@crowism

Ryuji had spent his morning much like any other : waking up with the sun for a quick jog, jumping in the shower, dressing in his usual comfy attire, and making himself a hearty breakfast. The only difference today was that he’d picked out one of his nicer shirts, and had spent a little bit more time getting his hair in place. He was supposed to meet up with Akechi at 3 for the movie they were gonna see, some samurai film that promised to be full of action. He had left himself with plenty of time, not wanting to be late since he’d been the one to pull Akechi away from his work. He felt a little bit bad, knowing Akechi was busy, but everyone had been busy. He hasn’t really gotten to hang out with anyone since the Christmas party, though it hadn’t helped that he’d picked up a job himself.  He plays his phone game for a good while, makes cup ramen for lunch, and then finishes preening, putting on his purple hoodie and giving his hair one more check. He’s gotta look his best in case they get spotted by any of Akechi’s fans, right? 

Ann started messaging Goro

💗 : Heyyyy~

💗 : Hope you got to cool off yesterday. That sure was a night.

💗 : It was pretty fun towards the end tho.

💗 : Maybe we could have a twister rematch sometime. Not that it’ll do you any good. :3c

Haru was impossibly confused. She wasn’t sure how exactly she wound up in this place, only that she opened her eyes and she was suddenly standing in the middle of the street of what... Looked to be an older European town? What on earth? Was she dreaming? Or did she stumble into the Metaverse, somehow? If so, why couldn’t she remember? 

She had no time to sort her thoughts out before she was approached by what was perhaps the strangest cat she had ever seen. At least, that’s what she assumed the small furry creature was. Stranger still, it had begun to talk, just like Mona. It was giving her an explanation of some sort, and somehow knew about the Metaverse and Milady. But this only left her with more questions. And before she could even ask them, it turned tail and took off! 

“Please, wait!” She calls again, trying to follow after the creature as fast as she’s able, but it’s swift and agile, and is able to quickly escape her sight. But she couldn’t simply give up her search, not when she was in some completely unknown town that certainly wasn’t Tokyo. At the very least, maybe she could find someone to give her a better idea where she was. 

After A few minutes of fruitless searching, she hears a loud thump from around the corner and a pained hiss. She freezes, trying to steel herself before going to investigate. 

“Hello...? Mr. Cat?” She hesitantly calls out as she peeks around the corner. 

She had no idea who she was expecting to find slumped over in that alleyway, but it certainly wasn’t him. 

“Akechi-kun?” 

She can’t believe it. This has to be a dream. Akechi had passed away! Futaba-chan herself had confirmed it. He had been killed, cruelly at the hands of his own father’s distorted cognition of him. But here he was, leaning against the wall and... Bleeding so, so much. 

This realization snapped her out of her paralysis and launched her forward. From standing in front of him, she can see how awful the injury really is. An ugly arc has carved itself from his right arm down to his side. This didn’t make any sense... He didn’t sustain any injuries like this after their battle. And shouldn’t their be bullet wounds? 

... That didn’t matter. If left here, he surely wouldn’t escape death a second time. 

There’s nothing immediately off, though through careful scrutiny, she notices the quick glances over his shoulder. She follows him to a street in Poor Town that she had intended to investigate because it’s known for its high volume of crime. It could be that he, too, had decided to inspect this notorious region of Fuckoville.

He says something quietly into his phone, and then, the world begins to shift. Makoto rubs her temples, fighting off the sudden vertigo. When she opens her eyes, she finds herself standing at the mouth of a large cave. She looks behind her, and realizes that she’s a little ways up a very enormous mountain. 

Akechi-kun, for his part, has transformed. His classy attire has been replaced with gaudy white and gold and red; a long-beaked mask hides his face.

Because Makoto has learned a bit about the Metaverse from Takamaki-san, she  knows what has happened: they’ve just entered a Palace.

Kiki had woken up that morning, famished, and had (with the few groceries she had managed to pick up with her small and quickly waning funds) decided to make the most cost effective meal she knew how: pancakes. 

While they were simple, and she had no syrup to drown them in, she had spent an awful long time perfecting her pancakes, and these were no exception. Each one was fluffy and golden brown on both sides. She’d even managed to only burn one! Deciding that today was a beautiful day, the sun out and the air crisp but not cold, she drags a chair outside, holding her plate carefully as she sits. 

12/28

Regardless of how collected his is (or isn’t) Ryuji can’t help but be worried when he turns on the TV only to find out that Akechi seems to have canceled all his interviews due to illness. His stomach sinks with dread. The last time they’d seen him he’d been off to meet with Shido about something at that stupid party. Had something gone wrong? Was he in danger? Was he actually really sick? Pacing around his room, Ryuji finally decides that he’s just gonna message him. 

From: [Ryuji] To: [Akechi]

She notes his absence from his usual television programs, of course. She doesn’t want to be overly intrusive, but...

to: Akechi-kun

from: Makoto

♛: Hello, Akechi-kun.