All His Masks: A Persona 5 Fanfiction

Chapter One

(A/N: Hello there! This is my first fanfiction I'm ever uploading for the public to see, and the first serious piece of writing I've made minus essays and stuff for English class in quite a while. Sorry if I messed up anything grammar-wise or if the dialogue sounds awkward in any way. I tried my best, and I hope you all enjoy!)

          Akira Kurusu was the leader of the infamous group called "The Phantom Thieves." He was the confident head of the team who wasn't afraid of anything, who took the abuse and torture in that interrogation room underground all in stride. He was that timid transfer student who never spoke and had a criminal record. Classmates would say, "I heard he carries a knife around." "Don't get too close, he might attack you." He was the one for his friends to lean on when they had problems. Futaba and her social anxiety, Ryuji and the track team, Makoto and her sister; he knew everything. He had a different personality for every person. A different mask, per se. He didn't even know who the person in the mirror was, if he stared for too long, but he was okay with it. As long as the others were fine. 

        That's the reason Akira didn't understand why his teammates were treating him differently after Niijima's palace. He had doctored each personality to be pristine for each person, and when his friends started to almost pity him... he didn't like it at all. He wanted everything to stay perfect and for everyone to be normal. He started drifting away from his friends and stopped telling Morgana things, hoping that it would help in some way. Maybe if he left them for a bit, they would forget about any mistakes he made with his personalities, and when he came back again everything would be okay. It only made his friends worry for him more, though...

        "We're here!"
        The team of Phantom thieves entered the Sakura residence, minus Akira. Futaba was already there, awaiting for them to arrive. For whatever reason, she seemed set on not having Akira know what they were talking about or why they were meeting up, which was why they were meeting up at her house instead of the cafe.
        "So Futaba, what'd you wanna tell us? And why are we here without our leader?" Ryuji casually asked, quickly making himself comfortable in an armchair. The others make themselves at home as well, leaning against the back of the couch and the rest either scattering around the room or sitting next to Futaba on the couch. They all seemed a bit on edge, contrasting their normal casual and inviting demeanor. The orange haired girl placed her phone face-down on the arm of the couch and scanned each person in the room.
        "Well... I'm worried about Akira," She muttered, picking at the sleeve of her shirt. "He's barely talked to me since we got through Makoto's sister's palace..."
        The group exchanges glances with each other, realizing that all of them were concerned about their leader's silence both in the group chat and in reality. Morgana swiftly jumps into Futaba's lap and tilts his head slightly to the left.
        "He doesn't talk to me either, even though I literally live with him!"
        "Really? I thought you, out of everyone, would know what was up with him," Makoto mentions with a furrowed brow. The team shares a brief moment of silence before Futaba nervously speaks up again.
        "Well, I noticed how weird he was acting, and I sort of checked his name in the Nav. Just out of curiosity."
        Everyone stares at her, seemingly waiting for her to continue, but when she doesn't, Ann speaks up.
        "And was there a hit?"
        Futaba lowers her head, drawing a circle with her finger on the back of her phone. Strands of her long hair fall to hide her face as everyone waits in anticipation, but her silence was almost an answer in itself.
        "Yeah."