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Chapter Text

Alice kept herself to one side of her cell the moment she was ushered into her little temporary and miserable home. Away from her as uncomfortable cell mate. Neither of them were the type to get visitors. Neither of them got to see the news. Neither of them knew what was going on out there.

Well, Alice had an idea. Someone, probably Ann, would kill Kuon Ichinose soon. Right before Alice's court date for the assault. No one remembered the deaths, the changes of hearts, the arrests, anything. And if Alice had done what Ann did back then, Ann had to be doing what Alice was about to do.

And her cellmate feared her like she did him. They would pace their anxieties out, both of them waiting for the other to strike. Him because she was half crazed with half muttered questions and wouldn't stop moving and because she knew how men got about women like her.

Can't hide who I am here.

She grit her teeth and called out for a guard, "Can I talk to my prosecutor? I want to make a plea deal."

"Is that so? Sure." The guard busied himself with the phone while her cellmate stared at her. He twisted the end of his hair, cocked his head to the side and she could feel the overwhelming question of why.

And it was something she couldn't answer for him. Because she would look crazy. Because her parents who were long absentee were worse now. The exchange was that she wasn't under anyone's thumb but the state's. She had to get out and try to recreate Ann's path while stopping her own. Maybe have more fun with Ann in the process. Maybe kill her or get killed because at her core, even if the universe didn’t know, she was a murderer, manipulator and awful person. Who did a few okay things, during a month that didn’t matter anymore.

"Miss Hiiragi, this way." Sae was her prosecutor because life wanted to laugh at her. The first thing she had to see that she recognized was the woman she twisted into a conviction happy woman. The holder of the Palace where it all fell apart, where Alice was laid bare. "Why are you pleading? You were rather adamant about the plaintiff attacking the woman during intake."

"It's the truth but truth isn't justice. And if I plea, I can go on probation, right?" Alice looked down at her feet, away from the woman. A part of her wondered if those words would become a bitter irony in the future. Sae gave her a nod. "Then yes, I hurt that man. Kicked him of my own accord and of sound body and mind."

"Very well. You understand, this is a permanent decision. That you have made a permanent change to your life's course. The conviction rate would do that as is, but you're choosing this." Sae sounded apologetic, like she wanted Alice to fight. And the old one, she would have. For no reason but to have the fight, to slice at the world. But she had a mission.

"I understand. But, I want to get back to my life. Sooner." Alice didn't want to do that, not in the same way. She was going to taste Ann's freedom, she was going to see what that side of the green was like. Jail had already made it seem a little duller, a little more dead.

"Very well. I'll talk to your parents. They have not been forthcoming on what to do with you in the case of a release beyond one piece of information. They have given me a contact named Sojiro Sakura for when you get released." Sae said the name and Alice had to fight every part of her body to not laugh. She was really going to follow Ann's little merry path. She wondered if she'd have Carmen. Or Lady Death. Because Lyudmilla wasn't there. Nothing was. She felt blank. Sae looked at her as they set down in front of paperwork. "Do you know him?"

Alice as ever, lied. "No. I don't. But I don't really get my parents."

-----

Alice looked at her box of belongings. Phone. A purse with a pittance of money within. A sketchbook and a photo. An impossible one. Ann aiming a gun right at her. All on a bed of roses.

She couldn't save Kuon, the wheels of justice weren't that fast. She was released after almost six weeks. Which was better than Ann’s almost six months of hell in jail. The woman was dead, the same headline as before: Renowned Computer Scientist Dies of Aneurysm at Madicce. Alice sighed as she walked down Yongen Jaya, staring at the Metanav that appeared the moment she arrived in Tokyo from jail. If she didn't want to risk Sojiro's wrath, Alice had to keep her head down. At least until she was supposed to be in bed. She tightened her winter jacket around herself, fighting off the snow.

It's all in service of the plan. Prevent the worst parts of the last time. Find out if anyone remembered. And double check her research.

Shiho, still a volleyball player. Ryuji, still a former track star complaining of a broken leg online. Goro tucked away on a scholarship to attend Shujin. Haru in the closet. Makoto the student council president and Futaba alive with Wakaba. Sumire was building a misunderstanding with her living sister. Morgana wasn't around yet. And Ann?

Was a model very good at wearing all black, with a penchant for shots that involved weapons and a natural deadly grace. Alice's mouth salivated at the look.

Like I thought when I saw Adachi, time for round two lover.

The other problems were in place. Takuto Maruki's research lab had been canceled and Rumi was in the hospital. Alice’s research skills hadn't failed her yet. She let herself into Leblanc, Sojiro at his usual spot behind the counter. His crossword was half filled out, a woman with black hair in a bob opposite him. Alice’s heart thudded in her chest, seeing what she had done be undone. It was good, it wasn’t false. She hoped it wasn’t. No sign of a mental shutdown, not yet. The only place she ever was that wasn’t work or home was here at Leblanc. She was stirring curry with a spoon, a smile on her face. "The next one is replenishment."

"Let me get one. You're incorrigible." Sojiro chuckled before looking to Alice. "Can I help you?"

"I don't know what name my parents gave you, but I'll be staying with you." Alice bowed her head, her interview voice on her lips. It was the best way to cover for the wildcard that was her parents. Sojiro glanced to the woman and walked around the counter. "Sorry for the inconvenience."

"Saw mine and wanted one of your own?" Wakaba laughed and Sojiro shook his head, a scowl that Alice knew was fake on his face. "Don't worry about Sojiro, he's a softie. I'll get going. Thanks for lunch."

"Thank you ma'am." Alice sidestepped Wakaba as Sojiro looked her over. She tried to not let the knot in her stomach rule, the one that reminded her how hurt Futaba was even at the end. ‘My mom had to die because the world couldn’t know you had a dead name.’ How that wing of regret sparked envy in her soul, a parent with failure in her heart. "Again, I'm so--"

"I heard you. Here's the rules. Keep you nose clean. Go to school. And stay out of trouble. I know you butted your head in and took responsibility. But that doesn't do anything for you in the long run. You'll have to stay upstairs." Sojiro lead her up to the dirtiest room Alice had seen. She was in hell. She'd have to clean it. She needed to rest here after Palaces and this would make her ill. She had a deadline. Several of them. And coughing her lungs out would make her miss them. "What am I calling you, by the way?"

"Alice. Please." She knew this wasn't a risk. Sojiro had been great on that front with Ann. The one blessing in this. She grabbed a broom. "I should start cleaning."

"You should. Remember this is a business so keep it down while I’m open." Sojiro lingered at the top of the stairs. "And, you need to go to Shujin. Tomorrow for class."

"I will. Thank you for taking me in." Alice smiled at him, forming a plan in her head as she started to sweep. The order of operations was simple. Get to Wakaba's Palace and prevent her death. A simple calling card would do that. She remembered where the treasure room was. Wakaba's shadow was loathe to leave the treasure room. After that, Kamoshida and get stronger for Adachi. Both were threats and both were orchestrating hell. She wanted to try and save Kasumi and Sumire. She had to set Haru free.

And if she was the Wildcard, she had to make and keep bonds. She had to care. She had to pretend that none of what happened to her still weighed on her mind. She had to push back on the part of her that wished for death. She had to not let grief for that corner of Ann's heart rule her. That corner could very well be gone. Or Ann remembered and killed Kuon anyway.

That would have been hot.

The lights went out downstairs, the door locked. She flicked open her phone, went to the Metanav and took a deep breath. She knew what to do. Wakaba first. She opened the Metanav. She spoke the words aloud. "Wakaba Isshiki. Tokyo University. The Grand Exhibition."

The world melted around Alice. She landed in front of the hall, the blue sky glutted with zeppelins flying through the air. Tesla coils fired every direction. Automatons greeted her, their masks concealing the Shadows within. If she kept to the 'public' areas then they wouldn't attack. Alice with hands in her pockets, started walking down through the doors. The coat marked her out of place but the cognitions in dresses and suits looking at her wasn't a problem. Models of brains were everywhere, pieces of them pulled out as cross sections to show damage and how to heal them.

Alice lingered near the Wing of Regret's entrance, a model of Futaba was in the center. Posters detailed everything Wakaba had missed in Futaba's life. A birthday, two school trips, second tooth falling out and Kana moving away. It was the same place. It all was. Alice just had to Awaken. Make a calling card and slip it to Wakaba. Then steal the treasure.

Easy. Easy. Easy. She walked toward a Shadow guarding the Wing of Regret when a cognition with red twintails of hearts and a white hoodie blitzed towards her, yo-yo in hand. "YOU!"

"Hi?" Alice ducked on instinct as the yo-yo flew over her head. The edges were sharpened, glistening in the sepia toned light. The girl stared at her with eyes of blue and a scowl on her face. She pulled her hand back and the yo-yo shot back into her hand. "You know, if you hadn't yelled at me you might have cut me."

"I don't care! I have to stop you!" The girl spun the yo-yo's out again, closer to Alice as she sidestepped. Her time in jail let her get some of the muscles and endurance she'd need back. The rest was well worn muscle memory. The problem with dodging was it wasn't danger. And danger was important. "You killed my mom!"

"Hey, that's actually really important to know! Someone remembers! Now, for you to help me with what I need." Alice jumped back, letting the yo-yo slash across her arm. Fabric and blood flew from the buzzsaws that struck her, she yelped. Her body screamed in pain, jagged cuts through her body. Her adrenaline surged. She felt right again as blue flames spread out from her. The assailant jumped back as Alice hung in the air.

"You know this isn't the best of all possible worlds. And that if it is not worked for, you will only see misery. You're willing to bleed for it, aren't you?"

"Sure am. I am thou, thou art I after all." Alice grinned as she felt flames wrap around her, the warmth a comfort as she looked down at her assailant. Stars covered the dress she wore, shattered glass woven in to reflect the light. On her face was her old mask, that black wood with Cheshire smile. She ripped the familiar weight away, aiming the blood to the ceiling. "Candide! Let's keep her still so we can talk!"

A tired man emerged from her soul, holding a spyglass, a walking stick and a heavy backpack. His clothes were ruptured and his leather protective equipment torn, his skin showing through. With a wave of his walking stick invisible weight landed on the girl, sending her to the ground. She tried to spin out her weapon, the weight pressing it down to the ground. "Let me go! Your slaughter has to end! I am supposed to be humanity's companion! I can't do that if--"

"I haven't killed anybody yet. Not this time." Alice kneeled down, looking the girl in the eyes. She mimed spitting at Alice but nothing came out. "Love the spunk, by the way. More people should be this enthusiastic trying to kill me. Tell me, when did I kill your mother?"

"October twenty seventh of 2015." The girl had the date right. Last time. And this time. Alice shook her head. "I know you did. You accessed the Metaverse on that day. You killed Kuon Ichinose."

"Yes. Not this time. I was in jail that day with no phone. Today is the first day I could go to a Palace." Alice ignored the exhaustion settling in, soreness creeping through her veins. "You remember everything I've done. Good. I need that."

"You... need that?" The girl seemed to break at that. her head falling to the ground. "I expected you to fight me. To kill me, like you did mom? Twice now. But you claim you were in jail."

"Sure was. Because I got my place swapped when we got sent back in time." Alice sighed, laying out next to her would be murderer. "I have a feeling who killed Kuon this time. And I plan to stop her. And--" Lying's done you no good in the past like this. "And I don't plan to kill her. I plan to free her from the circumstances that put her and I there."

"The circumstances. But you... killed many people." The girl wasn't wrong, her fingers pushing against the floor. It was a miracle the shadows and cognitions weren't riled up. They only seemed to care when the treasure or Futaba was in danger it seemed, still. "What do you mean?"

"Make you a deal. You hear me out, outside the Palace. And then if you tolerate what I explain, we follow my plan. If not, you can try to kill me when I come back to the Palace." Alice grinned at the girl, her eyebrows furrowing. "But know I'm going to fight tooth and nail."

"I will... listen. We have a deal." The girl's eyes turned off. The light in them gone. Alice groaned and dismissed Candide. She picked up the girl and walked out into her room. With nothing in hand. She looked around. She should have a girl. "I am in your phone. I am an AI."

Alice glanced to her phone, where the girl had laid herself. Cute as a button and staring at her with eyes made of knives. Guess you're my Morgana. My murderous Morgana. She grit her teeth for a moment and then opened her mouth. "This is a long and terrible story. And you should hate me. But what am I calling you?"

"Sophia. And if I do not like what you say I will ruin your life from in here." Sophia huffed at her and Alice cackled. "I am serious."

"I know you are. Sophia, my life could burn right now. I have nothing. So, you and I, we're two peas in a pod since you have nothing besides the hatred of me. Now listen up. This is important and I still have to go to school tomorrow."

It took an hour, the cold December night settling around them. Sophia grimaced through the story. She stopped meeting Alice's eyes before she ever made it to Kuon's Palace. She glossed over the events there, more to spare than to protect herself. She admitted to the murder, the manipulation, the sacrifices, the lies and the love. Sophia pounded on the screen at her. "So, after this then. What will you do?"

"Hell if I know. I expected to die, remember? I expect to get my ass killed again because I'm an idiot who's weak for Ann Takamaki." Alice curled up in the bed. It was clear Sophia hated her still. She got Alice. She didn't like it. That was fine. "So, you going to kill me?"

"... I don't know yet. But at least for now I won't try again. I believe that stopping these tragic events is a good plan." Sophia curled up in a mirror of Alice, staring at her. "How is that?"

"A better deal than I expected. Now, tomorrow after I leave school, we're going back. And we're stealing Wakaba Isshiki's heart." Alice closed her eyes, yawned and fell down a spiral of unconsciousness. A woman's voice chanted along the way.

The sacriligeous path before you
Reeks of old blood
The Magician will help you
Avoid your old pitfalls

"Welcome to my Velvet Room." A deep bassy voice shook Alice from on high. She looked up into a spotlight, reaching her fingers out to smooth stone walls. "You're quite bold, aren't you?"

"Sure am." Alice cocked her head to the side, seeing the silhouette of a head with a long nose. Two hats shadowed her from two others looking down. "So, what is this?"

"Shut up exile!" One of the voices yelled and then dropped a rock into the oubliette, hitting her in the shoulder. She groaned. "That's our master!"

"We have to get you reintegrated into society!" The other one yelled at her. Alice had seen these two, confidants of Ann who tormented her in public. Her turn now it seemed.

"Indeed. You have already found the power of persona. You've found out how to use the Metaverse Navigator. A most interesting Exile." The voice's resonant voice shook her to her core. She wanted to climb this and kick his ass. But that was another fight when she wasn't ready. "What will you do now?"

"Oh, I think you're going to see something fun tomorrow. Can I sleep now?" Alice leaned on the wall, waiting. The voice laughed and she hit her pillow again. Sophia's eyes stared at her when her own fluttered open. "Guess you don't sleep."

"AIs do not sleep." Sophia retorted, her eyes still daggers. "This means I can keep an eye on you."

"Go ahead. Unless I manage to seduce Ann. Then you're not seeing shit." Alice yawned and let sleep claim her again. She didn't dream this time. Not of the Velvet Room.

-----

Sophia studied her as she shaved her face. As she put an estrogen pill under tongue, Sophia's eyes followed every movement. As she brushed her hair and checked her growing in roots it was under Sophia's watchful eye.

No chance to hide who Alice really is this time. Wonder if that's why Ann was so intoxicatingly free. "This is what you were so desperate to hide?"

"Yep. I won't pretend it was worth it." Alice massaged her face with water, checked her bag and threw on the uniform. No makeup. She wouldn't be herself, not yet. Sophia scowled at her as she tapped out a note to herself: makeup, hair dye, stationary, weapon. "Now, I have one request during our deal. You don't make noise that gets attention. If we're caught this all becomes harder. And part one of that is keeping me out of jail."

"Jail is where murderers go, you know." Sophia paced the edges of Alice's screen, shifting at ninety degree angles as she went. Alice shook her head. "It is!"

"And far as this world knows, I'm not. I know who is and we're going to stop her. You two can negotiate what the means after I start cutting off her target list." Alice shoved her phone in her pocket to a muffled hey from Sophia. She locked her phone and thundered downstairs. To a cup of coffee and a plate of curry. Sojiro dropped a spoon into the curry at her arrival. "For me? You shouldn't have!"

"I won't be able to always do it. But you spent all evening cleaning up that space." Sojiro took a step back, those same eyes as last time. The ones that watched her the day she started dating Ann, the ones that watched every plate of curry disappear into her. The ones she never saw proper come December. Well, until this one. "Strange time of year to start at school again. Right before exams, study hard."

"Do my best!" Alice lied, knowing she was going to do awful on anything that wasn't literature or history. The math for sewing was not what they tested on. Sojiro nodded. "They don't super give you study material in jail, so, don't expect a lot a lot."

"Stick to passing and that'll keep me happy." Sojiro started to smile and stopped. She filed that fact away as she tore through her food. As spicy, rejuvenating and filling as ever. "Wow, you must really like it."

"Best curry I've ever had." Alice smiled at him over the cup of coffee before taking her first sip. Black coffee wasn't her style, lattes were but Sojiro's coffee was light and fruity enough that it didn't bother her. She set the cup down and started to move behind the counter, the maneuver Ann had done a thousand times. Sojiro sputtered. "I should clean up, right?"

"And be late? Get going. Good to know you have manners in spite of looking like you want to start a fight." Sojiro picked up her dishes, giving her a lingering look. It wasn't manners, it was falling into a role. The one Ann did with aplomb, finding out if it was something she could do. Ann was doing Alice’s role, playing it to a T if she had any guess. Kuon's death was not the only one. Different deaths for the personal ones but Adachi was predictable. He was closing in on Wakaba Isshiki's research.

Alice put in her headphones and started walking to Shujin. Sophia was humming for a moment and then silenced when the headphone jack was inserted. "Warn me next time."

"Done." Alice turned on a playlist, one familiar to her. An idol and not the way her company wanted, started to play in her ears. Kanami Mashita, the woman who came so close to freedom from her contract, on her terms. Terms that ended in murder charges.

Alice kept her eyes up as she walked, studying everyone she passed. Each one was a threat, of course. Not for the old reasons but because her passing was taken away. And now every lingering look was a danger, a sign she could die.

It felt familiar, like tearing through a Palace. Pressure all around, her body thrumming for a fight. It was familiar and she was ready and it was not the time. That wasn't going to be her, not if she wanted to restrict Ann's guilt.

A car pulled up along the road as she was two blocks from Shujin. The car window rolled down and there the fucker was. Looking much worse than he did headless last time. She tugged a headphone to the side, cocked her hip and stared at him. "Can I help you?"

"You're a new student, aren't you? How about I give you a ride?" Kamoshida's first attempt to isolate, a veil of kindness. She caught Shiho in the corner of her eye, a few steps ahead. Frozen like a deer in the headlights. "Suzui, you should get in too!"

"Actually, she shouldn't. I needed her to show me where to get a pen before class at the convenience store." Alice turned on one foot and started walking right up to Shiho. She leaned close and whispered. "Just hook your arm in mine and walk with me."

"But, he'll get mad?" Shiho's voice trembled and Alice could empathize. She offered her arm. "He gets... difficult."

"Blame the braindead tranny for not taking no for an answer." Alice hissed and Shiho took her arm, walking at her side as Kamoshida pulled up to them. "Told you, needed her help!"

"This won't be good for either of you, know that. Wouldn't want you to catch a cold." Kamoshida rolled up the window, pulling away. Alice's heart stopped beating in her ears, Shiho trembled against her as they walked.

"Why did you do that?" Shiho whispered, her coat tickling Alice's cheek. An annoyance. "And why would you call yourself that?"

"I know how men like him think. And because you looked terrified. For yourself or me, didn't know, didn't care." Alice answered, hoping that would be enough. Shiho accepted it and the two of them slipped into Shujin. "If I'm there, I'll be a problem for him, got it?"

"I... got it. I don't even know you." Shiho whispered stopping in front of the faculty office. "So, why?"

"Alice, you know me now. And I would rather see men like him suffer than get their way. Now go on, I should get acquainted with my teacher and start my first day." Alice made a shooing motion, feeling rage that the girl's bruises matched her old ones. Kamoshida would get his. She'd make sure of it.

-----

Of course I would be seated behind Goro and his fake smile. Alice waved to him and took her seat. He glanced at the black growing in under her mint hair. "They're going to make you cut that, I think."

"Oh, they'll try." Alice leaned on her hand, glancing to where Sophia was still staring at her from her phone. She had to appreciate the moxie. She wondered how Sophia would measure up on her next attempt. "But for now, still me."

"Still you? And who might you be anyway?" Goro asked, hand out. "Of course, it would be rude to not say who I am, Goro Akechi."

"Alice Hiiragi. I look forward to what this year will be." Alice set out her sketchbook, flipped to a blank page and started work. Wakaba's calling card would be easy. It was the presentation that mattered. Chains along the edge, moons in the links. The message simple.

We're going to take your greatest treasure. We're going to make you remember who matters. You’ll make her understand your mistakes. -The Phantom Thieves.

"You're stealing their title. They were the ones who were going to stop you." Sophia pouted in her ear. Alice sketched out in the corner her retort: They did stop me. And we have to adapt, Ann won't found them. You and me, we're what people got right now. Poor them. "I hate agreeing with you."

Ah, nostalgia.

-----

Alice lingered outside the psychology wing of Tokyo university, double checking she had what she needed. Calling card, on card stock and done with good ink. Toy Featherman dagger and laser pistol in her bag. Makeup for afterwards. Her meager money in her bank account was gone. One good thing about Shadows, they paid. Alice tucked the card into the mailbox and then leaned on a wall nearby. Wakaba walked out, Maruki on her heels. "I'm telling you, Doctor. That's a very long ranging theory. We'd have to work to prove any of it."

God, I could cut him open right now and save us all so much trouble. Sophia would then try to kill me, right then. I’ll have to figure out how to solve him.

"I think we can. The applications would be astonishing." Maruki looked to Alice, then the card in Wakaba's hand. "Can we help you?"

Answers the question of if he remembers.

"Oh, you're that girl who moved in with Sojiro. What are you doing here?" Wakaba tapped her foot, one hand on her phone to check the time. She was concerned for the time. Always in a rush.

"I was exploring near where I live now. Saw you and was a little curious. I have some time before Sojiro expects me home." Alice pushed off the wall, tilting her head in confusion. "What do you have?"

"It's... huh." Wakaba flipped the card back and forth and then looked to Maruki. "Doctor, this is in poor taste."

"I don't know what you're talking about, Doctor Isshiki." Maruki leaned in, looking at it. His mouth opened in surprise, then thought. "This... looks like a trigger like we were discussing."

"Yes, it does." Wakaba walked off, her eyebrows furrowed as Alice went the other direction, away from them. They lost her in the shuffle as Maruki ran back into the office.

Whoops!

Alice pulled out her phone, tapped the Metanav and sucked herself into the other world. The fair was in chaos. Automatons harvesting the attendees for their brains. The wing of regret was aflame. She armed herself, looking to Sophia. "Alright, let's go over codenames real quick. I'm Luna now. And you?"

"Avenger." Sophia's answer was short and succinct. She pulled out her yo-yo's the blades pointed at Alice’s neck. "We are stealing the treasure, correct?"

"Yes, don't kill her shadow. That's more for me than you." Alice took off, flipping her knife through the air. One of the automaton shadows rushed at her, hand spinning with razor sharp claws. "How quaint! Steel on steel!"

Alice's dagger flashed and the Shadow collapsed into a Pixie, half stunned. She grabbed it by the neck, brought it to her face and grinned. "Hey, test something for me, you're Pixie. Want to be my mask?"

"I-- hey that is who I am! How'd you know?" Pixie became nothing in her hand as Sophia blitzed by the two of them. Pixie settled in her brain and Alice took off after Sophia.

Sophia didn't tolerate any of the Shadows between her and the treasure room, her yo-yos bouncing around her in a way that reminded Alice of Sumire's twirls. She smiled behind her mask as she sent a bolt of lightning into a Shadow at Sophia's back. "Keep going! Eyes on the prize, Avenger!"

"I---" Sophia shook her head and kept going. Wakaba's Shadow stood in front of the final exhibit, her body twisting and cracking. Alice slid under a Shadow, cutting its leg with her knife. Candide's cane finished it.

"You think you know what it's like to balance work and home life?" Wakaba's voice echoed, a pittance compared to the man at the top of the oubliette. Her flesh folded in on itself until it resembled ridges of the brain. Waves of force picked up exhibits, hurling the displays towards them. “I have to make sacrifices for Futaba’s future now. My results will be there in the future for her. I hope.”

"Alright, Avenger. Keep me on track." Alice took a step to the side, bits of the model striking her. Sophia tilted her head as Alice sheathed her knife, pulling away her mask. "Because I'm not used to holding back! Candide!"

A mournful wail followed Candide's appearance, his cane sending the displays to the ground. Sophia's yo-yo's lost their blades as she battered Wakaba's Shadow. "Why are we fighting?"

"We need her on the edge so she’ll listen." Alice crossed her arms, catching a hurled model to the forearms and grunting in pain. It'd be easier if she could shoot Wakaba, one bullet and done. But she wasn't doing that again. Not to Futaba. Adachi or Kamoshida? Maybe. "Who's important to you Wakaba? Who?"

"Futaba but she doesn't understand that I have to finish my research! We have to finish it sooner than later!" Wakaba's brain rippled and Alice's skin crawled as the sensation of Futaba whining echoed. Her stomach roiled as she fell to her knee, but she kept looking up. "Look at you, you can't take it! I need a break to finish my work!"

"I'm not her mother, idiot. You should see her more and she'd whine less." Alice forced herself to one foot. She was guessing. But it wasn't hard to figure out how obsessed with publishing Wakaba was and how needy Futaba was for Ann's attention. Sophia was unaffected, still battering away at Wakaba. The Shadow scooped her in a cage of force. "I'll crush you!"

It'd be easy to let her die. Not carrying around someone that might betray me at any time. Ugh, I hate that I'm not going to let that happen.

"I. Will. Not. Be!" Sophia's pushed against the grip around her, the force becoming visible as it strained against her. Alice picked up one of the shattered displays and hurled it at Wakaba.

"Wakaba, focus! Think about your daughter. Avenger's an AI. Certified real thing, you'd deny her the chance to know an AI?" Alice hurled another, the force on Sophia lessening as she did. "Think about it. You're missing all of her life. You can slow down. Let us have the treasure. And you'll be calm. And safe. No Palace."

"Safe." The skin undulated until it was smooth again, Wakaba's shadow falling to the ground. She looked up at Alice. "How do you... know Futaba?"

"In a way that you would never believe. Luna, you promise this will save her Shadow?" Sophia looked over at Alice, not having internalized everything. Alice nodded. "Are you lying?"

"I'll prove it when we leave." Alice walked over to Wakaba and offered her hand. Wakaba wasn't bad. She was tired. She was exhausted. And she was afraid of what would come. She knew Kuon's fate after all.

Probably why Sophia was here.

The two of them walked into the final exhibit, taking the rolled up scroll within. Wakaba's shadow faded and the Palace shook. Alice ran, scroll in hand and Sophia on her heels. And then, cold December air.

Alice glanced at the will, the first treasure she ever touched. A promise to keep Futaba safe. Sophia opened the Metanav for Alice and they could not access Wakaba's Palace. Or find her in Mementos. Sophia closed her eyes. "What is next?"

"So much, Sophia. So much. You're not going to like some of it."

Chapter Text

"Alice, there you are." Sojiro frowned at her, looking over the counter. She tilted her head. "Wakaba said you went out to her work?"

"I was exploring. I haven't lived much in Tokyo and I wanted some inspiration." Alice was glad she thought ahead to burn the design page in her sketchbook for the calling card. It was now ashes in Inokashira park alongside Wakaba's false will. She laid the sketchbook on the counter, fingers dragging along the cover. "I do art, design clothes. Looking at stuff helps inspire me."

"Uh huh. Can't say I get it. But I'm expected to keep an eye on you." Sojiro huffed, placing a hand on the counter. She flipped open the sketchbook, moving to a design she'd worked on during the train ride. One she thought might catch Ann's eye if she submitted it. "What's this?"

"An audition. This is a dress I would love to make." Alice ran her pencil eraser over the dress. "The roses here are based on ones I saw on campus, the black tips to show that even burnt they’re there."

"Can't say I get it, but I guess if you're wandering for inspiration that's fine. But you said yourself you're not ready for finals." Sojiro had a strong memory, a problem. That meant she couldn't count on him not noticing strange activity. "I want you studying in the evenings. At least until finals are done."

Alice groaned, lifting her head to the ceiling. There went the burgeoning plan she had given Sophia on the walk back. The plan to do double duty on Palaces wasn't going to work, yet. Sojiro chuckled, setting down a coffee cup. "Make you a deal, kid. I'll teach you how to make coffee. One lesson when you study. You'll really get the boys."

"Girls." Alice corrected to a hearty laugh from the man. Even if she didn't know he had encouraged Ann last time, he was good about her name. With no prodding. "And, I guess you have a deal."

The sacrilegious path before you
Reeks of old blood
The Hierophant will help you
Avoid your old pitfalls

Oh, son of a bitch that wasn't a weird dream thing. What the fuck. Seriously? I'm already trying to not! DID ANN PUT UP WITH THIS SHIT ALL YEAR?

"Alright, throw on an apron and get back here." Sojiro led her around, showing her the siphons and grinders, talking about blade heat and speed of decanting. All the ways that she had only observed but didn't absorb the intricacy of. No wonder her coffee never matched. She was a pale imitation.

What did it fucking make her now?

Her stomach ran itself in knots as she worked with him, pouring at a slow and even rate. A care and focus that she hadn't known to be given to her by anyone but Ann. And it was clear who taught her. Sojiro hummed as they sampled the coffee. "Hm. A little too much heat. It'll wake them up, but it's gonna wake up the part of them annoyed at the world."

"I know the feeling." Alice joked as she took a sip. Well she thought it was a joke but Sojiro looked at her. "Teenage rebellion, it's nothing."

"Didn't sound it, but maybe I'm an old man. You're too young to be worrying about all that yet." Sojiro rolled up his sleeves, balancing an unlit cigarette in his fingers. "Leave that to old farts."

Alice fought the urge to point out that he was a hypocrite then. Because he wasn't doing anything. Where were the men like him when she was under Adachi? Where were they when Ann was under him now? Where were they when Kamoshida pushed Shiho to jump? Where were they when Kunikazu hired an assassin to kill Haru? She sunk down onto the bar, running a finger around the cup. "But, I don't think I get that choice."

Sojiro turned the cigarette over in his fingers with a sigh. "Guess not, do you. Guess not. Feel like an ass telling you to go study, but you oughta. I'm not gonna hover over you though, do it in your room."

"Yeah, I'll go do that." Alice dragged herself up the stairs and fell onto her bed. She dropped her phone by her head, Sophia scowling at her. Still. "Good. You know who I am still."

"Yes. I do. You are a murderer." Sophia's blue eyes tinged red for a moment. Could Kuon have been less inventive. Given her Palace was an open book, I guess not. "Why did you waste your time on coffee?"

"Because..." Alice wasn't sure. She knew Ann had spent a lot of time with a lot of people. She knew that was something that made Ann damn good at what she did. But Alice got strong from working alone before. And now she was here, with a murderous AI in her phone and a man attempting to be a father figure downstairs. "Because I don't have a good answer. Ann did it. Which is the exact shit I was yelling at Sumire about before the end. To not be like me or Ann. So, I'm doing it because I'm a hypocritical idiot."

"I see. Why do you want to be like Ann? Especially if she is now a murderer like you expect?" Sopia didn't spare the hard questions. And Alice couldn't disagree as she flicked through her phone to Ann's Twitter. Posts about a model shoot with Mika, one where the two of them had knives to one another's throat.

Mika held hers wrong.

"Because, she was better than me. Now, who knows who is better at what matters." Alice pulled the rock hard pillow up under her head, balancing it across her arms. "But she saved my life then. And if I weren't an idiot, she'd have done it twice. Along with the rest of the Thieves."

"So, you want to save them for bringing you to this state, where you have me waiting for your mistake. This feels illogical." Sophia looked down, away from Alice for the first time. "You have done many illogical things. You have not disposed of me. Or allowed me to be disposed of."

"Yeah, I haven't." Alice stretched her legs out, flopped to the side and repositioned again. "Because, Sophia, I am an awful person. I saw what I did and why wasn't good enough. And now, for some damn reason, I have the chance to do better. And I keep thinking of being like Ann to do it."

"Then if you want to do good and not be Ann, what would Alice do to be better? Because I think you have a first instinct to kill." Sophia's accusation was... wrong. She hadn't wanted to kill Maruki, not the last night. Shoot him, ward him off, yes. But she'd made up her mind to let him have the calling card. "Alice, I demand an answer."

"I'm thinking. My muscle memory is lethal blows, yes. But I don't want to kill. At least not most of them. Adachi and Kamoshida are exceptions." Alice yawned, her body beginning to relax. "But if Adachi dies, his dirt on Ann goes out. And his everything just gets inherited by someone else. And Kamoshida? I think I need to let his current victims decide."

"You are letting others influence your decision. I don't know if this is good or bad." Sophia's voice was smaller. Alice didn't know if that was sleep or Sophia's reticence. She wasn't sure the distinction mattered. Not right now.

------

The routine of the next week was easy. Go to school. Stare down Kamoshida when he went near Shiho. Small talk with Goro. Watch Wakaba's social media for updates and Futaba's for different kinds of shitposts. And work on a project. Well, two.

One was easy. That was her way of getting Ann's attention, getting her to put two and two together. The calling card to Wakaba was too small, too personal. She wanted Ann to be intrigued and seek her out.

The second was targets and if those Thieves should be brought back in. Some were easy. Haru and Sumire were top of her list. Haru needed to get her answer from Kunikazu this time. Sumire needed to live her life and Alice needed something familiar. It was easier to care, with her around. Even when the drowned rat was a pain in the ass.

Futaba was harder. She was young. She wasn't involved anymore. She was brilliant. She was also likely to find out what Alice was doing with Ann if she got that far. Goro was another question, smart and pragmatic as well. His sense of justice made it more difficult.

Yusuke, Ryuji and Makoto? They were all solid. Alice didn't have an opinion about their joining, not beyond the fact she knew they'd be competent. If annoying in the meantime. Every shenanigans story Ann told involved one of those three. Ryuji was the biggest ask, his leg still in a cast.

She didn't count Morgana, she didn't know where he was.

She caught herself looking at Shiho, considering if that was the path to save her. The ability to fight back had in its own way saved Alice. The girl deserved better than Kamoshida. She sketched down a plan. Sophia frowned. "Why this order? Is Kamoshida's damage not smaller scale?"

"Okay, fuck you." Alice snapped off to a storm cloud circling Sophia's head. "Get mad, I don't care. Kamoshida is going to drive someone to suicide. He drove ME to working for Adachi. So his 'smaller scale' damage is bigger. Got it?"

"Fine. You can do his Palace fast then." Sophia bounced the storm cloud around Alice's screen. "Right? You killed him, you know where his treasure is."

"No, I don't." Alice admitted, one hand in her hair and the other tapping her pencil. "I killed him too soon. They were maybe... three quarters up his castle. This is going to be a three day ordeal. Maybe not in a row. I'm recruiting someone. Two if I can get away with it."

"Two. Shiho and... Sumire. Why would Sumire care?" Sophia blinked at the list on screen. Alice sighed. That was easy if she knew harm was occurring. She just had to show it. "Because was she not reluctant in your story?"

"Because she awakened in a Palace of a man controlling her." Alice scratched her head and stood up from the bending area table. Two parts to her plan. Get Sumire and then get Shiho. Both required the practice building.

It was a different thing seeing Sumire before Kasumi was dead. She was sat on the bleachers, notebook in hand, watching Kasumi's routine. She would write down notes as Kasumi's fingers touched parts of the beam. Alice took a seat next to her. "Evaluating her, huh?"

"Huh, wha-?" Sumire fumbled her notebook and pencil for a moment, catching them both before they hit the ground. She blushed as Alice stretched her legs. "I'm trying to figure out what I'm doing wrong when I do my routines."

"Maybe it's the wrong routines." Alice yawned, the old methods of herding Sumire second nature. The girl locked onto a path and stayed on it. Sumire looked at her, red eyes swirling with confusion. "You're not her. So, what does your routine look like. Hers?"

"Yeah, we're twins. We're the same." Sumire turned back to her page and Alice scoffed at her. "I'm sorry, I don't know you, why are you talking to me like this?"

"I'm Alice. And I'm talking to you because I was curious. Sure, your sister's the one doing the show stopping number, right now." Alice felt a smile creep onto her face, her old instincts sharpening for a moment. "But think about this, what if you tried something new? What if you tried to figure out how different you and Kasumi were?"

"You sound like you're trying to drag me into something." Sumire whispered but she had a smile on her face. Jealous of Kasumi’s attention, even now. Alice popped an eyebrow at her. "Well, you're talking like you have something in mind."

"Yeah, I am. I've seen how you move around. It'd be useful. And, it'd help people." Alice crossed her arms around each other, it was a moment of truth. Because Sumire hadn't gotten kicked down, yet. Not in that awful, soul rending way that made Alice sick.

"How would it help people?" Sumire whispered, her eyes staring at Kasumi as she did a handstand. The other twin arced her whole body across the beam. "Because Kasumi could do it better."

"Don't need power. Need grace. And, it's a little complicated." Alice knew she couldn't get full consent from Sumire on this. Shiho, she might be able to. Her desperation to be away from Kamoshida was immense. Unfathomable by but a few. And it was easy to identify. "But, it's going to be okay."

She could feel Sophia buzzing in her pocket, her way of communicating a displeasure. It was because of the lies. But there was a line on what was fine to say to someone and what was not. Sumire pat her knee. "Ho-how long would it take?"

"About an hour. And we have one other stop to make first." Alice stood up, waving to Kasumi as she hopped off the beam with a twist. "Good routine!"

"Thanks! Are you leaving, Sumire?" Kasumi bounded over, glistening with sweat. Sumire nodded, an anxious twitch of the lips accompanying it. "Who's your new friend?"

"Alice Hiiragi. I'm new here." Alice offered her hand, saving Sumire from the stress of having to navigate the introduction. "And there's something I need Sumire's help with, that's all."

"Ye-yeah. I think?" Sumire' unsureness drew Kasumi closer to Alice, inspecting her. The girl popped around and looked close at Alice's hair. "Kasumi, rude."

"Oh, it's fine. You should redye your hair, you can see the black. Have fun, Sumire. I'm glad to see you made a friend." Kasumi grinned, patting Sumire on the shoulder. Wasn't fucking wrong about this at least. Let's hope we don't get an unhappy ending again. "And if you get Sumire hurt, Alice. I will hurt you."

"Oh, I have no doubt." Alice started walking, knowing what would come next. A pause. Then footsteps on her heels. Welcome back, Lux. Out of earshot, Alice spoke up again. "We're going to find Shiho Suzui. She needs our help. And I want you to guess why."

"Because of..." Sumire's hand went to her mouth, cutting it off. "Her bruises? I thought they practiced rough on the team. Not that uncommon for an athlete to get banged up."

"Yes, but there’s a source of them that isn’t just practicing hard." Alice answered, pushing her way to the equipment room. Where Shiho was curled up against the wall by a saddlehorse. Alice's heart wrenched because she knew that corner well. It was the same one she used to pick. She held up a hand to Sumire before squatting down. She met Shiho's eyes. "Hey, I missed something. I'm really sorry. Do you want to make sure Kamoshida can never do it again?"

"H-how. He's untouchable. He broke Ryuji's leg just a few months ago." Shiho curled up tighter, tears flowing down her face. Alice blinked, that was another thing she missed. "It would take a miracle to stop him."

"Sure would. I know one. Come here." Alice stood up, hand down. She wasn't sure why this was what was easy. Maybe it was the fact she knew this pain. She had a guess of where Shiho hurt and how. The girl took a shaky step up, using Alice for support. So many people had tried to touch her, but Shiho was like her and it was fine. Good even to be a support for her in that moment. "Alright, Sumire, Shiho. You're going to have to be cool for a second. But we're going to make Kamoshida regret everything he ever did."

"Beginning navigation." Sophia's voice cut out of her phone and the world shifted, depositing them at the front of the castle. Shiho and Sumire stared at the castle, it's stained glass windows. They hadn't noticed the new and shiny and angry person next to them. Sophia’s hands lay on her hips, and red eyes on Alice. "This is Kamoshida's Palace. From here, we are going to steal his heart. From there, he will confess his crimes. Right, Alice?"

Well, that was a pointed way to doublecheck if I was killing him.

"Correct. This is his mind, what we do here effects him. Sumire, you don't know his exact crimes. Shiho does. But you both have the skills needed for this." Alice took a step in front of them, twirling her outfit out. She then waved Sophia up. "Welcome my begrudging assistant, Sophia. She may not like me, but she should like you two fine."

"What the fuck." Shiho's jaw dropped while Sophia pouted. Fun. “What is going on?”

“I’ll happily explain.”

------

"Okay, so, a persona. The fairy that healed me." Shiho reached out to Pixie, the fairy flitting around her fingertips. Sumire was testing the remark about cognition, balancing on top of the castle wall on one hand. "So, what, you want me to volleyball my way through?"

"Whatever comes natural. This involves getting in danger." Alice glanced to Sophia, wondering why she didn't awaken before. Did she not believe she was in danger? Is that why? Was there more going on? Was the cosmic purveyor of personas a dick about AI?

She could believe that last one.

"I don't know what's going on but this is incredible. I feel lighter than ever!" Sumire flipped off the wall, a perfect landing. She spun around, arms out. "It is absolutely wonderful!"

"Feels even better when you tear a mask off. Let's go piss off the worst person at Shujin." Only by a margin. Shiho and Sumire kept close as Alice walked up and slammed the door in to the foyer. Two patrolling knights turned towards her, swords up. "Oh, I'm not who you're fighting. Shiho, Sumire, good luck."

“Stop in the name of King Kamoshida! All whores must be brought to him for their lessons!” The knights shouted in unison and Alice’s eye roll caused her physical pain. She would have cut their throats out to make it faster if she could.

"What does tha--" Shiho and Sumire didn't get a chance as Alice shoved them forward towards the knights. Sumire froze up but Shiho, she made Alice proud. She tried to punch the knight from moment one. Girl needed a way to fight back and she was ready to go for it.

It was fucking stupid though, her hand falling to her side useless after a crunch that Alice felt in her stomach. Worse than useless, it was mangled with joints almost out of the skin. But it spawned blue fire all the same, the knight staring in shock past his blue mask.

"Yeah, this fight seems hopeless. If everyone doesn't do something to help, well, you're going to die. Guess I have to do my part, be a shame for you to go out like me. Just, sign the contract, we have a long walk before the end."

Shiho's eyes flashed yellow, her head tilted back as the blue flame coalesced around her. The domino mask on her eyes was a jaundice yellow to match the flash in her irises, a tan leather duster landing around her shoulders. A vest filled with bullets and fringe pants joined the duster and a bloody bandage on her stomach. Her fingers popped into place as she grabbed the mask and screamed. "Parker!"

The blood brought an emaciated man in a tattered leather jacket, patched with television screens. He mimed a finger gun and a ray of nuclear power cut through the Shadow. Shiho grinned, her feet unsteady. Alice slid into place behind her, "Good work. Avenger, how's our other amateur?"

"She is in a staring contest." Sophia's response would have made Alice laugh if it weren't for the fact Sumire was staring at the knight in confusion. Then it slammed its sword towards her. Alice shook her head as Sumire's body autopiloted, a sidestep as the sword slammed into the ground where she had been. "Perhaps not."

Sumire laughed, her hair spilling out behind her with a flick of her hand. The flames built in a circle around her, a ring for her to dance around another slice of the Shadow's sword. "Probably wrong to be having fun. Dodging a monster knight's sword."

"And why is that? Why not dance around danger, why not explore all of what life has to offer? You can sign the contract, get out of the dulled down life you're in. I am thou, thou art I."

"Let's feel everything together, Kuno!" Sumire ripped away the mask, her thief outfit the glass breastplate and tiara with veil that Alice had gotten to see at the end. Sumire's persona appeared behind her, a nude and sexless man covered in computer ports all ripped out and bloody. His eyes were dulled and blinded, his ears twitching at every noise. Then lightning arced out from the ports, turning the Knight to nothing. "That felt good. Kasumi can't do that."

I mean, we could check about that. But I'm keeping Sumire all to myself.

Sophia caught Sumire before she hit the ground. "Luna, are you happy? They may have died."

"I'd have interfered. You could have too. You wanted to see if it worked just as much." Alice squatted, picking up the dazed Shiho and cradling her tight. Sophia wrapped one arm around Sumire walking her to the exit. "And I'm pretty happy with these results."

"Woo." Shiho cheered before curling against Alice's chest. She couldn't help chuckling.

She had to push on the thought if this is how Ann got Ryuji, Yusuke and Goro out of the Palace after their Awakenings.

------

Alice stumbled out of day one of finals, her academic muscles out of work. Kamoshida sneered at her, his eyes following her as she left. "Hiiragi, I oughta discipline you for your hair. Can make it easy, just us and no one else will ever know."

"No, thanks. Need to study. Can't be late." Alice shivered, remembering the first time. His hand nudging her, fingers in the strands. She heaved and darted around the gate. Her body shook, her eyes burned and she forced herself to look anywhere but Shujin. And there, at the end of the road was salvation.

Or maybe she was supposed to do the saving this time. Or it was a mess.

Alice focused on Ann, quelling the revulsion. Even dressed down in a hoodie, simple sunglasses and a scarf to choke her pretty neck with, there was Ann. Alice fought the queasing in her stomach, fought the urge to run, to scream out, to grab and take Ann the way they each had so many times. She smiled at Ann instead, tilting her head. "You look familiar."

"Just one of those faces." Ann looked over her sunglasses at Alice, taking a step forward. "Hm, your makeup's good, but what is with your hair?"

"No chance to redye it." Bitch. What are you up to? My playbook? "Actually, it isn't one of those faces, is it. Didn't know you went to Shujin, Ann."

Ann's face contorted in confusion, her foot stepping back. Alice whispered as she approached. "You don't want to take a closer look, Kamoshida's hunting for me."

Ann's fist tightened looking to Alice. "Is he with anyone?"

Oh she’s worried for Shiho, isn’t she?

"The only person he was bothering, I got out of the situation." Alice took a step behind Ann, took a deep breath. Of course, she didn't recognize me. Not yet. "I've heard some things Ann. And, I have a feeling. What color is your mask?"

Ann wheeled around to face Alice, a dying snarl on her face. "Who are you and what are you doing? Why do you keep calling me that name?"

"Well, Ann, I'm really into fashion. I design clothes. I know who the models I dream of wearing my clothes are." Alice took a step back, winking at Ann. "And, I may know a thing or two about masks. You're here to stop him, aren't you?"

"No. I'm here to check on an old friend. But I missed her." Ann glanced to her phone, then back to Alice. "What are you even talking about?"

"Hm. Playing dumb are we?" Alice took a skip back, delighting in Ann following her, a little kick up of snow. "Ann, maybe I know what kind of man Tohru Adachi and Suguru Kamoshida are. Maybe I know when I'm going to crack open Kamoshida's brain. Maybe, I think you should watch."

"You are so frustrating. Who are you?" Ann's eyes burned with rage and Alice's heart blossomed with love. She grabbed for Alice’s collar, the girl taking a skip back from the attempt. It was a calculated clumsiness on Ann’s part, one to make her seem weaker than she was. "What is going on?"

"Alice Hiiragi. And I'll tell you more, over crepes." Alice poked her cheek, watched Ann huff and walk closer with hands at her side. Alice turned around and started heading to the Shibuya line. Ann was on her heels, like the good puppy she was. Alice knew Sophia was fuming, she'd have to get over it. "Was your friend Shiho?"

"You know her." Ann looked down at her feet, not meeting Alice's eyes. "I can protect her now, I was going to."

"I figured." Alice wanted to take Ann's hand, crush it in her fingers. Tear them both apart and then rampage through Adachi's Palace when they got better. But Ann's social media didn't say who she was. Not at her core. She fell into the same trap. "What if Shiho could protect herself?"

"That isn't going to happen, not in the real world. Kamoshida has the power there. But now, now I do too." Ann smirked towards the top of the subway car and Alice's heart was proud. "Shiho doesn't."

"Not so sure about that, Ann." Alice blew a kiss at Ann and there was the blush. Hah, even messy and in a uniform, I got your number. The two of them walked up to Ann's favorite spot, one Alice had grabbed food from on the way over dozens of time for Ann. The two of them held tight to their crepes and a hot chocolate and started walking through late December snow. "I did want an answer to my question, what color is that mask?"

"What..." Ann's eyebrows furrowed as she studied Alice and her grin. "Wait. Are you saying you know about that? How. Tell me now."

"Magic, Ann. Wonderland, right? All that power, no consequences, right? Well, mostly." Alice could feel herself losing control, losing her cover because she was an idiot for Ann Takamaki. Ann didn't meet her eyes. "Don't worry, your secret is safe with me. I know what happens when you kill a Shadow. I know other things you can do with them."

Ann lost the color in her face, her jaw dropped. "D-do you work with Adachi?"

"Oh, no. I plan to rip him apart for ruining my life." Alice leaned in close, her eyes wide. Ann bit her lip. "You want that too? Bet he has something on you."

"I... why. Why am I trusting you?" Ann's eyes shined with tears and Alice felt her manic energy flee. "You know too much, I should be suspicious."

"Well, I'm trusting you too." Alice huffed, placing her half eaten crepe on a low wall. She stuck out her hand. "I want to strike a deal. As proof, that I know what I'm talking about, watch me destroy Kamoshida my way on the day after Shujin's last final. Then, you and I, we'll really talk. About how we're going to drive Adachi mad."

"We... we have a deal." Ann took Alice's hand, pulling her close. She whispered into Alice's ear. "And if you fail, I get to shred him myself. Then I'll kill you for failing me and wasting my time."

The sacrilegious path before you
Reeks of old blood
The Death will help you
Avoid your old pitfalls

"A fight in a collapsing Palace sounds hot. But that isn't going to happen." Alice whispered back, feeling the flame of Ann's determination. When the girl was on, she was on. "And if you slip up killing me, I'll slit your pretty throat."

"Will you now? And I haven't already earned that?" Ann's eyes twinkled as they separated and Alice knew it. Even on opposite sides of fate it was fun.

-----

"You flirted with her! You invited her to watch!" Sophia shrieked the moment Alice put on her headphones in the attic. "Explain why!"

"She was at Shujin. She was going to do what I did, which isn't an evil thing in the case of Kamoshida. But it would take vengeance out of Shiho's hands." Alice stared up at Sophia, her avatar disjointed into three pieces. Her arms had formed a single sword, her head into a gun and her legs into a hammer, all aimed towards Alice. "Sophia. I told you my plan was never to kill Ann. My plan is to pull her out before she spirals worse. Before Adachi makes her worse. Before she becomes me."

"But she killed my mom! Even if she doesn't get as bad as you, why should I forgive her?!" Sophia's bladed points rotated around the edge of the screen. Alice rubbed the back of her head. "Why is she more--"

"More important to me Sophia. Not to you. And I told you how I awakened was your mother's Shadow trying to kill me. After Adachi made me go into her Palace at gunpoint." Alice massaged the back of her head as she stretched out on the cheap yoga mat she had gotten with her cut of the shadow funds. "I don't care if you forgive me or her. That's on you. But of all our killings, we didn't get a choice there. You don't have to like it. I sure don’t."

"I don't!" Sophia's form began to come back together, her fingers still pointed daggers. "If... you had to pick now. What would you do?"

"I'd have just slaughtered Adachi, my life be damned. But Ann and I didn't even know what we got into. Adachi said we were testing something. That's all." Alice huffed, watching Sophia slow down. "Your mom, I don't know who she really is. Who she was."

"I don't either. She didn't leave behind much." Sophia curled up, a mirror of Alice. "What about all the rest of your murders?"

"Hate us for those. But know, even a fucked up piece of shit like me can be aimed at a problem." Alice kept her eyes even with Sophia, refusing to look away. "Never will I demand you like Ann or I. No one should."

"So when are you telling Shiho and Sumire, so they can hate you too?" Sophia glared at her, tightening the grip on her legs. "Don't they deserve to know?"

"After Kamoshida. So if they run, Shiho is safe from him." Alice tilted her head up, towards the wall. "I won't let her jump again. I'd rather she be strong and safe but hate my guts. If I have to get them safe and then leave, that's fine. That's normal. If I get Ann out, get Adachi gone and set them on their way to help people? Mission fucking accomplished Sophia."

"You... expect them to leave you. Is it so you can do what you want, unbothered?" Sophia's accusation made sense. It was easy to see how that distance could achieve that.

"No. I kinda expect them to try and stop me when I tell them what I did. And I expect you to help them." Alice let out a single chuckle. "That's what I expect. Also for you to go with them and do good. But, you want to make sure I don't do worse if they break off."

"Yes. No. I hate you, but you're, right now, trying to do good. And you saved mom's friend..." Sophia whispered, a tinny sound in the headphones. "You make it so complicated Alice."

"Or you are making it complicated for yourself. Shit's simple. I'm a monster but I want to be the monster tormenting monsters now. Hate me, if that makes it easier. Figure out my weaknesses. And when I fail you, kill me." Alice waited a beat until Sophia retreated into the depths of her phone. Alice pulled her blanket around herself, went to her desk and started making calling cards for next week.

Chapter Text

"You're sure it's going to work?" Sumire's thumb ran across the stack of calling cards, her eyes on Shiho as the other girl clicked the fake action on her toy gun again and again. Alice hummed in acknowledgment as she took a sip of the coffee she had made downstairs. It was better than last time, still missed something. "How do you know how all this works?"

"Not our first Palace. But the last one was to help them more than punish." Alice kept her words tight as Sophia shot her a look. "I want to say more, but for now, we should focus on Kamoshida. Once he isn’t threatening Shiho, I’ll give the full story."

"Damn right." Shiho whispered, the gun cocking back into place. She had taken to the revolver toy in the Palace like it was the most natural thing for her to use. Spiking a volleyball and shooting a gun worked for the girl. "How fast did the other one work?"

"Immediately, but it took a while before she said anything. But the behavior changed, spending more time at home. She is recorded as going on sabbatical next semester now." Sophia reported, her arms crossed as she watched Alice drink her coffee. "Kamoshida should become withdrawn once we steal the Treasure. He will have to deal with what he did."

"And from there, he'll suffer a long time. As he should." Alice kept her composure as tight as she could, keeping herself from any sign of her own past with Kamoshida. That wasn't for now. "Then, we'll talk about the future. For if you want to keep doing this."

"I want to, if we can keep helping people." Sumire's fingers flicked through the cards. Shiho didn't say anything. "Are you going to be okay to do this?"

"Yeah, I will. Don't worry." Shiho tucked her hair back, fingers combing through her ponytail. "I owe him a lot of payback."

"Remember, steal the treasure. We are not going to kill him." Sophia reminded Shiho, her gaze shifting to Alice. Poor thing thinks everyone is like me and Ann. Maybe that's her way of dealing with her own feelings about wanting to kill myself and Ann. "Correct?"

"I know. I want him to apologize to me, personally." Shiho looked up and in a moment Alice got why Ann was desperate to avenge her, had spent all year trying to see Shiho in a desperate attempt for the girl to get up. A week without Kamoshida's all encompassing weight and she was ready to fight, to rip it all down. It was a good look. "I want him to cry. I want him to know I'll never forgive him."

That doesn't bode well for Ann. But, maybe we can get there.

"We're going to get you that Shiho." Alice set down her coffee cup, looking between the three other assembled Thieves. "We're going to put them up tomorrow morning in the school. After classes, we take his heart. So rest. Got it?"

"Got it." The answer was unanimous. Shiho took a third of the cards Alice made, Sumire the other third. Sophia winked off her screen, leaving Alice alone in Leblanc's attic.

"Good." Alice picked up her phone, tapped into her encrypted phone app and hit call. Two rings while she set her sketchbook on her knee, pencil in hand. Only a few days to Christmas. Guess I don't get to maul Ann this year as my gift. Another two rings. "Answer, come on."

"Could you pick a worse time to call?" Ann hissed across the receiver and for a moment Alice felt bad. "You're lucky I keep this phone on silent."

"I figured it would be. I'm reminding you about tomorrow." Alice's pencil worked across the page, filling in a design for a celebratory dress. She'd need to use all her money from Kamoshida on supplies for it. And have time to look into it. "Making sure you hadn't backed out of our deal. Hate to have to kick your ass for taking Kamoshida out of my hands."

"Like I said, you fail at this and I'm going to leave you bleeding out as I collapse his Palace." Ann's voice was on the edge of purring and Alice remembered every threat, every tangled mess of hair wrapped around her fingers. She had to fight to keep the sigh from slipping across the receiver. "Then you have a plan for Adachi?"

"Oh, I do. But I bet that my plan would ruin your life." Alice delighted in the sharp intake of breath from Ann. "Which is why you and I are going to hash things out. So I don't do that. As much as I want to make him wail and scream."

"I was already working on something, but sure, I'll hear you out." Ann's phone sent a ticking noise, the woman tapping on her phone. A little bit of anxiety, a knowledge that Alice knew too much. "And you want revenge for your arrest, right?"

"Did your research then, good girl." Alice fired the shot and relaxed as she added another line to the dress. She could feel the mixture of emotions in the sharp intake of breath, that familiar song of their banter. "I also want him to never have power over any one ever again. You know why I got arrested?"

"He couldn't keep his hands to himself. On you or someone else, doesn't super matter in the end, does it? Because you're a nosy bitch." Ann laughed and Alice felt her heart lighten, the titter tinged with anger. It was good to be back. "Going to keep your nose out of business after this?"

"Oh, probably not. I got a list of assholes I'm going to leave a sobbing mess, Ann." Alice licked her lips, closing her sketchbook. She grabbed the home hair dye kit, the first one she'd used since starting working for Adachi. "Plus I don't want my nose out of your business. I'm going to make you prettier Ann. One way or another."

"Now that's an adorable thought." Ann hummed, a little delight in her voice. "Prove yourself first. Seeya."

The phone cut off and Alice closed her eyes. "Seeya, lover. Round two’s a weird one."

-----

"Damn, Kamoshida. You really pissed people off." Ryuji leaned on his crutch, calling card half ripped off the bulletin board in his hand. Kamoshida stomped towards him, grasping fingers outstretched. Ryuji pulled his hand back. "Hey, that's all over this! Kamoshida's hands can't stay off students, whether for his own sexual gratification or violent urges. You're going to admit it when we steal your heart. Dunno who these Phantom Thieves are, but--"

"Sakamoto, I don't know why you're causing problems for me after our last lesson." Kamoshida's hand landed on Ryuji's shoulder and the boy started to lift his crutch to defend himself. Kamoshida grinned, foot lifted with heel aimed at Ryuji’s leg. "Self defense Sakamoto. You're on thin ice."

"We're on camera, dumbass." Ryuji tilted his head towards Goro, the boy filming from his phone with a vacant smile on his face. Alice didn't have to do a thing. Phantom Thief sense of justice, an infuriating thing that was on her side now. Kamoshida's eyes popped between Goro and Ryuji, his mouth pulled back in a snarl. "Man, your face looks great right now. Everyone knows who you are now."

"Sakamoto, Akechi, you're going to clean all this up. At minimum. You're top of my list for suspects!" Kamoshida's shouting came with drool, almost like a rabid animal. It was the look of anger and terror from last time. When she popped his stupid head right off. She wanted to do it again, she wanted to feel the light leave his eyes, his hopes dashed on the rocks. But that wouldn’t fix things. That was the goal, fix things. At least somewhat.

She had to hope they could do it right this time. Ann had complained about the maintained hero worship of Kamoshida after his death. And Shiho didn't deserve to hear that about her abuser, her rapist. Alice did but Shiho didn't.

"I don't even know that dude, he just rolled up. And I didn't do anything but read a card." Ryuji waved the card around as Kamoshida spun towards Alice. "What, you think new girl did it?"

"Hiiragi, you did this then." Kamoshida's finger came towards her chest, his rancid cologne and mouthwash in its wake. Her body reacted with nausea and a desire to circumvent the need for a calling card here in the real world. A kick to the leg, then a stomp to the chest. She rolled her eyes at him, fighting her twin urges. "You already owe me days worth of detention, they were deferred for finals."

"I never received notice. Also, I didn't put these up." Which is true, I put the ones in your office there. Alice took a step closer to Goro and his camera. "Goro, aren't I a model student? Other than the hair?"

"Hiiragi is well behaved, Coach Kamoshida. Perhaps you should be more concerned with baseless accusations that you're making?" Goro's grin for the first time in Alice's life didn't frustrate her. It set her at ease. Which was a strange feeling after her previous Shujin experience. No one had cared then about her. Coach Kamoshida yelled towards the ceiling and ran off. "Quite a spectacle. Someone has an eye for the dramatic."

"I wonder who. But I can say, it was quite a good show."

-----

"They wanted me to do this!" Kamoshida's shadow was somehow uglier than the rest of him when it mutated. A tongue that was too long, deformed head and a hideous shade of pink to the skin. The gleaming golden fork and wine glass full of legs only made Alice the more revolted and angry. It would have been far easier to put a ray in the back of his head. His golden fork lashed out towards Shiho. "You wanted to be the best! The best cut of meat!"

"No, I really didn't!" Shiho answered as she dove out of the way. Sophia tangled the fork in her yo-yo's and pulled it down to jab it into the ground. Parker rose from Shiho's soul, sending a cosmic ray into Kamoshida's face. "I wanted to be a good volleyball player and make my friend proud of me!"

Alice spared a glance towards Ann's silhouette in the window, her new thief outfit a dress with chains attached. Alice shot the glass then Kamoshida's arm drenching him in wine and disarming him in two quick motions. "Lux, bolt him."

"Kuno, make sure he feels it all!" Sumire's persona snaked out to Kamoshida, electricity jumping from the cables to wine, sending the Shadow into convulsions. "Deadeye, his treasure!"

"Done." Shiho aimed her gun, sending the crown pinging across the floor to the other side of the throne room. Kamoshida's Shadow shrunk, down to his more humanoid form. Shiho put the gun to his head. "Did you ever consider what it was like? For me? For Ann? For any of the other students? Did you only think of yourself? Was it all 'Olympian Kamoshida?'"

"Luna, I thought we weren't killing him." Sophia tightened her grip around the yo-yo's, setting herself into a sprinting position. Alice grabbed the scruff of her hoodie, holding her back. "Luna. I will kill you if you don't let me sto--"

"Let the girl have this." Alice yanked backwards, sending Sophia towards the crown. "Get your answer Deadeye, then we leave."

"I-- I--" Kamoshida shrunk, curling up in a ball. Shiho pulled the hammer back on her revolver. "It got easier, to forget to think about you all as people. Just keep pushing it down until you’re dolls and toys for me. That’s how you get a monster, like me."

Alice had to keep from thinking about how much she pushed down to be herself. Then or now.

"Fucker. I hope it hurts forever." Shiho's aim shifted and obliterated his kneecap in a spray of blood. Sophia hurled the treasure to Sumire, scowling at Alice as the Thieves ran. The silhouette left the window. "That's for Ryuji."

"Told you, Avenger. Now, everyone go. I'll cover the escape. Just in case he gets a bright idea." Alice gripped her dagger tight as Shiho and Sumire left them. Sophia’s weapon was bared towards her. "I'm making sure our guest doesn't kill him."

"I'm making sure you don't." Sophia crossed her arms as chunks of the building fell apart. Alice jumped to a piece of the rubble, up towards the window. Each bit of ascension was followed by Sophia until the two of them slammed through the window and jumped down the collapsing castle to the other two Thieves at the bottom. "Kamoshida did not pursue."

"Sure didn't." Alice walked out of the Palace to seeing Ann rounding a corner, her same disguise as before. Alice smiled as she turned to see Sumire staring at the gold medal. She frowned at it, flipping it back and forth. "And that is proof his heart's going to change."

"I want it." Shiho snagged the medal, shoving it in her gym bag. "That bastard owes me a lot more than that. But this is a start."

"It is." Sumire whispered, hands in her pockets. Shiho hugged the girl, making her eyes open and a breath come out. "Wha-what?"

"Thank you." Shiho jostled Sumire for a moment before going to hug Alice next. The Wildcard let her hug linger for a moment before tapping her head. "Sorry, I'm just... it felt really good to do that to him. To make him regret everything."

"It'll feel better when all of him says it." Alice twirled on her feet, smiling at the buzz in her pocket. "Now, there's something to discuss. Future business and this arrangement."

Sumire's eyes remained on the ground, her hair around her eyes. "You were talking about doing more. Did you have people in mind?"

"Yes, yes I did. But why is something we're going to discuss. Away from prying ears." Alice pulled out her phone, checking the text she had from Ann.

Ann: Could have told me Shiho was involved.
Alice: I did, you didn't pick up on it. Watch the news gorgeous. You'll see why we did it. For now, I have to celebrate with them.
Ann: Fine. Next time, have a target where you have to try.
Alice: Oh, you're the only one who can make me do that right now I bet.

"Lead on, Alice. I trust you." Shiho bounced up to be beside Alice while Sumire trailed behind. And Sophia, as always, watched.

"Let's see if you still do when we get done with this conversation."

------

Alice set out the pizza on the card table, the heater pointed at the three of them. "Eat, this is gonna take a bit and you're not as used to this as me."

"Thanks for the food!" Sumire and Shiho dug in, looking to Sophia and a digital representation of a personal pizza that Alice had thrown into Mementos for her. Sumire tugged on her uniform collar. "Is this about why Sophia hates you?"

"Yes. Actually." Alice crossed her leg, picking up a slice of the last meal she had in her old life. She folded it towards itself, cheese to cheese. "This is going to get strange. And uncomfortable. And I'm not bullshitting you."

"This time." Sophia grumbled between bites, showering Alice's screen in digital crumbs. "She is a liar."

"Sure am." Alice took a bite, then a sip of coffee. Sumire and Shiho stared at her. "Let's start here. In October of 2015 two important things happened to two different women. Alice Hiiragi while working for Tohru Adachi was handed a phone with the Metanav and the information for Kuon Ichinose's Palace keyed in. Without knowing what she was doing, she was thrust into the Palace and killed Kuon's shadow in self defense. Earlier that same month Ann Takamaki went to jail for assaulting Tohru Adachi in service of preventing the sexual assault of a stranger. She was found guilty and went to Shujin in April of 2016 after a drawn out trial because she would not admit fault."

"That's... not true. It's not even 2016 for two more weeks. And Ann works for Adachi, not you. You wouldn't kill someone." Shiho's pizza fell onto her pizza plate, her coffee untouched. "You were the ones saying you wouldn't kill him. So why would you kill Kuon? None of this is true."

"Self defense. And it did happen. Last time." Alice sipped her coffee, watching the black liquid ripple. "Ann was the one with multiple personas, leading the Phantom Thieves and stealing the hearts of the wicked. She failed to steal Kamoshida's heart because I killed him."

"That... that's why you knew what to say to intrigue me." Sumire curled her legs to her chest, staring out the window. "That's how you knew that I-- I wanted to better than Kasumi at something."

"It is also how she knew Shiho was in danger from Kamoshida." Sophia's anger dulled as her eyes went to Shiho. "She and I are the only ones who remember last time. Ann has been put under Adachi's thumb as his assassin."

"She's newer at it then I was when the Thieves started last time. We have a jump start on a lot." Alice kept eating, unbothered by the two girls staring at her like she was the monster. Shiho's face paled, staring at her lock screen of Ann posing on a wall. Her blue eyes were the only thing in color, the rest cast in shadow by the setting sun. She looked hurt but not like a killer. Unlike all her pictures now. "One of the things we have a jump start on is Ann. She's not killed many people, she might not have gotten as bad as I did. As I am. She’s done bad things, but there’s a gun to her head."

"Ho-how are you so casual about this?" Sumire's fingers trembled with rage, with anger as she looked up towards Alice. "Why didn't you tell us before? Is that going to kill Kamoshida?"

"No. Stealing the Treasure is correct." Sophia hadn't admitted to her digital skin in the game. She was avoiding that. "Killing the Shadow is how a mental shutdown happens. This is the second heart Alice has stolen this loop."

"First was to keep Ann from being sent to assassinate her. If the palace collapses, the Shadow isn't touchable by anybody. Safe and sound." Alice finished her slice, cradling her coffee to her chest. "As for why I waited till now? Because Kamoshida needed to be stopped. Before he hurt more people and worse. That way if you got upset about it, you were safe and I'd split from your lives. You'd have the power to enact good, I'd ditch and I'd work on preventing the rest of my sins."

"Huh." Shiho toyed with her knee, looking up at Alice for the first time. "Why us? Were we good Thieves?"

"Literally never met you, Shiho. Ann was after Kamoshida after he hurt you really badly." Alice tilted her head back, refusing to catch Shiho's reaction to this fact. There was nothing good to come of it. "You deserved a chance to fight back this time. For others if you wanted. And Sumire, you were the reason I started doing good in the first place. I didn't want to disappoint you."

"Me? I'm..." Sumire's shock was muted, her arms and head hitting the table. Shiho walked across the room, looming over Alice. "Shiho?"

"So, you did this for us. And you know what Ann's going to get involved in and want to help her? Because Adachi's making her do this?" Shiho's eyes flashed with the same determination as she broke her hands on the knight's armor. Alice mouthed a yes. "Then I'm in. One hundred percent. Ann's one of my best friends and I want to know why she never told me about this."

"You have a deal." Alice extended her hand, shaking Shiho's. She titled her head towards Sumire. "Don't feel pressured to also accept. You can walk away. I know Sophia wishes she could trust me to do that."

The sacrilegious path before you
Reeks of old blood
The Hanged Man will help you
Avoid your old pitfalls

"I... have more questions." Sumire considered her food, tears dripping down her face. "So, you sought me out because I helped you?"

"Yep. You're earnest. Honest. Everything I'm not by nature. And you wanted to help. Even a monster like me." Alice bit her lip, fighting a tear in her eye. "So, I went looking for you."

"I cannot confirm all of what she says on this front. It was information I was not able to find." Sophia crossed arms and legs, pouting at Alice. "She is still a mother killer."

"Like I said, Sophia's here because she doesn't trust me. The minute I falter, she'll try to kill me. Don't blame her." Alice studied Sumire, the rising tension in her shoulders. The sharpening of the eyes. There was the care. "Don't feel obligated to protect me."

"It isn't that. It's a lot that you've shared. Two times through time, an AI you've made mad, you've killed people and you're telling me that I helped what, rehabilitate you?" Sumire almost shouted, hand over her mouth when she remembered she was in Leblanc's attic. "I'm nothing special."

"I disagree. You're a graceful acrobat who can get to places I couldn't dream of on your own. You just have trouble remembering that." Alice shook her head, feeling her heart ache. And with how Shiho looked towards Sumire, that girl agreed. "That's all."

"Then if you help me find what you mean doing this, I'm in for now." Sumire's body deflated with a sigh. And Alice felt like she had a chance at all of this. Even if Ann was upset. "Anything else?"

"Yeah, I told Ann to watch. So she knows it works. Then we can start collapsing Adachi in a way that doesn't expose whatever he has on her." Alice grimaced, remembering every time the fucker had a camera. Every time the revolver came out. Some of the killing was for her, but so much wasn’t. "We're going to have to get stronger before we can target him. So for now, we minimize. And Shiho only talk to Ann off her main phone, Adachi monitors her communication. Got it?"

"Got it."

------

"You're a regular social butterfly, aren't you?" Sojiro lingered at the top of the stairs as Alice cleaned off the card table of the crumbs into a dust pan. "You could have asked me to feed you all."

"Didn't want to press on your hospitality." Alice flashed a peace sign at Sojiro, the old man shaking her head at her. "I'm serious, you're giving me a free place to stay. In spite of the record."

"Yeah, yeah. Well, if you're here you're not out there getting in trouble. Right?" Sojiro glanced down the stairs to the darkened cafe. "And you gotta eat better than pizza."

"That was a post finals celebration. More celebrating that we didn't die." Alice chuckled at Sojiro's scowl. "Relax, I studied. You gave me the lessons for it."

"Yeah, yeah, far be it for an old man to take a teen at face value." Sojiro groused as he grabbed the empty pizza box. "How is the fashion whatsit going?"

"It's going well." Alice had a stack of sketches of dresses that would set the fashion world on fire. She'd done it before. It'd be too easy. "Keeping myself out of trouble. Probably get needle and thread to make one soon. Probably after break."

"Is that so? Dedicated." Sojiro took her empty coffee cup, heading for the stairs. "Keep at it. Even if it gets tough."

"Haven't given up before." Alice chuckled at her own joke, falling back onto the bed as Sojiro slipped down the stairs. A snowball hit her window. She always was the direct one. She peered outside to see Ann with another snowball in hand. "Five minutes."

"Three." Ann hit Alice in the face with the next snowball, the cold soaking down her cheeks. The woman grumbled, grabbing a coat and then sliding down the stairs to the front door. Sojiro was out of sight when she peered out, the Wildcard slipping out to the muffled world of snow. Ann had a third snowball. "What the fuck are you pulling, dragging Shiho into this? Is it your way of keeping me on a leash?"

"Nope. If I wanted to do that, I'd just buy you a pretty pink one." Alice kicked up snow at Ann, using the distraction to close the distance. Ann's fist came for Alice's stomach, caught at the wrist. "Oh, feisty today."

"You don't know how feisty I am." Ann growled slamming her knee up into Alice's stomach. The two girls fell into the snow, rolling and kicking up snow drifts. Alice hooked her fingers in Ann's scarf and choked her for a second. "I'll... kill... you… for using her!"

"Fuck, I hope you do one day. I did that so Shiho wasn’t defenseless, you bimbo." Alice let go, letting Ann fall to the snow. The blonde reached up and grabbed Alice's collar, dragging her close till their foreheads touched. "Aww, second thoughts about the headbutt?"

"You are so frustrating! Why am I working with you." Ann wriggled as Alice pushed her wrists to the snow. The air between them filled with fogged breaths. "And fuck, why do I want to kiss you?"

"Because, I'm just as fucked as you." Alice tilted her head, biting into Ann's lip and dragging out a groan. Ann's fingernails dug into Alice's wrist, an ecstatic drag across the skin as the two fought with lips. As the two of them melted the snow around them with their thrashing make out. They rolled out to lay in the snow next to each other, panting. "We're going to get sick. Worth it."

"Yeah, well, I still want to kill you." Ann's finger traced a hickey on her neck, a smiling wince to accompany the touch. "What the fuck is going on?"

"Timeloop." Alice cackled turning over to look at Ann, one elbow in the snow. The blonde closed her eyes in annoyance. "Oh, you don't believe me yet. Christmas Eve, Adachi's going to ask you to kill Wakaba Isshiki. And it won't work because I stole her heart already."

"You... timeloop. That's how you knew. That's why you acted familiar." Ann's face was red, anger or arousal, neither mattered to Alice as the blonde lunged for her throat. Alice grabbed Ann's shoulders, stopping her from grabbing to her lifeblood. "Is that what's really going on?"

"Tell me on Christmas Eve, lover." Alice mimed a kiss and Ann slapped her. The sting was amazing. "I missed this. Fuck."

Ann shook her head, dropping Alice's collar. "So, you're doing this to get what?"

"Oh, because I was where you are. I know how much I hate myself for everything I did. Because I didn't see a way out except death." Alice rubbed her cheeks as she got back up, snow dripping off her. "I want to fight and tear at you, but I don't want you dead."

"Even if you should?" Ann dragged herself to a shaky stance, her fingers on her phone. "Because I've--"

"Killed people. Drove a few to madness? Yeah, been there, done that, still get ill from it." Alice shook her head, inching towards the bathhouse. "And you found me worth the effort then. I didn't get why you did for me, but I get it for you. Fucked up, how much easier it is to forgive another than yourself."

Ann stared at her hands, then ran into the night. Alice heaved herself up to the bathhouse door, jimmied the lock and slipped inside. She ran the water as hot as she could, filled the water with soap and sunk into it.

All the heat from Ann dissipated into the water, the chill of the snow melting with it. Even with the steam in the room, Alice didn't feel hot. Only warm. She scrubbed herself, every inch bit by bit. It wouldn't wash away who she was or what she did. But it'd keep her healthy.

And she had a lot of living to do.

------

"Welcome back, Exile." The voice from up above rattled Alice's bones again. "You seem to have no concern for how the game could be played. For what reintroduction to society could be. You will always be an Exile if you continue this way."

"I have my own goals. If you're watching me, you should have figured that out." Alice leaned on the wall, arms crossed. "You want me to follow your rules, your methods, right? You want me to do things your way or the highway. And you know what, fuck that. I'm never going to fit in."

"Silence!" Alice had to twist to avoid the rock dropping into the well. "You can't talk back to him!"

"You sure? I'm doing it right now." Alice spun out of the next rock's path. She ran her fingers along the wall and found a brick a little further out than the rest. That's fun. "It's his Velvet Room, right? Then he invited me here, knowing I'm a mouthy bitch. Knowing the kind of woman I am. He's invited this on himself."

"Don't make us come down there, Exile. It will not be pleasant if we do." The other child's threat bounced off Alice. She'd died, she'd been through hell. Two power mad munchkins with an old man making them awful. Where had she heard that one before? "And we're here to help you reintegrate, to work with your personas."

"Oh, I'm sure you two are actually. It's him I question." Alice put her foot on the outcropping she found and pushed herself up. She balanced on one foot, fingers hunting for the next catch. She'd find a way up this pit and show them. The rock that hit her in the head sent her back to the real world.

Chapter Text

"What to do, this is my first day off since... I died last." Alice rolled out her yoga pad, stretching out on it as blood rushed to her head. Sophia rolled her eyes, arms and legs crossed. "Do you not like when I say true statements like that?"

"It makes me feel strange. Like you are trying to destroy my anger at you." Sophia's brow furrowed, her avatar fuzzing in rage. Alice snorted as she switched positions. "So, why do you say that?"

"Keeps me humble. Reminds me, I'll probably fuck this up and die too." Alice pulled herself up higher and sneezed. Her head swam for a moment with it. Then the room began to spin. "Or, you know, my day off can get eaten by being sick."

"Serves you right." Sophia's distortion softened as she laughed. "And you will probably mess up, it is why I am glad you told me everything. That way I can attempt to fix the problems."

"Atta--" Alice fell to her mat, coughing for a moment. "--girl. You're the smart one."

"One of us had to. I cannot believe that you told Sumire and Shiho what you did and they accepted it. They know you did bad. They know Ann has!" Sophia's form resumed distorting while Alice coughed into her elbow. "It's not fair!"

"I know. I don't think it is either." Another cough, her chest tried to rip a part out of her. Or something wanted to rip itself out. "Good news. Making me sick means Ann probably is too. Can't fight well in the Metaverse that way."

"I cannot believe you." Sophia's form shrunk then expanded, pulsating with rage. "Are you spinning making out with a murderer as a good thing?"

"No. I'm giving you a damn silver lining." Alice stumbled to her feet, grabbing her phone. Sophia heated it up to where it was almost painful to touch. "Sophia, I want to text Sojiro so he doesn't come check on me and get sick too."

"Fine. He doesn't know what you are." Sophia relented, blessed coolness returning to her phone. She sent a message she knew was misspelled but was too tired to care and clambered into bed. Alice curled up again, noticing for the first time how heavy her head and chest felt, like her sins had nested in her body and wanted to bring her down to hell. "But why do they trust you? I am only here to keep you on track."

"Sumire wants to be saved, was kinda hoping that was a mourning thing." Alice sniffled, tapping on her sinuses to try and clear the phlegm. She hadn't gotten sick like this last January, despite fucking around in the snow all the time. Fake body bullshit. "Shiho, I accidentally dangled the right carrot. I knew Ann cared about her but I never knew Shiho's feelings. I really just wanted to arm them, set them loose. Kinda my plan with all the Thieves."

"You know they're capable. But was that Ann's influence or what they had?" Sophia's form coalesced again, becoming a 'solid' being. "Because, you know that after she talked to them, their personas changed."

"I know." Alice was scared that was the case. That she would have to keep mentoring them, stay with them. "Sophia, I hate to think that they're going to rely on me."

"That makes both of us." Sophia pouted, shifting to the text messages on Alice's phone. Sojiro's message came in, slow and formal about staying in bed. "He is kind to you and yet you gave him--"

"He was not kind to me when he learned. And this time we saved her." Alice locked her phone, the thud of steps making her half turn her head to a masked and furrowed browed Sojiro. He had steaming curry and a glass of water in hand. "Leave it there, I'll get it. Thanks."

"I'll put it a little closer. Don't want you getting customers sick." Sojiro shook his head as he set the food and drink by the ancient television at the halfway point of the room. "I asked Wakaba to pick up some cold medicine. Teach you to play around in the snow too much. I saw how soaked your coat was."

"Yeah, just dumb teenage things." Alice's head throbbed as she fought to not laugh at her own stupidity. And how easy it was to lie to him about how she got sick. Sojiro grunted in response, his already trademark to her headshake coming through. "I'll try to take better care, I was excited about not failing finals."

"That so? Next time, you'll have to shoot for better if that's all it took to get you excited." Sojiro gave her a half smile and wave before disappearing down the stairs. Alice shoved her phone into her night shirt, rolled off the bed and clambered into the rock hard futon. Remembering using it one time left her back aching and yet she didn’t bother climbing back to the bed.

The curry was good, hot and steaming and a hint more spice than normal. It wasn't meant to go with coffee, of course he changed it. She wanted to blame the spice for why her eyes teared up as she ate. But she was supposed to be done with lying to herself.

-----

"Poor kid, didn't even make it back to the bed." Wakaba's voice lingered at the steps, a pill bottle rattling near her voice. "You awake?"

"Debatable." Alice lifted her head, feeling all the fluid in it shift from where she was staring at a video she didn't remember putting on. Something about how to dye wool with smashed shells. "You're Sojiro's lady friend."

"I'm his friend and a lady, but we aren't dating." Wakaba double checked her mask before placing the bottle down by the television alongside a sport drink, taking away the plate and glass. "You can call me Wakaba."

"Alice." She pointed to herself, ignoring how nasally she got in the process. "Sorry if I jumpscared you the other day."

"Not terribly, just not what I expected when I heard he took in a delinquent." Wakaba took a step back, watching as Alice downed the medicine. "Did you dye your hair yourself? It's more vibrant than before."

"Yeah. Redid it because of finals." And to piss of Kamoshida one more time. This time I have the courage to tell him to fuck off. "You like it?"

"I think it suits your... demeanor. My daughter wants to dye hers. I was hoping, when you're better, if you'd help her." Wakaba smiled at her, her hoop earrings swaying with the motion. Alice coughed to the side, away from the woman. Futaba was the one victim on the Thief team she had any guilt over her actions toward still. There were a variety of reasons Wakaba came up before Kunikazu.

It was fitting Futaba was the one who helped her die what should have been the final time.

She hated that her response was automatic. "Sure. When I'm not a plague factory."

"When you're not a plague factory." Wakaba took one step down the stairs, chuckling and then looked back. "What do you know about the calling card at Shujin?"

"Uh. It showed up yesterday?" Alice could hear her heartbeat in her ears, the congestion pulling at her brain. The possibility of Wakaba being onto them was worrying. "Why?"

"I had seen something else signed Phantom Thieves. Made me rethink some things." Wakaba bit her lip and then looked out the window. "If anything changes with that Kamoshida man, would you let me know? I'm curious."

"Sure. I'm gonna collapse again." Alice's head spun as Wakaba walked down the stairs. The side effect of ripping congestion out of a body was the body got torn up in the process and hated it. She fell back onto the futon. She had messages from Ann.

Ann: back to hating you.
Alice: You got sick too.
Ann: i got extremely sick!
Alice: Hah! I think it was worth it to get you on the same page as me.

"I'm going to Mementos till you're done." Sophia grumbled, slipping from the phone. Alice drank more of her drink that tasted like the corporate idea of blue.

Ann: yeah and it sucked <_<
Alice: Poor baby, I'm sick too. You eating?
Ann: ordered food. you feed a cold right?
Alice: I dunno, but probly. Adachi off your case?
Ann: right. you know how that is. he is.
Alice: Good. Milk it for him, he doesn't know shit about illness.
Ann: you actually fucking care. you just checked on me twice in like four texts.
Alice: Yeah, I do. Get better. I'll see you Christmas Eve.

Alice sent a selfie of her, red faced and blowing a kiss. She got one of Ann's middle finger in turn. She laughed herself unconscious.

-----

"If you're going up, take this with you. And make sure your masks are on." Sojiro's raised voice roused Alice. Outside was dark. The day was gone. She grabbed a tissue that wasn't there before, evacuating her nose of phlegm. Dainty steps made their way up the stairs, followed by heavy ones. Sumire and Shiho, thankfully masked, waved from the stairs. Shiho had the foisted upon her plate of curry and a glass of water while Sumire had a little bento box.

That fact stirred an ancient memory of a story Ann told once of a curry flavored bento box. She hoped that was a side effect of Maruki. Another problem to deal with. Later.

"Hey." Alice croaked, untwisting the sport drink. The heater had sapped anything resembling moisture from the room and left her body revolting for liquid. Shiho set the curry plate down and began to sit on the futon. "What's the bright idea, don't get sick too."

"Sorry, just, Sophia said she was going out when Sumire messaged her. Said you were sick and being weird." Shiho paced away from the futon while Alice dug in. Sumire leaned on the barren wall opposite, where a Rise poster had been. "So, we came by to check on you."

"Your guardian reassured us this isn't the first time you ate today." Sumire tried to smile past the strands of hair. She isn’t sure about me yet, which was smart after all. "What were you doing weird?"

"Talking to Ann. She texted me from a burner phone." Alice yawned between bites. "She texted to yell about how I got her sick. I told Sophia she didn't have to look. She finally took me up on it."

"Oh." Sumire slid down to sit on the floor, the plastic bag crinkling around the bento box. "She's really upset, isn't she?"

"Yes, she is. but if there's a death that it's pretty hard to hold us accountable for, it'd Kuon." Alice tilted her head to the side, keeping herself from hacking phlegm in anyone's direction. Shiho's fingers pressed into her palm. "I know you were gung ho about saving Ann, Shiho, but you both have the ability to fuck off from this. It’s fucked up and you’re safe from Kamoshida now."

"I'm mad that she got forced into this situation. That you did too. I... think that I get it." Shiho's finger dug deep into her palm. She grit her teeth. "I let a bunch of Kamoshida's lies trap me too. You came in and busted that for me. It sounds like Ann didn't get through to you last time but you plan to this time?"

"She didn't because I shut myself off." Alice wanted to point but she was disease vector on more than a metaphorical level right now. "Don't you dare blame Ann for that."

"Shut yourself off..." Sumire muttered to herself as sent the bento across the floor. "It's what I was in the process of doing. Not talking about it."

"I mean, I wasn't telling anybody about Kamoshida either. Ryuji was trying to get me to and I brushed him off." Shiho turned away as Alice dropped her spoon into her empty plate. She didn't feel great, but she felt human. Ish. “That and other stuff.”

"And you're not anymore. So keep it up. Don't be like me." Alice picked up the bento, peeking inside. It was filled with every fruit at the store that might have vitamin C. "Thanks, you two. Here's the deal, you're going to always at least have each other. Even if I fail you, keep each other honest. Because I’m liable to fail."

"Deal." Sumire formed a half smile and Alice felt that same attempt to beat life into her heart start up.

The sacrilegious path before you
Reeks of old blood
The Chariot will help you
Avoid your old pitfalls

More people locked to me. Unlucky them.

"I don't understand all the time travel stuff but, I get that you understood me. And... that's more than most people. I'm not even sure Kasumi gets me that much." Sumire was blind about her sister, as ever. Alice almost wanted to smile at the comforting familiarity of that fact. It's something they would have to get through to Sumire. Again. "So... you're the one with future knowledge and you, uh, were already coordinating us. So what's the next step?"

"Training. And triage. We can't do multiple Palaces at once, some of the problems don't exist yet and at least one will never form I hope." Alice collapsed onto her futon, sniffling. Shiho paced back into view. "There's one of the people who was a Thief, kind of a weird guy, but he was good at it. And his work is being stolen. There's a girl who hasn't revealed she is yet and her dad is going to want to kill her about it. There's... a mob boss that someone’s going to decide to tangle with to prove herself. The girl won't have a Palace, her mom's alive. And the prosecutor might never happen either."

"So... three repeat targets to get stronger for Adachi?" Shiho's fist slapped against her side, her eyes burning with rage. "That going to be enough?"

"Probably not, even with scouring Mementos. So we're going to find more targets. And do some recruiting." Alice yawned, fighting to keep her eyelids open as she bit into tiny plum in the box. "Our next target to recruit is Yusuke Kitagawa. And as much of a pain as he is for being very aware, Goro Akechi."

If there's someone who's going to ask the hard questions. It's him.

"I don't even know Yusuke. But Goro, really? The creepily nice guy in your year?" Shiho's rage fell into confusion. "Why him?"

"He figured me out last time. He also, unfortunately, understood me." Alice stared at the inside of her eyelids. "After winter break, we recruit him and then go for Yusuke. G'night."

------

"Good thing you got better today, Alice." Alice whispered to herself as they collected for the last day before break. An assembly. The Principal at the front. Shiho and Sumire off to the side, together. Kasumi sitting above the two of them. Alice took the spot next to Ryuji, on his bad leg side. "You mind?"

"Not at all, what's bonkin'?" Ryuji smiled at her, a little sheepish with a little blush to his cheeks as he shifted his crutches. Right, blondes are easy. "Why you pick here?"

"Well, Kamoshida was giving you shit. Figure you can't be all bad." Alice hated that he didn't feel different from the idiot showing up to make her take care of a body. One that tried to rip itself apart anyway. She wondered if that would have happened if she had taken the offer then. "And since he assumed you did those Calling Cards, figure I should stand with you. Just in case."

"You don't gotta do all that. 'specially since I only know you from Shiho sayin' who you are." Ryuji put a hand towards Alice. "Ryuji Sakamoto, giant pain in the ass."

"That so? You went to bat for me pretty fast the other day anyway." Alice gave him a quick handshake, an echo of his strength at the end in his touch. "Alice Hiiragi. Total bitch."

"I don't believe that. Least not to those who matter." Ryuji snorted as the Principal droned on about disrupting academic standards. "How'd you get through to Shiho so fast anyway? I haven't seen someone pierce her defenses like that in a while."

Since Ann, I'd bet.

"Part of being a bitch is being a force of nature." Alice's eyes followed the crowd, all the students getting more and more anxious in response to the continuous static of oblique accusations. "And, sometimes you need someone new. You've known Shiho a while, right?"

"Yeah, we used to be part of a trio of friends. Then... Ann caught a break and dropped out. Then Kamoshitbag shifted to Shiho." Ryuji's good leg bounced, his smile dying. He left out the middle. Where he got his leg broken. And, maybe he doesn't know that Ann probably went through hell. "Then she stopped talking to me too."

"Well, I'll just have to encourage her to talk to you more." Alice hated that she brought a smile to Ryuji's face. She wasn't supposed to make people happy all the time. They were supposed to hate her.

Ryuji never did quite hate me, did he? He was angry and pissy. But I don’t think he hated me.

"You don't gotta do that, but I wouldn't complain either. Kinda miss having my best friends." Ryuji shook his head and tapped his crutch to the ground. "What brought you to Shujin anyway?"

"Kicked a rapist in the dick." Alice should have known that would get Ryuji's fist out for a fist bump. She tapped him, then went to grab him as he almost teetered over. "Don't get so excited you break the other one."

"It's fine! Floor isn't as hard as--" Ryuji interrupted himself, his eyes unfocusing. Yeah, guess he wouldn't want to talk about Kamoshida. I never did. Only Ann figured me out. "It takes more than a fall to brea--"

"It does, Sakamoto." Kamoshida's dead eyes loomed at the edge of the bleachers, the man shambling towards the stage. "I hope that my next actions will make up for it."

"What the hell does that mean?" Ryuji's lips twisted in confusion as Kamoshida limped to the stage, a sea of students separating in his wake. The crush of students split in front of him, like a prophet returning from a mountain. Here to preach the good word of confession and honest revelation. "What's going on?"

"Oh, I think that Calling Card just came true." Alice caught Goro shooting her a look as Kamoshida climbed up on stage. At this distance she could only see the red in his eyes.

Good birdie, chase the rabbit. She's going to show you who you are. I'm gonna catch this all on film. Alice aimed her phone at the stage, zooming in.

"Shujin, I have survived the crucible of my soul, long enough to make it here." Kamoshida wrested the microphone from the Principal, his eyes sweeping the crowd. "I ruined lives. I hurt people in ways unimaginable. I committed rape, I broke a student's leg and called it self defense, I shouldn't be alive! I'm a monster, I am sin incarnate!"

Alice couldn't disagree, if he wasn't a monster, who knew how her life would have gone last time. She wouldn't have dropped out maybe. Wouldn't have fallen into Adachi's clutches.

Kamoshida pulled a knife from his pocket, the steel glinting in the light. Alice pressed a hand to her head, feeling Sophia lose her shit in her pocket. "Dumbass! Samurai aren't a thing anymore!"

"Yeah! Why should you get the easy way out on this!" Shiho yelled next to a scattering of other students joining in. All with almost healed bruises from Kamoshida's practices.

The knife tumbled from his hands, where a faster than expected Makoto grabbed it off the stage. She was out of the room in a flash. Okay, no wonder she did well off the bat. Kamoshida fell to his knees, "How do I live with it?"

"Same way I have to, asshole!" Alice made sure she caught Ryuji stepping forward. Teachers began to send students out of the room, control reasserting itself as Koboyokawa drenched the stage in sweat while pushing Kamoshida off of it. But, it wasn't going to be successful, not once all these people knew how full of shit Kamoshida and Koboyokawa were.

-----

"You said you weren't going to kill him." Sophia pouted at Alice from the phone. Shiho rolled her eyes for Alice. "The treasure stealing led him to commit suicide."

"Because he was that vile. I know he did all of it, okay Sophia? ALL OF IT." Shiho hissed, finger pointed at the AI. "Don't give Alice shit because Kamoshida is too weak to stand up to what he did to himself. She stepped in to stop him, first!"

"Partly because Sophia was getting agitated." Alice admitted to a light punch from Shiho. They were short Sumire, all the scholarship athletes had gotten dragged off for a meeting about the assembly. "The rest because I didn't want you all to see someone go like that. It fucked up people who hated me to see me die."

"Shit. You died?!" Shiho's surprise reminded Alice that she hadn't told them that. Whoops. "Why didn't you--"

"She's trying to not elicit pity, but she forgets that fact and it slips out. She did it to save Ann." Sophia's fingers pressed into a fist, her avatar distorting. "It's frustrating."

"Makes you feel better, it was last timeline, okay? Remember?" Alice hissed at Sophia, her patience wearing thin. "I'm not perfect, you know that. But he lived, his crimes are confessed and everyone knows. From here we need to not let up on administration if we can."

"It doesn't make me feel better. Ann is as capable of killing as you were, clearly." Sophia was close to the truth of the situation. Alice looked to Shiho, taking a deep breath. "What, Alice?"

"I think something you're missing in all this, is how easy it is to become a killer." Alice hated those words almost as much as when she said them to Haru. And with how Sophia winked out of existence, so did the AI. "Shiho, I'm going to chase after her. Feel free to not, thanks for trying."

"I'm in, you deserve better treatment than this. You saved me." Shiho clicked open her Metanav. "What Palace?"

"Oh, easy. Mementos. All of humanity." Alice triggered the transit, depositing the two of them in Mementos. She started running, towards the subway tunnel, Shiho at her back. "Deadeye, here's the public's palace. Shadows everywhere, it's where I did a lot of my work. Stick close, I doubt it will be as accepting of me as it used to be."

"Got it, Luna." Shiho's grin behind her mask at least made Alice feel better. Because fighting shadows was a good way to get anger out. Alice and Candide burst through the first shadow, beams of nuclear annihilation ripping it from the air as Parker and Shiho followed. "Any idea where she went?"

"Thieves last time hit doors tied to public perception." Alice had already resurrected the fansite, more functional than it had been with her first hack job. She'd learned a lot over six months since starting it and now it couldn’t be hijacked for someone else’s needs. "So, first or second door. Depends on how Wakaba's Palace moved the needle."

"And that's how far?" Shiho pushed off the ground, slamming both fists in a spike on the Shadow's head. It dissolved after it cracked its head on the train tracks. Alice jumped down the next flight of stairs, kicking a Shadow into the path of another, splattering them both in a mess of mixed up thoughts.

"Here's the first wall." Alice pointed to the slab of obsidian, the gate keeping she never had to see before. Sophia stood in front of it, turned towards them. "Alright, Avenger. Let's chat."

"I'm tired of this already. I hate our deal." Sophia darted forward, her yo-yos flashing out towards Alice. Shiho jumped in front, arms crossed in front of her. Sophia yanked the weapons back, stumbling over her feet to land on her knees with Shiho unhurt. "Out of my way, Deadeye!"

"No. Think about it." Shiho grabbed the scruff of Sophia's hoodie, catching a kick to the stomach that sent the Thief into Alice's waiting arms. The Wildcard set her to the side, pulling away a mask to pulse healing into Shiho. "Luna, she's being unreasonable."

"Yeah, I know. But it's reasonable to be, given everything." Alice held up one hand before Shiho could advance, the other on her mask as Sophia rose to her feet again. "You hate me, that's good. I said as much. But if you--"

Sophia lashed out again, Alice moving to the side and ripping away her mask. A needle from Succubus snapped the wire, the yo-yo embedding itself in a nearby pillar. "Stop resisting! I thought you wanted to die!"

"Complicated!" Alice's palm collided with Sophia's wrist, sending the yo-yo off course into the ceiling. A thin blue laser swept away that weapon. Sophia's fist met Alice's hand. It hurt but not enough to make Alice stop blocking and gripping. "I do, when I'm done. And we're not done yet, are we? I got a lot of sins to pay for and I'm not done yet."

"But in all of it, you couldn't save my mom!" Sophia's leg swept towards Alice. The Wildcard grabbed Sophia's hip and threw them both to the concrete. The air ran from her lungs while Sophia rolled to her feet with a sweep of her foot towards Alice's head. "Why is she dead again!"

Alice grabbed the foot, grunting in pain. Shiho clotheslined Sophia, sending her to the ground. "Wasn't she in jail? Otherwise, she'd have done something else."

"Probably." Alice didn't want to say her fear. That doing that would lead to Adachi shooting Ann when it failed. That she'd be mourning Ann instead of Sophia mourning Kuon. She knew what choice she'd make. "I don't know why I got a third chance. But I'm not wasting it. And I need your help! I don't know how else to say that."

"You... need it? But you don't need help, classically. You fight alone." Sophia paused from where she lay on the ground. "Why now?"

"Because I need a moral compass when my base urge is to let Kamoshida bleed himself out." Alice pushed herself to her feet. "Because everything he did to me, I still feel it. I can point to him as why I wound up here. I made those awful choices but he took away a lot of good ones."

"And Luna, if she didn't care, why did she bother to help any of us? She could have killed you at any time in that fight I think." Shiho had a hand extended to Sophia, the AI staring up at her. "Think about it. She only disarmed you and healed me. You saw what she did to shadows the few times she fought in the Palace."

The answer was a bloody massacre when she hamstrung Kamoshida's guardian angel and bled it like a stuck pig with only two slices. In front of his terrified Shadow.

"I... comprehend." Sophia curled up in a ball, chin to her knees. "I don't like this. It's complicated. It should be simple."

"Sure should be. But it's not." Alice took the seat next to Sophia. Her heart ached as Shiho collapsed onto her butt. "You good, Deadeye?"

"Keeping up with you when you're on, it's something else. Feel like I ran ten kilometers." Shiho leaned on Sophia. "And Avenger, I kinda get how you feel. Letting Kamoshida walk away after everything, it was hard. But it meant we saw not just him but Koboyokawa crack. So. If Alice is going to keep picking targets like this, her goodness or not, we're doing good."

"I... okay. I will attempt to work with Luna more." Sophia's eyes swirled with colors for a moment. A flicker of blue flame manifested around her fingers then faded. "What was that?"

"Well, how about that, you're breaking free of something it looks like Avenger. Can't wait to see what you find when you figure out where the mask is." Alice pulled the other two up with her. Sophia wouldn't look her in the eyes. "Go, rest. I'm going to get a separate phone with the Mementos money. That way when I talk to her burner, you don't have to see."

-----

"You called it. Adachi is freaking out." Ann's eyes tried to slice through Alice, her fingers on her phone and its Metanav. "He wants to know how it happened. He wants to know why Wakaba isn't accessible."

"Of course he is, come on, we can go there. We can chat under reddened skies." Alice winked at Ann and the reflection scowled. "Don't want to duel for fun yet?"

"No. I want to talk right now. Unfortunately." Ann sighed, her head pounding. "What other targets are coming up?"

"A lot of them, mostly cleaning up corporate enemies. Especially for Kunikazu Okumura. There's at least one mistress for Madarame coming up, I think it was a fit of rage. And it’s going to make him sloppy." Alice had almost forgotten about the woman, she was pretty unpleasant at an event. "Those two are important to Adachi's money, so in cutting them off we get there. But you're going to want motivation on Okumura."

"Yeah, why would I need that? I kinda like making old corporate assholes die. Feels like a warm up for Adachi." Ann raised an eyebrow and Alice cocked a grin in response. "We could go and kill him, right now."

"No can do, wait for the motivation reason. He's why I fucked up." Alice pressed a finger to Ann's forehead, blowing a kiss. The blonde's eyes narrowed as Alice leaned close. "He hires us to kill his trans daughter. I refused and tried to push the Thieves to steal his heart. I wound up having to kill him to silence him when Adachi caught on. And his daughter hated me and hated you for not hating me enough."

"And you care, why? He sounds like a good person to kill." Ann whispered back, warm breath coating Alice's ears. "I bet his blood felt nice on your gloves. Did you make him beg?"

"No, I didn't. He never got a chance." Alice placed her fingers around Ann's neck, not squeezing. Yet. "And I won’t do it this time because that lost girl wanted an answer. She wanted to know if her father could love her. He didn't, but she hoped a conscience might bring it back."

"I doubt she'll get it. She'll only get hurt when it falls through on her." Ann pressed into Alice's fingers. "Do you miss ripping them apart? I could feel how much you wanted Kamoshida's beating heart in your palm that entire fight. You were so close to wanting to reach in and take it."

"It felt better to know that he wanted to take his own life. All the hope in his eyes was gone." Alice bit Ann's ear and squeezed, the girl gasping at the slight restriction of air. "A tease of a long and slow death. He's going to think about everything he did, forever. We made a corpse, lover. Just a new kind. Wanna see?"

"Yes." Ann kneed Alice in the stomach and ripped the phone from her pocket. It took two seconds to find the video and start it. Alice chuckled as she put an arm around Ann's waist, the murderer failing to push her away. "So, you ripped him apart in the end."

"We did, Shiho in particular." Alice held Ann and breathed. It was easy again, here with her. Knowing that Ann would only strike a blow for fun, not a kill. Not yet. "Intrigued by the deal yet?"

"So, you can collapse a Palace and make them confess. A Mementos shadow as well?" Ann leaned her head on Alice's shoulder for a moment then shot upright. I'll get there again. "Alice, answer me or--"

"You know the fighting is just as fun to me so don’t threaten me with a good time. Yes, we can change their hearts. But I will need more Palaces to work through." Alice leaned into Ann's ear, her lips on the verge of kissing, her teeth ready to mark and shred. "Because solo strength has an upper limit, you showed me that. So when we get to your level, you should join us. Then we can tear Adachi down."

"Your way or mine?" Ann grabbed a fistful of Alice's hair, pulling her teeth flush with skin. "Because I want him to scream for forgiveness when I kill him."

Alice obliged the wish, biting into a hiss from Ann. Fingers dug into the woman's hips, Alice rocking back and forth in joy at having this again. "Oh, I'm not sure yet. But I did want him to howl with madness once upon a time. but after all of it, watching him collapse would be just as satisfying. It's a matter of the dirt on you stopping it from being me and you right now."

"You'd know that too, wouldn't you?" Ann gasped as Alice fought the grip on her hair to bite another spot, pulling her closer. "Were we like this then?"

"Oh, you just make me try to kill you now, instead of taunting me into starting. Still hot." Alice rested her chin on Ann's shoulder. "Wonder if you're still claiming to be a switch."

"You're not finding that out yet, Alice." Ann spun out of the grip, staring her down. "I'll consider what you said about strength. Take down a Palace, show me what you can do when you try."

"I can do that. Now, Ann, any Palaces you teased out? I want to know about them." Alice ran her fingers through her hair, fixing what Ann ruined. "I'm sure you picked different people to me."

"Oh, I'm sure we're not that much the same." Ann laughed, hand with blood red nails to the teeth marks on her neck. "I can show you one that won't kill Shiho, unless you got one in mind?"

"I do, if they agree. Madarame." Alice laughed, raising her head to the heavens of the park. Ann stomped over, grabbing Alice's collar. "Hey lover, thought I wasn't finding out if you were a switch yet."

"What's so funny about Shiho?" Ann's voice dropped, the blade of it apparent. Alice pressed her forehead to Ann's, staring into the deep pools of blue. "Tell me, right now."

"It's cute, how much you care for her." Alice felt a little pit in her stomach. She knew Ann had a crush on Shiho before. But that never had to be confronted last time, not when Shiho only left her coma to be a false woman. "And that's coming from someone that adopted a drowned rat of a girl as a project last time. We might be more alike than you want, lover. I forwarded you that video. Enjoy Kamoshida's suffering. And Merry Christmas!"

Chapter Text

Alice curled herself up next to heater, sketchbook on her lap. Sojiro had no intention of having the shop open, Shiho was spending nominal time with her family, Sumire was spending actual time with hers. Ann, well Alice knew there was a party at Adachi's company that afternoon. With any luck, she was glued to Mika and her barbs instead of dragged along by Adachi.

Alice gagged at the memory of how she had dodged him all afternoon and evening. Every glass turned down, and three denied attempts to test drive his "funny" gift of the assassin's teapot. Ann was smart enough to avoid that. Not that Alice would ever tell her that in person.

Quick lines scratched into the page, a repetition of spider lilies that filled the space to make an abstract skull. She added a low cut, ruffling around it to evoke a rose.

You're a goddamn sap, Alice.

She sighed, turned the page and started something new. A corset, a way to hold herself together. She'd have to get boning together, which would be an interesting challenge. She could make her own. Use real bones from an online vendor maybe.

"Alice, get your butt downstairs." Sojiro called up the stairs, followed by a long familiar whine. Alice closed her notebook, tucking it into the bookshelf. She stretched up and out. "Alice! Come on! We got guests!"

"I didn't expect anybody, hold up! Do you want me down there naked!" Alice shouted back, buying herself more time. She was not ready for this. She wasn't going to be ever. She had to go down and smile at the girl she made a grieving mess. The one who's most violent moment was to throw a coffee cup at her. The one who actually made her death wish true.

Even if it wasn't really a death wish but a chance to make Ann live.

Alice figured she couldn't pretend she wasn't dressed any longer, flouncing down the stairs with hands to the sides. The best she could do was an old mask today. Sojiro was behind the counter, apron over a white pinstripe suit with a salmon shirt on underneath. The man was one of the only people who got how to wear a fedora too, a little bit of obscurement of the forehead and with clothes that slimmed the appearance with vertical lines. He was the easy person to look at. And not just for good fashion choice.

Wakaba was in a booth, facing the stairs. She had on a very simple but nice black dress. Not Alice's taste but the woman was a scientist, she could have a pass. The hoop earrings were the same as before, looking like beautiful brass in the low light. Her smile towards Alice made her stomach turn, her anxiety shot up to the stratosphere. It was one thing to shatter a fake reality where the woman was a resurrected corpse.

Now, Wakaba was real on a day that she should have been dead on. And it was right and Alice couldn't pretend she hadn't done something akin to Maruki. That all of this, it was like him. An attempt to fix it. To remove the way reality should go.

But Wakaba was real, she wasn't an actualization. And in doing that Alice's crimes were erased, in a much more real way. It didn't feel good, now that she was slowing down. She should have been punished.

Maybe trying to fix all of it was that punishment. It wasn't a good one. Not enough pain.

"So this is who you got to be my copycat?" Futaba's voice snapped Alice's attention to her, even if the teen wasn't looking right at her she could imagine the glare that should be there. But the long orange and stringy hair blocked her gaze. Sojiro rolled his eyes, pouring a cup of coffee. "She's too old."

"I am." Alice plopped down on a stool, trying her best to not look right at Futaba. Sojiro scooted the coffee down, handle towards Alice. "I get the hint, merry Christmas. And I'm Alice, Sojiro was kind enough to take me in. Not try to use me as a pod person."

"Debatable." Futaba wasn't making eye contact either, which made it all the easier. She wasn't as withdrawn but the reticence was something she came by naturally it seemed. "See, the first part of successful pod personing, that's telling them you're not a pod person."

"If she was a pod person, why would she even let you know they exist, Futaba?" Wakaba teased after a sip of coffee. Alice focused her gaze on the light swirling of old snow whipped up by wind outside. That was easier, gentler than being welcomed, being considered part of this Christmas. "And Merry Christmas Alice, since someone forgot."

"Hey, I'd get there. Eventually. Maybe." Futaba giggled, leaning on her hand. She was smiling and each bit of joy was buffeting Alice like a sandstorm. All of it wore at Alice’s heart, her mask of fake cheer. "But yeah, guess it's nice to meet you and stuff Alice."

"Good to meet you too. So, uh, what is the plan?" Alice was hoping it would be quick. Eat something together, awkward small talk, nothing else. She could escape, she could avoid getting further entangled with the Isshikis. More than she had by coming down today.

"You're going to drink that coffee while I cook. Someone didn’t want you alone on Christmas." Sojiro shrugged, shuffling to the back of Leblanc's kitchen. Wakaba pat the seat next to her. "And go, sit with them. They don't bite. Futaba just claims to."

"I got sharp teeth." Futaba chomped them towards the kitchen, her eyes catching Alice's for a split second. Futaba wasn't angry or afraid, just averting her eyes in a moment. Hate this. "I guess you should sit with us, it is family Christmas."

"Thank you, for pretending I’m part of the family." Alice took the seat next to Wakaba, keeping her legs swung out to not take Futaba's space. Even if she was probably sitting cross legged. "I wasn't really expecting this."

"Sojiro's cool like that." Futaba shrugged, sipping at her own coffee. "He heard mom and me don't do anything for Christmas and got it in his head we had to do something like four years ago."

"Futaba was happy with presents. I thought." Wakaba glanced to the table, away from Alice and Futaba. The guilt over the calling card, manifest in that one look. "Alice, do you know what happened with that calling card and your teacher?"

"He confessed, school went into a tizzy." Alice wasn't sure how she felt about Wakaba smiling at this fact. "It was good, considering he was tormenting a friend of mine."

"One of the ones that came to visit?" Sojiro hollered over the sound of flames igniting on his gas oven. Everything was done the slow and old way with him. It made everything taste better but right now it was making everything harder. It was all a grand extension, dragging out the experience on her. "Was he bothering you?"

"I'll say yes to the latter. That person's business on the rest to tell, not mine." Alice shook her head, hoping that would dispel most of their curiosity. She had a suspicion that Futaba's habits weren't that different, that she was planning a way to find out the truth. "It was... a bad reminder of why I got arrested to see Kamoshida like that.."

"You got arrested? Details! I've never met a real criminal before, just government people who visit mom." Futaba bounced in her seat, still at the periphery of Alice's gaze. It was like her half presence was making the girl more comfortable. I know she was glued to Ann for a while but please don’t do that to me. Wakaba tsked at her. "She brought it up!"

"And maybe she didn't think first about saying it." Wakaba said in a way that was clear, this was a recent topic of conversation. And from Futaba's sudden frown, it wasn't a happy one. "Don't feel obligated."

"It's really nothing. Sojiro already knows. I saw a powerful man trying to assault a woman. I hurt him." Alice kept her voice even, channeling all the ways she had told herself what she was doing last year was okay. It was a fact. It 'ruined' her life here. That's what people would think. "We were both guilty. Only I got in trouble."

"Like I told you, you stick your nose in that kind of person's business and you get hurt." Sojiro emptied a cutting board, a frown on his face. Wakaba scowled at him, a concert with Futaba. "Hey, she did the right thing. And now she's gonna get branded. For the rest of her life."

Worse than I already am for the gender. Way less than I should be.

"I think it's good though. Someone should do something like that. It's awful you got in trouble Alice." Futaba's joy, her celebration, it grated across Alice's skin. The girl was becoming fond of her in a moment and that was wrong. It was anathema, the universe wasn’t right. She was supposed to like Ann, she was supposed to resent and fear Alice. "Tell me who the powerful person is?"

"If I do, I go back to jail." Alice didn't want Futaba to start ripping through Adachi's files. She didn't have a clue when the girl started becoming a hacker and she didn't want to be the impetus for any of that.

The Thieves did a good job obscuring Futaba from Alice. She didn't blame them for that.

"Awww. I wanted to know who to hate." Futaba had kept smiling at Alice and the longer it went on, it stoked a crawling sensation in her body. The more it endured, her skin rippled along itself, trying to escape herself to run off and hide away from this. "So, what are you going to do now that you're a known criminal?"

"Try not to fail school, mostly." Try not to go mad dealing with my own guilt. Sojiro cleared his throat looking at her. "I design clothes too."

"Neat?" Futaba's head tilted and Alice shrugged. Girl wore cargo shorts most of the year, not surprising. "Why?"

"Want to look pretty. They don't make the right kind of pretty clothes." Alice didn't want to bring up the fact she did it because it let her be a woman in a way that didn't draw as much attention. "What do you do, Futaba?"

"Program stuff that mom gets and Sojiro doesn't." Futaba started digging towards her bag and her mother hooked it under her foot. "Mooooom, she asked about it."

"She didn't ask for a demonstration and you aren't going on your laptop until after presents are opened. Everyone’s presents are opened.” Wakaba held the bag out of her daughter's reach, laughing at the grabby hands motions. "You'll have all night."

"Fiiiiiiiiine." Futaba crossed her arms and crashed back into the seat as Sojiro brought over plates of food. Steam wafted up from each of them, filling the room with a melange of pleasantness. Alice never knew that Leblanc could smell better. "Thanks for the food."

"Of course, eat up." Sojiro smiled as Futaba dug into the curry, every one else served more traditional fare. Alice scratched at her wrist while Sojiro took a slow seat in the booth. "This about the presents? Don't worry, we know you didn't plan anything. Wakaba kinda rushed yours anyway."

"Don't tell her that, she'll feel worse. And don’t act like you didn’t tell me what to get." Wakaba whispered and Alice hated how right for the wrong reasons the woman was about feeling worse. And it was still kinder than almost everyone else in her last life. Her gifts in the last while had been from Ann, little bon mots to try and keep her spirits up and her eyes on life.

What a fucking joke, considering where she was and what she was doing.

"It's fine, really. That you got me anything at all is enough." Alice bit her lip, glancing towards the stairs and the sketchbook up there. "I've been sent for a loop and--"

"Yeah, well, girl should get at least a present on Christmas." Sojiro lowered his chopsticks, blinking his eyes. Wasn't news, that her parents didn't send anything. "Didn't feel right."

"Thanks." Alice closed her eyes, trying to not cry. It was stupid how much more kindness she was getting now of all times. It wasn't fair, because right now Ann was trying to not get her ass grabbed. She was trying to live and survive and she wasn't having that joy. The closest she got was Alice now.

I fucking stole her life. I stole all the good she was supposed to get.

Having a conscience sucks.

"You're welcome! Oh oh oh, mom said you'd help me with redying my hair! Will you, will you, will you? I can show you the programming while you do it and then..." Futaba searched for a word for a moment, all the while Alice shivered because it would be right to do it now, strip out the bad dye and help her take care of her hair. "Then I could help you with something techy?"

"I don't know if I need tech help yet, but sure." Alice winced, feeling the song start up. She could feel it coming.

The sacrilegious path before you
Reeks of old blood
The Sun will help you
Avoid your old pitfalls

Son of a bitch.

"Yay!" Futaba bounced in her seat, looking to her mom. "And now Alice got to give a present!"

"I guess she did. You're a smart little rules circumventer today." Wakaba chuckled as she placed two boxes on the table. Sojiro added three more. Futaba snatched one from her mother and Sojiro, cackling. "Patience."

"I really don't mind waiting for mine." Alice knew then she could ditch up to the attic and deal with the knowledge she had tied herself to Futaba in a very real way. Futaba took that as all the permission needed, tearing open the present and pulling out a model kit of a mech suit from an anime. It had a long curved horn coming from the head, but seemed very white otherwise. Futaba squeezed it to her chest. "Looks like a good gift."

"Had to prove I was listening." Wakaba's eyes softened as Futaba ran to her next gift, tearing it open. It was a calculator watch. Futaba held it up, confused. "I think Sojiro figured you might--"

"Figured you might like to tinker with it. This was the big thing for engineers when I was young." Sojiro panicked, a bead of sweat on top of his forehead. "If you--"

"Oh, I have permission to open it up then? Cool!" Futaba wasted no time in setting it face down on the table. She started running a finger around the watch to feel for the seams to break into it. Sojiro let out a sigh of relief to a light slap from Wakaba. "Mom!"

"I'm allowed to swat my friend when he fails to keep his cool." Wakaba giggled as she pushed a hatbox to Sojiro and got a small jewelry box in turn. In the hatbox was a scarf, a good black and white checkered one that wouldn't clash with Sojiro's coat. And in Wakaba's jewelry was a new set of earrings, custom made or niche, given they were studs of the cerebellum. "Thank you Sojiro, these will be a big hit at the next conference."

"And you noticed my scarf was getting ratty I guess." Sojiro chuckled handing Alice a rattling box with an envelope on top. "Like I said, don't expect much."

"More than I thought, so thank you." Alice started with the envelope, unsealing it with her thumb under the fold of the glue. Inside was a gift card for a store she knew sold fabric and other crafting supplies. It was her usual late night before a show stop. On the night when things weren't quite ready yet because Adachi loved having her do a job right before a show and sending her scrambling. And in the box was a sewing kit, a lot of needles for different gauges of thread. A way to start it all. Damn it. She wiped under her eyes, fighting every sniffle in her body.

"Yeah, I think you got the right gift." Futaba chimed in and that only made Alice want to cry more. She closed her eyes and looked up. "A critical hit to the emotions and look at that affection meter rise."

"Hey, Wakaba, since they're doing that thing tonight it seems, go get it and take Futaba with you." Sojiro was a damn saint, too good for Alice. The reluctant wildcard pushed off the booth chair to let Wakaba out, Futaba running after her with a muttered apology. Sojiro snapped his fingers once, to get Alice to open her tearing up eyes. "Hey, sit back down. What the hell is going on, that hit you pretty hard."

"Something stupid. Haven't gotten a gift I wanted in a while." Alice sniffled, hating that she was vulnerable now. Sojiro grunted in affirmation, wandering around the counter and starting water. "Coffee solves everything?"

"People find it harder to be sad when they're warm." Sojiro's answer was stupid and simple, something that pierced Alice in a heartbeat. It was all small things with him, all the time. And it always worked. "I wasn't sure how that would hit you, to be honest. You switch between showing nothing and everything. Like you forget you're supposed to do one only."

"More, fighting my base instincts." Alice watched as Sojiro steamed milk, adding cocoa to it before mixing it with the coffee. "When I'm showing nothing, that's not the goal. Just my natural state." Mostly. "How do you even know my parents?"

"Worked with them in auditing, once upon a time. You got arrested, they wanted nothing to do with you. I was a wild man at your age, they figured I'd take pity on you for it." Sojiro's explanation didn't really matter to Alice. She couldn't tell if reality had contorted for this or if it was just that way. "They had my number. But apparently they didn’t care for their daughter."

"Well, they suck. They don't call me their daughter." Alice layered her fingers around the cup. That was consistent in her memories of her last life and the bubbling up ones of this life. Where she hadn't gotten sent to Shujin for transitioning but home had stayed as hostile now as it was then. "I got stupid lucky you took me in."

"Suppose so. Messed up that I’m doing better at this." Sojiro grimaced, setting out hid own mug and filling it. "Well, you might not be the brightest bulb but you try harder."

Alice snorted, a wave of relief at being teased. At being acknowledged as fallible. She sipped at the mocha and marveled this wasn't something Sojiro defaulted to more. Sweet and warm and hadn't lost any of the smooth and fruity taste Leblanc was known for. "Someone has to be the stubborn and dim bulb."

"Hey, that bulb never goes out. It's useful." Sojiro laughed at his own joke. "Your parents might not get you, can't promise I'll do well at it but I'll try."

"Well, I didn’t expect a lot so this is far beyond already." Alice held the cup to her lips. "You expect to get like this when I showed up?"

"No, it's kind of annoying." Sojiro's sarcasm was dry as the air near the heater. "But, sometimes you need to be annoyed to remind yourself you're old but kicking."

"One way to put it." Alice finished her cup in time for the door to open, Futaba and Wakaba holding up a prize of a home dye kit. "I should have told you all what to get. But this will do."

"Told you we should have asked, she's clearly a high tier at this." Futaba stuck her tongue out and ran to the counter. "So, where are we doing it?"

"Attic. And set out something to do it on." Sojiro's voice sharpened, a deep seated knowledge of how it went before it seemed. Futaba blitzed to the stairs. "Wait on Alice, she might not be ready yet for a guest."

"I am, nothing incriminating's out." Alice winked at Wakaba to the woman shaking her head in good natured amusement. She hated that Sojiro was right about it being harder to be upset with something warm in your hands. "You should put mochas on the menu, that's really good."

"Christmas special, don’t insult the menu. Go." Sojiro waved her off with all the faux grumpiness he could muster as the two of them disappeared up the stairs. Alice threw down the tarp she hadn't gotten rid of yet, placing the workbench chair in the middle. She grabbed the dye stripper she had left over, then the kit Futaba got.

"So, how do you get away with the hair. Mom says that I'll have to go natural next year when I stop homeschooling." Futaba rambled while Alice plucked a spare towel and tossed it around Futaba's shoulders. "What's this for?"

"I’m trying to not ruin your clothes. And Shujin has bigger problems than me right now." Alice walked around to look down on Futaba, holding up the dye stripper. The girl gave her a dubious look. "This is a bleach that won't destroy your hair as much. This is what you need to use instead of what comes in the kits."

"Okay, what's wrong with the bleach in the kits. It's strong and works fast." Futaba tilted her head, her hair laying across the blanket. Alice wanted to show why but she didn't have touch permission yet. And it was going to be weird all the same. Even with maximum permission.

"Okay, your hair is dry and brittle, right? Kinda angry at you? That's why. Dyed hair needs extra care so it isn't a nightmare to deal with." Alice kept herself from being too stern, she would rather die than make Futaba cry again. I hate this having a conscience thing. The soon to be vibrant orange haired again girl nodded. "Good. You're going to need to wash it on a schedule and use conditioner. That way you can enjoy it longer. Next time, we'll get the kind of dye I use. This lasts a year, what we’re putting in fades in months."

"You are an expert. I didn’t even know it could all matter that much!" Futaba smiled as she beamed up at Alice. "You're easy to talk to, you know that? The direct explanations help."

"Well, good. I'm going to start and that means I'm going to touch your hair a lot. Okay?" Alice waited until a thumbs up came out from under the blanket. She got out of Futaba's sight and tried to focus on the mechanics of the work. Not on the burgeoning attachment Futaba was getting. "Why orange?"

"Like it." Futaba hummed the Featherman theme, her fingers tapping her knees while Alice worked. "Did you know Kamoshida wasn't the Phantom Thieves first heart stolen?"

"I didn't." Alice felt a little pit in her stomach as she spread the bleach with care along Futaba's hair. She didn't want to burn the scalp at all. "Who was?"

"Mom. I saw the card." Futaba whispered, a conspiracy in her voice. Joy in her voice. "It was a complete 180 afterwards, it was weird. Not bad weird. She used to focus on work a lot but now she comes home in the afternoon at the same time. I just don't know why they targeted her. Did she do something wrong like Kamoshida?"

Research the wrong thing.

"Probably not, at least not beyond not seeing you as much as she should. I could never tell that she used to be different towards you." Alice finished tracing the last strands of Futaba's hair, letting it take hold to beat the old dye. Make it all consistent. "So, happy with the results?"

"It was a little difficult at first, more because she was crying about things than anything towards me. But it was good. She's been a little obsessed though since. I caught her on a fansite for the Phantom Thieves." Futaba's voice pitched up for a moment, excitement in it. "How are things at Shujin after their actions?"

"Good. I wonder if that's the fansite I started. Is it filled with walking sticks?" Alice had stylized the site after Candide, a way to show they were going to wander. Mostly because she wasn't going to guide them the same way she had the last Phantom Thieves. If they punched too high she'd fight harder for them until they got sick of her. Futaba hummed in agreement. "Nice. I only know a little bit of website design."

"I can tell, I went on it. You know, someone could turn it off with barely any work. Wait! That's what I could do, I could work on the website to make it safe!" Futaba's suggestion made Alice wince because that was around when she started crashing and burning on the plan. When the fake Medjed pressured the Thieves and dragged Futaba in, Alice got sloppy. In retrospect it was obvious, she never got rid of her conscience. "And since it'll be longer, you can keep dying my hair?"

"I can probably do more than that for you but it's a start. If you'll show me how to fix the security hole, I'll be happy." Alice started pulling out the bleach from Futaba's hair, stringy dyed blonde hair revealed underneath. "I could probably help with other aesthetic stuff."

"I'm... good on that. But. Could you hang out with me? I don't spend a lot of time with others and it worries mom but other people scary." Futaba sighed and Alice knew it would be easy. In theory. "Is that too big of an ask, I can figu--"

"It's not. I just might not be the kind of friend you expect, okay? I'm not always the pinnacle of friendliness." Alice swapped her gloves, filling her palm with dye. "This is going to be cold. Brace yourself."

"Okay, let's go. I’ve got pretty high cold resist." Futaba did not brace herself well, shivering the moment dye made contact. Which didn't surprise Alice a bit, even if it did spur a modicum of guilt. "Sorry! I totally failed."

"Next time I dye your hair, you'll do better." If I manage to not get killed or run you off by then. "You're not bothered I might be a bad friend? I’m kind of a bitch."

"I talk to mom and Sojiro and not many other people. And you know how Sojiro is. He's always kinda a dick. But I love him for it." Futaba's smile was evident even without Alice looking. She had to fight every urge to squeeze what was in her hands. She had ruined Futaba worse than she thought. She'd prevented it this time but it didn't mean she hadn't done all those things before.

"Eh, he's not even a dick. Nicest man I've ever known. He just doesn’t like showing it." Alice pulled off her gloves, falling onto the futon. "Now, we wait."

"Right, it has to soak in. Guess I can't show you the programming I do because you don't wanna ruin my clothes." Futaba glanced down at the t-shirt, sans a picture for once, and snowpants she still had on. "It's not like they're nice."

"Might not be. But a lot of fashion falls apart. Even that outfit's fashion. No need to make it go faster." Alice yawned, staring up at the ceiling. Away from Futaba, away from the manifestation of how wrong everything was.

She almost thought this experience was Maruki again, but the pompous asshole couldn't resist saying it was his work that led to everything. He wanted credit from those in the know and none from the rest. It was weird to perform that hard for high schoolers.

"Oh, like planned obsolescence for clothes. I got it." Futaba hummed the Featherman tune again, tapping her foot. "So, do you play video games Alice?"

"Not really. Phone ones seemed like a scam and my parents hadn't really enabled me to get them." Alice checked her phone and the scowling Sophia within. Yeah, weird for me too. "You a big gamer?"

"I mean yeah. I could show you sometime. You gotta relax, you seem kinda high strung." Futaba's offer was too nice. Alice gave her a thumbs up. "I'll bring something over sometime then!"

"Sounds good. Let's get the extra dye out now and get you home."

------

"Hey Ann, it's Alice." Alice tapped her thighs, annoyed she got the voicemail of the burner. She was hoping to talk to Ann for at least a moment today. Give her a real Christmas promise. Get measurements to make it a reality. "I was hoping to catch you. I know Christmas sucks. And as much as I enjoy fighting, I can't really deny that I give a lot of a shit about you. Which is awkward when you're going off vibes and I'm not. But, whatever. I shouldn't say more. Hope Adachi didn't bother you too much. Call me if you want."

Alice let the phone drop onto her chest. Sophia had been silent today. It made sense. It was a weird day for the two of them. Alice placed her chin on the windowsill, looking out towards the world. Towards the path from Shibuya, towards the bathhouse, towards the place the two of them had begun to make up.

That was a lie, they had made up when Alice took a stand and took a bullet. It was a concession, in its own way. That way Ann didn't have to kill her, didn't have to live with guilt over the act or letting Haru do it. And it said that even at the end, Alice loved Ann. Enough to abandon everything for her. And yet. Here she was alive on Christmas when she should be dead again. At least last time she got fucked. at least last time people hated her beyond the AI in her phone. At least then the world was right.

A part of her wondered if she could get Maruki to make the public hate her. She knew it was stupid, that it would be different, that he wouldn't do that even if he had the power. But it was a tempting thought. Make reality right, the hard way.

But it'd erase Shiho's safety, Futaba's joy and Wakaba's life. Would making Ann no longer the villain be worth that? Would setting everything up that way make it better or worse?

Alice's head throbbed as she curled up under the blankets and plugged her phone in. Shiho and Sumire had sent merry Christmas texts. She sent responses back and let sleep take her.

Chapter Text

"It's New Years, you gotta go to the shrine." Sumire's voice was not what Alice wanted to hear before the sun had even come up. The list of things she wanted to hear at that time was small. Infinitesimal. Zero. It was a slight against the world, not Sumire. "Kasumi and I are going, you should come with us! It'll be fun."

"It's six in the morning and we don't have school." Alice's hand pat around in the darkness of the attic, finding the pillow she’d hurled nearby. "Do we have to go this early?"

"Yes, we do, we have to beat the crowds." Sumire had to be right about that.

Even if Alice wasn't a celebrity anymore, the prospect of avoiding crowds was appealing. Fewer people staring at her. Few questions. "How soon. Hope you know I don't have nor really have an interest in wearing a yukata."

"That won't be a problem for me or Kasumi. Just, you know, figure if you're trying to get a fresh start," I'm not, really. "That fresh hopes would help."

"Kind of you to think that. Let me get clothes on that I'd like to be seen in public in." Alice untangled herself from the blankets, digging through the dresser she had rigged up of milk crates. Sumire hummed, sweet and joyful as Alice shifted to speaker. Sophia was sulking in the corner of the screen. "Hey, Sumire, are you spending all day with Kasumi?"

"Not particularly. Why?" Sumire's voice dopplered while Alice threw on mint and cerulean leggings with a pink blouse and black skirt. The warmest outfit she had anymore. She needed to sew more clothes and soon.

"Want to give Sophia something to do. Considering our last conversation was a lot of getting onto her and she's been withdrawn." Alice could see that familiar anger and sorrow in Sophia's eyes, the one she saw in Futaba's when the November masquerade was done.

"I don't need your pity." Sophia's avatar jumped to her feet, pointing at Alice with a bladed finger. "It's--"

"I mean, we should probably hang out with you more. It'd be that Mementos place, wouldn't it?" Sumire chimed in, interrupting Sophia. The bladed finger dulled at the interruption. "I know you don't like Alice, but she's trying to help."

"But, I don't want help from her." Sophia resumed pouting as Alice juggled in headphones and started slipping out of Leblanc. "I don't know what I want from her."

"You don't have to know what you want, but at least be friends with the girls who aren't like me." Alice shifted her speech to be more for the public as she stepped onto slushy streets, pulling a scarf out of her jacket pocket and starting across the city. "I'm on my way, Sumire."

"We'll be there soon, we can wait." Sumire's voice warbled for a moment and Alice knew that the girl was gazing at her own shoes. "And Sophia, I do want to be your friend."

"I... but you're friends with Alice. And I want to end her but I know I shouldn't." Sophia was her own swirling mass of cognitive dissonance made into a person. Alice wished Sophia would acknowledge how similar they were, two beings full of murderous intent and moderating it. "Why would you be nice to me if you believe in her?"

"Because, you're hurt and you feel neglected." Sumire's voice was low and Alice pulled out her headphones, letting the two of them talk without her presence. Well, her presence was there but that didn't mean it was the same if she couldn't hear them.

Alice focused on navigating a city going through twilight in reverse, a blaze of light building up between the buildings. Shadows replaced full darkness, only fuzzing the world instead of obscuring it. The little puddles in the slush were harder to see as streetlights died, people filing out in small numbers to meander the early morning city.

It was strange, feeling like a part of that. January had been her and the Thieves staring at a delusional world. There was the occasional person who saw through it but so many didn't. And before that, Alice put a lot of effort into not being around people. And here she was, trudging through the snow near a blue haired man she knew. His coat was too big, his skin ashier than normal. She could see his cheekbones, the few times his head moved.

That's Yusuke. And he's skinny as hell. What the fuck?

"You're quite colorful, ready for the shrine visit." Yusuke looked over and Alice was tempted to about face and drag him to get food. Was Madarame starving him? "Although, that isn't traditional attire."

"I'm not really one for that." Alice wanted to snap towards him, demand to know what was going on with his food. She hadn't known who he was before she caught him fighting at Ann's side against his guardian's shadow. "You usually comment on others and how they dress?"

"I was confused. Considering the dedication to get up early and come here, I'd expect you to show more respect for the process." Yusuke grabbed the railing to the shrine. He swayed in the wind and Alice grabbed his arm. "My apologies."

"Well, even if you're being pretty conservative, you shouldn't bust your head open." Alice knew he could be better, he had been thoughtful if eccentric during her time among the Thieves. And here he was, parroting old people talking points. "You should eat before going out if you get weak like this."

"I'm fine." Yusuke lied, raising his head as they ascended. "You never answered about--"

"I'm not really one to respect what I've been told to do. If I did, you and I would look more alike." Alice watched Yusuke's forehead crease in concern and confusion. "You'll figure it out. And how does how I dress have an effect on your time at the shrine?"

"It doesn't. But it creates something eyecatching. Or an eyesore." Yusuke seemed to think they were different. Alice shrugged, approaching the gate where Kasumi and Sumire lounged. The two waved to Alice, Sumire looking over at Yusuke. "Your friends are wearing a yukata."

"That's their choice." Alice paused, realizing she had an in now with him. She held up her finger in the sign of wait, then turned to Yusuke. "Hey, you and I should talk colors in clothes sometimes. Even if you're kind of rude about it, you at least reacted."

"Art provokes response, clothes are a form of art of the self." Yusukue gave her a half smile, fiddling with his phone for her use. She added her number and he tucked it away, a deep blue yukata on underneath his coat. "And, you certainly do have an eye for color."

"I do. Text me." Alice popped out her headphones, dropping them into the pocket next to her phone. She beelined to the Yoshizawas and their matching yellow yukatas with roses and butterflies. "Sorry, met someone who likes art. Wanted to trade numbers."

Sumire, you better understand why.

"Well, it's about time you showed up." Kasumi bounced on her toes, stepping over the threshold to the shrine. Sumire tapped her elbows, looking down. "I was kidding."

"I know. I don't know if Alice does." Sumire spared a sidelong glance, her eyes tracing the stone path afterward. Alice hooked her arm in Sumire's following Kasumi down the path. "You okay?"

"Tired. Going to want to eat, after." Alice yawned, spare hand over her mouth as they caught up with Kasumi and her boundless energy. "You have coffee or something on the way?"

"Oh no, my usual stretch routine always gets me up and raring to go." Kasumi's fingers stretched up and above herself while Sumire started to lift her head. "Sumire always looks like she isn't, but she totally is."

"That's right." Sumire slipped out an awkward giggle, leaning closer to Alice. "Thanks for joining us, Alice."

"You're the one who invited me." Alice fought to not roll her eyes, this was how Sumire made sure she was cared for. It’d be rude. "Which, nice of you to think about me."

"She was worried about your Christmas too but dad said no guests." Kasumi took a skip, leading to Sumire following suit. Alice stumbled forward before letting the Thief go, watching as the two of them leapt rock to rock. Kasumi set the pace but even with her hair in her eyes, all of Sumire's landings were far more solid. She didn't move on any of her landings while Kasumi seemed to focus on further distances with shakier landings. "So, what's your deal Alice, since Sumire's worried about her senpai instead of the other way around?"

"Went through some trouble and wound up staying with a family friend. My own family isn't interested in me." Alice stopped short of the shrine, digging for an offering in her purse. Kasumi and Sumire dropped in their offerings before offering their prayers. Kasumi frowned at her. "It's fine, I wound up having a Christmas."

The world's most awkward one I could have I think and not at all with the woman I wanted to see.

Alice dipped her head and pressed her hands together as she offered her prayer. A wish that they could get strong enough to topple Adachi fast. Send him tumbling to the ground and keep Maruki from grabbing hold of any power.

That was going to be the hard part to explain when they got there.

"Well, I'm glad you got that, Alice." Sumire offered her arm again, now that Kasumi was done hopping around. "You mentioned being hungry. We could probably grab breakfast."

"Yeah, dad gave us New Year's Money. It was pretty sweet." Kasumi grinned, taking her sister's arm. "Hey Alice, how fast can you move?"

"Depends on where we are." Alice didn't want to play her hand, draw suspicion to herself and Sumire. "I never took gymnastics. Wasn't an option."

"Oooh, gotcha. But I was more thinking running this time?" Kasumi poked her cheek to a sigh from Sumire. "It'll make sure we're all hungry."

"Alice isn't necessarily ready to go running through the slush with us." Sumire squeezed Alice's arm. But running with these two wouldn't be the worst. Food sooner and then they could go to Mementos and Sumire and Sophia could do something. Alice would do... something while they did. She'd figure it out.

"Well, how about we clear the stairs and go from there." Alice winked at Sumire as they started taking the steps down, Alice and Kasumi forming anchors for Sumire to float for a moment in the air between their steps. Kasumi's eyes twinkled. "I didn't say I didn't work out."

"You sure didn't." Sumire rolled her eyes with a laugh as she landed at the bottom. I gotta get her running around like this more. No competition, just doing it for her. That's what she needs. "Alright, where are we going?"

"Only like Big Bang Burger and other fast food places are going to be open." Kasumi grumbled, glancing around. "Maybe, maybe Bikuri Boy."

"Bikuri Boy it is." Alice popped an eyebrow, repositioned her purse and set her feet in place. "You ready? I'm pretty competitive when I have a chance."

"And when you don't?" Sumire wondered aloud.

"Well, I find a new way to get a chance. Let's go." Alice took off and the Yoshizawas followed her lead. Alice wasn't at her peak, not by a longshot. The time away from having home gym equipment had hurt her muscles. The Yoshizawas were going to smoke her. But, this wasn't about winning the race. It was about winning Sumire's freedom.

And that meant trying to lead by example.

Alice leapt a small fence and kept running, the Yoshizawas abandoning their attempt to circumvent it and instead following her lead. With each small amount of Palace parkour she could make herself recreate, she could hear Sumire's small shouts of joy. Kasumi was focused on finding the fastest path, the most efficient one. When Alice climbed one fence, losing time in the process, Kasumi ignored it to use a pole to swing through a hole in the chainlink.

Sumire went up and over, making the longer jump to another section of the fence before leaping off again. Alice got left in their dust, but it was mission accomplished to see Kasumi smiling from winning and Sumire grinning from her perch on top of a bike rack.

Alice was proud and that burning sensation in her chest left her feeling off. She wasn't supposed to be helpful, not on this sort of level. She was supposed to cut through the bullshit and leave the rest for someone else. That's how it had been. And here she was, doing the opposite and feeling good about it.

Weird time to grow a desire to do something nice.

-----

"Let's see how mad she still is." Alice muttered as she sent herself and Sumire to Mementos. Sophia stood with arms crossed, looking towards the stairs down into Mementos. "Alright, you two pick where you want to be. I'll give you space. If you go into the tunnels themselves to train, I'm going to be in the area."

"Luna, you can just stay around. Avenger and you, you have to work together." Sumire toyed with the hair falling out the back of her mask while Sophia lifted her head in disdain. Which was better than the murder attempt of last week. "Avenger..."

"I think that Luna should give us space." Sophia jumped to a fire escape, locking eyes with Alice. "You should make sure you are not rusty, you let us do most of the work in Kamoshida's Palace."

"I did. But you're going to let me go down there, alone?" Alice tested the AI, Sophia's display morphing into closed eyes. Sumire hopped up next to her. "I have nothing in mind beyond training if I go, but you're the one concerned about my actions."

"I..." Sophia wavered before pointing towards the entrance of the subway. "Do not get in trouble."

"Thanks Avenger." Sumire pat the AI on the head and her display filled with question marks. "Was that wrong?"

"I-I-I am unsure why you did that!" And with Sophia saying that Alice knew it was time to leave, to let whatever might be starting there not be sullied by her presence.

She slid down the railing of the stairs, into the subway tunnels again. Now that it was calm, she could feel the pressure all around her. The ambient sound now a drone in her ears, a far cry from how the place welcomed her before. Even while she worked with the Thieves, she didn't have this experience of it trying to crush her with its mere presence.

Alice tossed her knife back and forth, eyeing up the Shadows of the first floor. Nothing. Good for little more than harvesting personas for the water bucket in the Velvet Room. A way to make slow and incremental progress. And the next floor was as poor for training. The door to the next block had fallen away, the knowledge around Kamoshida's fall from grace and those responsible reflected in that moment.

The next block made her think, a little. Her knife couldn't cut everything, but what it couldn't her personas could cover the slack of. It was more complex than Mohini and her conch steamrolling through multiple floors, but it wasn't a bad change.

Not when she had stamina to burn.

The pressure shifted, wiping away. Alice spun on one foot, knife out and hand to mask. A sight greeted her along the tracks, a black wedding dress covered in crimson chains and a funeral veil. The mask was as black as expected, making Alice smile behind her own. "Hey, lover. Fancy running into you here."

"Yeah, almost like you're pretty noticeable when you're dragging around the same person everywhere." Ann shrugged, pulling a pistol from a holster on the dress. Alice's heart raced, the smile widening. "Now, what are you doing down here?"

"Mostly, trashing Shadows because Kamoshida was nothing. Want to make my trip interesting?" Alice thinned out her profile, reducing the space Ann could hit. "Or are we talking?"

"Talking for now, see if you make me shoot you. Do you get off on causing me problems with Adachi?" Ann tilted her head, the veil falling out of the way of her lips. "Do you get how much of a pain a phone call is? Are you that pathetic about whatever we were?"

"Oh, lover, you have no clue." Alice shook her head and drew her gun, aimed towards Ann's. "You wouldn't believe the things I've done for you. And you did for me."

"Well, I'm not that one. You know that, right?" Ann's thumb worked the action on the pistol and Alice couldn't help laughing. "What's wrong?"

"Oh, if you were Fatale, right now you'd have already tried to shoot me." Alice jumped to the side as the bullet whizzed by. She sent Ann's gun to the side with a shot. Ann pawed at her mask with long black gloves. "Don't worry! I want to fight you, but not now. You came here for a reason today, why?"

"The plan. And I have to kill a client's mistress." Ann was on schedule with Madarame. Which was going to make Yusuke isolated soon at the atelier if she didn’t move fast. "You haven't made a move in--"

"I’m resting the newbies and working on team cohesion. Considering one of them wants to kill you and me, lover." Alice closed the distance, catching a fist to the gut from Ann. The pain ignited her heart. "Hey, there you go. I'm recruiting. The client is our next target and I have my eyes on the two people to bring in for it."

"Madarame, huh?" Ann's fist grabbed hold of Alice's dress, pulling them closer. Mask to mask. "Figures he'd have a Palace."

"It's hideous. Just covered in gilding." Alice grabbed onto Ann's hip in turn, swaying for a moment. "Still want to kill me, right?"

"Among other things." Ann admitted, a cruel laugh in her voice. Alice wanted to rip away their masks, but she wanted to see Ann's persona for the first time at a climax, not a kiss of a fight in Mementos. "So, Madarame. How about we make this fun? A time limit, so you're not wasting my time."

"Could be fun. Let me guess, we don't do it fast enough, he dies?" Alice loved guessing Ann's actions before she could get them out. The fingers on her dress tightened, yanking her closer. "Oooooh, I was right. February first. I only met one of my recruits today and he's got skin in the game. Just have to make him see it. The other? Oh, he'll just want to start a fight from seeing the contents of that Palace."

"Two weeks." Ann countered to Alice spinning them around, both skirts of their dresses flaring out. "You have future knowledge, surely you know what makes your target tick."

"Hmmmm, I do but those I’ve recruited don't. Three weeks." Alice pushed Ann away, kicking up the pistol she had danced them over to. She cleared its clip and popped out the bullet. "And when I make this, a date?"

"You know what? Sure. If you can collapse his Palace by then, your way? I'll let you take me on a date." Ann caught the tossed empty gun, scowling when Alice didn't toss her the clip. "Afraid I'll shoot you in the back?"

"Oh, I'm not afraid. But it'd be inconvenient to have a bullet in the back. Wait till I leave Mementos to depart. Or my companion might try to kill you." Alice took off, ditching the clip where Ann would have to spend a few minutes trying to find it in a mass of veins.

Gotcha girl.

-----

"Goro, good afternoon!" Alice grinned at him, one hand on her phone. The boy blinked for a moment before breaking into his fake smile. The one she saw plenty of in November. "I have a philosophical question for you."

"Do you now? I can't say that I expected that from you. I suppose looks are deceiving." Goro stopped from going out the door, approaching Alice until they were a meter apart. Distance, despite the appearance of openness with a smile and open palms. "Well, I'm ready."

"Looks are deceiving. What happened with Kamoshida, do you think it was just?" Alice posed the question and the smile shifted, into a slight smirk. Goro's eyes opened, focusing on her. "I'm curious."

"He groveled quite well for Suzui." Goro affirmed, crossing his arms. Alice could feel him taking the bait. "It's a change I wouldn't have expected, given everything. It seems clear that he was meddled with, by those Phantom Thieves. Clearly students at our school. And given timing--"

"Now, now, let's not make accusations in public." Alice rolled her eyes, of course he was going to say it in public. "Some of us are on probation because the way of the world isn't fair."

"I'd heard as much. But only that you had committed assault." Goro's voice cooled, one where he knew that Alice wanted something. He wanted proof of her character. "Now, isn't that a telling thing to have on your record?"

"Now, isn't it telling that you can't find out who? Or the circumstances?" Alice took a step towards the doors, leading Goro out of the press of students. He narrowed his eyes on her. "Think about it. I did a plea deal, I kicked that man in the nuts and saved that woman with him."

"The woman." Goro's voice tightened as the two of them passed Shiho and Sumire. She had him. "Is this more of that justice?"

"Oh, in a way. It didn't work nearly as well." Alice knew he was only picking up more belief in who she was. That was fine. She knew he was curious too. "Do you think that the violence I enacted on that man saved the next woman he met? Or do you think the stolen heart of Kamoshida saved the next woman he met?"

"I think the former may have considered it for a second but I'd guess since he isn't arrested he has learned the lesson of the powerful, you can always get away with more." Goro almost spat his answer before he caught himself, pushing back on the mask of cheer. "Oh, that was uncouth of--"

"Not even remotely, Goro. Now you're right. But what about Kamoshida?" Alice locked eyes with Shiho and Sumire in turn. "Do you think he's stopped now?"

"I think so, considering he was ready to kill himself on stage." Goro's eyes locked onto Alice's the falling sun glinting in the red flecks in his iris. "What is the point of this conversation and the merry chase, Hiiragi?"

"Well, Goro, I'm glad you asked." Alice unlocked her phone, Madarame's Palace already entered into the fields. "Do you want to do something about the evil of the world? Do you want to seek justice? Was filming Kamoshida's breakdown to keep Ryuji safe a one off event?"

"Sakamoto had already suffered at Kamoshida's hands. The video was a minimal activity to keep Kamoshida contained. In the end, the source of a detention. Get to the point." Goro growled as Shiho and Sumire took his left and right. "What is going on?"

"Good enough for you two?" Alice looked to her teammates, the two nodding. She hit the button, morphing the world around them into the gleaming and gaudy museum of Madarame. Golden reflections, a security line all the ways that Madarame hid who he was from the world. "Welcome, Goro, to the Palace of Ichiryusai Madarame, famous Japanese artist. We want your help in stopping him. And one other person's help as well but I won't see him until tomorrow."

We already lost a few days of my three weeks.

Goro blinked at the sudden transformation of the world, the appearance of Sophia, the change of outfits. He opened and closed his mouth. He held up a finger, asking for a moment. Shiho rolled her eyes. "Maybe he wasn't ready Luna."

"You reacted similarly when brought to the Palace, Deadeye." Sophia admonished Shiho before walking up to Goro. "Luna, who you know as Alice, did not explain why we need to stop Madarame."

"Well, it's pretty simple. He harvests his students for their art. And he pays for people to be murdered while laundering money for the assassin. Come along, I can show you one part. And afterwards, I'll explain the rest." Alice knew the infiltration route she needed to follow. Goro didn't move as Shiho and Sumire moved with her. "If it makes you feel better, this is how we got Kamoshida to confess."

"And Luna thinks you'll do good at this. The fact you already suspected her at least makes me think you might be!" Sumire was a little too peppy, a little too Kasumi for a moment. Alice led them on the side path once Goro started to follow. "It's kinda dangerous, but you can do a lot of cool things with a little bit of effort and belief?"

"Is that so? You're intimating we're in this Madarame's mind. And you seem to think this will motivate me?" Goro frowned as Alice hopped a meter straight up to plinth. "And this?"

"Like Lux said, believe you can. And jump." Alice jumped backwards to the next one, bidding him to hop up to join her. "And I do. Kamoshida owned the students of Shujin in his mind. Much like some parents believe they own their children. Disgusting right?"

"I'd agree with it." Goro squinted as he pulled himself up onto the plinth. Sophia landed next to him and scooped him up. "Put me down, this instant!"

"You are moving slow and as Luna is being dramatic, I need to make this happen faster." Sophia explained, following Alice's path as she zig zagged across plinths. "Why are you doing it this way?"

"Oh, enrichment!" Alice shouted as she dropped through the skylight along a tied off rope from Sumire. The rest of the Thieves and a yowling Goro landed next to her in the gallery. Two paintings flanked a security door, each of them current students of Madarame's. One was Yusuke, looking out from hollow eyes. "This is one of his two remaining pupils, the rest run off and their lives ruined. Yusuke Kitagawa, son of the forgotten artist Tamiko Kitagawa. Adopted by Madarame. And he considers Yusuke to be HIS work of art."

"The goose laying golden eggs. He believes there is more to be gotten from him if this is the state. The other portrait of Nakonohara is not as detailed. I would guess losing his grip on them." Goro mused, a frown on his face as he paced in front of the painting. "Why bring me and not this student?"

"That's the fun part. He's tomorrow. Once I get him to talk to me." Alice placed a hand on Goro's shoulder. "As for why you? Because Goro Akechi, I know more than you think. If you want to pursue true justice and prevent a whole bunch of shit, you'll come with me."

"I've already come this far. What more do you think I need to do?" Goro looked between them, then pat his clothes. "Does it have to do with the mechanical girl or the outfit change?"

"It has to do with both of these things. I am an AI, here to make sure that Luna doesn't make mistakes." Sophia's change of phrase resonated with Alice as they pushed into the next part of the museum and the first shadows they could find. Guards walked around with nightsticks. "These are monsters. When you fight one, you are likely to Awaken."

"You are all not good at onboarding are you." Goro shook his head as he looked to the guard. Sophia frowned as Alice walked towards him. "And what has you so certain?"

"Hmmm, pattern recognition." Alice nudged the Thieves back as the guard locked eyes with Goro. He charged, nightstick raised to clobber the boy. Goro grabbed at the Shadow's wrist, catching a kick to the stomach and turning into a ragdoll.

"Thief! You're going to destroy this work with your unworthy hands!" The guard yelled as Goro fell to his knees, a thin trickle of blood falling down from his lips.

"Someone's gotta record all of it, before they can destroy it. They could make you burn it all down but if your memory is good enough, that won't matter. Let's make a deal, see the world that's beyond what they tell you."

"Sounds good." Goro spit blood into the blue flame that were summoned around him, his eyes flashing yellow as they widened. The hideous red and white outfit blinked in and out of existence around him as he reached up and grabbed his bird mask and pulled. "Montag!"

An inferno burned within a half torn asbestos suit, making it jerk in erratic motions as it grabbed hold of the Shadow. Flames burst out of the palms of its hand turning the Shadow to ash in an instant. Goro cackled for a few seconds then collapsed.

"Wow, we must all look like idiots when we do this." Shiho picked him up. "You didn't push him."

"Didn't want to get yelled at by Avenger."

------

"A time loop. That's what you are trying to convince me of. How can you?" Goro stared down Alice. Well best he could when he was yawning every few seconds. "Right now, I think you're full of shit."

"Well, I know something about you I shouldn't. Would that be proof enough if I ask the others to leave?" Alice glanced to Shiho and Sumire, the other Thieves grimacing. Goro tried to push himself to his feet. "At least have the coffee I made you, it'll help."

"Fine, Hiiragi. Tell me and not them since it's so ruinous." Goro glanced to the girls. Shiho stared back at him. "Is there a problem, Suzui?"

"Not yet." She dragged Sumire with her and Alice had to fight the urge to demand to know what that was about. The other Thieves went downstairs as Goro took a suspicious sip of the coffee. His eyebrow twitched as he kept drinking.

"That's how I know you like it, you're still drinking. Goro Akechi, you are the bastard son of disgraced politician Masayoshi Shido. When your existence came to light to him, he attempted to murder you rather than take care of you." Alice watched Goro's fingers tighten around the cup. "He's a piece of garbage and you beat the shit out of him last time alongside Ann Takamaki. Who had my position last time."

"And what, you were the famous model instead?" Goro shot back, a defensive barb to avoid everything Alice had said.

"No, fashion designer. Also murderer, but I'm not that anymore. Keep up." Alice smiled as Goro snarled at her, his hand gripping the coffee cup tight enough his knuckles turned white. "Good, there you are. The fake shit's annoying. Here's the deal, we're going to stop the future problems that come of the murderer being under an asshole's thumb and us not knowing that. And you, as the person who figured me out last time, are going to help me with good advice. And you are going to get to punish all sorts of people for daring to try and own others. You are going to help mete out justice."

"Well, you've given me quite the gauntlet across the face. A challenge to keep up with every detail you give me and to stop a disaster." Goro hummed as he finished the cup of coffee. "I find it a little insulting that you didn't come to me first."

"I had lives to save by empowering them." Alice shrugged, going to her own cup. The taste was almost perfect, almost Ann's. She'd let this cup sit too long while she talked. "Sorry, but I had a priority and needed to not overwhelm the other person who remembers and hates my guts. Forgive me for trying to put off her attempt to execute me."

"A dangerous game you're playing. Admitting your crimes, admitting your enemy and your plan to involve someone on your old path." Goro closed his eyes, stilling himself. "And you are prioritizing actions that save lives. Quite interesting. Considering the turn around in Suzui's health prior to Kamoshida, there must be something going on there. I am unsure about Yoshizawa's involvement in this."

"Selfish, she's the person I worked best with last time. And I knew how to help her." Alice ran her finger along the rim of her empty cup. "The rest is something that I consider private and for her only. Got it?"

"You're taking this seriously. We have a deal then. I'll check your plans and tell you why they won't work." Goro offered his hand, a quick and fast handshake between the two of them. "And from there, we'll have to figure out Kitagawa?"

The sacrilegious path before you
Reeks of old blood
The Star will help you
Avoid your old pitfalls

"We will. Tomorrow."

Chapter Text

"Is this not emotional manipulation?" Sophia called out from the screen where Alice had zoomed in on the Sayuri's brush strokes in a picture, showing them next to the strokes of the rest of the piece. "Why can't you tell him you know it's fake?"

"Because, I want him to be willing and curious as to it. I want him to see inside there while aware that Madarame might be evil." Alice hummed, tracing around each of the images to create a slideshow. The brush strokes covering the baby underneath were thick, far thicker than the rest of the painting. A different brush was her best guess. And with the painting being ‘missing,’ no one had taken a closer look at these pictures.

And Madarame had just gotten get rid of a mistress who was threatening to go public in exchange for money and that's when the remaining student would flee studying under him. Madarame was not a kind teacher, even without stealing the work of his students. And he would only get crueler in the wake of that murder.

"You want this to be a choice, even though you know Madarame is evil?" Sophia's confusion didn't have malice this time, it was an actual attempt at understanding. Good for her. "I thought you were preventing problems."

"I am. But I'm not going to kidnap him. Even if I'm certain he is the one who would say yes to being kidnapped." Alice bit her lip, digging through old archival photos on a gallery's website, coming to another traditional painting that Tamiko Kitagawa had done. The brush strokes were similar to Sayuri's, delicate and precise. From there she pulled up an at the time Madarame painting, one with thick brush strokes. "And, I know what Madarame did to Yusuke. He doesn't. And if I can get him to have questions, then he picked this path."

"But you're leading him to the path. You made that choice for him. But it's in his interest to know. Could you steal the heart and let him discover it that way and then go to him for assistance?" Sophia crossed her arms, annoyance creeping into her voice. "Is the vengeance important? It wasn't for Goro or Sumire."

"It is, for him. Those two are motivated not as much by themselves but how they look out at the world." Alice dumped the photos into a ready made gallery, stretching herself out across the bench in the hallway of Shujin. She had hopes of getting two people's attention this way. One with possibility and one with frustration. "The other option is to tell him this is a time loop first and if there's a Thief who would believe that, it's him. But that feels like the worse option to me."

"I think if he would believe it, you should try that. He is likely to want to know the truth you espouse and that would be a better bait than this." Sophia's form distorted and Alice nodded in agreement. Her thumb swiped past the AI, settle onto the gallery, holding it until she could delete it. She took a few seconds, her thumb hovering over the button. "Are you really considering this?"

"Like I said, I need a moral compass on this. And because I'm liable to pick plans that are like this." Alice hit the delete button, leaning back to lounge in a more conspicuous fashion as a certain student council president passed by her. She scowled but seemed to be on a mission, leaving Alice and her illegal hair alone. "No fun."

"Your attempts to antagonize Makoto seem to be falling on deafened ears. She is acting strange, considering that Sae Niijima does not have a Palace and the investigation into the Phantom Thieves and that bitch is not in full swing." Sophia had a good point. From every complaint Ann had about Makoto during June and July, it was linked to the stress that Alice had turned up. But she was on high alert but not for minor infractions. Strange. What was interesting was the student sneaking a peak at her with floofy brown hair and a look of intense discomfort on her face. It was question of if the student knew she was a woman herself. "Alice, who are you looking at?"

"Hey, you got a question?" Alice kept her snark at a level that made her seem annoyed, even if this was one of the fixes she was excited to start. The student who would be Haru shifted over, gripping a book tight to the chest. "Ask it."

"What's your bracelet?" Mousy and scared, something that would get shaved away with a little permission to let loose. Her finger pointed to the pride bracelet Alice had sewn herself, a way to beacon this student in particular.

"Means pride in being transgender. Good eye." Alice shifted her legs down as she ditched Sophia into her pocket and pat the bench. The little pellet in her gut was building, that she was drawing in this girl. But Haru would want to seek her own safety and Alice could get the girl to the Palace, explain herself then. "Sit. You get the prize for noticing it."

"Oh, thank you." Haru took the seat, folding hands in her lap. "That means you changed genders correct?"

"Yep. Figured it out about three years back. Changed my name and clothes. Hair too." Alice swept her hair back, sending it scattering. Haru nodded, a small smile on her face. "I even take hormones to help me look the way I like."

"That's good. And you seem... happy talking about it." Haru's voice shook with jealousy. Alice made the smile she hadn't realized she got shrink down. "Sorry, I'm intruding."

"You're not, I invited you." Alice tilted her head up to look at the ceiling. She fought every urge to sigh, to tell Haru her own name, to tell her that she had to time when she did everything. It wasn't her right to do that. Alice had to save Haru, get her the answer from her father she had been denied. "And, I'm willing to answer some questions. Just not about what's under my clothes."

"Oh, I wouldn't. That seems creepy to do!" Haru shook her head, then caught herself and straightened back out. "I mostly was curious how you started?"

"Well, I went and found some women's clothes that fit. It was a pain. Wound up making some of my own." Alice hummed, watching the little blossom of a blush on the girl's face. "And from there, I had to deal with the fallout. Worth it to be me."

"That sounds like it was hard to choose to do." Haru fidgeted with her pants. "How do you know it's worth it?"

"You just have to decide that, for you." Alice stood up, stretching her fingers towards the ceiling as Goro approached. "I have to go, but if you want to talk more about it, I'm in class C."

"I'll keep that in mind. Thanks." The girl bowed her head and ran off towards the stairs up. Alice wasn't sure why the girl was going up there, she hadn't gone INTO Shujin at all last year.

"Making friends are we?" Goro's cheerful voice had that small bit of a smirk she knew better from him now. It wasn't the brutal honesty and self reflection of last January. But it was more him. "Pleasure or business?"

"Being nice to a curious person." Alice shrugged as she started walking out the front of the school. She popped an earbud out to share with Goro. "Sorry, Sophia, wanted to give that my full attention."

"I noticed. You were very focused on what you were doing. Goro, Alice has taken a criticism on board. She is going to tell Yusuke about the time loop first." Sophia reported, her voice dropping in tone. She wants to make sure that I can't back out. Smart! "This includes information about what happened to his mother."

"It's risky but it's the least manipulative path." Alice added, shoving her hands in her pockets. "My urge was to lead him on a merry goose chase."

"Denying him that challenge for instead a belief that your words will prove it to him. If you hadn't known impossible things yesterday, I would have been dubious of what you said." Goro smiled at her, eyes closed. Fake as fuck. Alice rolled her eyes while he couldn't see. "What are you planning to tell him?"

"That I know where the true Sayuri is. The one Madarame destroyed while Yusuke was baby. And that I know that because I saw where it was hung up afterwards." Alice watched the fog of her breath drift away in the January weather. She wished she had gotten Haru to say something, she could invite her to more. Work on getting her out of the closet and in a spat with her father. From there, Adachi would scramble. "We'll see if it's enough. If not, we steal Madarame's heart and show Yusuke the treasure with Madarame's confession."

"This feels lower impact than Kamoshida." Sophia chimed in and in a way, that was right. She was correcting the other direction. "Is this just about recruitment?"

"No. It's more than that. But I won't lie about recruitment mattering. I want to start squeezing Adachi's money." Alice reexplained, trying to keep her patience with Sophia's little game. "If we could just fight him now, I wouldn't bother."

"How dangerous was his Palace, then? I would like to know where my skills measure up based on what you saw." Goro had gone with the team on their first run to clear fan site requests, all vetted by Sophia. He was capable but his cohesion with the team left much to be desired. "I can take criticism."

"You'd die to the first Shadow. Everyone on the team would one on one." Alice wasn't sure about herself in that equation. She wasn't chancing it yet. "And if you all worked on teamwork, the second would finish off the survivors."

"It's inconvenient but Alice is at least good at understanding capabilities." Sophia's voice whined as they came to a stop in front of Kosei. Yusuke's coat flapped in the wind, showing how thin he was leaning against the sign for the school. "Going dark."

"Yeah." Alice whispered as she dropped the ear buds into her pocket again. She waved to Yusuke. "Glad you could fit us in! I know your teacher has high demands of your time."

"Yes, sensei said that I should try to expand my horizons however when I asked." Yusuke's steps were a little slow, dragging in the snow. Goro shot Alice a look as he circled to the other side of him, sandwiching the artist. If he fell, the two of them would have him. "Oh, we haven't met. You have quite a striking silhouette."

"I'm a new friend of Alice's. You can call me, Akechi. And you're Kitagawa, correct?" Goro's polite mask would do them until they got to the diner. "Do be careful, wouldn't want you to fall."

"I am. Are you also into art?" Yusuke framed Akechi in his fingers, making the pain in Alice's head twinge. "Oh, I'm sorry, I just was marveling at how your proportions would fit on a painting."

Didn't know anything like this happened.

"Akechi isn't one for flirting, Yusuke. He's not interested in people that way." Goro blinked several times at Alice in surprise. "I'm very good at getting to know people."

"You seem to be. I am here because I asked Alice a few questions about her fashion sense and she decided I would learn more by being here." Goro lied for her, keeping them on topic. Alice took the lead up the stairs to the table. "And I am ever studious."

"Studies are good, but i won't tolerate a tourist when we start talking." Yusuke's eyes narrowed on Goro, drawing a nervous chuckle from him. Alice dragged Yusuke to sit down. "Oh, I can't aff--"

"I got you. I invited you out." Alice cut him off, her finger resting on the buzzer to summon the waiter. "It's only polite."

"I suppose that means my food is also on you. You're very gracious." Goro was toying with her for this. She kicked him under the table, not hard enough to hurt. No matter how much she wished she had. "Alice, you're so cruel."

"Hm?" Yusuke tilted his head as he looked over the menu, his finger resting on his order. Alice buzzed the waiter, the three of them putting in orders. "How was Alice cruel?"

"I know Goro has money, so I punished him a little but I'm still getting his food." Alice checked her phone, seeing messages from Shiho and Sumire wishing them luck. She texted them to be ready for another infiltration soon. "I'm capricious but not cruel, thank you."

"I'll keep that in mind." Goro chuckled as he sipped at the burnt coffee this place served. Alice hadn't bothered with the risk, drinking water instead while Yusuke drank a juice that might taste good. I lived at Leblanc for six weeks and I'm a snob already. "Now, my understanding was this was about colors?"

"Yes, Alice's casual outfit should have been eye straining and yet she had managed to tone down the sharp contrast to only be eye catching. And I was considering what that meant when we met." Yusuke set down his phone, drawing three neon colors across the screen on a field of white. The phone was older, with a cracked screen but the art program was new. Madarame had priorities. it was a premium program but it wasn't meeting full capabilities with Yusuke's phone holding it back. "See, look at these. It's hard to keep looking because they all demand attention."

"Yes, I find Alice's aesthetic one that demands attention." Goro chuckled and she tapped him with her foot. Again. "Is that not the goal?"

"Not with your attitude. I wear the colors for me. And part of the problem is that you have these colors on pure white. Which I bet you knew." Alice tapped the fill tool, dropping a sea of black over the screen. The three neon colors became easier to look at, their colors glowing in the sea of night. "I also don't use neons."

"No, you use a more pastel coloring with them. But it's not that much different. It's a beacon in a way. These are useful for clothes but can I and should I use them in art?" Yusuke dragged the eraser across the screen, blotting out the work. "What's your thought on it Akechi?"

"Well, it depends. My understanding is that some art is hostile to the viewer. It isn't about being aesthetically pleasing but instead a challenge." Goro passed Yusuke his plate and Alice's money up to their server. The three bowed their heads, digging in for a moment. "What's the intent of your next piece?"

"I am unsure. I don't have a deadline quite yet, although sensei is likely to ask for a piece to do a check in on soon. Sometimes he get more demanding." Yusuke lifted the soup to his lips, slurping it in one motion. Alice wanted to kick Madarame's ass, drag him to the ground and make him apologize for reducing a person to this. Taking the boy's food. The starving artist act he pretended at was a joke. "He has been eagerly awaiting another piece."

"Has he?" Alice set aside her emptied plate, planting her feet. She nodded to Goro. "Is it because he needs to pass off more of your art as his own? Such as the piece with the sunset over the woods? Something concrete to match his current 'period?' Is that it?"

"Pardon, if I knew you would slander sensei, I wouldn't be here." Yusuke put his hand on Alice's shoulder and pushed. Even with more leverage he couldn’t move her. "Let me out."

"I suggest you think about what Alice said. How would she know what you're painting, Kitagawa?" Goro's wit was at least handy to have on her side. The fingers on Alice's shoulder relaxed. "I didn't know about that. You're hiding things."

"Saving my ammunition, Goro." Alice winked at him, turning her attention to Yusuke. He sunk against the seat, trembling. "Now, I know this sounds like I'm stalking you. It's weirder and stranger. Welcome to the second time I've lived this year."

"Hah! You're a stalker. I don't get why you have brought him to this or why he's helping but that's clear. I do not give my art to sensei, my art is my own." Yusuke shook his head, fingers tapping on the table in a staccato beat. Alice rolled her eyes at him, taking a sip of her water. "What do you want?"

"Oh, for you to be honest. Did you know the Sayuri image you've seen is doctored from the original artist's work?" Alice clinked her glass on the table, watching a bead of sweat drop down Yusuke's face. "I know this because I saw the real one that you hung up in a coffee shop, to honor the artist who would want it to be seen by common people not collectors."

"The Sayuri is a masterpiece, what do you mean it's doctored? Sensei painted that and it has been my guiding inspiration." Yusuke's thumb dug against the table and Alice knew she had him now. "What is the meaning of this?"

"We want the truth to come to light. Alice informed me of the loop, she knows things about me she should not. I learned one more earlier." Goro shot her a look and she flashed a peace sign at him. "Infuriating. She informed me of this fact, that the true Sayuri did not have the blue at the bottom. Underneath it is a signature and a child in her arms."

"I would know if that existed. I haven't seen the original in some time but..." Yusuke trailed off, his eyes jumping around the room. "What do you mean signature?"

"It's signed by the original artist. Tamiko Kitagawa, lost to a seizure when you were three. One that Madarame did not intervene in, so he could steal the Sayuri. From there, he began stealing the art of students." Alice filled in the truth, her hand on his wrist to keep him from sinking to the floor. "Well, I think he believes me. Want to see how we can get the original and make him admit it?"

"If it will make any of what you said make sense, I have little choice I think. You knew my mother's name. You knew a piece that hasn't been shown in public. You... what's going on?" Yusuke pulled himself up and Alice dragged him outside. She knew the Palace would explain the rest. "Where are we going?"

"Your sensei's heart."

-----

"This can't be how he views the world." Yusuke stared in horror at the painting of himself in the room. Shiho stood next to him, arms crossed. "This is about his mentorship of me. Of all of these students."

"I don't think so. If it was, wouldn't he also be here? Wouldn't it be like a visualization of him showing you a technique?" Shiho's hand rested on her pouch, where Alice knew Kamoshida' medal was. A reminder of the ownership Madarame and Kamoshida felt entitled to. "Right, Luna?"

"I think that his confession will make it all clear but yes." Alice added as she patrolled the doors and their laser tripwire. Sumire and Goro kept a pair of guns trained on the ceiling light they had taken in. "I've seen the real Sayuri. I've seen what he took from you."

"What he took..." Yusuke's leg bounced, his eyes going to Sophia's hair. "You wish to take his heart. Like Kamoshida."

"Correct. It will also collapse his involvement in a conspiracy. He launders money for them through the art world." Sophia tilted her head, looking over the painting of Yusuke. The eyes were obscured, the hands hidden in a blur of color. "I can corroborate Alice's claim that he murdered your mother through negligence as I watched his confession."

"His confession. There's a representation of him here, correct? May I speak to him?" Yusuke corrected his slump, sweeping the hair from his eyes. Alice reached towards the lasers. "Won't they hurt you?"

"Nope. And even so, I can take it. Alright everyone, eyes up, keep the guest safe. Going loud." Alice felt a thrill run through her as she slammed her hand into the lasers. The alarms started screeching, the Thieves scattering towards the doorways to cover them with guns. The doors ripped open, a guard beginning to morph. "Hi, I'd love to speak to your curator and you're not him. Candide!"

Alice snorted that this was the moment Yusuke's sketchbook came out, an exhausted man beating a security guard with his walking stick was the inspiration he needed and watned. Sumire and Sophia danced around a pair of Hua Po, tearing them to shreds with rapier and yo-yo alike. Shiho shot down a guard that Goro incinerated in the aftermath. Alice sighed, drew her gun and shot a painting in the next room. "I said, I wanted to see the curator!"

"You shouldn’t destroy art!" Yusuke shouted, moving to snag Alice. She dragged him down as Madarame's Shadow grabbed in the same direction, snatching at her hair. She let herself get dragged, fighting every urge to shoot him in this moment. "Sensei!"

Madarame's shadow was as gaudy as the exterior of the museum, golden robes and traditional makeup with penciled in lip liner. It was hideous, it wasn't a good contrast like Alice and Yusuke made on his phone. The shadow smirked, pulling on Alice's hair till she was behind him. "Vandals and thieves and stolen property. Yusuke, how could you let them steal you, you and all your art are mine."

"Sensei, what do you mean?" Yusuke fell to his ass, staring up. Alice's rage boiled inside her, spilling up into her mouth. "I share--"

"I take it, you know that. Why pretend? You're too pathetic to do anything about it. You don't even question your lack of food!" Madarame's shadow tried to drag Alice along and she dug her heels in. He grumbled and yanked. "This thief has some strength. Problematic."

Alice grit her teeth, holding up a hand as Shiho aimed a gun at the Shadow. Goro sneered at the shadow, "You think that because someone has been manipulated by you, that you own them? You're pathetic. Kitagawa, why would you tolerate this? Luna, why would you let him hold you?"

Alice rolled her eyes as Yusuke pushed himself to his feet. "You see art as stealing from others?"

"It's all a commodity to me! No one truly does art for the sake of it anymore, they do it for money. That's why you're so useful, you don't understand the value of art." Madarame jabbed a finger on his free hand at Yusuke, ink swirling around the fingernail. "Your art, my art, it's all just a way to accrue money. Any message is there to drive up the price."

"No. I refuse to believe that." Yusuke's clothes began to burn with blue flame. He shimmered in the light of his flames. Alice swept Madarame's Shadow, tumbling with him as he let go of her hair. She landed near Yusuke. He reached towards a forming mask on his face.

"You would seek to record the world for future generations. Show them hope lived even then, show the truth of your heart forevermore. Seal the contract with me and it shall be."

"I am thou, thou art I, Everhard!" Yusuke ripped away the familiar fox mask, the rest of his outfit following in the flash afterwards. A skeleton formed, her clothes made of journal pages. A translucent ice crystal formed around her. Shadows charged past the knocked down Palace Ruler. "Freeze them in place."

Everhard's ice encased the shadows, followed by the rest of the team shattering them. Madarame's Shadow disappeared in the flurry of crystals. Yusuke staggered afterwards, falling to his knee. "I wanted to ask about the painting. Why am I tired? Why didn't you break out?"

"Because I wanted him focused on taunting you so you did that. And I needed to quell my desire to kill him." Alice's stomach flopped, her hands running through her hair. She pulled Yusuke to his feet. He didn't need to know Madarame’s grip felt like Adachi's. He didn't need to know she was going to puke once she was out of this place. "Let's talk about getting you a confession."

------

Tight grips, ripped clothes, impossible demands. Screams ignored, muscles locked, bruises spreading.

Alice threw the blanket across the room, sweat drenching her in spite of the cold. Her stomach squeezed itself into knots, bile scraping at the back of her throat. She paced around the heater, her entire body screaming at her that she was in danger. She wasn't, not in the way her body expected. She ripped open the bag from the pharmacy, tapping out a pill into her hand and shoving it in her mouth and swallowing.

Anti-nausea medicine, I didn't miss taking you.

Alice's stomach wouldn't calm for half an hour. She grabbed clothes, sinking into her coat with her phone and ran to the bathhouse. She forced the lock and let herself in. She had done it enough times, she wondered why they bothered with it.

She sunk into the water, the sensation of water getting rid of the phantom sensations. She sunk in, letting her hair splay out from her head. Sophia kicked on the phone, meeting her eyes. "What is going on?"

"Fucked up memory." Alice sunk her mouth back under the water. The heat of the bath wicked away the sweat with scrubbing, with removing the feeling of Adachi and Kamoshida touching her. Sophia closed her eyes. "Thanks."

"I do not wish to see you naked when you stand up." Sophia's vitriol wasn't in it, but even then the statement put some relaxation into her. Because as much as Sophia hated her, the AI respected Alice's right to her body. "This is what you meant about Kamoshida putting you on the path?"

"Sophia. Drop this." Alice tilted her head back, staring into the darkness above. Sophia grumbled at her. "This is my limit. especially when--"

Alice fought down a retch, catching Sophia with eyes still closed. The AI hummed her song. "I wish to know, I am trying to spend effort to understand you."

"It's... I'm not willing to talk about this because it is literally hurting me right now." Alice dunked herself into the water, scrubbing her skin once more before her hair fell around her as a sopping mess. It didn't feel like her hair at the moment. "I'll let you threaten my life. I'll let you hate me. But this. This isn't your ammunition. This isn't something for you to pick and pry at. I wouldn't let Ann do that, why would I ever let you?"

"It's not to pick and pry, but fine." Sophia cut off the phone, off to sulk. Alice wiggled against the towel, racing the clock to get dry and dressed for the day. She didn't have the patience, not right now to explain how much talking about it was picking and prying. That it was all a pile of scabs this body had grown over.

She didn't have the scars anywhere but her mind. And they weren't going anywhere. And speaking of scars, there was one sticking out that she hadn't made progress on.

It was kind of terrifying to do. The final man who violated her, even if it was all good intentions. Defilted her rest, her body, the lives of everyone around her.

She was surprised he didn't remember because he still ruled existence at the time. She retched again, the medicine starting to numb the response as she made her way to the university and its coffee stand in the psych building.

Doctor Takuto Maruki dropped an unopened sugar packet into his coffee drink. Alice hated that this man was a world ending threat and brought her back from the dead. He was a bumbling idiot and somehow the most powerful man in existence. She stepped into line and looked to him. "What'd you get?"

"Oh, just black coffee. Wait, you really don't have to." Maruki tried to intervene but she already held up two fingers, sending yen across. "It was fine, I could have fished it out."

"Probably, consider it my capricious gift to you." Alice bit her lip, wondering if at this moment he was capable of everything. If he'd fight to the last to take away the world's choices for their own good. To sand off all the edges, leave life too smooth to be experienced. She handed him his coffee, doctoring her own in moments with sugar and creamer. She needed to make her own, Sojiro ruined her. "You're that guy near Wakaba."

"You're that girl she was surprised about. Sorry, it took me a moment." Maruki tore the packet first this time, managing to add it to his coffee. "One time is coincidence, two times isn't."

"First time was an accident, this time's intentional. So correct, technically." Alice didn't sip at her coffee, her body wasn't ready for anything right now. "I was curious, about something that Wakaba mentioned and asked me about. I was going to ask her, figure you'll do."

"Well, you're a curious girl, aren't you? Although, I should probably get your name to be polite." Maruki rubbed the back of his head, blowing on the coffee as it steamed up his glasses. "I'm Doctor Takuto Maruki, I advise a little on Doctor Isshiki's research. I was doing my own but grants fell through."

"Alice, and I am a Shujin student. I like rooting around." Alice followed Maruki on his meandering path through the building. Maruki shot her a dubious look, making her stomach turn. It looked almost like his sad puppy dog face he got when she told him to let her die. "Like I said, inspiration's everywhere. I was wondering what that trigger she mentioned was. Because she asked me about what happened at my school."

"The Calling Card. Something from the Phantom Thieves." Maruki had been paying attention to that, made sense with cognitive pscience. "It's similar to something from our research. Trigger's probably not the best word, given it's association with post traumatic stress."

"No fucking kidding, holy shit." Alice rolled her eyes at Maruki's chuckle. "Teenage girls cursing do it for you?"

"I admire the fact you spoke your mind, I do not have thoughts about teenage girls like that. So many knowledge seekers hide that when they come looking. Says you're more free about this than most. Says your mind is strong enough to take rejection." Ugh, not this again. Maruki lingered in front of an office door. "I got distracted from what you asked about. So, there's ways to remind people of things with a stimulus. Like certain smells or sensations, they make you go back to a memory. Well this is a more... esoteric method of that."

"Telling him what he did and how they'd steal his conscience back was part of that?" Alice checked the lettering on the door for his tiny name, he wasn't employed there at a high level. Wakaba's death hadn't taken this from him. He was just like that. "Then, what? You can remind people they're an asshole all the time, doesn't make them nice."

"Well, that's the thing, we don't always interpret that remarks as serious. These missives, they make it have weight." Maruki was explaining things she knew but she wanted to get him to talk. "These are about removing a distraction from the truth of what they're doing, but whatever the method, we could remove the sources of trauma. Make them unaffected by it."

"I guess? Seems like a leap." Alice tried to not crush her cup, it would hurt to have all that awful coffee run across her skin. "Because, isn't part of getting hurt learning to not let it happen again?"

"That's getting hurt, not trauma. Trauma's deeper, disruptive. We can treat trauma but it can come back all the time. But if you remove it, you remove the effects." Maruki smiled at her, eyes brimming with joy. And she hated it. "Does that make sense?"

"It does, except you're taking something from them. You're stealing a part of their life and they aren't getting anything back." Alice shook her head at him, feeling a little surge of annoyance. "Wouldn't it be less traumatic than taking part of their life away to make them able to deal with it?"

"That's what we do now. It has a shaky track record." Maruki's smile died down to a gentle one. Like an adult lecturing a toddler. "And taking away the trauma is like removing an infection. it might cause a bit of damage in the process but it prevents the infection from spreading."

"I'll think about that. But, I do need to go to school soon." Alice offered her hand, feeling a little tremor in her stomach about this. Maruki tilted his head. "I found this enlightening. Gave me some pattern ideas. I'd like to talk more about your research, it was inspiring."

"Oh! You were arguing so much, I thought you hated it." I do. But I'm stopping this. Next stop, Rumi. "I'll admit sharpening the use case there was useful. And you have a knack for the subject. If you'll let me discuss this more deeply with you and don't get bored, I'm thrilled to agree."

"I'll be your rubber duck on this." Alice shook his hand, her stomach churning. She knew she had picked this path. But she didn't want to go through all of what they did again. All the grief and progress gone in a heartbeat.

The sacrilegious path before you
Reeks of old blood
The Tower will help you
Avoid your old pitfalls

Of course, him. He would be a bond from that conversation.

"Sounds good, Alice. I'll message you." Maruki held up the business card Alice slipped him, one for a fashion design website she had launched, a little way to give her number out and engage in her art again. "Also, are you doing alright? Your skin is rubbed raw."

"I'm peachy, thanks for asking." It took all of Alice's energy to push back on her urge to snarl and fight. She'd have to be careful. He was a conniving worm of a man who sought out your weaknesses. "Have a good day, doctor. Thank you again for answering my questions."

"And thank you for the insight." Maruki let her walk away. He didn't have those damned grasping tendrils yet. The goal was to make sure he didn't.

She shivered as she walked away, her mind scrambling to tamp down everything from January. She wanted peace, she wanted to be dead, in some stupid way she had been at peace with her body when she was dying and he ripped that away. Changed her body as he dragged her back to fix things. The only good thing was that she dragged Sumire back to herself and that was gone.

No. She saw Ann more. She and Ann had peace. They were almost happy. And that was gone too. It was always going to die however.

Am I just doing all of this to keep us both from trying to die?

Chapter Text

"As you said, fake." Yusuke tossed the shroud back over the painting of the rude face that Madarame’s shadow had sketched. He shook his head, a thin line of disappointment slashed across his face. He hopped out of the window to overlook the museum courtyard, one hand on his blade and the other holding tight to the turnabout bait. Alice tried to not look at the spire of the main museum, knowing it was the best vantage point to keep an eye on the team, she knew Ann would be there if she was watching. "His artistic skill has diminished in only copying for so long."

"It has, something to keep in mind I’d guess." Alice whispered to herself as they jumped down the steps. She wasn't sure if she was treading Ann's old steps or not with some of them. She knew she was with Goro at least. But it was right to get him to not wear that stupid cheery mask. Alice glanced to the man in question and his sentinel point above the courtyard. "Now, remember, Fox and I hit the trap. The rest of you need to jump Madarame, so wait here."

"Let's see how impressive that foresight of yours is." Goro's hand went to his mask, Montag shimmering behind him. Shiho and Parker waited as well, weapons at the ready. Sophia and Sumire were already embedded around the edge of the fence. "I'm surprised Avenger isn't keeping an eye on you."

"She's better up close." Shiho answered as Alice and Yusuke jumped together, landing on a Shadow apiece and hacking into them. The two of them leapt right into the mark in the center, electric fences springing into place.

"Only two of you this time. Thieves are generally poor at staying together, aren't they?" Madarame cackled as his wooden sandals clacked across the pavement. Yusuke spun towards him, painting under his arm. "You've come to try and steal from me as she's stolen you from me. But like so much of your work, this effort feels uninspired."

"I've come to set you free from the chains you wrapped yourself in, Sensei." Yusuke's foot edged forward, free hand gripping the hilt of his sword. Madarame laughed, his head raised to the heavens and refusing to look at him. "You believe that art is something only with material worth and so you have let your lack of inspiration rule your heart."

"And, we needed you here since you wouldn't leave the real treasure unguarded." Alice threw the shroud into the electric fencing, incinerating it on contact. Madarame's shadow shrieked at the sudden explosion of smoke from where it struck. A yo-yo wrapped his ankle, dragging him to the ground as Sumire's sword went to his neck. Shadow guards rushed in, only to be evaporated in fire and nuclear energy from on high. Alice rolled her neck, the team was getting better. She didn’t have any temptation to step in and wipe out the Shadows. She gave Yusuke a boost up and over the fence to land near Madarame. He flicked his katana towards the man's midsection, his eyes steeling up. "Confirm something for me, your life depends on it. Who painted the Sayuri?"

Last time, Madarame confessed to try and break Yusuke. This time they had the upper hand, the burden and gift of knowledge.

"I-I-" Madarame's shadow began to pulse, ripping itself into four paintings: eyes, nose and mouth. Yusuke's sword pierced the nose while Sophia bludgeoned it. Electricity danced across the mouth as Goro and Shiho fired two more sniper shots. "You, how?"

"You always assume you know more than me. You assume that we're blind because you tried to blind me." Yusuke ripped his sword back, sheathing it in the same motion. The paintings fell back into a bruised Madarame. "Now. Answer my question. Who painted it?"

"... your mother. It was an almost perfect painting. Too obvious, not subtle enough. One edit." Madarame gasped, reaching into his robe. Fire crackled around the spot inside and Yusuke jumped back as the robe immolated. Sophia scruffed the scammer, flames and all. "Stop!"

"You were going to hurt an innocent, your student. I am durable to flame. Please stop." Sophia held Madarame up in the air, away from everyone. Alice chuckled, it was one way to keep him from making clones. "Luna, are you going to keep letting us do all the work?"

"Hm, it's really Fox's catharsis. And you all did admirably." Alice hauled herself up on the pylon, touching her mask. "But I think I can put out these flames, Ame-no Uzume!"

A wave of chilled air stole the flame's energy, whisking it into the sky. She landed next to Madarame, hand to his cheek. It’d be so easy to strangle him and end him for all he’s done. She could snap his neck, for daring to grab her like he had. For starving Yusuke. For murdering woman after woman. "Now. Give your student his birthright. Where is it?"

"Inner pocket!"

-----

"You either scouted his shadow in a way that he couldn't remember or you know the future. Either way, I now have this." Yusuke rested the true Sayuri on his knee, lounging on the bench in front of Shibuya terminal. Alice crossed her legs, stretching her arms to the side. "I have to ask, why you sought me out for this. I know that you said he was a part of a conspiracy. You could have all done this and gotten me a confession, never involved me."

"Could have. Didn't sit right. I think the personal skin in the game is what makes it matter to me. We could have called him any number of things in that calling card, but the rage over your treatment? That was all you." Alice tapped the bench, chewing on her thoughts. "And I saw how you fought last time. How you fought me and for me once. And so if they continue, you would be good for them. Your eye for changes in detail works well for you in a fight. And, quite frankly, you're calm and it helps with how rowdy some of them get. Finally, you seemed to care about the justice they got."

"Hmmm. I see." Yusuke tilted the Sayuri back and forth, studying the brushwork of the child along the bottom. The truth hidden from him now visible again. "And you want me to have that chance again. Or do you think I want to give others the chance for their own justice?"

"I think that it's up to you if you stay with us. I know what I want, but it's what you want in the end. If you just want to walk off with the Sayuri, knowing you avenged your mom? I'd get it." Alice stretched her legs out, tapping her heels on the salted pavement. Yusuke looked at her. "I explained everything I had done and they're still here. You're questioning it. You should."

"I'm questioning what my reason to stay is. And it's more than just justice. Sensei called my work uninspired. He knew it was lacking something." Yusuke pulled the Sayuri to his chest, cradling it. Maybe trying to absorb its power. "I think that perhaps I was lacking inspiration because I was in a sense working in a factory for art. And Palaces reflect the inner realm of a person. Their own truth, overlaid. And before we purge it, I could record it."

"If that's what floats your boat, sure. I'll even help you by keeping an eye out while you do so." Alice affixed Yusuke in her sight, a smile on her lips. He nodded his head and stood up. "That's all?"

The sacrilegious path before you
Reeks of old blood
The Emperor will help you
Avoid your old pitfalls

"Yes. I have to figure out what I'm doing now. The other student in the home will also be affected. Sensei had been more demanding and Nakanohara has been close to quitting and going into non artistic pursuits. I think before I met you, I would have blamed him." Yusuke lingered at the intersection, the path to the atelier. "Your story tells me that perhaps one shouldn't judge a first impression. I will see you Alice. And I expect you to find me good vistas to interpret."

"Oh, I will." Alice waved to Yusuke's back and snapped her head up to pull out her phone and headphones. Sophia blinked at her from within the screen. "Hey there, thanks for not fighting on the plan."

"I know that Goro has historically been willing to fight and disagree with you. This has born out in his willingness to push back on your plans in Madarame's Palace despite his apparent respect for your leadership and prowess." Sophia's voice was drier than normal, flat as the surface of a pond. She was trying to tamp something down. "I don't like that I trusted it."

"Course not, it's dangerously close to trusting me." Alice pushed off the bench, yawning as she walked towards the subway and home. Sophia huffed and looked towards the side. "You never have to trust me, you only have to trust the people who stopped me before. I'm going to do my thing and I'm going to arm them. To fight me or Ann or anyone else."

"I do not think they will fight you, which is frustrating." Sophia's voice lost its flatness, her anger unleashing her emotion. "You are a dangerous woman. But they only see you as this breaker of chains on their life."

"Because they haven't really gotten a full view of what I can do. And because I am doing everything in my power to not show them that." Alice heard the click of Sophia locking the phone. Her way of hanging up. Alice flicked the device to her music, starting it up as she rode towards Yongen. "In case you can hear me right now, you don't want me to prove to them why they should be afraid of me beyond my own confession. You don't want me to put my money where my mouth is."

The music didn't get interrupted. Her final little salvo didn't come through. She yawned, keeping an eye out for anybody with the bright idea to harass her or the brown haired girl in a ponytail nearby. A man began to move towards Kasumi, licking his lips. Alice grit her teeth and pulled herself forward, settling a few centimeters behind. Her hand snaked out, grabbing his wrist as his hand wandered towards the gymnast. "No, you don't."

The man grimaced as she pressed her thumb into his wrist, right near the pain point. "You b-bitch."

"W-woah, what's going on?" Kasumi looked over her shoulder, shock in her eyes as she began to put the situation together. "Alice, I don't think you need to do that."

"I think I do. You're going to find a new train car." Alice threw his hand back at him, the man's face contorting in pain as blood flow returned to his hand. He snarled, starting to form a fist. "You do that and I'm going to drag you off the train personally."

"Fuckin' tranny." The man muttered, disappearing into the crust of people around them. Kasumi formed a fist of her own, which was kind of her to do in response to the slur.

Wish I got this shit the first time again. Might have just took the destruction of my career instead of well, the shit that might have gotten me here.

"You good?" Alice kept her eyes on the direction that had absorbed the asshole. Kasumi grunted in agreement. "Good. Sadly you have to keep an eye out for people like him."

"I am, thank you so much. I hadn't expected that. Or for you to do anything about it." Kasumi flicked the end of her ponytail, staring out the window for a moment. "Hey, has something been going on with Sumire? She's acting different."

"Is different bad?" Alice drifted towards the door, Kasumi dogging her steps. She'd hoped to leave a cryptic question and leave. Yet, here she was with a new Yoshizawa following her as she departed to head home. "Come on, if you're going to decide to follow me home you should answer my questions."

"Well, some of it is good. She's in a less mopey mood, she's a bit more confident. Best I can tell is you started spending time with her." Kasumi hopped up to grab onto a light pole and swing around it for a moment before landing ahead of Alice. "But she's not trying as hard in practice and our coach is noticing. We had a big goal and I want to do it with her. And if she's slacking, we can't."

"Okay, she has been hanging out with me, that I can tell you. But have you checked with her about this?" Alice rolled her eyes, the fatigue of being around Madarame and not killing him for treating her like Adachi had was settling into her bones."Because I think she's going to be way more honest with you than me."

Okay, that's a lie.

"I have asked her. She says she's been thinking about trying other sports. But then we won't go to the Olympics together." Kasumi pressed her knuckles to her hips, glaring as Alice began to pass her. "Did you tell her to give up on our dream?"

"I've told her that she needs to stop comparing herself to you all the time." Alice put her hand on the door handle for Leblanc, for home. She didn't like that it already felt like home. Kasumi blinked at her like Alice was the idiot here. "She compares herself to you. Too much. I told her to try out things that were Sumire and not Kasumi. I know you have this shared dream, but she was tearing herself up."

"What do you mean she was tearing herself up? She's always so good. She's always just a step behind me." Kasumi's lack of self awareness about her wording made Alice want to slap her and point out that was how Sumire spiraled from the beginning. "I know you think you're helping but she's losing focus on gymnastics."

"Okay, your point?" Alice pulled open the door, walking inside. She could hear Kasumi's boots thud after her. Damn it. Sojiro waved from behind the counter. "Hey Sojiro. Need help back there?"

"Yeah, sure do." Sojiro glanced to where Kasumi was fuming at the counter. Alice took the moment to throw her coat on the rack and grab an apron, heading behind the bar. "What can I get you miss?"

"I was trying to have a conversation with Alice." Kasumi glared at Alice, tracing her hand along the bar as she paced. Alice did her best to focus on tying the apron and not screaming. "Stay away from Sumire, you're poisoning her."

"Ugh, talk to her. Order a curry or go." Alice tightened the knot on the apron, cutting off her own breath for a moment with the sudden constriction. Kasumi stomped and turned and left. Sojiro chuckled at her as he passed her beans to grind. "What's so funny?"

"See you're breaking hearts already. Don't know if I should be proud or disappointed in you for that fact." Sojiro moved to the siphons, dropping in a fresh filter. Alice rolled her eyes at him. "I'm serious, not often you get the sister telling you to break up."

"I'm not dating Sumire, old man." Alice's barb drew a smile from the man before he frowned at her again. "I'm telling you, it's not that. Those sisters just don't talk about their shit. Not in a way where they hear each other."

"Clearly, something is wrong there." Sojiro took the grinds, starting the process of making vacuum in the siphon. "You sticking your nose in teenager business instead of an adult's?"

"Like you're an adult sticking your nose in a teen's?" Alice hated how fun it was to trade these harmless barbs with Sojiro. He busied himself with setting up a mug. "And, yeah, Sumire's my friend, so I'm going to look after her."

"Clearly. Well, what's your problem with her sister then, if this has you going behind the counter to get out of it." Sojiro could stand to be a little less observant in Alice's opinion. Teenagers were supposed to avoid conflict, weren't they? "I know your folks acted like you were like a young me, but that's exactly how I ditched more than a few angry exes."

"Kasumi is focused on a promise the two of them made and isn't considering if that's something Sumire is happy doing. Sumire's trying a little less at it or whatever." Alice cut the heat, watching the vacuum reverse and fill the flask with coffee in a few seconds. "Girl is sixteen, let her figure it out."

"You got onto me for treating you like a kid." Sojiro decanted the flask into the cup and pushed it into Alice's hand. She sipped at it while shooting him a look. "You see a customer?"

"No. Fuck you." Alice stuck her tongue out and Sojiro rolled his eyes. "And if you told me, 'hey don't start determining your future right now' I would get that."

"Yeah, okay. So their goal is big and life changing then. Look you're not going to make that girl accept the change in her life without her sister saying something. And even then, it might still fall on deaf ears." Sojiro decanted a second cup, joining Alice in the indulgence. "You know that's the problem with big plans: they get changed on you when you don't expect it. In ways you can't expect."

"Telling me." Alice sipped at her coffee, wishing she didn't have the world's best insight into that. For herself, for Sumire, for everyone in her life right now. Sojiro took her empty cup. "You know, does the coffee shop come with the wisdom and insight?"

"Nope, that comes with being old and nosy even when I should know better." Sojiro chuckled as he dunked the mugs into the sink. Alice busied herself clearing the filters into the compost bins. "So, when you get old and tired of designing clothes, you can open your own coffee shop and tell some whippersnapper things they half know already."

"Hey, you make it feel less crazy. You didn't dismiss why I was being driven up the wall by Kasumi." Alice and Sojiro changed places, the sink carrying away the bits of grime and oil from the filter holder that a shake couldn't get. "So, thanks."

"Really, all it takes to get a thanks from you?" Sojiro shook his head as worked to clean the grinders out next, a small flurry of grinds raining into the compost. "I should have told you non Alice Hiiragi teenagers were stupid sooner."

"Hey, I'm sure some of them are smart. Like Futaba." Alice was glad she wasn't looking at Sojiro to reveal the wince that streaked across her face. She turned to him staring at her. "Look, you're not her dad, but it's pretty clear you're her dad. You get me?"

"N-nonsense." Sojiro flushed red with embarrassment and Alice had to fight to not laugh at how she managed to shoot the both of them. "Maybe you're a menace actually."

"Maybe." Alice untied the apron, flipping the sign to closed on the door. "But, you are one too."

"You got me, I guess. Go to bed." Sojiro grumbled, pointing upstairs. He laughed when she flounced her way up there.

-----

"So your plan is to see if Adachi cries this much this time too?" Ann locked her phone, sealing away the picture of Madarame. Alice offered her hand to Ann, the killer hesitating before taking it. "Not an answer, you know that. Right?"

"Cause I don't know how his change of heart went." Alice interlaced her fingers with Ann's and waited, until they clasped her hand to clasp her own. Ann's thumb dug into the back of her hand. "A lot happened, a lot I don't plan on letting repeat."

"Like, what? I thought you said I changed his heart." Ann's thumb continued its effort to burrow into Alice's hand. "I am trusting you with my life, more than I want! You can't act like you weren't--"

"I wasn't. Because I died and you couldn't let go of me." Alice tightened her grip as Ann began to pull away. She moved to face her. "You think that I'm doing all this to try and help you, out of what, just rage at Adachi? Because it's so much more than that."

"You're doing it for her, the pure one of me. My hands are bloody, like yours were." Ann went to slap Alice, stopped by the forearm. "Whatever fee--"

"Shut the fuck up for three seconds. You saw something in me when I was far worse than you are now. I know how fucking luminous you can be." Alice hooked her arm around Ann's stopping the next strike before it could start. Their feet danced around each other in the close quarters they were in. "I don't expect you to be the same, but I know how good you can be. How strong and terrifying. We danced around each other, like we are now. Until I got myself killed. For you. And you didn't let go and got me a second chance. So I'm doing that now. Without more people dying. You can talk about how evil you are all you want, but you're giving my way a shot."

"I fucking hate you, you know that?" Ann's hand twisted, grabbing Alice's back and dragging them close together again. "Maybe I don't want to be bright? Huh?"

"Maybe you do, maybe you don't. But, you're never going to know it while you're trapped with Adachi." Alice leaned close, Ann’s lips an enticing breath away. "And even if you hate me, you still want to be here with me. Because right now, I hate how stubborn you are in clinging to this idea I'm clean."

"That's the most frustrating thing about you, you know that?" Ann darted in, biting Alice's lip and pulling. Her heart beat in her chest, her arms tightening their hold on Ann to keep this going. She didn’t dare let go until Ann stopped biting her. "How can you say all this stuff and sound so earnest?"

"Because it is." Alice untangled their limbs, wiping the thin trickle of blood where Ann had torn her lip with her teeth. "I'm pretty sure all of what we are is hating and loving each other. It's just different reasons this time. Because I'm getting jealous of what you got and I'm sure you get jealous of what I'm getting now."

"Yeah. I am. You get to hang out with Shiho. You get to see her and I don't, because if I spend too much time around her Adachi will notice." Ann softened, her scowl dying into a long held look of concern. The one Alice saw the moment they arrived at the hospital together. "And you can take his attention, you already did. She can't."

"I didn't handle it and neither were you. Maybe now, with an actual plan you are." Alice admitted, her hand offered in peace. "As for Shiho, sure, you can't fucking hang with her here. But you realize, you have a whole other world to go to?"

"I... do. And you told her, didn't you?" Ann crossed her arms, fingers hovering over her arms. Her blue eyes traced the black gloves on Alice's hand. "Why did you?"

"Because, lying killed me. Made me hate myself. When a person hears all your trauma and points out you could have avoided so much of it by letting the world know you have a dick?" Alice wiggled her fingers at Ann, her invitation clear. Ann took the hand, the two of them setting off from the building they had met in. "I don't know if that's the dirt Adachi has on you. I assume it is."

Ann didn't say anything, squeezing Alice's hand tight. "He has more. Video."

Alice kept walking her hand squeezing Ann's tighter, her chest twisting with rage. She wanted to go to Adachi's Palace right then, the two of them. Rip through it. It was one thing for herself to be exposed to all those she harmed. Ann had hurt Sophia, but it wasn't malice. Alice looked to Ann, "The moment the team is ready? We're going in. Okay?"

"... not a moment later. I can deal with Adachi if you keep tightening the noose on him. He's losing his mind already." Ann sped up her pace to keep up with Alice. "He wants to know how. I think he's going to go down the list to another person studying it. And when he finds them, he'll want them dead."

"I know who it is. And as much as I hate him, no." Alice settled into line for the crepe shop, ordering Ann's favorite before she could. The blonde glared at her, her brow furrowed. "He's not evil. He's a fucking idiot who thinks he can control the path of people's lives as a force of benevolence. He isn't. Only treasure I stole before this life."

"And Adachi's going to come down on me if I don't kill him when he asks about it?" Ann whispered and Alice could feel her heart thud in her chest. She hated that she better understood Maruki now. "So, what's your plan then?"

"Make you a deal. We'll start his Palace next. And if you can find your way in, I'll fight you there." Alice whispered as she passed the hot chocolate back, a drizzle of fudge for Ann in there. Cayenne for herself as they took a seat at the table. It was cold but not unbearable as February spread its cloud cover. "You can try and kill me even. But I win, he lives. And well, I figure you'll fight to kill me."

"Oh, it's tempting after earlier." Ann sipped at her drink, a smile forming and fading. Hah! Alice hummed as she took a bite of her crepe, smiling at Ann. "Making it more tempting."

"Oh, I bet. You look good trying to kill me. Bonus for me." Alice blew a kiss at Ann, enjoying the tinge of red it summoned to the girl's cheeks. "But I also told you, no more dying if I can help it. So when I win, you tell Adachi that we stopped you."

"Cocky. Looks good on you, honestly." Ann set down her drink, a smile on her face. "Now, when I win, who says I'm going to kill you? Maybe I want to take you home, keep you as my little bunny?"

"Don't call me that." Alice's voice flared with anger, the old voice slipping through. The one taunting targets before she put a bullet through their head. "You want me to kill you, you'll keep calling me that. Because I won't see Ann. I'll see Adachi."

"... point taken." Ann shrunk in on herself, her food left in shambles. Alice sighed and pushed the paper plate closer. "I don't want to--"

"And I explained how not to be like our shared sack of shit. Don't fucking spiral over that." Alice grumbled and Ann took a bite, a smile on her face. "Still Ann, you like it when I tell you what to do."

"Shut up!" Ann laughed and Alice joined in with her. The two ate and drank in silence for a few minutes. "You mentioned I might be jealous, why?"

"Because every bit of kindness that I randomly get, every benefit of the doubt? I fucking get that much more angry. That I'm getting it, when you aren't. When you did. I feel like I stole your life, lover." Alice's arms rested on the table, gazing into Ann's eyes. "I had a real Christmas. Something that I never got last time." You fucking my brains out in a bathhouse doesn't count. "And you had a Christmas party with Adachi. I know how that goes."

"And you got fucking sappy. You don't think I won't take advantage when we fight? That I won't use it to make you kneel for me?" Ann recovered from her sulk, a purr in her voice. A deflection from the fact that she was pushing down on the jealousy. "Oh, Alice, I'm so glad to finally see you as you are and you to see me as I am. We can run off hand in blood soaked hand."

"You think I'm going to make it easy just because I care?" Alice reached out and grabbed Ann's chin, pinching it until a smile formed on the face. "Oh lover, you haven't seen me go all out. Give me a kiss?"

"Take it." Ann whispered and Alice had to oblige such a wish. They both knew how much that meant. That it was trust, even if Ann couldn't fathom why. Alice took Ann's lips, soft and gentle this time. Her hand cupped Ann's chin now, a slow insistence that led to Ann kissing her back. Tongues toying with lips, a little bit of Alice's blood for Ann in the exchange as the cut reopened. "Trying to make a blood pact?"

"Sexy, so yes." Alice let out a sigh, smiling. "Good date?"

"Yeah. Even though it's not done yet." Ann stood up, hand out to Alice. And that's how Alice knew she was winning.

------

"Hiiragi." Makoto stood at the gate, arms crossed. back in her more femme jacket, a far cry from the butch she would be one day. "I need to talk to you. About the calling cards."

"Cool, you can walk with me and talk about it. I have somewhere to be." Alice shouldered her bag, speedwalking towards the station. Makoto kept pace with ease, her eyes on the horizon. "What do you want to talk about with the calling cards?"

"I have reason to believe that you were the one who distributed them. You were feuding with Kamoshida, it was known. He filed several disciplinary actions about your hair and 'distracting the team.' And shortly after that, the calling card appears and his behavior changes." Makoto laid out her case, just like a prosecutor. Just like her sister did. "So, what did you do to him? Because you must have threatened him."

"Really, I must have? Strange." Alice yawned as she waited at the top of the stairs. Makoto's red eyes burned with misplaced righteousness. "Because, you know, the calling card was pretty true. He was abusing the team, he tried to get me to do sexual favors for him. He admitted to breaking Ryuji's leg."

"But, he's a teacher. Why would he do that?" Makoto kept up the intense stare and Alice wanted to grab and shake her. "Plus you have a rec--"

"I plead guilty to assault because the man who was doing worse made sure I couldn't fight back with money. You know, your sister made sure I wanted to admit to it." Alice snarled and that made Makoto break eye contact. "You know I didn't do anything to him because I annihilated that man's balls with a kick. If I was going to hurt Kamoshida, I would have ended him."

"You... you're a violent criminal. How are you allowed to stay at the school when you talk like that? With your hair?" Makoto formed fists and Alice grounded her feet, staring down the woman. "How can you say something like that so casually?"

"Because, there's a lot of bad people out there, Makoto. Because they deserve to be stopped. That's why I can say it so casually. And I'm allowed here because I bet someone wants me under their watchful eye." Alice raised her hands, remembering that Makoto had always favored opening a fight with a right hook. Makoto reached up and tucked her hair behind her head. "If you have a problem with me, you can try and get me in detention."

"I'm sure you'll slip up. But speaking of detention, you are needed for one. Tomorrow." Makoto pulled a slip from the pouches on her bag, holding it out to Alice. She groaned, taking it. "And I will be making sure you're there. On time."

"Sure." Alice rolled her eyes and started down the stairs. That was inconvenient. Tomorrow was when the Thieves were free. She popped in a headphone. "Hey Sophia."

"I heard. What is your plan?" Sophia asked, her voice terse. "We are trying to prevent Maruki’s death, correct? Detention seems counterproductive to this."

"We are. Of course everything around Maruki is a damn pain in the ass." Alice pushed a hand through her hair, ruffling it. She hummed for a moment as she boarded the subway. "See, I don't think there's much of anyone we could recruit by going to Maruki's Palace. He's just going to be bummed about his girlfriend and in his own head about it. He hasn't wiped her memory yet."

Alice's burner buzzed.

Futaba: Haiiiiii ^_^ mom’s coworker is kinda supes sad

"Son of a bitch. Sophia, I thought you told me she couldn't bug this phone." Alice clicked open the phone to show the message to her other phone's camera. Sophia sighed. "You said it was clear."

"I did. I'm not sure how she gained access. She has tried forty seven intrusion attempts on this phone." Sophia gave a lower number than Alice expected. “Today.”

Futaba: Alice, I know what you are! you’re a lesbian who saved mom

"Futaba, I'm not happy about your putting yourself in my phone." Alice gripped tight onto the bar of the subway, riding it towards the hospital. She had planned to start working on putting herself in Maruki's cognition because any hope of breaking his Palace naturally was leaving.

Futaba: okay, but you were being shady and I had to check and then you and your AI changed mom's heart and keep arguing about your time travel antics.

"This is not ideal, but she was a good Phantom Thief. And you don't have to explain everything to her it reads like..." Sophia trailed off, the implication clear. She wished Futaba cared about the past.

"Futaba, how much do you know about the last run?" Alice's head pounded as she rolled down the subway line. Sophia made a face at her, furrowed brows.

Futaba: yeah, you fucked up last time and that's why you knew to save mom now. like, you're doing the time travel thing to prevent problems! soooooo, let me help!

Alice paused, her heart hurting. She wanted Futaba no where near the team, because she deserved none of this. "And you realize what happened last time? What I did?"

"She has to if she is aware. Wakaba is a point of contention frequently." Sophia frowned, tugging on her wrist. Alice wanted to explode.

Futaba: yeah, you were an idiot, talked about it already. but she's alive now. and you were guilty about her. so. let me help. i know that I'm not the most social or anything but Doctor Maruki has to have hackable computers. i can help! I've read mom's research too!

"Fine. Let me talk to the team, because you haven't come up. But. That will have to be after detention tomorrow." Alice stopped in front of the hospital doors, biting her lip. Sophia let out a long sigh. "Yeah, I know Sophia. I don't get it either."

Futaba: you have Sophia to keep an eye on you and not believe in you and I can do that and believe in you. c'mooooon Sophia.

"... Fine." Sophia grumbled, kicking static into Alice's headphones. She wasn't as malicious but she was frustrated still. It was improvement. In a way.

"She's okay with it. Now, please both of you tune out, this is going to be very private." Alice turned her burner off, locking the other phone. She went up to Rumi's room, the number burned into her memory from the video tapes.

She opened the door, the room filled with soft music. Easy listening. Gentle and soft. Mind numbing in a way. Rumi sat up in her bed, staring at the wall ahead of her. Her hair was clean, her lips kept tight. Catatonic. It was haunting, how her eyes couldn't move. Or wouldn't. They didn't react as Alice walked by. Or took a seat. If her chest wasn't moving, Alice would have thought she was dead.

She hated that maybe Maruki made sense if he was willing to cut himself out to spare Rumi this.

"Hey, Rumi. I am beyond unsure how much you can understand of me. If you're perceiving me, I'm sure you're confused as to who I am." Alice took a seat in the chair, finding a snack wrapper tucked into the space between cushion and frame. Maruki had been visiting, that was for sure. "I know things I probably shouldn't. It's not really fair to you that I do. I'm sorry about that."

"But, uh, ugh, I'm not usually one to talk about this. I know you got attacked. Everything, all your control taken away by them." Alice squeezed her eyes shut and set her hand on Rumi's bedrail, holding onto it for dear life. "I had mine taken too. Time and again and I let it grind me down too. Let it shove me in a box. But, I'm pushing my way out now. It's hard. I still get freaked out. But, it's better. I don't know if it's because circumstances changed or not, but I think it's at least a bit because I'm trying to see others. Trying to do stuff. I know it sounds flippant but it was a hard time. It is a hard time."

"Uh, I hope you can hear this. I hope you can understand I'm rooting for you. That I want to spend time with you and get to know you, more than how you are now." Alice forced her eyes open to a blazing blur in her eyes. She swallowed, fighting it. "I mean, this is lifechanging. Don't think I don't know that, I've been a victim. I want to know what else is there. Because it probably feels to you like this is eternal. It isn't. I'll see you again. Thanks for listening."

The sacrilegious path before you
Reeks of old blood
The Hermit will help you
Avoid your old pitfalls

Chapter Text

Shiho paced outside the classroom, long before the bell was going to let Alice out. Each time Alice glanced over, the girl was tightening more and more. Alice checked her phone, the screen filled with messages from the woman. All of them were zeroed in on the same person, Ann. A small reaching out but enough to make Shiho spiral about it. Which only made Alice want to burst out and try to calm her down.

Wonder if Ann had to do this about me, ever. Probably more than I wanted.

"Goro, I'm going to handle whatever that is. Meeting after my detention." Alice whispered as she began to gather her things. He craned his neck towards the window and she held up her hand. "Don't look. You'll draw attention. I already daydream in class. You don't."

"Of course. I don't know what has you like this, I don't check my phone in class." Goro's voice followed the arc of his eyes, rolling over themselves to express disdain at Alice's study habits. He could yell at her, but she wasn't interested in succeeding at Shujin. She'd graduate and Mementos money could carry her far with a little bit of investment. "What do you need from me?"

"Nothing. Just might be a while, don't want you thinking I'm ditching." Alice pulled out a vial of red nail polish, dabbing it across her palm then held the hand up towards the teacher. "I'm bleeding. I'm going to get it bandaged."

"How did you even do that?" The teacher's jaw dropped, his eyes shifting across the class of nonplussed other students. "Go to the nurse already."

"I am and I dunno." Alice put out a performative snort, maintaining the look of someone injured and mad about it. She pushed out the door, grabbed Shiho's elbow and began dragging her down the hall to the stairs. "Talk when we get outside. Because I need to know what's going on."

"Yeah. Thanks." Shiho smiled at her as they shot up the stairs to the roof and through the unlocked door. No suicide attempt, no difficulty with that. The roof was covered in a loose assortment of plants, all labeled with meticulous signs saying what they were. All of them produce and all of them sprouting out of the soil to take the first peeks at the sun. "Uh. So. I know I did the whole thing about Ann would have my support but she invited me to see her where the sky was red and now..."

"You got spooked by what’s going on. Means you're not a blind idiot." Alice hauled herself up onto the air conditioning unit, looking out over the city as the machine rumbled underneath her. Shiho joined her in a much smoother motion, looking out toward the sky tree. "She's done some awful shit. It should make you a little worried about her intentions if she invited you to do something out of the blue."

"It should worry you more until we know for sure she's stopped killing people for Adachi." Sophia chimed in from Alice's pocket and the Wildcard wanted to hurl her phone off the roof in that moment. The goal here was to get Shiho back in order, not to hammer home a point about the dangers of a known assassin. No one was fucking stupid in this. "It's prudent and Ann is still--"

"Don't say that!" Shiho on reflex yelled at the pocket and heat began to spread up Alice's leg. Lovely, a tantrum. Again. Alice laid the phone on the AC unit, letting the cool air flowing out take care of the overheating problem. "She's going to do better! I'm just worried about why now? You said she couldn't get away with it, so what changed? Is she trying something?"

"She misses you, that's the pure and simple of it. She yelled at me about it in fact. How I was lucky to hang out with you. Which I can’t blame her for feeling that way, you and her are old friends." Alice watched Shiho's cheeks light up in red. Okay, I thought that was the vibe. I don't know how to feel about that right now. So I'm not going to focus on it. "She's trying to keep you safe from Adachi. Because she doesn't want to risk him paying too much attention to you. Told her if she really thinks that to talk to you in Mementos."

"But Mementos is where Ann is most able to hurt someone. It is not safe to be alone with her there." Sophia was oblivious to the fact that Alice had already done that. Which was for the best, to be honest. Kept her from freaking out more. Silenced any further accusations that Alice was reverting to old ways, her relapse was still a perceived inevitability to the AI. "She has plots and schemes, just like Alice did."

"I still have them, they're just on your side." Alice huffed tapping the screen, where the device had begun to cool off from the burst of Sophia's anger. One more thing to work through in this, getting Sophia to believe in something between them. "And right now, she's giving my schemes a shot. So, she should play nice. And she cares about you, Shiho. Deeply. Massively."

"How do you know that? She... could have been just doing that with Kamoshida because she wanted revenge." Shiho shivered, leaning onto Alice's shoulder. Alice gave her a head pat that she hoped wasn't patronizing. "Because you didn't know me, except that Kamoshida hurt me."

"Alice." Sophia had pressed herself to the 'window' of the phone, cheek to it. A clear implorement. More honesty. Awful honesty. The kind she wasn't sure was needed. "There is context you do have."

"Yeah. There is." Alice sighed feeling Shiho's arms wrap around her hip and squeeze. Fuck. Shit. Damn it. I don’t want to hurt her. She’s good now but. "It's bad. Really bad Shiho and it's about you. So, you have to want to know this one."

"I..." Shiho's gaze shifted from Alice's lap up to the fence around the roof. Her breath hitched in her throat. "I... do."

"Kamoshida drove you to the brink. You tried to get out and wound up in a coma." Alice hated that Shiho squeezed her tighter, found comfort in her. After the justice she deserved had been cut short last time, after Ann had watched Shiho wither for months. She should be the one hugged by Shiho, Ann had been loyal. "She visited you. All the time. Up until the end. And that's the woman I want to preserve."

That last sentence was to shut up Sophia before she started more of a problem, before this all spiraled further. Sophia's avatar froze up for a moment, "Truly?"

"Yes. Truly. Ann's better than me, even in this. She made connection before this and she wanted to hold onto it in some way." Alice rubbed Shiho's shoulder as the girl let out a soft cry against her. "It's part of why I sought you out. To make sure you were safe because she would have wanted it. I want you to never feel like you needed that escape. I want you to have the ability to break through. Long after I'm out of your life."

"Don't put it that way you bitch." Shiho's sudden rage was at odds with her squeezing hug and Sophia's eye roll. "I like you and you're my friend. You saw I was fucking hurting and tried to do something about it! More than that!"

"I did, but I have a history of fucking this up. Okay?" Alice's eyes burned with stubborn tears, the kind meant to spite her for this moment. "I have fucked up every one of my relationships, friends or not in my life. I'm a manipulative bitch, I--"

"You curb it!" Shiho crushed Alice, knocking the air from her lungs and the tears from her eyelids. Sophia's form rested against the walls of the screen, hazing in the tears. "You work to not and to actually help people! You helped me and Sumire, Goro and Yusuke! You saved lives!"

"She... is right about that." Sophia admitted, curling up on the screen. The most she ever admitted that and that only made Alice's heart hurt more. "You did save some lives."

"Yeah, well, I had to. The point is to make this better than all the shit I put out into the world." Alice knew they knew she was deflecting. But she was still an awful monster, no matter what she did now. She wanted to kill Adachi. And a piece of her was okay with the idea of letting Maruki die, for how he had violated her. "That's why I’m here. If I thought leaving would fix it, I’d be gone."

"It's not just that. You care, stop being cool damn it." Shiho pulled herself back up, leaning on Alice's shoulder again as another sob ran through her. "And... you're sure Ann wants to see me?"

"Yes, she's upset she hasn't been able to. I... made a mistake not trying to encourage this sooner. It'd probably help her more than anything that I do." Alice squeezed Shiho tight, squeezing a fresh batch of tears from her. And again, I’m not going to think too much about that fact. "That's me trying to do everything."

"Yeah, well, you're not actually." Shiho released her hold, wiping the tears from her eyes with her upper arm. She had a smattering of red on her coat. "Wh-what happened to your hand?"

"Oh, I faked bleeding to get out of class." Alice sniffled, setting down nail polish remover between them as Shiho cackled. It was a desperate one, the kind when everything came to a head all at once, one that would echo around the school. A manic catharsis that had to rip its way out of Shiho’s throat. "That funny?"

"Just. Needed to let it all out after that. Maybe, that was a little much." Shiho sniffled, scraping away the nail polish with a cotton ball. The flecks of polish fell off her uniform jacket in a shower of crimson, carried away on the wind into the courtyard. Alice capped the polish remover, tucking it into her bag. "That prepared to strip someone’s nails?"

"Oh, yeah. I need it ready as I wait on someone to figure something out. You’ll figure it out pretty quick once it starts." Alice leveled her eyes on the plants around the roof and the familiar handwriting. It was a path forward with Haru, to come up here. "But, I can't force that one I think. As much as I'd like to get the ball rolling with her."

"O-okay." Shiho hopped down from the AC, stumbling a few steps forward in the process as she came to the door. "You can't be a bitch to you as much. I yelled at Sophia for you."

"She did, although I--" Sophia cut herself off, still curled up in her phone. "I think that I need to think for a bit. Again."

"Take your time. Tell Sumire you want a hug." Alice offered and took a victory at the blush on the AI's cheeks, which was an inspired choice on Kuon's part considering how she viewed the world in her Palace. Shiho slinked back to class and Alice cut out the middleman, heading right to her next destination. Student Council Room. And a real pissy Makoto. Alice leaned on the door, waiting until the woman with fists of steel walked up to her. "Hey there, ready to give me my detention?"

"You should not look happy about this fact." Makoto was not here to play, her fingers curling against her palm. Alice made sure to pop her head a little to the side, that little extra enticement to piss off the woman. "You understand the longer you go without meeting dress code, the more problems you'll have. Even if they don't kick you out."

"Yes, but as we already talked about I don't super care." Alice huffed, a little rebellion to set Makoto on edge. She knew the student council president could be more. Someone who could deck a Shadow while figuring out their weakness for the team. She needed to be ready to fight. Makoto pushed into the council room, bidding her to enter with a glare. "I'm coming. You have to understand something Makoto, doing all of this for Koboyokawa won't get you anywhere."

"I am securing my future." Makoto shot back as she set out a pair of college study books. Goro would cackle in Alice's face if he was here, the karma of her attempt to get out of studying with him to be with someone, at the moment, far more unpleasant. "You're going to work on that as well. So that when you make the right choice, you can be ready to reap the rewards."

"Hmmmmm. Maybe." Alice pulled out a chair, taking the seat next to Makoto and took out a pen. She didn't focus on that, she wanted to focus on fomenting dissent between Makoto and Koboyokawa. Get Makoto to realize she was being hemmed in by him. "Hey, I have a question for you right now, Makoto. What's being done to prevent another Kamoshida?"

Makoto swallowed, her pencil tapping against the page of her workbook. Alice dashed off an answer, something half remembered from the home schooling exams she was made to take under Adachi. She'd done well enough he didn't have to fake her results. Not amazing, but who expects that of a fashion designer? Only a fool. Makoto straightened her back out, a decision made. "That's for the administration to figure out."

"Coward. I thought you’d have more sense." Alice didn't look up from the next problem she was filling out a response to. She let Makoto's pencil sharpener noises make it clear how much she had gotten Makoto's goat. "It's really impressive, honestly. You think that you're doing good for the school by getting onto me for my hair, but Koboyokawa knew what Kamoshida was doing. And he let it go on and on and on. Until the Phantom Thieves stopped him. Not the administration."

"I--- I am sure the principal was going through proper channels. Not something reckless like a vigilante." Makoto's response didn't carry any weight, it was rote. More cowardice, fleeing the fact she could do more. "I can't believe you would trust in something anonymous like that. I thought you had to have some sense given how fast you made friends with more even tempered students."

"Why not trust in them? You saw Kamoshida's confession. I don't know if you caught Madarame's but the man admitted to killing a woman and stealing her art." Alice had smaller ones she could have bragged about. A series of abusers turned into penitent kittens. She might have had a preferred target for Mementos. But explaining that would have made them more obvious to Makoto. And she wasn't ready yet, not in Alice's opinion. "They're doing unequivocal good. They get results, unlike ‘proper channels.’"

"My dad, he said that vigilantes always start out looking good, picking the right targets to get sympathy. And then they decide to do what pleases them instead." Makoto got an edge of confidence back in that moment, using the fuel of her dead and cop father to reinforce herself. "Vigilantes are waiting to get enough popularity they can do whatever they want. With public support, it becomes harder to curb their behaviors."

"Huh, makes you think. How many people get away with too much because they're seen as great in the court of public opinion?" Alice smoothed out a page, half paying attention to Makoto's reaction as she sucked in her cheeks. "Like, everyone liked Kamoshida right? And he just got to keep going. Even after he broke a limb. Even after he assaulted students. And I don't just mean me."

"I-- I--" Makoto stammered, her shell breaking. Her justification falling away. She wasn't going to do anything. Not yet. "You should focus on your detention."

"If you say so, but you're the one trying to use this to convince me to change my ways." Alice didn't say anything more as she worked at the book. Neither did Makoto, the two of them cutting through math problems in rote fashion. It was a backdrop to watch Makoto wrestle with the conversation, her feet unable to stay still. The breaks in her concentration to look at the clock. It was a beautiful thing to see, the woman beginning her reckoning with her actions. "Hey, Makoto. Make you a deal, you stop seeking out me for Koboyokawa and I won't put you through ethics hell every detention."

"You--" Makoto snapped her head towards Alice, her lip twitching with anger. Alice smirked at her as the student council president pushed away from the table. "You're not getting out of this that easily. You're going to get worn down."

"We'll see about that." Alice closed her workbook, all but two pages done. She picked up her bag and walked to the door. "And that's my hour, Makoto. Have fun and you should consider my deal."

The sacrilegious path before you
Reeks of old blood
The Justice will help you
Avoid your old pitfalls

Damn. I was kinda hoping the deal itself would work.

"I won't. See you for your next one." Makoto stared at a calendar on the wall, at each of the upcoming days. Alice left her with the secondary realization. More important things to do for the Wildcard.

"Mustn't be late." Alice muttered as she skittered out of the building, popping a headphone in. She hoped that she'd given Sophia enough time to cool off from earlier. She needed to have that confirmed for her. "Sophia, you there?"

"Unfortunately." Sophia chimed in, her voice dragging. "What do you want?"

"If you don't have the energy for this, I'll just go with my instincts. But I wanted to check something with you." Alice tapped each of her fingers in turn, giving Sophia a moment to process. Consider. "Because it's pretty important. And terrifying maybe."

"... We have a deal." Sophia's voice flitted lower and quieter. A resignation, to her fate. Alice hoped it was as sign that they might work together better than they thought. She wasn't sure at all anymore about things. "What is it?"

"I'd rather you were enthusiastic. Cancel the meeting. Tell the Thieves that we'll talk tomorrow. Okay?" Alice didn't like pushing it off, but it's what was needed. She didn't want to push Sophia too hard. "There, I didn't cash in the deal right now."

"You didn't." Sophia kept the same quieter voice, the sign of giving up. Or reconsidering. "Why, why do you keep at being kind to me?"

"Because, while you can be an infuriating little shit, you're trying to make sure a bunch of bad shit doesn't happen. Same as me." Alice's thumb ran along the edge of her phone case. Like she could actually pet the AI. "And think about it. I might have an idea of what it's like to be beholden to someone you hate, working with them while wanting and plotting their downfall. I can empathize. Didn't used to think that."

"... I hate when you manage to be right. It's frustrating." Sophia was always honest and it was her best quality when it was aimed at Alice. "What did I do that was frustrating, beyond my push back on Ann?"

"Well, there's a time and a place. While Shiho is freaking out, what you said made that a thousand times harder. The girl is trying to figure things out and you hit her with a reminder her long time best friend is a killer. And maybe manipulating her." Alice fought the urge to squeeze her phone, like it would get through to Sophia better if she did that. The only thing it would do is strain Alice’s fingers. "But, in spite of that, I'm glad you were there. That you listened to us. And you made a hard admittance because it helped calm her some in the end. Now, I don't know how she feels about seeing Ann but I hope she feels better about it."

"You have a lot of faith in her..." Sophia trailed off, the phone vibrating against Alice's hand. "Everyone says they understand. Shiho says that the narc was the problem, right?"

"All they need to know if you want it to be that." Alice opened her burner phone. Messages from Futaba to meet at Leblanc. And one from Ann expressing frustration that Maruki didn't seem to exist in the Metaverse. He's still able to try and hide his Palace. Interesting. And worrying. Ann, Morgana and Sumire had managed to survive the Palace before. And Maruki isn’t as deluded now as when that happened. It would be fine. "Your verdict?"

"I have blamed Makoto and my own emotional drain. It felt like the best course of action." Sophia yawned and Alice realized it might be the first time she got a clue about Sophia resting. Which made sense from the perspective of having a very active mind but nothing else. "Alice, what is the plan?"

"Gonna see Futaba. Make dinner with Sojiro maybe?" Alice wasn't sure what her plan was. But the girl wanted in and wouldn't take no for an answer. Dinner would maybe help Alice get ready to see her again. Maybe it would be what cracked the guilt.

Alice was kidding herself.

-----

"You're late and you didn't text you would be out." Sojiro tossed an apron over the counter to Alice. She donned it, trying to give Futaba a wave without looking into her eyes. The gremlin perked up from the bar, a smile on her face. "You two really hit it off after Christmas, huh?"

"She's like the person who shows up in a game and makes it easier. Just carries you through it!" Futaba half yelled to a fatherly glance from Sojiro. He was not beating the allegations. He hadn’t done that last time either. "Like my hair has never looked this good or felt this good and we didn't even get the right dye. And she's been nice to me, without reservations."

"No need to be mean to you." Alice shrugged, hating that girl knew. It was like she was trying to butter Alice up. Or she was that understanding in the end, that Alice had prioritized Wakaba had made a bond that solid.

Didn't change what happened last time. Didn’t change that Futaba had been ready to try and kill her.

"I'd hope there isn't a reason to be mad to her." Sojiro shook his head, dragging a spoon through the curry. He tapped Alice on the shoulder, "Where were you?"

"Student Council mandated study session." Alice yawned, hoping that would be truthful enough to not trigger investigation by Sojiro. Detention was not keeping her nose clean. "Had to go and do college prep. Even though my plan is--"

"Fashion design." Sojiro finished the sentence while making Alice take over stirring and turning the curry, keeping it from burning or becoming unevenly cooked. A whole thing. "Wouldn't hurt to have a backup plan. You're a smart girl."

"I don't know if I want a backup plan that involves college." Alice looked back to see Futaba tapping away on her laptop, the click clacks filling the restaurant's bar area with a percussive melody. "Where's your mom?"

"Conference. She and her coworker had to go down to Osaka. It’s a bummer." Futaba managed to be subtle in giving Alice something good to know. If Maruki was out of town, it gave them time to explore before they could even give him the Calling Card. "I didn't know you cooked, Alice!"

"I taught her, since she's down here bothering me all the time." Sojiro's faux gruffness wasn't going to work on Alice. She knew that he had grabbed her one day on the way up the stairs and taught her this part of making curry. A piece of the process to make what had kept a lot of the Thieves running during the hard time. "If I didn't, I'd worry she might ruin the restaurant's stove top."

"Excuse you, it'd be more than the stove top." Another little barb with Sojiro, another avoidance of the Futabaphant in the room. Alice wasn't sure there was anything she could do to get past it. Each time she took another look, her stomach turned in self revulsion. It meant her conscience worked. It meant it was a bitch too. "I think I could reroast all the beans if I really applied myself."

"Double roasted, like bad coffee." Futaba added to make Sojiro shiver in fear. Alice couldn't help the snort that came out of her mouth. "I win. I got you to laugh."

"Okay, okay, maybe you did." Alice traded back with Sojiro, draining a coffee siphon into a cup and passing it to Futaba. The girl sipped it, grinned and went back for more. "All Sojiro."

"I know, Sojiro makes coffee the best." Futaba hummed as plates landed on the bar, full of dinner. "Do you have leftovers for mom?"

"Will she be back in time?" Sojiro asked the question like Wakaba was going to be the one who ate the leftovers. Futaba's head bounced in acknowledgment. "Then, yes. I do."

"Everything still good at home?" Alice chanced the interactions, her eyes drifting along the wall banister across the way. She traced the knotted braid carved into it, a simulation of something twisting.

"Yep! Mom has been around for everything I need. It's been pretty great." Futaba's cheerfulness brightened up the sip of coffee. A little chip at the mountain of guilt around the woman. "Isn't that a good thing?"

"It is. I'm glad to see her spending more time with you. Less of that doom and gloom mentality about her research." Sojiro hunkered over the counter, leaning over his food. "Curious who you're trying to convince. Me or yourself."

"Oh, no one. I'm just happy about it and want to hear how great it is that I, the great Futaba, am also getting to see my great mother." Futaba put on a fake regal voice, one arm extended like she was carrying a scepter. Alice shook her head. "Do you disagree, peasant?"

"Not at all, just an interesting way of framing yourself." Alice winced at the offhand mention about Futaba having a Palace that had slipped from Ryuji's mouth once. She wondered if that was a piece of the girl's grandiose depression. Something Alice caused, even if others made it worse. "You think you're a queen? Going to start having people executed?"

"Hmmm, I'm not a queen. More of a princess. Which means that I need to work on getting mom to execute people. Except! I am benevolent." Futaba dug her spoon into the last bit of curry, raising it to her lips. Alice hated how much fun it was to be around Futaba now that there wasn't all the animosity. The girl was goofy and a kid getting to be a kid. And she still wanted to come help in the Palace. "Alice, you look like you need the royal cheer up."

"Futaba, you can't just say that. It's rude." Sojiro's advice would always fall on deaf ears when it came to Alice in that moment. "You should apologize, you shouldn't call that out."

"It's fine, I just look bitchy while I try to think something through." Alice gathered dishes, thankful that would take time where she couldn't participate in conversation. She could hear Sojiro fiddling with the siphons, working on something. Futaba and Sojiro were talking but the rush of water had turned it into little more than a stream of noise between father and daughter. She flicked off the excess water before toweling her hands. It was a better way to get her hands dirty. "Alright, what are you up to? Trying to make sure I stay up too late?"

"Yes, my plan for you to miss school is complete so you get in trouble and have to go back to jail." Sojiro huffed as he passed Alice a coffee. "I've seen you drink these even later, so don't give me the guff. And Futaba will go to sleep better with one."

"It works for me." Futaba reached over with her cup, tapping it against Alice's. The coffee was lighter than usual because Sojiro was a sap tonight. Alice sipped at the mocha she hadn't expected, settling onto one of the stools. "You have joined me, now we can overthrow the ruler and absorb this into our empire."

"Not yet, Futaba. Sojiro's not ready to retire." Alice was glad that got a louder chuckle from the cafe owner than Futaba. It felt right to do better with him than with Futaba. The man made a fake grandiose bow before disappearing into the bathroom. "You're sure about joining us? It’s a lot. And well..."

"Super sure. I know you're worried about me and what you did but... I dunno if it matters anymore with how things are now. I know it's like a big struggle." Futaba tilted her cup back and forth, watching the coffee form a parabola as it never found a way to rest. Alice couldn't disagree with the assessment. "I just know what I can do and that there's more to it. And... you're trying. So let me try too."

"Alright, alright. You're in. I said you were, but you absolutely are now." Alice blew a strand of hair out of her eyes, working through more of the mocha. "Just, you have to be careful, got it?"

"Got it. I'm really excited to work with you." And I'm fucking terrified. Damn it.

Chapter Text

Alice stared at the corner of her screen where Sophia was sleeping. It was the first time she had seen the AI do that and it raised questions. Sophia had spent weeks watching her every move. How much had she been hurting herself in doing that? How much was she operating at a deficit? Were her mood swings indicative of sleep deprivation?

One more thing I'll have to answer for. Sooner or later.

Sophia's eyes shot open, looking at Alice. She unfurled from the ball she had rolled into, her avatar phasing through itself into position. "You... were watching me sleep."

"Sure was. How do you feel?" Alice tried to keep her voice neutral, probing for how much the girl needed rest. If she needed to amend their deal to make her rest. It had shades of all the little agreements she made with Sumire to get her to eat during January.

"... better." Sophia's form seemed smoother than before. She stretched out across the screen before looking Alice in the eyes. "What is it you wanted to consult with me on?"

"One, glad you're better. Get more sleep. If I'm laying down in this bed, I'm going to sleep. I'll tell you if I'm not. That way your vigil doesn't have to end and you can feel more secure in me." Alice's stomach twisted with guilt as she breezed by when she had slipped Sophia's surveillance to talk to Ann in Mementos. "Once you make a call on that, we'll talk about the next part."

"Alright. That is acceptable. Rest was good." Sophia looked away, her lips mouthing something she didn't let come out of the phone speaker. Which was fine with Alice, she didn't need thanks from Sophia. "What is your need for consultancy?"

"Maruki. What do you know about him and last time?" Alice leaned on the wall of her room, stretching her legs out in turn. Sophia hummed for a moment. "Please, humor me."

"He was a cognitive pscientist. He and his girlfriend were assaulted in their apartment, a commonality between timelines. His girlfriend experienced traumatic amnesia and left him. He was slated to open a research lab but the funds were reappropriated through political skullduggery, creating a sports complex instead. He became a therapist, first in private practice then to the student body of Shujin Academy. His contract ended in November. I have no record of him since." Sophia stopped short of why Alice was interested in him. A worryingly amount of short.

"Okay. That... isn't wrong but not what I'm trying to figure out if you're aware of. January 2017. What do you know about it?" The guilt in Alice's stomach morphed into dread, scrabbling against her flesh to find a way out. Sophia blinked at her, tilting her head to the side. "I need to know."

"I..." Sophia's eyes crossed, her mouth opening and closing. "I know it occurred but it feels like it is in a haze. I am aware that I was moving around but I was unconcerned with tracking you down. Because..."

"Okay, you're half aware. Makes it easier. This is going to sound unbelievable. Or maybe it will, we're already trying to change time." Alice placed a palm to her head, tilting it back. Sophia blinked at her as she did. "It's not exactly pleasant either. Takuto Maruki somehow got the keys to reality after the Phantom Thieves beat a god. He used that to do a bunch of fucked up shit to try and make the world better. One of the stupidest ones was resurrecting me from the dead. I would guess that he resurrected a mockery of Kuon and you don't remember what happened without actualization in place. That's the stupid thing he did."

"You are telling me that a man who could do that is our next target but we are not strong enough to fight Adachi? I think you are lying about this." Sophia had to pick the reasonable route for what she said. Alice dragged her fingers across her cheeks, pulling at her skin. "You're annoyed at me."

"A little. It's fine. It is what happened but he is not all powerful, right now. He also doesn't know what he can do yet because he hasn't done it yet. That's a small part of why I went to that hospital room." Alice slid down, dragging Sophia and the phone with her. "The other being... I get how fucked up that leaves you and he didn't help her. He just wiped it. I was talking to him to try and push him away from that path."

"You didn't want to have to delve his Palace. Why?" Sophia's voice softened, in response to something. Probably the fact that Alice's mental state was fraying the more she remembered everything around Maruki. Her fingers dug into her thigh, brushing what she had again. "Why, Alice?"

"Because even though he fucked with me and people I cared about, and he was self righteous about it and claiming that it was for our own good. And there's a certain amount of irony with what I'm doing to this, I'm aware. But, he could be reasoned with. Maybe. But it's why I'm trying to be honest so you all opt in." Alice closed her eyes, curling her legs to her chest. The phone began dialing. "What are you doing?"

"You need comfort. I am calling Sumire." Sophia's words forced Alice to act, cutting it off. "You are--"

"Going to deal with it how I have. Which is taking a bath and getting the feeling out. Because what he did to me in particular is... the one thing I want to keep to myself. Please." Alice bit her lip, watching Sophia begin to redial. Then pause and delete the numbers. "Thank you. Would you tell me, should I even try to explain this to them?"

"If taking his heart now would prevent it, I think we can focus on stealing his heart as protection from what he would do." Sophia conceded as she closed the phone app. Alice felt an upwelling of relief, fleeing through her tear ducts. "If it begins to affect your performance in the Palace or it is too difficult..."

"I'll tell them. But thank you. We keep this to stopping an assassination and protecting cognitive pscience research from further exploitation." Sophia shifted to Alice's playlist, starting one of her workout playlists. "What is the plan?"

"Scrub it out. Go to school. Get Futaba Awakened. Go back and secure a route." Alice pulled clothes off the drying rack by the bed, folding them over her arm as she shuffled into her bathing shoes. "There's your answer why. It's always men touching me."

"Sorry." Sophia whispered, turning the music up a little louder. It made the tear flow a little faster as Alice sank into the bath.

-----

"You're sure that we can trust the girl who compromised our communications?" Goro cut straight toward Alice at the gate, not even a hello. Alice rolled her eyes at him as they started walking towards the meeting point in Odaiba. She had a feeling they would have to push in, much like they had before. "Just because she was one of us in the past--"

"Goro, she was the one who bugged me and confirmed everything about my actions last time." Alice wasn't going to have Futaba's integrity called into question by Goro. He shrugged at her, a noncommittal acceptance. "She was why the Phantom Thieves were able to do as much as they were. She cracked security both in the physical world and Metaverse. Her ability to encroach on our communications is why you want her on our side."

"It is invasive, Alice." Goro wasn't wrong but that was fixable. A conversation had made Futaba stop trying to access either phone. "She knows all of our names and you are so lacka--"

"She was one of the first people I helped this time. She has a relationship, a positive one, with her mother this time because I stepped in and used my knowledge of my crimes. If you don't want her monitoring your phone, tell her." Alice huffed as they rode along the subway to Odaiba. Goro tightened his hands into fists. "Also, you're aware none of our communications are secure, right? Her snooping is why we haven't been caught. She'll show you the logs."

"You're infuriating. You know that, right?" Goro's sneer was something she was used to by now. "There are differences to last time with her, by your own admittance. You can't just assume it will all work out."

"Oh. I don't. But that's why we're going to work to make it work out. And part of that is knowing what a lot of people are capable of. And then recruiting them." Alice swung around the pole and onto the platform to head up to their meeting place. "Keep pushing until you tell me what's bothering you."

"She's a child. By your own admittance. If you had recruited me first, I would have fought about Sumire." Goro's declaration put it all in perspective in an instant. "She shouldn't be--"

"Yes, well, she's probably going to awake a persona that keeps her out of the fight. And if not, we train her." Alice stopped short of the assemblage of Thieves. She spotted a mop of orange hair hiding behind a car further ahead. "If we don't, she'll try something. She's scared but tries. And so, she can do it with us or where we don't see it."

"And potentially get hurt worse. Fine. You have convinced me. Unfortunately." Goro shoved his hands into his uniform pocket. "What are we waiting on then?"

"I'm going to grab her. You go relax for once in your life." Alice gave Goro a slight shove, sending him to stand next to Shiho. The volleyball player snagged his elbow before he could try to follow Alice. "You're the best, Shiho."

"Just playing blocker." Shiho dragged her eye down as she stuck her tongue out to a giggle from Sumire. Alice mimicked it back as she walked backwards until she was flush with Futaba.

"O-okay. It's just your friends. I know who they are." Futaba's fingers were digging into the cuffs of her canvas jacket, adding a tear to it. Alice squatted down, looking towards the Thieves. She wasn't sure how much they were going to stay her friends, but that's what they were now. "Why am I spooked?"

"Because you might have focused a lot on them being Thieves and not teenagers? They're pretty normal until they're in there." Alice kept herself squatted down at Futaba's level, ignoring that Yusuke was framing her with his hands while they spoke. "And you don't have to do amazing with them, just good enough. That's the trick, good enough is such a low bar. They accept me."

"Shush." Futaba's annoyance with Alice's self dunk overrode her anxiety and played right into Alice's hands. "I bet I won't do half as--"

"Sophia barely no longer wants to kill me. She likes you. You're winning." Alice stood up and took a step forward, Futaba in her wake. It still felt off in her heart, the way that Futaba liked her. Trusted her. Was there because it might keep Alice moving forward instead of trying to hobble Alice when she stepped out of line. The rest of the Thieves turned towards her. "Alright, everyone. This is Futaba. She's got a vague idea of who you are and doesn't need you overwhelming her."

"H-hi." Futaba had hewed closer, peeking out to wave. Which is better than the early stories Ann told about Futaba. Censored to hide that Palace of course. "It's good to meet you and I'm e-excited to help."

"I'm happy to have you join us." Sumire bowed her head, pushing her glasses back into place as they slid down her nose. "Welcome!"

"That's a strong color combination. The orange stands out against the green." Yusuke would focus on that but it didn't set Futaba off. Which was a big improvement. Or that he wasn't going to make her uncomfortable yet. "It reminds me of an autumn tree about to fall over."

"Yusuke, that is not the way to welcome someone. She is going to collapse if you do that." Shiho elbowed the artist in the side, making him grunt in discomfort before crossing his arms. "Hey Futaba. Cool to see you."

"Th-thanks." Futaba took a step forward until Goro laid his eyes on her. She froze in place. "I-intense."

"Goro, you are being a dick." Sophia chimed in as Alice began typing in the requirements for the Palace. The Odaiba sports complex was a research laboratory. That's how it worked then. She hoped his distortion was weaker, not different. That'd make this easy. "Hello, Futaba. You were instrumental in reaching your mother's heart."

"We'll see how she does inside. But at the very least, Luna trusts you." Goro's hand rested at his hip, waiting for his Thief outfit to spring into being. Alice hit navigation and pushed her phone forward. "Nothing seems to be happening. Your infinite foresight fails you?"

"It means he hasn't latched onto this as a lost opportunity yet. He lost the grant but he hasn't given up on Rumi, yet. Follow me." Alice cleared the entries and started walking. It should have been her first instinct. It was a failure on her part that it was not. The group of them reached the hospital in silence. And there was an obvious distortion to how Maruki viewed Rumi’s existence in they psychiatric ward. "Shibuya Hospital. Takuto Maruki's apartment."

"Beginning navigation."

The hospital bulged in every direction until it was a series of interconnected cubes of brutalist grey concrete centered around a spire. A spire that looked too much like a tentacle of Azathoth for Alice's comfort. Rust covered the corner of each cube, a creeping erosion that had been going for a while by Alice's estimation. Alice wondered how fast it would fall apart when Takuto came back from his trip and had to confront Rumi's state again.

"Okay, everyone. This Palace is different from when I was in it last time. That's good news." Alice pulled out our gun, holding it towards Futaba. The girl took it with a shaky hand, keeping it aimed towards the ground. "This is an Awakening run. If we see the Shadow he probably won't be hostile. Don't let your guard down, however."

"So, his whole deal is he's... upset about the fact he's at the hospital all the time?" Sumire tilted her head and there was a wonderful innocence to her not knowing anything about this man. "Because the hospital is his apartment?"

"I think there is more to it than that. Look at the design choices. The building is rigid and geometric until you get to the spire supporting it. He is stuck between two ideas in his design philosophy." Yusuke's pencil danced across his sketchbook, creating a quick approximation of the placement of the Palace's exteriors. "He is morphing, is what i would guess. Between something rigid and something organic."

"Y-yeah, he's been kinda different since his girlfriend got hurt." Futaba volunteered as they strode up to the one cube in easy reach. The windows were smashed in, glass littering the ground. "These places do reflect them. I know mom guessed that in her research but it really is right. And she never even saw one."

"Exactly. Deadeye, Crow, fire support. Lux, Avenger, funnel them and then block off the reinforcements. Fox, you're with me and act when I do." Alice's hand rested on her dagger, hoping that Yusuke could read her mind as she hopped through the window. The crunch of glass being pulverized followed in a staccato pattern of five Thieves following suit. Futaba's step was too dainty to match them, only a faint tinkling of remaining glass shards being pushed to the side.

The incoherence of the Palace continued in what appeared to be a living room. The couch had a nurse call button coming out of the couch cushions. It was aimed at an EKG machine with a fuzzy display that beeped along as the entertainment for the room. The carpet was a mishmash of torn out chunks, their edges singed. It was a white carpet once was Alice's guess, but now it had yellowed with neglect and age.

"That's." Futaba straightened herself out, gripping the gun tighter. It would have looked like resolve if it wasn't Alice's Featherman ray gun but beggars couldn't be choosers this time. "He was really hurt by that. We just have to help him. We can trigger a change in how he views this place. We can do it. And I need to fight his bad emotions to do that. Where are they?"

"You can get their attention by doing something they won't like." Goro suggested and a light clicked in Futaba's head. She aimed the gun at the door across the way, scorching it with a laser. "No wonder you like, Luna. You default to destruction as well."

Alice braced herself for the increase in pressure that should accompany havoc in a Palace. She counted to five, waiting on her skin to buzz with sensation, only to be disappointed. Sophia ran a hand over the damage on the door, her hand coming away covered in soot. "He expects destruction of his mental state, that is what I believe."

"So. We have to fix something. Or something like that?" Shiho ran her hand over the EKG and Alice didn't hate the idea. Maruki expected his destruction before, so an attempt to run counter to it would work. "What do we fix?"

"Oh, well, that's easy." Futaba joined Shiho at the EKG machine, looking over the buttons. Yusuke shifted to follow her movement while Alice's stomach roiled. She expected the bastard's face to snake around the corner and talk to her about missed opportunities. "Okay, well he doesn't know how this works but that works in our favor probably!"

"Go for it." Alice tilted her head as Yusuke observed the way Futaba began toying with the device. "Interest in the tech?"

"Hmmm, more the difference between here and reality. How do you know this is different?" Yusuke's sword remained in his hand, reassuring Alice that he wouldn't need to be admonished about where his attention was turned. "You said Maruki doesn't know how it works?"

"Yeah. These are settings for a television and not an EKG machine. And like, an old one. You know, like your aesthetic." Futaba's little barb got under Yusuke's skin in a moment, the man writhing in his outfit. Futaba chuckled as she popped around some wires in the machine. "Inari, you're dressed like it's a kabuki or something."

"It's a traditional and valuable part of our heritage. Just because something is old doesn't mean it has lost artistic value. This outfit represents the--" Yusuke shut up as the EKG machine's beeping increased in volume, reverberating the room. "What did you do?"

"Changed the broadcast frequency and volume." Futaba was doing great talking now that it was about tech, something normal. Well, normal to her. Alice was glad because it might mean she attached to one of the others instead. A safety in the end from eventual self destruction. "And... since we're making this place work more--"

A shadow in an approximation of a leather jacket walked through the door, chains in a mockery of a surgical mask across his face. More Shadows flanked him, cracking fists. The shadow charged towards Futaba as the Thieves began pouring rounds into the backline to maintain separation. Alice smiled as Futaba raised the gun in a shaky fashion. That's it, seize who you are. Blue flame surrounded Futaba, bursting in and out of existence in hexagons.

"The truth has to be exposed. Even if it costs you everything. Even if you never breathe air again, you're going to fight back, right?"

"Y-yeah but I'd rather NOT die." Futaba muttered as the shadow flung the gun away. Yusuke's blade started to slide as Futaba shivered and reached up to the pair of goggles now welded to her face. "I-- have to do this! I have to if I want to help!"

"There you go. Fear isn't the enemy, capitulation is. I am thou, thou art I."

"I-330!" Futaba's old Thief outfit reemerged, followed by translucent concrete that surrounded her. She floated out of the way of the blow, her fingers resting on a series of buttons attached to cameras that sprung out around her. "Okay! Let's see here. Way more shadows coming down the hall! Deadeye, one nuclear shot will clear that group. Inari, ice will do the one inside the room. And... Luna you can probably just rip out that one and have a chat?"

"Thanks, Oracle. You heard her." Alice grabbed the indicated Shadow and ripped out Leanan Sidhe from within. "You loved art and being the muse right? I really gotta get back to sewing."

"A little brutish in your approach but that is the truth. I can be your mask for now." Leanan Sidhe swirled into Alice's soul, followed by a cannon shot of nuclear energy roasting the hallway. Yusuke's ice sheathed katana cut through the nearest shadow, an Orthrus howling as it turned to dust.

"Shouldn't she about to be out of energy?" Sumire had to point out the obvious that Alice forgot. It wasn't a fighting transformation but the cameras were flitting around the battlefield to intercept blows from Shadows every few seconds. Sumire's persona surrounded a Shadow in wires and coiled until it exploded into nothing. "I don't know how these kind of Awakenings work."

"Didn't see one. Begin pulling back! Maruki really doesn't like things getting fixed." Alice cut her way to stand in front of Futaba as the Thieves began to edge back, the navigator floating in the air. "Oracle, that means you as well."

"But I can see so much. There's a lot here. I could probably find the treasure if you give me--" Futaba yawned, interrupting herself from her need to go. "I just need some coffee."

"You need rest." Alice buried her knife into an Oni's knee before Leanan Sidhe sent him flying backwards into the wall. "You're going to pass out if you keep pushing it and then I have to explain that to your mother when I call her."

"Fiiiiiiiine." Futaba's camera floated backwards, a guideline for Alice to fight her way backwards out. "You're still not trying."

"Nope. Got a lot of practice." Alice kicked up her gun, putting it to a High Pixie's head and turning it to dust. "How's evacuation going?"

"You and me." Futaba answered and Alice was glad she didn't have to look at her navigator to know what was going on. It made all of the strangeness of being able to trust her to help that much easier. An obfuscation of the hard part of all of this. A lie she was telling herself.

Again. Fuck.

-----

"That was most enlightening, Alice. It was one thing to see the twisting nature of the Palace, but it was another thing to see the paradox of intent." Yusuke set down his sketchbook between them, a recreation of the Palace's exterior staring back. Along with notes about the design. "Let's start with the placement of the rooms. They radiate from the source of change. Like he's fleeing change. Sens--Madarame's Palace had something similarly static to it as well, the paintings of his students."

"Makes sense, the distortion lets them get locked in their ways. They don't let themselves be dynamic." Alice slipped cash into the till then circled the bar to prep them cups of coffee. Sojiro would complain if he saw her pay for them. He was busy with another customer at the other end of Leblanc, none the wiser. "It could be like a root that anchors the process."

"An anchor." Yusuke hummed, adding guidelines to each of the boxes to attach them to the floor of the piece. "Do you think that having a static piece of one's self is the root of their distortions?"

Alice paused, two coffee cups in hand. The question hit her like a brick. She sucked in a breath and cut the heat to the siphon, beginning the process of extracting the coffee. The brown liquid spiraled down into the flask, the vacuum of lost energy drawing it back down. Alice hummed as she broke the seal, sending a puff of steam towards the ceiling. She pulled the flask away from the heat, pouring water from the kettle into each of the cups before emptying them back into the kettle.

"Yusuke, there is something that I think every person holds onto. That is the core of who they are." Alice poured them each a cup, placing Yusuke's down a little further away then she would most people. "Don't touch yet. Or you'll regret it."

"I'm not a child." Yusuke's hand retreated from the cup that was at the definition of boiling hot, the coffee having been bubbling seconds ago. "You're saying that there's a core of who you and I are, one that won't change. And that by seeing something static in a palace like that, we're seeing a snapshot of that central piece?"

"Yes, I think there is a core. You engage in art, in similar fashions as far as I can tell. Your work then and now is at its best while working with dynamicism." Alice swiped a finger over the top of her cup, testing for the steam's heat. On the edge of Ann lighting her on fire. Not ready yet. "My core is to resort to deception, to lie and to hide."

"I'd agree that art seems to be a constant for me. But that isn't something I find myself mired in. What I find myself mired in is my expectations." Yusuke curled a finger around his cup, raising it to his lips. He hissed as it burned his lip. Alice wanted to tap him on the head for being an idiot. But he was punished enough by the burn. "I give many people and pieces a surface level look. And yet, you seem to perceive more than that. And I disagree that your core is to manipulate."

"I'm cheating. I know how many people put on airs, how many act as if their own inner worlds are hidden. Like my own was." Alice sent a light teasing breath across her coffee before taking a sip. The light and floral notes that the coffee bag bragged about had come through this time. "You are skimming the world, hunting for what interests you. You're going fast. You're hunting because you're hungering for it. Right?"

"Perhaps that is the truth." Yusuke chanced following Alice's lead, his eyes shooting open in surprise. He was easy to tell when he liked something. Kinda like the blondes. "I do hunger for something, even now when you keep making sure I eat. But you are skating past my refutations of your nature. You are perceptive and that can be used for good or ill."

"Mostly, ill. Just not as much so far because I am making sure I'm kept in check." Alice glanced at her phone, absent of Sophia for once in a while. Off to hang out with Sumire from what was said. "I went to great lengths to hide what I was last time. And it led us all here, to trying to clean up a mess."

"Perhaps it did. But you are quite the open book, Alice. About your crimes. About your past and identity. About your aspiration, simple as it is." Yusuke would call the plan to free Ann from Adachi's clutches a simple aspiration. It ignored all the moving parts for what a single swordstroke could do. It was a frustrating way to over simplify it. "If it was unchanging, you would still be doing it."

"It's my urge. I am denying my---" Alice looked into the depths of her coffee, watching it darken with time as the heat escaped. "I hate when you're all right about things."

"I believe it is a frequent sentiment between all of us. I did not particularly enjoy being told what I knew was true about my former teacher. It was to admit I was delusional and willfully." Yusuke ran a finger over the blister on his lip, winced and then drank the rest of his coffee in one gulp anyway. It was a waste of good coffee, but the boy had been starved for who knew how long. He was allowed. "You are under a delusion you are still who you were. I have never seen it but what you have reported of her does not match what I see."

"Because in a lot of ways she was already dead before the loop occurred." Alice sipped at the brewing sweetness, letting it soften the realization. What she had called being soft, losing her rage. It was a peace she didn't realize she'd had. With people hating her and being able to live in the world. Guilt was a companion, not a burden if her time with Sumire and Ann were any indication. Even if she tried to die again. "I thought I was a burnt out husk but maybe... maybe it was something else."

"You thought you were fallow and you were not." Yusuke turned to a new page, filling it with a sketch of plowed field. "Perhaps, that is what I am feeling in my own way."

"Probably. Just without the guilty conscience." Alice sipped further at her coffee, watching Yusuke follow the up and down motion of the coffee cup and the upturn of her lips at the taste. "It does get sweeter if you're patient. And... thank you for this."

"It was enlightening for myself as well. Farewell, Alice. I'll see you when we go back to properly raid Maruki's Palace."

Chapter Text

"Alice!" Sumire yelling her name with that much enthusiasm, it struck a chord in Alice's heart. For a moment, it was almost January again, almost time to fight Maruki. All the chance to be be better laid out before Sumire. It's amazing how much a little investment did for someone. "What are you up to today?"

"I didn't have a plan in mind. I'm surprised that you and Sophia didn't have plans." Alice teased to a blush across Sumire's face, a golden example of what Sumire missed her chance at under the delusion of being Kasumi. "It's kinda obvious. You both have ways to talk and interact with one another that you do with no one else."

"Alice, it's not that. We're just friends! Maybe good friends!" Sumire lied, looking away until Alice poked her in the arm. The redhead was well on the way to becoming that shade everywhere. "She and I have disagreements and we don't always see eye to eye!"

"Sure, none of us do. We all have little differences. You don't have to be in perfect harmony." Alice tugged Sumire along through the streets, heading for Yongen Jaya. But not Leblanc. "Do you think that's necessary, that is has to be-- ooh, you do think that probably. That it has to be a perfect fairy tale."

"Uh well, isn't true love supposed to be easy?" Sumire's question was on of the funniest things that Alice could think of based on her previous experience. "What's so funny?"

"Just true love isn't easy at all in my experience. Even broken as I am, I found it. Pretty certain I did with how Ann and I interact even now." Alice took a look around the alley she took Sumire to, tightened the straps of her bag and took a leap to a fire escape and scrabbled up it. She reached a hand down, higher than the bottom rung of the fire escape to Sumire. "And, the first time she and I dated, I was thought I was taking advantage of her."

Sumire squatted down then jumped and pushed off the wall with a foot to reach Alice's hand with a little whoop of excitement. Alice heaved her up and over the railing onto the fire escape. Sumire darted up the fire escape, looking back down at Alice with a fire in her eyes. "But were you?"

"Yes, but I thought it was only that." Alice paused for a moment, recognizing this as the roof she had picked for spying on the Thieves while they argued about Okumura's Palace. She bit the inside of her cheek to refocus, eyes on Sumire again. "But quickly, whether I realized it or not, I found myself trying to nurture her. Sure, I called it all part of the plan, but I was definitely ready during a few of the heists to step in and save her."

"Oh. And you said you two fought and do fight?" Sumire hopped onto the edge of the building, arms out to the side to balance. And in a sudden motion, did a flip, landing on her feet to Alice's applause. It was a good distraction from Alice having to remember when she sent everything to hell for herself. "Thank you, would you answer the question?"

"I was getting there, you silly girl. And we do. Some of it's for fun, but not all of it." Alice hopped up onto the edge of the building, her own arms outstretched for balance. "She tried to kill me then and well, considering what I was doing? Pretty right to. But we got to love in spite of that. So the argument with Sophia, about me? You two could grow past it."

"What if we don't? She... really doesn't like you." Sophia glanced at the pocket Sophia should be in, but the AI has been stepping out more. It must have been good for her sanity to have more breaks from Alice. Not have to confront as many difficult facts. That people are complex, not just a one dimensional hero or villain. "What if it doesn't work?"

"Won't know, not till you try." Alice hopped back on the roof, heedless of what might happen if she missed. She knew what she could do. Sumire touched her wrist, a scrunchie around it. "You know that, right? There's always going to be something difficult in any relationship. You know what yours is now. If you go for it. I think you two would be cute, honestly."

"Re-really?" Sumire's back straightened out before she glanced to the building next to them. She bit her lap, figuring out her jump. "Leap of faith right?"

"Maybe, but if you're going for it." Alice couldn't believe she was surprised that she was pulling out her phone, her thumb on the Metanav. She wasn't going to let Sumire fall. "Go for it. It goes wrong, I got you."

"Thanks, but..." Sumire took a running start and leapt to the other building. She hung in the air for a moment, Alice ran towards her before the Chariot landed on the other roof. "I got it. Holy shit, I got it."

"You did." Alice hopped to the side, letting her momentum carry her to the wall. Sumire flashed a peace sign before shimmying onto the fire escape of that building. "You done?"

"She should be! Sumire, what are you doing?" Kasumi's voice called out from below them in the alley. Her hair hung back behind her head. Sumire froze. "You're going to break something! We have a meet in a few weeks. What are you doing?"

"I'm... practicing?" Sumire drew her lips back into a grimace as Kasumi leapt up and grabbed the base of the fire escape. "Kasumi, it's fine. I knew I could do it."

"I heard you, don't lie to me." Kasumi hand over handed until she was on the bottom floor, catching Sumire. She leaned her head to her sister's. "You could get hurt! What would I do if you got hurt?"

"I don't know." Sumire froze in her sister's sudden hug, staring off towards the sleepy street of Yongen. "I did it though?"

"This time! But what if you missed, what if you fell?" Kasumi crushed Sumire to herself, holding her hostage. Alice began slipping down her own fire escape. "And you! Why'd you let her do it? I thought you cared about her?"

"I do. It's why I'm not--" Alice paused, looking at Sumire sway in her sister's hug. Something she hadn't gotten to see at all. Nothing like that had been real for Sumire in the time Alice knew the old her. "--she did a cool thing. A difficult thing. A hard thing. Celebrate that for her. Then yell at me another time."

"Alice, don't do that." Sumire sighed as she hugged Kasumi back. Kasumi bucked with a sob. "I... sis?"

"She's worried about you. I think she hadn't realized you needed to hear that. Focus on her for that." Alice started descending to the ground, hopping off the ladder of the fire escape. She lingered at the alleyway's mouth while the sisters hugged it out. She let out a long sigh, letting the two of them whisper to one another. It wasn't her business, not while they solved it. "Hope you two never wind up like last time."

Alice walked off to Leblanc, settling in behind the counter. It was easier then trying to figure out if she was intruding on a moment she caused. Family was weird. In either reality, it wasn't something the Hiiragi did well for her. Even when she was their son. Sojiro passed her an apron. "You look like you got something on your mind."

"Nothing helpful." Alice fell into washing out the small pile of cups that had accumulated. They weren't close to being out, but needing to get in and scrub every bit of oil from the cups to meet Sojiro's standards, it was a better way to approach the feelings. Sojiro took a rinsed cup, winking at her. "What's that supposed to mean, old man."

"Hey, you get to my age you can wink whenever you want. But I know the look of someone trying to cover up their problems in work." Sojiro disappeared from view, taking an order from a customer. Alice kept washing, the minutes ticking away as she scrubbed cup after cup. Dish after dish. Then spoons. And when it was out.

She could wash her hands. Again and again.

"Alice?" The concern said Sumire, in terms of which Yoshizawa it was. She wrapped her hands in the drying towel, ignoring how much she had rubbed the skin raw. Alice peeked over her shoulder to see Kasumi standing at the entrance to the kitchen, her head tilted down. "I asked your manager if I could speak to you."

"He's more than that but sure." Alice tossed the rag over her shoulder, hiding her hands in her pockets. Kasumi stared at them. "Don't worry about it. Pruny hands from cleaning, I'm vain."

"I was hoping to sit and talk." Kasumi took a leading step to the booth. Two cups of coffee were already at the table. Sojiro, you meddlesome old man. It's more fun when you're getting me laid then this. Alice flounced into the seat opposite, Kasumi smoothing out her skirt first. "It's what Sumire suggested we do."

"Uh huh." Alice glanced between the cups, then swapped them. The deeper color was hers, she knew Sojiro. Kasumi tilted her head. "This one was extracted longer, more coffee, more bitter. That one is yours, it's lighter and fruitier."

"Oh! I should have known you would know more about coffee." Kasumi turned the saucer in each directions, watching the coffee dance with the motion. Alice took the time to study how Kasumi was. It was clear Sumire's internalized view of the girl was different. She was competitive, yes. But she wasn't sure in all things. She was jealous it seemed. And kind of a mother hen, just something Sumire had missed. "I realized I don't know anything about you, but I decided I didn't like you."

"Makes sense. You have more reason then some." Less than most. Alice lifted her cup to her lips, took a sip and bade Kasumi to do the same. The gymnast smiled as she set it down. "Sojiro's a maestro, he taught me a lot. And Kasumi, the reason you don't like me makes sense. I blew into Sumire's life and she changed. She's not the same as she was. And you were comfortable with how it was. Weren't you?"

"I... was." Kasumi dipped her head, looking at her coffee. Alice relaxed, because it was a sign. Kasumi was letting her view break down some. She was letting Sumire be more. And Sumire was letting herself be more too. It was easy to see the way they were sisters in that moment. They couldn't look you in the eye during a realization. "I thought I was going to keep it all the same. That we were going to keep getting better together, keep performing together. And-- no, it's stupid and awful."

"Guarantee I've thought and said worse."  Alice leaned back into the booth, watching Sojiro chat with a customer at the other of the store. Kasumi placed her hands on the table. "Really, I can guess but that might make you feel worse. Say it."

"Will you tell her what I say?" Kasumi's fingers slid across the table with a long squeak that drew a glare from Alice. "Sorry."

"I won't. But I might ask you to tell her anyway." Alice placed her hands in her lap, firmly out of sight. a way to hide what she had been doing for that much longer. "Because she was already unaware how much you cared for her."

"I know. and that's why this feels even worse. Why it makes me feel more and more like I am a bad sister." Kasumi sucked in a breath, looking down at her lap. Her legs kicked in and out under the table, almost hitting Alice. "I like outdoing her at gymnastics. I know the dream was us together, but it's good to always have someone to measure up to and win. She was putting in as much work as me and she wasn't doing as well. It made me feel like I was on top of the world."

Alice pinched the bridge of her nose. It was pretty human, pretty normal to think that way. And Kasumi was tearing herself up over it, the way her fingers were curled around the cuff of her shirt. Alice pushed the lighter coffee closer. "Drink. And that's fucking normal to feel. Do you actually act like that towards Sumire?"

"No! I love her! She's the most precious person in the world to me, that's why I'm awful for thinking that way." Kasumi shook her head in both directions, whipping herself with her own ponytail. Alice on instinct reached out and smooshed Kasumi's cheeks between her palms to still her. "What?"

"Stop it. You're thinking bad shit, but you're not doing it." Alice pulled her hands back but Kasumi's hands snaked out and grabbed the wrists, holding them in place. "I'm sorry I grabbed you, now let go."

"You have to take better care of yourself. Your hands are torn up." Kasumi let Alice's hands tumble to the table. She fiddled with her hair, smoothing it back into place. "Those thoughts that's why I got upset with you though. At least in part. Because she wasn't trying as hard, it made my own growth feel worse."

"Sucks, but you are going to have to get over it. Because she wasn't enjoying being in your shadow, was she?" Alice skated by the remark about her hands, burying them out of sight again. It was cleaning her hands, that was all. Kasumi shook her head. Gentler this time. "Exactly, so let her step out and find somewhere to cast her own shadow. Let her show you how cool she is her way and you do it her way."

"Okay, great in theory but you were having her jump from rooftop to rooftop." Kasumi put all her effort into not shouting at Alice as she said it. Which was more respect than Alice deserved in this moment, but it was safer than a lot of Palace work. Alice knew that intimately. "Can't you help her find somewhere to shine that might not kill her?"

"Kasumi, I didn't tell her to make that jump you saw. Fuck around with the edge, sure. I was doing that too." Alice sneaked a sip of her dregs, hating the way Kasumi's pitying eyes locked onto the scald marks on the skin. "Won't the wrong flip also cripple you for life?"

"Okay, but we practice and trained ourselves to be able to do those flips. She wasn't practicing, she just went for it. In the middle of the day." Kasumi hissed, her eyes still glued to Alice's hands. "Are you letting your own lack of--"

"I give a lot of a shit about Sumire too. Just... how I treat myself isn't how I treat others. And I was cleaning dishes." Alice dropped her hands out of sight, watching frustration overtake Kasumi's face. it was something new to see with the Yoshizawa features. "Just tell her you're worried about her safety. And I won't take her on a roof again. We'll stick to ground free running."

"I.... okay. You're more reasonable then I expected. Sorry." Kasumi shrunk against the booth. "I kinda assumed you were stubborn. Sumire says you're like a bulldozer."

"Sometimes. And I was there, but it was to make you understand that this is Sumire making decisions. I wouldn't dream of trying to make them for her." In fact the man who would do that, we're ripping his heart out soon. "We both care about her. So... try to keep that in mind. I've done it with you. I'm not that scary of a woman."

"You kind of are. I remember how you yelled at Kamoshida." Kasumi stacked their cups and saucers then stood up. "But it was also Kamoshida. Thanks for talking. Please, take care of yourself."

"You do that too. Trust that your gold medals are enough." Alice felt like an absolute asshole saying that but it was the truth that Kasumi needed to hear. Her placement at meets was incomparable. The athlete flicked her hair back before leaving the cafe. "Mission accomplished there. Shouldn't have a weird fight and get run over now."

-----

"Um, Alice, do you have a moment?" Haru's glance missed Sophia winking out on Alice's phone. Alice dropped her headphones and sat up, giving the girl her full attention. "Is that a yes?"

"Sure is. You're not bothering me either." Alice pat the space on the bench next to her, Haru taking a seat with a motion to smooth out a nonexistenct skirt. She fidgeted with her pants, something in her pocket beyond a wallet that moved with the motion. "Got more questions for me?"

"Kind of." Haru's fingers caged the object, like she was keeping it from running away. Alice bobbed her head. "I want to share something with you? If that's okay?"

"Very okay. Stays with me if you want it to." Alice felt her heart warm a little. She should feel guilty, she should hate this, but she had that kinship with Haru before. And this time, she could help in a tangible way.

"I'm a girl. Like you." Haru let it out and Alice couldn't help smiling. It had been one thing to get the occasional letter form a trans fan her last life, when they said her model choices inspired them. But this was different. It was in person, at school. "My name's Haru, but I haven't told many people yet."

"I'm glad I'm one of them." Alice leaned on the bench, taking in the sudden smile of the girl. Haru's legs bounced in joy. "How do you feel?"

"Good! I've known for a while but I was scared to say anything. But you're doing it and you have friends. More than me." Haru's foot scooted back and forth. Alice dug in her bag, setting out four nail polish bottles, base coat, top coat and remover. "You're pre-prepared!"

"Had a feeling, but also I am that kind of femme. Pick a color or tell me no. I'll do you up." I owe you that much. A clean start before I probably drag you into your father's Palace. Haru pointed to a royal purple bottle. "Regal, alright. I see you, Haru. You like violets?"

"I love them. The color is striking, the shape of their flowers. One of the ones I grow that isn't food." Haru wiggled at Alice's call out of her name, her palms to the table. "What should I do?"

"Don't freak out when it's cold. And know it might be a while." Alice shook the base coat bottle, unscrewing the lid and starting the process. "Any grand plans, now that you're doing this?"

"I want to tell my father." Haru's words summoned dread in Alice's heart. She knew how it would go. Who would know, how it would be. It was the worst possible outcome if it happened. She bit her lip. "And I want to know how you got away with wearing your uniform."

"Just wear them. I'll help you with that too." Alice moved to purple polish, shaking it while Haru tilted her head. Alice set down her newer sketchbook, flicking it open. "I do fashion design. Make them myself."

"All those rumors about you and I never heard about this." Haru looked over a redesign of the roses dress, this one meant to evoke skulls everywhere. "You like flowers too?"

"Meant for a girl. A gift in the future." Alice concentrated on the first hand, precise strokes to cover the nail in a single vibrant and even coat of paint. Quick dry, easy strip if needed. Haru nodded, her curls bouncing. "You interested in that kind of clothing?"

"Maybe! The skull motif is fun. So are the flowers. Roses are nice but... I think I want something less loaded in terms of meaning. Not everyone would want to with a girl like me." No, but I know one who would. Just gotta get you ready and her head out of her ass, Haru. "You're lucky."

"Maybe. But so are you." Alice ignored the burning in her cheeks about the thought of putting Ann into that dress. The cheeky little nod of it to the world about who Ann was. And in dressing her like that, so was Alice. "Because you got me on the case to help make you pretty. Whatever girl or boy you want to draw in, they're going to love what you look like."

"Oh, I'd be surprised! But, that sounds nice." Haru let out a dreamy sigh, whether from imagining partners or the kindness, Alice wasn't sure. But it was right. "Why are you helping me?"

"Owe it. Didn't get this. It sucked." Alice wasn't exactly being truthful. She got help that was also an anchor last time. Everything attached to Adachi and dragging her down into hell. "So, you get it. So you'll give it in the future."

"Well, it isn't fair that you're giving me it and didn't get it." Haru bit her lip as topcoat sealed the purple to Haru, marking who she was. It was a temporary statement but one that would be permanent. Alice hoped. "Is there something you need?"

"Hmmmm." Alice knew she'd wind up making a deal of some sort with Haru, some day. "You don't try to go it alone and don't let me either if things get hard. Something I should have learned before Shujin."

"That... is an easy deal." Haru blinked for a few moments. "But I accept."

The sacrilegious path before you
Reeks of old blood
The Fortune will help you
Avoid your old pitfalls

"You'd be surprised Haru. Those nails, they really suit you. Show them off." Alice held up her phone while Haru flashed them to the camera. The moment was recorded, traded between phones. "I'll see you around, Haru. Haru. Haru."

Haru giggled with glee before running off. Alice felt good about it. Like she was on the path to clearing a cosmic wrong. Which felt off after everything else. The stubborn guilt that remained with Futaba, it wouldn't leave after all. But maybe it was because the decision was still easy for Haru. Kunikaze sucked and his loss saved a lot of Okumura employees when Haru took over.

Maybe she'd wind up in charge when Kunikazu went to jail for all the assassinations. It'd be the best possible world.

-----

Ann: Meet me in Shibuya terminal, at five. Wear something pretty for me?
Alice: If it's pretty to you, that's a bonus.
Ann: I thought you knew what I like.
Alice: I do. It's me. Being me.

Alice flicked off her messaging app, double checking herself in the selfie camera. Mint hair redone a few days back. Good makeup, lipstick that wouldn't leave marks on Ann, because that was for teeth and nails where others couldn't see it. Ann wasn't that free. And her first made dress since leaving jail. One that was ambitious for it not being spring yet, but the low cut looked good and the asymmetric frills on the hem teased right for her legs. The dagger pattern, all aimed at her heart was a joke for herself.

Alice split for the subway, closing her eyes and humming joy. Her hands had recovered from the cleaning scalds she had given them. She was in the best shape she could be for this date.

Shiho stumbled out of the barrier for Mementos, red in the face. Alice waved to her and Shiho meeped, covering her face. "I'm not going to bite. Come here, talk."

"Uhhhh." Shiho looked towards the crowd and started to take a step away. Alice took a step toward her and she froze. "Alice, I promise it's not what it--"

"That you just talked to Ann in Mementos." Alice hooked their arms, keeping her friend close and leaning in. Alice’s stomach writhed with jealousy, her heart thumping against her chest. "And I'm going to guess you told her your feelings and something happened."

"You... you knew?" Shiho shivered in Alice's grip as the Wildcard dragged her to the planters of dead plants and sat her down. I am going to end Ann’s existence. I am going to rip her to shreds. "I... just wanted to tell her. I didn't expect her to reciprocate and you two are--"

"Not pissed at you." Alice sighed, crossing one leg over the other. She kept an eye on the exit of Mementos. She was probably giving Shiho time to get out of there before emerging to catch Alice. "Her, that's another story. And we're going to have a talk about this. With or without you."

"Why aren't you mad at me? I know you love her." Shiho leaned against Alice and the rage in Alice's heart cooled a little. Which was something for later. "And I should have told you that I had feelings and that was part of why I wanted to meet with her and you have been so so so honest with me and it was kinda shitty."

"I figured it out already. That day on the roof." Alice shrugged, Shiho looking up with wet eyes and a redder face. "You don't have a poker face about your crush on her. It's fine, you do for what's important. Now, Ann and I have been dating so the fact she initiated is my problem."

"I should have said no. I should have backed out." Shiho tugged on her collar until Alice's hand landed on her head, mussing her hair. Shiho made a whining noise as she did, but not one that was upset. "Why aren't you mad, shouldn't you--"

"Oh, you'll see angry soon Shiho. Because I don't know why Ann did this and all of the possible reasons, suck." Alice pet Shiho for a few minutes, fixing the hair she knocked out of place. The girl sunk into her lap as the time ticked closer to five. Alice’s heart felt warm, in a way it hadn’t in a long time. "And you, how do you feel, Shiho? Beyond, the guilt."

"I... don't know. Now I'm wondering if she was up to something and that fucking hurts." Shiho sniffled and Alice pulled her tighter to herself. Her anger flared at Shiho's feelings being in the mix of her games with Ann. Shiho was her friend. Shiho was important to her. Shiho had been hurt enough. "And... I don't know, it makes me appreciate you more. Like, you wouldn't do that to get Palace information out of someone..."

"Not anymore. I kinda hoped she'd have skipped that part of my shit." Alice's fingers tightened around Shiho's shoulder, their skin blazing hot. Made sense, they were pissed. The time ticked to five and Ann hopped out of Mementos, fresh as could be with a smile on her face and sunglasses big enough to match. She turned to look at Alice and Shiho and waved. "I'm going to kick her ass."

"I... don't know what I’ll do." Shiho withdrew from holding onto Alice as Ann sauntered over. Alice stepped up, stomping her foot. "Alice?"

"Hey, you two looked all cute cozied up." Ann took a step towards Shiho, only for Alice to take a step in front of her. "Hey, I'm just seeing my fr--"

"Ann, do you think we're idiots." Alice glared at Ann as the woman giggled before attempting to stick her head closer. Alice barred her with a palm to the chest. Ann held a hand over her heart in mock shock. "What the hell do you take us for?"

"Call it research! My darling friend Shiho has loose lips when it comes to things she should keep to herself." Ann winked at Shiho and Alice groaned. She slapped Ann, the noise reverberating in the crowd and drawing attention. Ann grinned as she turned her head in slow motion back towards Alice. "Careful, don't want to go back to jail."

"Oh, if that's what's going to happen, I'm going to make it worth it. You took advantage of her." Alice tightened her fists, hating the sound of tears behind her. Hating that Ann crossed the line, because the whole goal was ruined. "You were willing to kill Kamoshida for her, but you can't be honest about your feelings about her?"

"I thought all was fair in love and war." Ann's flippant attitude only made Shiho cry more. Alice took a step back from Ann. "Running?"

"No, I'm prioritizing." Alice tugged up Shiho, the girl leaning on her for support as she shook. Ann huffed, a shade of disappointment in her voice. Alice ignored it walking off towards the trains. Ann followed in their footsteps. "You understand the more you follow me right now, the more likely I am to drag you into the Metaverse. And I'll really show you what I can do."

"Alice, please, just, I want to go home." Shiho whispered and Alice ushered her at a hard left down the stairs. Ann began to follow but Alice knocked down a pamphlet stand. On total accident, she'd swear if asked. It was enough to put Ann on a detour for them to slip on a train. "Why? I--"

"It's fine. Just means we are finishing the Palace soon. Tomorrow soon. And then if she starts anything, I'm ending it." Alice collapsed into the chair, an urge to bite Shiho's head off rising in her gut. But it wouldn't fix anything and make the woman only feel worse. She was a victim. Ann’s victim. And that was a choice Ann made, to ruin all of this. All of the work that Alice put in to help and Ann ruined it for shits and giggles. Ruined the chance she had lost last time. "I'm sorry I encouraged her to reach out. But, I promise, when we fight her, we're going to knock sense into her. We're going to get the truth from her."

"She's been my friend forever. I've had a crush on her since before she came out." Shiho curled against Alice as the train shot across the city, out towards Shiho's home on the edge of the city. "And she was always in my corner, even when I was a bitch. She liked it even. But, now, she's so different."

"I don't know why she did that. Because she was supposed to reach out when it was bad with Adachi." Alice let out a breath, her body on fire. She had that urge, the one to grab Ann by the neck and squeeze. End that pathetic life and throw her in the depths of Mementos. It might even be a good thing if she was going to push Alice away like that. "You deserved better. I am not going to blame you for the speed we have to do this at."

"You deserved better. You saved my life, you're trying to save her and we do this to you." Shiho pushed off Alice, leaning on the window. Tears and snot ran down her face and Alice dug out a tissue pack. She sighed and started cleaning Shiho's face. "You do, you've done nothing but try to help people and we stabbed you in the back."

"She did. And stabbed you harder in my opinion." Alice wasn't sure why she was cleaning Shiho's face like this. Six months ago if Ann had pulled that she would have congratulated the woman on the play and slapped her for fun. Instead she was picking Shiho, picking to take care of her. "And considering all I've done, I'm more angry for you."

"You idiot." Shiho muttered as she crashed onto Alice's shoulder, clinging tight. The two of them navigated off the train and towards Shiho's home. "I'm home. Thank you even if I don't deserve it."

Alice paused, looking at the darkened windows. She could picture this being the last moment she saw Shiho right now. She laid her hand on the door knob. "You inviting me in?"

"Oh!" Shiho stood upright, jamming a key into the lock and turning it. The inside of Shiho's house was almost sterile. A volleyball trophy stood on a cabinet, turned to face inward. Books lined the rest of the shelves. The couch was nice but didn't say anything beyond being the color black and a low table sat in front of it with white cushions underneath to sit on. "Can I get you anything?"

"Something to drink, to share would be nice." Alice squatted down, cursing her decision to wear the knee high boots with laces today. She began the laborious process of undoing the knots. "Your parents hate decorating."

"My parents aren't home enough to appreciate decorating." Shiho shot back from the vague direction of the kitchen. Alice let herself fall onto her ass as she heard glasses get filled with something. Water was her best guess, Shiho and Sumire drank a lot of it. She only saw them drink anything else at Leblanc. Athletes after all. "And if they did, it'd be boring I would guess. I want to get art for it but I don't know if I'll stay at home after I go to college."

"Can always take it with you. Put up nothing bigger than a dorm room." Alice ripped the first boot off, swirling her foot around. She'd planned to have a better date then riding the subway. One where she maybe had to stand in these and work Ann over. "Or, better yet. You get an apartment with someone freshman year. We're going to make sure you have the money for it with all the Shadows we fight."

"That would be an option huh." Shiho came out with two glasses of orange juice and a glass bottle tucked under her arm. Alice shook her head at the bottle. "Huh? Isn't it normal to want to drink a little?"

"Not after Adachi, not for me. I won't stop you but, I think you shouldn't." Alice pulled her second boot off and dragged herself to her feet. Shiho bit her lip as she handed one glass to Alice. Then she put the bottle on the shelf, giving the clear liquid inside a look. "I get wanting to do something to numb it."

"Yeah." Shiho wandered to the couch, collapsing onto it and then kicking off her shoes. Alice took a gentler seat, taking a sip of her juice. Cool and sweet. Shiho stared out the window. "That fucking bitch. How could she? Why?"

"Oh, I can imagine how and why pretty easily. She shouldn't have." Alice tucked her legs in, leaning on her elbow to observe Shiho. The girl's eyes began to focus, like she did when lining up a shot in the Palace. Alice smiled at her, almost breaking her concentration. "Lining up the shot in your mind?"

"Partly. Thinking." Shiho's leg jittered for a moment as she took a sip of her juice. Alice joined her in the action, studying the little movements and shifts. "You're not dating her anymore, are you?"

"You know, she didn't break up with me because she was trapping me for their ploy last time. Then it got complicated. But I know how to kick her ass." Alice downed her juice, setting the glass down on the floor. She looked into Shiho's eyes. "I'm going to do what I can to get her to stop trying to kill people. But she broke that trust. In a way I never would have. And... maybe she should have sided with her friends more than me before. It hurt them, a lot. I couldn't convince her of that then. I'm not doing that any longer. I’m picking Thieves over her."

"That.... means a lot to me, Alice." Shiho bit her lip and set down her juice glass. She scooted closer, her hand resting on Alice's thigh. Oh. Huh. Alice leaned closer, feeling a thrill of excitement. The comfort with their close contact on both sides got clearer, a warmth sparking in her core. "Is this okay?"

"Yes, it is and you better tell me now how rough I can be." Alice's hand landed on Shiho's thigh. The volleyball player grinned. "Last chance."

"I need to know if you bite harder." Shiho hissed and Alice lunged, pulling her close. Teeth sunk into flesh to a pleased gasp from Shiho, her hands tangling into Alice's hair and pulling her closer. "Fuck!"

"Patience. We'll get there. Maybe." Alice and Shiho crashed together, and it felt right. Comfortable. Shiho urged all of Alice's actions, pressing her nails and teeth deeper, guiding kisses and hands and legs where she wanted them. Customized and passionate destruction and it bled off Alice's anger, bit by bit. And Shiho wouldn't stop smiling every time Alice broke away long enough to look up at her. "Hot."

"You are." Shiho let out a shuddering breath as she lay back on the couch. Alice grabbed her legs and pulled them into her lap, running her nails along them in slow and non painful motions. "I think I wanted that longer than I thought."

"Maybe the same. Was focused on so much other shit. Focused on the game with Ann, for an ungrateful bitch. And I could have had you all this time." Alice leaned her head back to stare at the ceiling as she kept up her pattern. Shiho's fingers traced her arms. "You get what kind of woman I am, right?"

"Ruthless and protective. Maybe you need some sense knocked into you about things, but I feel fine with this." Shiho leaned up, pressing a tender kiss to Alice's cheek. Guess I win a new way, Ann.

Chapter Text

"Hey. I know it's kinda early for visitors, but I am a school girl who has class this morning." Alice set down her bag by the door, unzipping it to pull out the two small thermoses within. Sojiro would kill her if he knew there was Leblanc coffee in there. It'd be too sweet, too over brewed with time. But it would still be so much better than hospital coffee. And if Alice got Rumi to drink it, well the woman deserved the good stuff. "How you doing today? Your boyfriend been by?"

Rumi blinked in response to the question. Which is more than she ever saw in Maruki's memories. But was that because he misinterpreted things or because having more than a sad sack visit was good for her?

Alice sighed, right now it wasn’t worth being hard on him. He hadn't actually done anything yet. His only crime was being traumatized himself and not having the energy to be more for Rumi. And it was better than a lot of men who would have left Rumi behind.

Not like that visitor list was including any members of Rumi's family, either. No one but Takuto and Alice.

"I saw his name on the list. I don't know what he's doing when he visits, but it's good he does. Means he cares about you. It's a rare thing, getting that kind of love." Alice sniffled, trying to not make this about her. It was supposed to be about empathy, about trying to give Rumi something she wasn't getting. She uncapped the first thermos, putting it on Rumi's bedside table. "From what I know of your boyfriend, he's a snack kinda guy. I do hot drinks. You were in school, you know how much work it is."

Rumi's eye shifted, watching the coffee within the thermos shift. Alice took a sip from her own thermos, the sharp floral notes whisking away the prickling tears. "Don't worry, no cooties. I made it myself, but I also live in a coffee shop. So, don't be afraid of it poisoning you from me not knowing what I’m doing."

Rumi didn't say anything, but the fact her eyes was still on the coffee was a good sign. Alice took a moment, tapping her fingers on the thermos. She knew it was doing something but it was frustrating and slow. And she didn't know if it'd be enough. And the more she thought about not being enough, the more her imploded relationship with Ann came to the forefront. She'd handed everything to Ann on a silver platter. And Ann threw it all in the--

She wasn't thinking about this. She was supposed to be be trying to not be a selfish bitch.

"I know, it's like hard right now. And the chance to just do nothing is good. But if you don't take care of yourself, if you don't do something, people are going to get more and more worried than they are. Takuto and me included, you know?" Alice closed her eyes, cup to her lips. Coffee. Hot liquid to keep her focused. Get her ready for what would be a long day. "I want to know you, remember that. I want to know who Rumi is. Not just here in this room, but everywhere else. I want to know your fashion sense. I want to know your favorite foods. I want to know what makes you laugh. And other people, they're going to learn that too. I want to make sure of that."

Alice knew two visits wouldn't be enough. The coffee was probably too aspirational, but she couldn't help hoping for the easy way. Says a lot about me, huh? I hoped it'd be easy, recruit the old Thieves, save Shiho and Sumire, get Ann on my side. Have her by my side, in my bed, like... nothing changed but who wore the bloody gloves.

Rumi's lips quirked for a moment as the door opened again. Alice's eyes shot open, the cup of coffee halfway to her lips as Maruki walked in. The doctor blinked twice, looking from Alice to the two thermoses. "Um, I didn't know you knew her?"

"Not, exactly? I... heard there was a patient who got hurt and wouldn't talk or do anything. And... been there. So, I wanted to come by and talk. Empathize." Alice recapped her thermos as Maruki took a shaky step towards the bed. His hair was a mess, his clothes were wrinkled. He hadn't been taking care of himself, that was clear from the Palace. It was more clear in person, fresh from his trip. Alice took a step up from the chair, vacating it for him. "She looked at the coffee. If you want the coffee, you can have it. Made it myself."

"I..." Maruki always had the words before, when he was trying to counsel, trying to rule. Here though, he didn't as he sunk into the chair. He sniffed the coffee for a moment, taking a sip. "You made this?"

"Yeah. I did. I was hopeful she'd maybe like some of it. A change of pace from hospital food." Alice stood to the side, an eye on the clock. She had to get to school in an hour. She couldn't risk more of Makoto's attention, not till after the man in front of her was safe from Ann. "Hows is it? Be honest."

"It's good. Surprisingly good." Maruki was on his third go with the thermos already, emptying it. At least the coffee isn’t going to waste."It's probably unorthodox that you're visiting Rumi, but I'm glad and I think she's glad that you're coming by. To see a nice, if sometimes rude, young woman come by. Right, Rumi?"

Well, he hasn't given up yet. But he's thinking about it. Or he's getting there and that's why his Palace is like that. Rumi didn't say anything but her head was tilted a little more, looking at Maruki. She wasn't smiling, but she was looking at him. Which was more than she did with Alice. And that was good, correct and all of that. They had a real and long connection. Alice was... trying to force it to happen.

"Think she only has eyes for you, Takuto. I know you're talking about erasing pain and traumatic memories." Alice waited for Maruki to argue, to say to not speak of it here. But he understood that Rumi was listening. She was cognizant. And that made Alice burn. "You'd erase this moment too. You know that right? It hurts but you'd be erasing this part of it all if you erased the trauma."

"She only has eyes for me, what do you mean?" Maruki's confusion was complete. His understanding that Rumi loved him was distorted. He couldn't perceive it for his own feelings of ill ease about himself. Useful for the Palace and maybe moving forward. "Miss Hiiragi."

"Alice, please. I picked the name myself, you know. And look, every time I've visited, she's given me a cursory glance at most. But Rumi loves you. Even if she's struggling she wants to see you." Alice reached out and took the thermos from Maruki as he and Rumi looked into one another's eyes. It was kinda sweet. Kinda nauseating too. Knowing that this was what it took to get him to notice someone loved and cared for him. A teenage girl showing up and pointing it out. "I'll let you two have this. I know you're averse to pain or whatever but I think if you and I help her, she'll come out better. Rumi wants to know you're there for her no matter what. I told her it was a rare thing to have."

"Yeah. It is." Maruki wiped his glasses clean where the coffee had steamed them up. He watched Alice pick up her bag and shoulder it. "I hope that you have someone like that."

"I don't know if I do anymore. But right now, focus on her. She needs you. I'll see you soon Rumi. Tell your boyfriend you need him. However you can." Alice slipped out of the room, glad that Maruki didn't chase her. Rumi was more important than Alice dealing with something that might not even qualify as a breakup.

She popped in an earbud, turning on her music. She hopped onto the train, looking down to see Sophia taking off her own headphones on the screen. "Sorry if my phone can't handle both our audio sources. Kill my music if so."

"I wanted to talk, actually. About yesterday. You said something happened with Ann and that you would discuss it with me today. That you would be up to it now." Sophia's tone was short, quick to the point. Annoyed that she had to wait. And she might know more, Alice didn't discuss what they were telling the Thieves with Shiho. They had been busy. She wasn't even sure it was going to be more than a pressure valve the two of them had taken for being betrayed. "What is it?"

"Yeah, I did. Still... fuck. Okay. Give me some grace on this or something because this sucks." Alice drummed her fingers on the thermoses in her bag, the dings matching up with the beat of the song now working out of her headphones. Something driving, it wouldn't let her stop. Sophia glared. "Okay, when I say grace I mean that I'm an emotional bitch. Ann fucked Shiho and I over yesterday. Get your I told you so out."

"I did tell you that Ann wouldn't be able to be trusted. She is like you were, a liar." Sophia's glare intensified but she had softened. Alice had been a liar in her eyes. Which, she still was, but now wasn't the time for the argument. She needed Sophia's input. "How so?"

"She purposely used Shiho's feelings to get information on the Palace. And cheated on me. I guess." Alice gripped the thermos as the music shifted to a minor key. She squeezed her eyes shut as her tears started flowing. "We need to get to the end of the Palace today. And get the calling card to Maruki, tomorrow. Shiho and I... aren't great but we're going to deal with it. I need something from you in all of this. Your trust."

"Why do you need my trust?" Sophia's voice was confused because in everything Alice never asked for it. She encouraged the opposite. But if Ann was coming for Takuto, that would be when the Thieves would die if they weren't careful. "Alice, answer me."

"When Ann shows up, you're leading them, got it? You're going to either secure the route or get the treasure out. I'm going to keep her busy. I'm the one who has the strength to do so." Alice forced her eyes open, realizing how much she had changed. She wanted Ann to kill her before and now she wanted nothing more than to make sure she lived. "I know you want revenge. I know that. But I don't want you to die for it."

"I... you are still far stronger than me. I do not have a persona and my ability to fight in Palaces is based off raw strength and my understanding of cognitive pscience." Sophia at least admitted where she was. It was a good sign. "Why am I leading, I'm not the strongest."

"No, you're not. But you know what could happen with Takuto. It's just you and me. And there's a part of me worried that if his Shadow dies, something bad will happen." Alice twisted the thermos back and forth, her eyes burning as the train slowed to a stop. She hummed along for a moment. "It was when I perforated his persona, in a way that would end the fight that we looped. So. He might be the trigger, I don't know. That's why I want you to make sure they stay on task. Especially Shiho."

"I understand. My goal is to keep Takuto Maruki alive while you distract Ann. I would guess based on what you said, that you anticipate combat and nothing else?" Sophia's check was reasonable based on the threatening bon mots between Alice and Ann. And it was reasonable. Alice nodded in agreement. "And why are you concerned about Shiho?"

"She's going to worry about me. She is also mad at Ann. And has feelings for her. So you know, same boat." Alice felt a little flush thinking about Shiho worrying about her. It was something that Ann had done but it was different. There wasn't a question of love and hate there. There was only a question of if it would be love. Which was a strange thing to think about, knowing that Shiho was simple. And that... gave Alice relief. "There's more, maybe. But that's a Shiho and me convo, not yours. Kay?"

"Kay. I am going to trust you about this. Because I can keep an eye on Takuto's Shadow and will have the other Thieves with me." Sophia's glare softened, taking a seat on the 'ground.' Alice forwarded the song to the next one, a swelling instrumental she had used to sew to. "Do you still want to rescue Ann from Adachi?"

"Maybe? I don't know. I know I said I didn't want to kill her but I might not have a choice at the end of the day." Alice admitted, leaning her cheek on the pole to let the cool metal focus her. "She's stuck in the shit, but she didn't want a hand up. It's one thing to be like me and never ask for it. She slapped it away."

"Would you have taken the hand?" Sophia's question was genuine curiousity, not a pointed barb and Alice knew what the answer was now. But she'd have to go back to how she was. "Is there a chance you would have done the same?"

"I think I would have slapped her hand away, but I wouldn't have touched one of her friends. I would have found another way into Maruki's Palace, I wouldn't have betrayed her trust like that." Alice's heart swelled with something approximating pride at that fact. She was many things, but her commitment to Ann was real. It was solid. It's why she went into Adachi's Palace with Sumire, it's why she did all the work to set up the Thieves. Even if it was also self serving. "I sucked, no two ways about it. But I probably would have at least listened. If nothing else to have a chance to figure out if it was a trap or compassion. And... I didn't get that from her but she had no way of giving it."

"I see." Sophia opened her mouth, as if to say more but shut it again. Then opened it, holding her digital headphones near her ear. "You at least are honest about this. This tells me Ann is worse than you now."

"Guess she fucking is. Guh." Alice dragged herself off the train and up the steps to the street leading to the school. Shiho, Sumire and Goro were gathered to whisper by the vending machines. She waved at them, trying to not grin back at Shiho's. Which was a good sign. Or was it? Because at the end of the day, Alice was a murderer and Shiho wasn't.

Or that was Ann level bullshit.

"Alice, you're not late. When Sophia said you were making a sojourn to the hospital, I expected you to wind up in Niijima's detention clutches once again." Goro had that fake smile back, the one that made Alice want to slap him. It wasn't the moment, but she could spare him a glare as she settled into the group. Shiho was at her side in a moment, insistent fingers hunting for hers. The bruises on her neck were pretty, already yellow and green in addition to the usual black. Alice accepted the invitation. "And here I thought your tastes were different, Alice."

"Same. Alright everyone, we're on a time crunch. Right to the hospital after school and if I split off, Soph's in charge." Alice squeezed Shiho's hand, trying to not focus on how she felt unworthy. How the old Ann would have killed to be in this position. Another thing stolen by master thief Alice Hiiragi. "Ann knows how to enter this Palace and we are not going to get much time. I won't count on her to play with her food. Got me?"

"We get it, Shiho... filled us in." Sumire glanced to Shiho, who was looking away from her. "So, uh, what's the best way to do this?"

"You're both idiots for her, for the record. I hope this means you have figured that out?" Goro chimed in and it took everything for Alice to not slug him. Shiho did not have the patience, stomping his foot and making him yelp. "You put our target at risk because of her, Suzui. And Alice, you put all of us at risk by not drowning her on one of your dates."

"Yeah, sure can easily commit murder you nitwit. Shiho, know you're angry but we need his foot working. You and him are going to be on fire support which means you both need to be mobile. Got it?" Alice snapped and Shiho's foot retreated to be by her side. Their hands didn't separate at least. "Now, here's the deal about this. Argue and fight when this is done. Once it's done, get it all out of your systems. Okay?"

"I can wait, I'm patient. Now, I'm going in there before Niijima comes hunting. I advise you do the same. Wouldn't do to wind up with Sunday detention when we're going to be saving a life then, would it?" Goro teased as he slipped off. Sumire swallowed, tugging on her collar.

"I'm sorry about what happened. I'll make sure Goro listens to Sophia. Hi Sophia, bye Sophia!" Sumire ran off, Alice's phone buzzing in her pocket at the mention. Cute. Shiho leaned her chin on Alice’s shoulder, letting out a little huff.

"Uh, so, yesterday, other than you know, the Ann thing, I liked it." Shiho whispered, letting Alice drag her off towards the gate. By the hand, but it was tempting to do the hair. "Did you?"

"Obviously, or I wouldn't be doing this." Alice enjoyed the little tightening squeeze of Shiho's hand. "You get that I'm probably going to be that rough, all the time. Right?"

"Yeah. I am. As long as you check first, like you did. Yes." Shiho lingered at the stairs, eyes on the ticking clock. The time to separate. "And, I want it to be more than that. Like dating."

"That..." Alice swallowed because that was a line. And she needed to figure it out. "A date. To make sure I'm not rebounding on you. Make sure it still works so I don't just use you too."

"Yeah, okay. A date. After the heist." Shiho whispered and kissed Alice's cheek, her lips warm and soft. "Anything in mind?"

"Dinner for sure. See you for the exploration, got it?" Alice pat Shiho on the head as she gave a thumbs up. "See you then. We might need to get you higher collars."

"Oh, but it's fun!" Shiho shouted back as she ran up the stairs. Alice chuckled and took her seat, settling in for a day she hoped would be fast.

-----

"Alright, looking for anything new in the Palace but I'm not coming up with it." Futaba circled the Thieves on her seat made of I-330's wires, looking at a little glass replica of the Palace. Replicas of the Shadows shifted through the building in jerky motions. "There's been some shifts in the geography from what we have seen. That room has shifted closer to the others.'

"His worldview is changing for some reason." Yusuke volunteered, adding a new sketch as Alice flipped out her knife. "We're on a time crunch, correct?"

"Pretty much, We're lucky she hates getting up early." Shiho volunteered and it sent an ember of anger across Alice's heart. She didn't think she had that much left for anyone that wasn't herself or Adachi now, but she had it for Ann. The squandering of a care that deep. Because the old Ann, she recognized everything that Alice did that was good. She appreciated it, even if she wished it had been different. This one was selfish. All for her and not even pretending otherwise. "Luna?"

"Putting something together. Fox, I want you with the fire support team. It's your job with Oracle to make sure they don't get caught off guard. Counting on your eyes." Alice appreciated that was something that got a smile from Yusuke, even if it was small. He wants his talents recognized when it shows he's more than just a good painter. Something beyond why Madarame claimed him. Good to know. "Crow, Deadeye anything that moves and it might not be us, I want you taking its leg out. Shadow, cognition, Ann. That last one will probably be ready but it will alert the rest of us. Lux, Avenger you two are with me. Oracle, center of the group. Keep people fast over anything else."

"Hmph, at least your head is on straight here." Goro's little snapping remark had been welcome other infiltrations, but now wasn't the time. Those were productive ways to make Alice justify herself. This one was only a little nasty thing said to vent frustration. This achieved nothing. "Are we moving, Luna? Or is Avenger taking the lead now?"

"We're moving. Talk after we secure the route, Crow." Alice pulled herself through the window, past the now functional EKG and into a hallway spray painted with an inverted caduceus and plaster ripped out. It undulated to lead towards the spire. Of course the path would have to lead towards the damn Azathoth tentacle. "Blind hill. What’s beyond, Oracle?"

"No Shadows, but we're also keeping them pacified by not fixing anything." Futaba's words planted a seed in Alice's head. He was the other person aware of Wakaba's Change of Heart. Maybe he welcomed this chance. Maybe that's what he wanted. Someone to save him from himself. "And the next Shadow is on the spiraling stair case up."

"Good, let's go." Alice leapt up and over the bend, skidding on her boots down the hill to reach its bowl. Sophia and Sumire skated down with her, using their momentum to keep going. Alice chose to not point out the smile on Sophia's face. The two of them deserved something good. The redheads tapped their knuckles together as they took opposite sides of the doorway to the staircase of solid obsidian. Alice felt a pulse of power as she approached the doorway. "Should have known. Cognitive Pscience knowledge and the fact we stole Wakaba's heart have compounded."

Okay, a little lie.

"Understood. Target sighted, speed boost installing." Sophia's eyes focused on the shadow dragging a barbed wire bat down the stairs, oversized piercings shoved through its collarbones. He really did not take this well, did he? I doubt any of them looked like this but his panic and depression is driving him to view them as some sort of stereotype. No wonder all his shit was surface level in the aftermath. Sophia and Sumire nodded and leapt up the stairs towards the Shadow. "Initiating combat!"

"The victims are--" The Shadow's word was cut off as Sophia ripped down its mask in a shower of fading blue sparks. She's getting closer, good for her. The armless gray statue within roared as Sumire's sword flashed across its horn, breaking it. "I'll zap you!"

"Please, try and zap Lux." Goro's laser made the Shadow reel as the electricity danced across Sumire's sword into one of Kuno's wires. In a flurry of razor-tipped cables he lashed Take-Minataka. "I think she quite thrives that way."

"Love the enthusiasm, Crow. But we have another Shadow approaching now, from the rear." Futaba's voice spun Alice on one foot, taking off towards the waveform hallway. The Shadow there drove a motorcycle down the hill at her. "Deadeye, take the shot on the tire."

"On it! Spike it for me, you two!" Shiho and Parker opened fire on the front tire, popping it and bucking the Shadow off. Alice leapt to the wall then off, because who was she to deny such a good request? The shadow went flying to the ground with one kick as Yusuke's sword tipped the mask off. Then in concert each of their blades impaled an empty faced Fuu-Ki apiece. "Nice!"

"Thank you, a perfectly synchronous blow." Yusuke sheathed his katana, tilting head head towards the sounds of carnage in the spire. "Sounds like this has been a success."

"Sure has. You're all getting stronger. Come on, let's go." Alice kicked off the hill to run back towards where Sophia had tangled Take Minataka for his execution by Crow. He blew the Shadow's head off in a single motion and Alice remembered their conversation in January. Where Goro understood how he could have wound up like Alice. How he could have been the one who died fighting the Phantom Thieves. "Alright, up the spire, got a feeling it's where the two rooms are coming together."

"Well, it's where the biggest signal is but I figured with the way this Palace worked that might be misleading." Futaba wasn't wrong to have that instinct. It was wrong for this instance but overall, not a bad idea for what might be going on when it came to a strange Palace. But it was Maruki's Shadow. It was Azathoth in the end after all. And the treasure was up high, an impossible dream.

The climb wasn't as fast as it should have seemed from the outside to reach the top of the Palace. Each floor they passed another piece of Maruki's home that was wiggling away from the core, more disjointed. And as it grew more disjointed so did the distances between each landing. As if the Palace itself wasn't fitting its own rules of space. Like something was bending it with its presence. The steps began to vary in height from those they had to climb up to almost a ramp with how small and tight they were together.

I thought he didn't get more powerful until Christmas. We're going to have to hope he wants us to steal his heart perhaps. Or we'll just have to be fast and quick. Which might be good for him not getting killed by Ann.

The top floor stunk of antiseptic and rust. The hallway had been ripped apart until only wood and insulation showed as the Thieves picked their way across its rotting floors. Where his desire was, it was the sickest part of him. He knew. He knew this was a bad idea and he was still considering it.

"I know. I know. I know. It should be easy." Maruki's Shadow's voice was shaky, his heart faltering on what he planned to do. He paced a living room in surgical scrubs with his hands up as if they had been sanitized. The mask across his face hid his lips, but not the panic in his golden eyes. The table on the center table had a glowing orb, his treasure. Alice should have turned on one foot and left, but she couldn't. They knew the path. They knew where it was and could go around the outside and in through the window. It would be faster, if the panic didn’t make it difficult. The Shadow turned towards Alice. "You're here. I'm still thinking about what you said about Rumi this morning. Still thinking, I can't stop. I don't know what to do."

"You were visiting him?" Goro's skepticism was palpable, it was right. It should stink. Alice shook her head and held up a hand. "Well then, if she won't say why, why was she visiting you?"

"Oh, she didn't visit me. She talks to me about my work sometimes, pushes on me. No, she was visiting her." Maruki's eyes looked towards the treasure floating in the center of the room. "I want to make her not hurt. But you really think it's as simple as spending time with me?"

"It's not simple. But if you're going to do surgery on her, you're going to give up on her." Alice took a step in, tucking her knife away. Maruki's fingers manifested a gleaming gold scalpel, aiming it at her. "Doctor, I put my weapon away. My hands aren't on my mask. Explain what you were going to do."

"This should be enlightening, Crow. I'd imagine that this might be relevant as to why Luna was visiting." Yusuke pat Goro on the shoulder, the boy shrugging it off with one hand. But he followed into the room, the rest of the Thieves following suit. "You're doing a procedure?"

"Yes. The brain holds trauma. And it has trouble healing from it, because the wounds are easy to reopen. Alice knows this, she talked about it with her." Maruki gestured to Alice and her stomach did a flip as the eyes of all the Thieves rested on her, some with pity, some with questioning and Sophia with something unreadable in her display. "I want to remove the source of that pain, but it would take more. It has to take more or it won't make sense to her."

"Doctor, what would it take?" Futaba wasn't looking at him, fiddling with the lenses of her mask. Maruki let out a sigh, scratching the back of his head with the scalpel so a thin line of blood fell from it. "Doctor! Don't do that!"

"It's just a little blood, it's fine." Maruki looked at his feet, scowling at them. Angry he had worried Futaba. Alice sent Pixie over to heal him. "You worry too much, Alice. You're far too kind."

"Goal isn't to kill you. You die, the rest of you dies. I'll tell them, I know. That good?" Alice hated being called kind by him, it stung the same way he had called her strong last time. For walking with thirty bullet wounds, when she had been given no other choice except to lay down and die. The Shadow gave her a thumbs up, because he was a coward about this. "It'd erase the entire relationship, right? Much easier to fill in the missing time if it doesn't accommodate you, your own trauma from the attack."

"Right. But she'd be better off I thought. But, you claim she loves me even if she's hurting and I just want her to stop hurting and--" Maruki's Shadow shook his head. It was a good sign. He was wavering without the calling card. "Why are you here?"

"We're going to take the source of these feelings so you can work on them. We cannot take it today, we need to give you a Calling Card." Sophia stepped forward, putting her hand through the treasure. The scalpel was at her throat until the Shadow saw the hand pass through. "I think Alice would prefer if you handed the treasure over when we come back tomorrow. It would also keep you safe. The woman who killed Kuon Ichinose is after you and your research."

"She can't have it." Maruki's voice made the Palace warble and they were all at the door again. Alice blinked, feeling the pressure of a Ruler's anger. It didn't have that magical taste it used to, not anymore. It was acrid, like burnt coffee at a convenience store. "But.  You want to fix me. You think you can fix me?"

"Put you on the path." Sumire's voice quaked with fear but Maruki's shoulders slumped, his fingers gracing his scrubs. He wasn't going to be a risk for doing a surgery. He was ready to give it up. "Th-thank you Doctor."

"Hmph. He folds quick or you have been eroding him for a while. I do think that wiping yourself from her life would be a cowardly act. A sign that you consider her disposable." Goro's remark is what it took for the Shadow to look away. "We'll relieve you of your burden, but you have to hold up your end. Don't be a coward and flee what you care enough about to construct this mockery."

"Well, that makes part of this easier. Let's go practice and rest. Then Goro, we're chatting."

-----

"Let me guess, you wish to chastise me?" Goro leaned his head back to stare at the ceiling of Alice's room. She made sure to clink his cup of coffee in front of him. He grabbed it without looking, because he was a showoff. "Because I am pretty sure you told me to speak my mind."

"Sure, I did. Here's the thing, I need that in Palaces to be something productive. I need to know when I'm about to make a bad call. Your skepticism with the Shadow, good. The shit for my choices around Ann and my already running regrets? Didn't actually help me. Vent that shit on Shadows." Alice took a seat at her worktable, working on altering the almost finished dress for Ann. It wasn' hers, not anymore. Alice could modify it. Make it about bringing back life or something. Make it different, wear it herself. It was a joke for a woman she never actually knew it seemed. "And then with the Shadow himself? Good fucking call on what he was doing. Said something similar to him, last time."

"You knew him. You have sympathy for him." Goro’s accusation sat like a stone in Alice's stomach. She hated that. She hated Maruki. As he was. This one, she could see how he got to where he was from here now. But it was wrong, still. "Was he one of Adachi's toadies or more likely, victims?"

"Only in that Adachi shut down the research lab he was going to run to cut off research. No, he just hurt Rumi. We stole his treasure. It was a hard fight because he knows cog psi. And his Shadow was already abnormally powerful." Alice tore out some stitches, under Goro's now watchful eye. "I'm changing a gift. Not hers anymore."

"Ah, the breakup. I won't hammer that home anymore than I have. Out of respect. You're taking it better than I thought." Goro must have meant he wasn't going to be a rude ass about rubbing it in anymore. "Considering your focus on rescuing her."

"You haven't seen us fight yet. Hold that thought." Alice pulled the fabric apart, trimming away bits of the edges to make it more her. More room for ruffle and lace, less tight. Take up the space she wasn't allowed so much of the time. "And back to Maruki. We're trimming a bigger problem down the road with this. I had hoped to talk him out of it. While he was reasonable."

"Seems you succeeded with his shadow. I'm surprised at the foresight in this manner. You never even had him on our radar until Ann threatened him. Which begs the question with recent behavior, is this a trap?" Goro swung the cup out in front of him, a way to gesture and accuse. Alice nodded, because of course it was a trap. "What's the plan?"

"Can't let him die to be right. That'd be betraying what I'm trying to do. Not for Ann but in general. If she doesn't want to do better, I'll stop her another way. She was the same about me, only fair." Alice fed the dress into the sewing machine, glancing to where progress updates were coming from Futaba on the calling card. It was almost written, leaving Alice and Yusuke to make one each. "And the plan is you follow Sophia. I fight Ann. I know how she is, the kinds of tricks she'll pull. Remember, you haven't seen me fight much and I haven't been slacking on my own training."

"It's clear from how you play with Shadows that you are aware of what you're doing. but you're certain that you can keep up? That you know everything she can do?" Goro set down the empty cup, coming over and picking up fabric off the floor. "Because if you're wrong, you'll die."

"Quite probably. But, I trust you all to be spiteful enough to keep going if that happens. And she's the kind of girl to fire a cannon at you to hide the knife at your back." Alice put the needle between her teeth as she folded in new fabric, lining it up for stitching. "She doesn't know what Candide can do. By design, actually. Each of our personas are a surprise. But I expect a lot of fire or pure force based on our pasts. We'll see if I’m right. Now, I have a card to make and you have studying to do nerd."

"I think I'll spend the evening relaxing for once, actually. No sense using up my energy before the big showdown. And Alice, do try to prove my respect is worthwhile by living." Just for you Goro, I guess. Alice snorted as she settled in for a night of her method of relaxing, working with her hands.

Chapter Text

"Exile, you're heading to an important moment in the game it seems." Igor's stupid booming voice didn't have all of Alice's attention. The well she was in had water now. Up to her ankles in depth and soaking up the material of her dress towards her chest in long cold branches. "The other piece on the board comes for you."

"Duh. I know. Do you just bring me here to--" Alice pressed herself to the wall as a loose piece of masonry fell into the well by her shoulder. "Hey! I think it's important to ask questions, munchkins!"

"Master is addressing you. He would have wisdom for you if you didn't mouth off to him all the time. Now he's going back to his desk." Caroline, the angrier one as Alice had learned in the past months, shouted down the well as Igor walked away. Which was fine by her. The kids were assholes but kids. And probably dealing with other shit, having to be here with Igor. "Why do you always mouth off to him? Don’t you want to succeed at your Journey?"

"Because he acts like he knows everything and he doesn't. You get that right?" Alice wondered if the well would keep filling, if she could get out of it by swimming to the surface. And from there, see what Igor was up to there. Justine and Caroline exchanged glances. "He's always talking about how it's interesting, my approach in targets. He clearly wonders what I’m doing. He clearly hasn’t picked up on what’s going on with me. Does he have an idea of why I'm doing any of this?"

"Of course he does. Why wouldn't he? He can see everything. He knows everything. That's why he is the Master." Justine chuckled, tapping her clipboard against the masonry. "He just doesn't tell us."

"You know, when I don't know something, I just say nothing. I also tell people what they need to know. If you're supposed to oversee my reintegration, why wouldn't he tell you what I know?" Alice felt a grin sneak in as the two Attendants frowned at each other. "Look, that can be our little secret. Come hang out with me and if you never tell him, I'll listen to your advice on strengthening myself like you want."

"You have a deal, Exile. We'll see you outside of the Velvet Room, after you finish the next step of your Journey." Caroline sent another rock plummeting into the well but missing Alice on purpose. Sneaky, okay, there's something there. Nice. "Now, don't you have a heart to steal?"

The sacrilegious path before you
Reeks of old blood
The High Priestess will help you
Avoid your old pitfalls

"I do. You all are why I'm here and cold and damp." Alice pouted as the world swirled from blue and gray to soft brown wood above. Back in Leblanc. She rolled to the side and grabbed her phones. The Ann phone had messages, a selfie of Ann in front of Shibuya Hospital. Alice parroted the message, her stomach twisting with rage. "'See you when the fun starts. Don't worry, I haven't touched him, yet.' She's going to make me feel like I'm a good person by the end of this, isn't she?"

"I don't know if you should, but you are becoming far more preferable as a person. I still don't like you. I loathe her. I do not think she has the same empathy you claimed during your crimes." Sophia piped up, her eyes opening from her own rest. She wasn't smiling but it was the gentlest she had been with Alice. Ever. "The plan is to eat and then take the Treasure, correct?"

"Correct. Then, we need to work on a plan for how we're going to stop Ann if I don't stop her the hard way here." Alice moved the half redone dress to the side, the rose skull grinning back at her. She grabbed the dagger underneath and her pistol. It was a better model than before. Easier to shape to be lethal than how she started. Good way to go back to jail if she was caught. She slipped the calling card into her purse. She had the job of going for Maruki's home while the rest of the Thieves tried to catch him at Rumi's room. Futaba would then bombard him electronically with the card. It was the best approach they could have. Alice gave it a once over, far too late but she couldn’t help herself.

Takuto Maruki,

You have let your own despair cloud you for too long. You dream of what can be done with your research without considering how to actually help with it. You will get yourself and those you care about hurt if nothing changes. We will be that change.

The Phantom Thieves of Hearts

"Not bad, Futaba. Don't think you wrote any of the previous ones. You didn't even sneak in a nerdy reference. Which is good, I think." Alice popped downstairs, grabbing her personal coffee beans and grinding them. The lightest roast that wasn’t expensive was her choice. She started heating the pan while she dug out vegetables and eggs. Something quick and easy and enough fuel. She'd come to appreciate all the home cooked meals from Sojiro already.

The knife flew across the cutting board, the onion falling to pieces alongside the tomato and mushrooms. She swept them into the oiled pan, listening for the change in sizzle. She flipped to the siphon, sealing the vacuum to begin the brew. She cracked eggs into the pan, swirling it together before unsealing the coffee. She set the flask to the side to cool alongside the pan. Enough time to clean the filter and then eat and drink while it was all hot.

"Look at you, up and at them earlier than me. Kinda weird to think about." Sojiro set his hat on the coat rack while Alice shoveled egg into her mouth from behind the counter. "You wanting to work today?"

"This evening, maybe. You know that girl I was seeing?" Alice watched Sojiro's eyebrow pop up in surprise. He noticed the past tense. He cares so much, it’s not even funny. Don’t… hate it anymore. I guess thanks Ann for that. I deserve it this time. A little. "I gotta break up with her."

"That so? I know I joked about you breaking hearts, but you seemed pretty into that Ann girl from what you’ve said." Sojiro tossed on the apron, moving behind the counter to start his own cup of coffee. Alice bobbed her head back and forth, an acknowledgment. "What happened then? Or what’d she do?"

"Seduced a friend of ours. Used it to hurt us both." Alice downed the last of her coffee, sweeping the crumbs onto the plate to dispose of everything in one swoop to leave. "It kinda worked out because friend and I woke up about each other. But. She sucks and needs to know that."

"Huh, you know, kinda expected you to be the heartbreaker, not going to lie. You got that no good punk look going on. Not everyone knows you've got a heart in there. A nosy, nosy heart." Sojiro chuckled as he poured grinds into the infuser to his liking. Alice shrugged as she placed the dishes to dry. "You don't seem to fight as much about it. Probably good for that other girl. I know her?"

"I think after this, I realize at least I have my heart. And I might be a whirlwind but I'm pretty good at limiting myself to one person. Shiho, she’s made it easier. Have to see how real it is as we go." Alice dragged her bag to the coat rack, grabbing her own two tone pink and green peacoat. "Thanks for trying to dad me. It's really sweet."

"I'm no-not trying to dad you. You just need an adult or two in your corner." Sojiro shook his head, his cheeks tinged red. Alice hated that it made her smile. Wonder if he's why Ann was like that before. Maybe losing him was what did it. He could reach her, she always liked mean people. He even reached me with how she was mean. "Be careful, angry women strike hard. Sure that applies to lesbians."

"Double it for lesbians. But it cuts both ways!" Alice waved as she started through the windy and dreary day. Takuto hadn't been staying in his apartment, for obvious reasons. A friend was out of town according to Futaba and had him house sit. Which worked out when the man was a fifty-fifty on being in her neighborhood. Two streets over, second floor, apartment three. She knocked on the door, shoved the card into the crack and booked it. She heard the door open once she was out of sight on a retaining wall. "Mission accomplished, let them know I'm on the way."

"Heard you! We're all being looked at by a cop but Goro slipped the card into the chair where you said. He agrees that Maruki is kinda gross based on all the snack wrappers." Futaba's voice came through the earbud. Alice wished that Sophia had warned her. "Waiting on you fearless leader."

"Okay, you get I do have fears, right Futaba?" Alice tucked her hair back, fitting in the other earbud to a gremlin chuckle. She could feel Sophia's glare about it. "I know you're trying to be in my corner like your not-dad but don't lie about me. I'm terrified of things. Mostly myself."

"She is telling that as the truth Futaba. She has shown other fear responses but will not explain their origin. She says they are hers alone." Sophia's back up was terse, but different. Nervous? She knew how powerful Maruki was. Or she didn't like something new in how she was now. "Please do not get arrested. It would make the heist difficult. We know that while Maruki has said he will give up the treasure, the Shadows will fight. And he may change his mind."

"I don't think he will change his mind. When he makes a decision, he's pretty strongly behind it. We just caught him when he hadn't made up his mind yet." Alice wavered on the subway, her stomach tightening with each passing minute. She couldn't count on Ann to be true to her word. "Hey, Futaba, is the Metanav still acknowledging the Palace?"

"It is. We haven't seen blonde terror either. Your maybe girlfriend is gonna snap by the way." Futaba's words were accompanied by a sudden noise, probably Shiho giving her a light punch. "Then stop looking like you're going to break like a bowstring."

Shiho was shouting something unintelligible through Futaba's phone and making Alice's stomach unknot. She had to be ready for Ann to keep Shiho from the hard part after all. And it was good to know that Shiho had spunk after all. Alice cleared her throat, "Tell Shiho that I'll be there soon to rethread her bow."

"She got all red now. I don't even know what sex act that is, it's gotta be super advanced." Futaba's words made Alice regret everything in her life. She was going to shake Futaba and see how many pairs of knotted earbuds fell out. The subway came to a stop in Shibuya, unloading Alice right up the stairs to the hospital and the waiting Thieves. Futaba was hiding behind a wall, a grumpy Shiho next to her. "Go get her or something."

"With pleasure. Two minutes!" Alice held up two fingers as she approached, appreciating that the Thieves scattered to let her grab Shiho. The two took over Futaba's spot, the girl leaning on a pillar, trying to play cool away from them. "Hey, I know you're worried about Ann. It's one thing to be angry and all that in the moment, but another when you might fight her. I'll carry that. I want you to focus on saving the life."

"R-right. Like you did for me." Shiho let out a shuddering breath, grabbing tight to Alice. The two squeezed each other, Alice's fingers digging into Shiho's hips for a moment. The girl smiled from that. "Trying to make me focus?"

"And reminding myself what I have. Mark you after this, make sure you're pretty?" Alice offered to Shiho's bouncing head and a quick trade of lip bites. Goro groaned nearby. "We're done, showtime, let's go."

"I think that is the definition of what I've heard called the wham-bam-thank you ma'am." Futaba whispered to Yusuke as they walked into the Palace. The spire supporting the rooms was spinning in place, the target moving and moving. Which was inconvenient, but able to be dealt with. "I-330, what do we got?"

"That would be good to know if Ann is already here." Yusuke rolled his neck, hand on the assault rifle. It wasn't a bad idea to have that ready to go now rather than wait to find out if there was more to deal with. Futaba rotated in place, her cameras zipping in every direction. "What's the word?"

"Maruki's stressed out, he got the calling card loud and clear. No sign of Ann, but the stairs are full of shadows." Futaba displayed the Palace's rotation, drawing out paths along the outside. It was beginning to feel like Okumura's Palace in Alice's heart. She hated that feeling. "No way around the outside, he's sealed the windows. Doesn't want people to see."

"That sounds like we have to take the spire, then." Sumire was first off and through the window, Sophia on her heels. Alice shoved the rest of the Thieves along, taking the rear as she moved into the Palace proper last. Broken bottles and piles of ashes had accumulated on a split in half couch. "This place is more wrecked, Luna."

"He's willing to tear it down himself, he knows it won't work. That's why." Goro's sword flashed through a Shadow before Shiho could remove the High Pixie with in. The walls on the ground floor matched the ones they had seen towards the top. Plaster ripped away to expose the guts, pink insulation spilling out like blood and entrails. Alice kept walking backwards down the hall, gun forward. If she saw that dress or heard the chains, she was going to rip Ann apart. "Luna, we're ascending."

"Thanks, Crow." Alice took a step up into the spinning structure. Looking out towards the world outside would make her nauseous if she kept it up for too long. "Oracle, anything new?"

"Uh, the Shadow is stronger. And he already did that freaky thing before. Are you sure he's like you said? Not that I'm doubting you but he is super bad news, okay?" Futaba was floating up the stairs, a camera guidelining Alice up as she kept staring down at the entrance. Alice flashed her a thumbs up. "I know he's kind of a pushover out there but this is wild."

"I know, but we can do it. We reached him. He never admitted anything like that last time because we got to him early enough. Okay?" Alice's steps were at least assured going backwards and up. All the looking over her shoulder when she was alone was paying off. "How's the front doing?"

"The extra practice after we found the treasure is showing, they can kinda tear through them with minimal effort." Futaba answered back as they reached the halfway point. One of her cameras zoomed to the hallway. "Luna? Incoming! I don't know how she got up to this floor but she did!"

"Go! All of you, Avenger, take the lead! Remind him about Rumi's eyes if you have to." Alice placed herself at the hallway entrance. The pressure of the palace tripled as concrete cracked. What the fuck is she doing? "I need confirmations, now!"

"Deadeye was lagging, fixing it now." Sophia answered from somewhere two meters back. The hallway began to stretch out, flattening into a plane. No, a catwalk. Points for showiness. This is not what I could do. Shit. "We're moving!"

"Good. See you at the exit." Alice cracked her neck, walking down the hall. Ann moved like a blur down the hall, her chains rattling and her lips in a manic smile. Alice fired for the left leg first, Ann twirling out of the way and the shot digging into the ground in a long furrow. The dress fluttered with the airstream of the projectile. Which was fine. That was the throw away shot. She shot for the chest. "Come on, I know you."

"You knew me." Ann ripped a hatchet from her dress into the way of the bullet, cutting through the bullet. Okay, new weapon, smaller and faster. Ann tossed it towards Alice, forcing the Wildcard to shoot it from the air. Ann slammed her hand into the support beam of the Palace, the other on her veil. "You knew some third rate version that fell for simple tricks. You know, people just assume they know me aaaaaaaall the time. Really easy to get what I want that way. And you just played right into that, like a good girl."

"Maybe. But, some kernel of you was is in there. Shame I'm killing that too." Alice wasn't going to keep toying with Ann. She wished she could, she wished this was fun. She wished this was advanced flirting, but Ann had dropped the pretenses. She pulled away her own mask while firing her gun. "Leanan Sidhe!"

"Cute. Where's the real you?" Ann's fingers snapped into the wood, hurling it at the muse among muses. Leanan Side caught the wood with a wave of psychokinetic force, whirling it through the air and into the wall. The hallway closed into a solid wall behind Alice. "You know, you talked about making Palaces. I don't do that, why would I do something like that? It's not useful, just problems for later. I remake them."

"Cute, you can't actually create." Alice fired her last shots at Ann, rushing forward with her knife. Leanan Sidhe yanked her hands backwards, ripping the television in the room behind towards Ann's back. An easy pincer, one she could dodge. But that was fine. "You want the real me? Candide!"

The TV kept flying through the air as Alice drove her dagger towards Ann. The assassin leapt from the floor as Candide shimmered into existence and dropped the burden of reality on Ann, sending her crashing into the floor. Blood flowed from her head where the TV clipped her. Alice drove the dagger down, towards her heart. Ann cackled and kicked up off the ground. In midair, Ann’s foot sent Alice tumbling into the wall after a kick to the chest. All of Alice’s body throbbed with a moment of pain.

"You have an old man, cynical and dying. Fitting. You're stuck in the past." Ann didn't get Candide which was fine. She didn't have to get him to die to him. Ann gripped her veil again and pulled. "If you're going to have a man in there, at least make him useful. Right, Roark?"

Blueprints fluttered out of the space behind Ann, forming into an approximation of an old business man, suit and all. One set of blueprints formed into pickaxe, which he drove into Candide. It forced Alice to withdraw him as the pain spread in a spiderweb of cracks through her own chest at the strike. Ann pulled out her own gun and shot where Alice's leg was, grazing it. Blood filled the hallway.

It would be hot if this was a game anymore.

"What about Adachi? We both know this isn't strong enough to kill him. Neither of us." Alice wasn't going to let herself not buy time. She staggered towards Ann, the blonde grinning as she flipped her hair. The Palace shook, sending them both to the ground. "And you lost. You know that, right?"

"Oh, I'll take care of Adachi, in time. I might not have gotten this scientist or whatever. But you?" Ann shot Alice in the stomach, a brilliant pain that was followed by warmth and cold in equal measures. She pulled herself to her feet, looking to Roark. "You're a better kill anyway. All those hopes about what we could be? Those being dashed? That was pretty fun. Than that last ditch effort to find my heart? I knew you were pathetic but this is an impressive showing."

"Who cares what you think?" Alice muttered, trying to ignore the spreading sharp pain when she dragged herself up to take the path out. I had to say a fight in a collapsing Palace would be hot. I don't want to die to her when she's like this. Fuck that. She ripped away her mask, Leanan Sidhe’s healing forced the bullet out and numbed the pain. Wouldn't get her blood back or make her okay. But it would mean she wouldn't die from running. Ann tittered, standing at the doorway as a chunk of ceiling fell down between them. "Want to die together? Make it that romance you'll never get?"

"Oh, you think I want that from you? Idiot. You'll look pretty buried in rubble for the brief second before this place doesn't exist." Ann's head tilted, dodging a yo-yo that went flying by her head. Sophia stood behind her, each hand up with a yo-yo in hand. "Huh, didn't expect you to be the one. Was kinda hoping it'd be Shiho. Make her watch, make her learn I could give her so much more."

"Get away from her. Let her out." Sophia's voice echoed as she attacked, Ann snapping the yo-yo's strings with a fresh hatchet. Alice sent a bolt of electricity forward that Ann laughed off as it struck her. "Luna, evacuate."

"Oh, she can't. She's trapped. You will be too, soon. Hey Roark, make sure she can't move anymore. Just a hand should do with that gut shot. Make her a pretty mess for me." Ann turned and ripped away her veil. Roark's pickaxe ripped away more of the wall, but the wall near Alice shifted into a muddy tendril that wrapped around her right hand. Sophia tried to punch Ann, caught in a fist. "Huh, you think a robot could punch better. Plus, thought you hated Alice. I'm just giving us what we both want."

"I--" Sophia didn't answer, trying to sweep Ann's leg. She kept looking at her snapped yo-yo's. Then the wall sealing Alice's hand inside it. Everything hurt in Alice's stomach where the healing had almost sealed the wound. She picked up her dagger and started hacking at the wall, but each bit of damage only drew in surrounding material and crushed her hand more. The persona was making it impossible to do anything to make progress. Bitch, this isn’t fun. "I hate you more!"

"Avenger. Just leave. I'll be behind you." Alice grit her teeth as blue flames began to swirl around Sophia. Alice placed the blade against her wrist, thankful the crushing was numbing her hand already. It was going to hurt regardless. But it could be worse.

"You realized that you actually need the humans to live the way you want, didn't you?"

Alice started cutting, slicing through her own wrist. Skin. Muscle. Bone. Muscle. Skin. She screamed as she did. Every one of her nerves there screamed until she cut them too, sending a slicing pain through her body.

"I do! They make mistakes but they try! Except this one!"

The pain resonated with Alice's stomach, making her want to vomit. Slice. Burn. Heave. Slice. Burn. Heave. Tears stung her eyes, but she kept pushing herself to focus on what she was doing.

"Then let's make a commitment to not go extinct, together. Humanity, machine hand in hand. I am thou, thou art I."

Ann aimed her gun at Sophia, the AI's display forming a series of masks as her hand went to her face. Alice screamed as she cut through sinew and more rubble collapsed around them. Sophia wiped her hand across her display and it shattered into an infinity of blue cubes to reveal her eyes again. "Helena!"

A woman made of flesh and machine in equal measures sprung into existence, her hands ending in a steel hammer and a fleshy sickle. Ann's bullets bounced off the weapons, pinging out of the Palace proper. Roark's pickaxe went for the persona, only for Helena to slam her hammer into and through him. Ann staggered to the side as blood fell down her face for a moment. "Well, you're all a lot more fun than I thought. That's enough for today. Bye!"

Alice would have screamed if she had the lung capacity anymore. She fell to her knees, trying to not stare at the stump where her hand had been. She could see the bone, the torn ligaments and all the rest. She was a failure. Ann had jumped clear, leaving the Palace. Sophia scooped Alice up. "I sent the others out. We are leaving. Helena, seal this wound."

The persona's last kindness was what Alice saw before she passed out, the pain and exhaustion taking the toll.

Chapter Text

"MOTHERFUCKER." Alice screamed as she came to, her wrist clawing for every sensation that should be there and in their absence, sending tidal waves of pain up her arm. She bit her lip before she screamed again, creating a new pain source. One that kept her silent at least, let her try to open her eyes to find out where she was. A tile ceiling, white machines with digital displays and a TV hanging from the far wall. A hospital room.

"Coming." A blob that might be a person came out of the corner of Alice's eye, jabbing a device into a receptacle on Alice's arm. Numbing began to flood from the action, her head swimming from pain and pain reliever. "Next time hit the call button."

"I'll--" Alice couldn't finish the word as her body fought her with the mixed signals of relief and pain warred and canceled one another out. Her stomach turned from adrenaline or pain or medicine, she didn't know. Didn’t matter. "-- keep that in mind next time I wake up screaming!"

"Point taken. I have someone here to ask you questions. Are you in shape to answer them?" The nurse, if the blue scrubs were an indication, was at least patient enough to do that. Alice grimaced, tried to push herself up with her right hand and screamed as she shoved her bare wrist into the bed. The nurse made her lay back down, a hand across the chest. "That's a no. Visitor?"

"Fucking please." Alice started to move, finding the nurse was insistent by pushing her right back down. "Let me sit the fuck up."

"No, you need to rest. Sitting in bed is less restful than laying in it. I will tilt the back up for you if you stay still." The woman's blue hair shined in the light that had turned on at some point. Alice let herself get lifted up with a huff because the woman was right. She was tired. She looked at her phone on the bedside table, filled with missed calls. "Your guardian is waiting to see you. Wanted to make sure you were prepared for visitors. And we had some instructions."

"Don't try to use it to push myself up?" Alice grit her teeth to a solemn nod from the nurse. "Things will never be the same, I have to learn how to do everything and I probably won't be able to do any of what I used to."

"Sure. You know this academically. Different to live. I'll go get your guardian. We'll have a conversation later." The woman walked out, leaving Alice alone. Well, not alone, Sophia was there. Probably. But if Sojiro was coming she couldn't risk him seeing her. Right? That was something she couldn't do. The door opened again, removing the question from her mind. "Here she is. She's awake. Pissed off. Don't blame her."

"Yeah, I don't think I'd be in a good mood either." Sojiro's voice was somber as he walked in, Futaba shadowing him. The girl wouldn't look at Alice, because she felt guilty. Which was stupid. The one who did it didn't. Alice's stomach flipped again, along with a wave of softened pain. Enough to make her jitter in pain. "Hey there, Futaba told me you were in an accident. Speeding car couldn’t stay on the street."

That was their lie? Fuck. Okay. That's going to have holes.

"I don't really remember." Alice sighed, tilting her head towards Sojiro and Futaba. She went to raise her arm and saw it. The mass of bandaging that was the end of her wrist. The hand was gone. An absence. A void of her expecations. She froze, a terrible awe staring back at her. It was one thing to not feel it, to feel the effect of its loss. It was another to see she had sawed it off in desperation. All for the chance to live. "Fuck."

"Kid..." Sojiro took a seat by the bedside, the same kind of chair Maruki had parked his ass in. Futaba stood by him, staring at the ground. Sojiro sighed, checking his phone. "I don't know what to say, not about something like this. Not about any of it."

"You don't have to. Shit happened. Now I have to figure it out." Alice closed her eyes, trying to ignore the tears stinging her eyes. A pittance of pain in comparison to the war of nerves and medicine in her arm. A rough hand landed on her shoulder, patting her twice. "Thanks. I have to move on."

"Not yet. They want to make sure you don't have an infection or anything. Then, I can take you home. Feed you." Sojiro gripped her shoulder, all the fatherly care she never got in one moment. She shook with a sob, her body screaming at her that it was wrong. Emotions or missing hand or that at the end of this day, Ann had abandoned her. A truth of why she sought all of this was wrong. "And... Futaba's been worried sick about you."

"Yeah." Futaba whispered, her feet shuffling. Closer. Alice forced her eyes open, seeing Futaba was right by the bed but not looking at her. Made sense. She was a horror show. Alice wanted to tap her on the head, but the girl was on her right side where she couldn't do that. "I'm sorry. I'm really sorry if--"

"Not your fault. Don't blame yourself." Alice managed as another wave of nausea and dizziness flowed through her. At least with each one her body began to stop screaming about the pain. "You know who to blame. Got it?"

"Yeah. I do. Just..." Futaba retched and Sojiro tugged her back, in anticipation of a vomit that never came. Alice would have agreed with the mood if she had the energy. "Upset. But you're the one hurt. Not me."

"Futaba, I think you're allowed to be mad too. I sure am. What kind of person hits a teen girl and runs?!" Sojiro's voice cut through the room, a burst of anger that Alice hadn't heard from him. He got annoyed, he fought, but never like this. He sounded like he might hurt someone. Not might. He would. "You don't remember how it happened?"

Oh. I remember. Making the decision. Putting my knife to skin. Sawing. Cutting. Snapping it away.

Alice shook her head, trying to not retch at the remembered pain, the feeling of cutting away sensation. "No, I don't. Wish I did so I could--" Rip her head off and throw it into Mementos. "--maybe get this all paid for."

"Mom is going to help." Futaba whispered, still looking down and away. Alice failed to get rid of the guilt. But. Who could erase guilt, really? "When Sojiro couldn't reach your family, she made some arrangements with the university."

"Oh, that's..." Alice didn't know how to respond to another person stepping up. She wasn't surprised that no one had picked up from her parents. She wondered if they hoped she was dead. "Thank her."

"I will. You get some rest now." Sojiro pat the bed rail and leaned back in the chair. "I'm here till the morning. Then Wakaba trades in. Go take a seat, Futaba. You're going to fret yourself into oblivion."

"Well. First, I got this for Alice." Futaba dug out a pair of wireless air buds. She walked around to where the phone was, letting Alice pop them into her ears. One at a time and after three attempts from using her left arm to reach her right ear. They connected to her phone without effort. "They wouldn't let everyone come visit because they're not family, but we figured you would want to make calls."

"Thanks." Alice glanced to her screen, watching the missed calls swipe off one by one. Sophia was hard at work it seemed. "Appreciate it."

"You are welcome." Sophia's voice came in through one channel. She didn't have any energy in her words. Not anger, not hatred. She was tired and it was showing. She’d awakened today. To save Alice. It was scary to think of. "I should have focused on saving you."

"Don't start. Okay? I don't have the energy for the blame game. Blame the right person." Alice growled at her phone to a bitter laugh from Sojiro. "See, Sojiro knows. I got fucked over and not by you."

"I let vengeance consume me, until it was too late. You... were fighting to keep her from hurting everyone else." Sophia's admittance made Alice's wrist twinge because it didn't matter what she was doing when it ended like that. She was only alive because Sophia showed up. if she hadn't been stubborn, they could have distracted Ann and-- nothing to do about it. "Shiho was especially worried. It's why I went back."

"Well. Thanks. Don't attack yourself about it. Fuck. It hurts. But that's for the person who hit me." Alice closed her eyes, feeling the medicine tugging her brain back to sleep. "So. Thanks for helping me get here. We'll talk later. After I--"

Alice's yawn interrupted her but didn't finish before the pain medicine dragged her to sleep again.

-----

"Morning, sleepyhead." Wakaba had taken Sojiro's seat, her hand on Futaba's curled up and sleeping form in the more comfortable chair. Alice groaned, her head fogged still from the pain medicine. Her stomach growled. "Figures, you probably haven't ate since before you got hurt."

"No." Alice wanted to shake her head but she felt like she had no strength. From hunger or medicine or the trauma she didn't know. She hadn't had to heal from her deaths after all, she'd never had an injury that some medicine in the Metaverse didn't fix. "Is there food?"

"There is. They wouldn't let Sojiro bring in curry." Wakaba set down a hospital tray, pulling the plastic lid off it. Powdered eggs. Dried out toast. A cut up apple. Then a styrofoam cup of water. "They were worried with the bruising on your stomach that you might not be able to eat anything difficult."

Alice lifted her arm and then let it fall down to the bed as she saw the stump. Wakaba grabbed the fork and Alice glared at her. She snatched it with her left hand, spearing the egg with it and making it crumble. She fought the urge to scream, scooping it in a shaky motion and up to her lips. I could fight with this hand, why is this hard? "I can't have you spoon feed me the rest of my life. Let me practice."

"You're taking this better than I thought." Wakaba's voice was quiet, her legs pushed together. Alice rolled her eyes at the remark. "Better doesn't mean well. I wouldn't have been surprised if you were a wreck right now."

"I am. I'm trying to do everything wrong. I'm trying to use a phantom." Alice could feel her brain trying to make a fist where her hand was, a trick of her cognition. She'd have to find another way to show anger. She had a lot of it as she chewed the dry toast. "I want to scream but I'm too tired. I want to fight someone but I can't. I'm upset but I don't normally cry in front of others."

"Neither do I. And I am not familiar to you, not like my daughter or Sojiro." Wakaba moved the drink closer, but didn't try to force Alice to drink. A mercy in two ways. One to relieve what the toast stole on the way down and the other to give her that dignity. "But having an outlet is good."

"I know. It happened yesterday. I don't know what I'm doing. Because I was finally, fucking, sewing again. And now... I can't. I can't do that. I can't eat the way I know. I can't hold a hand or a pencil." Alice growled at Wakaba, the woman staring at her. She wasn't reacting. "I can't fucking do any of what I was. I can't fix anything."

"Not yet. Recover. There are tools." Wakaba looked out the window, towards the rising sun. "You are down. But you can be up again."

"Maybe. Maybe I'm fucking tired. Maybe I want to lay down and rest. A long time." Alice admitted as she dropped an apple slice. "Fuck."

"You said it was yesterday. Then treat yourself like it." Wakaba shot back and Alice hated that the woman was right. And she felt worse that she had denied the world this woman last time. When she had a chance to say no. "The doctor is going to talk to you about options, including prosthetics. We'll help."

"Sojiro said you were doing sorcery to get me insurance help. Thanks." Alice cut off the 'I guess' on her lips. It wasn't worth it. She forced herself to finish the apple slice from her lap. "Why?"

"You helped Futaba. And after recent events I understand better how much I want to see her happy." Wakaba pat her daughter's shoulder, Futaba squirming in her sleep in response. The girl's snores shifted to something audible in the process. "And you need it. Things are clearer lately, about what I should be doing. Using what I already have for what I can do."

"Thanks." Alice relidded the tray and pulled her phone close. The Phantom Thief chat was flooded with messages. Mostly about what to do. She didn't know. Could she even fight? Did she even want to? "The nurse said someone else wanted to talk to me. Who?"

"Sojiro said your surgeon. That they had private questions." Wakaba stood up, stretching. "Are you ready?"

"As I'll ever be. Would you wake Futaba? I want to... have some privacy." Alice was happy to see Sophia give a thumbs up to this. Wakaba shook Futaba awake, the teenager rising up in a sudden fit of surprised motion. "Hey. You did good staying with me. Need privacy. Okay?"

"Okay. Don't... don't do anything foolish while I'm gone. Or I'll make sure your phone sings an annoying song to make you pay attention. Got it?" Futaba's threat was light, a joke. Something to take the edge off and it didn't work. But Alice faked a smile at her anyway. Because nothing was good right now. "You gotta say it or I'll do it now."

"I'm not going anywhere. Doctor has questions. You don't do anything foolish. I don't have a threat, just don't do it." Alice muttered to a morbid chuckle from mother and daughter. "I'll see you again."

"You will. Come on, Futaba." Wakaba led Futaba from the room, the orange haired girl looking back once every other step it felt like. Like Alice might disappear if she didn't. It hurt and Alice couldn't tell why anymore. She couldn't tell if it was because she was feeling guilty or something new. Some abyss of an unknown emotion in her chest that twinged against her bruising.

The nurse from the night walked in alongside a young doctor with short brown hair. The doctor leaned on a cane as she thudded up to the bed. The nurse shut the door with a quick motion. "This is your doctor. She wanted to know about your condition."

"And she can ask the girl her damn self. Not yet though." The woman looked down at Alice, hand on the bedrail. Alice turned her head. "Yeah, tracks. Look kid, and you are a kid, before you start anything--"

"You're what, fresh out of medical school? Don't coddle me about this." Alice huffed to a deep chuckle from the woman that shook the bed rail. "Funny?"

"Incredibly. Plus tells me you're feeling combative. Means breakfast did you good at least." The doctor's husky voice made Alice look over again. "No bullshit, how you feeling?"

"Dizzy. Angry. Tired. Hopeless." Alice looked down where her arm rested on the blankets. The bandages were there. Unchanging. "Like my life is over but I don't want to end it."

"Makes sense." The doctor shifted her blanket, hiding the stump. "Need your focus on me and not that. Let's talk recovery. And why we can in a bit."

"Sure. Let me guess, the skin heals and then you hand me a hook if I'm lucky. Then I'll just stumble through life, unable to do what I want." Alice huffed as she looked up at her doctor and a long and slow head shake. "Then, what is it?"

"You gotta work on that part of the shitty attitude. Rest can stay, it's charming I hear." The doctor pointed to Alice, almost hitting her in the head. "Here's the deal. Hook sucks. Your father figure mentioned you were a seamstress and a student. Made a lot of coffee with him. We're gonna work with you, but you gotta put in a shit ton of effort. You gotta want it."

"Effort at what." Alice growled to another chuckle from the doctor. The nurse stood to the side, scribbling notes down. "Stop being cryptic and answer me."

"Keep that spunk, anger's a good motivator. Prosthetics require learning new ways to use your muscles. That's how you're going to operate them. It'll be different and you can't use them exactly how you want, but you can do shit still." The doctor tapped her cane into the floor on the word shit. Alice fell for the attention getter, looking at the handle. An elaborate metal goat head on the front with a horse head on the other side. "That's the thing about shit like this, you have to work to recover and that means believing it's possible. If you don't, you won't. Got it?"

"... sewing. Really. That requires fingers. A lot of dexterity. Even with a sewing machine, I wanted a third arm sometimes." Alice grumbled and the nurse stepped forward, her brown eyes locked onto Alice. "What is it?"

"You will need to work on the finer dexterity with your left hand. From there you will be able to use a custom prosthesis for what your left hand used to contribute." The nurse nodded to the doctor, the woman looking to Alice. "The number one success marker for prosthetic training is believe it is possible. Number two is practice."

"Clap your hand if you believe." Alice muttered to herself and the doctor let out another chuckle. "Okay, fine, if you get me prosthetics and I can afford them, I'll try. Better than nothing, right?"

"Damn right. You're going to be able to be discharged after you answer a few questions. You'll be checking in with myself and nurse Nakamura here." The doctor reached into her coat, pulling out a prescription pad. "You also need to take an antidepressant, we'll be working on the dose. Helps with phantom pain. Helps with trauma in general. Now. How did you heal so fast?"

"Dunno. I don't remember what happened. I found out I got hit by a car last night." Alice lied on instinct. The doctor was helpful, but there was something off about the interaction. "I was with my friends and then I was at the hospital."

"That right? Nothing in the middle?" The doctor scribbled out something on the paper while Alice shook her head no. "You had stomach bruising too. Get why you haven't noticed, bigger bullshit to deal with."

"That's what they told me. Can't feel it with the pain medicine. Which is good." Alice huffed as the nurse handed her notes to the doctor. "So, I'm doing my therapy here or something?"

"Something like that. Easier to keep it in house. I'm going to send in a prescription for some T3's and for your anti-depressants. After you eat lunch and they know you're not going to fall over, you can go home." The doctor pulled out a business card from another pocket and tucked it into Alice's papers. "I'll see you tomorrow to start. Good luck, kid. You're going to need it."

"Thank you for your time, Alice." Nakamura bowed before the two of them left the room. Alice crossed one arm across herself and picked up the business card.

Shion Aragaki, Medical Doctor, Occupational Therapy

Was Sojiro wrong about them being my surgeon? Did I have a surgeon?

-----

Shiho was waiting at the door as Sojiro walked Alice out of the hospital. The girl's hands were twisted into fists, the smile she had worn in recent days was gone. She hovered at Alice's left, taking the hand in hers without a word. Sojiro let out a sigh and pointed to a bench. "I'll pull the car around. No sense avoiding one if you don't remember."

"Yeah. I don't care about riding in one." Alice answered, taking a seat on the hard stone. Whoever decided these were good benches hated everyone. Shiho sat down, pulling Alice to lean on her. "Paying me back?"

"A little. Terrified you were going to die. Terrified of what I would do if you did. You're not dead but, I should have been there with you." Shiho let out a long breath and Alice pinched her thumb with her left hand until Shiho yelped. "Hey! Why did you do that?"

"I wouldn't have listened if you fought me on it. Ann hurt you but not enough you would kill her. You might have gotten hurt instead." Alice glared at... whatever she and Shiho were. Involved. That's what they were. Maybe. "So, don't start tearing yourself apart over it."

"Well, am I allowed to tear Ann apart over it? Because I know where she lives." Shiho offered and Alice wished she could say to do it. Set Shiho's rage loose to rip out Ann's non beating heart. "I'm stronger than her out here, I bet."

"Don't. You can't guarantee she won't drag you into the Metaverse." Alice sighed as she felt sweat begin to roll down her arm, to nest in her fresh bandages. She wanted to scream again. Scream and cry. "And if that happened, you'd die. Sure, we could toss her body in there there but we're not."

"Okay, but she hurt you and she's running around free and it makes me so fucking upset. She's so different now." Shiho shook her head, fighting the weight of memory. The desire to look back at what could have been. "No, it should be about you right now. That's what's important. You got hurt."

"One way to put it, Shiho. Look, I... just want to get home. Because I know that I have that right now." Alice stood up as Sojiro's black car glided up to them. Shiho was a gentlewoman and got the door for Alice, letting her into the back. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it. Least I can do." Sojiro pulled out of park and started them on the way back to Leblanc, away from all of this. Shiho forced Alice to lean on her again. "At least your girlfriend has that right. Make you relax as much as you can. You need it after all of this."

"That right?" Alice chanced to a blushing Shiho. She wanted to demand to know if Shiho was sure. If she understood what it meant, but she had to. She wouldn't have been here if not. Shiho kissed her on the head, soft and gentle. "Thanks for clearing that up."

"Well, not like you're that hand. Still care about you. Still believe in you." Shiho's words carried a belief that Alice didn't deserve. Not after that loss. Not after she had wasted a prime opportunity to rid the world of Ann during one of their dates. "So, you're not losing me."

"Thanks." Alice's heart twisted in her chest, the fog of the medicine thudding against her skull. It was possible that Shiho was staying out of obligation. Guilt. And Alice didn't know if she cared.

She needed something to hold onto, something she could manage with one hand. And Shiho didn't fight her one hand holding tight, to whatever it could reach. Leg in the car and hand as they climbed the stairs to Alice's room. Sojiro didn't even say anything as Shiho made Alice lay down on the futon and joined her. He only nodded and headed downstairs

"I'm going to hold you, like you did me. Okay?" Shiho was cautious in how she wrapped her arms around Alice, making sure it didn't trap her. Or come near the damned stump. "Is this okay? I'd really like an answer."

"It is." Alice leaned back into Shiho, letting herself be held. Nothing more. She couldn't remember when that had happened. She'd held Ann but she couldn't remember if any of the intimate moments that she'd somehow had that Ann held her. All the encouragement to live, to be better and it wasn't that. It wasn't intentional. Or it was that Alice was too prickly to let it happen. Until now.

It was freeing to lay there, in someone's arms. She didn't have to think right now. She didn't have to figure out the future. She didn't have to think about prosthetics. Or fighting Ann. Or figuring out how to dismantle Adachi. She didn't have to do any of that.

She hated that she liked this so much. She hated that she was weak. That she had let herself get pushed to this point. She was supposed to be self sufficient, the one who knew what she was and what she was doing. She was supposed to be in control. Because anybody else in control had always hurt her.

Shiho wasn't going to hurt her. Even though she thought she had. Alice turned her head, ignoring how it pushed her arm against the futon. She pressed a kiss to Shiho's cheek, a little hint of teeth as she pulled away. She was herself, even in a tender moment. "Don't let yourself think you're anything but a good person in this."

"Thanks." Shiho whispered as she buried her face against Alice's neck, kissing the neck back. Soft and gentle. "You're not either. Just hurt."

"Just hurt." Alice didn't know if she agreed with it, but in this moment, she let it be her label. As pathetic and weak as it was, she needed the pass it gave her. A way to not blame herself. For a little while at least. "Giving me what you wished you got?"

"Giving you what you gave me, my way. I hope. You came into my life and told me I was more than a victim." Shiho whispered, leaning forward to rest her cheek on Alice’s. To add more skin touching, caring. Undeserved care for the girlfriend who used to be good at the mauling she wanted. "You came in and swept all my fears away. You put a gun in my hand and let me tell Kamoshida to eat shit and die. And now I'm letting you be Alice. Not a killer, not a Phantom Thief. Just. You."

"Just me." Alice curled her legs back around Shiho's. Holding her in the way she could. "Even without my hand?"

"Girl. Sophia told me what you did. That might be the most Alice thing you've done. Okay? It sucked and was awful but, you didn't die. Which--" Shiho paused, sniffling right by Alice's ear. Which should have pissed her off because it was gross but she couldn't muster that. Especially not when a warm tear hit her face. "Which I couldn't lose you. I can't okay? You let me be me."

"Well. Maybe. But you'd keep it. You know how strong you are. And now you know have the strength forever." Alice whispered back because now Shiho knew how weak she was. How pathetic she could be. Something no one that wasn't abusing her hadn't seen. "So. Just, you have that. Regardless."

"You make it easier. And... you're important. To me. to Futaba, Sumire, Goro, Yusuke, even Sophia. Okay?" Shiho buried her face further into Alice's neck, more tears. All to match the ones that shouldn't be on Alice's face. This was punishment, right? Losing her hand was a punishment, not only for her crimes but also for assuming she knew everything. It was just. In its own way. Right? "They're not here because they were worried it'd overwhelm you. Or you'd push them away too."

"I mean. Yeah. Later." Alice wished she could hold the arm around her better. But she didn't want to face what was under the bandage. Later. She had the rest of her life. "Here... here is good."

"Okay. I'm here. You're here and we can just be here together." Shiho didn't let go, keeping Alice close for hours. Alice drifted along in her arms, half awake. Waves of pain would drag her back and then bring her back down to sleep. She could feel the pinch of the wall around her hand at random. Phantom pain for the wannabe Phantom Thief. "Alice, do you need one of the prescriptions?"

"It's my brain lying to me. But a T3 will help with the rest." Alice flailed herself up, trying to steady herself with a hand that wasn't there. She fell back into Shiho's arms, making her girlfriend grunt in response. "Fuck."

"It's fine. New normal." Shiho shifted Alice and grabbed the bottle, using two hands to open the bottle. Alice snatched the lid and set it to the side. "Got it. Lids bad."

"Lids bad." Alice let Shiho drop the pill in her hand. It was ugly and thick and maybe part of her life, forever. The antidepressants would. "Forever."

"Yeah. Me." Shiho reminded Alice, hand on shoulder. "You have me, okay?"

"Okay." Alice leaned back into Shiho and she didn't feel good, but she felt warm. Like she had come in from the cold on a winter day. She didn't know if she should say that. Not right now. It was easy to latch on when you were suffering after all.

Chapter Text

Alice ached as she pulled herself up with the help of the table, her wrist hitting the wall in the process. Her fingers twitched to try and catch the wall but nothing came of it. Just the sensation of bandages rubbing against skin as it slid down the wall. She grimaced at the crawling sensation it spawned in nerves those there and those stripped away. She dropped her arm to her side, twisting her body as she stood up to take the pills. She was glad that Shiho had convinced Sojiro to leave them uncapped when the girl left well after midnight. Her first steps in the aftermath left her stumbling to the left side, her ability to stay upright thrown off as she forced herself upright to work with the loss of a counterbalance.

Alice grabbed a plastic bag and shoved a dress in that didn't need zippers or anything. She could wiggle into it with one hand after a bath. A bath. She groaned and pushed her toiletries into the bag on top of it. She trudged down the steps into the darkened Leblanc. Futaba was curled up in a booth, her laptop running a program. Alice tapped the table with one hand. "Wake up, I didn't die or anything."

"O-oh, hey. I fell asleep. I wasn't supposed to do that." Futaba struggled herself to her feet. "We wanted someone around in case you needed help."

"I have to figure it out." Alice's bag buzzed, Sophia forcing her way in. She repositioned so the phone was out. "Yeah?"

"You have to learn but it is good to have training wheels. That is how I understand it." Sophia was leaning on her hand, looking up at Alice with a somber frown. "You are hurt. You... can't do everything alone. You said that, that's why we made our deal."

"That's... all of this." Alice looked away from the phone. She couldn't figure out what to say. "And there's figuring out what I'm going to do wrong with fixing things and then there’s cleaning myself."

"Okay, but, you helped me with my hair." Futaba's counter wasn't the same, but it wasn't going to matter to them. The stubborn refusal to forgive was now a stubborn refusal to abandon. Alice's stomach knotted itself a little at that thought. A square knot of guilt at how Futaba was and how it was her fault. "And my deal was that you spend time with me and you have tech help in your corner. Just, you know, more than the fansite."

"I know. But. I'm not making you drop this, am I?" Alice admitted as Futaba began following her out of Leblanc. "I need a bath. You can... make sure I don't fall in I guess."

"Isn't it closed this early? The sun isn't even up yet." Futaba whined as she trudged through the backstreet with Alice. The Wildcard grabbed the doorknob and forced it open. "Woah. Low tech hacking."

"More like they never fixed this lock. Either time." Alice threw the bag down by the bath, starting the   water. It flooded the bath in a moment while she reached back and worked the zipper down on the dress she had been wearing in small and jerky motions. "I like cleaning up in the morning. I also like not being called out for my dick. So, I figured out how to get in."

"Makes sense." Futaba's voice came from out of reach, her finger taking over the zipper. "Yeah, see, you'd still be doing this if it wasn't for me."

"Careful. Alice is testy during baths." Sophia's admonishment was defanged. Like she had no strength to hurt Alice. Not anymore. "You should not go in with a bandage on."

"Fuck. Had to remind me." Alice took a deep breath and hooked her fingers into the fabric wrapped around her wrist. She felt the flesh shrink as she went deeper and then pulled it down. The bandage dragged along her skin before drifting to the floor. She stared at the end of her arm, a rounding of flesh. A point. "Shit."

"That... Alice. Why are you acting like you're okay?" Futaba asked as Alice threw herself in the bath. She buried the limb in the water, her hand working to drizzle shampoo on her hair. "Alice!"

"Because this is how I always am and I'm never okay, got it?" Alice felt bad about snapping as Futaba looked away, her hair a drape across the face. "Look. Sorry. I. You know how I feel about me. This is just more of what I've earned."

"It's not! It's just something bad that happened to you! You have done no-nothing since you got out except try to make things better than last time. To your own pain!" Sophia yelled from the phone, dragging Alice and Futaba to look at her. "I know that I... have been angry with you. I still am. But, you haven't given up on doing the right thing in spite of that. And even now, you're trying to spare Futaba your anger and frustration because you're guilty."

"I... knew you hurt but I didn't know that." Futaba turned a little towards Alice, her hand reaching out towards the soap to move it closer. "Why didn't you say an-anything? At least to Shiho?"

"Let's not go into that. Not now. It's too much for all of us in this room." Alice frowned as she used her hand to lather, every bit of her focus going into fighting the muscle memory to use both hands. A fight, a constant fight with her own impulses. "And, Shiho figured some of it out. When I told her about the loop and I went right for her hiding spot."

"Oh." Futaba's face went red at the realization, her eyes downcast. Alice cleared her throat. "Sorry! Let me help! You're struggling it looks like."

"... fine. Today. Let me rinse the shampoo. Then use the conditioner." Alice muttered and sunk into the water, dealing with the heat of embarrassment, the fact she was having to be helped. Again. Like when she got sick over the break. When she resurfaced, Futaba closed her mouth. "What are you up to?"

"We were discussing what else we can do to help after your appointment. What you would allow." Sophia wasn't hiding anything, given the panicked headshake from Futaba that swept across the water a little. "She would figure it out. She is resistant but letting us do this. If I am to expect her to be honest, I will be honest. I... must honor my deal."

So, that's how she's handling this guilt. She can help me if it's in service of matching her expectations of me.

"Well, out with it. I figure Sojiro is going to feed me since he's mother henning. So, unless you want to explain why you're at Leblanc and not home..." Alice trailed off to Futaba giggling and conditioning her hair. Alice's fingers bumped into Futaba's as they raked it in. "This is the same stuff you're going to use when we get your hair grown out and we redye it. Okay?"

"Aye-aye mistress of hair dye." Futaba managed a little laugh as she splashed water up to get the conditioner out. Alice rolled her eyes at Sophia and sunk back into the water, holding herself there for a moment before popping back out. She grabbed her soap from Futaba and started lathering everywhere with her eyes closed. "Can I help with this?"

"For other reasons, no." Alice rushed the words, to make it clear it wasn't Futaba's fault. That she wanted to scrub her hand again and again to try and clean it of all the disgusting feelings she had. "People hurt me. What you can do is make sure I can find my towel when I open my eyes."

"She is making sure of this. What do you need help with, after?" Sophia's helpfulness felt wrong. It was wrong. All of it was wrong. Alice fought the urge to slap the tub and make Sophia stop. "You are vibrating."

"This is weird, okay? Not even just the hand, but you." Alice whispered as she stood up and grabbed the towel, wrapping it around herself while Futaba made the universal noise of 'I'm not looking.' It took all her focus to not the gentle force of draining water send her to the side again. One more thing to deal with. Sophia hummed in confusion. "You hate me. You're being nice and helpful."

"I did not want to kick you while you're down." Sophia looked away and that felt right. "And, the doctor said your attitude will help your recovery. You need to recover to fulfill our deal."

"... sure, I'll buy that." Alice muttered as she winced at the sensation of the towel drying the stump. It was awkward and awful. It felt like nails on a chalkboard to her teeth somehow. She threw on her dress in the moment after, her arm on full display. She couldn't hide it. She sighed. "Alright. I'm clean and decent. Thanks."

"Ye-yeah, glad to help." Futaba shot Sophia a look as she helped clean up the mess they made, packing it all away to leave this without a trace. "Yo-you should talk to somebody about this. Mom said you should too and she knows brains."

"... I know. Eventually. Someone. For now, I'm going to claim I demanded you come over so Sojiro doesn't question why he's feeding you. Let's go."

-----

"Well, you're on time. That's a good first step." Doctor Aragaki moved into the room, Nurse Nakamura on her heels. Metal rattled as she took a seat onto a stool by the bed where Alice was. "You come alone?"

"Friend walked me. Another is walking me home. Didn't want them to see me fuck this up a thousand times." Alice tried to ignore that Sophia would see or at least hear all the fuckups. The doctor grunted in acknowledgment. "So. You're not letting me have a hook to menace people with."

"Nope. Like I said we’re going to work on two of them. One's standard shit, a gripper." The doctor produced a metal mechanism from her pocket, two pieces of hard plastic that opened and closed with teeth to hold things in place. "This is your everyday sort of deal. Lets you grab things and take them with you. Can't really type, but we have other ways to help you with that. What you'll need most of the time. Also lets you lean on your hand to do shit. Useful. We're gonna train your muscles to trigger it to open and close and for different amounts."

"So. Nothing delicate." Alice didn't have hopes for it, no chance to sew or draw to design with her hand. Maybe she could draw with her left if she put in the effort. Maybe. The doctor held out the device until Alice held it in her hand. It was heavy despite being small enough to fit in her hand. She used a finger to tug on the pulley end. Opening and closing it. Time after time. Awkward with each moment. "So, I can carry bags."

"Books, other shit. You'll use it, trust me." Doctor Aragaki pulled the gripper out of her hand, putting it to the side. "That is something we're going to start exercises on today and do measurements to fit it for you. If we got one in your size now, we’ll get it fitted."

"The other part is you and I will work on a hobby hand. Your insurance will cover one, we will do a sculpt of it to let you do what you wish." Nurse Nakamura stepped forward, looking to the stump. "Sewing was mentioned. We can make a hand that will let you do the motions most associated with sewing. Is that what you want?"

Alice looked down at the black dress she had on. She tapped her feet on the floor, a part of her brain saying this would be final. It would be everything that she could do, wouldn't it? "Would it be able to?"

"Yes. You would need to go over the motions and we would design its manipulators to do that. I would build it and demo it for you." Nakamura set down a clipboard with drafting paper, a few rough sketches already in place. "I did some base research. You would need a fine manipulator for threading your needle, a surface for pushing it through fabric and another to help tilt its aim. Correct?"

"Well, that's right. I'd also need a way to turn the needle from up to down. It's not really natural to turn my whole arm around repeatedly." Alice's description came with Nakamura scribbling out notes and then shapes next to each. Doctor Aragaki tapped the bed, drawing Alice's attention back. She had a chart with exercises, all printed out. "What's this?"

"It's your start. You're going to be doing these, daily. Even if you choose not to wear your prosthetic." The doctor tapped the exercises in turn. All ways to twitch her muscles and how hard and long. "This is going to be opening and closing that hand. Do you understand?"

"Yeah. I need to be doing this enough I don't die from that and the weight." Alice stared at each of the motions, then her forearm, then the exercises again. "This is my life now. I guess. No choice."

"Wrong, there is. You just don't want to make the other choice. Which is good." Doctor Aragaki waved towards the door with one hand, and the nurse bowed her head and left. "Alright. Girl to girl. Who fixed your wrist up? Because you didn't need surgery. You came in without blood on you, but unconscious from trauma."

"Did someone? Last I remember, I was with my friends. Then your nurse filling me with a pain killer." Alice looked ahead, feeling her doctor's eyes on her. "Why do you care? Doesn't that make your life easier?"

"It does. Still strange. And remember, dipshit, part of your recovery is your mental state. If you're involved in shady shit, that impacts your ability to get better." Doctor Aragaki sighed as she pushed herself to her feet. She leaned on her cane a little harder as she made her way to face Alice head on. "So, talk. If not about that, at least how you're feeling."

"Like I'm going to burden a lot of people in my life. That I'm going to get stuck playing catchup for too long. Miss everything I should be doing, because I have to do exercises." Alice went to grip her dress and couldn't, her stump tapping her thigh. She turned from the doctor's face and screamed. "And there's that! I keep doing it over and over again! It's uncomfortable and makes what already feels bad, feel like utter shit. So, then I just want to collapse but then, hey right back to fearing that I'm going to lose my time. Fall behind and lose everything."

"Alright. Slow down. All normal shit. After my leg got fucked, I was the same way." The doctor kept standing and Alice forced herself to look at her seat. "Oh, you think you're smart, huh?"

"Little bit." Alice hated that it got a smirk out of her. The doctor rewarded herself by sitting down, her own tiny cocky grin on her face. "So, what. Just don't do it?"

"Kinda. What I mean is, you jump thought to thought and you don't deal with any of it. Here's my advice for now, you got more time than you think and you can do more than you think." Doctor Aragaki's chair wheeled across the room to a cabinet. She grabbed a handheld spring device and kicked her way back over. "When you got the time for those, you squeeze this for as long as you can with your left hand. While you do it, think about what you're feeling. Got it?"

"That way if I'm a panicked mess, I'm catching this arm up since it's my dominant hand now." Alice grumbled, taking the device. "You're young to be a doctor."

"Tell you how, when you tell me who fixed you up." Doctor Aragaki shook her head, tapping her cane on the ground as Alice looked away. "One day. On your side, kid. Alright, in the meantime, measurements. See if we got your second hand here."

The sacrilegious path before you
Reeks of old blood
The Judgment will help you
Avoid your old pitfalls

"Fine. Yeah. Measure the stump." Alice closed her eyes, holding out her arm and trying to not swear about this woman being a bond now. The doctor gloved up and ran a measuring tape all over her arm between writing information down. Alice couldn't help thinking of all the times she did the same thing to a model while making a dress for a show. It was costuming, a way to try and make her feel like she wasn’t useless. "You sew?"

"Nah, I cook." Doctor Aragaki tapped her forearm with two fingers, a rap short of painful. "Open those up, I'm done. You're going to have to get used to looking at it. Better to practice now."

"I know. Give me a break, I just fucking lost it." Alice's cursing bounced off her doctor, a mercy. The woman had a bedside manner similar to Alice's. It was nice. The doctor slammed home several keys on a laptop. "Sounds like I'm waiting."

"Nope, I just hate this thing." The doctor spun the screen around to where it said in DOS blue and white, deliver to room 306. "You're going to get it fitted, you're going to take it home and wear it some. Work and practice with it. Follow the exercises. And once you're used to it, I'm going to have you lift weights with that arm. Got it?"

"You're serious about it being my second hand. Fine. Okay." Alice laid back on the bed. She let out a long sigh, because of course she had gotten this doctor had a ton of probing questions. "You usually ask your patients questions like this?"

"Only trans girls with as bad a mood as me." The doctor tapped her throat, an Adam's apple and a hint of stubble there. "So. Ones I like."

"Fuck you." Alice couldn't muster the venom and the doctor knew it. The door opened, Nakamura entering with another version of the gripper. "So. That's supposed to be me. They take paint?"

"You gotta be careful, no spray paint. Gums it up. So hand paint it. So you better be ready to not have it all day when you do." The doctor wheeled over again, the nurse joining her. "Alright you're going to do all of this. I'm going to pipe in only when you fuck up and make you redo it."

"Makes sense." Alice slipped her arm into the prosthetic, the inner lining hugging the limb. She could feel all the little pieces she would activate by flexing, each of them pressing against her skin and waiting to be activated. "This looks simple. I buckle this to keep it on and make sure I'm situated. Like they made it easy on purpose."

"They did. Designed that you can put it on alone. Self sufficiency." Nakamura watched Alice check the buckles that kept the device close to her arm. "Good."

"Yep. Design works wonders when someone gives a shit. Alright, start flexing." Doctor Aragaki pushed the stupid worksheet into Alice's vision. She tensed one muscle, pulling one side of the grabber away from center. She tensed a second and it closed. "You can do them separate, a little more control. Practice on both sides at once. You'll want that to be your go-to."

"Fine." Alice tried to activate the muscles but tightened one end while the other ended. She made herself relax, like when she dropped a knife to her other hand. She tensed again, the gripper opening and closing. Each bit of work strained her muscles until the fingers she didn't have hurt. She let out a groan and stopped. "Stupid."

"Your brain thinks there are fingers there. You're convincing it of the truth. Your fingers are those now." Doctor Aragaki pointed but didn't touch the two sides of the hand. "But you did it. Keep working at it. Your arm’s muscles and nerves got traumatized, now it's time to recover them. Got it?"

"I fucking got it." Alice grit her teeth as she opened and closed the hand until she was panting. It felt like it should have been simple but the damage was another story it seemed. "Why does this suck so much."

"Using your muscles different. You're doing well. Rest." Nakamura handed her a water cup, on the left side. Alice held tight to it, drinking until it was gone. "Keep this up."

"She will. She's got things to do after all." Doctor Aragaki pushed herself to her feet, collecting everything in a folder that she tucked into Alice's purse. "You're discharged from this visit. Call if you need anything."

"Sure." Alice shouldered her bag, peeking in at Sophia on the screen. She was watching as Alice made her way through the hospital, her fledgling new balance struggling against the new counterbalance. "Well, that's not what I expected."

"No. It's not normal either. They know you were healed. This is sooner than you would have gotten one from my research." Sophia whispered and Alice popped in an earbud. "However it's good you have something now at least."

"Sure. Have to get ready first." Alice sighed as she rode the elevator down. The prosthetic felt like a weight on her arm. Hanging there, dragging down but not moving. She forced it open and close with more tense muscles as she came out to the lobby. Goro stood at the welcome desk, a brown suit on with a red tie. "Taking me to dinner?"

"You wish. Making sure you get home safe." Goro's voice hissed as they walked, his neutral with her. Which was good, at least he wasn’t coddling her. She handed him the other earbud as they walked. "Now, for my question. What the hell were you thinking if she could do that?"

"I didn't know, Goro." Alice almost tested the hand's ability to do blunt force trauma right then. "And, is this the time?"

"It's the question on the team's lips. Why and what next? You were confident you could beat her. You were wrong." Goro's voice wavered and Alice let out a sigh. Okay. he's scared. Me too, bitch. "You're out of commission for fighting."

"I disagree. Alice still has persona. Her physical combat capabilities are compromised but her persona shouldn't be, correct?" Sophia was right but Alice felt tired thinking about it. "Alice?"

"I don't know if I have it in me. Not right now. I have to learn everything again. I can tell you what might happen soon, but I don't know if I can fight. Because I don't know if..." Alice paused and closed her new hand again. "I don't know what I can do. If it's enough."

"If you're thinking that, we're all fucked and Ann's going to have no one to stop her. She's going to walk all over you." Goro stated the fact but the way the red in his eye shined in the light, she realized something. The fucker was challenging her. "Then she's going to undo all your hard work to make this better."

"Fuck you. This isn't the day." Alice lifted her hand and flipped him off. She raised the other hand, showing it off. Goro paused his steps for a moment. "This act?" She forced it open, burning running along her arm. "Is exhausting."

"Understood. Don't lose your fight Alice. I'd hate to get strong enough to stop her and have you miss out." Goro dropped his plan and Alice laughed as they waited for the light to change. "Amusing you?"

"Yeah. It's hubris to say that. You just gave me shit for being the strongest and failing. So, cool your fucking jets. Get stronger with everyone." Alice yawned as they descended into the warm air of the subway and hopped on the train going to Yongen. "That's when you can talk shit. Got it?"

"She's right. Even with an Awakening powerup I could only rebuff her." Sophia grumbled, her voice low. "We need a plan to stop her."

"Yeah, you do. It's one thing to know she can modify a Palace, it's another to have her do... that." Alice shivered, a burst of pain flowing up her wrist until she gasped and fogged the subway window next to her. She leaned on the prosthetic, the pressure on her arm and wrist all different, all wrong. A reminder of why she hurt, making the hurt worse. She gripped the exercise equipment from the doctor. I feel useless. I am useless. "So, plan. Later. When I'm less tired."

"Fine. Don't like it, but you two being unwilling to move forward would lead to me being a lone wolf. And that is death by your own admittance. Tempting as taking some people down a peg would be." Goro let out a sigh as they climbed the steps back up to the street. "What do we do in the meantime?"

"Mementos, practice there. Sweep through and fight the Shadows to get stronger. Sophia still leads. When I can use this thing without dying. I'll go in. See if I can manage it." Alice reached out with her new hand and turned Leblanc's knob, letting herself in. She paused at the realization that she had managed it. Sojiro looked at her from behind the counter, pausing at her new hand as she forced it open. "Hey Sojiro."

"Alice, that isn't what I expected. Come in, take a seat. You too, kid." Sojiro tapped the counter, obliging Goro to sit. He passed them each coffee. "Prosthetic?"

"Prosthetic." Alice took a sip of her coffee, closing her eyes as the heat permeated her left hand. It was a comfort to have that one still. To feel this. "Tiring to use."

"It's apparently quite the effort to use she said. Coffee might help perk her up." Goro leaned on his elbow, sipping at his coffee. Alice hated him for being right, as usual. "She needs that."

"She can fucking hear you Goro. And she may have lost hand strength, but not foot." Alice growled, feeling that urge to bludgeon him again. Intentional, because anger was what they were powered on. Which only made her more mad for falling for it. "The coffee is as always, excellent. Thank you."

"If it's a workout you better drink some water too then." Sojiro added a glass of water after a few moments. He was scrambling for what he could do for her. "Your doctor good?"

"She's a bitch. Like me, so yes." Alice could at least make Sojiro smile with that. Something she didn't expect to enjoy but she did now. "She gave me shit to do. For the rest of my life."

"Hmmm. It's truly a shame we can't prove anything about the hit and run." Goro mused, circling a finger on the cup. "Utterly monstrous. And I would love to make sure they suffer for it."

"Chill out kid. Leave that to lawyers to do to them before you wind up in jail yourself." Sojiro sighed till Goro laughed. "You got a weird friend."

"He means well. Don't you, Goro?" Alice wasn't sure how she managed to tease him but it shut up the laughter in a moment as he set down his cup. "Wow, that got under your skin."

"No. I believe someone is making a poor choice." Goro stood up, taking a sidestep from the counter. He cracked his neck as the door to Leblanc opened. "I do believe that the last person Alice wants to see right now is you."

"Oh, the breakup wasn't that bad." Ann's voice made Alice turn in slow motion. She smiled with the setting sun behind her as she stood in Leblanc's doorway. She had a glove on her right hand. "Damn, all the way off."

"Leave." Sojiro pointed to the door and Ann placed a hand on her heart in mock shock. "Yes, you. She already had a hard enough day, she doesn't need you coming in here and mocking her."

"C'mon, Alice. It's not like we're ever that cordial with one another." Ann leaned forward a bit. Alice gripped the cup tight. She was tempted to hurl it at Ann's face, waste Sojiro’s coffee. "Weren't you the one who--"

"Responded in kind to what you asked for. I don't want this." Alice's voice cracked and Ann laughed. Alice pulled her hand back, stopping when she remembered it was Sojiro's mug. "Get the fuck out."

"No coffee for me, I guess." Ann pouted and that's when the cup slammed into her chest, shattering. "Hey!"

"Clumsy me. I seem to have tripped while on the way to close the door." Goro's fake ass grin set Alice at ease. Ann stomped her foot. "Careful, mine was an accident. And Mister Sakura owns this place, you understand? You won't have many rights if you continue to trespass."

"Fine. I just wanted to see how she was doing." Ann spun on one foot, head over shoulder. "You really lost out, huh?"

Alice waited until the door shut to collapse, to let go of the cup in her hand. Sojiro laid a hand on her shoulder. After handing Goro a broom to clean up. "Curry for you after because at least you made her leave. You knew how to pick a piece of work, kid."

"Yep." Alice whined into her arms and didn't move. She heaved once, twice, thrice. Tears flowed onto her arms. She wasn't safe. Not until she got strong enough again. Ann could come by and drag her into Mementos.

That's why Futaba was there, to warn everyone.

"Alice. You know what you have to do." Sophia's voice wavered. And it sucked. She didn't have time to figure it out. Not at all. “We need to start working on your strength.”

Fuck.

------

She was standing on the moon of herself in her dream, staring at the number eighteen on the surface. Ann in her red catsuit stepped into place next to her. "This kinda sucks, you know?"

"You're telling me. I got fucked up so bad I'm dreaming about how you used to be." Alice looked over to Ann and her right hand twirling in her hair. Alice reached out to touch her and her hand was gone. Because why would she have it, even for a fake moment like this. "So, any clue why you're here? Why I'm dreaming of my own afterlife with you here?"

"Probably because you're realizing something about me. Or... who knows. Don't feel like I'm fake. Maybe I am, maybe I'm not." Ann grimaced, her fingers dragging down through her hair. She reached out with her left hand, setting it on Alice's right arm. Above the void that should have a hand. "Maybe I get to hang out here, while that bitch ruins things."

"That has to be hellish since you're aware. You know, if you're fucking real." Alice placed her hand on Ann's wrist, the familiar feeling of Fatale's gloves answering the touch. A part of her wanted to crush the hand. For comfort or vengeance. But it wouldn't fix anything. "So, if so. What do you want?"

"Mostly for you to be okay. Be... back in your life. Well, back in mine but that's not possible. I think." Ann sighed, her hand stroking down Alice's arm. The frown deepened, the way she looked every time Alice had begged for death before. Which, Alice didn't want anymore. "I don't even know what's possible, beyond being here. Being a vision or a dead woman, lost to time. Which if I was there I could help you, we could have just arranged everything and instead, you're hurt!"

"Yeah. Would have been nice. But here we are. I'm surprised you're not still mad at me about the shooting and sacrifice thing. It's probably why we're here, you know?" Alice glanced to where Ann shrugged. "I literally stole what you were going to do from you."

"Oh. I was PISSED. For a while. Didn't want to see you. But you were trying. You were earnest. With whatever this is." Ann flexed her hands into a fist, the gloves stretching across her knuckles. "Maybe I'm still a little angry because getting shot hurts. Because you deserved to live and then you do the stupid thing for me. Because you loved me."

"Love you. Mixed it up with that one for a bit. She's not you. I couldn't make her be you." Alice reached out and took Ann's hand with her own. She laced their fingers together, her old glove settling into place, black on pink. "I fucked up by holding onto the past. I had changed and didn't realize it meant you did too. I said I did but I didn't. Thought it'd be fun and games like November. Not October."

"And now it's March." Ann whispered, leaning her forehead on Alice's. It was a comfort to have it again. "You moved on at least. Which... dunno how to feel exactly about it. But hey, who knows how real I am. And you and Shiho work. You did what I couldn't."

"Because you didn't cheat. Don't sell yourself short, I fucked that up before. Different now because I had your example." Alice tapped her forehead on Ann's, the woman smiling at her as she stuck out her tongue. "What?"

"You're right, you are different. I like it." Ann sighed and leaned in. Her frozen breath coated Alice's lips. A kiss from the dead. "You know, I wondered what would have happened if you came clean sooner. And... now I don't know if it would have been good."

"I... don't think I could have done that. I always wanted a real fight." Alice closed the distance, tasting Ann's frigid lips. They felt clean, pure to the touch. She didn't know if this was good or bad or if it was. "You feel like I used to. Is it at least peaceful?"

"Not really. But mostly cause of the fact I can see what she does through your eyes." Ann's eyes burned with a blue flame inside them, the two of them swaying. "So, how about we amend that deal with her. Since, I'm Ann. Some way. Some how. I want you to take that bitch out. I want you to never give up. I want you to keep opening that heart up to your Thieves and especially Shiho. And as long as you do, I'll help you from here. Death is change, right? Well, how about we change how this works."

"Music to my ears." Alice took a step back, taking in Ann. The blonde girl reached out towards the void of Alice's hand. "You can."

The sacrilegious path before you

Has offered a path of old and new

You have chosen to hang onto the old

May Death continue to guide you

"Good. You kept me running when I thought I couldn't, so many times." Ann smiled at Alice, placing her hand on the stump. Heat spread around the joint, Ann’s body losing its opaqueness until only a gossamer duplicate of the woman remained. Alice sucked in a breath. "Don't worry, when you visit here again, however this happened, I'll be here. But in the Metaverse?"

Ann faded and the heat spread up Alice's arm, a ball of green flame resting at the base. She held it up and the phantom sensation of fingers came again. The ball shifted with the sensation, becoming fingers. She stretched and the flames followed her direction. She grabbed a rock off the ground, melting it but holding it. She hurled it and then mimed shooting a gun. The flame hit the rock, turning it molten goo. Alice laughed at it. "Of course you gave me fire. Of course."

Chapter Text

Alice woke up with the lingering feeling of Ann's flames dancing across her arm. Their phantom held her hand, Ann’s freezing touch ghosted her lips. Alice wished she could flex the gifted fingers again. Destructive as they were, they were something.

Guess I'm back to being most myself in the Metaverse.

Alice slapped her hand around in the dark to the now moved work desk. She found her prosthetic, dragging it onto her chest, the plastic thudding against her. The heat in her arm died down as it touched the cool cloth and buckles, attaching her hand. Because that's what it was now. Her offputting and horrifying hand. The weight dragged on her as she opened and closed it. Again and again.

Doctor Aragaki isn't going to be able to claim I didn't do my workouts.

"You know, one taste of her only makes me miss her more." Alice whispered as she stared at herself in the reflection of the television. It bent the light away from showing her her own hand. Prosthetic and natural. She couldn't think of one as fake and the other real. "I should have realized it wouldn't be the same. It couldn't be the same. And I should have thought about the fact she was the first to try and kill. It was correct then, but it said a lot more about what Ann was willing to do. That nugget of her is there, but it doesn't matter. Too many others will get hurt if I use my time to try and unearth it."

Alice pulled her sleep pants off, a pair of baggy sweatpants from Shiho’s days under Kamoshida. Easy to get in and out of with one hand. Alice hated how earnest the testimony was, even covered up with Shiho cracking a joke about Alice getting in her pants.

Alice wished she felt attractive enough for the joke on top of all of this. She tried to put her arm through her uniform sleeve and it got stuck. She bit her lip, hissing in anger about it. She pulled out with the shirt fighting to stay stuck to her. She grabbed her prosthetic and slipped it off to start over. It was one more bit of friction to the stupid Shujin uniform. One more way for the prison of a school to piss her off and trap her. And in a distressing and recurring theme, she was starting over again.

Shirt, unbuttoned. Then prosthetic. Then buttoning. Then skirt. Then brush her hair in the mirror and try to not look at the gray mass of plastic that was her hand. Then socks and shoes. A long time tying her shoes. "I need to get shoes with zippers or slip ons. That aren’t hideous. Somehow."

Alice shouldered her bag, gripping the strap in her prosthetic and walking down the stairs into the dim light of Leblanc. Sojiro was already behind the counter, cooking. "Morning kid. You sure about going to school?"

"Doubt my probation officer is happy with you about this as is." Alice flushed red at the thought on her lips. No sense in hiding it. "I'd rather be here, with you. So, not risking that changing right now."

"Kid." Sojiro turned and moved his glasses. Okay, cool, we can both be lame about this. "Thanks. Here, eat up."

"Thanks, Sojiro." Alice took a seat, the little rock in her stomach. She knew Ann had said something similar to Sojiro at some point but that wasn't the case. Not anymore. Something she lost. Something Alice had now.

Stolen.

Or an opportunity just unfairly distributed. Maybe it was all random.

Sojiro slipped the curry onto the bar, a cup of coffee next to it. The good beans bag was opened in the corner. Sojiro's personal ones. Alice blew on the coffee a little. "Seriously, thank you. This... could have been worse."

"Yeah. If you had to rely on those deadbeats of yours..." Sojiro's anger reverberated through his voice at the thought of Alice's parents. "I told them and they hung up."

"I'm not surprised." Alice couldn't even muster the sigh. She'd given up on her parents since they ignored her complaints about Kamoshida at Shujin last time. The memories of this existence weren't better. They were negligent at best, ready to abandon her at worst. And it didn't surprise her they didn't care their daughter lost a hand. "So, don't waste your anger on them. I'm not."

"Kid, they should care about you. That's why I'm mad, but I'll stop bringing it up right now. For my heart rate and because you want it to stop." Sojiro quirked his lips as he watched Alice unclamp her hand and eat. Her left arm ached more and more each day that she used it. But it would have to. She was going to be relying on it, strengthening the muscles and reflexes for use as a fine tool. "You need anything?"

"This is more than enough. Uh, bare with my grades dipping, actually." Alice added after a second thought to a look from Sojiro that she knew meant 'Are you kidding me right now.' She took a sip of her coffee. "Look, we had the deal, I study, you teach me coffee and sure it's curry too now."

"Fine, we'll figure out a way to do all of that with how you are now. Studying and fixing food." Sojiro shook his head. "You were a lot worse yesterday, today you're--"

"Still feel like shit, don't get me wrong. But, the doctor kept telling me I have a choice. I just won't make the other one. So if that's the case..." Alice trailed off, returning to her coffee. Her face burned with the damn look of pride on Sojiro's face. That she had earned it because she wasn't stopping. "I hate this all still. It's one of the worst things to happen to me."

The rapes just left me with triggers, I could walk around and be okay. I could see myself and not notice that. Being dead was great. This? It's inescapable.

"I didn't think you liked it kid. But you're not giving up. Not that I'd blame you right now. Not with everything that's happened." Sojiro swept his eyes to the broom in the corner. Alice stood up, her food finished. "You got lunch?"

"I do. Grabbed something for today on the way home." Alice tried her best to smile at him before she headed out. He gave her the same quality back. Pained. Melancholic. But attempted.

The subway ride always came with some problem, the hair always drew some businessman's attention, his scoffing. Or worse when someone clocked her, the muttered slurs and innuendos a normal occurrence as she rode. But now it came with a new kind of attention. People who gawked at the hand. People trying to reach out and touch it. The muttering about her being a criminal between the hair and the hand. "You all do know I can hear you and that Yakuza stereotypes are about pinkies, not whole hands?"

Alice's words only silenced them until the next stop and the fresh exchange of riders brought a fresh wave of people gossiping. She wanted to scream. She wanted to reach out, grab their Shadows and crush them. She wanted them to know how much it hurt when it was only her, alone. She ran off the train at the next stop, dashing up to the street and through the streets. It was slower. It was frustrating in a different way but it at least didn't come with everyone packed around her staring.

And it came with seeing Sumire hopping a wall and landing next to her. The smile of exhilaration faltered as she popped up from her landing. Because she was looking at the damn hand. "Hey, Alice. You're going to school? Futaba said you were going to stay home, I thought. Yusuke was going to see you after school."

"Well, he still can, just elsewhere. And I can't sit in that attic feeling sorry for myself for another day." Alice huffed to gritting teeth from Sumire. She can still find a way to blame herself, I guess. "Please, I really don't have the energy to tell you what I told everyone else. We all have to deal with it. And it wasn’t your fault."

"I know. Mad at her. Mad at you a bit for not letting us help with her. But Shiho said you would have worried about us. But you do know we were worried about you, right?" Sumire's face flashed into a desperate grimace, one Alice hadn't seen since Sumire begged her to die and become Kasumi. "You... idiot. You act like you're disposable when you've done nothing but help all of us. You can't just race to abandon us with sacrifice after sacrifice. I think about how you said you died for Ann. A lot."

"Make you feel better that the death plans I have around her is making her die?" Alice chanced to a bitter laugh from Sumire. The redhead tapped Alice's upper hand with her knuckles. A symbolic punch but it was a momentous blow in Alice's heart. Even fooled by Alice she was never that kind of mad at Alice. "I get it. I'm... look. I want to live. If nothing else to spite her now. You know?"

"Good. But you're going to lean on us now. Got it?" Sumire's sudden fire, it felt good. Right. She wished the last Sumire had gotten to experience it this soon too. "You aren't--"

"I know. I know. Look, in the future, it'll be all of us. I just... couldn't risk him dying. I trusted you all to get his treasure, even if it got hairy." Alice went to pat Sumire on the shoulder, then remembered it was a plastic hand that looked like a claw and stopped. She dropped it to her side, red in the face. Embarrassed at how one of the few times she wanted to reach out and comfort, she couldn’t because Sumire was on the wrong side. "I still have to figure out if I even have the wherewithal to fight."

"Well. If you don't, you can at least heal us. So we can keep fighting. Like you have been." Sumire kept her eyes ahead, on the prize now. She's focused. I guess letting her explore how to be herself worked out better than I thought. "Can you do that?"

"We'll find out. Not today. Give me a day because I know we're probably hurtling towards more problems." Alice sighed, knowing what the next one would be. Haru. And she was going to do her best for the girl to not lose her father again. "Shit. She probably won't hold back."

"What?" Sumire blinked as they came up to the gate of Shujin. "Alice?"

"There's someone we need to find and soon. She was a Thief. And their father hated her enough to hire me." Alice swallowed, looking to Sumire. The girl tilted her head, wanting more. "She's going to go public with something soon. And it's going to backfire. The dad fuck up. It's this."

"And you don't think Ann will do the same thing." Sumire's face drained of color. "Who?"

"Ugh, out of respect to her, let me recruit her first. Priority one. Will you text everyone to meet at the business district an hour after school?" Alice's remaining fist tightened in anger. She forced her hand open and walked up to the doors. Sumire flashed a thumbs up as the phones dinged. "This sucks. Foresight sucks."

"No, that's Ann." Sumire's little jab cracked the facade for Alice. She let herself slump in acknowledgment. "You saved Shiho. You helped me. And Futaba and Yusuke."

"I did. Okay. Get to the class. I'll see you." Alice disappeared into the prison. To be gawked at and gossiped about. Nothing new. It was the same everywhere she went. Parents raise their children to be like them, after all.

-----

"Hiiragi, what are you doing?" Makoto stared at Alice as she took a bite of her sandwich on the bench. "You shouldn't be eating in the hallway. Either use the classroom or a break area."

"I want some space, buzz off." Alice glared up at Makoto, anger boiling in her arms, her chest. She wanted to rip apart the woman for daring to talk to her. She wanted to be here for Haru to see. Start the conversation early, get Haru convinced soon. Makoto didn't budge, arms crossed in front of her. "Makoto, I have had a rough time and I want to eat my meal where less people can stare at me. Instead you're doing this."

"There are spaces you can eat in peace. If you would follow dress code, you'd have more privacy." Makoto's eyes locking onto the prosthetic hand where it rested on Alice's thigh made it obvious how well that would go. "You can dye it back easily."

"No, I actually can't." Alice didn't finish her thought, taking another bite. She saw Haru peek outside the classroom then shrink away. She hoped it was because Makoto was being the worst right now. "Can you give me a week before you try to ride my dick about this?"

"Why should I give you a week? We've been discussing this since February. It's March now." Makoto's fingers curled around her bicep, a hint of her Shadow slaying glare coming through. Alice smiled at her. "Why aren't--"

"Makoto. Seriously. Not today." Alice raised her voice, a little. She couldn't help it. Makoto couldn't let someone exist as themself without any one telling them what they should be doing. How did she ever become a Thief when she's like that? "When they elect you Student Council President, do they laser drill out your empathy?"

"No, you're literally complaining about something that can be fixed and acting like I'm unreasonable." Makoto sneered at her, the devil's red eyes looking at her with contempt. For all the wrong reasons. There were a trillion reasons why. But where she ate lunch? The color of her hair? Those weren't reasons, they were an attempt to punish her for existing. "Why won't you fix it?"

"Because she don't wanna, come on. Look at her damn hand. When she says it’s not easy, it’s normally a two hand job." Ryuji had left his crutches behind it seemed. His leg was fighting him as he moved, the joints not bending enough. A work in progress. "My own class is gossipin' about her. And you're not helping!"

Alice remembered Ryuji showing up at her door, ready to take her on a run. Unannounced, completely inane but well meaning. And here he was, at least less inane. Makoto shot a glare at him. "Sakamoto, you're defending her because you also need to dye your hair."

Shit, he's blonde to support Ann. Isn't he? That’s what Ann said.

"No, what? Listen to what I said, maybe she is right about the laser shooting thing. She just lost her hand!" Ryuji's own hands flailed around him while he missed any semblance of what could be a polite way to point it out. Which Alice hated that she enjoyed. He at least didn't assume shit about her. Probably because Kamoshida had snapped his leg and lied about it. "Let up on her, that's all she asked for."

"It has nothing to do with her hand. She has to follow the rules. Everyone does." Makoto backpedaled, her hands still gripping herself. Like she was holding her anger in. "If we can just ignore the rules, what's the point?"

"Figure out if they actually do anything. People are going to stare at this, green hair or not." Alice held up the damn prosthetic, forcing it open and close. She was tired already. The sheer effort of existing like this was killing her. "So, don't give me shit about it being my fault."

"Exactly." Ryuji sat himself down next to Alice, united in telling Makoto to fuck off. The Student Council President held out two detention slips. "Oh, just put my name down for both of 'em. We know what you do for your detentions and she'll struggle. You clearly don't care about her."

"I..." Makoto's hand dropped to her side, studying Ryuji. He shrugged, glancing to Alice. "I do care."

"Doesn't feel like you care about us. So, figure it out. Because who did you help against Kamoshida besides taking his knife away?" Alice's eyes locked onto Makoto, the girl backing up further. Even if Alice couldn’t fight there, her tongue was sharpened with the anger. The faded guilt replaced with steel. "You're a coward, you know that? I was trying to be nice about it before, but I really don't have that patience anymore. So, leave."

"You really are." Makoto muttered before leaving. Weird. I know she suspects us of being Thieves but that was different. Something's off. She doesn't remember or she'd be on my ass in a way different way.

"Hey, you like, good?" Ryuji snapped Alice from her thoughts. She shook her head and shrugged. "What's that mean?"

"Shit sucks. Can't do anything about it. But, thanks for having more brain cells than her there." Alice giggled when he beamed in excitement. "Down boy, you're lucky I like that you pointed out the obvious there. Or I'd have given you grief too."

"Oh, shit. I didn't think about that. I just thought that you needed help and started talking. I'm kinda bad about that as you noticed." Ryuji's face went beet red and Alice remembered that he had been easy at the TV studio too. "Well, uh, I don't completely get it but I get it enough. Everyone staring at what hurts and blaming your hair for it. When someone did shit to you. Fucking bastards. It makes me so mad."

"Same. Strike what I said about having more brain cells than her. It's more than almost anyone in this school." Alice tilted her head back with a smile. "You're Shiho's friend, right?"

"I mean. Kinda. We haven't talked as much lately. She's... something with you." Ryuji's face deepened its blush. Okay, got it. "We used to have another friend but she ditched us after I got hurt. I haven't heard from her since. Good riddance."

"That why you and her had your falling out?" Alice's arm ached with the effort of existing. She wanted to reach up and unsnap it. Let it fall to the bench. But it was her hand now. She had to get used to it.

"Guess she's told you about how she thinks Ann would come back?" Ryuji sighed and pushed up from the bench, wobbling on his feet. "Yeah. I think she got out because everything sucked. Didn't even check on me. And she knew that Shiho was-- you know. You probably know more than me."

"I sure do." Alice frowned, hurling her trash away. Ryuji paused, frowning. "Try talking to Shiho. I think it'd go well. Well. Give her a day or two, she was... there for this."

"Shit. No kiddin'. I'll try and catch up with her. Thanks Alice." Ryuji started to walk and froze. "They got you on PT, right? Need a workout buddy?"

"They call it occupational therapy. Maybe not for that, because it's a lot more awkward. But I could use someone chill about me whenever I go to the gym." Alice stretched her left arm over her head, rolling her wrist to stretch it out. Can't believe I'm picking this now. But I'm different. Still bloody but different. “I’m going to have to do lifting eventually.”

"Deal. Seeya." And with that, Ryuji went straight up the stairs as lunch ended. Alice trudged into class. She didn't achieve her goal, but she had gotten Ryuji closer to her. And that was worth something.

The sacrilegious path before you
Reeks of old blood
The Empress will help you
Avoid your old pitfalls

-----

Alice beelined out of the classroom, nodding to Goro on the way. She kept an eye on the class next door. Most of the students as they left wouldn't stop staring at her hand. A few repeated the subway experience, trying to touch her hand. She scared them off by opening and closing it. A threat to the sanctity of their own hands.

Not that she'd get away with it. But it'd feel good. Great even.

The class emptied, teacher and all. But no Haru. She was head down on her desk, staring out the window. Unmoving. Well. That says a lot. Alice swallowed, trying her best to put her game face on. She couldn't falter here. She had to get Haru safe. Now.

"Hey. Mind if I sit?" Alice kept her fist in her pocket, the sign she wanted to see Kunikazu's stupid head blown up again. She wanted him dead. She wanted him gone. Haru slapped the desk, blind and violent. It was almost familiar. "What happened?"

"Father is upset with me. He told me that I couldn't do it." Haru's voice wavered with tears and something far more familiar in her voice. Rage. That she was denied what she deserved. That someone she knew had gotten it when she hadn’t. "Why would he? Father always said that he wanted me to be happy. And this is the happiest I've been."

Haru's chipped nails tapped on the desk. The girl had been rough on them since their painting session before. When Alice could do it. Now, now was the next part of what it all set up. "Do you want help?"

"Can anything even be done? Even if I pursue something, he has control of my life. He controls what money I have. He controls that I go here." Haru's fingers drummed again on the desk. She turned her tear ridden face towards Alice. "And why are you here, don't you have enough to deal with?"

"Maybe. But. We made a deal. They matter to me." Alice quirked her lip into a pained smile. "And misery loves company I hear."

"Maybe it does." Haru turned her face towards her desk again. She gripped it with one hand, the drumming of the other never stopping. "What can you do to help?"

"Well. It'll sound crazy so it's easiest to show you. It's going to be scary, but you're going to have back up. A lot of it." Alice pushed herself out of the seat, offering her hand. "I won't lie. It's dangerous."

"Can't be more dangerous than..." Haru didn't finish her thought. Alice didn't think she needed to. She took Haru's hand, chipped nails and all. She helped the girl out of the seat. "What's going on?"

"I'm not letting you wallow in that thought. If you're thinking that, how about something real wild?" Alice hated how risky this was when she wasn't sure if she could handle a Palace right now. But it hadn't been about her comfort for a long time now. And Haru was at risk.

"Well, it depends." Haru dragged her lips back as she stood up, letting Alice start leading her out of the school. "What are we doing?"

"We're going to visit somewhere. And it will make a lot more sense there." Alice kept Haru close, peeking around the gate corner as they started making for the road. No Ann. That would make it all complicated. "No. No bullshit. Do you remember what happened with Kamoshida?"

"I do. It was hard to forget. He was ready to kill himself. Madarame did not seem that way." Haru whispered as they made their way over to the business park in Shibuya. "Are you saying that was you?"

"And others. And you could do that to your father, if you're careful. Because you are right he should be taking care of your happiness." Alice didn't know how she felt about the fact that Haru squeezed her hand enough to hurt. "Careful, you'll have to grip the other one if you squeeze too hard."

"Sorry, just, your tone around it. Sounded like you knew what it meant, personally." Haru closed the distance, keeping pace with Alice as they came to stand in front of Okumura Foods Headquarters. The other Thieves were gathered in an alleyway. More out of sight than they had been when Alice ‘followed them in’ last loop. "Wha-what?"

"This is where your father's distortion is. You could steal his heart, make him answer for telling you no. And more." Alice turned to face Haru, looking her straight on. "It won't be easy. You're going to see him as he is. And it's dangerous, especially if you go alone. But you wouldn't."

Haru looked at Alice's prosthetic. Fear danced in her eyes, the fear of mutilation. But also of what the alternative was. The color ran from her face. "Why did you lose your hand?"

"I fought some one on my own. Some one using what we do for evil." Alice stared at the ground, the phantom of the knife to flesh, sinew, nerve and bone reigniting inside her. She fought the retching, the nausea, the feeling of violation. "You'd run into her, eventually. But... we'll get strong enough together to stop her."

Haru twisted back and forth, her eyes unable to leave Alice's right hand. Her frown set into the grin of anger. "You've tried to be nothing but kind to me. Even with a fresh injury like this, while you're adapting to this. You won't push yourself doing this if I go. Deal?"

"I'll stay in my limits. Come with me." Alice backstepped to the alley and the Thieves. "Welcome to the Phantom Thieves, Haru."

Haru's gaze swept across them, landing on Yusuke and Futaba. "I believe I have met everyone but you two."

"Hello, I'm Yusuke. You should call me Fox soon. This is Lux, Deadeye, Crow, Luna, and Oracle. Avenger will appear when we get there." Yusuke explained as Shiho held up her phone. "Are you all ready? I'm quite excited to--"

"Get started on a new Palace. Right, Inari?" Futaba cut in, glaring at him. Alice's laughter and Futaba's smile in the aftermath were all involuntary. "Everything else is for later."

"Hello, Okumura. You're going to have questions, I'm sure. Alice would normally answer them before the Palace, but I'll--" Goro cut off when Alice grabbed his arm. He let you a dramatic sigh, the kind that she'd heard almost anytime she made a call he would argue with. "You need a break."

"Goro. After the Palace and we get her coffee. Okay? Full story." Alice whispered, pointing to her heart. He slumped in acknowledgment. "I appreciate it. If it was my remaining two besides her? I'd let you. Not this one."

"What's going on?" Haru cut in, her voice sweetened. Conciliatory. She probably thinks we're fighting about her. "Is there a problem?"

"Only in that this stuff is complicated and Alice takes her promises seriously. She wants to be sure that this doesn't go like last time." Shiho winked as she reached over and tapped the Metanav on Yusuke's phone. Alice reached over and undid her prosthetic, slipping it into her bag where the lack of weight put her at ease. "We puzzled out some of what the distortion isn't. What does your Father see the company as?"

"A launchpad for his political ambitions..." Haru trailed off as the world shifted into black and blue, the Spaceport of Kunikazu Okumura filtering into existence. An old man's idea of what sci fi high tech was. Orbs, circles and an aesthetic of darkness. "What is this? What is that?"

Alice paused, feeling Ann's gift form at her wrist, the green flame wisping into place. Her Thief outfit hadn't, but she had Ann. She had that much and Ann gave her this to fight. She focused as she grabbed at her Shujin uniform and pulled. Blue and green flame washed over her body until she had covered herself in a new outfit. A charred white wedding dress, the frills soaked red with old blood burned into existence. The flames of her right hand spread to form into place as a masquerade mask over the eyes, burning around her. "This is a gift I was given to make sure I keep as many people safe as I can. Listen up, we're going to show Haru the truth. Avenger, you're still field leading till we know how much I can do. You all saw it took effort to get my outfit. Deadeye, arm our new girl."

"On it." Shiho stopped from reaching out to Alice, pulling out the procured grenade launcher and a pistol, offering both. Haru's eyes sparkled as she snatched the grenade launcher. "Good choice."

"It all doesn't feel real, but if this is a weapon I understand they require less precision. And it would probably hurt someone a lot." Haru's old grin was already settling into place. "But, what is this place?"

"A representation of your Father's heart. How he sees the world. The part of him he doesn't show the world. He, himself is in there, somewhere." Sophia explained as she led them onto the elevator. Haru nodded as she walked alongside the AI, the long explanation of the mechanics beginning. Alice tuned it out, she had Shiho on her left.

"That's new. Did you know or does this place work with your desire?" Shiho asked, head on Alice's shoulder on the long ride up. "It feels familiar somehow."

"It should. It's Ann. The old one. My memory or somehow her, I'm not sure. She's not mad about us, one of the first things she said." Alice reassured, her hand finding Shiho's and squeezing. The other girl's duster fluttered against her. "She made me promise that I'd stop this one and keep myself open. And if I did, I'd have this. So, here I am."

"I miss when that was the her I could count on. I miss when she was hopeful and helpful, when she would cut to the heart of a problem. When I could just talk to her. I know how she got this way but why did she let it get to her?" Shiho shook for a moment, gripping tight to Alice's hand. An unasked question lay in the air. How did you get that way?

"She felt alone and the power was there for her instead. That's why. I've been a lot less tempted to seek power like I did. Because of you all." Alice whispered, pressing a kiss to Shiho's forehead. The girl looked up at her, eyes shining in her mask. "Adachi cut her off. Hurt her, molded her and now she wants power to replace what was ripped from her. I tried to give her connection but, she denied it. So we're going to stop her."

"Ri-right." Shiho pushed herself up as the elevator came to a stop. The Thieves formed a perimeter around Haru as they stepped out into a lobby. "Avenger, did you have a plan for how?"

"How do you feel about seeing your Father as he is?" Sophia turned to face Haru, her yo-yo's in hand. Haru swallowed and nodded. "Then we will get his attention. Fox, Crow?"

"I suppose this is where brute force comes in. Inelegant but effective." Yusuke rolled his neck, summoning Everhard to slam into the automatic door and denting it. Montag burned the metal around it, charring and slagging it into carbon. The air pressure bore down, the flames of Alice's hand sparking around her. "More?"

"More. Deadeye, Lux. I believe Kunikazu does not consider this enough of a threat." Sophia stuck close to Haru, scanning around while Shiho and Sumire's personas emerged and ripped at the brains in jars around the corner of the room. Haru placed a hand over her mouth, her eyes watering. "I'm sorry. We won't look at them soon."

"What else is going on in here that he has that?" Haru took a step back, the air distorting with tension. The dented door flew open, sticking in place. Robotic claws that looked too much like Alice's prosthetic for her taste wrenched it open, letting Kunikazu float in on his chair throne. He leaned on his hand, tapping his fingers against the keypad on it. "Father! I wanted--"

"You can be quiet. You have already said enough foolishness. Brought delinquents to the company headquarters, petty vandals at that. Nothing more than a disgrace to the family name, you're going to drag us back to irrelevance unless you're corrected." Kunikazu's Shadow zoomed towards Haru, staring down at his daughter. She flinched, taking a step back as Sophia stepped in front of her. "First this utter drivel about being a woman, now this. You still haven't removed that hideous nail paint. An embarrassment. And you can't even say anything about it can you? A spineless son."

"I w-want to be myself, Father! Why is that so hard?" Haru stepped forward, bumping into Sophia. That familiar anger laced her voice, a hatred pressed between her lips. Alice felt strange, hearing that roaring softness. That it wasn't reserved for her. Instead it was aimed at the man that slug of a man. That coward of a man. "I'm Haru Okumura, let me be that!"

"If you're going to insist on that, I'll have to dispose of you. Like so many of my other problems." The Shadow snapped his fingers, a stretched thin robot made of black metal and long sharp blades appearing in front of him. "If you wish to be that thing, you can be dead. Your death would at least grant me sympathy. One last gift for your--"

"Shut up." Alice growled, hand to her mask. The cognition's blade aimed for her throat. She didn't move, the flame of her hand curling around itself in rage. "It's sickening, how honest you are about it. How much of a traitor to your own flesh and blood you are. Haru, you want him to get away with that? Do you? Don't you want to know why he would sacrifice you on the altar?"

"I don't! I don't want to be killed for your ambitions, I don't want to be your son, I want to be your daughter and I want to see you make this right!" Haru screamed as flames licked up her body. Her eyes changed to the sickening yellow, her Shadow coming to her.

"You've stepped into far more than you expected, didn't you? Found one breadcrumb and now the hounds are coming for you? You stand at the precipice of unveiling something both great and terrible. Will you stand to reveal it or will you let them dump your body in the bay?"

"I won't!" Haru's body shook with rage as Sophia deflected a blade that changed course from menacing Alice towards the neck of the Awakening girl. "I won't let myself be cast into a grave. So, help me!"

"All you had to do was ask, I am thou, thou art I. Let's make sure everyone knows the truth of what's been going on."

"Chevette!" Haru ripped away her mask, the blue flame finishing her Thief's outfit as it was. The poofy pants, the pink shirt and hat. All of it. Chevette burst into existence, twirling a pair of sunglasses on her finger. A woman made of shifting tiny drone like robots, she spread a hand towards the cognition and a piece of her answered. They swarmed out, lifting it with microbursts of psychokinesis. "Father, if this is what you wanted to send after me to end me? You'll have to try better."

The cognition of Ann collapsed under a sudden weight of pressure, wrenched into two then four pieces before they all became cubes of matter. And in the excitement, Kunikazu fled. The coward. Goro and Sophia took a step next to Haru as she fell to one knee. "I'm glad I didn't have to remind you that fathers aren't owned fealty. Let's get you out of here."

"I want that answer now!" Haru's rage was not enough to carry her to chase her father. Sophia looped her arm and started her back towards the elevator. She spared a glance to Alice. "Luna, you spoke like you knew him."

"I'll explain. Over coffee."

Chapter Text

"Are you... sure you should be doing that?" Haru leaned over the counter as Alice hurled an apron around her neck. Sojiro glared at the girl. "Sorry, I'm just concerned."

"I can do this one handed, I even have two." Alice dropped the filter into the siphon, first try with her left hand. Sojiro shrugged and moved to the other end of the counter, giving them space once Alice did the most dexterously demanding part of the process. "We'll talk about the important stuff upstairs, but I owe you this so you stay awake."

"I'm--" Haru's sudden yawn betrayed her. Shiho giggled as she finished hanging up Alice's jacket. A little favor to get rid of the friction for Alice. "--okay, perhaps a bit of caffeine wouldn't be amiss."

"Plus, Leblanc coffee is always good." Shiho added to an approving grunt from Sojiro. Alice pushed the stopper into place, starting the process of the steam below transfiguring back into water. "Oh, fair warning, don't be like me with my first cup."

"Oh, I don't want to get burned. I know the idea behind the process." Haru nodded, another small yawn escaping her lips. It was strange how much and how little she knew about the girl. She knew that Haru cooked, stress baked, all of that. Knowing a siphon was a surprise, a pleasant one. Alice mixed in the grinds, slow and gentle stirs to keep it agitated. "I can see why you say it's good, excellent technique."

"I taught her the right way. That she hasn't chosen to forget it is good." Sojiro leaned on the counter, an unlit cigarette between his lips. Alice rolled her eyes at him. "I'm not lighting it till you go upstairs. Can't stunt you kids' and your growth."

"Uh huh. Once I finish learning your curry secrets, I'm coming for those cigarettes old man." Alice teased to a smile on Sojiro's lips. It was a good thing to do before this conversation. Show maybe that she had changed. Because there was no doubt anymore. She was a different woman now. One handed she poured each of them a cup from the siphon and dumped the filter out. Sojiro snapped it up. "I got time to clean it while these cool."

"Sure you do. But you got a girlfriend and friend here, so let me get this. Go, you did the nice thing for them. Enjoy your youth or something." Sojiro gave her a playful swat on the arm. No force, no pain, only a little touch. She tilted her head. "You didn't waste time trying to get back out there."

"She could rest some more after today." Shiho grumbled as she took the two cups upstairs, Haru on her heels. Alice took her own and raised it in a toast to Sojiro, the cafe owner's response to fake ash his cigarette. "Alice, get your butt up here. It's weird without you."

"I'm coming, I'm coming, you just want me to balance the bed." Alice called back as she took the stairs two at a time up to her room. The prosthetic was enough of a balance for the railing to get away with that while carrying boiling coffee. Shiho had unfolded the card table and parked Haru on the futon. Alice dragged her solid wooden chair over to the card table and planted herself. Haru looked at her, eyes shining with exhaustion and curiosity. "Alright, Haru. Let's talk about a lot, I know your father. I know you, in fact I knew you were Haru before you told me. Name and everything, because this isn't the first time I've lived through 2016."

"If we hadn't spent an afternoon in my father's mind, I would assume you were just telling a story." Haru's eyes sharpened, the eyes she had from the moment Alice showed up to her first Phantom Thieves' Meeting. Alice placed down her phone, Sophia popping onto the screen. "I would like an explanation."

"Alice is correct, there was a timeloop. She and I are the only ones who remember the previous loop." Sophia was seated, cross legged and leaning her chin on hand. Shiho gave her a thumbs up. "Things last time did not go well because--"

"I should tell this part. Thank you for... trying to. But considering what happened, I want to explain. The last time I was the one using Palaces to kill people." Alice watched Haru for a change, for a gasp, for a shift. The girl tilted her head instead. "I was. I killed a lot of people. Including two people's parents in this room. Sophia's. And your father's."

"Why. Why bother bringing me there and promising me that I could change his heart? I doubt you're all killers, so why would you help her?" Haru's gaze shifted to Shiho and Sophia. "If she's a killer, one who hurt you in particular why be with her?"

"She's not the one killing anyone this time. She's spent her time trying to prevent murders in fact. Futaba's mother was one of the people she killed last time and Alice's first act on getting access to the Metaverse was to change her heart." Shiho's hand rubbed along Alice's bicep, a sign she wasn't going away. A better constant than this Ann. "And she knew about Kamoshida and stepped in to protect me. She knew Madarame was starving Yusuke, so she stepped in there. And she knew what would happen if she didn't step in soon."

"She also has put in a lot of effort to mitigate the danger of the woman who took over her role. She lost her hand saving a man's life from Ann Takamaki. She was awful and now, she does good things." Sophia didn't call Alice good, because different as she was, they both knew she wasn't good. She just did good things. Haru swallowed, looking back to Alice. "There's more to the story."

"I would imagine so. You're here to prevent my father's death at the hands of a woman I don't know then. But you were focused on me, my danger. And father was threatening my life in there." Haru's voice dropped, the sting of betrayal in her heart. Alice tapped Shiho's wrist before extending her hand. "I don't know if I want to do that."

"That's fair. You've got a bit more to this. Your father was my boss' biggest client for kills. The recent deaths effecting Wuck's C-suite and middle management is the results of Ann Takamaki." Alice let out a sigh, pulling her hand back in slow motion. "The robot you crushed in your father's Palace was a representation of what he thinks of her, since he never met her. And in the last batch of contracts we got from your father, there was a high priority target. You. I couldn't do it when I learned why. I couldn't."

"You couldn't? But everyone else could die at that point. Did you know me?" Haru's voice raised in volume, her anger directed right at Alice's heart. The Wildcard shrugged. "Then WHY?"

"Empathy. My parents sold me off to a rapist essentially because I was trans. Your father wanted you dead for it. So. I lured the Thieves into targeting your father and recruiting you. When Adachi heard about the calling card he made me silence your father." Alice closed her eyes, rolling her neck. Haru made a series of confused noises at Alice. "I should have picked both of you living, I didn't. Here's the deal, you have a persona now, your Shadow can't be killed."

"You would be safe from Ann. Alice does not think she has even the shred of empathy that saved your life last time. She's more ruthless, more cruel than Alice." Sophia admitted, looking away from Haru. "And I am here to make sure that Alice stays on track. When she pointed out what might happen I supported making sure you were safe. The decision to keep pursuing your Father's change of heart is yours. With or without us, but you should be careful."

"I... need a moment." Haru picked up her coffee cup, downing it without thinking. Her eyes shifted at the taste, her fingers tapping on the table. Shiho offered her hand which Haru took. It only stung a little. "You're going to work to save him if we steal his heart? Prevent history from repeating?"

"I am. I made that deal to do what I could to protect you for a reason. I fucked up a lot last time. You're one of those fuckups in how I handled it. The act of sparing you that’s why I was stopped. A good thing to have happen." Alice pushed her prosthetic hand open, clamping it around the coffee cup to take her own sip. It was a little too bitter, she needed to move faster next time. "I was an idiot, I hoped to help Ann the way she helped me to do better, just sooner. That didn't work. So. I'm going to end what she's doing. With or without your help, but I'd rather have it."

"She's been waiting for a person to come forward with a problem, patiently. She bum rushed a lot of us to get us in there, but she wanted you to come out on your terms, because it was important. I didn't even know it was you." Shiho rushed to add to a little laugh from Haru. "She cares. She's just not good at selling herself."

"I think she has. If nothing else, I believe the rest of your team will still seek to change my Father's heart after his behavior. And I would prefer to be there for that. And to protect him in case Ann attacks." Haru laid her hands in her lap and bowed her head. Alice bowed hers in turn. "And if you let him die, I will take your head, Alice Hiiragi. I want to know what made him like this."

"We're going to get you that. And if she lets it happen, you will have to get in line. Because then she will have failed our own deal." Sophia looked to Alice, a gentle smile on her face. "But I have not been concerned about that, not any longer."

"Aww, you care Sophia." Alice couldn't help the teasing tone to a middle finger from the AI. "You want to do that to Sumire." A laugh from the rest of them before she continued. "I'm glad you're willing to let us do this. But it now means that we are going to have to work on getting everyone strong enough. Myself included. Skill wasn't enough. Clearly."

Everyone's eyes went to the hand, which was her own fault. She pointed them there after all. Haru cleared her throat. "I don't know if thanking you is right given everything. But at least you have made it clear that you're trying to approach this with care. For others."

Yep, not doing great at myself.

"Thank you for that assessment, probably the most civil you've been with me while knowing what I am. You hit me with a grenade once." Alice's remark brought out a dark chuckle from Haru. Yep, still her. "Now, go rest. Call one of us if your father starts anything. We'll figure something out to keep you safe."

"My parents are never home if you need to crash sometime." Shiho added as Haru lingered at the stairs. The new Thief flashed a thumbs up. "And thanks for believing us."

"If we were lying to her we wouldn't pick making Alice seem awful." Sophia added and Shiho tapped the phone, a little way of admonishing her. "Hey!"

"You're spirited at least. Farewell. I'll see you at school if Mako will let you be." Haru nodded her head and left the three of them. Shiho hooked her arm in Alice's again, receiving a kiss to the neck. Sophia rolled her eyes and threw up a series of letters saying 'be back later.'

"Smart girl." Alice muttered as teeth replaced lips, Shiho's hand crushing Alice's in turn. A gasp as Alice dragged her teeth until Shiho grabbed her chin, angling her up into a proper kiss. All the better for Shiho to do her own scrape of Alice with her own teeth. Alice used her hand to tug Shiho into her lap, looming over her with a grin. the girl squirmed already matching Alice's joy. "Oh, you look so pretty looking up at me"

"Aww and you haven't even given me the marks I want." Shiho teased before Alice claimed her with teeth, lips, and a hand to keep her from falling to the floor.

-----

"Alice, do you mind if I borrow you for a little bit?" Yusuke tapped her on the shoulder as they cleared out from training run in Mementos. Alice nodded, slipping her hand back on. She ached and was tired from working out her new limits. Ann's help was taking getting used to. It was a drain on her energy and required all of her focus to not accidentally burn something she wanted to keep safe by grabbing with it. Another thing to get used to. All her hands could do damage if she wasn't careful.

"I wanted to talk more about Palace shape and form. If you would indulge me." Yusuke's sketchbook appeared in his hand, the artist's pencil dancing across the page. "And I assume that you may have thoughts on what Ann's actions might do to someone."

"I do." Alice's nonexistent fingers itched, the feeling of pins and needles firing in her brain. She shuddered as the two of them walked through Shibuya. He filled the page with a sketch of the Okumura Palace, the ships crashed into one another. "Figuring out what she might do?"

"I have no clue how she'd actually assault that Palace and twist it. I do think that she would pick something destructive to the environment based on her previous approach." Yusuke's pencil spun between his fingers, tapping on his chin every few revolutions. He flipped backwards to a page of Maruki's Palace that Alice hadn't seen. "What do you think Maruki was feeling during this?"

The Palace's cubes were distended, the support structure pushing them outwards. They looked ready to snap from the weight, drooping down. It hadn't looked like that as they entered. Alice's stomach queased, the pins and needles digging deeper into nonexistence. She forced the sketchbook closed with her left hand. "I get it's our only practical example but I am not ready to see that."

"It's not..." Yusuke hummed, pausing to look at a bird on the Buchiko statue. Alice groaned and sat on the planter next to it. "It's not the exact place."

"I could point to it on that drawing. And it's still where I lost my hand." Alice growled at him, her fingers yearning to squeeze around his throat. She forced herself to stop short of strangling the twink. "Let's stick to hypotheticals. got it?"

"Hypothetically, what do you think that crashing the saucers we saw in Kunikazu's Palace would do?" Yusuke didn't make a face as he moved on, he accepted that she didn't want to talk about it. Used to moving on because of his gaffes I guess. "I understand how and why she might do that, to cut off our escape route and have the Palace collapse on us."

"That is why she'd do it. Or she uses it to shape their behaviors a certain way." Alice squeezed the sleeve of her prosthetic, trying to ignore the three pronged assault of people staring, her own lingering nausea and phantom sensations that crawled into her brain. "Doing that would bend his distortion towards thinking he can't make progress on the goals. They're his tool for ascent."

"Hmmm, so the Spaceport is meant to represent his ambitions. Making them crash and burn but maintaining his distortion's source." Yusuke mused as he pressed the tip of his pencil to the page. Alice wasn't sure what the result of that would be. A lack of ambition but his desire to lift his family up and up. "What would happen?"

"I think it's his belief in his ambition that would fall apart. He'd still have it, but he'd become melancholy. Probably. Just, think they wouldn't amount to anything. He'd almost invert." Alice's fingers tightened around her arm. It didn't take Ann to cause big differences to a Palace if the person was self destructive enough. That was clear enough from Maruki's Palace and the reaction to the Calling Card. Or was the a manifestation of Azathoth being dormant. She hoped that sealing his Shadow from Ann also meant that thing wouldn't awaken. "Madarame, for example, if we could have removed all the paintings from the Museum, he'd see the Sayuri as something that would have left him bereft of even that fleeting connection to you all."

"Hm. I'm not sure how to think about that. There's still questions in my mind with regards to Sensei and his treatment of myself. He took me in when I had no one else and yet, you all point out that he didn't feed me." Yusuke closed his notebook, moving to join Alice on her right. His hand hovered for a moment near her prosthetic before she nodded. He grabbed and held it, like a flesh hand. A normal hand. "Yet he encouraged me to do art and create. I would have wound up in the system were it not for him and well we've had many a request to do with foster parents on the fansite. He was evil but I don't know how to reconcile that with the good he did."

"How do you reconcile mine? Because you have been one of the more accepting people about my past. Other than Futaba." Alice could focus on that, the faint lingering of guilt of hurting the girl, that was palatable. That wasn't mutilation, only a sign that she had gotten something she wasn't sure she deserved.

"You're far easier. Your arc is towards good and his is towards depravity. Until recently. His self admittance of murder has been an uptick--" Yusuke flexed his fingers until Alice opened the hand enough for him to hold the inside as well. "-- but, it's not making what he did go away. It's not improving my life directly, only that I am with you all and given food on a regular has done something."

"His conscience was enough for him to think confessing was enough. But that doesn't mean that he actually has the drive to make things better from there." Alice snorted at Yusuke squeezing harder to comfort her. It was a strange way to pulse not only his acceptance of her advice but also that she was different to Madarame. "I know, I have more drive than that man. I have more drive than many people."

"You do. Many wouldn't be doing what you're doing right now I imagine. Even among our friends." Yusuke slipped his hand back to the sketchbook, his thumb rifling across the pages. "You know, you gave a lot of us hope to rise from the ground. You also gave us the ability to strike back. Do you feel that for yourself?"

"I hope so. This has been a stress test of what I could do." Alice closed her hand again, using it to push herself up and off the planter. She yawned, taking a step forward. "It's been exhausting, in and out of there. I'm learning two different ways to use my hand. And they're not similar beyond the fact that they both wear me out."

"You'll have your strength back in time. Your personas are as terrifying in strength as ever. Hecatoncheires was an inspired choice to come out today." Yusuke walked along Alice as she picked her way up the street. "You may have lo--"

"Yes lost my physical hand but I mentally have many. Let's not think of it that way. The personas that resonate with me are more than their hands. Or I'd be using Take-Minataka. Come on, think a little. " Alice huffed at him, the boy shrugging. Nonchalant as ever. "Brute strength has its issues but in the tunnels of Mementos, it cleared a path. My connections with that Arcana are strong too."

"I'll concede it's not a resonance but it does create an unintentional message. One I find inspiring. It's one I'd imagine that many of us share, or we wouldn't be your team still." Yusuke offered her a smile as he turned to finish his route home. They really are just like that. Here he is, fighting to make sure I don't disentegrate again. In his own stupid, correct way. "I hope you'll take it to heart."

"I guess we'll see. For now, go home." Alice yawned, making her way out of Shibuya. She didn't want to go much further to where magazines would be out. She wasn't going to see the cover of a Vague until Ann was dead.

-----

"Exile, took you long enough." Caroline tapped Alice's left leg with her baton and the Wildcard picked her up by the collar without hesitation. The Attendant swung for her head, missing as Alice ducked backwards. "Put me down! Right this instant before I vaporize you!"

"Don't touch me like that and I won't do this. Come on!" Alice did not have the patience for them right now. She dropped the attendant only to have a clipboard hit her on the right hip. "That goes for both of you, you little nightmare."

"I'm not a nightmare, I am the one helping you rehabilitate. And these clothes are not fitting for that." Justine pointed at the dress that Futaba had helped tear the sleeve off to wear with ease. "You look like a hooligan. No one will want to spend time with you."

"I can put you right back in the Velvet Room, you know. I'm going to look strange to everyone regardless. When I get used to my hobby hand, I'll work on making it look not like shit." Alice swatted the next swing of the clipboard, her palm stinging with the strike. "I'm serious about this. I don't have the patience for you two to turn this into ‘hit Alice.’ You're powerful beings, act like you have some damn responsibility. Especially when the point of this is to get you out of there."

"Fine." Caroline and Justine spoke in unison, turning their heads away from Alice and their weapons at their side. She started walking and the pitter patter of boots followed her along the street. "What are you two even trying to to see?"

"There's strange places in Tokyo. Both of the kind we don't understand of humans, but those you nor we understand. Today is to understand humans. We want to see the place where the grotesque reigns supreme, where humanity dresses itself up in the monstrous." Justine spoke but Caroline nodded along. Until the two glared at one another. Alice sighed, taking a step back to be between them. "You must know, Exile. You are an expert in costuming."

"Okay, well in trying to not be literal about the grotesque let's go with a costume shop for now. Because otherwise we're just going to walk into a random CEO's Palace and find what you're talking about." Alice's joke fell on deaf ears as the Twins looked instead at the signs for Bikuri Boy. "That's not what you asked for. You gotta make up your mind."

"A distorted heart is common place. The costume shop, that is what we want to see." Justine turned her head towards Alice, her face red. "The sign caught my eye, that is all."

"And the smell, I caught you sniffing." Caroline said after taking her own whiff. They're hungry, cool. The asshole up at the top of the well is starving them. Alice started up the stairs, digging in her purse for her wallet. "Exile, the costumes!"

"One moment, take out." Alice slipped in an order for sandwiches, letting Caroline and Justine mill around and inspect the wood that permeated the diner. They ran their fingers along the grain, whispering. "You're curious about wood?"

“The process of turning something vaguely circular into something flat is interesting. Many things are not this smooth from the--" Justine's proud recollection fell apart, her head swaying for a moment. Caroline flicked her on the head. "Sorry, I got lost again. Where was I?"

"That you wouldn't get that smooth from something. I don't know where you were going with it." Alice admitted, watching as Justine stared at her clipboard and then put it away. "What are you up to there?"

"Nothing, don't worry about it. We're here for you, not the other way. You're just here to escort us where we're going." Caroline's declaration would have had more gravitas if ten minutes ago they weren't swinging their weapons for no reason. It was fine, Alice was a bitch too. She grabbed the bag with three sandwiches and started down the stairs. "Wait, those were for us!"

"Then you better stop being foolish and keep up." Alice shot over her shoulder to the thunder of boots down the stairs. She handed them each a sandwich, leaving hers for later. Finger food was easier now, but still not while walking. "I'm taking you out for you. That's part of this. Deals are reciprocal."

"Your part of the deal is to work on strengthening yourself for the future. So you can be reintegrated." Justine's voice still carried a ditziness to it. Like she hadn't left that moment before. Alice kept an eye on her as the three of them made their way towards a shop that Alice had raided for masks for a high concept dress. A little joke for herself to have sewn them together in a way that made the literal act of clothing to be a mask for what they were below. "Why are you watching me?"

"If you don't make it back in one piece, your know nothing boss won't be happy." Alice lied, as easy as ever. Not out of malice, but because these two didn't want to accept any care. But the two of them did accept the avoidance of punishment. "So, those little cop outfits aren't costumes to you?"

"Yes, we're there to oversee your reint--" Caroline paused, her eyes glazing over. Justine tapped her. "It's what we wear. That's all."

"Uh huh. You're both not able to talk about some things. Like there's a logical leap you can't make." Alice mused while the Twins looked at her. "We'll figure it out. In time. Hopefully without having to fight a god about it."

"Exile, focus on showing us these costumes, the place is right there! I want to know why someone would wear that!" Caroline snapped to attention and pointed to a wolf mask in the window. Alice wanted to go back to talking about the two of them spacing out. Instead she was going to have to explain furries.

Someone kill me.

-----

I'm just going to the hospital to check on Maruki. See how he's doing after the change of heart. It's... fine.

Alice's thundering heart didn't make it feel fine, instead making her feel like she was going to explode. Each heartbeat came with a throb in her arm from the connection points of her forearm to the prosthetic.

She pushed her left arm out and touched the wall of the elevator, tapping with her fingers until the heartrate calmed down. That way her stomach didn't churn, didn't revolt at being here. it was one thing to do it for the sake of her hand, but to do it for a man she didn't particularly like made it all worse.

Door's open, keep your head up.

Alice walked down the hall, right to Rumi's room. The lights were off, Maruki sitting by the bed and playing with his phone. Rumi was laid down, her chest rising and falling in slow motion. Sleeping, resting. Maruki shifted his gaze to Alice, then her hand and grimaced. He pushed himself up, taking quiet steps across the room. "Alice, maybe not right now."

"Yeah, she's sleeping. But, I figured I'd talk to you. She's sleeping and won't go anywhere." Alice glanced to the sleeping woman and Maruki sighed. He walked out of the room, down to a snack area. Alice hung out by him as he got himself a coffee. "You're going to have to come by at some point to Leblanc and get real coffee, you're going to die if you keep drinking this."

"Hasn't killed me yet." Takuto lifted the styrofoam cup towards her and took a sip before setting it down on a shitty side table. "Alice, why are you running around when you're hurting. Checking on me, checking on Rumi?"

"Can't really stop. I can still talk, right?" Alice shrugged to a sudden shift in Maruki's facial expression. It was hardened, the way he glared when she fought him at the end. When he resisted every part of their attempts to end his false reality, his mockery of her life. And now it was because she wasn't resting. Almost like a real fucking therapist. "I don't want to mope."

"I'm not saying that. I want you to rest and take care of yourself. I'm doing the same more." Takuto rubbed the back of his head, trying to shift to his easy going smile. "I... got woken up about how I was. That I wasn't trying to take care of myself and focusing only on Rumi. I'm still here for her but I try to not spend all my free time here. Come by, say hi. Make sure she knows I'm here. And now you're doing that when you're--"

"I'm well aware I'm an amputee now." Alice hissed and that stupid smile stayed on Maruki's face. He took another sip. "What's your point about it?"

"That you should be pissy, at least a little bit. It tells me you're not just focusing on others while you're like this. You have to take care of yourself. Which, hypocritical of me given my behavior." Maruki was free with it, how much he had sucked. It was refreshing but also frustrating. "I guess hypocrisy just means you're good at seeing it."

"I am taking care of myself. Doing my occupational therapy. We designed a hobby hand. But I can't let my life stop. You and your girlfriend aren't the only people I try to make sure are doing okay." Alice looked away and Maruki, the frustrating fuck took a step in front. It wasn't like a change of heart made him less persistent. Just about something less dangerous than 'I should control reality to erase pain.'

Maruki’s hand hovered near her shoulder. "Please Alice, spend time resting."

"I am, I promise. Just not all the time. My girlfriend makes sure I relax." Alice hoped that would make Maruki back off but instead he laughed. "Come on. I'm a pretty woman."

"For your age, probably. Wouldn't know, not thinking about that. I just know that Wakaba's worried about you, cause her kid is. I didn't know how to come by about it. I didn't instead of my urge to just bust in and talk to you." Maruki's words there, those were mana from heaven. Alice let out a sigh of relief. "Promise me you'll take care of yourself."

"I'm doing what I can. You better still rubber duck me, I need the mental stimulation." Alice tapped her elbow to a grin from the man. Ugh, this part of being a Wildcard sucks. Because he's still probably going to do something stupid. "But I'll rest more. If that'll get you off my back."

"Good. Go on now. Rumi will want to see you when she's awake, I'm sure. I'll tell her you came to visit. And that you're as feisty as ever." Maruki quirked a smile at her as she began to talk away. "You don't have to fight everyone."

"Maybe, but it's better to be ready to then to let someone take advantage." Alice tossed off and rushed to the elevator. Before Maruki could grab her and keep her.

Honesty fucking sucks.

Chapter Text

Alice stopped in front of the gym in Shibuya, staring at it. She knew it was coming, one day or another. She wasn't going to rebuild her home gym, not in Leblanc's attic. And Doctor Aragaki was going to have her start working out again one way or another. She didn't have a choice in the matter.

She tapped the button and waited, tapping her foot. Sophia hummed in her ear, a lilting little tune. It was strange for the AI to be calm, existing near her. No anger, not anymore. Alice wanted to press on that, know more. Have a baseline of where they stood. If Sophia trusted her now or if the whole situation was paused because she could count on Alice's rage.

The opening door kept her from making the call. She tapped the floor for the gym, the elevator lurching her upwards. the familiar flip of a stomach, now for vertigo not disgust. At least for now that was. Alice stepped out to welcome desk for the gym, a woman with a bob at the counter. "I need to start a membership."

"Sure. Here's the paperwork." The woman tossed down the clipboard and a pen on top. Alice picked it up with her left hand, setting to work. "You have a referral from your physician?"

"Not yet, I'm not going to work out that arm till she tells me I'm ready to lift." Alice took her time, working on scratching in her form with as much legibility as she could manage with the reduced muscle memory. Every few pen strokes she had to cross something out and try again. The worker started typing again, working on something. "When I do, what services will be available for me?"

"Depends on what you pay, honestly. You're better off doing what the doctor says to do, not us. Most trainers only know healthy muscle. You don't have that." The worker cracked her neck as the stair door opened. She turned towards it. "Kasumi, rest day."

"I'm not going to do any of my own, I saw... my friend?" Kasumi settled in next to Alice, her head lowered. Alice stopped writing long enough to nod before turning back to filling in her emergency contact. "Friend. Want to make sure she doesn't get a sports injury, Coach."

"Only show her equipment you know, got it?" The coach took the clipboard and slid Alice a membership card. She winked and Alice bowed her head in thanks. "Smart girl... Alice. Yell Hiraguchi if you get stuck."

"Thanks. I'm not going to look this gift horse in the mouth." Alice bowed her head, following Kasumi into the gym. The gymnast brought her to a leg lift chair. "Think that's what I need a work out in?"

"Considering what you and Sumi were doing, even if it was stupid and reckless, this is the machine for you. Working out muscles that you already are used to is a good start for getting back to it." Kasumi set down a bag, pulling out a towel and bottles of water. Alice set herself on the machine, giving it a test as she curled her legs into place. "How does that feel?"

"Light. Give me a challenge." Alice dared Kasumi to a frown. She let out a sigh. "I'm not a porcelain doll. You just pointed out I know how to use my legs."

"Straining yourself while you heal isn't a good idea. I'll put some weight on, get a baseline of what you can do, comfortably." Kasumi's voice toughened, something like her Coach's command. She placed a balance of weights on the machine, decisive and quick. "I keep thinking about what we talked about before your accident. In a good way but... not the time probably."

"Probably, but you're here and brought it up. Consider it payment for getting me a free membership." Alice lifted her legs, the weight of the machine fighting her as the pulleys worked against her. She held them out at the apex then curled them back down. "See, fine. Not even a sweat."

"That was one. Let's see how you do after two sets of ten." Kasumi frowned, pacing around the machine in a circle. The world's shittiest shark, she wasn't hunting anything but forgiveness. "I keep thinking about the fact I want Sumi as my benchmark. Which is a shitty way to think of my sister. Because I think about her a lot of other ways too, but I keep coming back to seeing her that way. And I fought to keep her there while you pushed her to not be it."

"Are you still doing it?" Alice moved through the motions of her first set, every third lift she would shrug at Kasumi. A request for more weight. The girl shook her head, ponytail whipping side to side. "Congrats, you can think it and not do it. That's the secret. That's one set. No sweat. My legs are in good shape."

"Yes for running and jumping. You're lifting and that's going to use them different. It helps with everything but I just said I'm not letting you get an injury. Trust me on this one, okay?" Kasumi kept that edge from her coach and Alice relented, continuing with her second set. "It hurting at the time is a sign but also you want to be able to move tomorrow."

I could heal it in the Palace.

"I'd make do. You want to do well, so do I." Alice held up a hand to stop Kasumi from cutting in. "I'm not going to ignore your advice. Just... want the victory on this right now. Don't know how many more of those I've got."

"I get that. But you're not giving up which I think would be a victory right now." Kasumi pat the bar as the second set finished, signaling Alice. She helped Alice up and off the machine, attacking it with a towel and disinfectant. "And not giving up means you can win."

"Hah." Alice fought the laugh in her throat as she hopped onto something familiar, an exercise bike. She clicked it to three quarters of her old resistance and started pedaling. Kasumi rushed over, looking over it. "I've used these. I'm away from my usual. Thanks for cleaning."

"Okay, luckily this is going to hit different muscles. You need a plan." Kasumi pat the unused handlebars while Alice worked her way towards her first kilometer. The prostthetic weighed on her arm, a constant reminder it was attached to her body. Not a part of it. "After this, let's do something like footwork. Dexterity."

"Sounds good." Alice snagged a water bottle, taking a sip as she powered on. "You take it seriously when it's others. Were you doing this for Sumire?"

"Kinda. I mean, yeah. Maybe I was... a little rude considering. It's how Coach Hiraguchi is." Kasumi's eyes betrayed that the no nonsense woman up front was that coach in a moment. At least Sumire can manage some subtlety. "Maybe it's different from a coach."

"Than her sister, yeah. So, I'll work on not just running full tilt if you work at that." Alice offered to a head nod from Kasumi. And a bond didn't form in that instant. I guess she's part of one? That's what makes the most sense. "You're better family than most. Trust me."

"Maybe, but that's not a good bar I think from how you said that. You sounded like you wanted to rip someone's head off." Kasumi wasn't wrong, even if Alice felt a little more literal about it. She couldn't stop thinking about how Shiho's parents didn't step in for her last time or this one. Not as long as she kept bringing home the volleyball victories. Not as long as they still looked good. "Your parents suck?"

"Yep. They hung up on the man hosting me for telling them what happened. Bastards." Alice forced open the prosthetic, reaching up and ticking up the resistance. Kasumi ticked it down. "I'm pissed and I can't hit anything."

"Oh, you can do that. Stay good, we'll kick the bag." Kasumi smiled at Alice, a hint of mischief in her voice. The same kind Sumire got about parkour. Some things are different between them, others will always be the same I guess. "So footwork then we'll see how much you can stand to do to kick."

"Hey, I'm new to the gym, not working out you know. I was doing a lot of the stuff Sumire was." Alice growled to a laugh from Kasumi as she dismounted the bike, the rag cleaning up. "Funny?"

"Just, not used to people actually giving me as much trouble as you do. Not to my face. They talk about Sumire and I because of our scholarships and then they're polite to our faces." Kasumi led Alice to a pole with sticks pointing out. She pulled out the sticks of the upper tier, any that would poke the stomach or chest. Which was cute considering how much Alice dodged in Palaces. "I figure you're still getting used to the weight. So, nothing that you're not told to do yet."

"Smart, I guess. So maneuver my legs and feet through this part, no touching a rod?" Alice confirmed to a nod. Foot slide in, the start of a sweep into turning dodge that unhooked her foot from the Shadow's foot. Her breathing quickened as the Shadow in her mind became Ann, darting in to catch a foot. Hold it in place. Wheel around. Don't use your hands. A dance, a fight with the feet. Show her that she'll have to take everything to stop me. Alice completed the rotation to Kasumi's hanging open jaw. "You never asked what my workout was."

"I didn't. That's on me." Kasumi closed her mouth, looking over Alice start another loop. "Coach taught us boxing but that's different."

"Self-taught. Self defense." Alice muttered as she tried to accommodate for a hatchet thrown to her legs, skipping a pole. Her fist tightened around a pistol that wasn't there. Another thing to work on, left hand aim. She needed to get herself functioning as much as possible. No matter how much people said she needed to rest, she didn't have time. Ann was out there. The news was filled with another mental shutdown every week. "Needed it where I was."

"Some self taught technique. Alright though, break. Maybe I should ask you to teach me how to kick." Kasumi's eyes sparkled to a smile from Alice, that her honed dance at least looked good was a sign. "Sorry you needed that. Do you still?"

"Yep. More than ever probably. People think they can just touch my hand." Alice's complaint drew a look of disgust from Hiraguchi. She shrugged at the woman. "It's true."

"Stupid. Anyone in my gym tries to do that, tell me." Hiraguchi added before running a finger across her neck. Okay, no wonder Sumire likes me if she's like this. "Got it?"

"Sure, but let me kick them once." Alice's grin was met by a snort from the woman. "Glad we're on the same page."

"We are. Go, get your kicking out now."

-----

"Noir, on your right." Sophia's commands weren't as inventive as a lot of Alice's. It was fine with how the training was going to get the team in shape for when Ann came crashing. Haru's axe caught the golden glove of the mechanical angel and dragged him down. Yusuke's sword's pierced his arm to pin it while Kuno's wires wrapped him. "We're almost to the Will Seed."

"Almost." Haru's teeth were set into a tight grit as she kicked the angel down to the ground. She'd been quiet since the conveyor belts in the previous section. It was one thing to have a father capable of killing her, it was another to see him running everyone else into the ground. A wakeup call as to how the company was run, how her life was upheld. "An angel? Here?"

"Kamoshida had them too. People can think what they're doing is holy. We know otherwise." Alice flared her hand open and grabbed the angel's head. Futaba highlighted his budding holy energy, even as his face turned to molten gold in her hand. "Fight for your supposed salvation even as you fade into nothing."

Alice pulled her mask away and Candide's cane slammed down through his hand. At their back Goro and Shiho kept a horde of Mothmen at bay with pinpoint shots. Helena's cursed hammer crushed the angel's chest and it faded away. Alice nodded, lifted her pistol and started clearing out the remaining Shadows. Her shots were taking too long, the aim not quite on target. Haru lowered the hand and sent a grenade into the hallway. "Focus on your personas. They're what works."

"Noir, I have to get better. Now is the time to do that, when we aren't under pressure." Alice pushed her right hand out before she grabbed Haru's collar with it on instinct. It would cook the girl, no matter how tempting that was for a brief moment. "When the time comes to steal the treasure, to fend off Ann? I want as many tools at my disposal as I can have. Especially for this plan."

Sophia nudged the rest of the Thieves away, a frown on her face. Goro sneered at one of them and Alice wasn't sure who. But Shiho dragged him by the collar because she was Alice's favorite. Even without the making out and sex.

"I know, but if you're going to take it seriously, we haven't even found the treasure yet. You don't know how far it is. You're going to run out of energy and then we won't have you in case something happens." Haru growled in turn, her hand on the grenade launcher. Got it. She thinks Ann will come immediately. Before the calling card. "Luna, your knowledge has gaps, clearly." A glance at the flaming hand. "You could train in Mementos for your aim."

"I could. But I'm here, we took care of the big threat. Noir, I get why you're worried." Alice glanced back to where the team was appraising a trio of fused skulls. Deciding what it could do. She turned her attention back to Haru. "I'm terrified of her too. No one is more scared of what she might do than me. So, please, do not give me shit for trying to get myself ready and able to have every advantage when the time comes. Because the more she realizes I'm capable of? The more she'll get filled with hubris."

"... fine. But you better make sure that the only person who dies is her." Haru huffed, setting her axe on the ground with an echoing thud. She fixed her hat, staring out into the space around them. "You're going to fall apart, if you're not careful. It's going to break their hearts."

"Maybe, probably. Respectively." Alice joined her in looking out into space. Haru tilted her head. "I hope you're used to your complicated feelings on me when we steal your father’s heart. Because he's as bad as me."

"No. He's worse. You did a lot of evil. But there's a conscience there. You aren't doing evil. You're doing stupid things." Haru's remark made Alice laugh, her flaming hand pulsing with the motion. "Am I wrong? You tried to fight a superior foe on your own without knowing her capabilities."

"Oh, I don't disagree with most of it. But I'd rate some of what I did as worse than your father. I'm glad you're not letting me have the clean slate. I might get complacent since Avenger let up on me." Alice tried to not look back to Sophia, to judge what was going on. "She should still hate me. She remembers what I did."

"Maybe. Maybe not. There's a certain amount of divine punishment you've gone through. I don't know how I feel about you, I'll be honest. You are good now, but I also know you chose to be evil before." Haru's hand almost touched Alice's arm before retreating. It was strange, to feel that pity. It didn't turn Alice's stomach, it only made her paranoid. "But I only have your own admittance on that front. And you're still the person who encouraged me to be myself, who dropped everything in that moment to take care of me. Twice."

"Anyone can choose evil. I'm just stupid enough to do it." Alice gripped the frame of the viewport, considering her next words. The past and how it happened. "I could have come forward last time. Ann could have made an offer for me to come forward when she figured it out. That didn't happen. I gave her the chance this time. She's more stupid than me."

"I suppose that's one way to put it. I'd say she's far more cut off than you. I..." Haru paused, biting her lip. She let out a long sigh. "It's strange how much just talking to you makes me realize you aren't the same as the Luna you told us about. It'd be more clear if you were."

"You could always aim your grenade launcher at me, it'd make me nostalgic. And I'm maybe, a little, glad that you aren't sure. Not just because it'll keep me on track, but..." Alice trailed off with a sigh, the heat of her prosthetic licking up her arm. "... but because you were one of the people I only got on a superficial level last time. I never saw you with joy, not really. I got that now, even if I was a bit of a creep this time. When I did your nails."

"Frustratingly? One of the kindest things I've had done for me." Haru watched Alice's face, the wince she let through. "You didn't get much like it. Did you?"

"Until Ann, I didn't know kindness. And now, even now, that fucks me up. That I am getting it now. That I was one of the first to give it to Ann this time and she spit on it..." Alice flexed her hand closed, the flames intensifying and wrapping up and around her arm. "It pisses me off. Because I treasured that. So. Maybe don't feel like an ass over me giving you some and liking it. Take what you can get. They'll make sure you get more."

"I suppose they will, alongside you if saving my life is any indication." Haru picked up her axe, balancing it on her shoulder. Her eyes traced the hug that the flames were giving Alice. "Your arm... is behaving strange."

"Long story, but it's built from the old Ann. Or my memories of her. Hard to tell which, don't know if it matters. And, I do plan on being kind to you as I can manage. I'm still a bitch, though." Alice pat the flames, the tendrils wrapping around her palm before retreating. Hand in hand, like we did on our way up to put Maruki's dream in the grave. Haru shook her head. "Oh, trust me, I am."

"More than that. And... I don't think I can forgive you. Because I didn't feel that Haru's pain. But I can say thank you for saving my life. And hate you if you fail my father." Haru started down the hill towards the airlock. She was out it where no one could hear before Alice could give her a smart remark back.

One way to get the last word. For about thirty seconds.

"Move it everyone, before Noir clears the Palace on us."

-----

"Hi Alice." Futaba trailed after Alice as they all split from the Palace exit. Her hair had fallen in front of her eyes, a frown on her face. "You're sure that you don't blame us for your hand? For not being strong enough for you to trust us?"

"Damn sure. This isn't just patented Alice thinks she's an idiot here, there was a reason I sent you all to focus on Maruki and his Treasure." Alice fiddled with her bag to retrieve her hand, the plastic cooler than her hand had been. It felt wrong for that reason this time as she slipped her wrist in. Flames felt like the heat of flesh at least. "I wanted to be sure that if Ann circumvented me when I went to intercept her, then the most possible people were there to protect Maruki. The rest was hubris."

"Hubris is stupid and the Greeks are assholes." Futaba kicked a rock, catching up to shuffle alongside Alice. "You're cool and nice and working hard. And Ann is stupid and I wish we had helped you more."

"Well, we kept Maruki alive. And he's already doing better. Taking care of himself." Alice huffed to Futaba giving her a cautious poke in the side. "It's true. Futaba, all my regrets with this are based on what I messed up with my trust of Ann. My underestimating her. We're not doing that again."

"Right. We're not. E-enough about that. I wanted you to come hang out. You promised you would." Futaba looked up at her with the eyes of a dog begging for scraps. Alice pat her on the head and nodded. "Good! We're going to watch something together! I was originally going to make you play a game but that felt mean."

"Save it for trivia maybe." Alice joked, walking alongside Futaba towards her home. The little pit of guilt was quiet this time as they made their way down the road towards the Isshiki residence. "What are you trying to make me watch."

"Just Neofeather Ranger. It's a classic. For a reason." Futaba charged ahead, head down and hand out to shove the door open. Alice chuckled, following her up and into the house. The gremlin shot straight to an old couch and flopped onto it. "Wait, you gotta sit here too. My bad."

"I do." Alice shook her head as Futaba lifted her legs. "You think you can lay on my lap?"

"I mean. A little?" Futaba curled her legs up with a frown. Alice took the seat and then tapped Futaba's ankle. "What?"

"Don't pout, stretch out." Alice leaned on her hand until Futaba's legs rested across her lap. "I can tease you once in a while."

"Fiiiiiiiine, you've earned that." Futaba fiddled with her phone and the TV kicked on followed by a theme that Alice knew well. And the way Futaba was humming it under her breath told Alice how much more familiar it was for her. "Have you watched this?"

"Sure have." Alice raised an eyebrow at Futaba, pointing to her chest. "You know that like every trans girl in Japan my age figured it out from Feather Pink, right? That episode where she talks about enjoying being a woman and how it doesn't change what she does? Where she viscerally hated being turned into a man?"

"Huh, didn't know that. Like. Now that you say it, that's clear." Futaba rested her head on a pillow, passing Alice one. On screen, one of the Rangers chased a nondescript minion with a feathered scimitar. "You know, I didn't think you were into stuff like this. Given, you know, fashion designer."

"I named myself for a character from a book in English. And I wasn't a normal fashion designer, either." Alice sighed, the half torn apart dress still lingered on her desk. She didn't know what to do with it. If she could do anything with it. "I was known for weird fashion."

"Okay, that actually makes you make sense. I was imagining you making like dresses for people that solid colors and all shiny, stick figure models walking around in them. Seemed all wrong, like you don't work with that. You're kinda loud." Futaba hit the nail on the head. It was a part of the previous life to be proud of was her use of models. "What was your favorite thing you made?"

"It's kind of bittersweet now. But. Well." Alice dug into her bag, pulling out the neglected sketchbook. The bookmark photo stuck out inbetween the pages. She let Futaba take the picture of Ann pointing a gun at the camera. "That was our first date. I knew who she was, she didn't know me. Not really."

"Woah." Futaba's finger slid along the side of the picture, back and forth. A way to make sure it was real. "This is a real thing from the other timeline. That's wild! You have a genuine thing that shouldn't exist! Why do you carry it around?"

"Because she didn't do anything wrong to me. Ever." Alice took the photo back, bookmarking her page. The monster of the week was twirling a staff above her head, summoning every owl nearby to perch on it. Including Feather Green. "That's the Ann I knew, who I wanted back. I can't have her back, not the way I thought."

"Screw her, Shiho's a better girlfriend from what you've said anyway. No actual murder attempts there." Futaba's words coincided with Feather Green and Yellow matching swords as the villain forced the owls to swarm the rest of the Feathers. "I mean this one. Not her."

"About to say, bold to say that when I have your legs." Alice leaned to the side, feeling the Palace catch up with her. She reached over and popped her hand off, yawning as she set it on the arm of the couch. Futaba frowned. "I'm relaxing. Having that on is still work. In time it shouldn't. I think. Otherwise I'm going to be a tired and cranky girl."

"Yeah, I prefer you cranky and able. Well, when it's aimed at the assholes, not yourself." Futaba yawned too, dragging the blanket off the back of the couch across the two of them. "Thanks for talking to me and not assuming I was trying to be a dick."

"Eh, I'm used to people being dicks." Alice felt her brain drifting away as the two of them yawned again. "Can't believe you're seeing my first proper sleepover."

"Well. Same. I got too anxious but you make things safe. Even now." Futaba added, a reassurance in the wake of recent events. Alice snorted at the sentiment. "You're laughing at that?"

"It's all strange. That I make you feel safe now. That I don't hate that I make you feel safe now. And I'm enjoying myself with something simple." Alice snuggled down into the couch, reaching over and inspecting her unattached hand. "It's good. Only took losing my hand to not be shackled by guilt. Let it be real that people care for me."

"Well, duh we do. Everyone kinda came together after you know, you did the hand thing. And you keep talking about relapsing and you don't. Like ever." Futaba yawned, pausing the show on her phone. Alice shrugged at her but Futaba nudged her with a foot. "So, it's easier when you run around saving people, trying to do the right thing. You're almost doing a perfect run, because Ann super isn't actually a recruitable character without going down the evil path."

"Wonder if you ever got onto Ann that way about me. Hope if you did she had listened." Alice closed her eyes and found herself asleep, Futaba already snoring when she did. Peaceful. Almost like being dead. Almost. There was something real on the other side of it.

-----

"Alice. A moment." Goro's hand cut her off as she began to get up from her desk. He had on his pleasant smile, the one meant to disarm idiots. An insult. "I want to discuss yesterday. And your overall demeanor around Okumura."

"Outside. No masks. I ache too much today." Alice squinted at him as she dragged her aching right arm along. The muscles were getting tired from the weight faster today. A struggling email taken over by Sophia at lunch came with an answer that it would happen sometimes and to take the hand off when she got out of school. Goro kept to her left, guard dogging every approaching student with his presence. "Let me guess, I'm too soft?"

"No, you're trying to self flagellate on her. More than you did with Isshiki." Goro used his hip to push open a door, standing to body block a stalking Makoto. He grinned at her. "I'm sorry Niijima, but Hiiragi asked me to escort her to a doctor's appointment. Her guardian is quite busy and so someone needs to go with her in case she needs a cab."

"She needs to report for detention, already." Makoto's voice made Alice want to drag her into Mementos and beat some sense into her. Find out where that rebellion she had last time was if she had to rip Makoto apart to find it. "Hiiragi!"

"Goro, just keep moving. Before the pain makes me puke." Alice rushed towards the side of the school and the subway. Goro chuckled as he caught up to her. "Worked?"

"You said puke and she went white as a sheet. I can't believe she was a Thief once. I'd rather Sakamoto for the next stray you adopt off the streets." Goro's voice shifted from his false cheer, his eyes raising to inspect the crowd as they walked. "Why are you making sure that Okumura is hyper aware of who you are."

"I've gotten used to Futaba not hating me. And she's convinced me that she's keeping an eye on me but believes I wouldn't be honest if I wasn't trying to do better. So, I'm going to attempt to not do what you said. Shit's hard." Alice piled into one of the subway cars, unbuckled her hand and dropped it into her purse. She tucked the stump into a jacket pocket, trying to not shiver at the sensation of the lining rubbing against it. "Thanks for checking in. For starting the challenge that Ann finished."

"Of course. You threw down the gauntlet when you pulled me into this mess. You knew what would make me unable to look away. Only polite to return the favor." Goro tapped his fingers along his arm, surveying the train of people. Listening to the whispers of those around them as their eyes wandered between the bulge in Alice's pocket and his glare. "You know it's sickening how many of these people think we can't hear them. How many of them can't let a woman ride a subway in peace unless I make an example of them."

"Freak." One of the men nearby muttered. Goro reached over, Alice's hand on his forearm. "Your boyfri--"

"You know for a thousand reasons I should let him throttle you now. Lucky for you, this is our stop." Alice tugged Goro along, her arm falling from her pocket. More people whispered, commented about the amputee tranny. Goro dragged her away, his hand on his phone. "Careful, entering Mementos in this pissy of a state is how you--"

"I'm well aware of what I wish to do and what I will do right now. They remind me of my father, a worthless sack of shit as you are no doubt aware. Caring only for what they deem respectable but ignoring their own crimes, inventing imperfections in others to ignore their actual defects." Goro powered through the crowd, a slipstream for Alice to follow as they cut through the neighborhood between Shibuya and Yongen. "I'd almost ask to change his heart out of pure spite but it would be selfish."

"Nah. It wouldn't be if I suggested it to the team. You and me. Futaba too to find him. But, I bet you could sink him another way. What are your feelings on the fourth estate?" Alice cocked a grin at him before taking a step to the side as Sae Niijima walked by. The prosecutor paused, looking back. "Hello, Miss Niijima."

"Hiiragi, what the hell happened to you?" Sae's eye locked on the stump. Not one to mince words even without a Palace. Alice sighed and strapped her hand on while Goro took a step in front. "I'm not trying to give her any trouble. She's been through enough."

"Considering the callousness of the other Niijima around, you'll have to forgive me for being protective of my friend. It's also rude to point it out." Goro's accusation paused the prosecutor, her briefcase almost falling from her hand. "Did I surprise you?"

"Yes, what do you mean Makoto's callousness?" Sae's eyes jumped to Alice. They were different without the Palace inside her. Appraising but taking her time. No wonder she was surprised I took the plea deal. "Would you explain?"

"She's focused more on school rules than anything else. The law without any compassion." Alice took a little perverse glee in the fact that Sae's lip curled in anger. In frustration. "She has been chasing me for my hair since I returned to school after my amputation."

"She has been acting strange lately." Sae frowned, reasserting her control over the briefcase as it almost fell again. "I've been busy with work and I haven't been checking in as much as I should. Maybe it's--"

"I wouldn't blame yourself for her lack of compassion. I would blame her." Goro relaxed his defensive stance, looking over his shoulder to Alice. "Wouldn't you agree?"

"She's responsible for herself. But you should give her shit about it. How has she been strange though?" Alice cradled her elbow, a sinking suspicion in her gut. Sae frowned. "If you don't want to say it to us now, it's whatever but I can at least confirm something maybe."

"Not right now. But I remember where you're boarding. I'll come by and talk to you about it." Sae pressed a pair of business cards into Goro's hand. "Make her life easier and carry that till she gets where she's going."

"I'm not your errand boy. And she can hold a business card." Goro held up the card for Alice to snatch. "Farewell, Miss Niijima."

"I'll text you, Sae." Alice frowned, tucking the business card away. The prosecutor didn't answer, already long gone. "Ann."

"Agreed. Ann has caused a change in Makoto's behavior. It's a question of to what end. Why is simple." Goro sighed, flipping the card over in his hand again and again. "Fuck with you. Make you tired with one more problem. And remind you she knows where you are."

"And, a trap. Because the easy solution is to change Makoto’s heart. In a Palace that she's shaped." Alice closed her eyes, taking in a deep breath. "What a bitch. Later. Fourth estate, a reporter. How about that?'

"If you know one that would publish the story, then sure. I have nothing to hide, only a history of being ignored." Goro stared up the road at the flash of silver in the crowd. "More relevant, I'm glad you went to trap first."

"Duh. It's what we'd both do if we were her." Alice tilted her head at Goro who laughed. "Am I wrong?"

"Not at all. Were I to want to make sure everything was in my favor I'd make something innocuous my tool. So what's the plan?" Goro's hand crumpled the business card for a moment. "Because I'm assuming we don't let this stand."

"We do, actually. We steal Okumura's heart, we figure out things from there." Alice grinned at Goro, a little manic. It felt good to be this smart. "Because if she wastes her energy on traps we can walk around, well isn't that a shame? Meanwhile we're going to tighten the noose around Adachi until he makes her fuck up."

"Sounds reasonable. I suppose knowing how your trap ended would make this one’s bait much less enticing." Goro nodded, grinning back with the same energy. "And as she organizes all these traps, what's next after Okumura? Assuming nothing changes."

"We start hitting Adachi where it hurts. The people looking the other way for him. We'll get a list together, recruit Ryuji then. His leg should be good enough." Alice cracked her neck. "That's how we collapse him. Money and accusations. But, one step at a time. In the meantime, call Ichiko Ohya. Have a good conversation with her."

Chapter Text

Alice tapped her hand against the plastic arm of her chair, her stomach turning over and over. Her other hand gripped her dress, tugging it every which way it could move. Sophia looked up at her from the phone screen on her lap, not at the video she was playing. The one that was failing to get Alice's attention of the latest fashion trends in Harajuku. It was all worse than what she had put out last time. Too safe, too cis, everything that was meant for people who thought the edge was a single spike on the collar. Not a bold statement of something. Not a statement of anything. No joy whatsoever. Only the act of creating something for the trend. Nothing else.

"Alice, you're here to do better." Sophia would know when she was distressed wouldn't she? Knowing every turn of the face that said things were going wrong. They had been around each other for five months now, after all. Sophia leaned in a little towards the screen’s edge. A caring gesture. A terrifying one. It felt like forgiveness. "It's not to hurt."

"Not how brains work. Because the Palace was here. The place I had to reckon with it being real. And now, I have to come back all the time. To see my doctors, to see my Hermit. And..." Alice paused, keeping the words in her mouth. The ones that wanted to dare to ask why Sophia cared. She wanted to cut down the lies, like she had with Maruki. But there was that other fear. That it was pity. That it was only how Alice had been hurt that made Sophia pull back, that she didn't have the stomach to pick on her for being hurt. "I'm just irrational. As you know. A pile of defense mechanisms that fire wrong until I'm twisted up inside."

"I know. It was bad to be here before. It is for a good reason, now." Sophia kept it simple, pausing the video with a tap of her finger to a dog collar that was already falling apart. She crossed her legs to sit on the supposed alley set of the video. "You also do better now. Your defense mechanisms only hurt you now."

"That is not the compliment you think it is, but thanks. I was always hurting myself. Grandiose plans, thinking I was cut off already when I did that to myself. The nausea's not new." Alice shuddered as the wave hit again. She dug into her purse, pulling out a bottle with the child safe lid still on. "And treating it is still a massive pain in the ass."

"Looks it. Here." Nurse Nakamura held out her hand, an expectant look in her eyes. Alice handed it over, seeing that Sophia had sent her to a graphic that proclaimed a call ended. The nurse tapped out two of the pills, handing them to Alice. "I'll mention to the doctor you need an anti-nausea medicine related to stress and to make sure they don't give you child safe."

"How--" Alice cutoff the sarcasm, shoving the pills in her mouth and dry swallowing them in a heartbeat. She pushed up with her hand, wavering for a moment as the nurse observed her. "How long have you been there?"

"Long enough for you to get pissed at the bottle, I didn't eavesdrop, much. Come on. It’s a good day." Nakamura led Alice down to the familiar exam room, her eyes ahead as they moved. The woman was a battering ram of blunt positivity. Alice could respect how she was, even if she didn’t get how she could focus on the forward motion. Not anymore. "How has your adaptation to your primary hand gone?"

"It's gone better than I expected. I can do some things I didn't think I could once I got the act of opening and closing down. I made coffee." Alice felt stupid for being proud of that but the nurse's usual deadpan face shifted, a small upturn of the lips at the statement. "It's simple, I could do it with one hand. Probably."

"Yes. You could. But you did it with that one." Nakamura wrote on her clipboard for a moment, looking up to Alice afterwards. That same small smile on the face. "How is your emotional state?"

"Stressed out. I ache a lot and it makes it worse. The phantoms are there even with the antidepressants. Less of them, but if I get stressed out or get a strong reminder it hits again." Alice tapped her arm, alternating her fingers as she went. Nakamura made a continue motion, circling her her pen. "I'm doing my best, those close to me are great. But everyone else sees an amputee tranny with green hair and hates her."

"I don't." Nakamura's deadpan shifted, a grit of the teeth. An anger in her that faded after a moment. Alice could feel the sudden wave of heat in the aftermath. Shouldn’t take a lack of expression for a lack of care. "You have support. Your guardian, Sojiro Sakura, correct?"

"Yeah. He's been busting his ass for me. Girlfriend, friends have too. Not my supposed real family, though." Alice huffed, her hand pressing into the vinyl of the bed. "Which isn't new, they sucked before. So, don't like count them."

"I won't. You mentioned phantoms. Pains, sensations or both?" Nakamura looked up to a thumbs up from Alice. "Intense?"

"If I'm worn out, they're worse. When can I start trying to work out this arm so my muscles can get used to it more?" Alice tapped right above the sleeve, flesh instead of cushioning. Nakamura shrugged. "Doctor question."

"Doctor question. You're right. Before she gets here however take your hand off." Nakamura pulled a box out of the cabinet, setting it on the bed next to Alice. The Wildcard unsnapped her hand, sliding it to the bed. The hand lay there, unmoving. Her hand cut off again. By choice. For a different hand. She didn’t know when she started thinking of taking it off as another amputation. "It's yours, you open it."

"Right. I have three hands now." Alice put her thumb to the lid, flicking it off with a hint of motion. The object looking back at her was a hand in shape. Five black metal fingers with the same number of joints as Alice’s left hand. Cables ran along the fingers, attached to pulleys. It wasn't going to have the right dexterity, but it could do a lot, with less power than her primary hand. It was a third hand to figure out how to use, to train herself on how to use. Another piece of her that she had to cut in and out. "This is going to take time. Isn't it?"

"You adapted fast. Uses similar muscles to what your arm used for fingers. Every movement of the hand requires your arm muscle." Nakamura kept her little upturn of a lips, her tiny smile as Alice fit the hand on. The attachment was like the other hand, but it had more connectors to access the mechanisms that pressed up against her muscles. "Good, natural for you to put it on. Test it."

"You look like a proud parent, you know." Alice snorted at the little blush that summoned. She twitched her muscles, the calibration not what she expected. Her thumb curled fast, from a tiny twitch of the muscle. All of them were sensitive, slamming back in a moment when she tried to activate them. The nurse scribbled notes, a little twist to her hips. "You built this, didn't you?"

"Yes. Good to see it works. Your difficulty should fade with practice. Taking notes for the next one." Nakamura nodded along with her note taking. “How did you know that I made it?”

“I looked like that when I got clothes I made on someone who didn’t have something for them before.” Alice's fingers tapped on each other as she tried to grab a needle that wasn't there. "I'm going to break things."

"Maybe. Maybe not." Doctor Aragaki's cane tapped her over to the bedside. Nakamura tilted her head in deference. "This is your work, don't act like you should look to me about it. I've got the muscle and rehab instructions but you made this. Act like it."

"You're in charge." Nakamura handed the doctor her notes, bowed her head and headed to the door. "Miss Hiiragi, please record all frustrations and bring them back. I want to make better future models."

"My insurance won't cover that." Alice's words didn't reach the nurse, the door already closed. She let out a long sigh in time with the doctor. "What has you frustrated about that? She's professional."

"She's a smart woman, she knows what she's doing. She needs to remember that she is here because of that. I've got her notes here." Doctor Aragaki leaned the clipboard on her lap, tapping at the paper with a pencil. "Social difficulties but not your support network. Not surprised there for a lot of reasons. Quick adaptation. Why are you proud of making coffee? Don't you just dunk grinds into a coffee maker?"

"You claim you cook, don't bullshit me." Alice glared at the doctor and the shit eating grin she had. Aragaki let out a bark of a laugh and tapped the pencil again. "Don't bullshit me, I don't have the patience for it."

"You don't, huh? Look, brag about it because I want to know what you're doing and how. Also, keep fucking around with your new hand. I have use instructions for you. Tip, don't punch with it though." Doctor Aragaki set the paper where Alice had to move or reach with the new hand to pick it up. A test. An exhausting test. She placed her hand above it, going through the motions until she got one finger on the paper and pulled it back to herself. She tried to pinch the other finger and scrunched it. "It's fine. I'll email them to you too. How do you feel?"

"Frustrated. They're fingers but not and that's fucking with me." Alice dropped the paper onto her lap. Then tried to pick it up again. "And for the coffee it's because I live at a cafe. Owner's old school, uses siphons. I can use them, only keep the coffee on heat a little too long. So, timing is new."

"That so? Have to come by and have a cup. If you're able to tell you put it on too long, you know something." Doctor Aragaki thudded her cane after a moment, a smile on her face. "And that's without fine control on a hand. Here's the deal about that hand from Aika's notes. You can't do anything too heavy because she wants you to be able to manipulate stuff at a fine detail. Intricate work. You can manage a coffee cup if you want, but that's a bit risky if its siphon coffee."

"Yeah, I don't want to scald my skin off. I don't want to scare off my girlfriend." Alice huffed and her doctor nodded in understanding. "Alright, why did she talk like there would be another hand? My insurance is paying for two."

"Yeah. They sure are." Her doctor tapped something on her laptop. "You're lucky I know some people who want to help out. Asked them. Funding Aika to build you an eventual third hand, because you got a lot of shit going on. Speaking of, you want to come clean yet?"

"Nothing to come clean about. I don't remember the car hitting me. Traumatic amnesia or something I guess." Alice crossed her prosthetic fingers together after several tries. One eyebrow cocked from her doctor in response. "Hey, I'm learning."

"Yep, fast. It's why I want to know what happened. Something not normal happened." Her doctor pushed off the stool, letting out a fake yawn. A whole production of a doctor. "I'm an old woman at my age, don't got a lot of my own patience when it comes to kids bullshitting me. I know there's more to this, because your skin is sealed up and you have less scarring than surgery would give you."

"Asked my friends who were there. Don't know what you're talking to." Alice's heart thudded in her chest, the worry building and building in there. She glanced to where her phone was in her purse. Sophia, Futaba, hope you got my back right now. "I don't know anything."

"Sure you don't. If you do, it ain't trouble for you. I'm not a cop, I'm a doctor." Aragaki pointed to the door with her cane, starting towards it. Alice held up her new hand and pointed to the other prosthetic. "Keep the fancy one on, try it out more. Hit some buttons on the elevator. Like when you go visit that woman."

"Fine. You're tracking me. Why." Alice growled as she packed up her hand. Doctor Aragaki winked at her. "What are you doing?"

"As long as you're just a high schooler, I'm just a doctor. Give and take, girl. Find a balance." And with that the doctor was off and gone. Leaving Alice to have to figure out what happened.

"Hey, Alice. Uh, that's super sus. So. I did some looking into her." Futaba chimed in from the earbud, her voice spilling over itself with worry. "She's got a pretty major connection to the Kirijo Group. I found where she's been friends with the current CEO since they were young. Like my age."

"So, that's where the money for another hand came from. What does that have to do with this?" Alice grumbled as she walked down the hall to the elevator. Sophia swirled onto the screen, frowning. "Don't like that."

"Futaba and I split research. I'll let her finish, but I was looking into Aika Nakamura as well." Sophia held a digital notebook in her hands. More pages rained across the screen. "Futaba!"

"I'm sorry, you compile it all so fast so I figured I’d share what I got! Okay, well, I bring them up because Kirijo Group has weird stuff in their past. Allegations about a lab under a high school they run. Their CEO died back in 2009 under mysterious circumstances and was taken over by the current one. Before that their CEO died in an explosion in 1999." Futaba paused, sucking in a breath in her excitement as Alice hopped into the elevator. "And in 2010 things changed for them in terms of company direction. A ton of people got fired, the stock all got bought back and Mitsuru Kiriijo changed the whole company. A focus on medical technology, scholarships for doctors and nurses."

"Like these two?" Alice knew the answer without asking but the two hummed in response. And it didn't explain why the doctor was investigating. "What am I missing?"

"I'm working on figuring that out, best I can. Their phones are super locked down. So, I'll keep digging up what I can on the old days for Doctor Aragaki." Futaba's keyboard clacks came through for a moment before the sound of a mute matched the elevator kicking on after Alice managed to press the button with her new hand. After three attempts and bending her new fingers wrong in the process.

"Aika Nakamura is originally from Inaba, the city where Kanami Mashita committed her murders in 2011. Where she confessed but no physical evidence could be provided." Sophia's voice had the old spark of anger. The kind for Alice and Ann. "If the bodies weren't found in the telephone wires, I would have assumed they were mental shutdowns with what could be proven. The records of how it happened were never unsealed, always hidden. And there is a property owned by the Kirijo Group in the town."

"Great. They're not cops, they're corporate." Alice muttered as she stepped out of the elevator. It was good that the anti nausea medicine worked. "Keep looking, but don't let them know you are."

"Duh. Uh, think we should run a search on the Nav?" Futaba's question didn't sit right with Alice. In the abstract they were up to something. It was manipulative to dangle a free prosthetic. But they were trying their best to train her to use them. "Alice?"

"Info on them first, then we bring it to the rest. I want direction and we’re in the middle of things with our current work. Ears closed, please." Alice let out a breath and dropped her earbuds into her purse as she used the flesh hand to open the door. Her metal fingers flexed at the wrong distances with each test she did. Rumi was sitting up, her head tilting to the new hand. "I wish I could say you should see the other person. But I don't even know the details."

Rumi frowned for a moment, her eyes still on the hand and the way Alice was struggling to get the hand to work enough. Her arm ached with the effort, even as she sat down and took away the strain of the weight. "I just got this, give me a break. I talked to your boyfriend. He got onto me for doing too much. Said he learned his lesson about that. He's not leaving snack wrappers in this chair, so I guess he's right."

Rumi's lip moved and then stilled. The start of something. Maybe? Alice tried to not push herself forward to interrogate it. She needed to keep this low pressure on Rumi. "It's not all bad. The hand sucks, duh. But I still have a place to be. I still have people in my life. I thought I had given up but I kept trying. Got here. Messy, but here."

"Me-messy." Rumi whispered and Alice froze. The woman's fingers were rubbing the blanket. It was the most motion she had done in the visits. "Worried."

"... yeah it's been a bit since I came by, hasn't it? Sorry about that. I didn't mean to make you think I abandoned you. But I've been struggling." Alice held up the hand, the way she could get thumb to touch forefinger. Not square on yet. "And... I did try to visit but you were asleep. Next time I do, I'll leave you a note. When you find an incomprehensible sticky note, that's me."

Rumi's frown shifted, a little. Alice winked at her. "You don't have to say more if you're not ready. But I'm glad I got to hear your voice. Even for a little bit. Makes things less lonely. Knowing you're improving too at your own rate. Cause, like I said, I know how it is to get hurt and then withdraw. But you didn't lose yourself even with all this."

"I didn't?" Rumi's head shifted a little and Alice met her eyes. "Wrong."

"No, I'm not letting that slide. You still love your boyfriend, it's the most obvious thing in the world that you do. For a long time you would barely look at me." Alice pointed to Rumi's eyes then her own. With the flesh hand. The other hand was almost getting fingers to touch the other fingers. "But him? You looked at him. I don't get it, but that's how I am about all men. So. You know. That was there. You're going to get the rest back, in time."

"Thanks, Alice." Rumi flopped her hand towards Alice, skin and bones. "Sorry for hand."

It could mean either of them when it came to hands but Alice took the hand in her left and gave it a tiny compression. The girl had lost a lot from her time in bed, withered from her own disuse. Alice bobbed her head. "You're going to do better and get stronger in time. Same here. I can't stay much longer, I'm wiped."

"Bye." Rumi's face rested in something approaching a pleasant expression. Her eyes a little more open, her cheeks pulling her lips up a hint. And she moved to lay herself down, instead of collapsing without any energy. "Thanks."

"Welcome. Bye."

------

The act of making finger and thumb meet, that he had almost down when she got home. Curl them together, then apart. Together then apart. That was doable. It was already another story when it came to aiming them around something. And having Sojro watching only made her feel like more of an idiot as she gripped the plastic cup the wrong way for the fifth time. This one had manged to push the cup against the curve of the thumb but it then slid along it towards the counter. "Fuck."

"Store's open. Go upstairs to say that about it." Sojiro's retort lacked any bite as he slid the cup back over. She curled her fingers again, pushing it back into the curl of the thumb. "There you go. It's a start."

"Maybe I'll drink some coffee eventually." Alice grumbled, bringing the water to her lips and almost crashing it against her teeth. "This part is my arm, why am I doing it wrong?"

"Your brain hasn't integrated it into your muscle memory yet. So your brain is wielding it in a new way, not the old way." Wakaba ran a napkin under where the cup had been, absorbing all the liquid that Alice had fucked up and spilled. "You're rewriting your brain. In addition to what happened rewriting your brain. Trauma is like that."

It sure fucking rewrites you.

"Well, I'm doing the best I can. I don't know if I can do what they designed this hand for yet." Alice released the glass, trying another round of picking it up. Curl them in order from top to bottom. They're fingers, they're numb is all.

No. They act like numb fingers but if I act like they're going to be the same as they were, I'll make a mistake.

"Hey, yet means you can." Sojiro's offer wasn't as half hearted as he believed, it was a reminder. Doc said that it was a mindset thing. And that meant she was working on it. Alice clasped and unclasped the glass. "Hey, there you go. In no time you can get to sewing, I'm sure."

"I dunno about no time but I'm going to get back to it." Fuck you, Ann. You're not stealing this from me. Alice downed the rest of her water, running a sleeve across her forehead to wipe up the sweat. The embarrassing sweat. "I look pathetic."

"Disagree. You look like you're trying the hardest you have in your life." Wakaba nodded as she finished typing something on her laptop. She looked back to Alice, closing the laptop. "Keep working at it, with rest in between. I'd advise the rest soon."

"Thanks. Mindset. Guess you would know about that." Alice let her arm rest on her lap, the fingers curling a little around her own thigh. Cold as the glass from the icewater within. "At least I’m going to have a way to cool myself down in the summer."

"I bet. Eat some dinner and go lay down. Before you fall down in the middle of my restaurant." Sojiro gave Alice a playful push, walking alongside her to the stairs with a plate of curry in hand. "You good?"

"Other than the frustration with working on my hand, today was a good day, actually. I'll come down to clean this later. Promise." Alice took the plate with her left hand, offering Sojiro a smile. "Someone I was worried about is doing better. Not good, but better."

"Good. glad to hear it. Now, get up there. If you get froggy, do some homework." Sojiro pat her one more time on the shoulder, sending her on her way upstairs. When she was out of earshot, by his reckoning, he spoke up to Wakaba. "Strong kid. Don't deserve her."

Idiot.

"Don't be stupid, Sojiro." Wakaba mirrored Alice and it took all her power to not cackle and call out that she overheard. She could let Sojiro keep that much dignity. This time.

------

"You never want to get crepes, not anymore. I'm kinda surprised." Shiho grinned, flicking her ponytail to the side as she turned to face Alice. If she wasn't going to let Ann steal sewing, she wasn't going to let Ann steal treats either. Even if they were treats she started getting from spending this much time with Ann. "What do you want?"

"Chocolate raspberry." Alice leaned her chin on Shiho's shoulder, reveling in the closeness the proximity. She could tip her lips and kiss and bite whenever she wanted. And Shiho was angling for it with the tilt of her neck as they waited in line. They had one more day till the calling card and it was an Alice enforced rest day. Everyone took the day off, including Alice from practicing with the hobby hand. "What about you?"

"There's some kind of matcha special. It's either going to be great or I'm stealing some of yours." Shiho stuck her tongue out to a strike from Alice, a grazing of the teeth. She grinned at the little moment before they returned to behaving in line. Somewhat. "So, I'm getting you two."

"You are." Alice pressed a gentle kiss to Shiho's neck where she had attacked. Their fingers fit together, each gripping with the strength they had built up. "I'm trying a bite of your monstrosity. In case it's poisoned."

"Valiant." Shiho joked as the two of them sidled up to the counter, standing up straight. No need to get the workers to be strange towards them for being two women. It was all difficult enough. "Two chocolate raspberry and the matcha gotcha special?"

"Coming up." The worker slid the card machine over, rolling his eyes when they handed him yen. "Making me do math. Here."

"Thanks, we appreciate your sacrifice." Alice took a little pleasure in making the worker jump when her gripper hand took the money for Shiho. She waved with her other hand before absconding to a table. Shiho plopped down, a mischievous grin on her face. "You know if people are going to be weird about it, might as well have fun."

"Oh, I agree, you should have fun with it." Ann's voice set every nerve on edge in Alice, making Shiho shoot up in her chair and reach into her purse. "Wow, I know we didn't talk last on the best of terms, but there's no need to be hostile. Wouldn't want to get in trouble with your student council president, Shiho."

"Suzui, Hiiragi." Makoto's voice coming next made Alice want to turn around, grab Ann by the throat and squeeze until she didn't move again. She unclenched her gripper hand, dropping Shiho's bills into a pile on the table and turned. "You still owe me a detention."

"Last I checked, Makoto, this is a restaurant, not school." Alice leveled her glare at Ann, the way her fingers were pressed into Makoto's back. That the Student Council President was crimson red from forehead to shirt collar. Her eyes remained locked onto Alice and Shiho. "As for why Shiho might be pissy with you Ann, I think she might know how you acted at Leblanc."

"You can fuck off Ann. I don't know who you are anymore." Shiho spit, her hands in fists. Makoto ground her feet back, assuming a fighting stance. As if Ann wasn't the most dangerous person among the four of them right now. "'You used to be so kind and now you delight in cruelty."

"I really don't, but okay. I just thought I'd check in, I saw that Alice was hurt and wanted to pass along my condolences." Ann smiled from behind Makoto's back, a knowing smirk of exactly what she was doing. Alice's arm burned, the flame wanting to choke this impostor out and leave her a broken charred mess. "It has to be--"

"Makoto, she already tried to talk to me about it. The words out of her mouth were 'Wow, you really got fucked up.' Not this nice girl act." Alice hissed, placing a hand on Shiho's wrist. Makoto snorted at her as Ann's arm rose along her back. A teasing puppetry. "Can we enjoy our date in peace? I really don't need your bitchy face involved."

"Hiiragi, Shujin code of conduct applies off campus too. You need to keep to the standards. I'll overlook it if you, apologize. Especially since you've already deescalated Suzui from starting a fight." Makoto's stance relaxed to where she was leaning into Ann's hand. Ugh, gross. "I'm waiting."

"No wonder you let Kamoshida hurt people, Makoto. Alice literally told you about what Ann did and you ignored it because she was a little mean." Shiho's fingers dug into Alice's wrist, her teeth bared at Ann and Makoto. "It kinda makes me sick, honestly. Everyone knew and you didn't do anything about it. Ever."

"I didn't know." Makoto's leaning broke as Ann's hand left her back. She stumbled before catching herself. "I was shocked, like everyone else. No one told me what was going on."

"I wonder why." Alice grinned at Ann, watching the moment of disgust wash away. Back into the mask. "I'm not apologizing and if you start something about this, I'll call your sister. She's already appalled about how you treated me."

"The workaholic prosecutor? Why are you even talking to her? She already ignores Makoto, the poor girl." Ann pushed her way into having control of the situation again, Makoto frowning at her feet. "Don't worry, babe. I get it. Some people just don't know how to maintain connection. Enjoy your crepes, we'll go somewhere else."

"You're right, Ann. Sorry to have lost my cool in front of you. Sis already brought up how you misrepresented everything, so sure, make my life harder out of spite." Makoto reached back, taking Ann's hand. The murderer squeezed her hand enough to make Makoto gasp. Alice held tight to Shiho's hand in turn, her stomach churning with rage. "I'll see you at school, you can't dodge the slips forever."

"She's using you, you know." Shiho's words fell on deaf ears as the two disappeared into the crowd. She collapsed into the seat, squeezing Alice's hand. "Why was it easier to figure it out there?"

"Well, she made me cut off my hand." Alice pulled Shiho close, running fingers through her hair. Little grips to pulse her own frustration and to focus Shiho as little sobs built up. "I never got why Makoto was a Thief before. I really don't now. At least I pretended to not be evil, Ann."

"Yeah, cause you aren't. Not anymore." Shiho leaned onto Alice's chest as the crepe tray landed in front of them. "Ugh, I don't want to eat this anymore."

"Fuck her, we should." Alice tightened her grip for a moment, pulling Shiho up by the hair to look at her. "I refuse to let her take anymore from me. And I'm not going too let her take from you either."

"She already took my best friend. But." Shiho leaned in, straining her hair against the grip to kiss Alice. Her lips were moist with a running tear, warm with rage. A delicious combination, there to seal that they were together in this. "I got you. And I’m not fucking Makoto Niijima. So. I win."

"You do win. And we're going to win more soon. Today, we're going to rest so we can do our best tomorrow." Alice set down her phone to a nodding Sophia within. Shiho gave the AI an apologetic smile. "Sorry if you had to put up with Ann being smug when you weren't ready."

"I do not care. We are going to make her regret it. Soon." Sophia crossed her arms, perching on the brick wall background that Alice had taken a picture of in Yongen. "She was attempting to hurt you."

"She was. We'll... ugh, I hate that we probably have to kill her. But she's trying to manipulate us into a corner or just show us she knows us this well. It sucks." Shiho took a bite of her crepe after a moment, chewing it with care. Alice took her own bite. It was bitter and sweet. "I guess it fits the moment."

"Guess it does."

Chapter Text

It was strange to be back at Haru's home, standing outside the door and looking towards the stream. Six months since she had last been here, Ann on her heels to wake up Haru from a delusion. The hard way. And now the girl was turning over a calling card in her hand, her fingers drumming on the doorframe. Alice removed her primary hand, dropping it into her purse. "You just give it to him, we leave. He'll call Adachi, he'll send in Ann to take care of it."

"And then we make her regret it." Haru flashed Alice a grin, all canines and pearly white. Alice flashed her own grin back. "Are you ready for this?"

"I have to be. But thanks. For checking." Alice opened the door for Haru to head in, her eyes following the girl in on her way to slip the card into her Father's messages. A bravery twice done now. And a split path to avoid the path of grief. Get an answer for Haru, for the workers of Okumura Foods. Find out if bigotry was part of a distorted heart or not.

"Thinking?" Sophia popped onto the screen, playing with one of her yo-yo's to make a cat's cradle with the string. Probably wasn't worth asking if she was cheating to do that. "About last time?"

"Yes, I am. We need to make sure that we do this right. You know why." Alice rubbed her cheek with her stump, wincing and making Sophia drop her yo-yo. "Sorry. Didn't think."

"It's fine. I--" Sophia cut herself off, looking down for a moment and then picked up the yo-yo. Alice watched as the girl spent the time to unknot it by hand, tugging on the thread with her fingers. "I worry that you may get hurt again because you're trying so hard to undo mistakes. I know you were worried about Maruki and what might happen if he festered. And you want to do right by Haru after last time, so it can be more like how things are with Futaba."

"I don't expect her to ever be comfortable with me. And--" Alice sucked in a breath as Haru slipped out, cutting herself off from questioning Sophia's sudden kindness. The curly haired Thief's fingers were curled into fists. "I'm guessing he took it well?"

"He asked if I was going to make a habit of telling him things that he didn't want to hear. Called me a disappointment and--" Haru stopped as Alice laid a hand on her shoulder, giving her a squeeze. She let out an exhausted sigh. "It's what the past few weeks have been. It won't be soon. Shall we?"

"The Thieves are heading in now. Beginning navigation." Sophia's words came with the three of them transitioning to the front of the Palace, the Thieves milling around them. They looked over as Alice flexed out her flaming fingers again. "Luna, are you taking over shot calling?"

"Yes, I am. Alright, Oracle, the moment things shift, you tell us. We're going to start moving and now. Crow, Deadeye, you're my opening salvo once she starts trying to get smart. From there, we're going to pin her down." Alice held out her palm, the flames flickering across it, sparking back and forth. She shifted it around and looked to Haru. "Noir, you have the most important job. You and Chevette need to cut off all routes she'll try to take past us."

"On it." Haru nodded and headed for the elevator, grenade launcher slung down into her hands. The team filed in, short Shiho and Alice. "We have to move."

"I... know. Just needed a moment." Shiho called out, dragging Alice into the elevator and leaning into whisper. "I need to remind myself that she hasn't made the right choice. That she had the chance. That you weren't given it and you got here."

"You're right. Keep that in your heart." Alice gripped Shiho's hand, a pulse of pain to center her. The thief grinned at her and squeezed back. "After we win if you have the spirit."

"Ugh, flirt later you two." Crow pulled out his ray gun, double checking the mechanism where the wings formed a sight on this new one. A little gift from the twins in exchange for one of the personas she'd had. "We have work to do."

"It seemed more like reassurance than flirting. One sentence does not make it flirting, right?" Yusuke looked to Futaba who was far too busy checking through the camera feeds of the Palace. "Oracle?"

"Not now Fox! I'm busy. Ask Lux, she and Avenger are holding hands too." Futaba could fit in a little  mischief as the elevator came to a halt, the two redheads separating their fingers from one another. Alice smirked as she hopped out of the elevator, setting them on a dead sprint. Futaba connected to the transit disk for the fueling center. "We're hijacking this, right?"

"Absolutely. Height now is better because getting down with Ann fucking it up is easier than up." Alice separated from Shiho, grabbing her knife. The inertia of liftoff made the Thieves stagger for a moment as Futaba's persona plugged into every port on the circling gray structure. They landed short of the launchpad, Futaba groaning. "That our cue?"

"Sure is, she's already building some sort of saucer of her own to come up here." Futaba glanced to Alice from her screen, her foot jittering with anxiety. Shit, I really worried them. Really, really, worried them. "Wh-what's the plan?"

"If she's flying, I need to make sure she sees me first. Get them to the scaffolding for the boosters, Oracle." Alice took a leap from the disc, landing on the bottom of the runway to the launchpad. Her right hand absorbed the impact before she finished a flip to land on her feet. She pulled her knife hand back, her flames burning bright from her right. "Stick to the plan, get the treasure!"

"On it, Luna." Goro yelled back, playing his part to a tee. If there was someone Ann might assume was heartless about Alice making a sacrifice, it would be him. He didn't look like he had a vested interest in any ruler. From the outside. It only took knowing he despised those abusing their power and their kids.

And he liked shooting Shadows.

A jumbled mess of old engines and sparking metal rose up to meet Alice's eyes, every piece of it jutting at an unnatural angle. Ann smirked behind her veil, gun in hand as she aimed it at Alice. "Damn, that's a look you got now. Can't wait to soak it with new blood. Because you clearly haven't learned anything."

"Oh, I think I have. I think you should really find out how this hand feels around your throat. I think it'll stoke your flames." Alice ran towards Ann, the murderer shifting her pistol barrel towards her leg. Alice slammed her hand into the ground and leapt up, hurling the knife towards Ann from above. "Come on, I did that to you last time."

"Yeah, no wonder it didn't work." Ann's pistol rang out as it sent the knife off course and into space. Alice ripped her mask off, Candide swinging a cane for Ann's head. Alice landed on his back as Ann ducked the blow. Ann stuck her tongue out. "Come on, that's all you have? I doubt I even need Roark to finish you. Really should have just cut your head off."

Ann's attempt to drive a hatchet into Candide's ankle was stopped short as a ray struck the blade. The physics of the Metaverse sent the blade off course and sent sparks where the blade scraped along the ground. She growled and rolled as Candide's cane slammed into the ground where her foot had been. The shot that should have came from Shiho didn't, forcing Alice to hop off Candide's back and keep the pressure on with swipes of her flaming hand. The flames grazed Ann as she twirled back, leveling the hatchet in the direction Crow's shot came from. "You learned something. That you're outmatched one on one. Too bad you don't have the pressure of a collapsing Palace this--"

"Pardon, you were talking too much." Yusuke's sword cut through Ann's shoulder with a flash of blood. The Black Mask dropped, sweeping his leg as another shot pinged where she had been. Where is Shiho? Sumire's wires danced with a shower of sparks that cut Ann short of springing up with a blade towards Yusuke's throat. "Thank you, Lux."

"Shut up." Ann growled as she ripped her mask away, the blueprints of Roark swinging an extending sledgehammer in a circle around the disc. Sumire went flying off the edge, Alice scruffing her with the flaming hand and sending her scorched body towards the landing pad. "Oooh, you should have thought that one through."

"Helena!" Sophia crash landed with her persona, hammer and hammer clashing. Her yo-yo's tangled around Ann's hatchet and dragged the killer towards her. The killer headbutted the AI with a grin and sent her to the ground. "Luna, heal Lux!"

"I need covering fire for you. Deadeye, damn it where are you?" Alice yelled as she grabbed the skirt of Ann's dress and yanked her down before Ann could slam a heel into Sophia's chest. The killer rolled over Alice, blowing a kiss in the process. "Too late."

"Oh, don't worry, you're always gonna think about me." Ann sprung up and landed in front of the landing pad. "But I have an old man to silence."

"Oh, I'm sorry, you won't be touching him. I need answers." Haru's grenade intersected with Roark, Ann summoning her persona to shield herself. Figures she’d steal my move. "Disappointing. But I'm here for two sets of answers. Chevette."

The nanite swarm persona circled Ann, blasting her back with waves of force. Ann flipped backwards drawing her gun again and shot twice at the persona, the damaged portions replaced in a moment. She landed and leveled her gun to Sumire's head. "Oooh, see, you have a weakness there. Sure, you can make a nice wave of force but will you continue?"

"I--" Haru paused and her persona faded. Alice went for her own gun and Ann shot the ground next to Sumire's head, glancing back. "Don't hurt her."

"Maybe I will, maybe I won't. But I really need this old man to not say anything, not yet." Ann grinned, cocking the gun back to Sumire's head. She was out cold it seemed, which was a boon. "Guess Shiho couldn't do it."

"Luna, keep her busy a little longer. Trust us." Futaba whispered in Alice's ear. One of the cameras slithered out from the shadows and wrapped around Sumire, taking away her wounds. Sumire groaned but didn't move. "We improvised a little."

"Actually, I wanted to talk." Shiho swung out from the lip of the landing bad, landing next to Ann. Her pistol leveled at Ann's head and the laugh emanating from her. High pitched and manic. "You had everything offered to you, why throw it away?"

"Because. It's not everything." Ann kicked backwards, spinning to aim the gun at Shiho. Alice charged again and Ann put a bullet in Shiho's stomach, sending a spurt of blood across the veil. Alice screamed and hurled her fist at Ann. "Oh, you hate when I touch your toys, you didn't scream that good when you cut yourself apart!"

The sacrilegious path
Has brought you to the welcoming arms
Of your Hanged Man and her forgiveness
Take this boon and know you have changed.

"FUCK YOU!" Shiho yelled, pulling herself to her feet as the Thieves circled Ann. The blood in her stomach began to congeal as she reached up to her mask. "I get it now. The you I knew? Dead. THE JURY SAYS SO!"

Twelve faceless figures clad in suits made of yellowed burlap answered Shiho's call, accusatory fingers pointed at Ann. The killer rolled as they blew up the spot where they pointed. She summoned her persona to shield herself from the blast, leaving her bloody. Then a gout of flame pushed her forward into a fist from Hecatoncheires. Ann grunted, blood spilling out from her mouth. She pointed a gun at Haru, only to have the haft of the axe slam into her stomach and send her reeling. Ann coughed, hand to her lip before Yusuke’s blade caught her shoulder again. "You know, a girl might think she's not wanted."

"You're not, mother killer." Sophia's yo-yo pulled her ankle out with blood. Roark slammed his pickaxe into the launchpad, surrounding Ann in a ball of metal that fell to the lower floors. "Oracle, can we chase?"

"Not here. We need to get the treasure and she's already almost out." Futaba sighed, her persona retreating from treating Sumire. The girl pat her chest. "You almost got executed."

"It's fine. I agreed with Deadeye's request. I should have dodged better." Sumire pulled herself up, looking Alice in the eye. "We wanted to see if we could get you and Deadeye an answer as to why. We... knew how you felt and it mattered."

"I disagreed and was outvoted, for what it's worth. Precisely because of what almost happened." Goro dropped down from his latest perch, scowling at Sumire. He dropped it as he tucked away his pistol. "It however seems to have powered up our gunwoman."

"It did. We'll discuss this after the treasure. Crow, Noir take point with me. Everyone else, you took hard hits. Oracle get them to the entrance the safest way and make them rest" Alice took away her mask, Kushinada answering to send a wave of healing among the Thieves. Shiho didn't have a lasting wound as she leaned on Alice for support. "Deadeye, I love you. Don't do anything like that again."

"Love you too." Shiho leaned on Alice as they walked, toward the launchpad and the way up to Kunikazu. "You know. that felt kinda good. To declare her dead to me."

"Yeah, it was part of how I felt when my Ann visited my dream." Alice held out her flaming hand, one finger grazing Shiho's hand for a moment. A little kiss of flame that Alice didn’t make happen. "She's proud of you for doing it, I bet."

"You think so, huh? Well, next time you talk, you should ask her." Shiho whispered as she departed to stand with Futaba and the other resting Thieves. "Make it fast."

"We'll do it right, not fast." Goro sneered as Haru tapped her axe haft on her shoulder. Alice joined the two of them as the elevator heading up the shaft. "Really can’t believe you agreed to that, Noir. Your father's life was at risk."

"I didn't have to change my actions for the plan. Luna's breakdown of the previous attempt showed that it was the element of surprise that led to his death." Haru shrugged, striding forward with her axe towards where her father sat in his chair with a glowing orb in one hand. She wasted no time in leveling her axe at him before shouting. "Father, I started this for my own sake. But as I have ascended this abominable place, I want less and less answers for me. I want answers for the people that work for us. I want answers for my grandfather's legacy. What happened to Okumura Foods being family!"

"You're too much like your grandfather. Weak in body and mind. You can't bear to be a boy, you can't bear to make the choices necessary to succeed. You would flee your birthright, the strength built up. And you would shame me and the family name." Kunikazu pointed and the cognitive workers that were breaking all over the Palace tumbled out of a tube, their hands pointed towards the three of them. They opened and closed them like the prosthetic in Alice's purse. "If they're family, they'll rip you apart for being a disgrace like they should!"

"You know, I think he's an idiot." Goro blasted the nearest one as Alice slammed two more together with Queen Mab. Haru cut through the last one between herself and her father, the man jetting away from her. "And a coward, don't you agree Luna?"

"Yes, there's a cafe owner that's far braver than you. He not only can embrace a girl he doesn't even know as one, but--" Alice charged to the side that Kunikazu retreated to, shoulder checking his chair and sending him spinning. Haru almost paused but used her axe to rip the propulsion out of the chair and send him sprawling to the ground. "He can see a wretch, a lost thing, a hurt thing and see a girl underneath. He has infinitely more vision and imagination than you. He knows that those he lets in his kitchen are family. Not slaves."

"They should..." Kunikazu paused as Haru scooped up the glowing orb that was his treasure, holding it up to the light. "They should be there to make the company run so we can have what we deserve."

"No. They work for us because they need money to survive, Father." Haru looked down at him with a pitying glance. She shook her head, a tear falling from her eyes. "I hope you remember that. I hope you fix that. If you can figure that out, I'll be happy."

Alice picked up his shadow with her left arm, carrying him all the way down to the entrance in silence. Haru didn't look at him during the elevator rides or as they walked past the pieces of the Palace cannibalized for use by Ann. The Thieves at the exit saluted as they walked up, all except Shiho who was staring at the ground. Later. Alice dropped Kunikazu on the ground. "Stay before someone gets a bright idea and tries to kill you."

When the last piece of the Palace collapsed, Alice abandoned his Shadow to whatever happened next.

-----

Alice set the last cup on the tray, Futaba snagging it from her and rushing up stairs with it. Alice reattached her hobby hand, stripped off the apron and hung it. Then she walked up to Sojiro, looked him in the eye and hugged him. He placed a tentative hand on her back, his eyes misting up. "Everything okay there, kid?"

"Just, thankful for you." Alice sniffled, squeezing him for a moment as he squeezed back. Not hard, but enough to know he returned the gesture. She separated from him, letting her hand hang to the side. "Don't expect that all the time, but after something that happened today, I needed to say it."

"I didn't expect it this time. If it has to do with that new girl you've been bringing around, point me to her parents. I'll give them a talking to." Sojiro tried to sound like was joking, but he wasn't. Alice smiled at him, patting him on the chest. "You are going soft on me."

"Next time I'll use the strong hand. We'll see if you agree." Alice stuck her tongue out, taking a skip back as the two of them laughed. It was good. And with any luck, Haru could get something similar from her father. If not, then she'd have to share Sojiro. He was dad enough for Alice and Futaba already. What was one more strange girl? "I'll clear them out after close tonight."

"Your girlfriend can stay." Sojiro called out as Alice cackled her way up the stairs to the Thieves staring at the treasure. A model kit of an old sci-fi movie space station, from long before any of them were born. She plopped down on the bed, leaned on her chin and smiled at the team.

"You look quite pleased with the result." Yusuke passed her a coffee cup, her left hand holding it to her lips. "I know this is a different result to last time."

"Oh, by far. We'll see what a real confession looks like. But there's more to it than that. We put the fear in Ann this time." Alice tapped her cheek with her prosthetic's index finger. A little more control, more aim. "She's going to try and be smarter about it, sneakier. Because now she knows she can't win in a straight up fight. And we were pushing her before Shiho did her thing."

"It... was the only choice." Shiho whispered, walking over with her coffee and sitting on the bed next to Alice. She leaned in, holding Alice's coffee cup between sips. "I'm just glad no one died."

"Yeah, about that. Next time you're going to change a plan we put together, I want to know." Alice let out a long sigh, looking between the Thieves. Only Goro met her eye in the process. "I know that I have not come from the best place to be trusted, but I would hope that the anger about my hand would be enough for you all. I have no intention of giving Ann any slack. Ever."

"Sorry." Shiho whispered, a tear rolling down her face. Alice shook her head, looking to the rest of them. "It was my idea!"

"Alice means that we could have told her. That's my job as navigator. I should have said something. And I didn't to avoid giving Ann a heads up." Futaba's foot tapped on the ground, her eyes averted. Alice's heart ached at hurting Futaba again, the little needle of guilt there piercing her through. "You deserved to know, you were the one playing bait."

"I was, but everyone was at risk. You--" Alice paused, a part of her wanting to reject the instinctual words on her lips. "You can't risk any Thieves' lives. Not even your own, unless we all agree. I don't want to bury any of you."

I don't want to be buried again.

"Told you she'd be upset about it. However, I believe the point is made." Goro cradled his coffee cup, looking down into the depths of its darkness. Alice scowled at him. "I'm dropping it."

"I know, but this is a celebration now. We're here, we're alive and while it was hard, we have made sure things are going the way that we want." Sophia chimed in, reading Alice's mind. She blew a little party streamer and the Thieves all broke as a group, laughing. The AI winked at Alice. "We're going to get her."

"I now know she can stretch her hammer." Sumire rubbed her chest again, looking down then up at Alice. "Sorry that I got taken hostage."

"It was a surprise. She did new things from the time before. She probably has more tricksy tactics like that, so we should keep it in mind." Futaba nodded at Sumire, her smile returned. If it was real or not was another story. "Hey, Haru, are you like good? You've been silent."

"I am fine. I didn't get hurt much and we stole my Father's heart without him dying. It felt wrong to chime in." Haru's thumb ran along the edge of the box, feeling the aged crease and disintegrating cardboard. Alice gave her a thumbs up. "I wasn't expecting you to go to bat to shame him like you did."

"After why it went the way it did last time? I'm surprised she didn't spend longer haranguing him over you." Goro shrugged, cup in hand. "She's always been soft for girls like her, clearly."

"I'm not touching that wording with a ten foot pole." Alice's joke sent Goro into a blush along with all of the Thieves except Yusuke into laughter. He looked dumbfounded. "I'll explain when you're older."

"I'm older than several other Thieves!" Yusuke shouted to more laughter in the room. Alice winked at Sophia. "What's going on?"

"Alice said, she would explain you're older. This is still not old enough." Sophia added as she pulled up the traditional takeout ordering menu. "What are we getting this time?"

"Anything but burgers." Haru chimed in, the group relaxing as food orders were tossed around.

-----

"I'll see you at school." Alice waved as the last Thief that wasn't Shiho left. Sophia locked the phone, the signal she was going to let them have privacy. Shiho lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling. "Feel bad about trying to kill her, don't you? Or is it that you gave up on her, finally."

"It's all of it. Everything about this sucked. I'm not going to stop but it's awful you know." Shiho turned on her side to look Alice in the eye. Alice returned the gaze as she took up the side that let her keep her prosthetic form being crushed against her. "I know you had this enjoyment from fighting her, that it was a game. But it just felt like I was fighting a demon wearing her skin. Like someone had hollowed her out and put something else there."

"You'd say the same thing about me last time I think. When I fought the Thieves like that." Alice whispered, bringing her prosthetic close to Shiho's cheek. The girl leaned into the hand, either happy with or able to ignore the temperature difference from flesh. "And it was fun, when I cared a lot less about myself. I hated myself, even if I wouldn't admit it. So, fighting Ann, knowing on some level she'd win made it fun. Because I figured she'd kill me or not and then we'd continue as we were. This one? She's not like that, she wants to live the life she’s in. Or she would have kept fighting and pursuing Okumura's Shadow."

Shiho didn't say anything, holding the hand to her cheek with her eyes closed. Her cheeks blushed red for a minute before she spoke. "And you figured out you could do it all healthier with me?"

"Oh, for sure. All the fun of tormenting someone who likes it and I'm not questioning when I'll die for it." Alice leaned forward, stroking a finger with all her concentration across Shiho's cheek. "Hurt the right amount?"

Shiho grinned and nodded, leaning in and biting Alice's lip. Alice worked the prosthetic into Shiho's hair and gripped best she could to a gasp from her girlfriend. Shiho laughed. "Oh, good to know this hand is strong enough."

"Good. Because this--" Alice tugged down, exposing Shiho's neck to be kissed, then bit, then sucked on the pulse point. Enough to leave the one agreed upon hickey for a long time. "-- is a piece of why I love you."

"Good!" Shiho sang her joy as Alice kissed up her jawline, a smile plastered on her face. It only took exposing every vulnerability again. And it paid off. Again. Shiho pulled against the hand, looking into Alice's eyes. "Because I fucking love you too. I can't give up when I'm near you. I can't let myself fall apart, because I know you'll put me together. And I've realized you're more together because of me. You get stronger with what you do for me."

"I do. It's for all of you, but you're the biggest part. You did something I didn't think someone would again." Alice leaned in and whispered the next part into Shiho's ear. She paused, the flicker of flame danced in her mind. How it reached up to touch Shiho on its own, to support her. “You know how my hand is from her? I think that it has some of her will. So… when it reached up and touched you in the Palace? That was her.”

“It was her.” Shiho whispered back, wonder and confusion in equal measures. Her fingers tangled into Alice’s top, bunching it into her palms. “But, well, time travel. Um, but why would she?”

“Well, she cares about you. Pretty sure you were her first crush.” Alice kissed Shiho’s ear to a shiver from her. Shiho rested her chin on Alice’s shoulder, pushing against the grip of Alice’s hand on her hair. “I love her, I love you. That’s gonna have to be okay.”

“It is. As long as I still have you, I can’t get mad at her when she loves you enough to be your hand.” Shiho kissed Alice’s neck, tugging her own hair on Alice. A reminder of how it was and how it would be still. “I don’t know how that works but…”

“I don’t know how it works either. But we’re going to make it work. And I bet if I wind up with both of you, she’ll want you too.” Alice returned her lips to Shiho’s ear as she whispered. "She made me want to do better, but you kept me that way. And you make me want to live for the future. Something I couldn't bear to tell Ann last time because I'm a bitch."

"I bet you would have, eventually." Shiho whispered back and bit into Alice's neck. It was a good thing the shop was closed up, for all the screams of joys they elicited from one another.

-----

"Hey there, babe." Ann waved from her perch on the crater, a sad smile on her face. The girl was translucent, the flaming hand in place on Alice. She pulled the flame from herself and Ann got her substance back, the smile brightening a tad. "Thinking about me still, huh?"

"Duh. I can't avoid it, especially when I'm in the Metaverse." Alice hopped up to the lip of the crater, the rock shaping to work with her to let her land in a sitting position net to Ann. She ran a finger up Ann's spine as she did, making the blonde shiver. "And I love you, still. Think Shiho loves the idea of you."

"That... still takes some getting used to. I never told her I had a crush on her." Ann kicked her legs back and forth, humming a Rise song under her breath. "I got a little jealous, when I knew that's what you were doing tonight. It makes sense, you two would have sex. But I dunno, I kinda miss having a body."

"I don't blame you, considering. It's not exactly the peaceful whatever this is for you like it was for me." Alice tugged Ann closer, the girl as cold as ever. She pushed down the stupid part of her brain saying cold as death. "If I could get you out of here, I would. And, I dunno, figure out how to have you and Shiho. Bet she'd say yes too."

"Fuck, if you said that in January, I'd have thought that you sided with Maruki." Ann chuckled, bitter and slow. She reached up to grab Alice's chin, squeezing it tight. "Don't talk about pipe dreams. Don't talk about things you can't do. Look, I... accept that right now, whatever I am, is mostly useful as a tool."

"Yeah, fuck that being it. Fuck you in particular for claiming that." Alice snarled around the fingers, pressing a finger into Ann's spine until she dropped Alice's chin. Alice dragged the finger up Ann's back, rattling every vertebrae along the way. "You were the one who told me I might survive, that I had a chance. So, we're going to find a way for you to be alive again. You wanted me to live, you fought me at every opportunity I tried to claim otherwise. So, I'm the Wildcard now. So, just like then, we're going to fight about getting people to live."

"Careful, you might make a girl think you're going to kill yourself for her again." Ann's word was half spit, half said with love. The old returned for a moment. Then she collapsed in on herself, dragging one leg to her chest. "Why didn't you tell me then, that you wanted to live?"

"I didn't know if it was enough. And... with everything you said and did for me it reminded me of me. How I felt right before I took the bullet." Alice rested her hand on the back of Ann's neck, pushing fingers against the frozen muscle. An attempt to resuscitate the woman's spine. "And if it had to be one of us, it needed to be you. I wanted that for you. This time, I want it for all of us. So, we're not sacrificing anyone on our side."

"Good wording or I'd think you were wussing out on our deal to kill that mockery of me. Ugh, I hate her. Leveling a gun at Sumire! I know things have gone better this time, but she's gone through enough." Ann waggled her arms in anger and frustration. It was like the old days for that shining moment. Ann ranting about something while Alice listened, their fingers unable to leave each other. "You had standards, you know."

"I did and do. And you should. Makoto, really?" Alice grinned to a playful slap from Ann across the face. It was ameliorated with a kiss to the injured cheek in the aftermath. "But really."

"Okay, not when she's the narc to end all narcs. Ewww. But you know, on Johanna and in those leathers, spattered in shadow muck? It works." Ann stuck her tongue out, cheeks red. Alice stuck hers out in turn. "But you were hotter. Still are. Though, Shiho in that duster's pretty good too."

"Gay ass. Look, this is all the more reason for you to not give up." Alice grabbed Ann's hair, tilting her head back. She stood up, leaned down and kissed Ann, embracing the freezing cold of the woman with her heat. What was fire needed fuel after all, and every way she laid claim to Ann's lips with her own, with the gnashing of teeth and the tightening of the hair around the fist, was a way to fuel the flames of the future with herself. "We're going to get you out of here, and we're going to find out how to make it all work. All of it."

"We'll try, how about that." Ann bat her eyelashes and Alice dove back into convincing her. She had all dream to do it.

Chapter Text

This life was full of firsts. And a Kunikazu Okumura press conference she wanted to see, well, that was one of the biggest firsts. A part of her expected Ann to have found a way to kill him, even after she ran with her tail between her legs. And yet, there he was in front of the camera with his head angled down on the phone screen. Haru held her coffee close to her chest, knuckles pressing against the skin with the effort to hold it tight enough. "You didn't leave him right?"

"Nope. Couldn't risk her trying to catch us being lazy." Alice whispered back, keeping her fingers tucked into the handle of her cup before taking a sip. Kunikazu looked up to the camera, eyes brimming with tears. An apology on his lips. Haru took a bracing drink, a synchronous cue for him to spill his guts.

"I have come to the press today, because my actions have been deplorable. Monstrous. Vile. to my workers, competitors and family. The Okumura family were purveyors of food to customers and camaraderie to our workers. Until I took over." Kunikazu sniffled, tears and snot running down his face. Coating him in the grime of guilt as he forced himself to speak through a strained speech. "I overworked our employees for substandard wages. I would burn them out to deny them advancement and pay. I cut corners. Safety was never my priority. I used the cost saving to enrich myself. In addition to paying for my greatest crime."

Haru's sorrowful expression shifted, her eyes sharpening. She could say that she did it for the workers, for her family's legacy, but she did it for herself too. She wanted her father back. And the greatest crime was obvious. It left Haru as an afterthought. At best.

"You may have noticed that key members of Wuck's board, operating chain and workforce perished in the last few months. That is because I paid for them to be killed. There are twelve people dead because of me! Because I needed more money!" Kunikazu gripped his own face, pulling cheeks out and away from himself in a way that had to be agonizing. He mewled and slammed his head down into the table. "I sacrificed so many, so much for my comfort! I paid time after time! I paid to silence my own workers that wanted me removed from the company! I deserve to suffer in jail! Forever!"

Kunikazu left himself slumped there as cried, over and over. Each sob tensed Haru, further and further. Alice set down her cup, extending her hands, gripper and natural. He tried to say more but choked and choked on his tears. Haru crushed the flesh one, her prodigious strength still a constant. "He. He still didn't think to mention me!"

"No, he didn't." Alice dragged her lips back in a snarl. She pictured his shadow, bleeding out on the ground. The answer was disappointing, as so many mundane evils that required wetwork were. Money. Money. Money. Because money was power and justified it all. Haru screeched as the feed cut to the front of SIU where a podium and microphone had been constructed in front of the building. Sae Niijima surveyed the milling reporters around her. "Maybe, maybe she has more."

"We'll give her a shot. But. I think I expect disappointment." Haru moved her hand from Alice's feeling one to the unfeeling, squeezing it. Alice kept it across her body, it was a small price to pay for everything that discomfort. "What do you expect?"

"Not a clue." Alice focused on the screen as Sae cleared her throat. She felt a little tug on her stump from how much force Haru exerted. "You still have us."

Haru paused, releasing Alice for a moment before nodding. Sae looked into the camera, unafraid. "We are working on taking Kunikazu Okumura into custody, right now. His confession dovetails with our investigation into mental shutdowns. We were beginning to suspect the Phantom Thieves as the source of the phenomenon but as they have forced this confession, we no longer believe their involvement."

"Do you have an idea of who was the triggerman for Kunikazu?" A reporter yelled, rocking back and forth on her crutches. Huh, wonder who that is. Would be interesting to talk to someone else like me. At least a little. "Miss Niijima!"

"Miss Natsuhara, we do not know currently. When we do, you will find out because we have arrested them. As there have been other deaths by mental shutdown, we will be looking for other clients. One of our difficulties in this has been the disparity of the targets." Sae looked over the crowd before settling on the one reporter that Alice knew, Ichiko. The one that Goro was going to meet with soon. "Yes, Miss Ohya?"

"You were suspecting the Phantom Thieves? This is only their third target and the mental shutdowns have been happening since October, while Sugimura Kamoshida confessed to sexual assault in December. Ichiryusai Madarame did not confess until January. There was a gap until now." Ohya pushed on the prosecutor, without any hesitation. Sae gave an affirmative nod. Quick and short. "Why is that?"

"Because the evidence we have pointed to a similarity in approach. We hope that Kunikazu Okumura will help to illuminate what we are missing." Sae swept her eyes back across the group to the other side of the group. She let out a good natured sigh as she locked eyes with Natsuhara. "Miss Natsuhara."

"You know me so well, Miss Niijima. I'm curious about what's going to happen with Kunkazu's child. Will they be put in a protective custody, to protect them from retribution?" Miss Natsuhara's question froze Sae at the podium. She bit her lip and held up a hand. She whispered to the SIU worker behind her. "Is that a now you are?"

"That is something we are working on at this moment. That is all the time I can allot as we do need to spend time forming our own interview questions." Sae reached out and turned off the microphone, the feed cutting away a few seconds after. Alice wrinkled her lip, because it was strange only two people asked questions. They were great questions but nothing else came about from it.

Haru wiped under her eyes, looking over to Alice from her chair. Her eyes were bloodshot with more tears and her face twisted up into an angry scowl. "That reporter didn't gender me, I guess, I guess she knew. And was hoping that Sae would say something."

"Surely. I wouldn't be surprised if that reporter has her shit in order. And now you are about to get attention from the police." Alice reached over, downed her coffee cup in one go and stood up. She pulled up Haru behind her. "We're going to work off that anger and talk, well, my idea for how is going to go better for you than for me."

"You would do fine in Mementos. What is your plan, Alice?" Haru's free hand tightened into a fist, painted fingernails digging into her skin. Alice winked and dragged her down out of the attic. "I prefer answers!"

"It's coming soon. We're not going to Mementos because Sumire and Sophia are having a date." Alice kept going and took her down to the batting cage. She couldn't grip a bat with that arm, not yet. One day, maybe. "You're going to destroy some baseballs."

"That sounds good. Actually." Haru smiled as Alice led her up and in. Alice slammed money across the counter before Haru could. Who knew how much longer there  would be money for the girl to lean on. "Alice, you have--"

"The money for it. You're upset. Get in there. Wreck those balls." Alice teased as she nudged Haru towards the cage. The heiress swung up the bat and into position. "Just think about it like you're going to catch a Shadow's head."

"Got it!" Haru switched into her battle stance, bat nowhere near the strike zone. Which was fine, this was for enrichment, not a team tryout. And the first ball she launched as a pop fly with a resounding crash of metal on cork. The ball sailed up and over and hit the one base sensor. Somehow. "Only one?"

"Maybe like one is kneeling!" Alice laughed as Haru lined up for a better shot, her bat slicing through the air and slamming the ball dead forward into the machine's cage. It dinged an out. "You want to launch a kneeling shadow's head!"

"Oh! Smart!" Haru's next slam was for the outfield, earning her a triple and her first run on the board. Alice let the girl keep going at it, racking up bases and runs. She slipped more balls on when Haru didn't look back. Not until she dropped the bat to the ground and slumped against the cage. "Woah. That's... much more tiring."

"Yeah, but you're going to hit about three times as hard now in the Metaverse." Alice offered as she grabbed a water from the vending machine for Haru to refuel as she stumbled to the bench in exhaustion. Alice took the seat next to her, watching a person down the way take up the bat. "Do you want to like, scream about it though?"

"I should have... known it wouldn't be that easy. He'll feel guilty about trying to have me killed but he won't admit I'm his daughter still. I know I'm Haru, I know that. But even without a distortion, he can't see it." Haru tucked a knee to her chest, leaning her chin on it. Alice laid a hand on her shoulder, patting it. "I'm glad he will answer for what he did, don't get me wrong. but I wanted something. And now, now I have to have my life upended. And didn’t get that."

"I know you did. It's fine that it was selfish. In my opinion, but I'm also a bitch." Alice snorted at Haru sticking her tongue out at that. "I don't have good advice on this. My response to getting fucked over by my parents was to get basically sold to Adachi. Now I have Sojiro. Want to see if he wants a second boarder?"

"I think that would be a second choice. Not because you're bad, your dedication to all of the safety of my father says otherwise. It's that I want to not feel like I'm leeching after that privilege of my life." Haru closed her eyes, leaning over onto Alice. She let out a long and rattling sight. "What do I tell the cops?"

"That you don't know anything about what he's done. And if they ask about us, you don't know shit about it either." Alice whispered, rubbing a circle on Haru's back. A motion received enough times from Ann during January, from Shiho during the night she got home from the hospital. Intimacy as friendship. Because somehow that's what they were. "And, even if you don't take the boarder offer up, we can try and at least get you into the dorm at Shujin, can't we?"

"That... would be a fine stopgap. I know that Goro isn't unhappy with his accommodations." Haru hugged Alice for a moment, not as strong as she could. A blessing with Alice unprepared to defend her ribs. "Maybe... maybe I should try to talk to that Natsuhara reporter?"

"Maybe. I wanted to talk to her for hand reasons, anyway." Alice held up the other hand before the two of them rose in unison. Haru thundered down the stairs first, rattling the metal steps against the buildings. "Do you have a plan?"

"I do. At least a little bit of one. Call an old friend of my father's. She is in Sapporo, but if there's an adult I can count on it is Mari." Haru bowed her head, lifting them with a fire in her eyes. Alice quirked her lips up into a curious smile. "Thank you for making sure to be there for me. You are better than you sell yourself to be."

"Maybe I've learned to let my actions speak for me better. Seeya." Alice waved to Haru and cut back up the street to Leblanc. Doctor Aragaki was pulling open the door, that smug smile on her face again as she looked at Alice. Aika was behind her, the two of them in far more casual clothes. Shion in a red jacket a little too heavy for almost spring and a shiny white blouse and black pants while Aika was wearing a simple white dress and matching bandanna. "Guessing that you two have come to see how my hand rehabilitation is going?"

"Nope, I came to find out if you were all talk about making that coffee. Aika's here because she has to test every small restaurant in Tokyo." Shion took a seat at the bar, Aika on her left. Sojiro started to walk over but the doctor pointed to Alice. "Braggart should have to prove herself."

"I told you I made it a little too hot that time, give me a break." Alice hurled on her apron, the ends velcroed across her back. A little concession to her needs now. Sojiro raised an eyebrow. "She's my doctor for the hand. Other one's the hobby hand designer."

"Thought I recognized you two. Didn't realize you made housecalls." Sojiro pulled out his pad and pencil, looking to the little grin and blank look of the new customers. "I know you want coffee, but what do you actually want?"

"Curry. Spicy." Aika was nothing if not efficient. She kept an eye on Alice as she set up the siphons, filling them with water and filters and beginning the process of boiling. "Berry notes for my coffee."

"Since you're on a siphon, I know better than to ask for a full body. Get me something that has tea and hazelnut." Shion fired the challenge, sending Alice across the shelves to make a blend. Peabody beans for the tea notes. The beans roasted in Hokkaido had the hazelnut flavor. She mentioned tea first, more of that then the hazelnut. Alice used her grabber to snag the coffee that was always the sweetest and always smelled like fresh strawberries for the first sip. "Look at her go, maybe she isn't all talk."

"Hey, you insult her skills, you're insulting my process." Sojiro shouted from the kitchen as he worked. Alice snorted, focusing on grinding Aika's beans first. The nurse watched her, leaning on one hand. She was focused on the ways that Alice used the gripper hand for the crank. "You going to take it laying down?"

"No, I'm too busy making it to give them smart remarks." Alice cut back as she sealed the siphon with her active hand and then dumped the grinds into the rising water. She grabbed the spare grinder, working through her ratio of peabodys to normal beans three to two. Shion's pen flew across a notebook, taking notes. "Hey, no trying to steal the Sakura secrets."

"Hah! I don't need 'em. I'm just impressed at how much you're adapting. Even if the coffee's shit, you're using your first hand almost like it's second nature." Shion's smirk was gone, replaced with a quiet smile as Alice decanted Aika's cup, passing it to her. She split the beans she ground for Shion between two siphons. "Overfilled it? Tsk, tsk."

"I'm finding out if you got tastebuds in there." Alice stuck out her tongue to Sojiro's laugh from the kitchen. Aika started to take a sip until Alice held up her hand. "Curry's designed for the coffee. Have them together."

"I will. Thank you for the note, Alice." Aika laid her cup down, glancing at Shion. "She knows what she's doing. You shouldn't be mean."

"She likes it. Gives her a challenge." Shion crossed her arms as Sojiro deposited a plate of curry and Alice poured out two cups of coffee. One with her gripper hand for herself and the other for Shion. "And, she rises to it."

"Could just say you wanted to see her be good at this hand." Sojiro shook his head as he passed Shion her cup. The doctor toasted against Alice's before taking her sip. The drink was more pleasant than Alice expected, a hint of sweet with the floral notes to make it all come back down. "I'm usually a more full bodied kind of girl, but this is what I asked for. Done damn well at that. You aren't all talk."

"Not about this. I trust Sojiro." Alice took a sip as she gave him the space to wipe away a tear without being noticed. Aika's curry and coffee had half disappeared in the time it took for Alice to drink her second sip. "Enjoy, Aika?"

"Nostalgic. Reminds me of the good parts of home." Aika bowed her head towards Sojiro and then Alice. "I have also made a few notes on how you use the hand, for future improvements."

"How is that going to happen? Wakaba's insurance only covered two hands." Sojiro furrowed his brow at the two of them. Always on the lookout for me, huh. Damn. And Ann risked this for me. Idiot. Or... she and I are just alike on what we'll do for love. "Alice, did you do--"

"I got an old friend with more money than sense. Which is impressive cause she has sense." Shion smiled as she finished her cup off and moved her cane closer to her. "She's got a soft spot for hurt teenagers, you're welcome for that."

A little insight into the cane, huh. And she's not asking uncomfortable questions in front of Sojiro. What's her game?

"Well, if she decides to take pity on this one and get me a third hand, I won't complain." Alice took off her apron as Shion and Aika stood up, sliding far too much money across the counter. Sojiro pushed most of it back. "You have to sneak it in the till."

"Hey, I told you to stop doing that, it gets my accounting off." Sojiro scowled at Alice. Long enough for Shion to wink and slip the money into the till. You might be the most suspicious people about me, but at least you're fun. Alice started to follow them out. "You just came back here to show off?"

"Always. I'll come clean up in a few minutes." Alice pushed all the dishes into a pile and put her apron over it. Behind the counter. She wasn't a monster. Alice stepped out with Shion and Aika. "Alright, what's the real reason for coming here?"

"Getting coffee. Getting curry for her. Adjusting your occupational therapy since you're taking it seriously." Shion started walking down the street, Aika at her side. Voices lowered to a whisper. "And confirming that your father figure wasn't talk at the hospital. Too often the girl in your position ain't got good parents, Wildcard."

"What does that mean?" Alice squinted at Shion, the doctor continuing to walk, leading her somewhere. She checked her phone, seeing that Futaba was tracking her movement via the consensually installed tracker app. A concession to if Ann tried to drag her into Mementos at random. "Stop playing mystery woman."

"I'm not anymore. You did that thing to Okumura. If you didn't want me to think that, you shouldn't have been around his daughter." Shion showed her teeth with her smile. Aika rolled her eyes. "I'm allowed to have fun with it."

"You're not supposed to reveal us. Not unless she told us the truth." Aika shot back, looking at Alice. "I apologize for Shion, she's supposed to be a professional. We know you are the current Wildcard, you formed a bond with us. Judgment Arcana. The one that leads to the end."

"... Why are you here?" Why weren't you here last time? Ann never ran into you two. Kirijo was just a woman I saw on TV. "Talk, before I find a way to kick your asses."

"Don't get upset. We're here to help. We know what the Wildcard does. We watch situations like this and step in. If necessary." Shion leaned into a quiet bus shelter, taking a seat and staring out across the road. Aika looked up and down the street, hand in her bag. "Your injury was strange enough someone called it in. We recognized magical healing and here we are. So. You want to tell me what happened now?"

"I still don't trust you two." Alice crossed her arms, leaning on the bus shelter. "You work for a corporation, don't you? You're what, a step away from cops?"

"We are corporate in that Mitsuru uses her company as a way to do good." Shion studied Alice's face then smirked. Aika sighed. "C'mon, you're surprised I let it loose? She didn't react, she did her research."

"That doesn’t matter. We're supposed to move in concert. She could run off with that knowledge and hurt someone. We don't know how her power works. Each manifestation of the Wildcard has been different." Aika glared at her compatriot, Shion not giving her a look. Alice held up a finger and pulled out her phone, pressing it to her ear. "What are you doing?"

“Taking a call. Before I get in trouble.” Alice kept her finger up as Futaba read her mind and dialed her phone. “Hey.”

"I'm recording. Goro's pissy." Futaba reported, humming the Featherman tune. Alice waited while the keyboard clicked. "Uh, ask them about the Kirijo group and missing children. See what they say. That will make Goro happy. Shiho's on her way to quote 'scream her head off for accosting her girlfriend.'"

"Sounds like her, tell her not to." Alice snorted and dropped her phone into her purse again and looked Shion in the eye. The doctor tilted her head. "So. Kirijo group. Missing children?"

"Oooh, right for the gut, huh? Figures. There was a Chairman of the school that was owned by Kirijo back then. Experimented on kids to put personas in them. Killed almost of all of them." Shion didn't flinch, looking Alice in the eye all the while. She swallowed, realizing that this was something they had made peace with. "Of the ones who didn't, one went onto save my damn life. The other two didn't do so hot at being good. Since then, we removed that Chairman. Killed him, in fact. And then Mitsuru spends years unwinding everything he did."

Alice crushed her left hand against herself. She felt a rising wave of nausea and anger but also understanding of Shion in that moment. But she couldn’t tell the doctor that. "And why did they do it?"

"Power. We are not interested in that. We are interested in what accompanies a Wildcard. A change." Aika changed her perspective to Alice, the scowl gone. "For the better. Please assist us, we understand there is a hidden battle of persona users going on."

Goro: I hate to admit that it matches what Futaba dug up.
Futaba: Course it does.
Yusuke: I think their support for your hand is valuable. I refuse to take targets they send us.
Haru: Agreed.
Sophia: I think that they are earnest.
Shiho: I still want to yell.
Goro: I agree with Yusuke. They may however be able to hem in Ann.
Alice: Disagree on that. It would involve taking them to the Metaverse and giving them permanent access. If we won't take targets, we don't involve them beyond baseline information. I'm willing to give up this hand for us.
Sumire: I'm not willing to give up your hand. Not again. Tell them the basics and see if that keeps them happy.
Alice: Fine, I will tell them the basics. Nothing more. No mention of last time.

"Alright. Let's talk." Alice tilted her phone to peek out. Enough for Sophia to have vision in case it went wrong. "There's another world we access that lets us interact with someone's psyche. We can take their desires that cloud them from feeling what they have done. Kunikazu's confession is the result of that. You can also kill someone in there by killing their Shadow."

"Alright. So Thieves is a pretty literal thing there, huh." Shion closed her eyes, running her palm over the head of her cane as she processed. "And you're doing the stealing and someone else is doing the killing. How do you select targets?"

"They're a danger or in danger. If we steal their heart, their shadow becomes inaccessible." Alice flexed her gripper hand, focusing on that motion for the way to keep herself focused. She wasn't going to tell them about the time loop. That would make them likely to go after her, after all. "I have ways of getting info. Used that to find the targets and save them. Those weren't in the news. We targeted Kunikazu because of what he admitted to and more."

"He admitted to much. I believe the Chairman that Shion mentioned would have had a similar break down if exposed to this." Aika kept up her unblinking stare as she spoke, piercing Alice's soul. "You are hiding more."

"Duh. We don't fully trust you. You're right about my stump getting healed. We're not talking about the how." Alice shivered and Shion nodded before standing up. "That's all?"

"I'm satisfied. You know what you're doing in there. You get in over your head, you tell us. You fight who took your hand again?" Shion looked to Alice and her thumbs up. "Didja win?"

"Fought her with the whole team. Kicked her ass." Alice cocked a smile and Shion waved, walking away. Aika didn't move. "Satisfied?"

"With you, yes. With Shion, no. I defer to her on medical work. But in the field, like this, we are equals." Aika was blunt, a different kind to Shion's. Not a way of driving to the heart of the problem, it was a simple fact. She was moving forward. "This is not your fault."

"Yeah, well, you wouldn't have gotten this if Shion hadn't said something. And... sometimes we need to cut through bullshit. Thanks for the hand, again." Alice took a step from the shelter and Aika left with an even and purposeful walk after Shion. Alice sighed and picked up her phone. "Well, that could have gone worse."

"Yeah, it could have. But they aren't pushing on things. Which hey, what was that whole thing about arcana? Do you have whole classes for us?" Futaba's question made Alice snort as she picked her way back home. She had to clean up those dishes after all.

"Tarot arcana is how I bond to you. Sun for you, gremlin girl." Alice teased to a little laugh from Futaba. "Got one for everyone. And a few others. D--Sojiro is one."

"Oh, tell him soon, tell him soon!" Futaba chanted to an exhausted sigh from Alice. It didn't need to be said to him. The man knew.

No, the admittance would be when they copped to being Thieves. That had to happen eventually. But later. After Ann was taken care of.

------

Alice couldn't keep dodging Makoto forever it seemed. Not when the girl had access to her schedule and could leave class for Student Council President duties. She could hound Alice at will. And it was what she was doing with her afternoon today, instead of being manipulated by Ann.

I can't believe I'm about to see this as a good thing.

"Hiiragi, I'm so glad I caught you. We need to talk about your behavior and dress code." Makoto had to pick the day that Goro was out sick. Alice sighed and stepped to the side as the class streamed out. She kept her hand buried in her purse, to not draw more attention. "You need to fix your hair right now. I will help you, because of your self admitted difficulties."

"That is not the helpful action you think it is, Makoto." Alice rolled her eyes, scrunching her fingers against her bag strap. Makoto didn't move, staring into Alice, an attempt to intimidate. It really was nothing but the girl didn't have a way to scare Alice. Not in this world. "What I need is to get home and work on studying. My grades suffered because of the accident and I need to catch up."

"I can do your hair while you study then. It won't take long according to my research." Makoto's words sent a chill through Alice's heart, one that wrapped around it. She was not going to fuck up her hair. "I just ne--"

"Makoto, you don't know anything about this process if you think it's short. Doing my hair like this again, took four hours to do it right. You are not touching my hair." Alice snarled, pushing off the wall. Follow me, bitch. I'm not going to put up with it. "Or is that just what everyone with power at Shujin does now? Touch people without permission? No wonder you took Kamoshida's knife so fast."

"That's not what's going on! I'm not... getting off on this. I just want to make sure you meet the standards of the school. Because they're going to come down on you and me." Makoto's voice was plaintive. Fearing retribution, huh? Coward. "And they still think you had something to do with Kamoshida."

"Weird. You couldn't be more unlike your sister, I've realized. When I wanted to make a plea deal for something that wasn't a crime, she was worried about me. That I was giving in." Alice listened to the increasing weight to Makoto's footfalls, her anger made audible through action. It felt good. A giddiness running through her soul. "Yeah, I think if she was in your position, she'd have been upset that my choices were to suffer detentions or submit to this. She'd give me shit for submitting. But what should I expect from Koboyakawa's loyal puppy?"

"I am not his puppy. I am not Sae, either. I don't get why you're so focused on my sister in this." Makoto swung out in front of Alice, cutting her off from leaving the school. Kidnapping. "I'm Makoto, not Sae."

"Congratulations, you missed the damn point. I'm pointing out to you that you have less scruples and morals than your prosecutor sister. She can adapt her view and behavior to the situation, but you? You're inflexible." Alice shrugged and pushed by Makoto to the other door, the Student Council President hot on her heels as she escaped. Makoto reached out for Alice's shoulder, the Thief ducking out of it. "And you know, you ever wonder what Ann's issue with Shiho and I is? Because she's the one who fucked that up by seducing Shiho while dating me."

"She wouldn't. And she doesn't matter to this." Oh, but she does. She's why you're so keyed up on this. But we aren't stealing your heart, as tempting as that is. You are a trap she's wasting all our time on. But I have more hands than she does. "You can't keep dodging punishment forever, Hiiragi. Just get it over with. Before we have to tell your guardian."

"Sojiro cares about my grades and that I'm doing my occupational therapy. Not this. And Ann does have to do with it. Because I bet she's encouraged you to bother me, hasn't she? 'Oh, I'm just worried about Alice making you look bad. I kept telling her to fix her hair. Especially when she started dating Shiho, it was for her own good.'" Alice put on her best Ann voice, the shitty one. The one she hated and didn't love. Not the one she used to hate and only loved now. Makoto stared at her, dumbfounded. "Come on, it's not hard to figure out. When I was dating Ann, she didn't say anything bad about my hair. She's not interested in you in a serious way. She just wanted a way to get back at me because she's mad about how things went when she cheated on me."

"I think you're just wrong about everything." Usually, I fuck things up. Not this, though. Makoto scowled as she pointed at Alice. "All you do is deflect from the fact you're breaking the rules. You point at Sae, who isn't even in my life or you point at Ann like she's manipulating me. Get over yourself."

"I won't, actually. Kinda the whole point of myself is I recognize who I am and you're going to have to deal with it. So, Makoto fuck off." Alice made sure she was off Shujin property the moment she said fuck. Because Makoto would have to respect that rule. "If you only believe people nice to you, you're going to be trapped so easily, girl."

"Better than listening to people who resort to swearing and misdirection." Makoto turned her head up, a smile on her face. "You're going to have to do something about your hair and start attending class as you should. Or I will have no choice but to pursue your expulsion."

"We'll see how this goes, Makoto." Alice grinned, a thought forming in her head. It was easy, it was simple. She just had to have black hair at school. And that? That was easily done with the right wig. Because fuck letting Makoto touch her damn head. Fuck all of that noise. Alice would endure one more mask, for the school day.

Chapter Text

Sumire hit the elevator button, a smile on her face and eyes closed. "How have your exercises been going for your hands?"

"I'm getting there. Cleared to do weight lifting now." Alice stepped in after Sumire, switching off her hobby hand for her gripping one. Sumire placed her hands together in excitement. "I know, it's kind of a relief. I didn't believe Shion when she said I'd feel like it's back to normal, but I already have some of that. It's wild."

"I wonder how much of that is you know, the other hand." Sumire whispered, hand to the side of her mouth. Alice shrugged and waved to Hiraguchi at the desk as she passed over the card. Sumire cringed but looked back up at the woman. "Hello, Coach."

"Sumire, why did you cringe?" The woman's glare was soft in a way Alice couldn't quantify. Not in an easy way. The kind of look that communicated a deep care but a lack of slack that could ever be available. Alice placed herself down at the nearby weight station, grabbing a handweight. Her arm strained until she changed to a lighter one, this one only pulling her hand a little. "Talk to me."

"I know I haven't been taking training as seriously. That I have not been taking extra practice time. And I'm behind Kasumi as a result." Sumire bowed her head, her answers rapid fire and rote. Alice remembered a few models had talked like that to her during direction for photo shoots. "I know it is disappointing."

"I'm not disappointed. Your routines have changed. They're better in terms off creativity and experimenting." Hiraguchi shrugged, looking over to Alice. Sumire pointed to herself and Hiraguchi's gaze swiveled back in a moment. "Got it, focus on you here. Just curious, can wait. What else did you have to say?"

"I'm more creative now? I didn't realize that." Sumire reached back to her hair, getting it into a ponytail for what she would be doing. Hiraguchi nodded, turning to her computer. "Could you explain?"

"You're working with distances, ones that are farther than I would expect. The two leap balance beam with a spin on each landing, that was new." Hiraguchi didn't shift from what she was doing. Sumire glanced back to Alice's smile as she worked through another arm curl. Sweat ran down her face towards her collar. "Further, you and Kasumi are differentiating. It will help your scores at your next meet, since she always goes first, you look like a copycat."

Motherfucker.

"Well. I was. I'm trying to focus on my own strengths more. And doing things other than gymnastics because I was sad." Sumire's eyes fell to Hiraguchi's waist as the coach stood up. She shot up right, her body tensed like she was when she was about to Awaken this time. "Wh-what?"

"No wonder you were suffering. If you're going to dedicate that much time to something it should bring you joy." Hiraguchi looked to Alice again, narrowing her eyes. "Are you the one Kasumi was bitching about for a while?"

"Sure am. Told you Sumire, that you should be doing what makes you happy. Coach orders more parkour." Alice swapped to a heavier weight for her left hand, beginning the process over again. More movement, more strengthening, more shaping her body. Ann took a part, she wouldn’t take the rest of it. Alice would sculpt herself to never lose that. "You should keep doing what you're doing then. Let Kasumi have the tradition."

"Let Kasumi have the tradition..." Sumire muttered as she looped her leg into a lift machine. Hiraguchi followed her over, fiddling with the weight. "That's a lot."

"If you're going to go for more of what you have and you're doing parkour, you want more lift. No more maintaining, work on more bulk." Hiraguchi breezed over to Alice's bench, hand out. Alice handed her the weight, for it to get put up. "Not what I want. Give me your exercises."

"Oh, here. I was going to do it myself. Seems simple." Alice wiped her forehead with her sleeve as she handed over the sheet she printed out from Shion's email. Hiraguchi hummed and then pointed to the bench press. "You gonna spot me?"

"Yes, I am. Your doctor has you on something similar to boxer's rehab." Hiraguchi slid weights on each end of the bar. At the weight Kasumi had the visit to the gym right before they went into Maruki's Palace. "We're doing a test here. Don't worry about doing well."

"Okay. I can do this." Alice sucked in a breath to a shaking thumbs up from Sumire in the corner of her eye. One hand on the bar, gripper next. She guided it up and over the hook. Her body burned with the effort as she made its descent slow and even. "Hard."

"You're doing good, Alice. Go for it." Sumire grunted back as she held her leg to the side with a weight and her hands clasped in front of her chest for balance. "Coach, I didn't know you knew so much about rehab."

"It's needed when you also do personal training. Or you're going to tear your client up. Keep that in mind." Hiraguchi squatted in rhythm with Alice's struggling lifts of the bar and weights. Each motion one more bit of work for her to do, her hand pressing into her. Her wrist straining on her left. She pushed up and held, letting out a breath. "Good. Keep at it. If you get tired, tell me."

"Yes. Ma'am." Alice grit her teeth, dropping the bar back down. The resuming of Sisyphean motion. "Sumire. You. Good?"

"I am. You're doing well." Sumire quipped back as she requisitioned, stretching out the other leg with the machine next. "Can Alice do one of your boxercise classes with her hand?"

"Yes. It's all motion. We don't hit the bag. By the way, don't use your prosthetic for fighting. If you haven't been told that, I'm having words with your doctor." Hiraguchi's sudden ice cold glare would have wrecked most people but Alice gave her a quick smirk as she pushed the bar back up. "Good, you have a smart one. If you need to fight someone, you're better off with a weapon."

"Oh, I know." Alice finished her set, tucking the bar in. With the pressure released her body started aching, a long and drawn out sigh slipping out between her lips. "Ugh, at least it's from doing real things that I'm this tired instead of just opening and closing it. Dunno about boxercise, I'll be honest."

"It's more intense than you think but to each their own. Sumire, arms after this set. Five percent weight increase." Hiraguchi pushed the cleaning rag into Alice's hand. She leaned in as Sumire hopped to another machine and settled into work on her arms. "Thank you for knocking those two for a loop. Kasumi was complacent and Sumire was slacking. Now she isn't."

"They just needed to be reminded they're different." Alice whispered back as she wiped down the machine. Hiraguchi walked around the room, her eyes watching the two teens as they followed a careful path through pushing themselves towards excellence and competence.

I wonder how she did last time, if she knew. Or if Maruki fucked her brain up too. I bet she'd have snapped his neck though. Or she needed others to put a crack in with Sumire.

Alice panted as she leaned on the wall by the elevator door, the events having caught up with her. Sumire looked as rough, her face red with exertion and sweat coating her hair. "I don't think I've ever seen you that sweaty."

"Drink it up then. this is so much more then I'm used to doing in public too." Alice dropped her hand into her bag, cheek to cooling metal inside the elevator while sweat dripped off her stump. "I need a bath."

"You can use my place so you do not have to go to that bath house. Futaba told me what you've been doing." Sumire whispered and Alice shrugged. "I know you're used to it but it's not good for you to have to break in and risk yourself. Let me do this.  Got it?"

"Hah! I'd have kicked your ass for that last time." Alice snorted to a smile on Sumire's face. "But now I just know you're teasing me."

"I am. But I'm serious, you're going to wash up at my place." Sumire's insistence was rare and reasonable. And that was all Alice needed to know she needed to follow through.

-----

Alice set up her phone on the top shelf of the work desk, the screen cutting on as Sophia peered down at her from on high. The AI's facial expression was placid as Alice slid on her hobby hand. "Are you going to try it out for its purpose now?"

"I am." Alice flexed each finger in turn, working them then to her thumb. All the little adjustments she'd need to make. A twitch of the joint, a pinch. She worked through them, again and again. She dragged over her uniform and got to work. She spread the fabric of the sleeve along her fingers, starting easy for the left hand to come in with the seam ripper. "You're interested in this?"

"I am." Sophia mirrored Alice, then stuck out her tongue for a moment. Her expression relaxed as Alice undid the sleeve's existence. It was the most basic test for the hand. "I have discounted you. In many ways. I know this was your skill and that it was not evil. I would like to understand."

"I did some accidental evil until I could get things under control. But not like my mask. Just normal capitalism things." Alice laid out elastic with her left hand, pulling the tape measure with her right. A finger to hold the end, another to flick the measure out to get where she needed it. A snip of the scissors. "There's a lot of shitty ways to get clothes made, namely sweatshops. Adachi loved them. When I found out, I threw a fit with marketing language."

"I see. What do you mean, you threw a fit?" Sophia hummed, her usual little tune that she had been sharing with Alice. One that she was sure the other Thieves had been hearing but had been popping up since March in Alice's ears. Alice moved to the matching fabric for the uniform, chalking out her measurements with her right. They were rough and a little shaky, meandering off center. But she knew what to do. "Good work."

"Don't blow too much smoke up my ass." Alice joked as she dragged fabric scissors along the line with her left, right to keep the fabric tight. "I pointed out that the brand he cultivated for me was as an against the grain designer. Which meant that I could charge more for better made clothes by pointing out I'm not fast fashion. He relented because the easiest advertising is the truth. And I removed a middle manager who pushed for it with a Palace. Although his attitude killed a lot of people probably."

"I... that is surprising. I knew you used that power for personal reasons but using a distortion to get him fired is not what I expected. And it sounds like he was already bad. I do not know how to feel about that." Sophia shook her head, pigtails flying back and forth across the screen. Alice folded elastic into the fabric, creating a new seam base for the shoulder. A quick and easy modification before. But it took all her concentration as she worked with the little new ways that her hand required her input. "But that is also not who you are now. And I know some of it, but I do not know all of it."

"You don't have to make up for anything, Sophia. Okay?" Alice bit her tongue in concentration as she picked up the needle with her right hand. Hold it steady, use the left to thread the needle. She knotted off the end and stared at her hand, the black metal holding the steel. "I am doing better, but I still hurt you."

"You did. I also hurt you. I ignored your sincerity." Sophia turned on some music, a low instrumental full of violins. An easy rhythm to follow as Alice worked to push the needle through the fabric with her right hand. A crooked insert the first time. A bad stitch. She pulled it back and closed her eyes. "You were trying and I was a lodestone. And you have been patient when I was not. I think I have to recognize that what you did last loop is not you."

"It is. But I am not beholden like I used to be." Alice opened her eyes and tried again. It was a frustrating thing for what was second nature to require thought. To require work. To require trying again. "I still have all of that in me. At my beck and call. I just don't."

"I see. I think months ago, I would have tried to kill you for that. But now I understand what you mean. There are pieces of you that you do not need to use but they are there." Sophia looked down at her right hand, flexing each of the fingers in turn. "What should I do then? I have been drifting a bit since Maruki's Palace."

"Well, for now, I hope you stay on the team. You're someone I rely on. Not just for the conscience but also because you are reliable." Alice bit the tip of the needle, working the top over to begin the process of sewing the other side of the sleeve back to the shirt. "And not to mention you make Sumire happy. And others are fond of you."

"I do not think Shiho or Goro are. I would hope that Sumire is happy because of me." Sophia shook her head and Alice had to agree about Shiho. Her girlfriend was still angry about the murder attempts. But also, Sophia saved her life. "You think I am reliable, I understand that. I only know I want to keep people safe."

"Hey, that's about where I am too. I don't want Ann to spread more misery. Other than that? I just want... my bonds happy. That's the realistic wants." Alice reached her first circle of the sleeve, then dove in with a crisscrossing stitch to keep the sleeve on longer. "There's a dream. But I don't know how yet."

"Making them happy would be a lot of work. But I think that you are helping, at least a little bit with all of them. I know Sumire has remarked that she is glad you came and got her first, that she stuck out to you as someone with potential." Sophia's cheeks went a beet red, which was as always adorable. It was good to see her being normal. "What is the dream?"

"My hand in the metaverse. It's Ann." Alice paused her crisscrossing, letting her wrist and fine motor control muscles relax for a bit. Sophia blinked about thirty times in a half second in surprise. "Look, don't know how but it's her. The one I knew talked to me in my dreams afterwards. Don't worry, she hates the one now."

"That is roughly as sensical as the fact you claimed to have died and come back to life because of Maruki." Sophia stuck her tongue out again and Alice had to fight to not laugh too much and drop the needle. She was not starting anything over. "Is the hope that she is here?"

"Yep. No clue how. But, fuck it. She didn't give up on me. She was a little pissy, rightfully, for the usurping her suicide thing by having Sumi shoot her." Alice resumed her crossing stitch to a hmm of acknowledgment from the AI. "But until I get an idea of how, it's a dream. What about you, what's your dream?"

"I do not know yet. I have to find that." Sophia looked away, towards the setting sun on the horizon. The oranges and yellows bleeding across it as Alice finished circling the sleeve. "I want to have a bigger hope. Something difficult. Because I am supposed to be Humanity's Companion. And humans hope for difficult things."

"We sure do. I'll do what I can to help." Alice mimed a hand shake with her prosthetic, needle changed to her left hand. Sophia returned it in kind. "Thanks."

"Thank you. For being patient with me. I will do what I can to help you now. As a friend." Sophia turned to look at Alice again, her blue eyes a pair of handshake emojis now. Alice nodded, her heart feeling a little warmer.

"As a friend. I'll talk you through the next one I modify, so you can get why I'm doing it and how." Alice trimmed the thread and started it all over again. There was time still in the evening to achieve more.

------

"You know, I kinda expected you to ask me to something to do with your therapy. Not mine." Ryuji stretched his leg to the side, gritting his teeth. Alice watched as he pulsed each of the muscles and she got why he had gotten his ass knocked out in Kamoshida's Palace, he was fighting two battles. Shiho frowned at him, offering her hand to a slap on the wrist from him. "I'm fine. Stiff, gotta get warmed up."

"You do. And I wanted to see you too, that's why we're doing it." Shiho decided her best bet was the stretch the same way Ryuji was, giving him some solidarity in what he was doing. Alice was busy flexing out her fingers in as many directions as she could with her hobby hand. "I'm sorry it took me so long to talk. There's been, everything going on."

"Yeah, there really has. You, uh, heard from Ann recently?" Ryuji offered a sheepish grin as the two of them hopped back to their feet. Alice grimaced in the corner of Ryuji's eye, there was no need to hide it. Because this was all in service of seeing if he'd join. And if he'd fight Ann. "That bad?"

"She's dating Makoto." Alice started their jog, heading down and around the corner towards Inokashira. She kept it light, until Ryuji blasted ahead to show his dumbfounded look with jaw dropped. "Yeah. She helped Makoto harass me in public about my hair."

"There's all the other shit too." Shiho griped as she pulled ahead to Ryuji's right. He let out a long exasperated sigh as they crossed from sidewalk to dirt path. "It is so much, dude. You were right, she wasn't coming back. That Ann is dead."

"Lay it on me. I've missed our complaining sessions. Plus, I gotta learn more about Alice besides you know, she's dating you." Ryuji's face pinked over, his face towards the ground. Oop, sorry dude. Gotta find you a different girl. I think. "Like, I know she's tough and won't take shit."

"The complaints and learning about me? Different." Alice shook her head as the three of them ducked a low hanging branch, picking up a bit of speed on the downhill towards the water. "You missed that not taking shit means I'm kind of a bitch. Luckily, you get shit and get spared it."

"Well, duh, you're mad at all the same shit. People acting like all the problems in your life can be traced to how you look is stupid." Ryuji ran a hand through his hair, the black roots showing. Alice frowned at her feet as they avoided a dropped branch. "And you get like four more levels than me now that I'm not on crutches. It's a whole thing. So, other than that. What’s your deal?"

"She's creative. She makes clothes, although she had to relearn that." Shiho grinned at Alice, her eyes sparkling. "Also, she's pretty protective of people. Even after it's hurt her."

"Yeah, I mean, the rapist dick kicking gave me that idea. You make clothes? I can barely dress myself some days I think." Ryuji winced, hand to his leg. Alice slowed down, forcing Shiho to slow down and wheel back towards him. "It's fine. Just need a quick break."

"Break it is then. Don't push too hard." Shiho didn't hesitate to start supporting him, even as Ryuji scowled at her and gave her a playful swat. "I'll call your mom and tell her you hit me."

"You can't do that, she's too excited that we're hanging out." Ryuji bemoaned as he landed on the bench, massaging the muscle around his injury. "Cramps up, still. So, you're the kinda badass to not let yourself get stopped, huh?"

"Not forever it seems. Not you either. That was a serious injury you had and you're moving mostly fine." Alice winked at Shiho, the girl nodding in response. "Tells me I need to keep on top of my shit."

"Yeah, you do. You got it way worse than me too." Ryuji grimaced, staring at Alice run through hand movements. "What is that like?"

"Like my hand but clumsier and weaker. I can replicate most movements. Just have to adapt to not feeling anything. Have to watch more. At least for now." Alice reached over and grabbed Shiho's hand with it, lacing their fingers together. Her girlfriend blushed, the other hand touching Alice's elbow to send attention that way. "From there, it's figuring out everything I knew."

"Damn, I'm still mad at whoever did that to you. It's callous. Real Kamoshitbag shit." Ryuji slammed his palm into his fist, winced and then went back to do it again. Shiho snorted and swatted him on the shoulder. Alice let out a breath she didn't know she had in her lungs, her vision blurred and stomach nauseous. "You good?"

"Just. Remembering who did it." Alice closed her eyes, pushing the Ann in a bloody dress to the side to focus on Fatale. The one who would never put her in a predicament like that. Her murder attempt would have been honest. And wouldn't happen anymore. "It's part of that lot, we mentioned."

"Yeah, that's one way to put what Ann did." Shiho muttered and then slapped her hand over her mouth. Ryuji blinked three times, his finger moving from person to person. "Uhhhhhh, I didn't say that."

"You totally said that, Shiho. What do you mean Ann did it. Did she hurt Alice? I know she was making shitty choices and abandoned us but--" Ryuji's yelling was halted as Alice slapped both hands over his mouth, a stream of noise coming for three seconds before he realized he was being silenced by her. He slumped and she dropped her hands. "What the fuck is going on? Did Ann really cut your hand off?"

"Well, we wanted to wait a bit to have this part of the conversation. But someone let it loose early." Alice stuck her tongue out at Shiho, getting one in turn from her. Ryuji looked at them like he was an idiot. Which it was fine to be for him. "You gotta be real cool and not tell some people things if we do this. Ever. For your safety and ours."

"Uhhhhhhhhhhhh, I mean I'll do my best?" Ryuji put his hands in his lap, looking down. "I might go off on Ann. I can't figure out what her deal is."

"We can fix that. Hello Ryuji. We are doing this now, I suppose." Sophia chimed in from Alice's pocket, a serious expression on her face. Ryuji sunk down the bench. "It is okay, this will be very overwhelming. Than it will make more sense. Beginning navigation to Mementos."

"Sophia." Alice ripped off her prosthetic before her Ann hand could melt it to her body. Ryuji froze in place, staring at the sky and the now barren trees. What greenery was poking in from a long winter was recovering but not here. Not in the public mind. "Let me get my hand off next time."

"I am sorry, I was trying to make sure that he did not yell again. Hello, Ryuji. This is Mementos. I am Sophia, but you should call me Avenger right now. I live in Luna's phone as you saw." Sophia placed her hands on her hips, looking towards the way to Mementos and it's entrance. "This is a magical place, where we do the Phantom Thieving you have heard about."

"Oh! Rad!" Ryuji's simple nature was a blessing, a way to snap him out of being lost. Even if Alice was certain he hadn't picked up on most of what had been said. "Wait. you're the Phantom Thieves. No wonder you all became friends so fast, you already were!"

"Not, exactly dude. Luna... she's been through this before. She knew what was going on, so soon as she could she came for me and Sumire." Shiho looked down and away from her friend. "Or she'd have spared your leg. But she was in jail."

"Okay, but she went to jail for saving a lady from what she said. Totally worth my leg." Ryuji stood up, walking over and thudding a fist on the tree. It answered back after a moment, making him windmill back into Shiho. That's when he looked at Alice's hand. "Holy shit, what is going on? You have a ghost hand. And you can see the future!"

"Long story. Be easier when we explain more. Second time I've seen this year. I fucked up bad the first time." Alice started walking and like a moth to the flame came Ryuji. She nodded, keeping her eyes ahead. "Ann is doing my old mistakes and fun and exciting new ones. Like forcing me to amputate. But, the Ann I knew, like the one you did? She's kind of around. And this hand is proof."

Alice flared out the hand into a phoenix’s wing, a flicker of what it could be. It was still a little draining but it was her hand. She was going to use it, damn it. Ryuji gasped. "Holy hell. This is like a sick video game."

"It would be if it didn't involve mortal peril. Idiot." Shiho scolded Ryuji and the boy stuck his tongue out at her. Cute. One more thing I fucked up. One more thing I set right. "What Luna didn't finish explaining is Ann is killing people. Like a lot of them. And we're trying to stop her."

"Originally the plan was to knock sense into her, because I knew her. She did it to me. But she has made that prospect impossible now. Her loss." Alice grinned as she hopped on top of the staircase leading down to Mementos. She pointed a flaming finger at him, knowing he was one of Ann's early Thieves. "Do you want to help? Not just to stop her, but to make the world better? To stop the kind of shitty adults who empower Kamoshidas and the Kamoshidas?"

"Hell yes I do. Why didn't you get me for Kamoshitbag!" Ryuji without a hint of irony was rubbing his leg. Never change. Actually, maybe change a little. But stay earnest and sweet dumbass. "Why didn't you?"

"You were in a cast. It was lamented you were because of your personal stakes." Sophia's explanation made Ryuji's fist tighten, dig along his pants. "Deadeye made sure his Shadow, the part of him we fought to change him, suffered. An equivalent amount."

"Blew the kneecap off. Just for you. Even though we weren't talking." Shiho tilted her head with a smile and Ryuji tapped his foot in annoyance. "Yeah. I fucked up, not coming to you."

"You're damn right you did! I needed my friend! We lost our best friend!" Ryuji's eyes focused on Shiho, flashing yellow. "I'm mad, that I wasn't included! I'm glad I am now but fuck! I was lonely! I needed that!"

"You're pissed off at how all the control was ripped away, weren't you? Willing to brawl a little with your friends about it? That's fine, as long as at the end you know who the real enemy is."

"I'm pissed but I don't wanna fight her! I just need her to know!" Ryuji's body thrummed with flames, his Awakening surrounding him in that thug with a tie look again. The metal skull mask settled onto his face. "You get me, why I'm mad, don't you?"

"I do, but I think you should rip it off and really show me, dude!" Shiho pointed to the mask on Ryuji's face and he scrambled for the mask. He tugged, straining it against his flesh until in a burst of wind and blood he ripped it off. "Show me how wrong I was!"

"There we are, let's work to free them all, even if we have to suffer again. I am thou, thou art I."

"Jessup!" Ryuji howled as wind and blood turned into a whirlwind filled with newspapers pages. It spread out into paper mache fingers and a hole in the face that the wind continued to emit from. "What's up! I shouldn't hit Shiho with this."

"Probably not. But how about the sky?" Sophia pointed up and without a moment of hesitation the wind ripped upwards in a column. Alice walked behind him, held up her palm and caught him as he fell backwards. "I believe this is a great success. We will have to explain a lot more."

"We will. He hates coffee, so let's get him a soda when we leave."

-----

Alice settled in at Leblanc's counter, the lights dimmed and TV on. She set the wig she had bought on the way home from dropping Ryuji off on the seat to her right. Shiho took the space to her left, setting out their takeout. It was only a small sacrilege but the cafe was closed. The only light was the ones above them and the TV playing the late news. Alice opened up her box to a pasta dish from one of the places right outside Shinjuku. "You know, I expected to have to take him down to Mementos. I didn't expect he'd get so pissed at you that he'd awaken."

"I should have at least talked to him about some stuff. But everything was happening. And you and I had those stupid hopes about saving Ann and I didn't want to eat crow when I go--" Shiho paused as Alice gave her a playful shove before forking noodles into her face. "Haha, very funny. I fucked it. Should have talked to him. He's always been a loyal friend. So. I should do what I can for him. Now."

"I think you just did. You brought him in, no judgment. I think that was the real trick. He knew not to hit you, so he wasn't that upset." Alice leaned on her elbow, looking into Shiho's eyes. They looked back with a hint of annoyance and the rest of wonder. Which was ideal, really. "Love you. I don't want you to forget that while we're sitting here like this."

"Love you too. Dork." Shiho's harsh words were softened by her free hand resting in Alice's lap while they ate. It was easy, sitting like this. Two teenagers in love when they shouldn’t have known each other, but now they did. The television cut to an urgent report. Alice stiffened as it cut to SIU, a bald man with a navy blue suit standing at the same podium that Sae had been. Itou, I fucking remember you. He had misted his face to make it look like he was crying. "Alice?"

"Watch. Something happened." Alice let her fork drop into the box, all attention refocused to absorb the rest of what was going on. She bit her lip as a banner announced New Mental Shutdown victim.

"I regret to inform you that our department has lost a promising young prosecutor. Sae Niijima has been killed. By the Phantom Thieves." The man gripped tight to his tie, a rehearsed motion with how relaxed his body was. "We discovered a calling card at her place of residence. A declaration that they would silence her. We had encouraged her to claim that the Phantom Thieves were not part of the Mental Shutdown Investigation. We made a mistake in not doing this sooner. They must have already targeted her before then."

"Son of a bitch. Son of a bitch." Alice slammed her fist into the counter. She pulled out her phone, her stomach coiling around itself. She punched in Ann's phone and hit call. Shiho sunk onto the counter, the fingers pressing into Alice's thigh. Ann killed the call. Alice dialed again. "You bitch. You didn't have to do that. Makoto hates us anyway. AHHHH!"

"She just doesn't care about anyone." Shiho laid her face on the bar. Alice closed her eyes, because Sae was fine without Alice's influence. A prosecutor wasn't a great career but not like Alice could judge. And Ann cut her down to what, piss Makoto off at us? Was that the plan? "I don't get it."

"I do. It's stupid and cruel. That's all. She didn't have to kill Sae to motivate Makoto. Or was it some petty revenge for doing nothing about Kamoshida? It really doesn’t matter why." Alice pushed herself up and pat Shiho on the back with her flesh hand. "All this did was give us a way to maybe reach Makoto in the end. By pointing out who really killed Sae."

"Yeah. It just. Sucks. She sucks. I hope you can find a way for this other Ann. At least to let me talk to her." Shiho let out a whimper before going back to her food. She took a bite and chewed it for far too long. Alice didn't blame her. "What do we do?"

"Well, SIU Director Itou? He's on Adachi's pay roll. So, how about he becomes our next Palace." Alice offered to an affirmative whine from Shiho. "We'll try to eat and then you're spending the night. We'll talk with everyone. Tomorrow."

"Tomorrow. Right. Tomorrow." Shiho whispered into Alice's neck. It wasn't how she wanted Shiho to spend the night. But she'd take it. Couldn't waste a moment.

Chapter Text

Alice awoke, her face full of black hair and her hand gripping a hip. Her stomach queased, her muscles tensed as she assessed. Shiho, here and waking up because of the grip. Last night Sae Niijima was murdered. And from then on, Makoto would be pointed at the Thieves. And it would only be a matter of time until Ann refined her aim.

That wasn't going to happen for a few hours yet at least. Shiho squirmed against Alice, tilting her head to the side and sweeping vision back in a hairbrush stroke. "Hmmm, morning. I think I could get used to getting woken up like that."

"Could you? Getting reminded who you're with?" Alice whispered as she dug her fingers into Shiho's hip, a gasp her reward. Shiho's sleepy smile deepened as Alice nipped the side of her neck. A roll of the hips and a hand on the back of Alice's head to request more. A greedy need after a tough night, Alice's teeth had the relief Shiho needed. The girl pushed against Alice, more touch as Alice's leg pushed in between her own. Everything a little calculation to not involve the other arm. "Happy when I take?"

"Yes. You'll stop when I ask. Any. Time." Shiho moaned, her skin radiating all the warmth it could. Alice's teeth softened to a kiss, a confirmation of Shiho's statement of fact. Shiho's fingers ran through Alice's hair, never grabbing only spreading sensation. Touch. Closeness. The only possession was what was allowed. Alice's thumb drew up Shiho's side in a slow motion as they rocked back and forth. "Fuck."

"Maybe another time." Alice joked as she pressed a kiss to Shiho's lips, the awkward angle managing little to dissuade for how joyous and soft they felt. Shiho's fingers fluttered down Alice's neck, a little shiver to make Alice bite the lip and draw out one more gasp. "If we weren't going to be busy today, I'd really show you how much I appreciate waking up with you in my grip."

"Right." Shiho pulled away, her smile muted as she turned over to face Alice. Flyaway hairs stuck to her face, cleared in a moment with Alice's fingers and a sweep to the side. "What's the plan?"

"We gather everyone, I propose Itou and get Ryuji up to speed as possible now that he's Awakened. He's sweet but the big picture is not his strong suit." Alice leaned on her elbow as they chatted, the blanket on them a mountain range between their curves. Shiho rested her hand on Alice's cheek, cupping it in spite of the stubble to start the day. Alice felt a comfort in that, in Shiho's lack of fear of her. "Then we track down Makoto. We can't beat Ann to her, but we can try to tell her the truth. Maybe we can make her see it."

"That sounds almost impossible from every interaction you and I have had with Niijima. But, you also probably shouldn't be able to see your girlfriend from a past timeline so I think we're in that realm." Shiho tapped her forehead to Alice's, a soft kiss of the skull. It was strange to be living that kind of life now. Maybe it was what things could have been with Ann, passion and gentleness in equal measures. It only required an exchange of whose blood was spilled. "What are you thinking about?"

"How it seems more innocent people had to die still. Okumura's alive but we lost Sae." Alice sat up, grabbing her gripper hand. It wasn't going to be a gentle kind of day. It was going to be one that required effort and heft. "It's also just, she is so much worse then I was. I don't get it. Ann doesn't get it."

"I don't either." Shiho rolled off the bed, stretching within moments of hitting the ground. Athletes, you're always like this. "It doesn't matter, though. We still have to stop her. No matter what."

"No matter what." Alice agreed, snagging her phone before twisting her back. A missed call from Shion, while she slept. Sophia was passed out in her little digital bed, headphones on. Alice tapped her alarm clock app, set it for a minute from then. "Sorry, Sophia. Time to rise and shine."

Sophia flailed for a moment when the alarm went off, opening her eyes from her rest. She looked to Alice, blue eyes full of question marks. "What is going on?"

"Guess you went to bed really early last night." Alice wanted to say the next part off the cuff. She fought the urge. "Bad news." A pause, Sophia's eyes switching to red in preemption of being angry. "Sae Niijima has been killed by Ann."

"Damn it." Sophia's hands tightened into fists, her face pulled into a scowl. Alice couldn't blame her for that. She would have done the same if she felt all these crimes as an extension of her own trauma. Alice's phone scrolled to news websites, the AI reading as Shiho and Alice slipped downstairs. Sojiro waved from behind the counter before jaw dropping.

"Hey, you gotta warn me if you're going to do that." Sojiro sputtered as he looked at a blushing Shiho. Alice shrugged at him as she threw on an apron and started coffee. "You're on probation still, you can't be caught helping someone break curfew."

"My parents don't even notice me, sir." Shiho bowed her head, trying to fight her blush and the rage from the previous conversation. Alice began brewing Shiho's cup, the toffee and strawberry notes always made her a little brighter. Which helped with Sojiro's scowl now being aimed at Shiho for her parents. "I'm used to it. Part of why I stayed here."

"I'm guessing your girlfriend is the rest of it. Look, you two have to be careful. We don't want to give them a reason to say that Alice is breaking her probation. You got me?" Sojiro's stern voice erupted, the first one in months. Alice gave him a curt nod. She wasn't going to argue with him, not when it was all care. She was getting past that. "Good. Shiho?"

"I'll be careful. I don't want to lose Alice." Shiho dragged one knee to her chest, foot digging into the chair. Alice passed her coffee with a wink as Sojiro gave her a plate of curry. "Thank you for the food."

"He's not going to starve you for surviving the lecture. And Sojiro, I'm not risking losing her or you or anyone else." Alice emptied her coffee into a cup, setting down next to Shiho and a second plate of curry. "I've never been this well fed in my life."

"Suck up." Sojiro teased with a little grin. A gentle forgiveness. A return to form. "Like I said, tell me. That way I can say that I gave permission and they can't surprise me with anything."

"Will do. We're going to be out for most of the day." Alice dug into her breakfast, Shiho's hand roaming her thigh for comfort. "Our student council president lost her sister. I want to try and check on her. Yes, I'm being nosy."

"I'll say you are. Be good, okay?" Sojiro put a cigarette in his mouth while Alice stared him down. "What?"

"Shit's gross. You want me to be good, set a good example." Alice stuck out her tongue to a rude gesture from Sojiro and a burst of laughter from Shiho. There was at least that. "Enough people die, don't need you rushing in."

"Plus, bet the ladies'd like you better without it." Shiho added as she set her cup in the licked clean plate. "Thank you for the food. Great as always."

"Course it is. I'll clean up, go do your things." Sojiro pulled back the emptied dishes, tossing the cig into the trash on the way. It wasn't the whole pack, but it was a start. The teens waved and slipped out, tossing in a headphone.

"You have received a second call from Shion. I think she's getting annoyed." Sophia cut in the moment the headphone was in. Alice pulled out her phone, flicking to the contact and dashing out a text to meet her somewhere private. "I have finished reading what you brought up. It was a mental shutdown. We have to stop Ann and soon."

"I know. We also need to make sure that the police don't arrest us. That's best served by the fact Itou knew about this death or wasn't bothered. He's on Adachi's payroll." Alice explained as she started maneuvering the Thieves for another meeting, after the one with Shion and Aika. "That will clear our name from murder allegations. Which if we get arrested, that's going to be a whole nightmare."

"Yeah, I don't think Futaba or Yusuke would survive prison." Shiho left off all the pain and misery that it would be for Alice. It wasn't something worth bringing up in the end. It was obvious and pointless. "Is that good with you, Sophia? Ann has already tried to snipe our last two targets during the heist."

"I am amenable to this. We'll have to see how everyone else feels. And we need to get Ryuji trained up." Sophia bounced on her feet while Shion got back to her with a location. "Should the Thieves come?"

"I am. I want to see why we should trust them. I trust Alice, but they're new and scary." Shiho wrapped her arm and Alice shrugged. Her choice. "Expected you to fight me on it."

"I'd rather have you by my side if possible. I want to get this done, so no one else but Futaba can listen in. Alright, let's get to this apartment." Alice should have known they weren't that far from her home. That they'd be a few streets over, having picked a place to keep an eye on her. It was a little annoying. "Sophia, I want to keep you our little secret. A surprise in case this goes bad for any reason."

"Understood. I will keep my finger on the Nav." Sophia clicked the phone to lock as Shiho started up the stairs to a second floor apartment, one of many. Inexpensive but not falling apart. If every unit didn't appear to be a former hotel room it might even be homey with some work. Alice cracked her neck and knocked.

"Huh, didn't expect you to bring someone. Get the hell in here." Shion was leaning on her cane, her eyes downcast as she made the barest hint of space for the teenagers. "Suzui. The one they had to chase out with a broom. Figured. Aika, get out of your workroom! Guests!"

"She is just an older you in some ways, huh?" Shiho teased, a little levity to fight off the nervousness in her fingers around Alice's wrist. Aika emerged from a wooden door that lead to another unit. A door with a different style to the solid metal door she had knocked on. "You're the other persona users, right?"

"Yep. Sit. Boss lady wants me to ask questions." Shion knocked a chair closer for Alice while Shiho took the other one. Aika pulled out a notebook, laying it against her forearm. "Just checking, you didn't kill Sae Niijima, right?"

"No, I didn't. If I knew she was at risk, we'd have been trying to protect her." Alice stared Shion in the eye, the doctor shrugging and looking to Aika in the process. "Taking my word for it?"

"Yep. After the death of Kuon Ichinose was followed by the remaining two cognitive pscientists in the world receiving calling cards but not dying, we figured that you were defending them. Interestin' shit by the way, you read about it?" Shion caned into a chair with a sigh of relief. Aika shot her a glare. "I'll take it in a bit. I want to be lucid as possible."

"You need to care for yourself. Suzui, your presence here, you are a Phantom Thief as well." Aika shifted her gaze to Shiho, a thousand pointed questions in the mere look. Shiho shrunk a little but met her gaze. "You joined because of Kamoshida, your name came up in the confession. Why stay?"

"Alice saved my life and wanted to save others." Shiho pat Alice's leg, Alice offering a prosthetic that was met with a strong grip instead. "I agree that if we knew about Sae being in danger that we would have stepped in. But we couldn't know like we did for Maruki. Or Alice did for Wakaba."

"Gotcha. That brings up our next question. How did you know? Because you were out of jail for two days when Wakaba's heart was stolen." Shion had to know that, didn't she? She had to know the most suspicious fact about it. "It's strange. Are you playing both sides? Two killers?"

"I knew about my powers while I was in jail. I learned about Kuon's death, looked up cognitive pscience and saw Wakaba was the other leading person in the field. Maruki wasn't known so someone would have to dig for him." Alice didn't waver, didn't budge, looking Shion in the eye. The cane tapped, an attempt to throw her off. "I targeted her and stole her heart, it sealed her from being killed. Afterwards I came into contact with the actual murderer and tried to push her to turn on the person pulling her strings. It didn't work. But that's how I knew to protect Maruki."

"And lose your hand in the process. Which is why this question is stupid, Shion. Mitsuru should have known better than to ask it." Aika's remark set Alice a little at ease and the straining muscles on Shiho's hand eased their agreement. They didn't think she was responsible for the killing. Which, objectively, accurate. Strange to consider. "You were trying to turn the murderer? Who are they? Who is holding their strings."

"Ann Takamaki with Tohru Adachi as her puppet master. I don't know how you accessed your Shadow worlds, but I warn you if you try to apprehend her on this side you won't stay here." Alice paused, considering. She should have known that Kunikazu's confession was censored, it would be new information to these two. "She's an assassin that he hires out."

"That so. I'd ask for proof but Aika can tell you that can be damn hard if you can't make them confess when this shit is involved." Shion let out a long sigh, Aika's head bowed low. Hmmm, okay, that confirms what they mentioned about the Inaba murders. "What's your next move?"

"Lure Ann with a target she can't let us steal the heart of." Alice winked at Shion who slammed her cane in response, her usual way of not saying not good enough. "Here's the deal, you two know way more than we ever wanted non Thieves to know. It's easy to twist what we do to evil or profit. And you know what, we're not risking it. You still work for a corporation that killed a bunch of kids."

"The Kirijo group of today is not the Kirijo Group of then. We are here to help. We can’t do that if you cooperate." Aika's voice was clear, the anger in its volume not tone. Her facial expression didn't change. "We know not to halt the Wildcard but you are stonewalling us. You need alibis, you need protection."

"We don't need you to do that. We're okay with where things are right now because you're not moving in. If you did, we'd have a problem." Shiho grumbled, matching Aika in her anger with tone and a snarl. "You said it yourself, Alice lost her hand fighting this."

"That's why we're worried about you kids. That time it was a hand. Just like how one time it was being able to use this leg right." Shion tapped her cane against her leg, metal tinging off metal. "We're tired of teenagers getting fucked over by this shit. Let us in."

Alice's phone buzzed, a suggestion from Sophia and Goro on it. And she didn't disagree with that fact. Alice showed it to Shiho who nodded in agreement. "How about this, we keep this current target a secret till we steal the heart. But we're going for Adachi after this. Because if we don't stop Ann there, she'll sink with Adachi for sure."

"That's acceptable. But you will warn us before you send the card for this target." Aika's offer was fair. Enough. An extra twelve hours of warning wouldn't kill their chances. "That way if something has gone wrong, we are on hand."

"I'd rather you just bring Aika, but you won't. I can tell." Shion flicked a business card over to Shiho. "In case Alice breaks her phone or something. Shit happens. Hate it."

"Sure. I'm the one least likely to call this." Shiho tapped her foot because the entire Thieves had the phone numbers from the moment they admitted to being corporate G-women. "Are we done? We're still trying to make sure we're all on the same page."

"We're done." Shion pushed up, hobbling to the door and pulling it open. Shiho was first out, Alice about to leave when Shion tapped her with the cane. "You better know what you're doing. I don't like having to go through all this."

"I do. I have a good team. That was my fuck up before. I didn't have them." Alice kept walking to a grunt from Shion as the door closed.  She left what she meant up to interpretation as she took Shiho's hand in hers. "Pissy?"

"Yep. After Kamoshida, Adachi, Madarame, Kunikazu, why would I trust any adult who wants into a teenager's life like that?" Shiho gripped tight to Alice's hand, all her trigger strength for a bullet of love. "You think Akechi's going to fight this hard about the target?"

"I think clearing our name is an easy sell." Alice shrugged. She should have felt worse about Sae dying, but she couldn't summon misery. Only a rage at how much Ann couldn't respect her. A senseless life lost before Alice would have to take one more.

Because she was going to kill this one. And then she'd find the damn way to bring hers back.

------

"This sucks." Futaba spoke for everyone's soul as she sat curled up on the couch at Sumire's house. Alice pat her on the head with her good hand, getting the girl to release her knees from a death grip. "I'm watching police chatter and they're definitely about to sweep Shujin in the next few days to interrogate people. Which means you're all going to have to be on your A-game."

"Yes, we are. Especially you Sakamoto. We couldn't have picked a worse time to have picked up a new teammate." Goro glared at Ryuji who flipped him off, hopping to his feet. Goro rolled his eyes at him. "Please stop proving my point. You're going to have to moderate that to keep yourself and us safe. If I can get under your skin with that little effort, they will eat you alive."

"I'd like to see them try. I'll just not say anything." Ryuji grumbled as Shiho tugged him down to sit on the floor with her. "It's bullshit man, that card is nothing like all the others. And last I checked Alice was the leader, why the fuck are you on my case?"

"Because all of you are here to advise me. But that doesn't mean antagonizing Ryuji for a damn point, not off the bat." Alice slammed her foot down, drawing all eyes towards her. Goro's tired ones, Sumire's confused ones, Futaba's darting ones, Shiho's certain ones, Yusuke's appraising ones, Haru's focused ones and Sophia's wide ones. Ryuji was not on task but he was listening, that was normal. "Here's the deal, shit has gone wrong in a way I didn't think about. I thought the Makoto shit was just a way to have eyes on us at school. It's more than that, clearly. Makoto in the last timeline showed a willingness to follow the Thieves into a Palace when she suspected them of just stealing hearts. This is far far worse. So you need to watch yourself when the cops come through but also when she is around. If she's following you, lose her. And I don’t mean with the Nav. She's on the hunt for revenge, I guarantee it."

"Mako." Haru whispered to herself and Alice frowned. She knew those two had been a thing last time and it seemed the crush had been harbored for a long time before Haru came out if this was an indication. "We should try to reach her. She should know the truth."

"I agree. Ann is pulling the wool over her eyes in more than one way. I think we should be proactive in this." Yusuke pat his knee, pulling out a sketchbook. "She trusts Ann and we need to reveal how that's a mistake. We can't take her into Ann's heart but we have to try something."

"She's a stubborn girl. She has been hounding Alice for months. I do not know if she will listen." Sophia shook her head, looking to Futaba and Sumire. The two shook their heads. "My pessimism does not negate that I think we should try. Ann did not take the offer but perhaps Makoto will. I think that we should take the chance."

"Y-yeah, she might be spooky and scary but losing the chance to help her would be pretty much the exact opposite of what we have been doing." Futaba's little stammer only belayed that this would be important. "Um, I already checked and everyone is super on board with Itou as a target. For our safety and for getting justice for Sae."

"Then, we get Adachi, right? The guy who caused all of this. Because Alice, you deserve that too." Sumire flashed the barest hint of a smile for her. Alice let herself shrink a little. "We already beat Ann without Ryuji and we've been still training in Mementos. I don't think she stands a chance."

"She doesn't." Alice swept across the room, despite the rough start, everyone was with her. It's what she and they needed. "Haru, I want you to come with me. We're visiting Makoto to offer our condolences and support. Judge how much she knows and you can try and reach her. Goro, take Ryuji by Untouchable, get him armed up with a model gun. Get more medicine, because I think we're going to need it. Itou might have some defenses looted from Kuon's research. Play nice and get to know each other."

"Ugh, do I gotta?" Ryuji tilted his head back in annoyance and Alice threw a paper ball at him. Goro chuckled until Ryuji fastballed it at him. The two of them glared at each other. "Bite me."

"I'd rather not. But you do need weaponry." Goro grumbled and crawled off the couch and towards the door. "Right into it, eh?"

"We all took a long break for my hand. time to make up for lost time. Everyone else, I'd appreciate you all having Itou's keywords by tomorrow. Brainstorm." Alice took a step to the door as Ryuji and Haru joined her. "Thank you all. For the trust."

"You earned it." Haru whispered as she led the way to Makoto's, one hand in her purse. Alice kept close to her, flexing her hand open and close. She couldn't lose the muscle memory. Not here or ever. "I have found out that my father's assets are frozen by and large. I am moving into a Shujin dorm as my schooling is paid for. Next door to Goro because, well, you know."

"Bullshit but yes, I do know." Alice sighed, pulling out her Shadow money share. Haru had denied a lot of it during the Palace. And now she needed it after all. Alice halved the pile and shoved it into Haru's hand. "This is all the money you didn't take in the Palace. Probably, I didn't count. I should have. You're taking a share equal to Yusuke and Goro. You're having to be self sufficient."

"I..." Haru stared at the money as they walked, her mouth opening and closing. She had never dealt with these consequences before. in some way it would have been better for Kunikazu to die because she would be financially secure. "Thank you. For the kindness."

"Well, I'm not letting anyone suffer on this team. did that enough before." Alice crossed her arms as Haru tucked the money away after counting it. If the assets were frozen it meant Okumura foods was in a weird stasis of all the changes Kunikazu made before his confession. Like he expected to be silenced. "Have you heard from him?"

"He says he failed me. but that he cannot help me, even without his legal troubles. He is unable to." Haru stepped around a hole in the sidewalk, her eyes downcast enough to notice it. "I know you warned me it might happen, but at least the company is doing right by it's people."

"At least it is. You deserved to reap the benefits of that as well. You deserved better, then and now." Alice snapped her hand closed in rage, slowing herself down as Haru led them into the lobby of an upscale apartment building. It made sense that Sae had paid for something like this with the money on her prosecutor's salary. There was money in locking up the poor after all. "Focus. I want you to take lead on this. You have the most positive feelings about Makoto."

"Well, yes. That would be the... crush. Although this is a poor time for this. But I do want to be there for her." Haru pressed the button for the elevator, standing on her tip toes, for heels that weren't there. Okay, ideas for later. "I hope that we can help."

"I hope she'll give us the chance." Alice whispered back, looking around the painted black marble  inlaid into the floor. Far too wasteful a use of it all. It could have made something pretty and nice tile could have done the same thing. But it was expensive to be expensive. The ride up was quick, settling Alice's stomach as low as it could sit. That was her excuse for the little burst of nausea.

A hallway of doors, ever seven meters. More repeated floor plans, nothing unique. Generic. Black wood in charcoal gray walls. Haru went to the door third from the left, knocking once then twice. It was soft. Gentle. Alice watched Haru jitter in place as they waited out the sound of someone moving around inside. The door opened.

Makoto looked like shit. As she should. Hair splayed across her face, her clothing buttoned wrong and her eyes dead. It didn’t stop her from growling through the door. "What do you need, Haru? I'm kind of busy."

"I came by to check on you. I sent you a text but you didn't answer." Haru whispered, holding out her hand. Makoto stared at it like it was an alien life form, her mouth opening and closing. "Mako, I know this is hard but Alice and I came by to check on you. Do you need anything? I could cook if you'd like."

"The last thing she needs is help from you two." Ann poked her head over Makoto's shoulder and Alice's little bit of nausea incinerated. From the way Haru's hands morphed into fists, it was clear that wasn't an unfamiliar feeling. "Why would she want help from the people who killed Sae? Told her all about you."

"Ann, get the fuck away from Makoto." Alice pulled her hand off herself. She didn't know how this would go. But if they went to Mementos, she wasn't losing her prosthetic. Ann grinned at her while Makoto raised her eyes to glare into Alice's soul. That familiar mourning rage from Haru, reflected in blood red. "You know, you can't trust everything that you hear, Makoto. Haru and I aren't your enemies."

"Oh, but you are. Ann told me all about the cruel things you've done. How you tortured Sae's shadow and how you'd claim she did it." Makoto took a step forward, stumbling to her knee in exhaustion. Haru caught her, catching a weak punch to the stomach. Ann didn't lose her grin as she watched. "Fuck you, both of you. I can't beli--"

"Fuck that. That bitch tried to kill my father. She forced Alice to cut her hand off before that!" Haru yelled as Makoto tried to punch her again, ignoring the strike as she held Makoto. Alice had a better idea and scruffed Makoto, pushing her back into the apartment. Ann stepped forward, cutting Makoto off as she laid dazed on her back. "Mako, you can't trust Ann. We have evidence that we didn't do any of these. We know Ann did."

"You know it's kind of pathetic that you two are just not taking the hint. Makoto knows the truth. I'm going to help her get revenge on the people who killed her dear sister. Real low blow comparing the two of them and then cutting Sae out of poor Makoto’s life." Ann pulled the door shut as Haru rose to punch her. Ann danced to the side, Haru's fist striking only air. Alice grabbed Ann's wrist as she went for a pocket, pinning it to the wall. "Careful, aren't you on probation? Don't want to get caught for assault right now. Whose word will they believe?"

"Mine." Haru slugged Ann in the stomach, hard enough she doubled over. The murderer swept Haru's leg all the same and sent her to the ground as Alice used her leverage to drag Ann backwards. The blonde cackled as she stomped on Alice's foot. Alice grinned through the little burst of pain. "We'll make Mako see what you did. If you have any care for her, you'll stop making that worse."

"I'm not making anything worse." Ann hissed as she struggled against Alice's grip on her wrist. A jolt of electricity ran through Alice, stunning her and dragging the two of them to the ground. It felt like her skin had been lit on fire, her mind firing neurons the wrong way.

A tazer stuck out of Alice's side, one that Haru took and then zapped Ann with before pocketing it. The two girls lay on the ground, together and jittering. Haru picked up Alice and moved her into the elevator. "If you call the cops, I'll make sure they know you let Makoto assault me. Whatever you did for her won't work from jail. We'll burn together."

Ann tried to laugh from the ground. Alice wished Haru had just taken them into Mementos. She was sure Sophia was already there, waiting to strike. But no, they hadn't killed Ann right then and there. Haru pat Alice, "Are you going to be okay?"

"Yep, not the worst shock I've taken. Ow." Alice managed once her mouth stopped being locked close from the spasms. "We should have taken advantage."

"I was afraid she might recover first. If that happened you and I might be dead." Haru leaned Alice on the elevator wall, the earth rushing to meet them just out of sight as they went. "Mako.... she awakened, didn't she?"

"Absolutely. We need to adapt for that as we go." Alice's body jolted once more as she got the last of her muscles back under control. "I should have told Shion and Aika my hobby was knife play."

"I think they might have questioned that, even with the persona use. Although you aren't lying exactly." Haru did her best to joke as they hobbled out of the lobby. "You know it's a good thing she doesn't know that I don't have money right now."

"It really is. Ann's way more of an idiot now. She literally armed Makoto to kill her ass in the end." Alice muttered to a peal of laughter from Haru. "I think being evil makes you an idiot."

"It must. Glad you got over the debilitating condition of being evil." Haru giggled as they headed home. It was fucking awful. But it saved Alice the trouble of waking up Makoto in the end.

Chapter Text

"You know, maybe I shouldn't be surprised that you're the first one here. Shujin’s track team ran in the mornings, didn't it?" Alice settled in at an outdoor cafe table next to Ryuji, the boy fiddling with a straw in a glass of soda, the ice swirling again and again. And endless swirl of clink and clink and clink. It’d be annoying at the best of times. But the kid was always bad at focus. She pressed down on her urge to give him shit about it. Not this exact moment.

"Yeah, used to. Hate it." Ryuji took a big drink, then the reality of what he said hit him. He dropped the straw back into the glass from his lips. "I meant getting up early, did like track. Mad at myself for ruining it for them."

"Kamoshida did. I just know he did shit but not the specifics." Alice tapped her fingers along the table, watching for the other Thieves. Ryuji shook his head. "He broke your leg and blamed you."

"I should have done something about my temper. All the other guys fucking took it. And I ruined things for them, because I couldn’t put up with it." Ryuji's leg jittered, a little wince in his face as he did so. Still sore. Makes sense. Alice had been pushing down the phantom sensations for a while now, the little reminders of how her hand had been. The sensation that her metal fingers felt the table, a little lie to herself. Hard to stop lying to yourself when your nerves do it for fun sometimes. "That's the damn issue. I didn't keep them safe because I was too angry. I act up, get my leg snapped and the team killed."

"Kamoshida would have killed it anyway. That's bullshit. You protected them, they just didn't like what happened as a result." Alice snapped at him, Ryuji staring at her like an idiot. Which, fair. She shit on a long held belief. But it made the ice stop moving for the moment, getting his full attention. "Did they get the shit kicked out of them any more by Kamoshida?"

"No, but they're pissy about it. And they should be, they were willing to deal with it. I took the team away from them. It was important enough to put up with it." Ryuji's tapping foot began to shake the table. Stubborn, as ever. "Thanks for trying to make me feel better or whatever, but it doesn't change the facts. Now, I just gotta try and keep Ann from hurting anybody else. Make her tell me what she did and why."

"That's pretty much the plan. Cause I sure don't get why she wouldn’t take the hand I offered." Alice dragged her finger along the metal, letting out a long sigh as she did. "Sucks, I tried. Maybe I should have like coordinated with you and Shiho."

"Maybe! Three of us yelling at her might have done it. Then. I think now, she's gone too far. Makoto sucks but she didn't deserve that." Ryuji waved as Haru took a seat opposite them. He didn't give Goro the same respect, which was a swimming start for team integration. "And it sounds like you liked Sae, so that makes it that much worse."

"There were worse people to run into while I was in jail." Alice pushed her phone onto the table, letting Sophia look in now that it wasn't her and Ryuji having a personal conversation. Ryuji was already back to fidgeting with his straw and ice, his way of pulling back for now. Joy. "How'd you settle into the dorm, Haru?"

"It's small. I am not a big fan of it, but it is better than being on the street. At least Goro is a fine neighbor." Haru kept her head dipped as the other boy hovered by the table and looked towards the building. "It's strange to think that it still has me being happier then back home with my father. Even if I had stopped after you protected my Shadow, I'd be more miserable living with him when he was like that."

"Of course you’re happier now, trapping yourself in a home with someone who hates you is unpleasant after all." Goro started to smile, caught Alice's eye and knocked it off. He grimaced for a moment instead. "On different subjects where are the last of our cadre?"

"Heeeeeere." Shiho dragged Yusuke behind her, his sketchbook perched in his hand. She and Ryuji stuck their tongues out at each other before she leaned on Alice's shoulder, pushing her arm down with the familiar weight. Sumire and Futaba brought up the rear, the latter of the two darting to sit right by Alice. They were in public and a lot of people were looking. Futaba did her piece to get here on her own, which was good for her. Alice nudged Shiho's arm off to let Futaba in. "Fine, be the helpful NPC thingy."

"Mine." Futaba nudged into a hug from Alice then set out her laptop. She had up every bit of information it was reasonable to have for Itou on there. "We formed a pretty big list."

"That is too much information for me." Sumire whispered as she looked to Sophia. "Did you all manage to shrink it down?"

"We have, actually." Sophia cupped her hands around a yo-yo, staring at Alice with a frown on her face. Okay, that tells me something about what's going on here. She's mad about how things went where we might have been able to end Ann yesterday. Me too, friend. "I believe this should work. Alice, please remove your hand. Satoru Itou, Special Investigations Unit, The Grand Feast."

The Thieves warbled out of existence and into a garden maze, lit by candles floating above it. Glasses clinked over low chatter in the distance followed by uproarious laughter. The pressure in the Palace was almost nonexistent as Futaba surrounded herself with cameras to float above the maze. Or would have if a canopy of green didn't erupt in defense and send her back to earth. "Okay, rude! You could have just had that barrier in place."

"It's a party, you don't want the guests to think it's dark. So, since we broke the rules, we're not guests in his mind." Haru walked along the path into the maze, her glove graving over the leaves. She pulled her hand back with a small gasp. "They're sharpened."

"Backs up your supposition, Noir." Goro pulled out his sword, walking alongside her. Two abreast, all they could fit. Alice flexed her hand as she slipped between them, taking the front and with Ryuji on her heels. "That much of a rush, Luna?"

"Skull is going to be our pace setter. And I'm willing to keep it that way." Alice looked over her shoulder at Goro and winked. It wasn't her original plan, but it would work for letting him feel like he was making a difference already. "Oracle, what information do you have?"

"This place sucks? Shadows two corners ahead before the path splits and don't do the right hand rule thing. It's designed to lead you in a circle. I don't have a path to the exit, yet. But I can figure it out!" Futaba called out, her voice muted by the leaves. Ryuji thudded a mace against his hands. "And I think trying to go through the walls is a bad idea if Noir's hand is an indication."

"Awww man. I wanted to break through. It'd be way faster." Ryuji groaned as the rounded the corner to gardener Shadows in in gray coveralls staring at them. "Woah, those things are freaky. I'm supposed to beat their ass, right?"

"Sure are, Crow, Deadeye, keep them pinned before they can run." Alice ducked and ran, bullets and rays flying over her. The Shadows counter charged, shears lit up in orange by candlelight. Ryuji's first swing at one was messy, but it didn't have to be very accurate as it slammed its full weight into the leg, flipping the Shadow onto its stomach. Alice buried her dagger in its back as the matching Shadow screeched at the barrage tearing through its clothing. "Skull, now's the time for that storm."

"HELL YEAH, LET'S GO JESSUP!" Ryuji ripped away his mask the fluttering of newspapers slamming the Shadow backwards into the wall behind him. The impact with the sharpened leaves left it shredded as it melted into nothingness. "Wow, that felt pretty freakin’ good."

"Keep it to Shadows that don't belong to people and you'll have all the fun you want." Alice tilted her head up to catch Ryuji's smile and thumbs up. Her hand flared a bit, a bright light that made the teeth shine. Miss your friends, I know. We're gonna fix it, Ann. Soon. "Alright, keep moving. Once we hit the party, don't start anything yet. Let's figure out what is going on."

"That is smart. With this being a feast, we may be able to move without having to fight every step until we reach the treasure." Sophia high fived Ryuji as she moved up to the front with him. Alice nodded and moved back in the line to walk next to Yusuke.

Right. Left. Left. Right. A continuous cycle of the front line to be with Ryuji, the blond haired boy an endless dynamo of energy inside the Palace. As much as outside. Shiho blasted a shadow in the gut from twelve directions with the Jury, Ryuji taking the remnants of the shadow and homerunning them over the garden. "I think that you're gonna fit right in, Skull."

"Dude, I'm still upset that-- wait, leg. I only just got cleared for shit recently. My bad." Ryuji rubbed the back of his head as they pushed out of the maze to an open air pavilion with the sound of strings filling the air. Played well but no emotion behind it. Suited cognitions with police badges walked down lines of tables, holding up serving trays full of food. Slabs of steaks, full sushi orders, pufferfish, foie gras, peking duck. Anything that Adachi had claimed was a treat early on in her employment was there. Ryuji's mouth opened, a thin line of drool coming down it. "That's a spread of food, dudes!"

"And they won't serve it to you, Skull. You're not the one the event is for, you know." Shiho placed a hand on his shoulder, her eyes on the man at the head of the biggest table. A cognition of Adachi with his legs up on the table, picking his teeth with a bone and a wine glass in the other hand. She reached towards her gun, stopped by Alice's left hand to the wrist. Not that Alice wouldn't have loved to see Shiho blow the fucker's brains out, they had a job to do. No matter how hot that mental image was at this moment. They could do it on the way out from grabbing the treasure if they weren't in a fight. "Right. No scene."

"Oh, that's the fucking guy. That's the one who made Ann all fucked up and evil, huh?" Ryuji's fingers tightened around the mace haft. Alice walked in front of him, dragging Shiho with her. The gunwoman stumbled into him in the process, knocking them away from the group. "Hey!"

"You two need to cool it. We have to be patient." Sophia joined Alice, keeping herself from looking ahead, refusing to bear witness to the man who ordered her mother's death twice over. There would be time to confront the real him later. See him laid low for what he had done to everyone. "I understand that this is frustrating. But we must wait."

"C'monnnnnn, it'd be cat heart ick." Ryuji tried to manage the word cathartic, the silly idiot. Alice tapped him on the mask, shaking her head. "I know I didn't say it right!"

"It's cathartic, dude. And I get what Alice means, we need to not wear ourselves out after that maze." Shiho passed Ryuji an energy drink, the boy chugging it without a thought. Alice nodded as the other Thieves began to wander the edge of the party. The police servants glanced towards Yusuke as he framed the food between his fingers. Sumire's breastplate reflected light across the entire end table, one of the waiters walking toward her with a wine bottle wielded like a club. Goro was trying to skirt the edge but his clothes were drawing attention. Haru was Alice's saving grace, managing to have a conversation with one of them. "This is not going to go well."

"No. It isn't. Alright everybody, get it out of your system, we'll try again soon!" Alice shouted as she spun them around to the cognitions rushing them with knives and bottles. "For now, let's rip them to shreds!"

Alice made sure to put a bullet right through Adachi’s head, watching him slump into his dinner and bleed out all over it. It didn’t make up for shit, but it was pretty to see the blood mixing with his mashed potatoes.

-----

"You really don't remember anything about this place?" Alice came to a stop at the construction site for the stadium, the doors to a shuttered research lab, the two gremlins at her heels with a popsicle apiece. Strawberry and pineapple for Caroline and Justine. "Because I know why this place is important."

"Shush, you need to let us do this." Caroline tried to menace Alice with the pink popsicle, the ice beginning to slide off the stick as she did. Alice rolled her eyes and leaned on the wall separating the sidewalk from the worksite and locking eyes. Caroline crossed her arms, launching the popsicle into the air. Justine giggled until Caroline slapped her popsicle to the ground, both of them splattered across sidewalk, shoes and ankles alike. Justine scrabbled for Caroline's face. "It is karma."

"It is not karma, you made a mess and then a second one! That's your fault!" Justine shouted, her clipboard appearing in hand to try and hit Caroline across the brow. A little Cain and Abel for the afternoon if Alice didn't step in. She put hands on each of their heads and pushed them apart. "She must pay for her transgressions!"

"She will, in that you're getting a replacement popsicle. She was going to get one, but now she won't." Alice declared to a little foot stomp from Caroline. On Alice’s foot. She bit her lip, trying to not yell in frustration and pain. She didn't want attention. It was bad enough having to navigate the twins without other people butting in because she was babysitting them wrong. She wasn't babysitting them to start with anyway.

"Hey, isn't that Alice?" Kasumi's voice negated that chance of being unnoticed. She dropped down from the fence, wobbling on landing. Sumire stuck hers, flashing a grin past her hair that had fallen in front of her face. "It is. Uh, I didn't know you babysat."

"We are not being babysat. Alice is in our care." Justine stood up straight, flicking her braid over her shoulder and heedless that her hat was askew. Caroline made one last grab before the gripping prosthetic scruff her and pulled her back. "You are the pair of chariots, racing towards the ends of the earth."

"I guess?" Sumire shot Alice a questioning look and all the Wildcard could do is look at the child in her hand and sigh until every last molecule of oxygen in her lungs was gone. She still wished she could sigh more to get rid of it. "What are you all caring for Alice about here?"

"They're curious about construction sites and a little delusional about how things are. And how to behave in public." Alice let Caroline go, only for Justine to rush until Sumire placed herself in between them. Alice groaned and put her self up against Caroline. "Thank you, Sumire. Sorry to interrupt your sisterly parkour session because these two don't know how to be good sisters."

Kasumi started to talk but shut up, hand over her mouth. Guess she’s learning to be careful about what she says around me now. Caroline pounded on Alice's hip, harder than it should have been for her size and sending a jolt of pain through her. "You can't keep me from my sister."

"If you two are going to fight, we will." Sumire pat Justine on the head, mollifying her. In concert Caroline relaxed as well, the two turning their gaze towards the construction site. "Huh. What are your names?"

"Caroline and Justine." Caroline's now appeared baton pointed from herself to her sister. Kasumi blinked and then shrugged, the same effect that prevented Morgana from being heard is what Alice supposed. "A piece, a place that is being built. A drain on the world."

"Madness spreading, sapping the will of all to be one." Justine finished, her head tilting back with Caroline's for a moment. Alice and Sumire exchanged glances, tugging the two kids back and away. "Acoltye turned heretic, sinner turned from evil and hero brought down to earth."

Okay, they know but can't remember what happened last time. That is impressive. Wonder if that's why they keep fighting so much. They can sense something's off?

"What is with them?" Kasumi frowned as Alice sat down on the curb with Caroline. Her eyes were unfocused, looking not the abyss of concrete around them. "Did they get hurt? Watch too many spooky movies?"

"Something like that, I think." Sumire added as she sat next to Alice, Justine standing up and unable to pay attention. "Hey Kasumi, think we'd have done better at stuff recently if we fought like that more?"

"I guess we'd be more honest. But I would rather not do whatever that weird conversation is." Kasumi muttered as she snapped her fingers in front of Caroline's face. "You with us?"

"Yes, I am. We had a moment. Give us some time." Caroline's voice was quieter, subdued. Like how they had been almost drugged from the memories of cutting wood with axes. Peace in older memories? Alice wasn't sure, but there was something off about all of it. Justine's eyes were glazed over, her mouth open. Caroline tapped her baton and Justine snapped to half attention. "The last time this happened we needed time."

"They're not wrong." Alice wanted to press on Sumire's thought about the fight. Because she figured something similar, that the two Yoshizawas fighting might have gotten them to talk it out. Instead of this stopped up drain of emotions that filtered out around Alice. "While they cool off, you two doing okay?"

"Yeah! Sumi's been showing me what she learned. It's kinda astounding how much she can do." Kasumi rubbed her forearm, looking down at the ground with other words unsaid. That she couldn't do what Sumire had shown off. "I'm kinda behind on this. Which is okay. I'm not practicing at it near as much. And even then, she just has the landings down."

"Thanks Kas. I'm just glad that you chilled out about us doing the same stuff all the time." Sumire tapped her foot, stealing a glance at Justine patting her right knee and Caroline patting her left. An absentminded motion that didn't make any sense to Alice. "It makes when we do them together all the more special. Sorry for the whole not saying how I was feeling. And letting you think I was happy."

"It's my fault for getting complacent about everything." Kasumi studied the way Caroline and Justine were bobbing back and forth. "Maybe those two need to fight it out more so they can be in sync? Or creepy?"

"I don't know. But I'm taking care of them. No matter what the little megalomaniacs say." Alice teased to a giggle from the Yoshizawas. The two of them high-fived as Sumire hopped to her feet. "So, you two, what is the plan now?"

"I need to maintain my scholarship so I can't falter for now." Sumire tapped her foot, looking to the side. Alice bit her lip because that was stupid. "But I'm not going for gold, just to beat what I was doing. Kas on the other hand..."

"I've gotta step up my game because Sumi's been doing some crazy new stuff that some judges love. So, I need to get myself in order." Kasumi pulled Sumire up, the two of them twirling around each other before stopping with a paired pose. "So, I'm going to learn new moves from Sumi. Figure out which ones judges want to see no matter what."

"You know, that's a mess and I think I wouldn't want it any other way for you two." Alice grinned at the sisters hopping away from each other, Kasumi into a cartwheel and Sumire to reach up and grab a tree branch to climb into. "Look at them go you two."

"The diverging tracks bring them joy." Justine added with her eye closed and a smile on her face. "A wondrous bit of communication."

The sacriligeous path
Has brought you to the welcoming arms
Of your Chariot and their forgiveness
Take this boon and know you have changed.

"Yes, this is something new and good. As it should be, Wild--" Caroline snapped out of what she was about to say. The dreamlike air around the Twins was gone as they too stood up. "Alright, your reintegration for the day is almost done Exile. You have to take us home."

"My work is never done. I'll catch you both soon." Alice smiled at them as she began the path back to the Velvet Room. Even with the attitude back in their voices, the Twins were silent, almost peaceful on the walk back. "You two get what you want out of that?"

"Maybe. Something happened there that was powerful. Minds bent and twisted. You know but you should not tell us." Justine smiled as she talked looking up towards the sky. "You have to facilitate the search for answers, but the Priestess must find."

"Sure, I can do that. No spoilers about what happened there." Alice mimed zipping her lips closed. She wasn't sure that it wouldn't make the Twins lose their focus to be told. And the trance had shifted. Less disoriented, more focused. And now they're happy. "I'll see you for getting more personas fused soon."

"Yes, you will Exile. It's an important part of getting you back into society." Caroline shook her head and then pointed the baton at Alice. A simple dispelling of the lingering effects with self disorientation. "You better not make a mess of this! We're counting on you to keep moving forward so we can learn what our Master has missed."

"I will, I will. I don't plan to lose anymore you little pain in the ass." Alice clicked her hand at them, sending them away into the Velvet Room. She wished Ann could spoil her on what was going on. But that didn't seem possible with their last conversation. "Hope I can see you tonight though."

-----

"You know, most girls can be asked on a date the normal way. Not you, huh?" Ann waved from her seat on the crater, her mask set across her lap. Alice walked closer, settling in next to her with hands entwined. Ann’s mouth opened and closed, silent for a solid ten seconds before she slumped. "I can't tell you shit, tried just now."

"Figured, but not the real reason I wanted to see you." Alice stared out across the moon at the stars. The points of light were shifting, reorienting to be something new. A constellation that wasn't known was forming within them. It happened all the time when she was the moon. "I wanted to see you, because I missed you. And because I wanted to remind you that I'm going to figure out how to bring you back. Before I fuck up again."

"Nope to both counts. You can be stubborn about getting me back, but I'm pretty sure I don't belong there at all." Ann placed her hand on Alice's thigh, the fingers as cold as ever. The grip of death dug in after a moment, making Alice grin as she reached up and grabbed a fistful of Ann's hair with her hand. "And you didn't fuck up with Sae. Absolutely insane move from shitty me. Way more shortsighted than your 'I'll use my bullet wounds to fake an Awakening' ploy. Which, kinda impressive of her."

"Yeah, yeah, look I improvised. I had Adachi breathing down my neck. She’s just a bitch in a not fun way." Alice kicked her legs back and forth in the crater, groaning at the thought of how much she had fucked up everyone's lives at that point. "I did mess up. I should have realized that Ann would go for something to whip Makoto into a frenzy, since she can't make Palaces."

"Yeah, Makoto was distorted then but not Palace distorted. Ugh, so fucking shitty of her to do that. And maybe you should have predicted something with Sae but it wasn't your idea of how to approach it." Ann dragged her fingers up Alice's thigh, a little grin on her face. Alice twisted the hair in her hand, making Ann gasp. "Look, you can't predict it all, that's clear. So you're at where I was. I knew shit was fucked and I was reacting. You have the benefit of clear feelings for her."

"Yeah, I want to kick her ass. Yours too but yours would be way more fun." Alice leaned into Ann's neck, biting in and holding it. The flesh was warmer than before, her donation of heat still there. It was a process, to warm up a corpse to make it come back to life. That's what it had been for Alice after all. "Love your ass, hate hers."

"I'd--" Ann gasped, grabbing Alice's hair into a tight fist. One of two people who could do it without a panic. She pulled Alice back, the two of them keeping the other's lip from them. "I love you, still. Hate you a bit, still. Mostly for the gunshot."

"Yeah, I know, it makes sense. Only love here. Any hate has kinda gotten eaten by seeing it from your side. And wishing that I could  give it back to you. All of it." Alice ripped her hand and Ann closer, their lips crashing into one another. Lukewarm and blazing heat met, teeth and lip resealing the old ways of loving. Violent and passionate, a bruise that would say on Alice's lips for as long as she could keep dreaming. "And the other reason to keep this up, Shiho wants you there. All the devotion to her, it's about time you got to see her."

"As nice as that is in theory, it won't happen. I miss her, a lot. All of them. But it's kind of amazing getting to see her be a full fledged Thief." Ann smiled to the stars, forced to keep looking at them from here. "Keep making her happy. All of them, as much as possible. Although that's a big ask with Goro."

"I am, I am. But you're going to, eventually. Although some of them are going to take it weird. So, sorry about that." Alice let go of Ann, her girlfriend tackling her into the crater where the two of them slid down it until Ann was straddling her in the lunar dust. "Oh, feeling feisty tonight?"

"Tonight? Alice, this is lonely. Seeing you, them, but not being able to reach you? It's torment to be stuck and be still. But when you're here, I'm not. I can move, I can act, I can feel you." Ann leaned down, recycled breath ghosting across Alice's face. A morning spring breeze of coolness was the first thought Alice had about it. "It makes me almost feel alive, all those times trying to kill each other and here we are. With me on top."

"Oh you might be straddling me but I doubt you're going to manage topping. Even when you took your prize in Mementos, you still were on your knees." Alice grinned as she rolled her hips, making Ann close her eyes. "If this is what it takes to help you remember you could live, then I am the luckiest woman alive right now."

"Shut up and fu--" Ann was interrupted, the world around them turning to an infinite void. No moon. No stars. No Ann. No gravity. Alice pushed and the flames manifested for her hand.

Ann wasn't gone. Alice was moved.

The entire void around Alice opened to become a single unblinking yellow eye with a slit pupil. Every inch of Alice's skin felt like it had been combed over with a wire brush. She wanted to move but couldn't as the pupil swept back and forth in the everything that wasn't Alice. She forced her mouth open, her body quivering with the wrongness of the experience. The knowledge that the space in her mouth was now eye made her want to puke and scream. "Put me back, we were getting to the good part.”

"No, child of chaos." The voice was high pitched but shook Alice's body with a bassy resonance. The voice came in a chorus of a thousand voices. "You must learn to abandon these delusions to defeat the one who claims to be the master of the Velvet Room."

"I don't even know these delusions you speak of. I experienced what I want for her first hand." Alice's stomach was knotting itself. Again and again and again. An endless cycle of her body trying to deal with the wrongness. The continuous thought in the back of her head that every time her mouth was open that this eye filled the space in her body. This eye was the negative of the space that Alice had been in. Where nothing was, it was. "You're going to learn if you haven't that telling me what to do doesn't work out well."

"I want you to do what you desired. Destroy everything. Whether it be people or ways it matters little to me. You were a good acolyte before. You may yet return to that status if you keep this up." The eye's statement didn't make Alice feel better. She didn't want to go back to being that Alice. She wanted to destroy, but it wasn't lives for her own good. It was all the shitheads out there. Like whoever this was. Alice's hand burst into a nova of viridian flame, Ann agreeing with the sentiment as she began to burn at the space around them. Reducing the infection of reality around Alice. "You fight against the empowerment of who you are."

"New timeline, new me bitch ass." Alice pushed her flaming fingers apart until the green flames were every where she wasn't. Everywhere she could perceive at least. Which was enough for her to choke on the smoke and feel her skin swim in the heat. Then silence. Then her bed with a thin blanket over herself.

What the fuck was that all about? And how fucking dare they cock block me from Ann! BASTARD!

Chapter Text

"Alright, this is the second round here. Don't start things this time. Please." Alice flexed her hand, remembering the night before, the dream. The thing that interrupted her time with Ann. The flames curled around her waist for a moment, an approximation of her whip's old resting spot and where Ann’s hand would rest on the train rides together. Ryuji rolled his shoulder as they started walking through the maze. "Stick with me, Skull."

"Yeah, yeah, I got it." Ryuji's eyes wandered as they walked, looking over the flames and their possessive nature. Alice almost pat it, a little loving condescension. She kept her hand on her gun instead, watching for any Shadows while Ryuji was gawking. "Don't that hurt? I saw how it scorched concrete in that Mementos place during our conditioning run."

"The heat's comfortable to me. It's done with love." Alice grinned at him as the flames constricted for a moment and then retreated to be normal fingers again. Ryuji stared at her as he walked into a hedge, falling back with blood all over his face. "Idiot. Eyes ahead, not on her. Kushinada."

The green and yellow persona spun out ran her comb across Ryuji, sealing his wounds up. He blinked up at her. "Thanks. I, just, it's hard to get used to a bit. That is Ann. Like... she didn't leave us."

"Ugh, not exactly. Her parents moved her away. She came back and reconnected to you. She... didn't get the chance with Deadeye." Alice pulled Ryuji up, dragging him a few steps before he caught his footing again. A Shadow walked out of the hedge and Alice put a bullet in them without a thought, sending it back where it came. Ryuji whistled. "Focus. She's going to want to see you again. So you can’t die."

"Damn. That's even weirder to think about." Ryuji rounded a corner, his shotgun blowing a hole in a shadow without a pause. He grinned at Alice with pride and she gave him a little pat on the head. "What are you doing that for?"

"Oh, I thought you wanted to be praised." Alice teased him to a new blush on his face. He stammered for a moment as they walked out of the maze and she led him to the side. "Awww, kinda cute you react the same way."

"Hey, no fair! You can't just mess with me." Ryuji hissed as they walked along the edge of the maze, heedless to the fact that Alice was taking him the long way around the party. "Why you doin' shit like that?"

"Two reasons, Skull." Alice tapped her chin with the barrel of her gun, like she was considering at all. Shiho shot her a look as she guided Yusuke away from the food on the tables. Alright, buying him lunch after this. "One, because it's pretty funny. And two, look where we got because you weren't focused on your anger."

Alice swept her gun to point to the path past the feast, leading towards a horde of chefs milling around with cleavers and serving spoons in hands. Itou's Shadow directed them, with blade and chef's torch. "Don't hesitate, they all want to know they won't miss seconds! And someone make sure the new meal is out soon! The meat's thawed out now, courtesy our procurer. We won't have to deal with the meat ruining the meal with her ethics and manners either!"

"Of course, he would see her as little more than meat." Goro's fingers itched to his gun, stopped when Alice threw a hand in front of him. "It's disgusting. She was--"

"A human being, I know. We're going to avenge her. You think this is bad, wait till Adachi's Palace." Alice inched them around the edge of the field kitchen set up in the garden. A chef dragged a trussed up body onto the table. Alice ground her foot in as the rest of the Thieves all went to their weapons. "It won't change anything. Keep the weapons down, got it?"

Alice wished she said to look away as Itou buried the cleaver into the neck of the body, sending a spurt of blood into the air. Another slice, another spurt, the crack of bone piercing her mind. Alice's hand flared, the ripping of blade cutting tendon, memories of slicing herself apart sent her to her knee as she could feel her old hand trying to struggle against the trap. Trapped and torn apart, like whatever piece of Sae they were going to try and serve to the guests. Sumire's hand rested on Alice's back. "You're here, with us. Can you get up?"

"Yeah. I can, Lux. The treasure has to be in the building." Alice swallowed, trying to ignore the sensation of bone cracking again. Sumire hooked an arm under Alice's shoulder, pulling her up. "Avenger, Lux, start moving people if they don't."

"Understood." Sophia tugged along Goro, grabbing his gun hand before he started something. His free hand dragged Ryuji by the collar, dragging him along in a daisy chain towards the looming white plantation style building at the top of the hill. Futaba, Haru and Shiho scampered after them up the hill. A clear shot.

Yusuke and Sumire remained with her as she pushed herself into motion. A brief memory of Maruki's Palace, putting herself back together as her hand dissolved, because Yusuke fought for her with all his might against a would be god. Because Sumire didn't want to see her go.

That was enough to push her forward and through the lingering splintering pains as they went up the hill. One of Futaba's cameras stretched down towards them, showing Sophia trying to unlock the door. "What's the plan? Also, shadows are patrolling the hill towards you three."

"Find another way in today, Oracle. Cover all the windows. We have the Shadows in hand." Alice winked at Sumire, her Chariot winking back with hand to mask. A Shadow in a bonnet pushing a babystroller with a baby Shadow inside approached. The baby's rattle had a police issue revolver integrated into it, the mask similar to a riot police officer's protective equipment. "Hey, Fox. Show incoming."

"Is that so? You've not been wrong about that yet." Yusuke kept his hand on the hilt, that same patience and precision for changes analyzing as Sumire swirled with blue flame. "How did you know?"

Alice smiled at him and pointed as Sumire's hand tugged away the mask.

"You've figured out that facing a tyrant requires all your dedication, even if you might die! That you can't accept the changing tides coming now that you can live your life!"

"No, I can't! Let's shock them all, Brutus!" Sumire screamed as a stone man ground into existence next to her. Smoke leaked from his mouth, ears and nose. He and Sumire danced across the hill, armor and electricity lighting up the sky. The nanny set out a riot shield, rushing Sumire. She grabbed the top, flipped up and over the Shadow to kick it in the back. With its back exposed, Brutus dropped a thunderstorm's worth of lightning through the bonnet and turned it into a jittering charred mess. The baby shadow aimed a gun at Sumire's back, only to be run through as Yusuke blitzed towards it. "Knew you'd have me, Fox. Oh, that felt good. Way better than my Awakening."

"It was quite impressive. The turn from sensation seeking to a proud stoic. The fluidity of motion from the two of you, the lighting. I see now why your codename is Lux." Yusuke chuckled, sheathing his sword. Sumire nodded with a smile on her face as she spun on one foot then looked to Alice. "Proud?"

"Oh, I am. Come on, let's catch up and figure out if they found a way in yet. If not, I'm shattering a window and seeing what happens." Alice grabbed a rock off the ground as they walked up to the porch, Shiho and Sophia having pulled open a window. "No needless destruction yet. Alright everyone, head for the basement."

Alice was the first through the window, the team on her heels. The inside was plastered with photos of meals served to various members of Tokyo's elite. Several of them had been blacked out, all previous targets big and small the Thieves had hit. Kunikazu and Madarame were easy, but many of the Mementos targets that Alice had turned into Palaces were among who they had cleaned out. And yet Itou didn't care, didn't panic. Kept serving with no concern for himself. Goro shook his head. "I wonder if my father was once on these walls."

"I guarantee you, before the scandal he was." Alice pushed open the door to a hallway, this one lined with newspaper article clippings. Each one a praise for Itou's meals, pictures of him serving cuts of what she knew now were the people sacrificed at the altar of Adachi. "Talk to that reporter."

"Yes, I will. Soon." Goro's eye roll was obvious as the Thieves began trying doors in the hall. A room full of rusted utensils, all engraved with names was the first. Then a meat locker with more bodies hanging from it. "He has no compunctions about what he is."

"It's almost impressive how repulsive it is." Haru muttered as she aimed her grenade launcher into the room. She grit her teeth before sighing and letting it drop. "It is a mercy I am no longer considered a member of this I think."

"It is. I would quite hate having to steal your heart in retrospect." Goro quipped to a slap from the girl on the back of the head. "Thank you, I forgot you can't take a joke."

"I think I can, but they have to be funny, Crow." Haru snapped back and Alice groaned. They were all getting worked up, again. She tapped Futaba on the head.

"Get me a basement, as soon as possible. Before they lose the thread again." Alice whispered to a nod from Futaba. She and I-330 stretched out, searching the house. "How's it looking?"

"Third door, there. Goes down. This place gives me the creeps though." Futaba whispered as she highlighted what had to be the treasure. "It looks like a slaughterhouse down there. I don't know if this is the moment to look? I think I might puke if I smell it. The cameras were... a lot."

"Got it. That's our path. We just have to work on actually getting up here without losing our shit." Alice cracked her neck, cupped her mouth and yelled. "Pull back! Get your shit in order!"

-----

"Alice, if i may?" Yusuke held his sketchbook out to Alice, a representation of Itou's banquet sketched in. The guests had been entangled in the thorny bushes, the food wiped away and burned. A representation of the panic and of what Ann might do. Weaponizing the clients against the Thieves. "What do you think?"

"It's a decent thought, but she seems to pick something more destructive. A month ago I would have said she wouldn't armor up the clients first but something else is going on. I don't get it." Alice flicked to the next page, the rusted utensils now a barricade against them. A spartan view of what Ann might attempt. Repurposing. "I'm not sure of anything else with her except her being a danger. A thought I wouldn't believe before. I think she'd weaken the floors in the plantation house. She might guess how pissed we are with the nature of the Palace, what they're getting away with. In which case she might actually force us to witness more of it. See how messy it can make us. That’s what I’d have done. Alternatively, she'll hide it."

"Her ruse with your student council president. You think that she wants to make sure that Makoto doesn't see the truth of the Palace, make it look like we are attacking another member of SIU for no reason." Yusuke hummed, changing pages to begin again. Alice dragged him into beef bowl place, forcing him to take a seat while she ordered. He could draw and then eat once it was served. "Perhaps then she will take a two pronged approach? Force Makoto to see nothing but roses and for us to see only the horrors?"

"I think that is actually the smartest thing you could have said about this." Alice took a seat, leaning on the metal of her hand. The cool steel wicked away the heat in Alice, the little frustration at how much harder Ann's power made revealing the truth to Makoto. Yusuke looked up at her with a frown. "Ugh, not that you weren't having good ideas before. This is correct, I think. The trick is how do we do this without ruining team morale and patience first?"

"That I am unsure of. It was easy for me to compartmentalize much of what was going on in there. It was not real, only an illusion and delusion. Goro, Sophia, the others? They delved into the metaphor too far." Yusuke frowned at the food that slid to him. Alice forced the chopsticks into his hand. "I will eat. I would advise blindfolding them if that would not make us ripe for attacks by Ann."

"Yeah, that would be a bad idea. We won last time, but she has help and I don't want to put Makoto in the grave. She's annoying, not a monster." Alice tapped her temple as she started working through the food that landed next before her. The wait staff here were not paid enough to pay attention to their words with earbuds buried well behind locks of hair. "So, we want to make Makoto see the truth. We want her to know we're targeting Itou for being a monster. But I don't think I can drag her in. And guaranteed Ann told her who we all are."

"That would be prudent, if one remembered such a thing." Yusuke hadn't remembered that if the way he was sketching with one hand and eating with the other went. "Ann is most likely to use the hedges to funnel our path through the horrors. The invisible wall means we have to go through it. That would force our sightlines down the path, through a grisly visage of human meat. The plants growing from the blood."

"Reds that stoke anger too." Alice mused to a nod from Yusuke. It was nice having someone that got this part. She hummed between bites, twirling her chopsticks between her fingers. "So, she can paint the picture for us. And we can't break through easily."

"No. We can't." Yusuke's eyes lingered on Alice's hand, the joints bending to scratch at the edge of her temple. "Your hand, in the Palace. It moves, reshapes itself. You have mostly used it to comfort Shiho and Ryuji. How big could it get?"

"That is something I haven't tested. It's something we should." Alice smiled at Yusuke, because that was the outside the box thinking she needed from him. He nodded back, flicking to another page. Flames began to form a sphere around quick representations of the Thieves. "So, we're making something a lot more pleasant to look at. We use that to navigate with Futaba. Assuming I can make it work. Great plan, told you I needed your attention to detail. So, how's your art going?"

"Why, thank you. I have been working on incorporating the Palace's predisposition to bright colors into my art. Something much more garish than I used to do with the landscapes to match Madarame's supposed period." Yusuke huffed, working through the last of the food in his bowl. A frustration. With the past or the future. "I still can't completely hate him. I try and I try and I can't. How do you manage to hate people who hurt you so much? You can't recognize the good they've done for you?"

"Little presumptuous there, Yusuke." Alice shook a finger at him as she flagged the waiter, getting them each another bowl. She wouldn't finish hers. He would. But he'd be awkward about it if she didn't. "I can recognize that say the Old Adachi gave me the ability to push my art. But he hurt me. And I don't forgive that. I can't forgive that. Not just for me who he hurt but the girls before me. And the ones after me. The reason I can't forgive Ann now is because losing my hand sucks. All the little peeks at the old her I loved weren't worth it. Add in the fact she could have stopped hurting people I care about and did the opposite? Fuck her."

"Hm. You focus not only on yourself in these bursts. You focus on others. Draw your hatred from that. As Goro did from my treatment. As we all did from seeing Haru's father." Yusuke looked at the start of sketch, adding notes on colors. Neons at the edge, catching the eye and pulling them in. The center a statue garden falling apart in slow motion. Forcing everyone to look at the degradation and suffering they were going through. "Your eyes are lighting up."

"I'm seeing the vision, that's all. Like the concepting that you’re doing." Alice took a lazy bite as Yusuke's food disappeared in chunks, his attention on her. "You're dragging the viewer towards the center. The spectacle at the edge can only pull them in, it can't sustain them because it's just color, right?"

"You do see it. Yes from there, their eyes in seeking a reprieve from what they were demanded to see must now behold the suffering." Yusuke set down his bowl, returning to the sketch and filling more of the page with a color guide. "What do you think of the choice of suffering?"

"That it's meant to highlight those suffering in silence, right? You've got statues which can't speak, but can be studied and seen. And they're falling apart while permanently stuck one way." Like a lot of you before I met you. Yusuke smiled, filling in the colors of each of the Thieves' hair for their clothing. Which was a cute obfuscation. "Feeling good about it?"

"I think so. We'll have to see how it translates to the canvas. But I'm glad for you reminding me that hatred does not only have to be for my own sake." Yusuke set his pencil down, looking to the door as he produced a little money from his share of the Shadow money to pay for their food. Alice had not been fast enough on the draw, not this time. "I perhaps have not focused enough on Nakanohara’s feelings in this. He has stayed to take care of the atelier and me. And I have not considered that he might hate that but was putting it aside. Because I am selfish!"

"Slow the fuck down there. You're not selfish, we went from Madarame to all the shit with Maruki. And then I lost a fucking hand. So, you're good. Talk to him then. Figure out if you both need something new." Alice paused, considering for a moment. "And find out what he's doing with his art. Help him to do that."

"As you have given me aid, to give myself permission to be more forthcoming. To experiment." Yusuke folded over his sketchbook, bowing his head towards Alice. "I am in your debt."

"Nope, you're not. Come on, let's go get you a canvas to get started on."

------

"Welcome, Alice." Haru bowed her head as she pulled  open the door to her room. She hadn't decorated the little dorm room beyond a line of plants in the windowsill. A line of small flowers soaking up all the light they could in the warm climate control. The bed, desk, all of it was in immaculate condition and organization. "You're grading my decoration, aren't you?"

"A little bit. Figuring out what to get you as a gift actually." Alice took a seat on the edge of the desk, crossing one leg over another as she set out the phone with Sophia on it. The AI peered around the room, her mouth open in wonder. "Welcome to seeing Haru's space."

"I like the flowers. I think you need more on the wall over there." Sophia pointed to a patch of bare wall, standing on tip toes like it would get her a better angle. There was an innocence to her now, now that she wasn't trying to be angry in Alice's presence all the time. Haru giggled and tapped the wall, a little confirmation seeking. "Yes, there!"

"I'll keep that in mind if I ever make the trip for decorations. I have been focused on trying to not drown in problems in the fallout of my Father's arrest." Haru sat on the bed underneath the spot, her hair forming an arc of color across the white. It wasn't perfect but it was something. "I would make you tea but I don't have any at this time."

"You really don't have to. I wanted to come by and check in. It has been a lot going on. You and Makoto fist fought. And it was like two days after you moved in here." Alice traced a flesh finger across the desk, her stump hiding away in a jacket pocket. She didn't want to make this about that. She wanted to center Haru. Sophia wanted to help. "You're dealing with a lot of tumult."

"I know I am. But it is easier to focus on other problems. And not think about the fact that Mako is in that bitch's clutches." Haru's fist slammed onto the bed, bouncing her pillow into the air. Sophia winced and Haru's hand went to her mouth in surprise. "I am sorry, I didn't mean to--"

"It is not that. I am unused to seeing that level of anger outside myself towards Ann. Shiho and Alice have a sadness to theirs." Sophia tapped her fingers together, confirming a little thought in Alice's brain, that Sophia was still a bundle of rage. Only aimed now. "You should be mad at her. Makoto is in danger and only wants to go deeper."

"Yes, she is. And I wish that we could show her the other way without a fight." Haru gripped her bedspread, bunching it into her fist. She trembled, a prelude to a burst of rage. Not crying like many had thought. "I am going to kick some sense into her if I can."

"I'm sure you will. But we need to make sure we're careful with how we approach it. She knew how to fight before she Awakened." Alice closed her eyes, running through a hundred times she saw Makoto fight through a horde of shadows with little more than her fists and choice use of her persona. She was restrained and thoughtful in her application of force. Even enraged, she knew when to pull back. Then. Is that the case still? Being the only one alive? "My main hope is that she won't know how to deal with what Ann can do because that will raise a lot of questions for her."

"I don't know. Ann seems to not care how she comes across, instead banking on pure infatuation from Mako." Haru's voice squeaked, the jealousy rushing her words. Alice rapped her knuckles on the desk. "Sorry, I'm getting--"

"Jealous, I can tell. Don't blame you. Maybe if Makoto still talks to us after we open her eyes, you can shoot your shot." Alice stuck her tongue out to a blushing Haru. Sophia giggled with hand to mouth. "We'll even help."

"Yes, I would like to make sure that my friend Haru can be happy. It feels like a good goal in addition to clearing our name." Sophia chimed in, her heart hair bouncing with the shake of her head. Haru's face only got more red with embarrassment at the callout. "Is that not what you want?"

"It is, I just was not expecting my love life to come up in this. But, a chance to help Mako and maybe tell her how handsome she is. That would be nice." Haru scratched the side of her face, looking away. Alice flashed her a thumbs up. "You are very attentive to me in this, both of you. Is there anything I can do to help?"

"You having the heart to reach out to Makoto is a lot better than where I am on handling this. So, take lead with her, as much as possible." Alice mimed a finger gun at Haru, the girl rolling her eyes. "Look, part of all of this that I have learned is delegation. And you have the strongest Makoto feelings. So use them. Sophia has some of the biggest investment in the Thieves, so she makes a great leader when we split up for example. I can trust Goro and Shiho to catch things with their bird’s eye views. Futaba predicts what I want all the time."

"Alice has very much taken to heart the positives of listening to others. She will push back but she does it only when she sees problems. It is something I still marvel at these days." Sophia looked away for a moment and Alice shrugged. Sophia didn't need to be called out on their burgeoning friendship. The admittance that they care for one another. "What is your plan for Makoto?"

"That I will use Chevette to keep her from fighting. Make her watch how we fight and don't kill Itou's Shadow. Show the conversation we will have with him." Haru unfurled her fingers, leaving peaks of bedspread jutting into the air. Sophia nodded, her hair whipping with the motion. "This means I will not be able to corral Ann as much."

"You're going to need help with it. But that's fine. Sophia, you want to help her. How about you two work on that? Pick one more person. The rest of us will fight Ann." Alice flexed the muscles that would work her hands. If the flame sphere worked, she could do far more with her hand that Ann wouldn't see coming. A feinting fight that would leave the girl off balance. Haru and Sophia met with their eyes before flashing a thumbs up. "Cool. One thing, I need Ryuji and Shiho. We're going to use whatever little amount of a heart she has left against her. She accused me of using Shiho for that once."

"That is far from the truth. You picked Shiho to be able to free herself. You did the same for Yusuke and I." Haru growled and then grinned. "So, might as well get her with irony now, right?"

"Pretty much. I'm so proud of you for getting how to be a bitch to someone else." Alice pushed off the desk, bringing Sophia close so Haru could tap the open palm for a high five. "Anything else on your minds?"

"I would like to work with Haru in Mementos if she has the energy after classes today." Sophia beamed to Haru's matching wicked grin. Those shadows didn't have a chance. "Shall we?"

"We shall. See you Alice."

------

Alice walked up to Shujin's gate, the other students flooding past her in a rush to escape education and its guard dog. The one staring right at Alice with arms crossed and hatred burning in her eyes. Ryuji stood right by Alice's side, his foot bouncing in frustration. "Ugh, why can't she let you be?"

"You know why. I'd tell you to pull back from this so she doesn't make assumptions but I bet it's too late already." Alice strode towards Makoto, pulling the black haired wig off her head. Makoto's fists tightened, her feet shifting into a stance to slug her. Girl, if you were like this more you would kill it with the girls other than Ann. Maybe you wouldn't have gotten ensnared. Maybe you'd be the butch you were happy as. "Hey Makoto, if you want to fight the amputee, maybe pick somewhere else."

"You. You're mocking me. You're trying to set me off." Makoto growled and took a step closer. Which was her setting herself off, like an angry idiot. Which made sense right now. Alice kept walking, Ryuji pausing in confusion. Makoto stomped after Alice, bringing Ryuji along once he figured out what was going on. "I can't believe you showed yourself here after you killed her!"

"I didn't." Alice kept it simple, kept herself moving. Kept herself listening for the distance that Makoto's feet were at. If the girl tried something Ryuji would try something first and get hurt. But keeping Makoto talking wouldn't do that. "I liked your sister. But you know, Ann fed you who knows how many lies."

"I know it sucks learning what Ann does, but she really doesn't have your best interest at heart Makoto. She killed your--" Ryuji didn't get to finish the words the moment they hit the alley, Makoto's fist colliding with his stomach. Alice had to give him credit as he responded by slamming his forehead into hers, stunning the both of them. Alice slipped off her hand, remembering the admonishment about fighting with it. She slammed her way between the two of them as they began to grapple and feed each other punches to the stomach. The shoving blow knocked them both to the ground. "Alice, she--"

"Is angry and pissed. She's also blinded." Alice slammed her foot down on Makoto's arm that went for her leg, pinning it. She kneeled down, twisting her heel a little. For making her hurt Ryuji. Makoto didn't scream, only spit at Alice and lunged for her throat. Alice's foot kept her pinned with hands swiping short of her throat. "If I wanted Sae dead, why would I send a calling card? Why would I link the Phantom Thieves to a murder?"

"You wanted to scare SIU, the police!" Makoto screamed at her and bit Alice's leg. It was the least sexy bite she ever got but it was some spunk Alice had to admit as she pulled her leg back. Ryuji kicked Makoto in shin, wincing after using the sore leg. Motherfucker. Makoto slugged him in the face and pulled out her phone, sending them to Mementos. The three of them stood in the reddened alley as their outfits burned into being. Makoto had her road leathers still, her knuckles sheathed in steel. Dangerous. "I'm going to kill you, Alice!"

"Dude, knock it off!" Ryuji yelled as he pulled away his mask, Jessup sending a whirlwind down between them to stop Makoto from lunging again. Alice rolled her neck, staring down Makoto. "Do it again and we'll blow you over Makoto. Listen to Alice for once in your fucking life!"

Makoto kicked up the wall to a nearby fire escape, then dove for Alice. Jessup's wind storm struck again, hitting Makoto's raised fist as she slammed the tempest towards him. Ryuji crossed his arms, blocking the storm. Alice took a simple step to the side, keeping her hand from bursting out. Love you Ann, not the moment. "Hey, I wonder. Did Ann ever tell you that we're in a time loop?"

"There's no such thing as a time loop!" Makoto threw a right hook as she bounced up from the ground, missing Alice's face by centimeters. Alice hopped to a dumpster, then to an awning. Leading Makoto on a merry chase as the ball of rage blazed towards her. "You're just lying to me to get me off balance."

"Really? I guess that's how I knew Kamoshida was an abuser before I showed up to school? How I stole Wakaba's heart and kept her from getting killed on Christmas?" Alice hopped next to Ryuji, the boy slamming Makoto's next blow with a trashcan lid to send her backwards. "How do you think I went right to Madarame too? Why do you think I had bait for Haru?"

"Why do you think she told me she kicked a rapist's ass to prove how cool she was?" Ryuji grabbed the next fist from Makoto, falling into her trap as the angry woman launched him over her head by falling backwards and kicking him in the gut. He landed face down, much like the first time Alice saw him. "Guh, she hits like a freight train."

"I think you could have found all that out from here! And I don't think you stole that heart! Ann did!" Makoto went for Alice's face as she dropped, the brawler going sailing overhead. Alice whipped off her mask, sending a wave of healing back to Ryuji. He groaned out his thanks. "Just because you take care of your fellow killers doesn't win you points with me."

"I healed my teammate. Because you hit him for trying to stop you." Alice rolled her eyes as she dismissed Kushinada again. Makoto's hand went to her mask, ready to summon. "Strange, I assumed Ann would have told you to hold on tight to what your persona can do. Or are you realizing you can't win this fight you picked and you're getting desperate?"

"MAKE THEM SHUT UP DECKARD!" Makoto ripped away the steel visor, clinking it off the wall. A man in a brown trenchcoat appeared, his flesh shimmering into metal and then dulling to flesh. His eyes glowed the green of the sights of his revolver while rain dripped from him in an endless cycle. He aimed his gun for Alice's breast. Like old times. Ryuji wasn't behind her. He fired.

Alice slipped around the barrel, a cursed bolt slamming into the ground from where he had to lower his aim to hit her. Wisps of it tore away the flesh on her arm, leaving it raw and red where the dress was torn away. Alice slammed her hip into a surprised Makoto, sending her into the wall. Deckard grasped for her only to catch a blast of wind to the back. "Makoto, Alice isn't even trying."

"Doesn't matter if she's mocking me. Doesn’t matter if she's gloating that she doesn't have to try to kill me. I'm going to take her with me!" Makoto swung for Alice's leg, catching a foot to the chest. Alice slammed her down into the ground. Makoto tried to grab Alice's leg. That's when she flared her hand to life and swatted the arm to the side. "You're a killer. Justice is going to get you. I will. Somehow."

"Makoto, you have so much to learn. The first of which?" Alice jumped back and launched Makoto rolling out of the alley with a kick. The girl bounced once and then twice before hitting a building. "You're on the losing side. Because you and Ann have something in common, an inability to actually recognize a hand up. Don't worry, we're going to show you the truth. We just have to steal our next treasure. Prove our innocence."

"Yeah! And then you can join us in fighting Ann, because she fucked you over!" Ryuji pumped his fist in the air. It was optimistic, the good golden retriever boy there as always. Something that Alice had no choice but to appreciate now. "Just you wait."

"I'll never turn on her!" Makoto lied to herself as much as them, pushing herself up. If Alice could get through to Makoto, she'd flip. It was only a matter of the right evidence. "I'm going to end your--"

Makoto's attempt to charge was stopped as she fell to a knee, blood running down her chin. Alice tapped off her mask, Kushinada floating in the air. "I get being angry and stupid. Once you're thinking straight, I'll share those stories. For now, go home. Rest up. We'll have a fight again later."

Makoto spit blood on the ground, adding another drop of crimson in a sea of it. Kushinada wiped away her pain as Alice started walking away. Makoto started to move behind her, the footsteps stopped as a gale of wind blew past Alice and ruffled her dress. It was enough of a hint from Ryuji. "Luna's right. You'll have to learn. Thought you were smart, you know? Guess you just believe whatever someone tells you."

Makoto couldn't manage a response. They didn't see her when they left Mementos or in the fifteen minutes after. Idiot.

Chapter Text

Shinjuku hadn't been Alice's place, not last loop. Too many opportunities to be seen and mobbed if she didn't dress down. Too much of her image controlled to let her be seen here. Fucking laughable compared to what she did with the Metaverse.

Now, without a reputation to uphold, it wasn't that exciting. No forbidden allure. A lot of barkers who thought she needed a man. Or worse thought that--

"Couple's discount! You two would look great in the bubble room!" A barker stomped towards Goro, the man letting out the longest and most exhausted sigh in response. Alice flipped off the barker and kept moving. They had a mission, find Ichiko Ohya at Crossroads. Get Goro's story told. "I just think you would have a grea--"

"I wouldn't be caught dead dating her." Goro winked at him and the man choked on his spit as he sputtered. Alice cackled as they waltzed past him and up to the doors of the bar. Neon running along the walls, beckoning them lower. A descent from the realm of assumed heterosexuality. “A classy place to meet, isn’t it?”

Alice didn’t answer him. Who cared as long as it worked now.

"Two kids, huh? Don't cause any trouble and don't ask anybody to buy you booze. I can tell when those orders come in." The trans woman behind the bar glared right at the two teenagers who entered. The most pointed stare was at Goro and his brown blazer and slacks with tie. Alice flounced up to Ohya who was at the end of the bar, nursing some sort of brown liquor. "And she especially should know better than to buy booze for kids."

"C'mon, Lala they're here to spin me a tale." Ohya lifted up her glass the ice clinking within. Lala scoffed and slammed down three cups of water. "They could have juice. I could have whiskey."

"I'd hate to force myself upon your reporter's salary, Ohya." Goro took the seat next to the woman while Alice picked up her water and took a seat on the opposite side of the reporter, leaning back on the bar and grabbing the water glass with her prosthetic. "Are you sure you're going to be sober enough to record this? I don't want to give my information for it to never be published because it's incoherent."

"Hey! I'm one of the best damn investigative reporters in this city. Just cause I've had a drink or two doesn't mean that I'm incapable." Ohya grumbled at him, slamming her glass down and setting down a notebook. She tossed her pen onto the paper while Alice shrugged at Goro. "Why are you here anyway? Moral support?"

"I'm the muscle, believe it or not." Alice flexed her prosthetic at Ohya, the fingers bending light around them in her eyes. The woman snorted at her. "Oh, trust me, I know how to fight."

"Ichiko, focus on the boy. Miss Snarky is here for a reason." Lala moved over next to Alice, looking down at her. "And she won't cause trouble unless she wants to get kicked out and be questioned about why she's in Shinjuku this late."

"I'm not starting anything." Alice rolled her eyes at Lala, wishing that Ann's stories of this place had mentioned the bartender was a bitch. Her eyes traced the tubes of neon into the rest of the bar, a few broken up booths with people drinking. One woman alone caught Alice's eye, the reporter on crutches from the press conference. The one with rapport with Sae. Eri Natsuhara. Later, Goro first. "Ichiko, just write out some notes for Goro and I'll bet that he can tell you're coherent."

"Very well, that would do something for me. Alice, I hate how much you can just do these things." Goro sneered, running his finger around the edge of the glass. He was stalling, pushing off this conversation. Ohya scribbled out a description of the two of them and handed it over. He read aloud, for Alice’s benefit. "The teenager before me, Goro Akechi dresses clean and neat. No name brands are obvious but his clothes fit him, probably a custom job. He's come in with a friend, she might be his polar opposite. Where his clothes portray neutrality, a professional set of colors, hers do the opposite. Neon blue to go with neon green hair and a black prosthetic hand that she uses with ease. Both of them are full of piss and vinegar however, ready to argue from moment one."

Goro's recitation led to an exchange of looks with Alice. She pointed to herself and made a cutting motion across her neck. She wasn't part of the story. Goro drew lines through the description around Alice and handed it back to Ohya. "Leave Alice out of this. She isn't part of the story that you want. I'm here to finish the burial of Masayoshi Shido, personally."

"Ooooh, okay, now you're talking. Let me have it." Ohya's enthusiasm came with Eri poking her head around her laptop. Her makeup was smudged now that she wasn't hiding away in the booth's shadows. Alice twisted her face into a grimace, realizing who it had to be over. "Eri, sit down, it's not Phantom Thieves stuff."

"No, I guess not." Eri grunted as she fell backwards to sit down again. Alice wondered, if the reporter knew to ask the right questions, did she know that this was far out of the MO? Alice winked at Eri. "You got something for me?"

"Maybe. Him first." Alice tilted her head towards Goro and the sliding glass of water in his hands. She stuck her tongue out at him and he straightened  out. "It's the Goro show, strut."

"I was waiting on you all to finish whatever that was about." Goro played like he wasn't recognizing the same things about Eri. He was as bad as Alice for analyzing everything going on, hunting for a weakness. Years of feeling the need to appease to get himself where he was going. "Masayoshi Shido is my biological father, a fact he has gone to extenuating lengths to hide. Including an attempted murder attempt."

"Oh, you have got to give me all the details on this. And evidence. You better have some evidence." Ohya' glared at Alice about that and she shrugged, watching how the booze seemed to melt out of the woman in the process of becoming a reporter again. The whiskey glass was half empty, the glass fresh with only a hint of condensation. She was drinking it, she wasn't faking that. Her drive was that strong it seemed. Goro slipped her paperwork and a photograph. "Oh, that's definitely a young Shido, I'd know those stupid sunglasses. And a birth certificate and a paternity test. Damn, this never came out how?"

"He took quite a bit of bribes to have the money to bury it during his initial bid for Prime Minister in 2008." Goro mumbled, his foot curling around the metal of his stool. Alice looked away, removing that bit of pressure from him. "Ruined my mother's life so she couldn't get work. She was labeled a whore and me a bastard son. She got ill because she couldn't afford proper care for her and myself. She passed and from there I went into foster care, knowing who he was. I attempted to get my hands on him. He used that to try and strangle me. This is the hospital visit photographs. I was never able to press charges. Two years later, he would be caught in the bribery scandal."

"Fingerprint record not found.  A report of the police entering his home, I can double check that, kid." Ohya muttered, scribbling across her pad. Goro tapped his fingers on the bar. "Relax, I believe you. I need corroborating evidence to not get a libel case. So, he tried to kill you, the case went nowhere. Then what?"

"I dedicated myself to schooling, earned a scholarship to Shujin." Goro shrugged, relaxing as it became about him and his accomplishments that could be told. "I've excelled academically. Kept myself out of trouble. Watched his fall from grace with some delight but it's not enough. He could recover someday."

"You want him buried, like you said. I think if you want to start giving me the hard details. in writing if that's easier, we can work out an article. Even my editor will want to see this." Ohya clicked her pen, handing it to Goro with the notebook. Alice pushed up from the bar, inching towards Eri. "Hey, you must have a story too. How'd you know him?"

"That's easy. I go to the same school. And no, you can't get the story of my hand." Alice locked eyes with Goro, the pen pausing for a moment. "You tell me when you're done. I'm curious about her."

"Of course you are. Remember what they said about the cat." Goro teased as Alice flipped him off. Ohya laughed for a moment as she turned back to her drink. "Hey, you have to stay sober."

"I will, I will." Ohya bemoaned at him while doing the opposite. Alice rolled her eyes and landed in the seat across from Eri. The woman's drink contrasted Ohya's. Bright, pink and not a whiff of alcohol. She’s sensible or it’s dangerous to drink. She shifted to look at Alice's hand and then pulled back the strand of purple hair that had fallen across her eye. A simple glass eye looked back at Alice.

"Came to trade getting fucked up stories?" Eri closed her laptop, leaning on her hand. Her voice was raspy, clotted with phlegm. Alice wavered her hand in a so-so motion. "What's got you here?"

"I saw you at the press conference, questioning Sae. Saw someone kind of like me in this way." Alice made the metal tink against her glass, a note for the woman to understand. "And I just wanted to meet you after that. Got a lot of shit for being uppity before this happened. More now."

"Not one to mince words are you?" Eri leaned back in the booth, wincing as her legs stretched across the booth. "Me either. I don't super want to talk about that part of my life at this moment. Kinda bummed."

"Sae was someone you were close to." Dating? Dated? Alice watched Eri's eye fall to her knee. All the confirmation she needed. "It's bullshit. She was a good woman. She tried to talk me out of a plea deal."

"Shit, she did?" Eri closed her eyes, tilting her head back in memory. A tear smudged more of the eyeshadow sending it down her face in a streak. Sexy in the abstract, anger inducing here. More of Ann's damage. More of what Alice might have caused. "Did you listen?"

"No, but I wasn't gonna bother putting up the fight against a man with that much money. Off the record, I could tell you who and what I did. Saying more violates probation." Alice's words drew Eri out of her pity party, locking onto her. Perfect. Good. Let's get you amped up. "Tohru Adachi. He was trying to hurt a girl. Me and my foot made sure he didn't and couldn’t for the rest of the night at least."

"You know most people come in here and say they kicked the biggest name in modeling in the dick and I'd call them a liar." Eri pointed at Alice, getting a make up removal wipe in return. She laughed, wiping away a make up streak. "You're trying to distract me."

"Like I said, off the record. Lot of shit stinks, Eri. He's one of them." Alice paused, watching Eri nod in agreement. "You think so too?"

"Yeah. I fucking do. You're a Shujin student, right?" Eri glanced out of the booth where Ohya and Goro were scratching and editing on the notepad. Creating the article's specifics. Alice nodded. "What was your opinion on Kamoshida?"

“Rapist. Tried to attack me. Hurt people I was close to. Threatened Goro over the calling cards." Alice let that word linger to a nod from Eri. "You're wondering my opinions on the Phantom Thieves? They saved lives doing that. If my friend didn't get out from under Kamoshida's oppression she'd have killed herself. That shit with Sae? Coverup."

"Exactly! This doesn't fit anything we've seen but our editors don't believe us!" Eri waved her hands around, pointing to Ohya. It was a blessing she was too caught up to get dragged into this, two excitable reporters would be too much right now. "It's pretty suspicious that Madarame and Okumura had their confessions sealed. They're being prosecuted but they confessed on live TV and we know nothing. Sae was complaining about it and I think that-- I shouldn't say that to you. You're here to find hope or some shit."

"You kidding? This is lifting my hopes too. Because it's insane hearing them get accused of murder days after they forced a confession out of a man who admitted to contracting killings and abusing workers." Alice glared at the pink concoction disappearing down Eri's throat. The reporter wiped her mouth with her arm and slammed it down. "I hate them for it. Hearing someone who wasn't hurt by Kamoshida agreeing with me is good."

"Then you came to the right spot kid. I don't know who did this or why, but I want to find out. I want to see them laid low as can be for taking my... friend away." Eri chose her words with care until Alice raised the wrist of her left hand and the trans pride bracelet glowed in the light back here. Eri's reinvigoration faded, slumping down into her chair. "We were trying to figure out dating. Too late now. Always too late. Some asshole has to feel like they have power and they have to sacrifice someone for it."

Yeah, okay, she gets it.

"Yeah, it's horse shit. It's what Goro went through. What everyone did with Kamoshida, Madarame, Okumura and Adachi. And whoever's killing people and decided to blame the Thieves, well that's even worse." Alice crunched her fingers in towards her palm, a thunder of anger in her gut. And Eri matched it with her crutch slamming into the ground. "So, you got leads?"

"No, I don't. Buuuuuuuuuuuut, I did hear a good rumor about a certain CEO that Sae would have loved if it became something." Eri winked at her and then opened her laptop. She spun it around on a calendar app, the trackpad warm and inviting. When to start looking. "Any dates look neat there?"

"Oh, this one." Alice tapped onto the date she gave Adachi that injury that wasn't grievous enough. Maybe it would have spared Ann any descent. But it probably hadn't. "Good luck following that rumor, sounds like a pain."

"Well, girls who are fucked up like us have to be persistent, you know?" Eri pulled back her laptop, clicking and clacking on it. "I never got your name, I'm an idiot."

"Alice Hiiragi. Always glad to meet someone who gets things." Alice pushed up by her fist as Goro stood up from the bar. "Thanks, for the pick me up in a different direction."

"Thanks for the tip." Eri flicked a business card to her. "You remember anymore, well, text me. And... thanks for the little bit of a reminder that she thought she could do good."

"No problem. I meant it, I liked her. You were lucky to have had her." Alice tucked the card away, looking at her phone. She wanted to call Ann, bitch her out. Make her look at the damage her little game had caused. The broken hearted and angry woman. It wouldn't matter. Shiho was right, there was a demon lodged in her now. Not the real Ann. That one would be resurrected and brought into the world again. "Come by Leblanc sometime, I'll make you a coffee you'll love."

"Sounds like it might be worth the aches. Good night, Alice." Eri waved, her brow furrowed in concentration and a tear running down her cheek again. But she had a mission, a monster to pillory in the town square in Sae's honor. It would be beautiful.

Alice's departure summoned Goro in a moment, their emptied glasses passing back to Lala. "You two be safe getting home now. No finding out if that girl really is the muscle."

"We won't have any trouble, I'm sure." Goro gave her that stupid fake smile before he shook his head. "The two of us are tougher than we look, trust me."

"His head is hard enough that one headbutt will send them to the hospital." Alice joked as she ran up the stairs, a grumbly Goro on her heels. She hopped off the stairs with a half spin to face him. He was lighter if annoyed. Standing up straight, no slouch and eyes locked on her. Not doubt there either. "Feel good?"

"Quite good to be honest. It was freeing to get to detail every bit of the scum he was. To have someone believe me about it. And not because they knew in a frankly invasive way." Goro slipped on gloves, fighting the late night chill that swirled on the wind. Alice nodded, walking backwards while they talked. "And it isn't bad that you knew, it got me doing all of this. I've helped to make some monsters squirm our way. But there's something about knowing that I didn't need Phantom Thieving to do this, that it was my willingness to make sure Ohya got it right."

"That's something, I would suppose. And it's probably good to have a backup plan." Alice hopped up onto a curb, flashing her prosthetic at a barker approaching. The coward ran away from it. "What's next then?"

"I wait to see if she can actually ram it through her editor. And if so, I watch my dear father get one more set of just desserts." Goro hopped down the stairs to the subway, past Alice. She slid down the railing after him, earning a glare from the others leaving Shinjuku. Like they weren't here for drinks, sex or what other things the world hated as much as teenagers being teenagers. "And I get to know that maybe trusting you like this wasn't a bad idea. Something I've struggled with, especially when you have pushed back time after time on what I have said."

"Yeah, I have. Which is because we are both stubborn bitches." Alice tapped her card twice, letting Goro through without having to pay. A little apology. "And that's not bad. It makes me consider it, justify it. Make it less instinct, more thoughtful."

"Well other than one glaring problem it's been a fairly successful venture. You have us well on our way to another heart stolen. And this one might collapse Adachi all on its own." Goro admitted as he pulled them into the subway car. Alice couldn't disagree but she wanted to collapse Adachi anyway. Make him suffer for it. "If you told me I'd be trusting the green haired punk with my life for almost six months, I'd have cackled. How do you keep that up?"

"Fuck if I know. Used to be doing what would make the old Ann proud. And now it's just doing it. On instinct." Almost like I could have been a good person from the beginning with a little help. Just a bit of investment. "It's strange to think of. I'm still a bitch. I just don't need to fuck people over for my own good. Well, not people who don't deserve it."

"Exactly. It's tempting to strike against everything that hurt us, but it's been far easier with your help. With everyone's help. Except Sakamoto. He's a detriment and he better get his shit together." Goro pointed at Alice, an accusatory finger. "I can't believe you when you said he'd be a good Thief."

"Guess he didn't brag about helping me whip Makoto's ass when she tried to jump us. Whoops. He's good, don't worry." Alice waved as Goro transferred lines, leaving her to ride along. She pulled out her phone, Sophia peering up at her. "How you doing, Sophia?"

"I am considering things. In light of what you have said. There is a wealth of information that could light those like Eri on fire to do the right thing. There are many people who need a direction to swing their blades. But they don't know where, correct?" Sophia mimed one of Yusuke's dramatic slices, fake draw of the katana and all. Alice nodded at her. "Should I try to spread that info to others?"

"I don't know, Sophia. It's good but is it something you would have fun doing?" Alice flipped her phone around to let Sophia see a dog walking along the subway with a person rushing after it. "I think that you have to want to do it and enjoy it, for whatever you pick."

"I see. Like how you have put that effort into sewing. How Goro has put all his effort into understanding what he's doing." Sophia yawned and Alice matched it as they departed at Yongen. "I want to be Humanity's Companion. But I am most comfortable with the Thieves. The thought of others, it scares me. A little."

"Well, you're lucky. You just need a charged phone. From there you can do everything that you do. So, how about you focus on that? Helping us. With what we want help on." Alice suggested to a wide smile from Sophia, "Plus you'll get to spend time with Sumire that way."

"I-- yes, I will. No fair teasing me." Sophia laughed, her face red as her hair. Alice giggled as she walked into the darkened Leblanc and up the stairs. "I appreciate everything you have done for me too, Alice. Despite how this all started."

"I owe you more still, even if you disagree. Thank you though." Alice yawned, falling onto her bed. She plugged the phone in, disconnected her arm and turned over to look at Sophia. "And thank you, for being at my side with this. You pushed me to get better too. Don't stop."

"I won't. Don't stop with me either. Good night, Alice."

-------

"Alice, it's good to see you. Come in." Wakaba pulled open the door, a thick apron on. It was dotted with scorch marks, the air wafting out around her scented with the long familiar scent of ozone. Alice bowed her head and took the steps up into the home. Her stomach still writhed at the proximity to Wakaba but the woman was also alive only because of her. It was complicated. As ever and always in her life. "Futaba and I weren't quite finished in time for your visit."

"It's fine, she likes getting to spend time with you." Alice waved to Futaba, the girls hair pulled back into a messy ponytail so it wouldn’t fall into the motherboard she was working on with a soldering iron. The tip glowed orange with heat as Futaba tapped it to the machine in precise motions. "What's the project?"

"Oh, we're making a little remote accessible device. Plug it in, if you have permission which I promise I will, and you can use the machine how you want to." Futaba's lie was obvious to Alice but Wakaba only smiled at her daughter, taking a seat back at the table. She tweezered a chip out of a kit, placing it on the board. "We got caught up in an ethics talk."

"That's one way to put a request from Takuto that you don't try to slip a microphone into his desk. Again." Wakaba shot her daughter a look before fussing her hair. Maybe she could be a little more strict on the espionage habits. Although listening in on Maruki wasn't the worst idea considering the power of his shadow. "How have you done with getting back to your projects? Sojiro mentioned you were sewing."

"Nothing impressive, not yet. Simple modifications to my uniforms to have a stretchy sleeve. Slow going. Necessary. It's what I keep telling myself." Alice tugged on the sleeve of her Shujin uniform. Makoto had skipped school after their altercation. It was reasonable with her belief, however incorrect it was. "I'm going to have to do this for the rest of my life, might as well get good at it."

Futaba looked down, her hair falling by her cheek. Alice flicked the table, near her. Futaba jolted back up, stammering. "S-sorry. I just hadn't thought about how long that would be."

"Futaba, I don't think Alice is mad. Well, maybe she is about you blaming yourself. I know she gave Sojiro a talking to about it." Wakaba took the soldering iron, adding a little burst of heat at the corners of the chip while Futaba stammered out another sorry. "You're fine, Futaba. If Alice was mad at you for her hand, I think she'd say so."

"I would. You know that. Even if I'm softer with you." Alice tapped over the kit to Futaba, the hacker grabbing another piece and placing it down. "I have to think about the full implications, you don't. And even if you did, what could you do about it?"

"Try and figure out a way to make flexy hand cooler, even though you're on the grippy one." Futaba perked up a little at the thought of working on that. Alice could hear the gears turning. "What do you lack? How do you move it all?"

"I think maybe you should talk to my prosthetics person. She'd have a way better idea." Alice wasn't sure if that was the best idea with their awkward standing with the Shadow Operatives. But they hadn't revoked the offer of the hand. Shion seemed downright happy to not be pushed out in fact. Aika was annoyed that the questions were getting asked. Those two might be covering for us, which was strange. "So, maybe if Aika is okay with it you can talk to her."

"Only if you are patient with asking your questions, Futaba." Wakaba at least laid down the law there. A firm hand on the table, steadying the motherboard came with it. A firm act with a gentle care after. Futaba bobbed her head. "Alice is there for her health and while you want to help with it, you still need to make sure you don't intrude."

"Mooooooom, I wouldn't ask a billion questions. Plus Aika would answer a billion of them." Futaba pulled down her face into a faux frown, making Wakaba laugh. "Ah ha, mom laughed! I can do it!"

"I'm okay with her trying to ask Aika questions. She's proud of her work." Alice grabbed onto her bag, pulling it open and swapping hands. Wakaba studied the joint movements while Futaba placed the motherboard into a casing. "She was very specific about making sure they could do all the movements I needed for sewing. And they can. I just have to treat my left hand as dominant."

"Your plasticity is something else, Alice. Many would be struggling to be where you are now. An open mind is a wonderfully powerful thing." Wakaba's praise hit strange against Alice. It had never occurred to her what Wakaba had studied cognitive pscience for. She could have been another Maruki in waiting before they stole her treasure. "No wonder you're Takuto's rubber duck."

"It's a little more tolerable now that Rumi is talking and moving around a little. He's less focused on erasing the concept of pain." Thanks to losing my hand at least. Fuck, I still hate him even when he's decent for being why I was in that situation. No. I would have wound up there regardless in a different Palace. Still fuck him for stealing my dick. "Pain sucks but I need it to not fuck up again."

"Language, Alice. Sojiro might let you swear but I won't." Wakaba still smiled as she began putting away the tools into the box. Futaba stuck out her tongue at her mom. "That goes for you too. You might be able to get away with it there, but not here."

"Sojiro's just being a cool dad to Alice. Even if neither of them are saying it yet." Futaba winked at Alice before looking off kilter, enough to not feel like Alice was staring into her eyes. Alice reciprocated, keeping to the accidental Christmas pact. "Oh, mom, is it okay if Alice crashes here tonight?"

"Sojiro is fine with me doing that here or Shiho's. And Shiho's parents are bad, unlike you." Alice added the little sell to it. Futaba wanted a girl's night. Well. A these two night. Too many was scary. "It'd be nice to have a chance to finish watching that Featherman season we started."

"And snore on my couch again. You can. But you better tell Sojiro you are so he doesn't call me worried about you going to jail." Wakaba walked towards the kitchen, pulling out her phone. Alice chuckled and took a stand, Futaba leading the charge to the living room. It was a little cleaner than before, some effort put into neatening one of the stacks of DVDs.

"Hey Alice, thanks again. For mom. I think that if it weren't for you and her, I'd be a wreck. Which I guess you knew that, because she was gone last time and I was a mess." Futaba rambled, fiddling with the remote while Alice repositioned the pillows for them. "It's a big deal and you could have, I dunno, not done it and just joined Ann in being super terrible but you did the opposite."

"I think that the Ann I loved would have killed me if i did. And well, I did regret it once I met you then. But I couldn't do shit about it. Never imagined I would have the chance to undo the past." Alice admitted as she stripped herself of all hands and settled in on the couch. Futaba landed next to her, shoving herself into Alice's arm for a hug as the show started. "Greedy girl. Or cat, you're being kind of like a needy cat right now."

"Cats wish they were as cute as me. I'm glad you don't beat yourself up all the time like you did. I know it's been hard and rough, but you got stronger." Futaba tapped her foot on the ground, watching the DVD work its way to the menu in spurts of advertisements both of them didn't care about but let them have the time to talk. "It makes me want to keep getting stronger. Keep working to do better. I could have been a shut in but I'm not. Now I can work to be more than not a shut in. Like you were bad, then you were fine. Now you're a heroic badass."

"I'll take badass. I don't always feel heroic. When I fight, it's still all the old ways. Just aimed different. Like my approach to Palaces. But that's not bad maybe. A villainous approach with no victims, not that different from a heroic one in the end." Alice leaned onto the couch arm, trapped in an instant under Futaba. The girl she couldn't manage any cruelty for, even as a joke. "You're a gremlin."

"I'm your favorite gremlin though. Now it's time for the one where they fight the trash monster that's trying to poison the town with a love of black bags." Futaba kicked her legs as the show kicked into high gear. Alice snorted as a dumpster started rattling and then grew feathers. "This show is so dumb."

"I know, it's why we love it."

Chapter Text

Alice tapped on the door of the hospital room, noting the visitor list hadn't changed much since her last visit. Wakaba was coming by, now that Rumi was chatting it was easier to see her. Still wasn't enough to get her family on board. Too much of a burden in their eyes.

Idiots.

Maruki opened the door, stiff backed and wide eyed. Until he saw it was Alice and he relaxed into a slump with a smile. "I was worried you were the physical therapist and I'd have to leave. Come in, come in."

"I could kick you out for fun if you'd like." Alice smirked at him, a little satisfaction at him stepping back in surprise. Rumi giggled from in the room, light and airy. It sent Maruki into his own laughter as well. "Damn, if I knew being mean to you would have gotten her laughing, I'd have done it sooner."

"Let Alice in." Rumi's voice was stronger even if her language was lagging. The rasp of disuse had turned into something far more jovial, joyful. Alice couldn't help grinning as she walked into the room, getting to see Rumi standing. She had on a pajama set featuring rabbits running around a carrot patch. Alice fought the little tinge of memory, of being called Bun-Bun down. Rumi's smile tugged up her cheeks, forcing her eyes closed. Not an eerie stare there. "Good seeing you."

"Good to see you, too." Alice planted herself to the side of the room as Rumi worked through a few exercises. Fingers to nose, fingertips to fingertips. All little ways that proved she was going to be the master of her body again. "How long have you been up and moving?"

"About a week. It's really impressive recovery. Almost magical." Maruki shot a look to Alice, something piercing. Something like Goro had given her in the wake of Kamoshida. "Talking is still difficult, but she can move around."

"Can do this." Rumi flat palmed Maruki with no force to a cackle from Alice. She had spunk, she had energy. It was a kind of miracle, getting to see a woman reduced to nothing twice get to be something. "Are you okay?"

"I'm getting better with my hands. The two I have for my right that is." Alice shook her head and made a production of pointing twice at Rumi. "What about you? Last time was the first time you talked, I think."

"Yes. Since..." Rumi trailed off, her energy sapping at the memory of what happened. Alice caught her, then Maruki the two of them helping her to the bed. "Sorry."

"Don't be sorry. You're still hurting Rumi. And you're still going in spite of it." Maruki bit his lip, looking to Alice. She shrugged at him, realizing he noticed that ability to keep moving in everyone it seemed. "You've been getting rest in addition to working on using them, I hope."

"Enough. But I find peace in my work." Alice meant sewing, even with the struggles and failures she was having fun getting to do it again. She had thought two months ago that nothing would happen and now she was getting excited about altering clothes alone. "And you've made a big leap, Rumi. Now you know how high you can reach next time. It's a lot further than I thought."

"I listened. Your hurt didn't stop." Rumi punctuated who she meant with an awkward point of the finger that she had to reaim from the window to Alice. "You came in. Told me not alone. That I could."

"Yeah, well, I might have dragged myself up. But I also became a raging bitch in the process." Alice's remark drew a swat from Rumi. And a glare from Maruki. He can get mad, good for him! "Hey, I'm nice to you two. I get it for Rumi and well, you're like my guardian's friend's coworker so I have to be nice to you."

"I know Sojiro, don't lie to me. You're forceful but you're not a raging bitch as you said." Maruki shook his head, passing an orange juice box to Rumi. She smiled at him before he remembered to shove the straw in. Her fingers curled once, twice around the box. A struggle to get to hold it. Like Alice had go through. Alice frowned, her instinct to reach out and support the bottom of the box. But Rumi managed to lift it to her lips and sip. "You came in and knocked me off kilter, Phantom Thief."

"I don't know what you mean." Alice shot him a look, tilting her head in practiced confusion. He and Rumi shook their heads at her. "Seriously, I don't know what you mean."

"Hand. Card." Rumi's voice was still airy, resting the juicebox on her wrist. She tilted her head from side to side before swallowing. "Lined up."

"Just a car accident but believe what you want. I know Maruki got a calling card or whatever, but did you Rumi?" Alice wasn't going to let this go, she wasn't going to let Rumi think she did this because of magic. Rumi did this her fucking self. Because she wanted it and because two people cared. That's all. Rumi's lip trembled for a moment. "Did you? Because I doubt it. I think you worked for this, you earned it. You had us, but you did this."

And it only took another month and me. Or Maruki to not be a coward about waiting.

"I did it. No card." Rumi's lips stilled, her grip tightening a little around the box. Maruki bowed his head in acknowledgment. "Easier. To think magic."

"Or pscience. Which is a bit magic if we could ever get it working right." Maruki chuckled, his hand to the back of his head. "If you ever feel like admitting it, I'd love to know how you did that to me. How you managed to know what I was thinking and how you changed that."

"I think you never wanted to do that stupid thing. You just thought you had to." Alice swallowed and shook her head. They could operate with this veneer. But she wasn't going to let Ann have an in to hurt her with Rumi. She couldn't make it solid that they knew. "Again, I didn't do it. But I'd guess that moving a brain to not do something it dreads is pretty easy in the end."

"Probably! We do avoid things that we don't like!" Maruki tilted his head back and laughed. Rumi shook her head with a smile. "What dear?"

"Idiot. My idiot." Rumi pointed to him and that moment made everything make sense. She loved him because he could take all that and still laugh then. That he could manage that. She hadn't gotten why, but it was that fucking stupid resolve that would drive him to try and rule the world for benevolent reasons. "Love you."

"Love you too, Rumi." Maruki smiled and it was the first time Alice thought it might be genuine. He had a grim one when it was his Palace back then. It was a false and disarming one to get Alice to open up when it was November. "Sorry again, about what I was thinking of doing."

"Don't wallow too long in that. People get sick of it Maruki." Alice stood up, letting the straights get lovey dovey. It was cool and transgressive to do it with another girl. Way less so with them. She paused at the door. "I'm glad, by the way that you got here. That you're happier. Keep at it. I'll see you all again."

"You will." Rumi's voice shot up in volume, a declaration and pleading. Alice paused, nodding her head. "Not alone. Hands."

"We're not." Alice shook her head with a smile. "Speaking of hands, I do have to make it to my OT check in."

"Go! If it's Doctor Aragaki, I'm sure you'll do fine." Maruki waved, bidding Alice farewell. It figured they had interviewed him. Probably checked in on Rumi in the process. The cognitive pscience information could be found in public if you knew where to look. Those two had to know.

The ride down the elevator in the hospital was quick. A lurch into motion that transitioned to a lurching stop in a moment. It was monotonous, practiced. Like all of her exercises had been to get her hands in shape. She checked in for her appointment and sat down, fiddling with her phone. Sophia was working on the home screen, working on a notepad app to draw out something. "Hi Alice. I am doing a circuit diagram to help Futaba."

"You are, huh? What's the plan?" Alice tapped her chin, a little theater to the motion. Sophia grinned at her, flipping to a design document that was not legal to have on her phone. It was a schematic showing all the routers in Shibuya and a way to bounce it all between them. "Looking to go big?"

"Yes, that's the plan with the Itou Calling Card. Ryuji was saying that we need to make sure that we 'make it bigger than that lying jerkface's press conference.' He was very enthusiastic about it." Sophia nodded and then moved back to the circuit diagram. Sounds like the Futaba cannon they mentioned. "The trick is going to be how do we want to use this for the calling card."

"Easy, we're going to make sure it challenges Makoto, Itou and the public." Alice tilted her head towards the door where Shion and Aika walked out of the hall. They had taken off their work outfits, Shion's cane tapping across the floor towards her. "Hey there, not a normal appointment?"

"No. We wanted to discuss something." Aika offered her hand, pulling Alice to her feet. The woman nodded at her in appreciation, starting to walk with purpose. Shion chuckled and nudged Alice with her cane to get moving too. Alice hustled with a huff to meet Aika. "Our boss has accepted your terms. We told her to."

"Good to know that you're pushy enough to keep from having to get in a fight with us." Alice joked to a raised eyebrow from Aika. Shion shook her head at the nurse, leading them to a nearby park to sit. "We're not exactly trusting of those who want to tell us what to do you know."

"Don't blame you. We got fucked over by a buncha adults in my day. Had to remind Mitsy of that when she wanted to push for knowing your next target." Shion popped down onto a bench, digging into a jacket for a bag of birdseed. Aika reached into it and tossed it out into the grass, birds amassing in a moment. "Thought you were done feeding people."

"They're birds, not people." Aika cracked back before looking to Alice. "We have concerns about what you have said, still. That you tried to work with a murderer. We know there is more you are not telling about how you knew about the power of persona."

"Yeah, there's more to it. It's a whole thing and I'm not going to get into it because it's not relevant to what is going to happen." Alice extended her hand towards the bird seed bag, Shion acquiescing to let her in. "You can figure out that I might have a belief that things can change if you work at it. And I thought I could reach Ann. I was, clearly, an idiot."

"Familiar kind of idiot then." Shion shrugged as she flicked dried corn to a duck that was hovering at the edge of the pigeons. The duck popped up and out of its aggressive stance, no longer ready to break up the party. "You Wildcards always think you can fix the hot evil woman."

"Shut the fuck up." Alice pushed Shion who shrugged it off and pushed the bag of birdseed into her hand. "There's more to it than that. But good to know you assume I'm an idiot."

"We have seen it with our respective Wildcards, that's true. I would not say idiot. I would say hopeful. But you have also committed to catching your adversary." Aika's words slid across Alice's skin like a razor. Because they would have to explain everything when she figured out how to get Ann off the moon and into reality again. The plan wasn't solid but she could feel it, the bond in her heart for Death. "Correct?"

"Sure. Look, you have to trust us that there is just a bit more going on with this." Alice sighed, she needed to prep them a little. "There's a lot we could do. But I'm going to stop the murders. I'm going to stop Adachi."

"Yep, idiot. But you'll do it right in the end, I'm pretty sure. How close to giving us short notice are you?" Shion moved along, smiling at her. I think she wants to piss me off into telling her everything. Fucking stupid bait. "Well, Alice?"

"We're getting our shit together. This one's a bit rough for the team." Not for me, because I'm desensitized to the horror of it all. Still murdered all those people after all. "You'll hear from us when it's ready, got it?"

"We do, we do." Shion shook her head, keeping an eye on the birds milling around in the grass. Where they weren't congregated, she threw out another helping of bird seed. "How's the hands working for you? Keeping them out of persona business?"

"Good. Managed to sew with one, thank you for that Aika. Needed it." Alice's compliment drew back out the smile from the woman. Shion nudged Aika, causing a little blush to emerge. Huh, okay. Probably an awful idea to fuck at work. But I'm fucking Shiho and such, so who can judge. "And I'm not going to risk my expensive hands when I have other options I can use there."

"Interesting. A use of your persona as a prosthetic. Have they helped?" Aika perked up and out of her blush from Shion's attention, looking at Alice with eyes ready to absorb everything. Alice gave her a single nod, matching her energy. "Details."

"Sure, we'll go with it being my persona. Easier to explain. Visualize it and force my mind to feel it. It's easy except not." Alice grinned at Aika flexing her fingers in and out with her eye closed. "Easier when your hand isn't feeling it. I don't think I'd be as good with it without the prosthetic. And it does a number on shadows."

"Understood. Your ability to visualize your prosthetic as part of you works in your favor. This will be handy. Do you have control over this hand manifesting, since it isn't a persona?" Aika's pen clicked, scratching across a notebook. Alice gave her a thumbs up to which she nodded. "Are you attached to it, emotionally?"

"I am. Why are you asking?" Alice felt a little pit in her stomach. The two operatives glanced at one another. "I am holding secrets from you, I get it."

"It's an offer for after this shit wraps up. You get that third hand either way, but you might get a job offer too." Shion pushed up to stand, tipping the seed to spill it at Alice's feet. She hopped up to avoid the stampede of birds coming for her. She ran ahead of the doctor, glaring. "Better get used to it if you take us up on it."

"I'll see what you want and what you're offering." Alice conceded as they stepped out of the park.

Shion grunted, looking up to a big screen on a wall. A waiting screen cut over to a press conference. Adachi stood behind the podium, his hair askew as always. The suit was an immaculate one if he didn't always get it wrinkled. And he had that dopey grin he always did when he was doing something he was going to get away with. But his eyes, they were dull. He should be panicked, the money was hemorrhaging already. Shion planted her cane like it would be a safeguard against what was coming. "That's your guy, isn't it?"

Alice swallowed, the saliva hitting a roiling nova of churning acid in her stomach. She put a hand to her mouth, the cool metal wicking away the heat of rising nausea. Her body rebelled, seeing him again. Knowing she couldn't touch him. Couldn't kill him. Couldn't steal his heart.

And smiling, right next to him was Ann. In a bright blue dress that matched her eyes, just the right amount of skin showing around her neck and chest. Enough to say to look at her, not enough to say she was there to be fucked. Behind them was logo, proclaiming, "The Beautiful Future of Japan."

"Hey everyone! We're here today to announce that we are starting a Political Action Committee to help deal with a new widespread problem in Japan. Anarchy!" Adachi pointed a finger at the screen, grinning with all his teeth. Alice hated it, she saw that face too much. Saw that smile too much. For years, that smile haunted her. And now she had to see it again. "The current political parties have done between jack and shit about the Phantom Thieves. Targeting teachers, artists, business leaders and now one of our most precious public prosecutors. Because Japan is too weak on crime. So I'm going to put my money where my mouth is, aren't I Ann? Ann Takamaki by the way. My best model and just a brilliant girl. She can't vote yet but she is here for the political process. She even helped with this plan!"

Ann's smile didn't fade, not when Adachi proclaimed it was a bad thing Kamoshida was ready to slice himself open for his rapes. She stepped up to the microphone, like nothing mattered. "We are going to sponsor candidates all over the country that get how dangerous the Phantom Thieves and those like them are. Cops. In as many seats as possible come the election. But that kind of work is going to take everyone pitching in. We're going to be holding fundraisers. I’ll be hosting get out the vote initiatives, where you can meet yours truly and get involved! More to come soon. Watch out Phantom Thieves, we're going to make sure your reign of terror ends."

Alice leaned against the gate, her stomach churning. Shion stood next to her, glaring at the screen as they droned about details. Alice couldn't focus. Ann was selling it. She was cooperating. She was in with Adachi. It was sickening. She fought the words on her lips, keeping them inside. Away from Shion, away from Aika. The nurse's hand rested on her forehead. "You are having a panic attack. A PTSD response. Breathe. Four beats."

Alice wanted to punch her. Slam her into the gate because it was all wrong. No one should be that happy to be with Adachi. Ann shouldn't have worked with him this closely. She should have seen the way out.

"Shiho was right." Alice closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. There was a demon in Ann. And they were going to have to rip it out. Hollow out this thing. "This is wrong. It's wrong."

"It is wrong." Aika affirmed, looking back to seeing the news report cut to a commercial. She moved to fill Alice’s vision. "Don't look at that. Focus. Get under control. Before you have to fight."

"I know that. Trust me. I'm shocked." Alice managed, pushing off the fence to start walking. Shion pivoted, following alongside her. "He's a monster. She is too."

"Yeah, considering what Kamoshida admitted to. There's more to it. You said you fought that girl again. Won, just not enough. So what else is going on?" Shion's request was invasive but it wasn't harsh. It was a question of what what she needed to admit. "This is personal?"

"Yep. Personal. Deeply." Alice's response drew a grunt from Shion as the two of them worked away from anywhere that might have screens. The people in Tokyo were talking with an excited chatter about the events. The two adults crowded her, their footsteps loud on purpose. Shion made a point of hitting every lightpole with her cane and scaring the shit out of the others around them. "You have practice at this."

"Sure fucking do. Not at this level, but making sure someone doesn't have to hear the bad shit for a bit." Shion explained while Aika moved to the front as they cut through an alley, heading towards Yongen. "Alright, Adachi fucked you up somehow. All I need to know. You need to talk to someone. You got that?"

Alice tapped her purse. She knew her phone was filling with messages. She knew Sophia was waiting. Aika nodded. "Good. We'll get you home. You're certain about fighting in the future?"

"Yes. I'm going to rip out whatever is wrong her. And I'm going to steal his heart." Alice knew that was when it would fall apart, her facade with these two. "And then, you get the story. All of it."

"Look forward to it." Shion stopped at the door of the cafe while Alice reached out to grab the knob. "And when you go for that bastard, take Aika. That girl will be there and Aika's faced a murderer too."

"... we won't need her. But we'll consider it." Alice looked to Aika, the woman slipping over a business card. "If we do take you, you do exactly what I say. You're going to want to witness my plan."

"Of course." Aika pushed the card into Alice's purse. She pushed open the door to the cafe for her. Sojiro beckoned them in, his eyebrows furrowed. "She needs a meal."

"Ugh, don't act like it's a prescription." Alice managed, flinging herself towards the kitchen. Sojiro caught her with an arm, wrapping around her and holding tight. She fought to not cry on him. "Ann shit."

"Figures. Can't believe she did something again." Sojiro held on, not letting her go. A kind of hug she'd needed for years. Someone who cared. Aika and Shion lingered at the bar. "Anything else she needs?"

"I don't know. She went through a lot, but you're clearly the father here." Shion took a seat as Alice's eyes leaked tears. She buried her face against Sojiro to hide them. He didn't say anything, only nodding at the two operatives. "Alice, you need us?"

"Owe you dinner." She whispered as she pushed Sojiro back enough to dab away a tear. Sojiro gave her a look. "This is all your fault I'm like this now. I owe them that much for making sure I got home. And I want to thank them."

"Alright, I'm helping you out then. Get a damn apron on kid." Sojiro tossed it over her head while she zoomed over to the stove, starting the burner. Sojiro worked to dice all the vegetables she'd need. "The recipe as it should be?"

"Duh. It's the right way." Alice tossed the butter into the pan, pulling down the wood paddle. Behind her, she heard Aika and Shion settle in at the bar. The help from the Thieves would get to her in time. She had this to do, something to focus on to get right. Paddle the flour together while the potatoes soaked to the side. Sojiro added salt to the chicken sitting to the side. "Thanks, for not asking too many questions."

"Yeah, well, I got them but I figure you'll tell me what you need to. In time." Sojiro let out a small breath as they traded for her to start layering the broth ingredients in a separate pan. "You didn't fight this time about being your father."

"Yeah. I didn't." Alice gave him a smile and he sniffled and then she bumped him with her hip. "You earned it. With everything."

"You had to wait till after I cut the onions to say it. Then I could have pretended it was from them. You're a menace." Sojiro paused before dropping the roux into the pot to be mixed. Alice winked as she added the array of little ingredients they were required to hide from the eye. Coffee and a bit of chocolate, balancing the bitter, sweet and savory. It was where the mochas came from after all. "Well, if you want to stay after the whole probation period ends, I'll tell your parents."

"Fuck telling them. I'm just not going back." Alice traded back, filling half of two plates with rice and then dropping grinds into the siphons that Sojiro had heated water for. She knew what those two wanted. Shion and Aika smiled at her. "Yeah, yeah, happy family or whatever."

"It is. Your way." Aika nodded and leaned on her hand. "I understand the business. You're picking this. Maybe not long term. But you're picking it."

"I am." Alice confirmed  as she lined up the cups. She had the timing better now. She wasn't going to fuck it up because of unfamiliarity with her hand. She didn't have to fear the heat after all. She placed two steaming mugs in front of them. "You know better."

"Sure do." Shion put away a phone while Sojiro put down the two plates for the guests. "Thanks for the food. We'll eat fast. You two got shit too discuss I'd imagine."

"Yeah, we do." Sojiro tilted his head down, starting another round of coffees while Alice served them each curry. They settled against the bean counter while Aika and Shion passed empty plates back. "You did eat fast."

"Medical and nursing school will teach you to do it." Shion winked, yen sticking out of the slot on the till. Like she had been taught by Alice already. "See you."

"See you." Alice confirmed. It was a whirlwind, how much this had worked out. She walked over to the door of the shop, clicked the lock and turned it to closed. Sojiro bobbed his head, putting their coffees on the counter for them to enjoy everything in one bit. "So. I lied about the car crash."

"Figured. It was a shitty lie, kid. But you were hurt." Sojiro took a bite of the curry, a brief smile from the taste. "You kids aren't as quiet as you think. When you talked about getting Kamoshida. Madarame. Some shit about this being the second time. Don't know if I believe that one."

"Yeah, well, it is." Alice admitted to him as she blew on her coffee, taking a sip. Sojiro shook his head. "It was bad. A different kind, trust me. You would hate how it was."

"Good thing it's this way then. Don't give me details, my heart barely takes knowing what you kids get up to sometimes." Sojiro set down his cup of coffee, looking towards the door of the shop and the outside world. "You know, I told you to leave worrying about shit to adults. And I didn't put my money where my mouth was, because you got shit done. Until your hand. I almost asked you to stop, but you came out of that hospital determined. Not well, but you hadn't given up."

"Felt like I had till Ann showed her damn face here. Then I was pissed. And you probably figured that is what motivates me." Alice set down her empty plate. What had started as a panic attack left her feeling full. In her stomach and heart. "So, thanks for giving me something to eat besides that. A place to be after a long time without it. At least not without other expectations. You just wanted me to grow up safe. Even if I couldn't."

"Even if you couldn't. You're my kid now I guess." Sojiro cleaned his glasses on a heat rag while Alice moved the dishes to the sink. She hadn't been able to scald her hands cleaning anymore. She couldn't indulge that behavior with a hand that didn't feel it. Healthier. "So, you're getting that Adachi guy, right? Because no way you killed that Sae woman."

"He's not next, but he's coming. We're clearing our name a different way." Alice sighed as she scrubbed away the leftover gluten on the bowl, making sure no dirt would stick through eternity on her. "Thanks for assuming I wouldn't kill. It's not accurate, but I haven't this time."

"Yeah, well, if you used to you never quite gave off that vibe. And I used to work for the government before I figured out the only good cop, they're a former cop." Sojiro moved to the door, looking at his cigarette pack. He flicked one out and in, out and in. A debate. "And what are you gonna do about Ann?"

"The impossible." Alice took a seat on the stool next to him. She grabbed his cigarette pack out of his hands. He chuckled and that was all the permission she needed to crush it in her prosthetic and hurl it into the garbage. "I'll buy you gum. I got the money from what we do. Thievery of our kind pays."

"No wonder you're always sneaking me money. Just remember, quitting involves setbacks. Don't give me too much shit." Sojiro's words acted like Alice would ever have room to criticize on that. No, she got it. She knew that all recovery was like that. It's why she was here. "You're doing good. Regardless of what you did."

"Same for you, regardless of what you did too." Alice let out a breath, rolling the words on her tongue. Because at the end of the day, they were true. A kind of feeling she didn't know she could have. "Love you dad."

"Love you too kid. You should get some rest. I'm sure you're going to do something big soon. About that time." Sojiro pat her on the head and then let out an off from her hugging him with all her might. "That Thief stuff make you stronger?"

"I lift weights I'll have you know." Alice chuckled as the stood there for a moment. And then they retreated, returning to their beds. Alice laid down, looked out the window at the light at Sojiro's house and grinned. "Good night."

The sacrilegious path
Has brought you to the welcoming arms
Of your Heirophant and his forgiveness
Take this boon and know you have changed.

Chapter Text

"Exile." Igor's voice echoed down the well, his long nose jutting out at a horizontal. He wasn't looking down here. Which was useful as it seemed the Twins had been filling the well with rocks even when Alice wasn't there. She grabbed a few, slipping them into the dress she always manifested in here. An early one, the first one with pockets. Blue and white pinstripes, a few playing cards tucked into the design and covered with a soft gauze. The rocks would serve her well. She traced the path she had figured out on the previous visits. "The way you play the game has changed yet again. You no longer collaborate with your opponent. Now, you have allowed her to poach a confidant."

"Allowed is a funny word for what happened. And I think I can shock some sense into Makoto." Alice shouted, more to disguise where she was in the well than show a real rage. She knew she needed to get out of the pit somehow. And without getting the Twins in trouble. The two of them were lost in some sort of trance when they approached places that mattered last loop. "Not Ann, she's a lost cause." Well, this one. But that's my secret to keep. "Makoto is a brilliant idiot after all."

"Is that so? Because it seems to me as if you are doing a poor job of reintegrating into society when they bay for your blood." Igor's grin shined with reflected light from the well as Alice fit a rock into a piece of the well that had fallen apart. Focus on it as part of the well at this angle. Strong and sturdy. She traced her finger along where stone met mortar and it sealed into place. This place reflects my heart after all. "What will you do about it?"

"How about you do more than watch a television to find out what I'm doing? Because I think if you're everything the three of you claim, you should know damn well what I'm doing right now. Who I'm aiming and empowering. But you're not paying attention." Alice gripped tight to the rock she sealed and pulled herself up onto it. She didn't have her Thief outfit, but she had her Thief strength. Good to know. This place was another Palace, essentially. "So, if you're going to keep on being like all powerful... well you're going to have to prove it."

"Insolent child." Igor's voice warbled, his head beginning to tilt down towards her. She was halfway up, she wasn't going to make the progress she needed to, not when she was caught. She pressed herself to the wall and slid down, sending rocks scattering on landing. But it was fine, her head was laid low like she was being deferential. Igor chuckled a deep and resonant monstrosity that echoed around the well. It came with a tinge of Palace Ruler pressure. Which meant that what she did when she got up there would have to involve some amount of stealth. "At least you know to bow your head. Don't you want to be like all the others when you return to society?"

"Again, don't know where you got that idea. Is it that I'm not killing these monsters but making them confess?" Alice tilted her head up to the beady eyes staring down at her. Igor nodded in slow motion. "You know, what I'm doing is a lot more complex than an aversion to blood being spilled. But that's just because you see things in the most stark ways possible. Kind of like Makoto, is that why she's the first persona user you have brought up in these conversations beyond Ann? Feel a certain kinship with someone who can be led by the nose, oh so easily?"

"You mock me and yet you let yourself get led into a trap that dismembered you." Igor's retort stoked the rage in Alice's stomach. Lit a fire inside of her, one that made her want to gush with flame as she climbed out of this well to burn him down. "Because you chose to play around with chaos, instead of refuting it."

"You know, you really miss so much when you're condescending like that Igor." Alice pressed herself to the wall as the Twins dropped more stones in, an obstensible punishment if they came any where near her. Their movements were more and more in sync. Like a puppet master was maneuvering both of them in tandem. Right and left in perfect harmony. Something for later. "Did I hit the nail on the head with the TV? Is that what has you like this? You're brainrotted?"

"You are powered by rebellion and yet no temperance. You achieve nothing if you get crushed down too soon." Igor's statement had a wake of static follow it, settling into Alice's ears and rippling across her skin. The pressure of an angry Palace ruler. Blue flame danced across her feet, an upwelling to try and keep her safe in the wake of it. "Will you sink into the depths, Exile, rather than take the lifeline up to the surface?"

"I think it's time to wake up for the day, actually." Alice pinched herself before her Thief outfit came into being. Her heart raced. She didn't know what Igor was or could do. She didn't have an idea of his distortion or where she truly was. Only that the place answered to her call but he exerted control over it. A parasite, an invasion, like always in her life. She forced her eyes open to the darkened roof of Leblanc's attic. Rafters draped in darkness, a swathing veil over the architecture holding the building together. She reached over and grabbed her gripping hand and strapped it on. She needed a bath again.

The sensation of power overwhelming her skin, of knowing the reflection of her heart was invaded, it left her feeling disgusting. Violated in the way Adachi and Kamoshida left her. She gathered her clothes, toiletries and towel and slipped down the stairs. Quiet on instinct, not out of necessity as she made her way out the door into the darkness of early morning. Sophia yawned and clicked on the screen of the phone. "Alice? Is everything alright?"

"No. Need a bath. Feel wrong from something." Alice hit the door frame the way she always did to circumvent the lock on the door and get in. She started the water, setting out her shampoos and soaps while she had two hands to work with. "I do this when I get violated. Or reminded of it."

"Oh. That is why you didn't want to tell me. You were..." Sophia closed her eyes, shaking her head side to side as Alice began to strip from hand and clothes. Alice sunk into the hot water, the lingering buzz across her skin turning into a pleasant and full distributed heat across her body. It wasn't skin to skin with Shiho. But it would do. "I am sorry that I was tormenting you when you were hurting like this. I did not realize and I thought that you were hiding it and relapsing."

"I don't blame you. I was forthcoming about a lot. And then I wasn't. I didn't make a habit of keeping secrets from you." Alice ran her hand across her arm, lathering soap in as a chaser for the heat. Then a washcloth draped across her stump to exchange the favor for the other side. "I just... it's panic. It hurts. Worse than dying did."

"I understand, I think. Dying was a choice and this was a choice taken from you." Sophia's words confirmed it. That she had been listening and learning from everything they did. That they made choices as much as they could unless something forced them to otherwise. "It is why I will help you stop Ann."

"Thanks." Alice looked at the green washcloth hanging off her arm, the same color as Ann's flames. She needed to remind Sophia. "Remember, it's this Ann, not the other one. And if I can, I'm getting the old one back."

"I... know. It will take work to remember she is not the same. But everything you have mentioned about her tells me that she would not tolerate what has been done with her identity." Sophia hummed, that little song she did when she was at rest or needed to get to rest. Alice hummed with her, matching the notes as best she could while splashing around in the tub to scrub herself clean of all of these feelings. "Um. I. Still do not know how I feel about you humming that song?"

"I'll stop then. I don't even know it. I just hear you doing it for calm." Alice held up a finger and dunked her head in the water before shaking it out. "Mom stuff?"

"Yes. She would hum it while working on my code. And in the short time I knew her. And in that hazy January time." Sophia looked down and Alice tapped her own temples. The calming ritual made sense with that last bit of information. Maruki's reality had effected Sophia for sure. "You still killed her then, even if I think I have forgiven you. It feels wrong."

"Got it. It's not a big deal that I can't." Alice took learning the origin of the song as a victory in their friendship. A sign that while not everything would be forgotten or forgiven, they could keep working together. They could keep getting to know one another, even after months of being chained together, then joined at the hip by choice. "Soph? Thank you. For coming to get me back then."

"You're welcome. I think that when Futaba began to worry about you I realized that you had truly decided to fight to keep us safe if it killed you. Not to betray us. And it made me believe everything else." Sophia closed her eyes again as Alice stood up, pulling the towel around herself to start drying while the tub drained in a long schlorping motion. A coriolis of her stress and worry sinking into the drain. "And thank you, for not kicking me out or worse. I know that I did not make it easy."

"Sure didn't. But it worked out in my opinion." Alice ran the towel around the tub, cleaning out the remnants of her passing. Leave no trace in the wilds of a cisnormative world. She pulled on her uniform and cleared her throat. "You can open them up, I'm decent."

"Okay. I think it has largely worked out. I wish you still had your hand. But I also understand that is when you connected to the old Ann. It just hurt to see you like that. I did not realize it would hurt that bad." Sophia admitted as Alice scooped her up and tucked her into her belt then her hand was attached with a familiar weight. "I know that you said your pain helped you to grow. But did that help me?"

"That's a question for yourself. When you're not distressed." Alice added as she looked at her hand, unable to be scrubbed raw still. The benefit of all of this. "But I think it helped you realize some things, so I would in your shoes."

"... it did, didn't it. That you were on our sides. But also that I had to be mindful that if I waited too long things would go away." Sophia's blushing face told Alice which person that was about in a heartbeat. Alice pat her phone and started on the path to school. "Hey!"

"I'm glad you two got your shit together, that's all. You deserve to be happy. As long as possible." Alice stuck her tongue out at Sophia, the AI answering in kind. "Good. Now we just need to make it through school and shoot that calling card."

"Yes, yes we do."

-----

Alice took a deep breath in as she walked towards the booth set up for Adachi's stupid get out the vote initiative. They needed a prop and she wasn't going to sully Yusuke's artistic talents by asking him to recreate it. Not when they were Thieves after all. The banner would be easy to grab in the throng of people flocking around it. Creeps. Ryuji walked by her side, glaring at every person that tried to look at her hand. "Keep it movin' she just wants to get closer to see what it's all about. Don't be a weirdo."

The muttered responses circulated with the usual responses. People who thought they should be entitled to her hand. That she had to be graced with their slurs. That she was an oddity to be looked at. It made Igor's claims of being reintegrated all the more laughable.

Alice slipped up to the front and the banner was going to be as easy to slip away with as she thought when they came up with the plan. It was half torn off already, too many people eager to throw their money away on candidates. The ones meant to stomp the life out of the nation harder than they had while thy were on the force. She nudged Ryuji, starting his part of the plan. He slammed his hands on the table, looking the frazzled booth worker in the eye and shouting. "So what are you actually doing with all these donations? Isn't it kinda weird for a big businessman to take money?"

Thank you for understanding the best way to give me cover is to be so loud that everyone has no choice except to look at you. Alice dug her fingers into the banner’s last bit of string holding it tight and pulled, undoing it in an instant. From there, the wind sent it flying up and away from the booth. A parasail of barely disguised fascism, floating away. Alice dashed after it, "You all lost it!"

"Better keep her safe, the streets aren't I hear!" Ryuji was hot on her trail, helping to muscle through the crowd as the banner kept flying away. The further they got, the more people were interested in letting them out to take up the space they were vacating. More interest in being obedient than pushing against a perceived fault. The banner slammed into a building with a slap, an easy prize to claim for the two of them. "That went way smoother than you thought."

"Look, can you blame me for expecting them to put some effort into tying it down? I undid it before they got a full sentence out about how poor Adachi was going to run out of money if he did it all himself." Alice held it steady while Ryuji began to roll it. Way too big. "Try again, keep it small and tight. Rolling something like this is still a struggle or I'd do it myself."

"Right, got it, I'm sorry." Ryuji frowned and Alice let out a sigh. That wasn't her intent. He was more fragile than he had let on. Being cut out had done a number on him it seemed. Maybe they should have worked on that back before. Looped him in but safely. Alice pat him on the head, her go to for getting him to calm down. "Whoops."

"Yep, whoops, you overreacted there Ryuji." Alice glanced over her shoulder at the approaching footfalls. Ann had hands in a black leather jacket, sunglasses tilted down to stare at them past mirrored lenses. I guess Ryuji wanted his chance to talk to her. Alice gripped the rolled banner tight and shoved it into her duffel bag. "So, did you like grow to appreciate the taste of Adachi's dick or something?"

"Shut the fuck up." Ann glared at the two of them, her eyes zeroing in on Ryuji. She pulled a fist from her pocket. "Couldn't leave it at stealing Shiho from me, could you? Had to take Ryuji too?"

"She didn't-- dude, what? You're the one that stopped talking to us!" Ryuji stomped his foot, drawing all the energy of Ann's glare. He started to back down until Alice slammed her foot down as well. "You could have never lost me if you just kept talking to me."

"I couldn't do that for a long time. And then when I finally got the power to come back and fix things? Little miss can't let go of the past had to try and manipulate me into being her loyal puppy." Ann barked, taking a step closer. Trying to get them into Mementos range. Which wasn't ideal, they had a whole lot more to do today. And they didn't have the team, even if Alice, Sophia and Ryuji had gotten stronger. She wanted at least Futaba to buff them or an extra round of bullets from Shiho. "Why else would she go after my best friend the first day?"

"Because Shiho was hurting? Hell, you and I both knew it. Even if we weren't really talking to her. Alice went to her because she needed help." Ryuji wasn't backing down, unable to see Ann's approach for the trap it was. She was working her phone in her pocket. Alice slipped off her hand, grabbed his collar and tugged him back. "Alice, we have to stand up to her."

"Not yet. Got it?" Alice hissed as she backpedaled and kicked a rock towards Ann. The killer danced around it, but that was all the goal Alice needed. The plan wasn't to hurt her. It was to buy time. "Think about it this way, if we stop her now then Makoto won't learn how stupid she's been."

"Hey, Makoto's perfectly smart. She knew that she was strong enough to beat Ryuji without a struggle. The only problem was you, Alice." Ann pressed her feet into run. But they didn't have to get far. A crowd was all it took. Alice kept backpedaling, her heart thrilling at the excitement of outwitting Ann again. "Come back here and have a proper fight with me lover."

"I think you're broken up already, Ann. And I'm going to be there too." Ryuji's running was slower than Alice's by choice or by injury she wasn't sure. But that was avoidable as people moved up the sidewalk towards Alice. She tugged Ryuji again, his backwards movement to keep an eye on Ann making him oblivious to the escape. "It's really shitty of you to blame Alice for you abandoning us."

"You just don't get it. The only one who might have was too much of a coward when I started playing. She still won't fight me like she should. Hiding behind all of you." Ann's voice slipped into a frozen edge, that demon inside her pulsing with rage at them. And Alice didn't care. There wasn't a real passion to that fight to come. It was only a sign that Ann had degenerated from what she could have been. She wasn't even trying to summon the old feelings of what Kamoshida's heart would feel like. That had some bite to it. "Alice, honey, how about we duel. Like we apparently used to?"

"Ann, dipshit, I'm really not interested. Buh-bye!" Alice waved with her prosthetic as a group of businessman walked by, discussing the vagaries of a business deal. Alice hooked arms with Ryuji and kept him close. There was no chance he was going to run off from this one to start a fight. "Good on you for listening."

"I just... I get lost in the anger. And I knew on some level you were right, so I just let it happen. And I couldn't let you go alone, you might have gotten jumped by those assholes while Ann was doing whatever." Ryuji sighed and pushed himself to the side, with his head back to look anywhere but the chattering businessmen around them. "But hey, we can go record that video now on Futaba's persona."

"We sure can. Let's do it." Alice grinned at how simple Ryuji was sometimes. He knew he had mistakes. It only took a little guidance to get him to do what they both wanted, stand up against the right people.

------

Maybe it would have been better to do this style of calling card for Adachi. They hadn't done anything this fancy for Sae but that was a setup in every possible way from both sides. This was a declaration of innocence and of war. Trimmed with care to make sure that they could smuggle Ann out in all the aftermath if they played their cards right.

Alice grinned as Futaba pulled out her phone, the button labeled cannon filling the screen. The rest of the Thieves were all watching the screens spread throughout Shibuya. Their toy to be. Alice reached over and fired the Futaba and Sophia cannon.

It started with static overwhelming the screens. One by one the series of advertisements playing on a never ending loop, day and night fell silent. And nothing replaced them. The people stopped what they were doing, all jolted by the sudden hum filling the air. They swapped to a white screen, a pink cane slamming down to split the space.

The banner from the booth hung across the background, slashed and burned with several additions penciled in by Yusuke and Alice. Statistics on cop corruption rates. Pigs in uniform running from fire threatening to cook them. And in the center of it, Sae depicted on a crucifix with a crown made from the circular logo.

"Hello everyone, we're here to clear some things up. It's sadly easy to create a fake calling card." The silhouette of Goro in his Thief outfit walked on screen first, his eyes on the depiction of Sae. He turned to face the camera. "We did not kill Sae Niijima."

"We refuse to kill, in fact. It is far more satisfying to see our targets admit to what they have done." Haru's silhouette joined Goro's next, one hand on the handle of the cane. She glared at the camera, fancy hat doing little to soften her expression. "We considered Sae to be the one woman at SIU with something approaching sense."

"But that's a problem, because it gets in the way of their stupid plan." Ryuji punched the banner, making it undulate with his anger. "So, we're going to make sure that her boss, who knew what was going on, tells the truth of what he did."

"Satoru Itou is a despicable man. He has an eye for theatrics when it comes to mourning the death of his subordinate, artfully applying water to make it look like he cried." Yusuke dropped into shot, hand on his katana and exchanging a glance with Goro. "He was celebrating the death the moment the cameras ended. She was a means to an end."

"That would be awful enough, to profit from a murder. But he helped pick her for the death. Because she had been attempting to clean up SIU with a series of complaints." Sumire walked in, looking to the ground before the camera. "The department is a hotbed of false convictions, drugging of suspects and sexual harassment. Sae had filed forty seven letters of complaint. None were responded to."

"Director Itou used the same services that Kunikazu Okumura did! Not only was Sae killed this way, but so were several witnesses in a bribery case." Sophia joined Sumire, her eyes glowing red and irises shaped like knives. "This conspiracy goes further."

"So stay tuned for what comes next and don't change that dial." Futaba popped her head into frame, a wide grin highlighted in her silhouette. "Because we are no where near done."

"We're really sick of a world where those in power do whatever they want to us. Aren't you?" Shiho walked in from off screen, her gun in her hands. "Will you put up with them lying to you? Milking you for money?"

"We know we won't. And that starts tonight." Alice pulled the cane out of the ground with her flesh hand, the flaming hand sparking into existence. "We're going to steal what lets Director Itou justify all of what he does. And he'll prove we aren't lying, when he confesses his crimes with his own mouth."

The screens cut off as one. Yusuke grabbed the signal repeater that Futaba and Sophia designed, tucking it away. "I think that we're ready to end this now."

Alice looked out over the confusion in Shibuya. The muttering. People pulling out their phones to look things up. And the cops all panicking as they glanced around. It was a beautiful sight to see. It wouldn't be enough, but it would feel good. Alice snapped her fingers and they all faded into the Palace.

It was clear Ann didn't expect the blow, because the Palace was the same as always. The hedge maze surrounded them, punctuated with the tide of pressure that every calling card summoned. But they didn't have to witness the feast riding to them or anything similar. Not yet. Futaba's persona roared into existence, the starting gun for the race. "Alright everyone, you've got jobs once the bitch and her dupe show up. For now, the Shadows are flowing back towards the dinner party to protect the guests."

"Good work, Oracle, as always." Alice called out as she placed her self in the middle of the team. Close enough she could flare her hand into the sphere Yusuke mentioned. Alice slowed her pace at the exit, taking a breath. "Alright, time to test this option. Fatale, help us out!"

Alice didn't know if invoking the old code name was right, but with arm raised above her head, the flame began to spin into a disc. The ground shook, the herald of the tide of change. Itou's or Ann's was a fact that Alice wasn't sure of. But either way it would be gory, bloody and upsetting to the team. The disc spun faster, stretching and drooping with gravity into a dome around the team. It was a drain on Alice, like every other big use of the hand. But it was worth it to keep the team's eyes on the prize. Shiho and Ryuji lined up next to her while Haru took Goro and Yusuke to the backline. Sumire and Sophia stood at the front of the bubble, spinning their weapons in hand as they walked forward. "I can hear that you are incinerating the tables around us."

"Impressive, hope it doesn't tucker you out too much." Goro muttered, all bite and all care. In his way. Alice put on a little more speed as she walked, one of Futaba's cameras draped across her neck. "I will say this is wonderful for my blood pressure though."

"It is a pleasing color, green is quite a good choice." Yusuke's pride at his idea working was evident in the way he walked without care, his eyes roaming the dancing flames. "Fatale is an interesting thing to call this shield."

The ground quaked before Alice could explain, the pressure slamming against the dome of flame. They had begun moving up a hill, the route to the treasure would hit a snag in time. But they were past the meal. Past the chefs. This would be the easy part. Futaba's cameras took a picture of everyone, sending a wave of energy that the hand hungered for. "Speed up! Palace ruler appraoching and two signals entered the Palace."

"Made it further than I anticipated, let's go!" Alice dropped the dome, her hand forming again as she swiped it to the side. Itou's shadow stood before them, the chef's outfit tearing itself apart in chunks as the limbs began to push out from the body on extending and segmented steel rods. His back bent backwards at the waist, a perfect ninety degree angle as his hands placed themselves on the ground. His head spun around to look at them, his body turning in place as more limbs sprouted until a mechanical hell spider stood in front of them. "Avenger, tie him up! Lux, lock him down!"

"On it! You have been awful!" Sophia flung out her yo-yo's tangling the legs closest with each. Brutus sent a jolt of electricity into the shadow, locking the limbs in place. The Shadow's mouth whirred, an attempt to open the mouth and speak. "You have said enough for now."

"Exactly." Sumire danced to the side as the Palace shifted. Rolling waves of green grass formed a greenway over the party, the hedgemaze. Makoto crested the hill first, aiming a revolver at the Thieves. "I think we are in the next step."

"Yes, we are." Haru bowed her head to Alice and pointed her axe towards Makoto, her hand on her mask. Goro's gun aimed for the renegade's kneecap. It'd hurt like a bitch. "Mako! You have been deceived!"

Alice took a step back and slammed her foot into Itou's shadow, pinning it to the ground. It struggled against her, metal grinding against itself the moment the passing shock faded from it. "Stay down, if you want to live. Because you know what Ann will do to you if she gets half a shot, don't you?"

Itou's shadow shivered in fear. Sophia's eyes turned into question marks followed by snapping yo-yos and Alice shook her head. He'd betray them in a heartbeat. Makoto answered Haru with a gun shot. Chevette swarmed out, deflecting the bullet into the ground. Goro answered, a thin beam flying across the expanse between them.

Makoto punched it out of the air. Alice had to admit, that the girl was sloppy but powerful. Ann didn't need her good though, she needed her as a distraction and how she acted was reflecting that. Ryuji and Shiho jittered, waiting to leap into action as Yusuke took cautious steps forward towards Makoto. She fired a shot, the bullet cleaved in half with his sword on the quick draw. "I still have more where that came from!"

"Four of them." Yusuke's response was straightforward, same as his slash that Makoto dove out of the way of. "You know, Ann is hiding the truth from you. You hunger for justice and go to devour what waters the crops."

"Shut up." Makoto fired, winging Yusuke's leg as he hopped to the side. Everhard sheathed his blade in ice, turning it into a club he swung for her midsection. She punched the ice and knuckles met blade with sparks flying. "You are all really committed to this deception. We're going to actually change his heart."

"How do you plan on doing that, Mako?" Haru slammed the flat of the axe blade into Makoto's back, the girl gasping as she kicked like a mule and hit Haru in the gut. Ryuji began to run when Alice grabbed his shoulder. Haru stumbled backwards, a manic grin on her face. "You should really answer me with your words. I’m not afraid to beat some sense into you."

"Luna? Ann's somewhere. The Palace keeps shifting to hide her. I'm struggling to keep up." Futaba whispered, then gasped, one of her camera wires flying back into her. A small spurt of blood accompanied it. Alice reached out, slapping a bandage on the wound. Guilt wheeled through her gut. "Well. She's to the east. For now."

"Pull back. No matter what she has to come to us, okay?" Alice whispered and Futaba shook her head. A firm denial, her hair swishing this way and that. "Your persona is you, it takes enough damage you get hurt. Bad. Pull back."

"I can't, Luna. I'm the one who can warn you where she's coming fr-from. I'm scared. But. I can't let her hurt anyone." Futaba's persona retracted another camera, the lens smashed but not detached. She sucked in a breath, gasping for air. "And, she'd kill all of us if I can't track her. East Northeast."

Shiho aimed her gun downrange as Haru's team dodged a wave of cursed energy by the skin of their teeth. Itou's shadow shifted and Sophia dropped her persona on his back, pinning him further with blessed strings. "Let me go, you philistines. The meal has to continue. I need to serve them."

"Shut the fuck up." Ryuji ran after the retreating camera from Futaba, mace raised high. Alice swore and chased after him. "I got her, she can't hurt Fu-Oracle anymore!"

"Damn it, this is the other reason I said to pull back Oracle. Deadeye, either of them get closer? Blow them to kingdom come!" Alice knew that was an order she could count on as Shiho plucked Alice's gun off her belt. She flicked both hammers and inched closer to Futaba. Ryuji stood over a sliced off camera, looking both directions. "Skull, you're in the open!"

"I know that. But she'll have to--" Ryuji was cut short as the bullet pierced his gut, sending him to the ground. He groaned, still alive. "There, found her for you."

"You idiot!" Futaba's voice rang out through her cameras, circling him. Ann's laughter echoed from the rolling hills that began to undulate around them. "She's trying to make it so you can't get out!"

"Figures. I'm not getting trapped again." Alice muttered as she threw healing into Ryuji. The hill closest to them had a slit cut out. A sniper's nest and control center all in one. "Oracle, highlight that hill."

"Ugh, see, worked out." Ryuji picked himself back up, his clothes bloody but a smile on his face. He could have died. But Ann wanted him as bait. She enjoyed playing with her food too much. "Where is she?"

The cameras all swirled around the hill, their lenses reflecting blue flame. Okay, I get it Futaba. "I need to do more. I d-did this to help Alice for helping mom. For trying to u-undo all her mess ups. And now, I can't watch more of this happen!"

"That's right, you realized there was more to this than you thought. That this wasn't just a little story to live through. You want to see what you can do when it all seems lost and move on, don't you?"

The sacrilegious path
Has brought you to the welcoming arms
Of your Sun and her forgiveness
Take this boon and know you have changed.

"What the hell is with you all and these changes!" Ann slammed her way out of the hill, going straight for Alice with her hatchet. Ryuji's mace slammed into the haft. "Hey dude, you don't know how bad this is going to be."

Ann dropped the hatchet to her other hand, swinging it up at him. It'd work if the boy was alone. Alice incinerated it with her hand, the blade falling to the ground as Ann winced. The cameras shifted in the air, growing radio knobs. A static filled the air. "Testing, one two! Morgan, how about this, let's make sure this stays fair!"

"I don't know what you could do. Roark, bury them!" Ann's persona burst into existence, his pickaxe buried into the turf. He pulled back on it only for the static to intensify. The persona's action did nothing. The palace didn't change. "I hate you all."

"Mutual." Alice pulled her mask off, reaching out to Sojiro's place in her heart. The man would love to see her laid low after the stunt at Leblanc. "Chiron!"

A centaur clad in lion furs with a bow made of porcelain landed next to Alice, pulling back a triplet of arrows. They let loose, forcing Roark to smash them from the air. Ryuji and Jessup joined in the barrage with shotgun blasts and wind gusts to keep Ann from getting her footing. "Ann, you ruined everything. For all of us. You didn't have to stay with Kamoshida, but you didn't have to abandon us."

"I told you! I was going to come back when I had the strength! But then little miss perfect had to try and muscle in on my life!" Ann's scream was accompanied with a burst of buckshot that tore away her second hatchet. Alice buried a dagger in her leg, making Ann squeal. Ohhhhh, I missed that noise. Roark swung for Alice's head, a burst of almighty magic exploding in its wake and scattering Alice and Ryuji. "And she got away with all that killing and everyone loves her now. You and Shiho. But you left me all alone."

"Don't you dare claim that we left you alone!" Shiho skidded down the hill, opening fire on Ann. The fusillade kept Ann from doing more than ripping the knife out and jumping backwards. Futaba's radio camera hybrids blasted Ann in the back with a ray, stealing her breath. "You ignored my texts. My calls. All of it! You slapped Alice's hand away. You abused my trust. You let Ryuji think you hated him! Tell us the truth."

"That is the truth, you just didn't try hard enough." Ann tittered, pulling her gun and trying to shoot Shiho. Chiron sent the gun flying with an arrow to the barrel. "You were supposed to need me."

"We did. You made sure we didn't anymore. And what about what you've done to Makoto?" Alice held up her hand to stop Ryuji's charge to put the finishing touches on the fight. She needed Ann to admit it. The bitch might not know Futaba was recording this. "You killed her sister, for what?"

"Yeah, that was just cruel! You were dating her!" Ryuji joined in, the chance to yell a great way to get him on board with a sudden plan change. A part of Alice had assumed that Ann and Makoto would fight together but that was wrong. Like she was all the time with this Ann. "She's going to hate you worse than anybody. Even Alice."

"Who cares? I'm going to have everything I want. Once I get rid of you all. And keeping you all split up and on your toes?" Ann cackled as she hurled the stolen dagger at Alice, Roark deflecting the latest barrage form Shiho. Ann's skin pockmarked with the wounds, lesser than if Shiho had ventilated her skull. Easy, Shiho, I need her still. "Makoto's so easy to aim really. A promise of justice, a lingering finger on the neck. She's already killed and doesn't even know it yet. We 'changed' three people's hearts. Told her all you have to do is kill the Shadow because it poisons them. Yellow eyes are such an icky color, aren't they?"

"Oh, fuck you." Alice had focused on controlling the fight to keep it from getting out of hand. But she and Fatale, couldn't agree with this turn at all. She reached out with flesh and grabbed Ann's neck, squeezing tight. The flames began to crawl over Ann’s body, teasing at the woman’s lips when the murderer dropped a smoke bomb at her feet, followed by a packet of dry ice. The three of them flash froze. Ann hopped backwards, blood dripping while Alice couldn’t move to catch it. It was all ready to end if Ann recovered before Futaba shattered the ice. In the end it was all Ann needed to escape as she ran over the hills again. "Fucker. Alright, Skull and Deadeye get to cover. I need to check on the other team."

"I can--" Ryuji started to move before he teetered over into Shiho's arms. The gunslinger let out a sigh and pulled him into cover. "Shit."

"It's fine. Go force Makoto to have some sense now." Shiho sighed, looking at the blood on the ground. She pushed pills into Ryuji's mouth, then a cup of coffee. "I got him. Just like our last year of middle school."

"Good. Be back soon. You hear rumbling go for the exit." Alice took off, following the retreating camera of Futaba. "How you doing?"

"Good, determination powerup got. They keep trading around Makoto's aggro, mostly Noir. They're grinding each other down. A lot." Futaba's words gave Alice some recompense. If those two were keeping each other busy than Itou was safe. "Any sign of Ann?"

"Yeah, she retreated again. I think that she's realizing she is more and more outmatched." Futaba's camera whipped up and over the last hill on the way back. Makoto's fist glanced off Sumire's rapier, Haru heaving out air as she stumbled to take over watching Itou. "Incoming nuclear bomb, Makoto!"

"What does that mean?" Makoto didn't get much of a chance to figure out what that meant as Alice morphed her hand into a whip, wrapping it around the brawler's leg and pulling. The flames scorched her for a moment but the crack of her skull hitting a plate told Alice that the fight was almost over. Makoto groaned, her body moving in slow motion to rub her skull. "Kill me, I guess."

"Nope. We have bad news for you. You have to live with what has happened." Alice looked to see Yusuke and Goro were gone. Sophia and Haru had Itou pinned. And Sumire's blade was sheathed. "Oracle, you got that recording, right?"

"Yeah. I did. We... we have to tell you when we leave. I'm sorry." Futaba gulped as the boys returned with treasure in hand. A badge saying secretary of the interior. Gross. "We won, right?"

"All but her." Alice muttered and scruffed Makoto before hurling her on her shoulder. "You aren't going to like how this feels. Don't worry, I get it. Intimately."

"I hate you." Makoto whispered, blood soaking into Alice's dress. The flaming hand dissipated, the drain on her energy gone. A clear sign from Fatale. Heal her. And that's what she did. At the door to leave the Palace. Not a moment sooner than the Palace's total collapse.