- 𝐅𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐝 -

Chapter 18

-

"Ah, my apologies- Oh, it's you, Akechi-kun!"
The person looked at the obviously annoyed brown haired detective, who didn't really pay attention to the man at first, but eventually he caught his attention.

What on earth would the therapist do at a police station, after all.

"Uh... Maruki-san, what are you doing here?", he then dared to ask while Akira was still clinging onto his arm.
For some reason Maruki's sight was fixated on where the trickster would be, but then he just took off his glasses to clean them. "Sorry, there was something on my glasses aha"

It made Goro curious, but he just shrugged it off. "So, what's the matter?"

"Oh I was just here to make a statement as well, after all I also got to talk to Kurusu-kun..." the man then replied while smiling, the smile soon fading, although. "I didn't know he was at such a dark state of mind... It must've been hard for him, trying to do the right thing."

That stung bad in both Goro and Akira's hearts. Akechi was very well aware that it wasn't suicide, but nobody else knew that fact, after all. But hearing him say it like that, he just realized how hard all this must have really been for the now 'dead' male. However, Akira was more shaken up because of something else. He remembers the conversation he had with the counselor on the 18th of November very clearly, and he knew that Maruki had already known his identity as phantom thief. Wouldn't he of all people know that he would never commit suicide? And why did his eyes always glance over to him? Was Maruki also able see him? Questions over questions filled the Noiret's dazzled mind.

Everything he remembered, it all felt like just a burning memory now. They had to do something, but he wasn't aware of what they could do to change all this. Well, little did Akira know that the detective already had a plan.

"I'm sorry, but I should get going now.", Maruki then interrupted the wildcards' thoughts with another pleasant smile again. "I wish you the best of luck, Akechi-kun."

Pressing some small little apple juice pack into the detective's hand, he then left into the police station, his sight glancing over to Kurusu during the process again. The apple juice had some small note attached to it, and it seemed like Maruki wanted to chat sometime again. It confused both of them, there was no way that man could see Akira, was there?

- - - - - - - -

Sighing loudly, the two of them then waited at some abandoned alleyway for the rest of the group. Akechi nearly had forgotten to mention where they would meet up, and that definitely was a mistake. Goro knew, those girls, or well, more specifically 𝘈𝘯𝘯, would take centuries to get ready for even just a meeting.

The waiting got slightly awkward, especially since Akira kept on being annoying. Akechi growled. He had never noticed how nerve wrecking the other really was, but maybe he had just never noticed it because he was so caught up in his plans about taking his shitty excuse of a father down. He finally succeeded, but was it truly worth the price? Akira was noble, he was the leader of a group that fought for justice. He was admirable, and he never gave up even after the whole world hated him. The detective would've given anything to be like that.

But he never could. Nobody could change fate, yet somehow the story isn't going like it's supposed to be. Akechi knew of the Velvet Room, and he even knew of this awful game the gods played. No matter how the story would go, one of the two had to 𝘥𝘪𝘦. But maybe... just maybe, there was another way. Maybe there was some way the gods would get tired of toying with some random kids' lives. Just maybe, they could finally live in peace, without sacrifices. Maybe they could be humans. Just maybe... they could learn how to love.

The detective wasn't stupid. He had already figured everything out. He also knew that neither he, nor Akira, were normal. They were just puppets in some game about survival. What if they had just been created to play this stupid game? Akechi was tired of it. And Akira stopped playing this game by not hitting rewind and letting himself die. He must've also been tired. But was he even aware of all that? Taking a look at Akira, he looked like a high beat up mess. He couldn't even remember his own murderer. It was pitiful, to say at the least, so there was no chance in hell he knew about that. But it just made him more guilty. Goro would very well give his own life for Akira's, because Akira had people who cared about him. Unlike Goro.

-

"Sorry we're late!" a familiar voice then rang out. It woke Goro back up from his deep thinking, and Akira, who was looking at his phone to look up the last messages, also fixated his attention on the people who arrived. It were the Phantom Thieves of Hearts.

It was Ryuji's voice, and he came closer to that abandoned alleyway with the others following close behind. "So what's the plan, 𝙙𝙚𝙩𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚?", Morgana then asked, glaring at Akechi. The last word sounded so harsh, it sent Goro a shiver down his spine, but he got himself together, doing his best not to pay attention to Akira during the meeting. If he would just start talking to thin air, they would think he was crazy! "I want you to infiltrate a palace with me. It'll be a lot to ask for... But please...", the detective then looked down, his eyes starting to look watery. It was rare to see him like that, but the all empathetic phantom thieves couldn't just turn down such an offer. It would help bring their leader back, so they couldn't say no.

Not everyone of them looked so sure, especially considering that Kasumi had never taken down a palace before. How would she even fight?

-

They had no clue that she already 𝘩𝘢𝘥 an awakening. But well, she wasn't even aware that Morgana could really talk. She always just figured they would talk to him out of fun.

So she was was surely the most shocked out of everyone as they had entered this 'palace' the detective talked about.

"M-monster cat!" she yelped out at the sight of Mona rather quietly, "and it talks--"

"I AM NOT A CAT!"

Queen then just sighed before glancing over at the large thing in front of them. "So this is it, huh?", she asked Crow, who also had a different outfit on. In all honesty, it didn't surprise them that it was all black.

Crow's breath hitched slightly as he tried to ignore Akira's horrified look on his face near him.

"Yes... The 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘺 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘭."