maruki interacting with the P4 setting in this scenario, Credit Where It’s Due and Pink Alligator in a Forest of Green. I don’t consider any of those as strictly “canon” to the main plot of the AU, because that was just me playing around and seeing what I could do with the idea of Maruki being Dojima’s partner, but he gets to interact with six year old Nanako in the second one, so that’s nice :3

A similar AU that I haven’t talked about but that has been on my mind for a long time is the Dojiruki Roleswap AU. That one doesn’t change much in P4, only the Hierophant SL, but it’s also half-baked because I have no clue what to do with Nanako’s kidnapping since she’s not in Inaba but in Tokyo with Dojima. And, when it comes to the P5R side of things, Dojima’s reality bending shtick is a whole other can of worms. He should be easier to figure out than Adachi because at least he cares about people’s wellbeing, but that doesn’t mean it’s not gonna take a lot of planning too.

Maruki is still a counselor in this one, but I was thinking that Dojima could maybe be Akiren’s probation officer? We’ll see.

Oh, and I know we’re talking about Maruki and not Rumi, but I thought this might be relevant since we’re talking about P4 x P5R crossovers. In the Phantom Thief Rumi AU, the plot kicks off when Rumi moves out of her grandparents’ and moves to Inaba. But this AU is in its very early stages so I probably shouldn’t say much because else I might end up spoiling the whole plot :)

Anyways, I guess I just have a thing for putting Maruki and Rumi in Inaba and seeing how they interact with the setting and the other characters. Probably because P5R came out right in the middle of my P4 phase, haha :)